Cheap, but good Jazz Bass ?

[jnewmark]

There is also an Indian hardy and you know what you get with both together right?

Yes, another fine mess you've gotten me in to !

 

[jnewmark]

There are plenty of Squier VM J's at musicgoround in your state.

Last time I checked locally, there were none, but that was about a month ago.

 

[b_carville]

Bacchus is a great choice but the shipping from Japan will be at least $100.VSN Guitars in Canada has much cheaper shipping & are the only North American dealer I know of.
For really cheap I've had very good luck with the Xaviere J & P from Guitar Fetish.Alder body,nice neck & GFS pickups. I think they sound better than most Squiers & MIM's. The tuners & bridge are a little cheezy but do their job just fine. Seems they really stepped up the quality control.They run about $189 & shipping.Been gigging mine quite a bit & they both sound good with TI flats. The J sounds fine with no mods but a string change.
Just my 2 cents.

 

[ATLbassist]

I'd second the recommendation for an SX bass. Laura Lee from Khruangbin plays a pickup-swapped SX with flats and it sounds pretty nice:



And some gear talk:

 

[LadyLoveStingRay5]

Find one of these.

Squier Classic Vibe Jazz Bass '60s Inca Silver

 

[matante]

I'd second the recommendation for an SX bass. Laura Lee from Khruangbin plays a pickup-swapped SX with flats and it sounds pretty nice:



And some gear talk:

One of my favorite current bands. I've seen them in concert twice, and going to again in a few weeks.

 

[mdogs]

Here's the deal. I already own a '98 MIA Fender Jazz, and a RW Jazz. Both have nickel rounds on them, and I use them both on live gigs, to the point where I don't want to change any mojo about them. The last couple of years, I've been doing more studio work, and have been asked to bring a bass that has Flats, for I do mostly Blues/Soul stuff when I'm there. So, I thought I would try to find a cheap, but good, playable, passive, Jazz , 4 string, Rosewood neck, for the studio stuff, and put some LaBella's on it.

I've been checking around, and it seems like a VM Squier might be a good choice, but I wanted to throw it out there to the Talk Bass community and find out what other choices might be better. I'm not opposed to buying used, as long as everything checks out on the bass, and I'm not necessarily stuck on a Fender, but I would rather find a Fender as I am used to playing them. Budget is right around $ 300 - $400. Before you suggest it, a P bass is not an option - been there , done that.

So, what else is out there ? What model/year Squires should I look for ? What other, cheap but good Jazz basses are you guys using ? Any inherent problems, issues, etc. with certain models ? All comments welcome !

Do what I do. I have no use for flats, can't stand them, but I have one guy who wants new Chromes on everything i record for him and one only one specific bass. So I just take the strings off and put the new Chromes on for the session. When i am done, I take them off, throw them away and put the other strings back on.

 

[TrustRod]

I have 2 Fernandes J clones. 1 is MIJ from the '90s and the other is made elsewhere. Both look just like a J except for the headstock shape. The non MIJ is ok, better than my MIM Fender though. The MIJ was made at the same time Fernandes was making Fenders and it feels like a good well selected Fender. Both sound exactly like a Fender J. The models I have are the LEB J4 & LEB J5.

Yamaha made some great J's if you can handle the different look.

 

[somebrains]

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[Kukulkan61]

Just put flats on one of your jazz basses..that mojo stuff is just urban legend...

 

[mcrawfordmusic]

You're on the right track for sure.

I'll just add that it may be worth keeping an eye out for some old Greco or Ibanez jazz copies. Great bang for buck!

 

[MCF]

You're on the right track for sure.

I'll just add that it may be worth keeping an eye out for some old Greco or Ibanez jazz copies. Great bang for buck!

Nicest Squier J I've played was a James Johnston sig. They went out of production a couple years ago. It had standard 7250s, but I'm pretty sure flats would work well on it. They come up here used once in awhile. I think there's even a club thread about them.

 

[SBassman]

Done!

Squier Contemporary Jazz Bass - Ocean Blue Metallic

For the win.

 

[jnewmark]

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Some nice ones there. Wish my local store had some, but no luck there.

 

[tpaul]

Some of the cheaper jazz basses have necks that are too thin for my comfort. If you are used to Fender necks and you are considering something like a Fernandes, you may want to play before you buy, to get a sense of what the neck feels like. SX tends to have fatter necks, Ibanez is typically thin, etc.

 

[saabfender]

I sold my MIA Jazz that I bought new and played for 10 years but had never been thrilled with. It was fine. Good. You know. Did well on its sale.

Bought a MIM P Bass that really turned me on which prompted the sale of the MIA. Really prefer the MIM Fenders. Have three now: 2 Ps and a fretless Jazz.

Even with mods, I'm into each for about $500. Probably never buy another MIA Fender. I can put something together I find compelling for much less.

Yearwise, I find 1994-97 to be where I've had most luck.

 

[keith1r]

Mij jazz with Thomastik Infeld flats

 

[SpruceApple]

Late 80s to mid-90s Peavey Foundation with the Super Ferrite pickups. They are easy to find with a hard case for $200 to $300 and fabulous. Made in USA. Quality for cheap.

 

[overit]

I'd try a Bacchus Global line.

 

[mcrawfordmusic]

Last time I checked locally, there were none, but that was about a month ago.

This popped up in the classifieds...
For Sale - 1989 Squier jazz bass MIK E-series