A bass is no different than anything else in the marketplace. As with anything else, improvements get progressively smaller and the cost exponentially higher. There's a line that has to be drawn in term of diminished returns, but that line is highly personal and subjective. Some will find a Kia to be their perfect car, while others will find value in an Audi or BMW. No one in their right mind will tell you that a Kia is as nice as an Audi or BMW. Just as no one will tell you a MIM Fender is as nice as an NYC Sadowsky. Is the cost difference worth it? There is no one size fits all answer. Only you can decide that. And really? People probably care less about your decision than you think.
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Expensive vs inexpensive basses
- Thread starter TKnights
- Start date
Have you tried bypassing the preamp to hear what the pickups, by themselves, sound like?
I think the car (vehicle) analogies fall a little short when speaking of basses.
And given the choice of having a Kia or a BMW, I can't think of anyone who would chose the Kia over the BMW. Do you?
The way I see it, car provides a service and is less of a tool for creativity.
The good news is that no matter what is important for you in a bass, you can find it and buy it if you have the money.
But even better than that, if you have the creativity and have something to say musically, nowadays us bass players don't need to spend large amounts for a quality instrument.
And given the choice of having a Kia or a BMW, I can't think of anyone who would chose the Kia over the BMW. Do you?
The way I see it, car provides a service and is less of a tool for creativity.
The good news is that no matter what is important for you in a bass, you can find it and buy it if you have the money.
But even better than that, if you have the creativity and have something to say musically, nowadays us bass players don't need to spend large amounts for a quality instrument.
The solution is to pay $10000 for a Squier. I think that would satisfy everyone? Certainly Fender would be pleasd.
I would rather have a Kia than BMW. In Serbia, registering a BMW is costly as hell, and registering a Kia would be much less costly. Likewise, Kia is very likely using way less fuel, replacement parts are far cheaper, etc.
So yes, I would rather have a Kia than a BMW, even if I could get either one for free, because the BMW is going to cost way more to maintain. Kia will do all the chores I need a car to do. If I did street racing, I'd want a BMW, but I don't do street racing so it's completely unnecessary.
Sure.
But what I was trying to say is that if you were going to be gifted a car by a wealthy relative,
generally speaking, I don't think anyone would chose the Kia over the BMW.
Anyway, I don't think car analogies work with basses as stated above.
But what I was trying to say is that if you were going to be gifted a car by a wealthy relative,
generally speaking, I don't think anyone would chose the Kia over the BMW.
Anyway, I don't think car analogies work with basses as stated above.
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I have owned and gigged with
Warwick Thumb (My all time favorite) (Sold for a flat screen TV when I bought my second house)
Gibson Thunderbird/w EMG's(Still own - Anniversary gift)
Kubicki Factor (Sold for my Warwick)
2 Vintage 78 Jazz basses
1978 Musicman Stingray
G&L L-1000
Vintage 64 Jazz bass
Epiphone Les Paul bass
62 reissue Jazz
90's US P-Bass
Tele headstock P-bass (built from parts)
Steinberger
USA Spector
Korean Spector
2 BC Rich Innovators
Aria Explorer (second bass)
Washburn P-bass (First bass)
Heavy Ibanez fretless neck through active bass from the 80's?
German stand-up bass
Rickenbacker 4001(Paid $275 with a broken neck)
BC Rich Warlock - That was $10 at a garage sale - Don't judge
Robelli 8 String (Recent - most fun I've had playing bass in a while)
Yamaha BB 404 (Current main bass) $120 Upgraded with EMG's
and a bunch more I'm still forgetting
I actually played the Yamaha BB404 years ago when it came out as I was picking up my Warwick. I couldn't believe what a great playing and sounding bass it was. It was extremely lively even when not plugged in. The bass is alder like my 64 Jazz was. The parts are serviceable and the bass is a workhorse. I have a nice set of Schaller pegs that I could switch to but the bass functions fine the way it is. I decided to buy it when I realized that paying for my kids hockey was winning and I had less time and interest in playing out anyhow. As life moved forward and I had kids and responsibilities outside of music (I just play for fun now) priorities changed. But I still wanted good gear to play through that sounded and played well. And at least for a while I thought maybe someday I might want to go play a show again. (Then I saw the summer hockey bills...) I recently decided to downsize and downgrade/upgrade my gear again with amps but that's a whole other story! As long as you have something that makes you happy - I guess that's all that matters. I've found that no matter what bass I play and what amp I use, I usually sound like me anyhow.
Stock photo
Warwick Thumb (My all time favorite) (Sold for a flat screen TV when I bought my second house)
Gibson Thunderbird/w EMG's(Still own - Anniversary gift)
Kubicki Factor (Sold for my Warwick)
2 Vintage 78 Jazz basses
1978 Musicman Stingray
G&L L-1000
Vintage 64 Jazz bass
Epiphone Les Paul bass
62 reissue Jazz
90's US P-Bass
Tele headstock P-bass (built from parts)
Steinberger
USA Spector
Korean Spector
2 BC Rich Innovators
Aria Explorer (second bass)
Washburn P-bass (First bass)
Heavy Ibanez fretless neck through active bass from the 80's?
German stand-up bass
Rickenbacker 4001(Paid $275 with a broken neck)
BC Rich Warlock - That was $10 at a garage sale - Don't judge
Robelli 8 String (Recent - most fun I've had playing bass in a while)
Yamaha BB 404 (Current main bass) $120 Upgraded with EMG's
and a bunch more I'm still forgetting
I actually played the Yamaha BB404 years ago when it came out as I was picking up my Warwick. I couldn't believe what a great playing and sounding bass it was. It was extremely lively even when not plugged in. The bass is alder like my 64 Jazz was. The parts are serviceable and the bass is a workhorse. I have a nice set of Schaller pegs that I could switch to but the bass functions fine the way it is. I decided to buy it when I realized that paying for my kids hockey was winning and I had less time and interest in playing out anyhow. As life moved forward and I had kids and responsibilities outside of music (I just play for fun now) priorities changed. But I still wanted good gear to play through that sounded and played well. And at least for a while I thought maybe someday I might want to go play a show again. (Then I saw the summer hockey bills...) I recently decided to downsize and downgrade/upgrade my gear again with amps but that's a whole other story! As long as you have something that makes you happy - I guess that's all that matters. I've found that no matter what bass I play and what amp I use, I usually sound like me anyhow.
Stock photo
Unless I plan to sell it right away, I would never chose the BMW, since it will cost ME more in the end and I am as far from a car enthusiast as it could possibly get.
Well, yeah, that was kind of the point of my post as well. An alembic doesn't cost more to maintain although it's going to be incomparably better than a $50 P bass copy.
I swapped the Bartolinis out of my Cort for Seymour Duncans.
I would start by playing the bass unplugged and hear how it responds. It it's good that way then I'd think about pickups, but even then its a bit of a gamble. The right pickups in the right position....
I swapped the Bartolinis out of my Cort for Seymour Duncans.
I would start by playing the bass unplugged and hear how it responds. It it's good that way then I'd think about pickups, but even then its a bit of a gamble. The right pickups in the right position....
Which SD's did you install and why weren't you happy with the Barts? The Barts on my BTB sound more than good enough for my current level of playing.
I play my basses unplugged all the time. The Yamaha seems to feel and sound great unplugged but could use a little more "meat" in the sound. Not totally sure because I've not yet been in a situation where I could "let it loose", but in the same situations my BTB and MIM Fender just have this fundamental sound that I prefer.
The Barts on the Cort seemed to have phase cancellation issues in some settings. To be honest, I wonder if they were faulty.
I went for a Basslines pickup that was active and fairly hi fi specifically to make the bass different (my main bass is a Precision). I tend to mainly use the neck pickup, dialling in a bit of bridge pickup to get tonal variation.
I see. I'm not that sophisticated tonally yet. I know what I like and what I find lacking. And strings make so much of a difference. I was going to return the Yamaha- and then I changed the strings from D'Addario XL's to DR Pure Blues and suddenly I liked the tone. Then I switched to NYXL's and liked it even better. At some point the pickups may have to be upgraded, but right now it's got a different sound than my BTB or Fender or Squier.
I’m not all that sophisticated either. The Cort is the only time I have upgraded pickups.
That supports my theory that a more affordable bass is less expensive than an expensive bass
Ok, I’ll bite. Gets what?
His post talks about spending twice as much as he needs to to get the job done. Which is fine if that’s what he wants to do and he has the cash, but so what?
For many years all I had to play out with was a cheap 1967 Rickenbacker 4005WB, it saw duty from college dive bars to large festivals. What was I to do, it was all I had?
You're lucky you survived! Let it be a warning to others. ; )
