I appreciated the effort, but strings do make a difference. If they're not both kitted up with the same strings (fresh) then it's not that accurate of a comparison.
Well - after trying enough basses, I'm pretty well convinced that when you pay more for a bass, you're not necessarily paying for the sound. I recently got a very cheapo bass. Right next to it was a $1,400 bass. Not way high end, but pricey enough that someone would expect at least some difference in sound. I was a bit shocked when I played them back to back - the sound was that close. What wasn't that close, was the overall build quality, and the fit and finish. The feel of the cheap bass was good for me though. That combined with the satisfactory sound was enough for me to walk out with it. Of course, it has little to no resale value, but I don't have any plans to get rid of it.
