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First bass -- Ibanez, Squier, Cort or ESP
- Thread starter Fela
- Start date
Still Ibanez for me, I have had Squier guitars not basses and have to say they were pretty poor detail wise, things like body routing was sloppy, frets not great, finish not that great, set ups poor, ripples and body joins under the paint very obvious, I know you get what you pay for but I would say Ibanez are a better bet for quality over Squier any day .
Oh, the devotion of the Squier faithful to their beloved cheap-o's. Have you guys registered as a cult yet?
I own all sorts of basses, from cheap to mid-price ($1500), so I'm not exactly clueless about lower-priced instruments. I bought my son a $75 Harmony P-bass clone when he was in middle school. Worked ok as a learner instrument; eventually he moved on to better stuff, which is an understandable progression of things. And I know this: every Squier I've played reminds me of that Harmony. Not necessarily bad, but beginner stuff...
Said before, now again: if you are content with a Squier, own it, play it, sing it's praises all you want. It's still an Asian import generic version of the real thing. Otherwise, Fender might as well shut down MIA, MIM, MIJ, & just stamp their name on your beloved Squiers. They won't, because Squier's aren't, & never will be... ...and those who claim otherwise are the ones that are clueless...
As usual, people like you who have no facts to back up their side of the debate end up resorting to insults.
The GSR necks are not very thin actually. More like a P bass neck. It's the Soundgears that are small and fast.
Asking the internet "which one?" isn't really the right question. You can go to a store and try them all out to make your own decision. What you should ask is "what else is in this price range that gets you a good bass for the low price?"
If I had to start over I'd get a gsr200 again. Except I'd try and find a used one for 1/3 as much and save up more money for a better rig than some dinky practice combo amp. The practice amp GC sold me, while suitable for practicing in a bedroom or w/e, did not suit my needs at all. Within a month I picked up a used peavey 215 cab and mark 3 amp at a pawn shop.
Fact: No Fender on the headstock; it's labeled Squier, Fender's second line, like Epiphone to Gibson, or LTD to ESP: not as good as; not worthy of; almost as good as...otherwise it would be a Fender/Gibson/Esp, etc.
Not a fact: your opinion of your Squier. Nor your opinon of "people like me"...you have no idea of "people like me"...other than I don't drink the kool-aid that you and your fellow Squier devotee's serve.
And who started the namecalling/insults with "clueless"?
"Facts" according to your opinion: not fact. Therefore, name calling.
Your Squier is just the best...Have another swig of kool-aid, Joe...
MIMs have been mentioned, I have a MIM Precision and on the face of it, it looks a great bass but delve deeper and you can find the cost cuts, I recently fitted a new pick guard (black pearl) and removing the guard reveals some very sloppy body routing, looks like it was done with a hammer and chisel 
, not accurate and very badly finished, the paint has not been applied properly within the routing holes, nit-picking I know but these are not low end budget basses, so if a £500 MIM is not great then what is a £250 Squier going to be like ?
, not accurate and very badly finished, the paint has not been applied properly within the routing holes, nit-picking I know but these are not low end budget basses, so if a £500 MIM is not great then what is a £250 Squier going to be like ?
MIMs have been mentioned, I have a MIM Precision and on the face of it, it looks a great bass but delve deeper and you can find the cost cuts, I recently fitted a new pick guard (black pearl) and removing the guard reveals some very sloppy body routing, looks like it was done with a hammer and chisel
Sorry to hear you got a counterfeit Fender. Here's the routing inside what you think must be a lower-class Squier::
I cannot see any chisel and hammer marks. Can you?
PS: that little piece of brown wood is a custom part by me, not Squier.
8953 - You've drunk your own Kool-Aid. I know this because you've made the classic mistake that all narrow-minded people make: You assume that taste can be measured objectively. You say that MIA Fender-brand Fenders are FACTUALLY BETTER than Squiers and maybe you can point to stats and figures that would indicate that they have different qualities... but since when does that equal "better" when "better" is subjective and relative to the perception of the individual?
You can measure a lot of things numerically but there is no such thing as better or worse when it comes to taste. Period. There's only different perspectives.
You can measure a lot of things numerically but there is no such thing as better or worse when it comes to taste. Period. There's only different perspectives.
I think I have a pretty good grasp as to fact vs opinion, and I have stated to the others involved in debate/discussion that they were entitled to their opinion. Where I have a problem is where their opinion becomes their "fact" that I must now refute. And that I am "clueless" to not agree with thier opinion-turned-fact.
Here are facts: FMIC considers Squiers their second line. Not worthy of the name Fender. This, from the Fender/Squier website:
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"To maintain and control costs over the years, Squier instruments have been produced in several nations, including Japan, Korea, India, China, Indonesia and Mexico. While the brand has produced its share of innovative designs over the past 25 years, its main focus and most successful approach has always been to be the “value brand” alternative to its big brother, Fender."
What's "better" for someone is entirely subjective, & everyone's entitled to their opinion, and how high to run up the credit card to acquire the object of their desires. But the Squier devotee's get all defensive when anyone dares to criticize their brand of choice. I've played them, even owned them, & have never been excited by any that I've had my hands on. That is my opinion, & will not change. You can call that narrow minded if you wish, but when I choose to play/support other brands in the lower-price registers, I'm entitled to my opinion, too. And to express it here. Plus, I play real Fenders, and am satisfied with them also. So for me, Squier is the odd-man-out. Again, opinion, yours may vary. I came to this thread to express my opinion of the ESP/LTD Vintage 204, which is ESP's version of the Squier line, of which I own a copy, and that I find superior to any Squier I've ever played. You previously referred to this bass favorably, so on that small detail, we agree...
Just over here snooping from the DB side; had to weigh in on this. Everything said above is true, but so what? When I gigged regularly on bass guitar, it was with a '64 Fender Jazz, undeniably the real deal (mine was even that Olympic white color they're doing on the Squiers). After many years away from electric, I purchased one of those I-can't-believe-it's-that-cheap Squier 60s Vibe Jazz basses. It's not a Fender, but man... a great bass for the money. So much better than the Squiers from back in my day. This is a totally gig-worthy bass for even a gear snob like me. I know how a *real* Fender J is supposed to behave, and this little bass comes real close. For the money, it's unbeatable. Yeah it's an import; yeah the poly finish is shiny and annoying, but close your eyes and play the thing. I've played *many* Fender Jazz basses over the years that weren't as nice out of the box. Truth.
And there will always be a market for the real deal--both new and vintage. Fender has their act together, and the Squier line is the "starter drug" for potential lifetime customers. Great stuff in my opinion, and I'm a major snob when it comes to Jazz basses.
That's my .02--back to the DB side for me. ;-)
--Steve
P.S. Here's that 1964. Miss it badly!
+1 Stev187
I'll jump in here too. I have a '72 Jazz which is a MIA Fender. I also have a Squier AFN P that I modded the crap out of. I love the squier, and will put it up agaisnt VM's, CV's, and Fenders. Sure there's some differences between a squier and fender, common sense will tell you that. But the question is, is there $900 worth of difference? Is so, someone please explain, because I can't see it.
I'll jump in here too. I have a '72 Jazz which is a MIA Fender. I also have a Squier AFN P that I modded the crap out of. I love the squier, and will put it up agaisnt VM's, CV's, and Fenders. Sure there's some differences between a squier and fender, common sense will tell you that. But the question is, is there $900 worth of difference? Is so, someone please explain, because I can't see it.
My MIM is not counterfiet, it is a genuine bass, I guess you get some good and some bad eh, however, despite the not so good routing, it does play pretty good
My MIM is not counterfiet, it is a genuine bass, I guess you get some good and some bad eh, however, despite the not so good routing, it does play pretty good
Do you have any pictures of that bad routing job?
Sometimes "almost as good" is good enough. These major brands' secondary product lines are still decent instruments.
You're not ALWAYS getting the best quality by buying Fender/Gibson/ESP. You'll find lemons as well as just poor design choices from time to time.
thanks alot guys..i'll look into the squier
This is what it can look like with a small amount of $ :::
