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Good Brands at a Good Price.

T

Toboe

Oct 7, 2009
13
0
#1
Hi, I'm currently new too Bass and am looking to Buy an Amp and a Bass. The budget is $1000 or less (Less would be good). I want something thats Good I don't want to be wasting money on something that sounds terrible. I would Like The Amp To Be a Stack Like a Head and a Cab. And the Bass to Be 4 String. I just need these to Be good sounding and under the Budget. Thanks


~Toboe~
 
#4
First, try to get someone with more experience than yourself to help you shop on a budget.

Basses on the cheap: Squier VM and CV series are very good value for the money. You can get a good looking, good playing, good enough sounding bass to gig with. Quality varies from bass to bass, so it helps to have an experienced player with you. There are always some available on the used market as well. Stay away from the Affinity series - they are cheaper for a reason. Ibanez also makes quality instruments for many different budgets.

Amps - If you go used, people are practically giving away Hartke half stacks these days. People tend to love 'em or hate 'em, but it is an option on a budget. Gallien Krueger offers some inexpensive package deals through Musicians Friend/Guitar Center. Ashdown is also making some very affordable options these days for half stacks as well.

In the end - try before you buy, and let your ears and your hands tell you what is right for you.
 
#7
If you want to be able to play with a drummer, a 300 watt head with a 212 or 410 would be great. Keep in mind you can start with a decent head and a small 112 and add another 12 later, for example. IMO a decent bass with a good setup should be your 1st priority, however.
 
#10
-Sevenyearsdown- I won't be doing any gigs and the Music would vary alot. I think You may have taken the wrong idea of Me. Currently I havn't played bass before and am a drummer that wants too make something of Bass. I won't be doing any gigs or anything and The Music I will play will be covers for a while. You might think I'm a little older than what I am. Lol. I havent played bass before thats why I need some quality stuff with everything i need so I won't be learning bass with dodgey equipment. I will Be playing with My local Youth group but I won't need My own amp for that. I will just need an amp for Myself at home and to jam with a few friends. Does that help at all?
 
#14
Seems like a good med sized combo amp might work for your present needs. All in one piece, usually have built in effects and features like CD/headphone aux hookups to practice at home with headphones or external music source.

My little Fender Rumble 100 works great for all of this and I also hook it up to my PC to play along with my saved music. I've even gigged this little (but kinda heavy) amp outdoors with no PA support in a small 3 piece, alt country group.

There are alot better/nicer/powerful combo amps out there but I got this one used like new very cheap. Check out some online shops for all the different gear to consider:
MusiciansFriend.com, Music123.com, Zzounds.com; click on bass gear to checkout the bass gear.
Good luck, keep us posted.
 
#19
My personal input:

DONT BUY THE CHEAPEST BASS YOU CAN. You can work around any defects in craftsmanship in a shoddy instrument, or you can just play a good instrument. I've been cut moving around the neck on my friends' low end Ibanez bass by poorly placed frets. Same thing on his Squire PBass. The last thing you want is for the instrument to frustrate you like the cheap lines I have played did.

Also, you can think of musical gear as an investment, at least the good stuff. If you do throw down any money for a little combo and a Squire, remember that those are yours forever and no one would ever be stupid enough to even pay you half of what you just paid for it. This isn't that they are bad, but the resale is. I don't know if you are only spending a $1000 because you just want to dabble or its all you have to your name, but if you buy a bass on the cheap that you can always sell again at that price or even a profit, you can't loose.

I say get the best used bass within your budget, get a used combo or halfstack on craigslist, and for +/-$1000 you should have a great set up for someone who doesnt really play the bass =p
 
#20
personally, id say spend $900 on a good Fender P-bass (used) because theres no amp on the planet that can make a crappy instrument sound like a good one...get a good bass ! a precision bass is the very first electric, horizontal bass guitar. you cant go wrong with a fender precision bass. try an american '62 re-issue p-bass and take it from there.

just get a small, cheap practice amp to get by until you need to upgrade. it sounds like you dont need alot of amp just yet. a mexican, japanese, or korean bass isnt going to be worth much if you decide to sell it later, but an american fender will always be worth something, plus it will have a decent sound and good playability. i started out with a cheap bass and a cheap amp long ago. all that is long gone, but i still have my very first decent bass after 20+ years...which happens to actually be a '62 re-issue p-bass, heh. its as solid as the day i bought it. its not my main instrument but ill never get rid of it
 

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