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Graduation gift??
- Thread starter AN4E
- Start date
Have you played any of the basses on your list?
Don't go by anything but how a bass feels and sounds to you.
Guitar Center is not going to have too wide a selection of high end basses to try - some Fenders and Musicman, an MTD, Warwick, and so on.
Here's a crazy thought - find the closest bass shop to you with a really good selection of high end bases (Bass Central in Orlando, The Perfect Bass in New Orleans, Atlanta Bass Gallery...). Take a few hundred of that $4000 and travel to the shop then play some really good stuff before laying down $3K or $4K.
It'll be the best few hundred you could possibly spend to help make the right choice.
Don't go by anything but how a bass feels and sounds to you.
Guitar Center is not going to have too wide a selection of high end basses to try - some Fenders and Musicman, an MTD, Warwick, and so on.
Here's a crazy thought - find the closest bass shop to you with a really good selection of high end bases (Bass Central in Orlando, The Perfect Bass in New Orleans, Atlanta Bass Gallery...). Take a few hundred of that $4000 and travel to the shop then play some really good stuff before laying down $3K or $4K.
It'll be the best few hundred you could possibly spend to help make the right choice.
If I were in your shoes i'd do a USA Lakland. Id also look at Sadowsky, Mike Lull, Zon and Modulus.
I would say upgrade your amp, maybe some Markbass stuff, but I'm a freshman in college right now, and I have some advice: SAVE, SAVE, SAVE!!!! As sweet as it would be to be the freshman who busts out a Rickenbacker or Lakland or what have you, having money is much better. College is expensive! I'm not paying my own tuition because my parents are blessed to pay for it, but spending money/emergency fund is non-existent on my part.
So, I suggest a nice new amp (maybe an Ampeg rig) and saving as much as you can. Gear doesn't mean everything! I'm playing a Squier Affinity Jazz V and Crate BFX100. You don't want to have $2,000+ worth of gear sitting, vulnerable, in your dorm room. Please heed my advice!!
So, I suggest a nice new amp (maybe an Ampeg rig) and saving as much as you can. Gear doesn't mean everything! I'm playing a Squier Affinity Jazz V and Crate BFX100. You don't want to have $2,000+ worth of gear sitting, vulnerable, in your dorm room. Please heed my advice!!
Put it in a savings account (you have an MTD) against the day you realize stuff costs money and they stop paying for it.
Or get the Lakland and hope it will feed, clothe and house you.
Or get the Lakland and hope it will feed, clothe and house you.
thanks for the input guys! Agreed i have some wickedly awesome parentsDefiantly will look into some custom basses
Im not sure what kind of wood combos and things would get the best sound but gonna be hitting the web and doing some serious research!
I suggest giving a luthier a call and asking him. Believe it or not, not everything on the internet is accurate.
Do a search for Stambaugh designs and give Chris a call. Even if you don't end up ordering a bass from him, he's really a wealth of knowledge.
Probably the Lakland, but it really depends on where you are going from here. Are you off to college? Having a valuable bass with you during the college years isn't a great thing. Trust me, been there, and it is just another big thing to worry about. If I had to do it over again, I would have left the Tobias at home and bought a beater. But if you do take it with you, look into insurance - it should be covered under your parents' homeowner's policy, even if you are away at college in a dorm.
Straight up 2K, I'd go travel. There are other times when you can obtain a bass, but life experiences, those don't come too often.
Straight up 2K, I'd go travel. There are other times when you can obtain a bass, but life experiences, those don't come too often.
+1 on the beater @ college!
Maybe grab a beater and then add all the little bells and whistles you can imagine w/ mods. Save the rest until you KNOW exactly what you want. I just finished the college tour, and there is no chance I'd have taken a $2,000 bass out of my bedroom, much less into a dorm...
Maybe grab a beater and then add all the little bells and whistles you can imagine w/ mods. Save the rest until you KNOW exactly what you want. I just finished the college tour, and there is no chance I'd have taken a $2,000 bass out of my bedroom, much less into a dorm...
I've heard too many stories of nice things getting stolen out of college dorm rooms to keep a $2k bass in one, unless I could afford to pay someone to sit there, watch it, and shoot whoever (besides me) came near it.
This was my feeling... all the time! I didn't want anyone to know what I had, so even practicing with it was a chore. Always in a hardshell case, always in the back of the closet, always covered and masked with something else. Now, things are all over on stands or on walls - easy to pick up and play at anytime.
If someone knew what I had at the time, it would be stolen easily and taken to a pawn shop or sold elsewhere. Scary thoughts. I'd go with a classic Fender P or J with lots of age, much older than you. Not only would it appreciate over time, but it would also look like a beater to others. The scratches would have already happened, so no worries there.
Probably the best suggestion so far.
Buy several good basses that can do different things rather than one outstanding bass that can only do one.
+1 for Valenti! Very nice custom bass set up for you specifically and I'm sure they would have great resale value here on TB. Sadowsky would be good too. You might take a look at Mike Lull as well.
