Guitarist selecting first Bass

[lolmont]

A lot of guitarist do better with a short scale.
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It's a good bass for the price.

 

[pat5150]

I'm a guitarist with my first bass. I've got an SX precision bass with P-J pickups. In the store, I liked the J bass neck more, being narrow and all. Never tried a shorter scale bass. Anyway, now I'm completely comfortable with my knockoff P-bass. Feels absolutely natural and a good fit for me. I think a person can adapt to about anything, so just go with what feels and sounds good to you.

 

[Malak the Mad]

In an attempt to kludge many suggestions together into one package, see if you can find a Squier Vintage Modified Jaguar SS (short scale) to try out. Hopefully wherever you're going has one so you can see if it's to your taste.

1. Short scale neck: closer to that of a six-stringer in size and weight.

2. Precision/Jazz pickup configuration: capable of a great variety of tones.

3. Budget: goes for about $180, brand new.

The non-short scale Squier Jaguars are a bit (or a lot, depending on who you ask) beefier in weight and sound, while sporting the slimmer Jazz neck. In your case, I wonder if a straight-up Precision Bass might be a bit chunky in your hands.

All that aside, try lots of models and brands out. See if you can find a nice match.

Good Luck and Happy Hunting!

 

[Bassic Playing]

Best advice I can think if is to go to a store, check out some Ibanez, Squier, Yamaha and whatever-else-takes-your fancy basses, and see what feels nice. There's a lot of really nice basses in that price range.

 

[gorskkr]

Thanks for all the info. It's given me a lot of things to research further so I can be as knowledgeable as possible when I'm trying basses and talking to people at the various guitar shops I plan on going to this weekend- going to be a fun weekend full of Bass!

Ok, so here's what I've gathered so far from many many great posts:
-I'll be focusing on Ibanez (SR series), Fender (Precision or Jazz), and Squier (vintage) as the first ones I'll be looking to play. I'm most interested in the Ibanez SR series so far from you guys saying they're good for multiple styles, generally lighter/thinner so conducive for guitar guys switching over. They also look kinda cool!
-SCALE: looks like I might benefit (at least initially) from selecting a short scale bass. I understand that 34" is the standard, and short scale is 30" or smaller. Somethings telling me to go with something in the 31" or 30" range (I'm assuming smaller than 30" would be kinda un-respectable/lame?). having said that, I'm still going to try out some 34" ones.
-Thin-ness: I've heard look for a thin body, Jazz-type neck, thin/narrow body as to help with a guitarists transition to bass. I'm assuming a Jazz-type neck is thinner and thus easier to rap your hand around? Is thin-body the correct term or should use a different term when communicating to guy in store?
-Pickups: I've heard some people saying P-J pickups. I think I'm gonna make sure I get one with these for variety of sounds.

Also, if I end up selecting a short scale Bass and a year or two down the road I wanna play a traditional 34", is it easy to modify the neck, or only so on certain models?

 

[Mushroo]

You'll need to buy a new bass to switch from 30" to 34".

I have small hands (only 7" from wrist to tip of middle finger) but I learned to play on 34" as a 13 year old kid no problem.

 

[Deechord]

In an attempt to kludge many suggestions together into one package

A kludge (or kluge) is a workaround, a quick-and-dirty solution, a clumsy, inelegant, difficult to extend, hard to maintain yet effective and quick solution to a problem, and a rough synonym to the terms "jury rig", "Jugaad" or "jerry rig". This term is used in diverse fields such as computer science, aerospace engineering, internet slang, and evolutionary neuroscience.

 

[cloverkeys]

A used bass and a new amp are a good way to go IMO.

Many potential issues with a bass are easy to spot and easier to fix.. meaning a used one can be a great way to go.

A used amp may sound and play great, then break the next day.. difficult for a DIY'er to fix alone and has some potential to get costly, even if its simple.

This of course is just my experience.

 

[Warmuth]

The Ibanez SR's are the most "guitar feeling" basses I've tried. I found them to feel the most natural to me coming from guitar. Whether the same holds true for you is anyone's guess but they are pretty widely renowned for it.

 

[ggvicviper]

How about the Fender Pawn Shop VI? You should feel right at home.

 

[Bassic Playing]

A lot of you guys are suggesting basses that are 'like' guitars. I don't know that I feel that's the best idea. He's playing a different instrument; its a bass not a guitar, so he should get a bass that feels best for him as a BASS, not whatever feels most like his guitar.

Get a bass for bass, piano for piano, and guitar for guitar.

 

[Soppy Hat]

I've heard great things about Jaguar basses, easy to play, slim necks, plus they just look awesome. As mentioned above, they are very cheap.

MusicMan SUB basses are awesome as well! I have one and the build quality is fantastic. I picked mine up for $400 - overpaid a good bit, as previously mentioned you could probably get one under 250. Just keep in mind that a MusicMan SUB is different than a Sterling SUB. The MM SUB was made in America, and it's no longer produced; I believe the (brand new) Sterling SUBs are made overseas. Also if you're looking to get an MM SUB, try to get an Active one; mine is passive- which I love - but I miss the Active punch.

One thing about Stingrays and SUBs, though: They're chunky, but the tone might be worth it. Very unique if you're looking that way.

My mate has a Squier Vintage Modified P bass and it's pretty decent, although maybe not on the same level as a SUB. They're about as cheap, you could find a used one for less I'm sure.

Also might wanna check out the Epiphone Thunderbirds, they're some great basses for the money. GC has a couple used ones up for sub 200 and new ones for 300.

 

[unclejane]

However, I understand from reading a lot of articles written by bassists that its essential to learn to play with your fingers and that the bass is most intended to be played that way (although it depends on what type of style you like to play and what you think sounds best). I also don't know if that's entirely true, so bare with me if that's an inaccurate statement.

Pick vs not-a-pick is one of the biggest fights you'll find on this forum, if you haven't already seen the 800 billion threads on it yet .

But truth is, ignore those threads . Playing bass with a pick is just fine and, since you already have skill with the pick, it's probably the quickest option for you to start actually playing music on the bass without having to learn an entirely new technique.

I don't view it as "essential" to learn fingerstyle if you're already good with a pick and otherwise don't really see a need for it. And I play exclusively fingerstyle lol. But quite a few bassists play with a pick primarily and at a virtuoso level with it. I'd also love to play with a pick and have tried for years to learn it, but have consistently failed. So, like my attempts at guitar, I finally just gave up hope and quit .

But to expand your horizons, fingerstyle and slap are definitely great techniques to learn.

LS

 

[darkstorm]

Try the basses by the guitar companies you favor. If you like fast easy necks, Ibanez Sr and Esp Ltd are great choices. These also mostly come with active 2 to 3 band eq onboard which adds a lot to versatility. Jacksons new bases though a little wider necks are more plaqyable then their earlier basses which had wider necks and more cumbersome ones like fender P basses. Bc Rich basses are also very nice if your looking for P neck and bridge pup basses.

 

[Malak the Mad]

A kludge (or kluge) is a workaround, a quick-and-dirty solution, a clumsy, inelegant, difficult to extend, hard to maintain yet effective and quick solution to a problem, and a rough synonym to the terms "jury rig", "Jugaad" or "jerry rig". This term is used in diverse fields such as computer science, aerospace engineering, internet slang, and evolutionary neuroscience.

You cheeky grammarian! Yeah, work that lexicon!!

Actually, I prefer this definition…

"A software or hardware configuration that, while inelegant, inefficient, clumsy, or patched together, succeeds in solving a specific problem or performing a particular task."

…after all, what internet forum is going to be rigidly efficient and consistent in it's results?

 

[topo morto]

If you have a studio monitor setup, and you don't want to play loud or live, I wouldn't bother with an amp at all, although obviously you may need a DI.

I moved from guitar to bass via short scale bass and enjoyed that route... less to learn all at once.

 

[peledog]

All great suggestions. If you're looking for a 'modern' sound, try a Spector Performer.

http://www.music123.com/productDetail/productDetail.jsp?source=ZWWRWXGP&entSkuId=H74331002001000&gclid=CKrvlsLg7LQCFUdxQgoddR8ABw&kwid=productads-sku^H74331002001000-adType^PLA-adid^15727907227

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or a used Spector Legend

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You can't go wrong with a Fender Jazz or Squier Classic Vibe Jazz either.

 

[davidjackson]

For a guitarist try first the Jazz bass.

Davo

I'd go the other way to be honest. If you play guitar you can already handle a slim neck. I'd go for something fat and chunky like an old P. Once you have got comfortable with that you can then play any bass regardless of the neck. If you only ever get used to playing slim necks I think you are limiting what you might switch to in the future.

Plus, a big fat neck is how a bass guitar is supposed to feel! I love my MIA Jazz but when I have been playing my Steve Harris tribute P and switch back the J always feels slightly effete...



If you are looking for a P/J pickup configuration I could also recommend a Yamaha BB bass. Great value and build quality.

 

[davidjackson]

I don't view it as "essential" to learn fingerstyle if you're already good with a pick and otherwise don't really see a need for it. And I play exclusively fingerstyle lol.

This is all true - but it is about feel and expression at the end of the day.

Having a piece of plastic between you and your bass is a bit like having a piece of rubber between you and your girlfriend. You are essentially doing the same thing but it feels slightly different.

You can guess which side of the debate I'm on...

 

[topo morto]

And you can't get pregnant from playing bass fingerstyle, at least not the first time you do it.