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Lighter weight affordable bass

jking138

jking138

Oct 6, 2013
484
268
#1
I've recently had some back problems (herniated disc) and I don't think my VM Jazz bass (around 10 pounds) is going to help. So I'm in the market for something new, unfortunately a lot of the websites don't list weights.
I've searched the forum and found some good information (for example basswood, poplar and alder are the lighter woods used) but I have some more criteria and I hoped that the collective genius of the talkbass community could point me in the right direction.

So, I'm looking for:

under $450 / 400 euro
slim neck (j bass style)
7 - 8 pounds / 3 - 3.5kg

I don't mind about the brand or if it's second hand.

Thanks
 
#2
Ibanez Soundgears are the way to go here. Light, ergonomic, inexpensive, and always a very good buy at their price point, new or used. There are heavy ones -- I have owned some through necks from 1989/90 that were not light. But it's a good place to look; generally the cheaper the lighter based on my experience picking them up in shops.
 
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#3
Ibanez SR300EB-WK – Thomann United States I'm not sure if all their offerings in Europe are visible on the US website, but this comes in well under your budget. Here on a Basschat thread I found a weight for an SR600 - 3.4kg 281880-ibanez-sr300-weight The SR300 is mahogany. Some of the older ibanezes are basswood and super light. Happy hunting and hope your back problems improve. I have similar issues, and found that exercise and hydration have made a real long term difference. Yoga, amp hauling, bicycling, and home weightlifting have all made a big difference. Especially hydration! My own sense of my back is that when dehydrated, my discs aren't as puffy and cushiony as they'd otherwise be! That's my theory and I'm sticking to it.
 
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#5
@jking138; Speaking as a massage & neuromuscular therapist who's worked on numerous clients with herniations, you have my sympathy. Getting a lighter bass is definitely a good way to lessen the repetitive stress of a heavy bass. Just a thought, there are strap harness' that redistribute the weight across both shoulders. While it won't make a bass any lighter, it will spread the weight out across both shoulders, rather than placing it all on one side.

With that budget, you might be able to find a used Fender Aerodyne…specifically, what's known as an "Export Edition".

XxKv2xo.jpg


Between the slimmed and radius'd basswood body, as well as the lack of any pickguard and control plate, they tend to be lighter than most Jazz basses. The one pictured above weighs in at 8lb.6oz/3.8kg., but would be a little less without the Hipshot Drop-D tuner I added.

I have some other suggestions, but they would only be valid if you're interested in assembling a bass from parts. What I will say is in taking that path, I ended up creating a Jazz bass that only weighed 6lb.10oz./3kg. ;)

iX88AvF.jpg
 
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#6
Slightly outside your budget new, but used should be no problem;
Dano DC bass-1.jpg Dano Longhorn (2).JPG A Danelectro DC59. 34" scale, @ about 3 kilos. this one is a "Pro" model, with full size bass tuning machines, and "modern" metal bridge with individual saddles. Hangs on a strap nicely (for me, anyway). Or, a Danelectro Longhorn. 30" scale, @ about 2.5 kilos. A little less than either of the violin basses in the background, in fact. Can be had as a "Pro" model, but mine has the traditional guitar-style tuners and the traditional Rosewood bridge. Slightly more fiddly than the Pro bridge, but works equally well. Don't let the odd look fool you. As you can see from the case (for an Epiphone ES-339 guitar), it's really the same size and shape as a hollow body electric guitar - just with some of the body missing. It hangs and plays the same. Both of them have slim, fast necks - especially the DC59 - with a thin, flattened "D" contour. Personally, I like them both - a lot...:cool:
 
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#7
@lug @Standalone I've been looking at Ibanez, Yamaha being another possibility, they're probably the top contenders currently.
@GIBrat51 I do like the look of Danelecto but they're not easy to get, I'm also not sure how they would hold up to down tuning to D standard or C.
@Malak the Mad I would love an aerodyne but unfortunately I haven't seen one for ages. I'm more than willing to do a parts build, the idea has crossed my mind.

Thanks for all the advice
 
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#8
jking138 said:
@Malak the Mad I would love an aerodyne but unfortunately I haven't seen one for ages. I'm more than willing to do a parts build, the idea has crossed my mind.

Thanks for all the advice
Click to expand...
You are more than welcome!

As for a parts-bass build, can I assume the pic in your avatar is your VM Jazz? If so, it's worth mentioning that the pic I attached of that "featherweight jazz" is also incorporating a VM neck. If you really like it's neck and would want to make it part of your build, here's where I got mine.
They are made of paulownia, so they're strong, but light. The gloss black one I got is out of stock, but there are about ten or eleven different Jazz-type bodies still in stock (check the upper-right corner of each page to see if they still have them).

Assuming you can get them where you are…'cuz I'm betting you're either in Europe or the U.K.…you will likely need to do a little sanding of the neck pocket and maybe reorient the neck bolt holes. With a little elbow grease, you should be able to turn it into something that suits your needs. As far as I'm concerned, the low, low price I paid for mine more than made up for the time and effort it required to make it workable.

A set of Hipshot Ultralites will help keep it's overall weight down. Plus, it'll keep the neck-dive down, what with such a lightweight body.

QqzpRJz.jpg
 
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#9
Malak the Mad said:
You are more than welcome!

As for a parts-bass build, can I assume the pic in your avatar is your VM Jazz? If so, it's worth mentioning that the pic I attached of that "featherweight jazz" is also incorporating a VM neck. If you really like it's neck and would want to make it part of your build, here's where I got mine.
They are made of paulownia, so they're strong, but light. The gloss black one I got is out of stock, but there are about ten or eleven different Jazz-type bodies still in stock (check the upper-right corner of each page to see if they still have them).

Assuming you can get them where you are…'cuz I'm betting you're either in Europe or the U.K.…you will likely need to do a little sanding of the neck pocket and maybe reorient the neck bolt holes. With a little elbow grease, you should be able to turn it into something that suits your needs. As far as I'm concerned, the low, low price I paid for mine more than made up for the time and effort it required to make it workable.

A set of Hipshot Ultralites will help keep it's overall weight down. Plus, it'll keep the neck-dive down, what with such a lightweight body.

View attachment 3798740
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's my VM jazz. The only thing I don't like is the weight, apart from that I couldn't be happier since I wired it in series.

Thanks, that's a good site. I'm in France, I don't know how much shipping would be but it all seems so much cheaper in the States.
It's definitely got me considering a build, I'll keep an eye out for now a local supplier though.
 
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#10
jking138 said:
Yeah, that's my VM jazz. The only thing I don't like is the weight, apart from that I couldn't be happier since I wired it in series.

Thanks, that's a good site. I'm in France, I don't know how much shipping would be but it all seems so much cheaper in the States.
It's definitely got me considering a build, I'll keep an eye out for now a local supplier though.
Click to expand...
Cool! Let us know what you decide to do, buy or build.

Just out of curiosity, is your harness wired to series-mode only or can you switch between series and parallel?
 
#12
If you're open to short scales, check out the Hofner Ignition Club. I'd post a link, but I'm on my phone and never figured out how to do that :) .

They're not the Beatle basses, they're the Les Paul shaped ones. They weigh about 5 lbs., have super thin necks, look really cool, and sound awesome once you figure the electronics out.

Musiciansfriend always has a special going on with one of the colors too. Even without a special, if you're a good haggler you can get one for around $300 (unless they raised the price over the past year or so).
 
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#14
Joe Nerve said:
If you're open to short scales, check out the Hofner Ignition Club. I'd post a link, but I'm on my phone and never figured out how to do that :) .

They're not the Beatle basses, they're the Les Paul shaped ones. They weigh about 5 lbs., have super thin necks, look really cool, and sound awesome once you figure the electronics out.

Musiciansfriend always has a special going on with one of the colors too. Even without a special, if you're a good haggler you can get one for around $300 (unless they raised the price over the past year or so).
Click to expand...

I second the above. My Hofner Ignition Club weighs 4 lbs. 8 oz. sounds excellent and is a breeze to play.
 
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#15
jking138 said:
under $450 / 400 euro
slim neck (j bass style)
7 - 8 pounds / 3 - 3.5kg
Click to expand...

As @Standalone said, Soundgears are a wise choice, certainly not the only one though. I've been suffering from back pain during the last fifteen years, so i know firsthand how difficult can be to cope with it while doing something you enjoy doing.

Having said that, newer Soundgears feature a very slim body compared to older models, and while i haven't tried each one of them, those i tried were light enough and comfortable. I own a SR600 myself, and it does wonders when playing for extended periods of time, thanks to it's good ergonomics & low weight.

Last but not least, invest in a well padded and wide enough strap, just as @Malak the Mad suggested. Makes a world of difference.
 
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#18
lug said:
Look for basswood bodies. I have an SRX505 basswood Ibby that I swear weighs less than the strap I hold it up with. :D
Click to expand...
Basswood has become my favourite body wood after hearing bad things about it. Turned out my old ‘83 Ibanez Destroyer was Basswood, I didn’t know at the time sounded great. Basswood, Not heavy sounds good inexpensive. My SX P/J Gets played the most and is one of my favourites for these reasons.
 
#19
jking138 said:
It looks like an Ibanez or a parts build now.
Click to expand...
You might want to look at Glarry as a basis for a parts build - $100 shipped for a Jazz.

I have a Glarry P (fretless) and a similar unbranded P and they are very light at about 6.6 lbs. The necks on the Ps are chunky, not sure if the Jazz versions are slimmer but even if you have to replace the neck it might be a good source for a light body.

Some of the people on the Glarry club thread have the J so you might ask them for specifics.

Official Exquisite/Glarry/Burning Fire Bass Club?
 

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