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My first bass- Am I weird?

Ironbar

Ironbar

Inactive
Aug 24, 2013
1,446
2,528
Tigard, Oregon
#1
I did a lot of searching around before I bought my first bass- a Squire VM Jazz. I figured I'd play this as a first, then maybe graduate someday to an American Fender Jazz of some type.

Well, I still have yet to pluck an American Fender Jazz that I like better than my made-in-Indonesia Squire! And I don't think is just a matter of, "Oh you've just gotten used to playing it." I genuinely like the Squire better than the American. I like the satin finish, I like the skinnier shaped neck, and I like the way it sounds vs the Fender. I even tried another Squire VM Jazz at GC today that was in a different fit & finish from mine, and I liked IT better than the American as well.

I guess the only thing I don't like about mine is the weight- it's a heavy guitar, but at less than ¼ the price of a Fender, I can definitely hang.
 
#2
Good for you! Yep, they make some good stuff these days. It will be much cheaper for you in the long run if you are not a brand snob. So rock the finish off that bad boy.

And WELCOME to TALKBASS!
 
#4
Not weird, but unusual. Many here love their Squiers. I love my P bass, but I've played some Squiers that were better than some Fenders of the same model. Not common but it happens.

Now you're pretty new, but there's a rule around here. No pic, no bass. Post it or be branded a liar FOREVER!!!
 
#6
I've had both a Squier VM Jazz and a MIM Fender Jazz and you know what, my Squier sounded as good if not better then my Mexican Fender. Now I've never had a US Fender so I can't compare those two. I think you made a good choice.
 
#11
I gig a Squier VM Jazz and a Fodera together quite a bit.

Nothing wrong with Squiers... especially VM and CV. The only basses giggable right out of the box for $250-300 made IME/IMO.

If you love it and it sounds good, why pay $1000+ for a bass just because it is MIA or percieved to be better?
 
#12
Sorry, didn't know about the pic rule! :D

SquireBass_zpsbc301930.gif


The only mod I've made is to add a Badass bridge and change the strings to Elixir Nanoweb. (I do not like them). I've been playing since about April this year. I also wrote a bass line for a song called Blue Skies by my bass teacher Tim Uecker. He never wrote a bass line for it, but liked mine so much that he's asked me to play it next time he does a church coffee house gig.

 
#13
Here's what I'd do... put away a little money every month, just start saving a little bit at a time for when you really DO find a great bess that you like better... Your Squier is very good, it might take you YEARS to find something you like better (or your tastes/needs might change)... but your Squier is buying you a ton of time, and will enable you be picky as hell, but also to "pounce" on a "dream bass" deal if and when you find it.
 
#16
Ironbar said:
I did a lot of searching around before I bought my first bass- a Squire VM Jazz. I figured I'd play this as a first, then maybe graduate someday to an American Fender Jazz of some type.

Well, I still have yet to pluck an American Fender Jazz that I like better than my made-in-Indonesia Squire! And I don't think is just a matter of, "Oh you've just gotten used to playing it." I genuinely like the Squire better than the American. I like the satin finish, I like the skinnier shaped neck, and I like the way it sounds vs the Fender. I even tried another Squire VM Jazz at GC today that was in a different fit & finish from mine, and I liked IT better than the American as well.

I guess the only I don't like about mine is the weight- it's a heavy guitar, but at less than ¼ the price of a Fender, I can definitely hang.
Click to expand...

Excellent! IMO a lot people obsess too much about what they are playing, not how they are playing it. You've found what you like - make it sing. :bassist:
 
#17
tykryuryukrytwe said:
they make some good stuff these days.
Click to expand...

+1. We've reached a point in time where thanks to the wonders of robots and outsourcing, it doesn't actually cost big bucks to make an instrument where everything is basically in the right place - straight neck with a truss that works, level frets, decent neck joint, body made out of something that holds it all together OK, etc etc.

Beyond that, can anyone point to anything that's going to be measurably superior about a more expensive instrument?
 
#18
You seem like a perfectly nice person, so I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt:

You're weird.

You also appear to be very sensible. That's a lovely bass. Squires tend to be a little less consistent in quality than the U.S. Fenders, but when you get a good Squire, it can be better than some, and perhaps many, U.S. Fenders.

The hardware and electronics are "better" on the U.S. models, but, if your tuners are sound, then they are fine, and if you decide in the future that you want to upgrade yours, better electronics are something you can think about in the future. As long as they are making you happy, then they are fine.

Enjoy.
 
#19
Major Softie said:
The hardware and electronics are "better" on the U.S. models, but, if your tuners are sound, then they are fine, and if you decide in the future that you want to upgrade yours, better electronics are something you can think about in the future. As long as they are making you happy, then they are fine.
Click to expand...

Definitely worth going in to the specifics here (as you suggest). For example, in the short scale Jaguar club, many people have tried swapping round the pickups for aftermarket ones that in some cases cost more than the bass itself -turns out the P pickup in the squier Jag is "as good" as anything.
 

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