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Should I buy a new bass?

M

maximarch

Guest
Mar 29, 2017
18
4
Canada, Quebec
#1
(sorry for my english plus I don't know much how this site works)
I've been playing bass for 4 months now with a squier P-bass starter pack. I was wondering if it was too soon to buy a new bass. Also, I was wondering if a 500$ bass was a good choice to upgrade from my squier. I was thinking maybe a Sterling SUB series, an Epiphone thunderbird IV or an Ibanez SR300E.

For short, I want to know if I should buy a bass and wich one you guys advice.
 
#2
Only if the Squier didn't work for you and than I should sell it and buy another bass. If it sounds and plays oke, first learn to play a bit more before buy another bass. Listen to a lot of music so you know what kind of bass you like and try out a lot of basses so you know what you like and not. It can be a long way but it's a good thing to do I think.
 
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#3
Its never too soon to buy a new bass. IMO you don't ever need a reason to buy a new bass.

But as far as wanting to upgrade, is there something about the Squier you particularly don't like? Given the right setup and upgrades they can rival the bass price range you're looking in.

I have a Squier Affinity P that I swapped out the stock ceramic pup for a used Seymour Duncan Quarter Pound pup, upgraded the pots and output jack, replaced the single ply white guard with a red tortoise and stung with La Bella tapewounds, and it sounds, plays and looks as good as a Fender MIA.

But for $500 you can get a pretty decent bass, especially if you buy used.
 
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#4
I think it's never too soon to buy a bass if your finances allow it. But actually I would advise getting a better amp, assuming your using one included in the starter pack. The Squier P's are decent low cost basses & I think the amp is the weak link. Whatever you decide buying used is a way to get a better quality bass/amp for your money. $500 can buy a pretty nice used bass or amp.
 
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#5
What is it that you miss in your old bass?

Only by answering that question can anyone get any idea of giving and answer that could possibly prove meaningful to you.

If it doesn't feel right, yes, then it would most likely be a good idea to buy a new bass.

We need to know what about it that doesn't feel right to come with any meaningful suggestions still though.

If it doesn't sound right, doesn't have the tone you desire, then swapping the pickups with some new and better ones are probably the most sensible answer.

Still to be able to really give you any suggestions that you might be able to use, we need you to try to describe what your old bass lack or that you miss tone wise and eventually try to describe what kind of tone you had in mind would sound great or what you wish your bass sounded like.

Also finally as BassmusM6674 suggests, if it is in fact the tone of your bass you are unsatisfied with, chances are it is in fact your amp and not your bass that is not right for you.
 
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#7
maximarch said:
... For short, I want to know if I should buy a bass and wich one you guys advice.
Click to expand...

... with all due respect, if someone needs to ask these two questions, my answer is probably no ...

...without more information expressing something physically wrong with what you have, spend your time and $$ expediting the 'learning to play' process, then you get to the point sooner where YOU know the answer to these questions based upon the situations you find yourself playing in (with others) ...

In any case, IF you decide to purchase, used vs. new will give you a much better bite for your $$, especially not knowing what your needs and preferrences are ...

JMHO .. as always (and because you asked) ...;)
 
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#9
My advice would be to take some time and go and play as many different kinds of bass guitars as you can. After I started playing, I jumped in and bought a few basses that in the end were not for me. I should have taken my time and figured out what I really wanted from a bass.

The Squier is a decent enough bass but for your $500 budget, you will be able to get something really nice, especially second hand.
 
#10
The thing is I'm not very fan of the squier p-bass tone. My amp is a rumble 15 by fender, enven tho its probably not a that good of an amp, it does the job well. Also, since my bass went in a pack, I didn't choose it. I think it would be nice to have a bass that I really like plus, 500$ is not a crazy buy. I know a bass wont make me better or anything, but it might be more fun.
 
#14
What Fugazi said. If you're playing through a starter amp, a $10,000 Fodera is going to sound terrible and you will fight the amp leading to bad habits. Put the money into a good amp, buy used to get the most bang for your buck and you can get most of your money back should you decide to sell it later if bass doesn't work out for you. I would encourage you to stick with it, but reality is that not everyone does.
 
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#15
maximarch said:
The thing is I'm not very fan of the squier p-bass tone. My amp is a rumble 15 by fender, enven tho its probably not a that good of an amp, it does the job well. Also, since my bass went in a pack, I didn't choose it. I think it would be nice to have a bass that I really like plus, 500$ is not a crazy buy. I know a bass wont make me better or anything, but it might be more fun.
Click to expand...

I agree with the previous comments of focusing on the amp. However, for $500, you can get a very good used bass and used amp.

My answer is, yes, buy a new bass. The more happy you are with your bass, the more often you will play it.
 
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#18
You should try out the other basses in the store to see just how much of an upgrade your're going to get. If you feel the upgrade is worth it, then do it. If it's not worth the upgrade, continue to play on and get better, and save up for a upgrade that makes a big difference. IMO, the basses at the $500 is not a huge upgrade, but once you get into the $700 to $1000 range, the difference is huge, and you'll never need an upgrade unless you want a stigmata Bass for it's name brand reputation.
 
#19
I hear a lot of good things about the Fender Rumble 500 here on TB.
el_Bajo_Verde said:
If you're not happy with the bass, you could have a tech put in new pickups.

Otherwise, save up and go to some music stores. Sit down and try out everything, until you find a bass that calls your name.
Click to expand...
Too true. I have a few parts basses that turned out really nice. My wife had an Affinity P Bass as a teenager that I dug out of her parent's garage a few years ago. The neck was a goner, but I had an old J Bass neck sitting around. Slapped that together with a DMZ Split P and got a really killer P-Bass. New p'ups is a definitely an avenue to explore. You could probably get a set of Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounds and a new amp for $500 bucks. That would be like a new bass AND a new amp.
 
#20
I hate to say it but the three basses you listed, though not bad basses, aren't really much of a step up...all are considered starter basses.
Now, a nice used Sterling Ray 34, an Epiphone Thunderbird Classic IV, or an Ibanez Talman TMB 600, etc, that'd be a different story.
I'd suggest you keep on playing your Squier unless there's something wrong with it.
I just bought a Squier CV Jazz on Monday, and after playing five Fender Jazz basses this morning...one a very nice USA Standard Jazz, I don't regret the decision to buy it in the slightest and wouldn't trade it for any of the more expensive Fenders I tried out today.
When you really want to get a better bass, go to a few stories and try out as many as you can. You should be able to find one you find hard to walk away from.
 

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