Squier bass differences?

[MichelD]

I don't have a P bass of any description.

Lately I've seen a couple Squier Precsion-types on my local CL pages for just over $100.

Are they that bad or is it worth picking one up?

Are there differences? MIJ? Made in Korea? Made in China?

Do they sound remotely like a P bass?

 

[pudgychef]

There have been Squiers made in:
Japan
Mexico
Korea
China
Indonesia
and I think a few were made in India for a brief time...

They Japanese ones are highly thought off
Some of the E series Koreans were really well built.

Current era:
affinity series are the intro model...solid for the $...$100 is a good deal
Vintage Modified - good basses for the $...
Above are made in Indonesia iirc

Classic Vibe- nice basses...step up from the other two and, arguably, closer to MIM level Fender.

They are all cometely serviceable instruments.
The P versions sound like P basses...I liked the stock pickup on the CV and VM PS I had well enough to gig and record them stock.

 

[rallen]

I got a classic vibe Squier P bass last year. Usually, I will replace the stock pu w a Seymour Duncan...didnt have to do that with this bass! Not sure how old the used ones are that you are looking at but, the new Squiers ate a good deal for the price! Just ordered the 5 string P bass version. I'll let you know how it sounds at end of the week!

 

[Torn Bassist]

The Classic Vibe (CV) and the Vintage Modified (VM) are the ones to get, they normally require a good set up but the build quality is great for the lower end instruments...

 

[OldFunBass]

Ditto, I would skip over the Affinity line and go with the Vintage Modified or the Classic Vibe. I bought a VM PJ last year and was really surprised on how well it played. I did change the pickups out for some Seymour Duncan, but that was more about my personal taste rather than the original pickups. They were actually not bad. I also put flats on it, which is why I bought the PJ to begin with. Since then I have really loved the bass. Can't believe how cheap it was for what you get.

 

[LadyLoveStingRay5]

Find a Classic Vibe 60's, 70's, Matt Freeman , or Eva Gardner.

If you want a 5 string the Vintage Modified Precision 5 is a winner.

 

[filmtex]

Bought a Vintage Modified Fretless P last year. Best $300 I ever spent. Highly recommended.

 

[Fender_Bender]

I bought a red CV precision about 5 years ago but felt I had to return it. I was aware of a "deadness " to the tone but assumed it was the strings. I tried 2-3 sets of new strings on and many different pickup heights but the E string tone was way out of whack with the others. The A and D sounded titanic, couldn't ask for anything better. The G wasn't quite as good but acceptable. The E string however sounded like an elephant farting through a sleeping bag. Would an aftermarket pickup have made a difference?, no doubt. But I wasn't prepared to sink a lot more money into modding something that may have been fundamentally flawed. I peeked under the guard and could see 12 heavy layers of paint. Was that the reason for the tone?, I dunno. The rest of it was quite lovely with the nicest p bass neck I've ever tried. Maybe it was just a lemon but it didn't help to lessen my dislike of basswood bodies.

 

[dtripoli]

80% of the Squier basses on craigslist are Affinity
The rest are as stated, CV & VM
A nice find is the Squier "Standard" the fore runner to the VM series.
Upgraded hardware, pickups and electronics from the Affinity. Even the color is upgraded. I thought there was a sprinkling of dust over the bass when I got it but it turned out to be metal flakes in the paint. Also has the skunk stripe down the back of the neck.
Not much information online about them.
I found an '04 Jazz Standard on craigslist. A trumpet player was selling it. He bought it new in 2005 and quickly tired of
it and it sat in his closet I presume until last year.
It's all original except the strap locks and chrome cover over the bridge pick up.
I moved the neck pickup cover back over the bridge pickup to use as a palm rest for playing songs with a pick.
Kinda works.....
I'm happy and so was my wallet.

 

[lostreality]

You get what you pay for, in my experience. The Vintage Modified and Classic Vibes feel like basses but the Affinity felt like a toy when I played it. I highly recommend spending a little extra on a CV or VM

 

[Yahboy]

I bought a red CV precision about 5 years ago but felt I had to return it. I was aware of a "deadness " to the tone but assumed it was the strings. I tried 2-3 sets of new strings on and many different pickup heights but the E string tone was way out of whack with the others. The A and D sounded titanic, couldn't ask for anything better. The G wasn't quite as good but acceptable. The E string however sounded like an elephant farting through a sleeping bag. Would an aftermarket pickup have made a difference?, no doubt. But I wasn't prepared to sink a lot more money into modding something that may have been fundamentally flawed. I peeked under the guard and could see 12 heavy layers of paint. Was that the reason for the tone?, I dunno. The rest of it was quite lovely with the nicest p bass neck I've ever tried. Maybe it was just a lemon but it didn't help to lessen my dislike of basswood bodies.

Oh, you got bad luck,man. My 2012 fiesta red CV 60p not only have clear E string tone, another extra bonus is zero dead spot on the neck.

 

[Yahboy]

Honestly, if you decide to get squire affinity series, I highly recommend you take a look for ibby talman TMB100.

 

[Algo]

Honestly, if you decide to get squire affinity series, I highly recommend you take a look for ibby talman TMB100.

Absolutely have to second this.

Was playing plugged for a change the other day and it competed head to head with my SR505 and I even liked it more for some stuff.

 

[matty1039]

80% of the Squier basses on craigslist are Affinity
The rest are as stated, CV & VM
A nice find is the Squier "Standard" the fore runner to the VM series.
Upgraded hardware, pickups and electronics from the Affinity. Even the color is upgraded. I thought there was a sprinkling of dust over the bass when I got it but it turned out to be metal flakes in the paint.
Not much information online about them.
I found an '04 Jazz Standard on craigslist. A trumpet player was selling it. He bought it new in 2005 and quickly tired of
it and it sat in his closet I presume until last year.
It's all original except the strap locks and chrome cover over the bridge pick up.
I moved the neck pickup cover back over the bridge pickup to use as a palm rest for playing songs with a pick.
Kinda works.....
I'm happy and so was my wallet.

View attachment 1103502 View attachment 1103503 View attachment 1103509

Interesting idea to cover the bridge pickup. I like it.

 

[SilverFleet]

I picked up a VM Jazz '77 recently. I like it a lot. The neck absolutely rules! It has a nice deep gloss finish to it, and it feels a lot nicer than the Affinity necks. It sounds pretty good too; the pickups have a nice growl to them. Only mod I have planned right now is switching to a high mass bridge.

That said, I've had thoughts about snagging an Affinity strictly to mod. I've almost caved in a few times to a cheap P Bass and the Affinity P/J they sell.

 

[kkaarrll]

are there differences in the finish on the back of the necks?

I notice the affinty doesn't have skunk stripe? the others do?

 

[dtripoli]

are there differences in the finish on the back of the necks?

I notice the affinty doesn't have skunk stripe? the others do?

The Squier Standard has the skunk stripe.

 

[Bill Whitehurst]

I think most of them are OK to pretty good.
There is more difference between individual basses than between models.

The parts that you may want to change out would be the pots and tuners.
Most of them work OK and get the job done just fine, but in time they are more likely
to be the first parts to give you trouble.
Even then, I wouldn't rush out to change them before they wear, unless you
just want to spend money or change it just to say you did.

The pickups may be uneven from string to string.
Most are alright.
The most likely cause of people changing pickups is personal taste.

There were a few Protones that are even better than the Standards.

The only ones I would be sure to avoid are the Koreans with the plywood bodys.
Most of us don't like plywood, the necks are narrower at the heel and they used the very cheapest parts.

If you start off planning from the beginning to extensivly mod it, get a Chinese Affinity because they used
Alder for the bodys, rather than basswood or whatever was cheapest that day.

 

[tlite]

Anderton's did a comparison you may find helpful (though this was for Jazz basses, not P's):



FWIW: I have a Squier VM Jaguar Special (PJ configuration) that I bought for under $150. Wired it up passive and am super happy with it.

 

[40Hz]

Picked up a Matt Freeman Squier PB mostly just to check it out a few years ago. It's got one of the best PB necks I've ever played. Everybody likes the tone. It's a bit more aggressive than your average PB due to a pickup unique to that model. I'd recommend one of those.