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The Best Cheap Gear You Have

#41
Though this bass is anything BUT "cheap", I got it for an absolute steal on ebay for $175.00. It's a fretless "Sound Trade" that was hand made by a luthier (Hiromi Murakami) in Japan:

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The seller honestly had no clue what he had as it's almost impossible to find any info on these. I did manage to scrounge up a Japanese website that featured a sort of "Sound Trade" club and which featured loads o' pics of his basses (beautiful stuff - think Bacchus) and, by translating through Google, i was able to *vaguely* make out the story behind these (though I still have no idea what "me donkey afraid? Many time NO!" means :hmm: ).

Anyway, when I got it, the pickups were mismatched (had a Bart MM pickup and and unknown neck pickup and, though the tuners were nice Gotoh tuners, they didn't match the black bridge), so I added a Bart neck pickup and Hipshot tuners.

This thing plays and sounds amazing.
 
#43
My $350 "C" stock Yamaha BB605 is a great, cheap (inexpensive) bass. I try hard to want something else, but the combination of weight, balance, playability and tone keep this "cheap" bass my one-and-only...for now...
 
#46
I recently bought a warmoth fretless built by Aproud1, from the classifieds. It cost 450$. Putting shipping and customs on top of that number, it will cost about the same as buying a new squier VM fretless, here in Denmark - hurrah for the dollar :hyper:

It hasnt quite arrived yet, but I have my hopes up

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#47
It's a Jazz I put together from pieces. An S101 body someone gave me...some Fender Jazz pups I've had laying around forever...a replacement P-Bass neck I've had sitting around for over 15 years...and an Audere drop-in I bought for this bass.
frankenjazz.jpg

I did the headstock "logo" with a Sharpie.
frankenjazzheadstock.jpg
 
#53
PreSonus TubePre
Hartke Kickback-12

...the TubePre is just a great sounding pre that (IMO) compares favorably to pre's many, many times it's price.

...and you don't know how many times I've thought of selling off the Kickback-12... but it's just a great little workhorse if you don't need a lot of volume.

-M
 
#55
Fender32 said:
If you really want "cheap", how about my (un)patented "Strap Locks" :) ...

125-2536_IMG-1.jpg


It's the rubber seal from the stopper on a German beer bottle, but it's perfect for stopping the strap from slipping off the button. No tools required for installation, either :p.

Cost? 79 cents (including 500ml of free beer :hyper:)!!!
Click to expand...

This reminds me of Billy Sheehan's "the Wife". He bolted on the strap permanently to his old P-Bass with Telecaster neck.
 
#57
My Hohner B Bass V.
I got it at a pawn shop for $125, and retails for $650.
Plays great, but is starting to show some age, as it was made in 2001.
Sometime this summer I'm going to replace the tuners, replace the pickups (EMG selects) with real EMGs, and polish the frets, they're starting to corrode a bit.
 

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#58
i have a crate combo from the day that was amazing

if we are going on price paid and not actual value my friend bought his father's 60s-era fender guitar (maybe a strat? im thinking tele) for a bottle of Coca-Cola in the late 90s

i think it was just a symbolic gesture :D
 

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