Don’t overlook the amplifier. Amps are often the tail that wags the dog.
“The Bass” isn’t just your instrument. The sound you hear comes from the instrument, the amplifier, and the player’s technique. They’re interrelated. Part of a system. Change out any of those parts and you get a different “bass.” Which is why two players who are using the exact same instrument and amp will sound different. Many beginners often think if they duplicate their bass hero’s gear the’ll sound like them. Nope. Doesn’t work that way right out of the box. You can probably mimic somebody else’s sound pretty closely if you put enough effort into it. But unless you’re playing in a tribute band stage show I can’t fathom why you would want to sound just like someone else.
As far as instruments go, price is no guarantee of quality. Crappy basses can be found in every price range. If you’re paying a higher price, the odds of you getting a better instrument go up. And you should expect “better quality” (which is a totally subjective assessment btw) since you’re paying a premium to get it. But once again a higher price is no guarantee.
FWIW, my experience with the instruments from the major labels that were manufactured roughly after the year 2010 or so are basically all decent instruments as far as build quality is concerned. Because once you get above the $2K mark the price starts to outweigh the benefits gained. What you then start paying for is nonessential but still nice to have things such as: fancy or exotic woods, a boutique name, customization, and bragging rights because you now own a legitimate work of art.
Where corners get cut on the lower priced basses are in the hardware, electronics, and strings they ship out with. That and the setup.
So start by giving whatever you buy a good setup. Best learn to do it yourself if you don’t already know how to do it. There’s dozens of instructional videos and web pages that can walk you through what’s basically just a 4-step process.
Strings are easy to change and can have a big impact your sound and the feel of a bass. Different strings are the least expensive, easiest, and arguably most cost effective mod you can make to your instrument. I personally believe there’s a near perfect string for every bass. Which is why no two basses I own have the same set of strings.
Pickups also have a significant impact. But once you get into the more premium pickups from the likes of Fender, Fralin, Aguilar, Klein, Nordstrand, et al you’ll find the differences between them aren’t all that great. And they’re all good options if you don’t like what’s already on your bass.
Bridges don’t improve your tone or increase sustain or contribute to tuning stability unless the one already on your bass is broken.
Which brings us to high mass bridges…the marketing hype greatly exceeds the demonstrable benefit. The reality is that it doesn’t matter. So save your money. As was said before, a bridge is a bridge and there’s no need to replace yours unless it’s broken.
Tuners…to me that’s a matter of personal preference depending on the brand and model. Most tuners are adequate. Better tuners make life and tuning easier. And low weight tuners can help with neck dive somewhat. But like the bridge, unless you’re having issues such as slipping, rough turning, or gear backlash, getting new tuners would be low on my priority list
Electronics… can sometimes make a difference if you’ve got absolute junk in your instrument, which I doubt is going to be the case for most new basses out there. But a few CTS or Bourns pots, a polystyrene capacitor, and a reliable Switchcraft jack won’t break the bank if you’re handy with a soldering iron. So it’s your call on that one assuming you’re still unhappy after a string change and a pickup swap.
Finally, there’s still an ongoing debate in some places as to whether a set neck is superior to a bolt-on neck. And if a through neck is superior to both or either. Bottom line: studies have clearly shown that a property attached neck is a properly attached neck. How it’s attached doesn’t matter as long as it was done correctly. There’s no difference in tone or sustain regardless of how it was done.
Strings top loaded vs through the body…again no difference in either tone or sustain using either method.
