Which would you upgrade first? An amp or a bass?

[Funky_Be]

Hey! Welcome to BASS : )

I had a very similar dilemma when I first started playing as well!

As mentioned, take your time. What I wanted gear-wise a few months into playing is worlds different than what I wanted after a few years in and even more so now (a decade or so in).

After playing guitar and drums for a couple of years I decided to try bass (great choice lol). I got an intermediate bass which I played through a guitar amp for a bit over a year before buying a proper, show worthy bass rig. Then a year or so after that I upgraded the bass.

Ask yourself what you will be using/needing the most RIGHT NOW. You're learning an instrument so why think too much about playing in a band live (there's also the whole pandemic thing preventing the majority of shows from happening anyways).

In my opinion, you need a comfortable bass that you can play for hours at a time and what ever will get you to hear the notes properly (amp, headphones, DAW...). I feel like you already have that. After you've been playing for a bit and have tried out different gear at the shops you will know exactly what features you like and need.

If you really want to spend a bit of bass money right now, I'd suggest investing in some lessons from a reputable teacher. This will give you so much more than any piece of gear you can buy.

Best of luck on your journey : )

 

[lokikallas]

A great bass through a crappy amp will still sound crappy. A crappy bass through a good amp will sound OK unless the bass is total garbage.

 

[Deleted member 365158]

Maybe not worry about an amp at all for the moment?
I prefer a cab but i don't have neighbors. There are great options for head phones and pre amps. That option would free up $$ for your own bass and a base package for your trip down the rabbit hole of gear accumulation.

 

[summerson1]

It really depends on what aspect of your tone you're looking to change. The bass, and more importantly your playing style, will be the foundation of your tone. If say you want a foundation that only certain basses, like say if you want the Stingray growl or P bass thump, then you should get that bass. On the other hand, if what you're looking for is the dirt from a cranked Ampeg, growl of a turned up GK, or the zing of a Darkglass... then you should go after that. You need to have in mind that tone is the sum of every part of your rig from your fingers to the speakers

 

[Rum Ham]

I would opt for the new bass.

 

[lbbc]

I would try as many basses as possible and buy one that makes you want to play every day. The amp can wait if you're not in a band.

 

[Sid Fang]

A great bass through a crappy amp will still sound crappy. A crappy bass through a good amp will sound OK unless the bass is total garbage.

I think it bears remarking that "amp" here subsumes both amplifier and speaker/cabinet. Unless it is actually broken, the sonic difference between a poor bass *amplifier* and a great bass *amplifier* is actually pretty small. Speakers are another thing altogether.

 

[kosmicwizard]

Upgrading the amp is WAY more important than upgrading a quality bass just because you don't like the colour. If you like orange amplification their 200b is a VERY nice bass amp (its possible that it could be your "one and done"). Getting a head is nearly always better than getting a combo. With the head you can choose what size cab and drivers you want and can customize your rig for the size of the stage at the venue you are playing. This amp in your living room through a 2x12 at volume 0 will sound just as nice at it would on the biggest stage you will ever play in your life through 2 2x12 cabs at volume 8. So first I would invest in the head and cab. Then a new bass, and finally another 2x12 cab to add as an option for large venues. Cheers!

 

[lokikallas]

I think it bears remarking that "amp" here subsumes both amplifier and speaker/cabinet. Unless it is actually broken, the sonic difference between a poor bass *amplifier* and a great bass *amplifier* is actually pretty small. Speakers are another thing altogether.

I beg to differ lol, i've played a lot of turds in hourly rehearsal studios, and a few pleasant surprises like fender rumble and the bugera stuff.

 

[Sid Fang]

Upgrading the amp is WAY more important than upgrading a quality bass just because you don't like the colour...

Did you catch that (a) the OP has been playing for "about a month", and is probably some distance away from needing a giggable amp, and (b) while the OP has a perfectly OK practice amp for home and small ensemble practice, he doesn't actually *own* a bass yet?

 

[kosmicwizard]

Yep, thanks for checking. I still feel that having an inspirational rig that is going to wow him every time he plays is going to be huge for his improvement and sticking to it as well.

Did you catch that (a) the OP has been playing for "about a month", and is probably some distance away from needing a giggable amp, and (b) while the OP has a perfectly OK practice amp for home and small ensemble practice, he doesn't actually *own* a bass yet?

 

[Eddie LeBlanc]

Yep, thanks for checking. I still feel that having an inspirational rig that is going to wow him every time he plays is going to be huge for his improvement and sticking to it as well.

If that's the case, go all out.
Berg B|Amp with a Berg NXT212 cab...

That really looks inspiring to me. And throw in a USA Curly Maple Spector NS4

 

[dalahorse]

You have a great loaner bass and I understand the desire to get a great sounding amp to go with it. But the bass isn't yours and could, in theory, be recalled (or damaged!) at any given time. I find it unwise to build a rig around an instrument you don't own. Get a bass. If/when you've decided to journey down the band/performance path, then think about getting a better amp or an IEM setup that is suitable for the situation. Until then, you can always grab a little headphone amp (EHX makes one for under US$70 that sounds very clean and neutral) and a good set of headphones for practice when your little amp is getting you down. Your neighbors may appreciate that, as well!

 

[Ethereal Thorn]

Since you don't own your own bass I'd start there first and I'd recommend checking out other brands then Schecter they make decent quality instruments but there is stuff that's better for less money out there imho. Id also look into buying something used as you can get a higher quality instrument for considerably less money. Next step after you can look into upgrading to a gigable amp and here Personally I don't use amps anymore I use headphones / in ear monitors or plug direct to a pa or powered speaker of some type using a modeling pedal or preamp the benefit here is it is light weight and affordable. To me that will be more fun sounding and affordable. You can get a older line 6 pod xt/x3 bean or live pedal for cheap used and they sound great plus get you familure with different amp sounds and the effects stuff the only down side is it takes a little bit to learn how to use and navigate it . if that feels to complicated for you you can look into something like a fender rumble series combo. A trace elliot elf head and cab or a gk mb series combo If you want to you can always upgrade and buy an actual amp later if you decide that's more practical for your needs.

 

[buldog5151bass]

I you have any ideas about playing in a band, you need a better and more powerful amp. People (at least before COVID) were gigging regularly with cheaper basses that that.

Any amp will work at low volume. That's why you have a volume knob on both your bass and amp.

 

[garp]

Buy a bass. Buy your friend's bass. Or buy the high-end Schecter you're lusting after. Or buy a pre-owned Schecter that isn't quite the bee's knees but saves you some cash. Just own an instrument, and go from there. Until you do, you've got no skin in this game.

I bought my first bass guitar circa 1983. After that, I couldn't afford an amp, so I played (at low volume) through an old stereo amplifier and speakers, which were a hand-me-down from an older sibling. But at least I owned my own instrument. It was at least a year later before I purchased my first pre-owned bass amp.

 

[3684799953275]

Get a Good Amp/Cab first. Then (if you feel its time) get new Basses!

 

[micguy]

Things you should be upgrading at this point:

#1(The MOST important): Your skills. Gear can wait. Practice, practice, practice..Once that's well underway...

#2:An amp that is loud enough, reliable, and sounds decent. If you want to save money on gear, buy what you really want first. Don't buy something "OK", then upgrade ad nauseum.

#3: A bass that works well with you and whatever amp you have bought. I'd wait on the bass because your tastes will change over time; a later purchase will be more informed.

 

[Mike Marshall]

Hi Everybody,

I've been playing about a month or so and have a bass a friend has loaned me indefinitely.

It's a pretty nice mid range instrument (Schecter Custom 4 w EMG pickups). The only thing is that I hate the color (which I know is a shallow bc it doesn't impact sound, but I wish it were black).

I'm mulling over buying a much nicer bass (am currently eyeing the Evil Twin 4 at the moment or another higher priced Schecter in the $900-1400 range).

I'm currently using an old 120w Berrhinger amp that looks like it's seen better days at the moment, however I'd really like the Orange Crush 100w amp.

The amp is about $600 after tax which is considerably less than the bass ($1,250).

While I think I'll probably end up with both at some point I'm just curious which you think is the smarter move to upgrade first-The bass guitar or the amp. I'm a little torn on the amp bc it's only 100w, but on the other hand I'm only playing on my own at the moment and not sure if I will ever join a band.

Other possible options would be to shell out $1300 for the Orange 300w combo amp or build a cabinet/head combo (which I know almost nothing about heads and cabs). I think my existing amp has an output so I'm not sure (?) if I could use it to run an output to a cabinet and buy the head later (???).

I don't practice very loud because I'm in a townhome...Neighbors have never said anything to me about noise, but I also wouldn't be blaring my amp while I practice out of courtesy (plus I still absolutely suck even though I'm practicing 90 mins a day)...I might have no clue on this, but I thought a higher wattage amp made better sound at lower volumes than a lower wattage amp.

There aren't any wrong answers here, but for the more experienced people on this thread-I'm curious which you would upgrade first (and why bc I'm interested in the logic behind your decision).

For some reason I seem to think that spending a lot of money on an amp is the least attractive option, but I'm also not sure about running a higher end bass thru my existing amp bc its pretty pedestrian (I don't hate it or anything it's just very "Meh").

I probably don't know enough about either (the bass or the amp) maybe at this point to make a decision bc I'm so green to playing. I'm about 99.9999% sure I'm going for a high end Schecter at some point bc I've had a pretty darn good experience with them.

I've also about decided I want an Orange bc the only other brand I've seen as an amp I was even sort of interested in was Mesa and they are pretty steep as I'd be looking at building a head/cabinet w them -it would just cost a lot more so it would probably take me a while to save up for that.

Thanks in advance for any advice...

I would look at an amp first there are all kinds of perfectly good cheap basses. A amp with enough volume to play with a drummer and one other instrument. Playing with others will help you improve faster

 

[75Ric]

If you were in a band, I would say upgrade the amp first, but you aren't there yet. If your current amp is totally unsatisfactory, you can get a small practice amp for relatively cheap money that will sound decent in your home setting.

Given that you have a loaner bass to use, I would take my time and try as many different basses as I could. Play really cheap models and high end ones, as well as everything you can in between. You will begin to recognize the different tonal characteristics of different basses and the features you like, the ones you definitely don't want, and the things you can live without. You will find that the feel is really important and not always associated with price. You will also begin to understand the different styles of basses (e.g., p-bass, thunderbird, stingray, Hofner style violin, j-bass, short scale, etc). Don't rush the process. You will likely find your wants change as you gain more playing experience and learn about different basses. Once you've settled on a particular bass, wait for a holiday sale. Even better, try to find one used in good condition to save money. I recently bought a high end bass in essentially mint condition despite it being a decade old. I couldn't afford a new model, but found one used that I could afford and it meets my needs perfectly.