bass opinion

[harpspitfire]

i want to get a cheap bass, reason is, i want to put my acoustic songs i wrote on a CD, and add a little extra something to them- i found 2 in my price range- Yamaha rbx-170 at the pawn shop for $30- looks ok with a few knicks and stuff, the tuners are shot, 2 missing and 1 all bent up, no idea what kind to get for it-also needs new stings, 2nd bass is a Rogue LX200B new for $120 shipped

[aknow]

Originally Posted by harpspitfire

i want to get a cheap bass, reason is, i want to put my acoustic songs i wrote on a CD, and add a little extra something to them- i found 2 in my price range- Yamaha rbx-170 at the pawn shop for $30- looks ok with a few knicks and stuff, the tuners are shot, 2 missing and 1 all bent up, no idea what kind to get for it-also needs new stings, 2nd bass is a Rogue LX200B new for $120 shipped

Yamaha basses work well..... They offer great quality, reliability, good luck.

[Steve DeRosa]

My thoughts:

• The Yamaha will cost you more in time and money to get into playing shape than it would to buy one new (you don't know if the neck is twisted/warped, or if the electronics are functional):
  
  http://www.musiciansfriend.com/bass/...-guitar/j11882
  
  Simply put, avoid this piece of crap...
  
  
• Save a few more bucks and be patient - there are some bargains to be had in the under-$200 bracket (that Rogue isn't one of them IME), and if you buy new you have the security of a factory warranty and/or the option of returning a defective instrument; here's a few that should serve your purpose well:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/bass/dean-evo-xm-bass
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/bass/...-electric-bass
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/bass/...in-bass-guitar
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/bass/...ss-short-scale
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/bass/...-electric-bass

FYI MF has a 17% off holiday coupon sale right now (call and talk to a rep if it doesn't kick in online), which should bring even the most expensive basses down into your price range...

Hope this helps...

[FrankHudson]

You don't say, but I'm guessing you want to spend very little, less than $200.

If you want to keep the cost down, I'd keep looking for used basses. The Yamaha you've seen sounds chancy. Anything that has multiple tuners damaged sounds like it may other things wrong.

I've was able to get sounds that please me out of the Squier Vintage Modified Jaguar Bass Special SS, which sells for less than $200 (and you should be able to use a discount coupon if you call during business hours). It's short scale, which I found helpful starting out.

For $50 more the Squier Vintage Modified Jaguar Bass Special (with no SS in the model name) is the "Regular" longer scale and an active tone circuit.

I'm sure there are many good deals out there used too. My two favorites right now were bought used: a Squier Fretless Jazz bass and a Epiphone Jack Casaday model.

And your recording aim is a good one. I sure like the combination of bass and acoustic guitar.

[harpspitfire]

thx all for your input, no real hurry here, so ill take my time and keep checking the used market, i may find a good deal after the holidays

[muscmp]

i bought a 95 mim jazz bass last year for $250. search around on your craigslist. i've found that people get presents like these for xmas and don't play them. so, you are looking at a hardly used bass that someone needs to get rid of.

vice versa, now is a good time to get a deal on a new one.

play music!

[harpspitfire]

i wont go on and on about the many basses i tried at music shops including GC- i can say i didnt feel much for the NEW models at GC- some frets felt like razor blades!- anyway to make it short, i ended up with a great looking Ibanez GRS200, and for an amp a Peavey Basic 50 (i like peavey durability) both costing a total of $240- not a super special deal, but not a bad price either for what i got

[Texsunburst59]

Here in my neck of the woods, pawnshops are gear GOLDMINES.

I get amazing deals on guitars, basses, amps, and pedals on a very regular basis.

I really think you should visit as many pawnshops in a 50 radius of where you live and try to find the best bass you can get for the least amount of money.

The deals are out there, you just have to hunt them down.

For reference, here's a killer '94 USA Fender Jazz V plus bass I picked up at a pawnshop about 3-4 weeks ago for $203.99 + tax.

[harpspitfire]

nice lookin fender tex!- well for the record, the peavey basic 50 went back to guitar center- it had enough power but wasnt very 'clean' on the low notes- so i found a peavey TKO 80 on craigslist for $15 less- seems to be a better amp and sounded better

[harpspitfire]

lastly- guy on craigslist finally got back to me, already bought the peavey TKO 80 but he had a TNT 100 (15" speaker) he said i could have for $20- so for $20 its nice amp with a deeper sound, so i got it figuring the price alone was worth it

[JeffreyAK]

I had a Rogue mandolin until I gave it to a friend. Perhaps their basses are better, but that Rogue was the worst musical instrument I've ever owned - complete junk, not worth a tenth of the already ridiculously low price I paid for it. I'd look at decent used basses, which is what I did when I picked up my used Musicmaster 25 years ago (for about $100 as I recall). Those basses are now "vintage" and go for a lot more, but there are lots of similar steals out there if you poke around.