I'm gonna pick up the bass...

DavidGerhart · #1 08-31-2023, 10:28 AM

Okay, situation at a performance recently, everybody traded instruments I swapped with the bass player ... yikes, I loved it.

So ... A pre-owned US Fender P Bass?

Bob from Brooklyn · #2 08-31-2023, 11:24 AM

Do not underestimate the Mexican Fenders

Glennwillow · #3 08-31-2023, 11:32 AM

A US or MIM P-Bass would be an excellent bass! It's a great skill to learn to play bass well! I enjoy it every time I pick mine up.

I have a Carvin bass; it also sounds good.

- Glenn

thefsb · #4 08-31-2023, 12:05 PM

I like 30" bass so I'd be looking at the G&L Fallout. Yum.

leew3 · #5 08-31-2023, 01:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob from Brooklyn

Do not underestimate the Mexican Fenders

This ^^^, though I opted for an active Jazz bass as I wanted more control of tone onboard and a hotter signal output. When I bought it I was playing bass in a church where I went directly into the board from stage and the cast of characters on the board were not necessarily attentive. Have fun!

DavidGerhart · #6 08-31-2023, 01:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by leew3

This ^^^, though I opted for an active Jazz bass as I wanted more control of tone onboard and a hotter signal output. When I bought it I was playing bass in a church where I went directly into the board from stage and the cast of characters on the board were not necessarily attentive. Have fun!

Ya, I might wind up in the W-band sometimes. But I'm avoiding it these days doing Sunday Saloon gigs... The music is so fun.

DavidGerhart · #7 08-31-2023, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob from Brooklyn

Do not underestimate the Mexican Fenders

Okay, I like that.

Thank you!

DavidGerhart · #8 08-31-2023, 01:19 PM

Thanks, this sync's with another fella's thought.

I appreciate the advice, tons.

DavidGerhart · #9 08-31-2023, 01:20 PM

I'll do that, promise. Thanks!

BoneDigger · #10 08-31-2023, 01:27 PM

I went with an American P/J bass. It gives me flexibility and sounds/looks great!

grayback · #11 08-31-2023, 03:09 PM

I have a Squier Classic Vibe P bass and a MIM Jazz. They get the job done, great range of tones between the two.

DavidGerhart · #12 08-31-2023, 05:36 PM

Thanks, appreciate the pair

zuzu · #13 08-31-2023, 06:08 PM

I have a few. I am playing an Ibanez Mikro right now, 27.5 inch scale, very guitar like and easy on my hands, but only 1 string brand has a low E that short that doesn't sound flubby. From 1977 until 2019 I played a Guild B301, the sound being sort of a Fender P crossed with a Rickenbacker. Sometimes played a Yamaha BB1200A in the studio. Got a Guild Starfire 2 hollow body all maple in 2019, super comfortable to play but a bit of a one trick pony sound wise. Built a bass with an Aria neck from a Gibson EBO copy and a Telecaster guitar body with a Fender P bass pickup, which is now my studio bass, sounds terrific.

I believe that is all...but don't be afraid to snoop around the non Fender types to find the one best suited to you. If I had to choose a bass for one who is primarily a guitar player it would be the Schecter Guitar Research Stilleto; many variations available but all with two common traits: excellent build quality and a full scale bass with the slickest playing, most guitar-like neck you will find. I nearly bought one when I got the Guild Starfire 2 and wish I had, I may sell the Guild to get one, they are outstanding!

Welcome to the bottom!

Steve DeRosa · #14 08-31-2023, 06:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidGerhart

Okay, situation at a performance recently, everybody traded instruments I swapped with the bass player ... yikes, I loved it.

So ... A pre-owned US Fender P Bass?

Don't rule out a short-scale (~30") bass with two pickups: my go-to for the last 15 years has been a Gibson SG Faded (a latter-day, simplified version of Jack Bruce's Cream-era EB-3), set up with LaBella 49-109 flats and low action as they were back in the day - covers all the sonic territory of my Pedulla, don't need the low-B string on my Ibanez 5'er (that big neck pickup shakes the floor when you're working down on the E string), and the short scale puts everything in a user-friendly position. BTW, contrary to what you may (or may not) have heard short-scale basses are not tonally inferior, any more than a J-45 (24.75") compared to a D-18 (25.5"): FWIW the tonal and handling qualities of these '60s-period instruments have been rediscovered in the last 15 years or so, there's a broader selection of instruments on the market - in all price ranges - than there has been in over 50 years, and I wouldn't make a final decision without taking a few different examples (including hollow and semi-hollow) for a test drive...

FrankHudson · #15 08-31-2023, 07:43 PM

I've taken to playing bass more often in the past decade or so. I love the sound, always have. This century I've collected a half-dozen workable, lower cost basses because I love the variety.* I use them regularly when recording as part of my project.

Short scale (30") may be easier for a guitarist to adapt to, though I play the various scales about equally. I can play faster passages on short scale (likely because my technique is self-taught, and likely inefficient) -- but needing to play fast isn't as common for bass parts. I'm also about half-and half with flat wound strings vs. round windings. I probably play flats more often. Round-wound is still my choice for aggressive rock playing, but I'm doing less of that these days.

A particular favorite of mine is the Epiphone Jack Casaday model. It a bit bulky, but the sound with the large semi-hollow body and special pickup really makes its sound stand out. Doesn't hurt that Casaday is one of my original bass guitar heroes.

*Long and short scales, flats or round wound, a semi-hollow body, a Squier Bass VI 6 string bass, a Squier fretless.