Ducky

Thanks everyone, those are some really interesting and useful replies. Much appreciated!

Hi all, Hope everyone is doing well. I’ve recently taken up playing bass, and have reached a point where I want to upgrade either my bass guitar or amp. I started a few months ago, with an inexpensive Gear4music 4-string guitar and amp pack for about £150. I’ve gradually improved with consistent practice, but always felt that my plucking / pulling never sounded “clean”. I thought it was down to poor technique, and tried to work on it, but didn’t make any real improvement. Last weekend I happened to stumble into a high-end guitar shop and tried playing a fender bass with a fender amp, and it sounded incredible. I don’t think my playing has ever sounded so clean, which led me to realise that it wasn’t me / my technique that’s the issue. Now that I’ve come to that realisation, I want to upgrade either my guitar or amp. What do you recommend I do first? My budget is around £300, and I will eventually upgrade both, but right now I only have budget for either the guitar or amp. Also, I should mention that the guitar I tried in the shop was £900, and the amp was probably also a very expensive one. Will a £300 guitar or amp provide an improvement in tone like the one I just described? I like playing heavier music, like metal, and will also buy a distortion pedal at some point. Thanks in advance for your help.