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What is the best bass for under £100


AMD8806

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The normal (not SBK) PB-20 seems to be in stock.  I had one for a while and it's good.

I also still have a J&D, although mine's the mini jazz , not the precision (this or perhaps this).

I play my J&D every now and then at gigs and it's good.  In fact I got a really nice compliment on my tone recently from the singer, whereas with my Sandberg no one's ever said a thing!
 

Edited by jrixn1
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For under £100, go second hand. You'll pretty much only get trash for £100 brand new that will be worth £50 at best the second you've bought it.

If you buy pre-owned, and buy smart, you can get something half decent, and if you don't like it after a week or two you can sell it on and break even or maybe make a few pennies which can be reinvested in another second hand bass where the cycle can continue!

I did this with amps for about a year until I finally settled on something I really liked. Gives you a great chance to try what's out there without really spending anything other that your initial outlay.

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J&D are very, very good, if my £113 Thinline Tele copy is any indication. What's very interesting is that it's possibly to buy the exact same guitar, obviously from the same production line, with a slightly more Fender-shaped headstock bearing a "Tokai" logo. Costs about 3 times the price of mine.

I'd have no hesitation in picking up a J&D Precision or Jazz copy for around the £100 mark, same goes for Harley Benton, from everything I've heard.

The idea of cheap instruments inevitably being junk really is a thing of the past. Hail China!

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I personally believe that we are living in the golden age of lutherie. It is very difficult to buy a poor instrument now. Pickups generally are the weak spot, but even then they are not rubbish. I just got 2 J&D Jazz basses for work for £125 and they are fine and dandy. I could happily gig them. They are slightly heavy and the Poly on them is nice and thick, but I think that is the norm until you spend quite a bit more. I think you have to climb much higher than another £100 to get anything that is appreciably better.

Dan, on reading it this again, my post could seem as if I am disagreeing with you in a forum/troll stylee and that was not my intention.

Edited by owen
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13 hours ago, owen said:

I personally believe that we are living in the golden age of lutherie. It is very difficult to buy a poor instrument now. Pickups generally are the weak spot, but even then they are not rubbish. I just got 2 J&D Jazz basses for work for £125 and they are fine and dandy. I could happily gig them. They are slightly heavy and the Poly on them is nice and thick, but I think that is the norm until you spend quite a bit more. I think you have to climb much higher than another £100 to get anything that is appreciably better.

I usually buy the best I can but at the moment I have three basses, all worth no more than £250, and furnished with pickups costing no more than £30. They all do a great job. Most remarkable is the Entwhistle p bass pup on my Revelation (£199 new). which punches way way above its £12 weight.  

Edited by lownote12
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1 hour ago, lownote12 said:

I usually buy the best I can but at the moment I have three basses, all worth no more than £250, and furnished with pickups costing no more than £30. They all do a great job. Most remarkable ia the Entwhistle p bass pup on my Revelation (£199 new). which punches way way above its £12 weight.  

Entwistle pickups are ace - they can make an OK bass sound great for a pocket-money price. 

As long as the neck is decent, with an action you can cope with and fret ends that don't lacerate your hands if you dare to do a glissando, £100 will buy you something more than adequate. Your options are wider if you're handy with a soldering iron, too. Westfield basses are worth a look - they crop up fairly regularly second hand for well under £100 and I think they're every bit as good as a Chinese Squier. With the money you save, you might consider upgrading the tuners and the pick-up, but they're good basses, straight from the factory. failing that, here's another vote for a Yamaha - their "entry level" instruments are really good. 

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26 minutes ago, Newfoundfreedom said:

I've got my eye on the HBZ-5000 NT.

Above the price range of the OP, coming it at about £270. But they look ridiculously good for the money. 

https://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_bz_5000_nt.htm

Just need to get some funds together now. 😞

I have to steer clear of Thomann! So many great looking basses

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