What is an expensive bass?

[neepheid]

2 minutes ago, chris_b said:

 

Do we actually know what JE was after when he bought a new bass?

 

Your bass next, I think.  He was on a mission to own *all* the basses in the world after all...

[tegs07]

1 hour ago, Al Krow said:

How a particular bass sounds in the mix may actually not differ that much but, equally, there's an unmistakable signature sound to some of the greats eg John Entwistle.

Agreed. I think Simon Gallup has played pretty much every bass there is at various times, particularly live and he always just sounds like Simon Gallup.

Edited 6 hours ago by tegs07

[Misdee]

54 minutes ago, TimR said:

 

Entwistle spent years and a fortune on hundreds of bases and never sounded any different. 

Yes, but in a good way.

 

To be fair, I don't think John Entwistle was searching for the perfect tone when he was amassing his bass collection. He just liked buying stuff.

[Stub Mandrel]

3 hours ago, Al Krow said:

Playability of basses on the other hand is another thing: weight, balance/neck dive, string spacing, neck thickness, how a bass sits on your frame etc. Can individually,  and certainly together, make a real difference to how comfortable and enjoyable a bass is to play. 

 

Would it be fair to say, as a rule of thumb, that the really budget basses don't major on playability? But also that playability won't necessarily improve much beyond midrange bass prices and you then start increasingly paying for branding and/or craftsmanship of boutique basses?

 

But... none of the playability elements you list are determined by price.

 

There are playability elements that are - such as neck shape, finish, fretwork but these can be excellent on inexpensive basses (some Squiers for example).

[tauzero]

3 hours ago, Al Krow said:

Would it be fair to say, as a rule of thumb, that the really budget basses don't major on playability? But also that playability won't necessarily improve much beyond midrange bass prices and you then start increasingly paying for branding and/or craftsmanship of boutique basses?

 

Assuming that a bass can be set up for the action that you favour, and the frets don't cut your fingers to ribbons, neck width and profile would be the most significant factors, with body shape and balance also coming into it.

 

Playability is a very personal thing though. I like basses with quite slim shallow necks, so my (expensive by my measure) Seis are great, but my Squier MVM Jazz 5 (cheap), Ray5 (cheap), and Ibanez SRF705 (mid-range) aren't far behind, and my Warwick Thumb 5 (expensive) is a bit behind them and my Antoniotsai dragon bass (cheap) is their equal. Precision 5s and fatneck Warwicks are right out. I think my Ibanez EHB1265MS (expensive) and Cort Space 5 (mid-range) are pretty much equivalent for playability. But other people love baseball bat necks and dislike slim necks, so a Squier Precision 5 would suit them better than a Sei 5.

[Stub Mandrel]

It's almost as if different people are differrnt shapes! And like different things!