Sub £300 quality bass

[Colledge]

I'm on the verge of committing myself to the purchase of an olympic while squier vm but i'm calling on the power of BC for some advice of choices.

i'm in the odd position of having been playing for a good 4-5 years with a single bass. at most i've only laid hands on 4 other basses in that time and even then, its only been for a couple of minutes. I've been playing a washburn force 4 all this time and its now pretty much an extension of my hands. But i actually have no idea how good a bass it is because i have nothing to compare it with.

well long story short, a combination of GAS for classic looks, trying something different and also the fact that my new band is finally started to gig (need a backup). I'm in the market for a bass for around £300, top runners are squier precision vm olympic while or cv fiesta red.
Gimme any and all of your suggestions.

and fyi, The band is pretty much exclusively classic rock orientated, but i like to experiment with a bit of stoner/desert rock and the odd bit of metal.

cheers

[BassBod]

I recently got a red CV Squier P bass - very good for the money. But you'll get better value buying a used bass of higher quality, maybe an earlier Japanese Squier or Tokai? Have a look at the ads here and take your time.

[Kongo]

with £300 you could get an awesome 1st bass, even a very well built one.

[thisnameistaken]

I've had some expensives basses, I've got one sitting right behind me (a '91 Thumb bass) but I'm currently gigging a Squier Jazz that IIRC I paid £110 for from a BC-er based in Newcastle.

Stuck a set of flatwounds on it and I love the sound, I'm doing contemporary reggae/soul/post-punk/hip-hop stuff on it, sounds deep and thumpy and old-school and fresh. Definitely good value for a hundred quid!

[allighatt0r]

Buy a Peavey T40

[solo4652]

Ibanez ATK 300? There are 2 or 3 in the For Sale section for under £250.

Also, G&L Tribute L2000. If you can stretch the budget a little, £350 should buy you a good used one: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/G-L-bass-guitar-L-2000-/280536946081?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item41514e15a1"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/G-L-bass-guitar-L-20...=item41514e15a1[/url]

I have one and I use it in preference to my Fender USA P as my main gigging bass.

Steve

Edited July 23, 2010 by solo4652

[Dom in Dorset]

Ibanez usually give good value for money, a few models in the £300 range. I tried a Jet Kings and loved it, not a classic look but a nice bass and full marks for quirky.
Having said that , you can't go wrong with a decent P bass copy and Squire seem to be well thought of here.

[Dom in Dorset]

Just noticed Dave Cs Hohner stick for sale, I had the five string once, good bass if a little "Marmite". They also have the advantage of being unfeasably small even in a hard case.

[razze06]

[quote name='allighatt0r' post='902780' date='Jul 23 2010, 07:51 AM']Buy a Peavey T40 [/quote]

Strongly agree.
Exceptionally good basses, different from almost anything else, versatile, US made if that's important to you, and as cool as you want (again, if that's your thing). Oh and in budget

[absolutpepper]

+1 on that Spector, looks lovely and a lot of bass for the money.

Also the T-40 idea is a good one, a fantastic bass with a twist on classic design.

What about a second hand Warwick Corvette Standard. Maybe that would be a bit out price range though?

FWIW The CVs are very nice too.

With the current market you'll currently have a lot of choice in the sub £300 price range. Best advice, scout around, play everything you can and try and get a good used deal (on BC of course).

Happy hunting.

Chris

[orangepeelneil]

[size=3]Hi There,

I'd look out for a Japanese bass. There are often lots of used models around the £300 mark.

You can pick up an old Ibanez bass such as a "blazer" or "roadstar" or loads of other manufacturers did P-bass clones.

Check out the JapCrap thread in the Ebay section on basschat.

I bought an early 80's Japanese Tokai in (yellowed) olympic white, best £220 I've ever spent, is now my main bass.

There is lots of Japanese stuff out there, search on here or "MIJ" ,"CIJ" or "Japanese bass" on ebay.

You can't go far wrong, there are several JapCap resident experts on basschat, who can advise better than me.

Do you really want a brand new bass? Don't think I'd ever buy a new instrument ever again (unless some treated me!)

I have not experience of VM squires, though I do love the fiesta red one.

Cheers Neil
[/size]

[EdwardHimself]

2 Syllables: Pea-Vey.

[El Bajo]

I've been looking at Vintage AV4+. Its their version of a jazz but with their own modifications making in very much its own bass. Also the Yamaha BB414, lovely and with J and P bass pick ups, finally a Squier Jazz Vitage Modified.

Peaveys have a good rep tooparticlarly the Cirrus range, haven't had enough contact with Ibanez though.

[nick]

[quote name='orangepeelneil' post='902858' date='Jul 23 2010, 09:41 AM'][size=3]Hi There,

I'd look out for a Japanese bass. There are often lots of used models around the £300 mark.

You can pick up an old Ibanez bass such as a "blazer" or "roadstar" or loads of other manufacturers did P-bass clones.

Check out the JapCrap thread in the Ebay section on basschat.

I bought an early 80's Japanese Tokai in (yellowed) olympic white, best £220 I've ever spent, is now my main bass.

There is lots of Japanese stuff out there, search on here or "MIJ" ,"CIJ" or "Japanese bass" on ebay.

You can't go far wrong, there are several JapCap resident experts on basschat, who can advise better than me.

Do you really want a brand new bass? Don't think I'd ever buy a new instrument ever again (unless some treated me!)

I have not experience of VM squires, though I do love the fiesta red one.

Cheers Neil
[/size][/quote]

+1 to the above. For £300 or less, you can pick-up a quality MIJ bass, if you look around.
If you can find an old Tokai that's good & reasonably priced, bag it, same for an Ibanez Blazer. Will also at least keep it's value should you choose to move it on in the future.

TBH think you'll get a better deal off here than off ebay. Once you find a bass with 'MIJ', 'Japan' etc... in the listing on ebay the bidding generally starts going up.
Recently got a nice '91 MIJ Squier off here at a bargain price.

[Stylon Pilson]

Haven't got one myself (yet), but Paul H seems to like his [url="http://www.probass.co.uk/Home.html"]Retrovibe[/url].

.P.

[dannybuoy]

I say go with your instict and get the Squier Vintage Modifed or Classic Vibe P - there is a new one out soon too:

[url="http://www.guitarandampshop.co.uk/acatalog/Squier_Vintage_Modified_Amber_Precision_Bass__70s_Style__Electric_Bass_Guitar__032-6802-520__-____span_style__color___ff0000_______DUE_IN_SEPTEMBER_____span____.html"][/url]

[Adrenochrome]

[quote name='EdwardHimself' post='902875' date='Jul 23 2010, 10:01 AM']2 Syllables: Pea-Vey. [/quote]

Shhh, I'm trying to keep it quiet! We don't want them to get trendy and expensive now do we?

Seriously, for £300 you could get one hell of a bass, so much better than a Squier (some of which are okay). I'd agree with most of the above suggestions as possibilities.

[Colledge]

thanks for all the info and help. i've been keeping an eye on the classifieds, a lot tasty stuff on there. also thanks for the heads up on the jap market, one more thing to look out for. I'm fancying something with a bit of a vintage vibe (hence the cv squires) and theres a lot of japs that tick that box.

[danbowskill]

had p basses(squire + fender).and just recived a jap tokai hardpuncher of colonel matt on basschat today!!
truly a great sounding and playing bass,will be easy to mod as well,fender gear fits(if you want to mod,dosnt really need it)


go jap dude.....

[Davo-London]

Whilst in America I bought a 1986 MIJ Squier Jazz. Unbelievably good value and it was £200. Totally undervalued. The early MIJ Js and Ps are incredible value for money as they were basically full blown Fenders.

+100 go Japanese.

Davo

[casapete]

Sell your grandma and get my mint Musicman Sub - thats assuming you'd get £75 for her ............