Quantcast

Bass guitar questions

denjen

Certified Lift Whore
Sep 16, 2001
1,691
36
Richmond VA
My 13 year old son ha been asking for a Bass for most of this year. We have decided to go ahead and get him one for Christmas. I have seen other guitar and bass threads on here so I was hoping someone could help me out. I took him to Sam Ash over the weekend to let him look around. One of the salesmen suggested that we get a Squire Jaguar bass and an Ampeg amp. Any feed back positive, negative or other suggestions would be appreciated.

http://www.samash.com/bass-guitars/squier-troy-sanders-jaguar-bass-f1086591x

http://www.samash.com/bass-amps/ba-108v2-8-combo-bass-amp-aba108v2x-p
 

jimmydean

The Official Meat of Ridemonkey
Sep 10, 2001
40,940
13,133
Portland, OR
I took Maddie to Guitar Center and she played about 6 different basses. She loved the feel and sound of this one, an Laguna (forget the model) and she started with a VOX headphone amp and Sony Studio Monitor headphones. I got her the Orange amp on sale for xmas last year. I am getting an actual bass amp from a friend for her to play at my house.

But she also plays one of these, and has for 2 years now (both basses).


<edit> I was really pushing the Ibanez, but she just loved that one and rocks it with the lightning strap. :rofl:

Her bass was about $220 and the am was $100. The VOX was $40 and her headphone were another $80 on sale.



Her friends all hate her because her headphones sound better than the Beats they paid way too much for. :)
 
Last edited:

Blown240

Monkey
Nov 19, 2013
443
290
I've been playing bass for 23 years. I also started when I was 13. At that price range, find the one that he likes the best and feels best to him. They are all about the same quality.

Its more important that he loves it, so that when he gets frustrated, and his fingers bleed, he will still want to play.

That being said, what style playing is he interested in? Playing with a pick, fingers, or slapping it... I had a really nice bass that sounded amazing being slapped, or played with a pick, but the action was so low, that when I played with my fingers, I hit the pickups and it made a crazy piping sound.
 

Quo Fan

don't make me kick your ass
Looks are nice, but feel is much more important. I used to play, but haven't in nearly 20 years. Take him to a guitar store, and let him fool around on a bunch within your price range. Buy the one he likes. Ampeg makes a good bass amp.
 

jimmydean

The Official Meat of Ridemonkey
Sep 10, 2001
40,940
13,133
Portland, OR
What do you guys think about these instead of the VOX Headphone amp? Basicly the headphones and headphone amp in one.

http://www.samash.com/amphones-bass---active-bass-guitar-headphones-vambassxx-p

Those look cool and are a great idea. She already had the headphones (I bought them for her keyboard :rofl: ). But seriously, feel is a big part and I would want to listen to the headphones first. Maddie wanted a red one, but it was all about feel and sound at the end of the day.

It didn't help that she had been youtubing Les Claypool. :)
 

mandown

Poopdeck Repost
Jun 1, 2004
20,128
7,679
Transylvania 90210
budget?
style/tone goals?

if you can afford it, go for the Fender Made in Mexico models. yeah, they cost more, but they hold value if you need to sell, and the are a generally regarded as a great combo of tone, quality, and value.

Rock and/or soul, go right for the P bass, and don't screw around. everybody should own one.
For more melodic options, go for a J bass. The neck on the J is generally slimmer, and might be a better fit for a 13 year old.

the Sterling S.U.B. line by Music Man has a good word around it. generally, i'd say avoid anything with active electronics and/or a preamp (needs 9-18v of battery power). i just played a Music Man today and the neck was very comfortable and compact. funk players tend to like these, but they do well in rock. i don't see them in jazz often, but they can get there sonically.

i'd avoid Ibanez, Jackson, ESP/Ltd, or anything that looks "metal" and gimmicky. Schecter does get some respect. '

Surf around on talkbass.com. i'm over there a bunch. the crowd is pretty good.

another option is to find a lesson place where you can rent an instrument to get a start of a feel, then go and play a bunch. find one that fits the hands well and "feels" good, particularly with string spacing. having to reach to play lines will take a toll on you.

look for 34" scale basses, which are most common. 35" are going to be more "metal" and bigger reach. the Epiphone EB0 is a 30.5" scale. it's a good fit for smaller hands. it does have a unique tone, but it's modeled after some classic rock sounds. i'm not sure if the shorter scale makes it harder to buy strings. longer scale (35") can be an issue, as well as bridges with strings-through-body.

as for amps, if you are considering headphones, computer may be the way to go. any chance you're kid has a mac available? with Garageband, you can plug directly in. it isn't the best sound, but it can come out your headphones, or attached speakers. the included drum loops and the ability to record is a great help getting started.

for real amps, the Fender Rumble line gets praise. Peavey also brings it for the money. don't get sucked into the "tube" marketing; for higher end gear, it is nice, however tubes in budget gear is just marketing. for practice, that should get you there. for a real band situation, it will depend on the band style.
 
Last edited:

mandown

Poopdeck Repost
Jun 1, 2004
20,128
7,679
Transylvania 90210
some threads to read.

http://www.talkbass.com/threads/beginner-bass.1082212/#post-15994700

http://www.talkbass.com/threads/best-first-bass.1068207/#post-15737496
Used MIM Fender P or J, or Squier Classic Vibe P or J, would be my call for a $300ish budget. The setup is more important than the bass. A great setup makes an OK bass a joy to play. A bad setup makes the best bass a pain.

http://www.talkbass.com/threads/the-value-of-a-good-setup.1103416/

^^^
whatever you get, find a good set-up person (either in the store you buy from or elsewhere . . . probably elsewhere). big shops are notorious for terrible set-ups. pay the extra money to have things like the action and truss rod and intonation done by a pro. they will make learning a better experience.
 

denjen

Certified Lift Whore
Sep 16, 2001
1,691
36
Richmond VA
Thanks for all of the help and tips. Ended up getting the Squire bass that I linked in my original post and the VOX headphone amp that jimmydean suggested. That will hopefully get him a good start and we can fill in from there.
 

jimmydean

The Official Meat of Ridemonkey
Sep 10, 2001
40,940
13,133
Portland, OR
:clapping:

My latest project is the hunt for a classic 3/4 that needs work. A good one is $3k+, but a basket case can be had for less than a grand so I hope to have something pimp for sub $1500. But if she plays it through high school, f@ck it.