$1000.00 One bass....Multi-purpose, for a guitarist to use on recordings...

[gainiac]

Has to be able to get a diverse range of tones. Funky, classic rock, metal....not that "modern" polite refined sound either.

What do you recommend?

Lakland has been mentioned to me a few times.

I'm not a fan of how Fenders feel.

G&L?

[testing1two]

I recommend you check out the new Fender American Standard jazz bass. I prefer the way a P-Bass records, but the jazz bass neck feels great and the tone will fit nicely in a variety of styles.

The Lakland Skylines are very hip, especially the Duck Dunn model which is a P-Bass with a jazz neck. My only gripe with the Skylines is that they are noticeably heavier than average, which may or may not be a concern for you.

[gainiac]

I recommend you check out the new Fender American Standard jazz bass. I prefer the way a P-Bass records, but the jazz bass neck feels great and the tone will fit nicely in a variety of styles.

The Lakland Skylines are very hip, especially the Duck Dunn model which is a P-Bass with a jazz neck. My only gripe with the Skylines is that they are noticeably heavier than average, which may or may not be a concern for you.

Weight is not that much of a concern.......I'll be sitting mostly while recording bass........Duck Dunn model? I'll look it up........

Thx,

Martin

[Jon C]

a used USA-made G&L L2000 would be perfect for this... even a used or new G&L Tribute L-2000 which would be around $400-550 or so I think. The L2000 has a very versatile switching system that covers a lot of ground.

[gbm]

If you don't like how Fenders feel (although I'm not sure what that means - there's quite a variety of neck shapes to choose from), you aren't going to like Lakland or G&L either. Maybe grab a couple Ibanez Roadstars for a different neck feel and the versatility of a P-J pickup combo? You can certainly afford a backup with a $1000 budget that way, too.

[gainiac]

If you don't like how Fenders feel (although I'm not sure what that means - there's quite a variety of neck shapes to choose from), you aren't going to like Lakland or G&L either. Maybe grab a couple Ibanez Roadstars for a different neck feel and the versatility of a P-J pickup combo? You can certainly afford a backup with a $1000 budget that way, too.

I've always found the actions tough on the Fenders I've tried, P's & J's..........

The bass with the most impressive action I've ever played was a Fodera......then again that was a 4K bass..........

I'm looking for something quite easy on the hands since bass isn't my instrument.

[testing1two]

I've always found the actions tough on the Fenders I've tried, P's & J's..........

The bass with the most impressive action I've ever played was a Fodera......then again that was a 4K bass..........

I'm looking for something quite easy on the hands since bass isn't my instrument.

Whichever bass you choose, I would allocate another $100 or so to get it set up and adjusted by the best tech in your area using the brand and guage of string that you intend to keep on the bass. It makes all the difference in the world.

[gainiac]

Whichever bass you choose, I would allocate another $100 or so to get it set up and adjusted by the best tech in your area using the brand and guage of string that you intend to keep on the bass. It makes all the difference in the world.

That goes without saying..........

[Aaron Cheney]

Fender Reggie Hamilton model. You'll thank me later.

I found one used for $600. I'm exactly what you describe: a guitarist looking for a bass to track with. The RH model does it all - jbass, pbass, passive, active, drop D tuner. A million sounds in it. Every bit the quality of an American J or P. Can't recommend it highly enough. If you don't like Fender, then you don't like Fender, I guess, but you should at least give the RH a try....

A

[ghoti]

I like my Peavey Grind bass. I also like the feel and sound of Shecter Stilettos (a little more $ though).

Almost everyone in classic rock, funk, and metal uses a P or a J though, so if you're trying for a sound, just do some research on who gets it and how....just like everything else.

:band

[gainiac]

Fender Reggie Hamilton model. You'll thank me later.

I found one used for $600. I'm exactly what you describe: a guitarist looking for a bass to track with. The RH model does it all - jbass, pbass, passive, active, drop D tuner. A million sounds in it. Every bit the quality of an American J or P. Can't recommend it highly enough. If you don't like Fender, then you don't like Fender, I guess, but you should at least give the RH a try....

A

Thanks Aaron, I'll look around for one........

[theroan]

I wouldn't go with any recent Fender or G&L. The Lakeland's are great basses. It gives you Fender tone with superior quality. Fender Precisions and Jazzes pretty much standards in any studio recording rock.

[James Hill]

There is a used Reggie Hamilton currently in stock at Daves as well as a new one.

http://www.davesguitar.com/products.html?13256

[gainiac]

I wouldn't go with any recent Fender or G&L. The Lakeland's are great basses. It gives you Fender tone with superior quality. Fender Precisions and Jazzes pretty much standards in any studio recording rock.

Cool, I'll keep that in mind.

[Guitartim]

Do yourself a favor and check out some of the Peavey Cirrus basses. They are top notch, pro basses and a bargain on the used market. I've owned three (4, 5, and 5 fretless) and all were incredible instruments.

Also some of the high end Ibanez SR series (1000 - 3000) are very good, especially if you are transitioning from guitar to bass. They typically have slim neck profiles and Bartolini active/passive EQ and pickups. Best of all, they sell for way under a grand used.

Good hunting.

[James Dawson]

I wound up buying a 51 Reissue P Bass for an old school sound, but when I was looking I was very impressed with the sound, playability and quality of this Ibanez.

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Ibanez-SR500-Soundgear-4-String-Bass-515055-i1148507.gc

[cptnhook]

If you're concerned about the neck being too thick and chunky, p-basses might not be for you. J-basses have a more slender profile.

For maximum versatility, you may want to get a bass with an active preamp. The 55-02 comes with one, and aftermarket pres are available for the JO and DJ. I've had a Skyline and a US Lakland - they were both great.

The Fender Reggie Hamilton might be a good fit with the P/J combo, active pre, but I have no personal experience with it.

[walterw]

i recommend avoiding oddball "niche" instruments until you really nail down a specific tone you're after. a plain ol' american standard jazz bass with some upgraded pickups will do literally everything, from country to hip-hop to metal, and it don't even need no fancy onboard preamp, neither.

i like them because with their graphite reinforced neck and string-through body bridge, they don't need any hardware upgrades. every recording engineer and live soundman will be happy to see it, too.

[gainiac]

If you're concerned about the neck being too thick and chunky...

thick and chunky is fine, actually it's preferred. I like really low and fairly "soft" action..........

I can't play suspension bridge cables..........

Know what I mean?

[iualum]

...a used Cort Curbow w/Bartolini soapbar is a very nice instrument...& you'll still have $600 or more in your pocket...

[The Golden Boy]

I record most everything with my Jazz.

I feel my Jazz records better, it sits in the mix better, it has a more "organic" presence than my G&L L-2000.

However, I prefer the L-2000 for most live applications where I'm looking for an aggressive sound.

[bostonwal]

thick and chunky is fine, actually it's preferred. I like really low and fairly "soft" action..........

I can't play suspension bridge cables..........

Know what I mean?

You might want to look into a string guage of .040-.100 instead of the more common .045-.105. I'm a .040 guy myself because I like to dig into the strings at times.

[bnetz]

Fender Reggie Hamilton model. You'll thank me later.

I found one used for $600. I'm exactly what you describe: a guitarist looking for a bass to track with. The RH model does it all - jbass, pbass, passive, active, drop D tuner. A million sounds in it. Every bit the quality of an American J or P. Can't recommend it highly enough. If you don't like Fender, then you don't like Fender, I guess, but you should at least give the RH a try....

A

+1

These are great basses. I'm in the market for a P/J bass and have played a couple at music shops and they played great (right off the rack- even w/o a professional setup) and sounded great. Lots of tonal options. Even w/o messing with the eq too much, it was punchy like a P, but the J seemed to smooth that out. If you want to get rid of the smoothnes, just turn off the J pickup.

They also had a really nice, solid feel. So good, in fact, it suprised me.

[tj1004]

Rickenbacker, end of story. Funk, country, metal, hard rock, classic rock. It can be rude as hell or smooth

[Fred_C]

How about a dano or Jerry Jones Longhorn? These can be had for $250-600, scale is a bit more friendly for a guitarist, and they can bite, growl or thump. I had one and got rid of it for 2 reasons: the strings are spaced closer together at the bridge, which makesl playing fingerstyle a bit tougher, and it didn't quite have the meaty thump of a P bass which is the sound I really identify with in a bass. Still versatile, cheap, and worth a try though IMO.

[zydeco papa]

A used MusicMan Sterling or StingRay5. The coil switching and active EQ get a lot of versatility out of the single pickup.

[Red Planet]

There are a gazillion basses out there no doubt.

For you basic 4 stringer you just cant beat a Fender MIJ 53 reissue Sting Bass or the 51. The 51 is the same Bass just a different color and dosnt say Sting on it.

That being said a Jazz neck is much easier to play (too small for me).

I'm in love with my 53.


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/RedPlanet/SWRBassRig_1400.jpg

[Jon C]

I wouldn't go with any recent Fender or G&L.


why not? a bald opinion without any facts doesn't help much ... at least in G&L's case I don't see why, the '06 Tribute L2000 I scored used is on par with many of their good US made ones.

[Kitsapbass]

If you don't like Fenders, you probably won't like any of the Fender-ish basses that have been recommended to you. Lakland, G&L, Music Man...they all have roots firmly planted in the Fender soil. What is it you don't like about Fender? Is it the feel of the neck? The sound? The look? I hope I'm not peeing in anybody's Cheerios, but I've owned close to 25 basses, and I've tried almost every brand that's out there...so I'm calling 'em like I see 'em...

If Fenders honestly aren't your bag, I would go for either an Ibanez, or a Spector. If you decide on an Ibanez, I would go for a Soundgear - they have a neck no bigger than a pencil and the majority have at least a 2-band active eq. They also have models that have Bartolini pickups and electronics at your price point. Great basses, but I would honestly though recommend the Spector. Every Spector I've played has been great. At your price point (under 1K), you could get either a 4, 5, or 6 string with bolt-on necks, 34" scale on the 4 string, 35" scale on the 5 or 6 strings, quilt maple or bubinga tops, EMG-SSD electronics (basically the same as the EMG-HZs, with boost only active eq (2-band). They also have 2 sig models at your price-point, but I haven't tried them. i have tried the Legend series (which are the ones I described above). I'm a Fender-type guy, but these were really good. Good to the point where I'm trying to work some OT to buy one. I had a Spector back in the day though, and it was the only bass I've ever regretted selling.

[peakdesign]

Dude,

First of all, no one bass can cover everything, same as guitars. Secondly if you are a relative novice, you may as well get some exposure. Thirdly, as a guitarist, you would be much happier with short scale basses, I am. You will also like narrow Jazz necks. So where do you get the dream short scales? Frankly, this will sound nuts to you, but I would recommend getting 2-3 basses from RondoMusic.com. You can get a very decent short scale Jazz bass, plus a short scale lined neck fretless Jazz, plus maybe something exotic like a 6 string long scale fretted, or maybe a full scale Jazz/precision hybrid, or one of the Beatle Basses, or one with double humbuckings, for about 139 + 119 + 189 + 60 shipping. Read up on and buy several different string sets. About $600 for everything. Learn to set them up for your touch. You will have a variety you cannot achieve in one instrument, you will vastly enjoy the short scale basses, you will have a great time getting into it. The Rondo instruments are incredible for the money, only the strings need replacing. The owner, Kurt, is super responsive. Read up on their house brand SX (Essex), Douglas and Brice basses, they are made in China but pro workhorse instruments, not $3000-4000 boutique basses, but quality-comparable to the midrange Fenders (NOT the Squiers). The QA of late is much better than 4 years ago, when people started noticing these as great deals. Who needs super on-board EQ? What tonal variety you don't get with the workhorse pickups, you can cull from different strings and signal processing during recording/mixing. The pros on TalkBass are buying up 3-4 basses each and ooing over them, it's become an inside joke. I play bass in the studio, I'm primarily a keyboardist/guitarist/producer. I was skeptical, then got a SX short scale fretless jaguar bodied jazz bass last week (for $139), was blown away, and immediately ordered a SX short scale fretted jazz and found a Douglas fretless six string used. Heck, I'm looking at putting $60 Thomastik string sets on the short scale ones, they deserve it. Hurry, their fall stock is running low. You probably won't believe me, but if you do, you'll do a lot better that way than with any one instrument for $1000. IMHO - of course. Set aside the money you save, at some point you might want a 3-4K boutique bass.

[gainiac]

Thanks again folks, lots of good info here.......Just to clarify for some folks here, I like (love) Fender sounds, but most of the Fenders I've picked up didn't strike me as comfortable action wise.......

So it's a matter of finding the right fit.........The spectors seem like quite a bit of fun. I've tried a few recently........

[mrjonduke]

music man stingray.

[progrockbass]

Even though you have a caveat about Fenders you should check out a few different ones. IMO the Geddy Lee solves all your problems and hits the price point...

[ghoti]

One of the new Ibanez basses with Bartolini p/u and electronics will get you a whole TON of sounds. You can go from Jaco to Geddy to Jamerson...almost...

The electronics are top-notch and the construction is pretty decent (neck-through if you like that...I tend to). I didn't quite bond with it like with my Peavey or a Schecter I tried once, but for a swiss army knife bass it would be very good I think.

[Deaj]

You should demo a MusicMan Bongo with dual humbuckers and 4-band EQ before making a final decision. Amazing array of tones, vast flexibility, and a wonderful instrument to play.

[johnboy]

Action and tone can be so closely related on bass (sometimes more so with passive electronics). Since you seem to be worried about action I would say go active with a Peavey Cirrus or Spector or MusicMan Sterling/Bongo, just don't expect them to sound like a Fender because they can't.

The other thing to think about is that several top players actually raise their action for recording. You have increased sustain and often better tone. So if you aren't going to be gigging in a speedmetal band grab a thin necked Jazz bass (Marcus Miller or Geddy Lee or Reggie Hamilton to name a few) and show the world what your art sounds like.