Need some info on Bass guitars...

fish slapped

Hi Guys and Gals,

I'm after some info on Bass guitars.

My daughter (16) is looking for a bass guitar. She plays traditional hary and concertina, so I think she could take to the bass pretty quickly. She's into Greenday, Paramore, Pink Floyd, etc... don't know is that'll make a difference to what kind of bass ...

Whats the difference between a P bass and a J bass??? and any recomendations for a starter??

thanks, fish.

Rigsby

fish slapped wrote: »

Hi Guys and Gals,

I'm after some info on Bass guitars.

My daughter (16) is looking for a bass guitar. She plays traditional hary and concertina, so I think she could take to the bass pretty quickly. She's into Greenday, Paramore, Pink Floyd, etc... don't know is that'll make a difference to what kind of bass ...

Whats the difference between a P bass and a J bass??? and any recomendations for a starter??

thanks, fish.

The physical difference between a P and a J is in the width of the neck. The P neck is much more chunky than the slimmer J. Either would be fine for playing the type of music you refer to. The type of strings used would have a fair impact on the over all tone. It might also be an option to consider a "short scale" bass. The necks on these are shorter than standered.


As for what bass...it depends on your budget. You can get good bargains if you go the second hand route, on www.adverts.ie

I'll leave it to others to recommend actual basses, but it would be best for your daughter to try as many as possible before coming to a decision.

Hope this is of some help.

shroom007

A Fender Precision is a Fine Base, solid and reliable but a lot depends on the feel so its always a good idea to spend a few hours in different music shops trying them out, there,s also a lot of decent not so expensive Basses about

fish slapped

shroom007 wrote: »

also a lot of decent not so expensive Basses about

any chance of a few names or links???

and I hope to bring her to try a few.

Thanks guys.

Yakult

Cant recommend the 'Squier Vintage Modern' series enough. Of course, it will depend on your budget, but that would get my vote!

Rigsby

fish slapped wrote: »

any chance of a few names or links???

and I hope to bring her to try a few.

Depending on your budget you could start with checking out the Fender Squier Affinity basses, or a Mexican made Fender bass. It is possible to get "starter kits" which include the bass, an amp, a strap and leads. While these can be good value, personally I'd prefer to spend the money on a bass first and buy the amp and accessories seperate. Some of the amps are not great, but are OK for just practicing at home. I think it boils down to how serious you think your daughter is about taking up the bass. If you think that she may not stick with it, maybe the starter kits are worth it. You can always upgrade later, if she decides to stay for the long haul.

IMO it is important to let her try the basses for herself.

shroom007

The Squires are always a bit cheaper and are decent as a starter.Personally I avoid makes like ARIA, they can be a bit Toppy and don't have much warmt but thats just me.Setting up the action how you like it and choice of strings is important Im sure staff in the shops would be happy to give you advice on this aswell

Tony EH

Ask her what kind of sound she's looking for.

The J Bass is a snappier lighter sound. Personally I prefer the sound of the P. it's a deeper, more weighty boom and frankly it's easier to play. But I was never very good in any case.

Best thing to do, as has been said, is bring to try some out and she take to what she likes.

_ciaran_

+1 for Squier, the classic vibe series are ridiculously good for their price tag

http://www.fender.com/squier/series/classic-vibe/

and in euro

http://www.thomann.de/ie/fender_squier_classicvibe_jbass60_ow.htm

Zapp Brannigan

As others have said go Squier Vintage Mod or Classic Vibe. Skip the Affinity series.

A lot of the bands you mention use a P Bass. They have a distinct low end/low mid presence that a Jazz doesn't really match, Jazz has a more throaty high end growl that I love.

fish slapped

Hi guys,
thanks for all the advice.

I've come accross one of these:

OLP OCC Bass

new but shop soiled at just under 200 squabs ... what ya think???

unclebill98

I would stick with the Fender as mentioned. There are cheaper options out there but if she gets serious and wants to upgrade at least the fender will hold a better re-sale value. I would say the P-Bass is a good choice.

Rigsby

unclebill98 wrote: »

I would stick with the Fender

+1.

OP, I am not familar with the bass in the link. However, I'd prefer to spend my €200 on something like this :

http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Fender-Squier-Precision-Bass-2001-Made-in-Indonesia-Low-Mileage-9-of-10-/281197090116?pt=Guitar&hash=item4178a71544

Granted it is used, but there are great bargains to be had by going that route.

You'd probably get something similar to the above, on "Adverts".