lpdeluxe, IF the poster intends to BE a bassist I agree wholeheartedly with your recommendation financial constraints notwithstanding.
The fact is, some pretty useful basses are being produced these days for low prices. I favor Fenders, myself, owning four of the beasts. It's not because I'm a Fender chauvinist (my electric guitar is a Gibson Les Paul Deluxe -- how'd you guess?), but after some years of buying and gigging with alternatives, I learned that Fender makes real working basses without froufrou and with considerable value (of course, they make the other kind, too, but I don't buy those).
MIM Standards are well made and inexpensive (at least the more recent ones), especially used (I have a Jazz fretless and an FSR with a Warmoth fretless neck), and the MIM Classic '50s P is right at the sweet point for me, with a maple fingerboard, low price and great sound.
Another advantage of Fenders is that the sound is instantly familiar and fits right into most band contexts.
But there are so many good basses out there, that there's hardly any excuse to buy a POS and struggle with it. A better instrument will always allow you more freedom to learn without fighting ergonomics, poor construction or sound.
I had a long telephone conversation with my stepson's father several years ago when the stepson decided to have a nylon string custom-built (he was a junior [music major] in college). The father said, let him buy a $200 Yamaha and then decide if he likes it. I said, that $200 Yamaha will interfere with his learning, make it impossible to execute much of the material he's studying, and have practically zero resale value. On the other hand a custom made guitar will speed his learning, sound terrific, and the guitar market being what it is, likely be worth more used than what he pays for it. In the event, the son has gone on to a career in music, and has a gorgeous figured koa classical guitar into the bargain.
