any ultra cheap bass recommendations

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Gear_Junky said:
actually, nothing "unacceptable" about SX basses - they are a fantastic value and a great quality.

Here's my review:

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?p=5778550#post5778550

that particular bass looks and feels like a MIA fender and sounds pretty good and would take on a Fender with upgraded pickups, no problem.

They currently have that model (but not in black) for $99.99 - that will outprice and outplay any Squier. Rondo Music is the place that sells them and he has a great return/exchange policy, so you're not risking ANYTHING.
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Cool review Junky. Thanks for posting this. Liked the close up pics. The fret work looks pretty good! The one I posted a link to is a jazz copy, so maybe thinner sounding pick ups? I like the idea of the versatility you describe on this model.
 
RejectionNinja said:
With that out of the way...
I have a Peavey Patriot (MIA P-bass style) that I scored for $50 off craigslist.
Someone else's pic:
P9250181-300.jpg
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cool pics...I actually really like the basic, solid look of the patriot. Saw one on craigs list a month or so ago, but they were asking much more than $50...maybe $150?...enough to scare me off from a model I'd never really heard of.
 
I can vouch for the SX. I bought two, a P/J and a P. I intended to swap the necks and give the P to my brother (I couldn't get the finish/neck options I wanted on the PJ), but the parts weren't interchangible without surgery.

I set up both, with a little work with the nut slot, they both intonated extremely well, play fine and sound good, nothing added. The pickups are vintage output, so if you want something hot/modern, you'll need to swap them. One caveat: neither handles heavy strings, the neck will bow. 100s are fine.
 
Gear_Junky said:
Ninja, how old is your SX? I mean, your points are well-taken, but according to everything I read there's been a recent improvement in consistency and quality. It also seems that getting a sunburst will dispel suspicions of many different pieces glued together. all of their transparent guitars look to be made of just several pieces, like fender.
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Well.. (digging through old emails) I ordered mine in March of 2006. So yeah, that is quite awhile ago. The photo flame top looks alright. You can see that the top is made of a few pieces of wood (3 or 5, can't recall off the top of my head) but when you dig around inside the body routes, you'll see that it's also got a sandwiched layer of some other wood in the core (so at least 3 layers).

Maybe, maybe, MAYBE they've changed, but I'm very skeptical.

It's still a usable bass and my #1 gigging bass to date.

I'm very seriously contemplating ordering a Strat-like guitar from Rondomusic in the near future. I'm not a hater - but I like to keep things in perspective. :)
 
Um,I have some thought on this.The purchase of a bass,is a more hi-fidelity process than a guitar.I looked for very cheap for a while.There are lots of potential candidates under 200$,depending on the lengths you're willing to go.I ended up buying a Yamaha RBX 170.P/J combination,24 frets.A very clear,clean,fundamental P-bass tone with the addition of a Jazz Bass style pickup nearer to the bridge.170$ with set-up,and hardshell SKB case.It could have been done for less.I was not willing to wait for the bargain.That was an Charvel 80's P/J combo at 200$.Fender is the benchmark,but figure closer to 300$ without the case.
 
i would also vouch for the yammies - i had a Yamaha RBX-160 (plain P-pickup) in the 90's - very good value. The ones with P/J - imho the best config. yamaha is very consistent with their fretboards and 24 frets is nice. i originally bought it because of the unique shape, but now i've grown tired of it.

personally, at this point i'd go for SX (if i was buying) but the Yamaha is still highly recommended to anyone looking. especially if you can get it for $170 with setup and case :D
 
Maybe where others live the pawn shops have bargains, but my experience here in the midwest is that pawn shops tend to charge new prices for equipment that is crappy. The local pawn shops here typically charge new prices for beat-up looking pieces of equipment which can be purchased new for less money. Plus, if you purchase new, you get a warranty--something you won't get from a pawn shop.
That said, I've had a Rogue VB100 (the Hofner clone) for almost five years now that I've really enjoyed. If you buy one of these, I recommend removing the mother of toilet seat pickguard as they look rather trashy. The bass looks better without the pickguard.
 
Hey,

So, I went out this weekend to a couple of music stores (most of the pawn shops in Portland have closed). I played maybe 8-10 basses in the <$200 range. I was surprised by how many options there were and I was doubly surprised by how much they all differed from one another.

I tried several Squires and was not overly impressed. I loved the '70's reissue jazz squires based on looks alone, but did not play one as they were just out of my price range and I didn't want to fall for one of them.

Tried one Yamaha that was (gasp!) metallic purple! "So what" I said to myself, but thankfully, this particular bass played like crap, so I didn't have to wrestle with the whole "so what if it's purple" issue.

Tried several Ibanez basses and they were all over the place. Each one felt completely different. They probably offered the slickest looking bass in that price range, but the action wasn't always too great and some suffered from excessive buzz or rough fret wire edges. Plus, I wasn't really looking for "slick".

Tried one Slammer bass (only $75) and that was truly a piece of junk. Also tried one epiphone (a p-bass copy, not a gibson-like design) and it was probably the 2nd worse one of the lot.

Lastly, I picked up a used Peavey Milestone 3 bass. Ahhh. Only $104.00 and it has just about the nicest action of any of them. It also was in like new condition, had about the straightest neck of the bunch and the intonation seemed perfect. On the downside, the pick ups aren't too impressive (2 single coils) and the body appears to be 5 pieces of hardwood laminated together. Nice finish and a great sound unplugged though. I wound up buying this one.

So, although I didn't actually go with a model specifically recommended by any of you, I wanted to thank you for the input as you helped me get in the right mindset for this and also motivated me to go out and try some in person. I think this helped me a lot. :D:D:D
 
the problem with shopping used, especially pawnshops:

1. as was already mentioned - they usually have either crap or overpriced

2. places like Rondo will always have a better bass for less money, with return/exchange guarantee.

for someone who has to ask for a recommendation it will be tough to wade through all the pawnshop junk. this isn't meant to be condescending at all - but it's hard to choose an instrument, even if it's a good one when they're all dusty, rusty strings, not set up. just IMHO.
 
Looking for a cheap bass

I recently bought a RBX 170 (Yamaha) bass, looking for a cheap bass, too. It makes a great back up bass.
 
whenever you get the bass you think is going to work for you, turn it over and carve into the back of it:

"you get what you pay for"

heheh
 
that said, i bought a new Ibanez Mikro bass (short scale) for $125.

it plays and sounds great!
the fret ends are sharp, and after playing it for a while, it shreds the inside of my fretting hand between the thumb and forefinger, ever so slightly...

heheheh

i like it so much tho, i'm going to get my luthier to dress the frets, and i'll probably throw a better set of pickups in it.

i prefer it's passive sound, over the active sound of my Carvin LB70, believe it or not.
 
I can vouch for the SX guitars and basses. I have both (along with upper end axe's) The builds are really good. WAY better than a Squier. You may want to swap out electronics, but you cant to wrong. Look here: Rondo Music Home Page
 
I bought a 6 string Harley Benton Bass from Thomann.de a while ago. It cost me £130, was cheap to ship, and plays like a dream. Never had a problem with it! Active pick-ups too, which for that price isn't half bad. I was actually really impressed with the sound and build quality. Might be worth a go. Oh, they do 4 and 5 string ones too, which are cheaper still.
HARLEY BENTON HBB400TBK - Thomann UK Cyberstore
 
GONZO-X said:
whenever you get the bass you think is going to work for you, turn it over and carve into the back of it:

"you get what you pay for"

heheh
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Agree brother, however I aint carving anything into the back of my Dolphin or Buzzard.
 
I recently invested in a Fender Mustang for £160.

For what I use it for, it's brilliant. I'm not after a killer bass tone...just something to put a bass line to my own song.

Especially useful if you're a guitarist not used to playing bass too often...it's a shorter scale neck so very easy to play.
Worth checking out, can get some decent tones from it.
 
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