@ Rod Leach

[Apache]

Howdy mate.

As the forum muso, you may be able to give me a bit of advice. Yaers ago I played bass, not to any level, just 'garage band' sort of thing. Now, I'd like to get something to bash a few tunes on after a beer when listening to music. Dont wanna spend much (which is lucky as there's LOADS on eBay unedr £200) so what would you recommend?

Been looking at Yamaha, but there seems to be lots of decent deals on Washburn (which seem to tick some boxes). Dont need an amp. Will build one. Always used to, will do so again.

Would prefer cheap as poss for something to play with, doesn't need to be up to gigging as I'm too old and fat to get up in front of teenagers and play the Foos covers! (and I get to keep more cash for the truck)

[pirate-storm]

me i would say fender or gibson

[Apache]

Sure you would, but for under £200?

Personally, I've always wanted a Rickenbacker, but at a tidy grand up, it aint gonna happen!

[pirate-storm]

just found this on serch engine m8 but think it maybe over the top for you or you could try your local cash converters they might have some m8? just a idea. i got pearl drum kit started to have a go but gave up might try again after xmas.

http://www.gear4music.com/Bass_Guita...s_Guitars.html

or use search engine n see what it comes up with for cheap bass guitars

[RodLeach]

Hello mate!

As Pirate storm said - fender an Gibson are nice, But your looking at big money for one of those!

Washburn - Whilst i havent had much experiance with there bass range, Ive been nothing but impressed with there guitars! One of the guitars that takes ' pride of place' in my collection is a Washburn!

Yamaha make some good quality budget basses,

http://www.thomann.de/gb/yamaha_rbx_374_blk.htm
http://www.thomann.de/gb/yamaha_rbx_374_slv.htm

I wouldn't have any issues getting one of those.

If your willing to push your budget by £34!

http://www.thomann.de/gb/olp_olmm2bk_ebass.htm

That would be a pretty good all round bass, Good looking too! not too 'in your face'

Warwick have a great name - an it lives up to expectations
The Rockbass series is a fantastic budget range

http://www.thomann.de/gb/warwick_roc...andard4_vw.htm

That one is the advert for white but other colours are available.


Personally i'd be tempted by the OLP one, Its going to be a great all rounder.

Big sound, Easy to play an OLP are part of the legendary Music Man group - Ernie ball strings etc!

Hope that helps mate, If you want me to do some more digging i can!

[RodLeach]

Oh an if you want cheap cheap

http://www.thomann.de/gb/dean_guitars_edge_09_m.htm


Cant really go too far wrong for the £80 odd quid - As you know from the 'dean guitars' sticker you did for me - i love dean guitars

[Sancho]

Buy this one off my mate Jim:

http://www.guitarrepairman.co.uk/forsale.html

or get him to build you one. He just made the UK's first nine string bass and he's got an order in for an eleven string.....

[Sancho]

or get an Aria Pro.

[nero279]

I was about to say have you considered a Dean bass, they do some real budget stuff, but there mid range 200-300 quid guitars play really nicely, and i was suitably impressed when i had a bash on a dean bass in a similar price range.

Fraid to say i can't recommend yamaha but only because my pacifica 112 was schite, (i bought it 2nd hand) i have tinkered with an rbx and it seemed ok, maybe the pacifica was aswell when it was new.

Have a look on http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/pro...y=Bass+Guitars but it's worth bearing in mind that every single guitar will 'play' slightly different, have a slightly different tone, and slightly different feel. I wouldn't buy any guitar without playing the actual guitar i was buying first.

[RodLeach]

I wouldn't buy any guitar without playing the actual guitar i was buying first.

Spot on mate, Buying in a shop gives you the advantage of knowing exactly how everything is!

Some shops set guitars up so they play 'to the best of there abiltiy' before they leave, Ive been lucky enough to see the genius at www.machinehead.co.uk do some work on one dean i purchased. It was fantastic.

The only guitar i got with no regard to how it played or how it sounded was a 'Spear Gladius' SHOCKING name!!

But such a beautiful guitar


If it played cr*p i'd tweak it till it didn't, If it sounded schite i'd get new pickups!

But as it is, Its one of the nicest guitars ive ever played an the best i own! So lucky one

[nero279]

I only play for fun, and occasionally in church. I still got my first guitar, a fender DG-5 and it's amazing, it cost £130 about 10 years ago, and plays better than guitars costing 3 or 4 times the price. It's the luck of the draw though, my pacifica which should have been a decent guitar wasn't. I chopped it in for an Aria pro series, then bought a gould LP replica which again is a beautiful guitar and plays like a guitar costing 3 times as much, my other 2 acoustics a stagg and a crafter aren't expensive guitars but i just looked around and spent hours in music shops playing alllsorts of different guitars til i found one i was happy with. My bass was a bit of an impulse buy, and i sold a gorgeous yamaha 12 string to pay for it, big mistake, i wish i could get the 12 string back now it was a bitch to tune, but i really enjoyed playing it, the bass i don't enjoy anywhere near as much.

[BUSHWHACKER]

Cool or what!
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=eMzXtizKcXY

[RodLeach]

I only play for fun, and occasionally in church. I still got my first guitar, a fender DG-5 and it's amazing, it cost £130 about 10 years ago, and plays better than guitars costing 3 or 4 times the price. It's the luck of the draw though, my pacifica which should have been a decent guitar wasn't. I chopped it in for an Aria pro series, then bought a gould LP replica which again is a beautiful guitar and plays like a guitar costing 3 times as much, my other 2 acoustics a stagg and a crafter aren't expensive guitars but i just looked around and spent hours in music shops playing alllsorts of different guitars til i found one i was happy with. My bass was a bit of an impulse buy, and i sold a gorgeous yamaha 12 string to pay for it, big mistake, i wish i could get the 12 string back now it was a bitch to tune, but i really enjoyed playing it, the bass i don't enjoy anywhere near as much.

I know exactly what you mean mate

Ive played guitars worth over £3000, Seen one at £28,000 - declined the chance to play it in cause anything fell off!!!

But consitantly every 'cheap' guitar i get is better then the more expensive ones!

Plus - the more expensive the guitar the more unlikly it is to get played!

theres millions of Paul reed smiths on the market because of there huge expensive no one dare touch one, On the other hand - Theres not many 'used an abused' guitars on the for sale scene!

out of the 9 guitars i have in my room alone - 6 were either 2nd hand or rejected for some reason!