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I want to buy an electric bass mainly for recording hard rock. I'm limiting my budget to $200-$300. I could go higher, but I want to make sure that I actually stick with playing it before investing in a really expensive instrument. I'm a pretty decent guitarist, so the learning curve won't be nearly as great as starting from scratch. Nevertheless, I'm not ready to take the plunge with a 2 grand Music Man or something in that range.
Two basses I'm looking at are:
Dean Edge 1 Quilt[^]
Ibanez GSR 200[^]
I'll be dropping by Guitar Center soon to check out what they have within my budget, and to actually play them.
Any recommendations?
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How about a (used)[^] Fender Precision? It's one sweet instrument, from what I understand. (I'm not a bass player).
/ravi
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I am a bassist - and it is all about the tone you're after.
I really like my Ibanez BTB605 (altough it is a five string bass and a little bit over your budget) - but it may not be your taste. Tonally it is very versatile and has a nice "old school" growl (if you want to).
If you're after more "growl" maybe the Epiphone Thunderbird basses would be something for you ?
Maybe a Fender Precision ?
Fender Jazzbass ? (works better for some guys)
I know a guy who swears by the Ibanez ATK series (very MusicMan like - at least the one I've played for 10 minutes - and yes I've played with a MusicMan).
The GSR 200 looks like a good entry - level bass - but you've got to play with it (if it feels alright) - and hear it.
Corrected - it has an Agathis body - and I've read many bad things about Agathis wood (very very cheap wood). But your ears are the judge.
One recommandation: buy a comfortable bass (my first bass was a b... to play)
All the label says is that this stuff contains chemicals "... known to the State of California to cause cancer in rats and low-income test subjects."
Roger Wright
http://www.codeproject.com/lounge.asp?select=965687&exp=5&fr=1#xx965687xx
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Bernhard wrote: Corrected - it has an Agathis body - and I've read many bad things about Agathis wood (very very cheap wood). But your ears are the judge.
Thanks for the tip. Researching basses recently has been the first time I'd run across anything made with Agathis wood. I wasn't sure what kind of quality it has.
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Those two basses both look nice, but I couldn't give you a recommendation as I've never owned a Dean or an Ibanez.
I have had Yamahas for the past few years, and I really like them. I play punk, metal and industrial stuff.
I have to agree with Berhard about choosing the a bass for its tone, but also you when you try them out, make sure they put a strap on it so you can feel how it balances. It shouldn't be a problem but, I once bought a bass without doing that and found that it wasn't balanced very well, which made it difficult to play, as I was supporting the weight with my left hand too much. Basically, make sure you feel comfortable holding it and playing it.
Words fade as the meanings change, but somehow, it don't bother me.
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Second that.
Always play around with a bass for some time. Put a strap on (bring your own strap with you - then you see normally pretty quick how the bass holds against the old one).
All the label says is that this stuff contains chemicals "... known to the State of California to cause cancer in rats and low-income test subjects."
Roger Wright
http://www.codeproject.com/lounge.asp?select=965687&exp=5&fr=1#xx965687xx
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Boro_Bob wrote: I have had Yamahas for the past few years, and I really like them.
I definitely need to check out Yamaha.
Boro_Bob wrote: but also you when you try them out, make sure they put a strap on it so you can feel how it balances.
Very good tip, thanks. Should be common sense, but I hadn't thought about that. 
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Make sure you can press the strings down on the fretboard! My first (cheap) bass had an action so high that I used to get cramp.
Since then I've tried many but settled with my Epiphone. Fenders are good but pricey. There is the Squire 'by fender' stuff which aren't horrendous but it may not be the image you want 
DaveBTW, in software, hope and pray is not a viable strategy. (Luc Pattyn)Expect everything to be hard and then enjoy the things that come easy. (code-frog)
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Ever tried lowering the action ?
Normally a standard procedure when buying a bass...
All the label says is that this stuff contains chemicals "... known to the State of California to cause cancer in rats and low-income test subjects."
Roger Wright
http://www.codeproject.com/lounge.asp?select=965687&exp=5&fr=1#xx965687xx
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Yeah, I lowered it as much as possible and got severe with the truss rod too to make it playable, as well as trying lighter gauge strings. I actually used this 'instrument' pro for a few tears too.
When I eventually changed it, I burnt it. I thought about giving it away or selling it, but I couldn't have inflicted that on anyone else.
DaveBTW, in software, hope and pray is not a viable strategy. (Luc Pattyn)Expect everything to be hard and then enjoy the things that come easy. (code-frog)
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I was in the same boat recently - alot of the bass guitarists that hang out in forums were chatting about Rondo/SX basses[^] Supposedly, they're one of the best bangs for the buck in the low-end category. I ended up grabbing a Precision clone for $110. Needed a setup, but it's fine for what I use it for. Neck dive was the worst thing about it.
Rondo Lineup:
http://www.rondomusic.com/bassguitars4.html[^]
Here's some samples I found while I was bass hunting of a few high quality Precision/Jazz basses playing various music styles just to give you an idea of the tonal differences between them:
Jazz Bass
http://www.lakland.com/ac_osborn.htm[^]
Precision Bass
http://www.lakland.com/ac_glaub.htm[^]
Precision/Jazz Bass
http://www.lakland.com/ac_glaubpj.htm[^]
I don't think you can go wrong with any of the 3 types. The one physical thing to be wary of - Precisions have wider necks.
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Jack Puppy wrote: Here's some samples I found while I was bass hunting of a few high quality Precision/Jazz basses playing various music styles just to give you an idea of the tonal differences between them:
Very neat find! Thannk you. It really helps.
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