First bass guitar?

R

Rob Insomnicide

New member
So I'm a guitarist who is looking to learn bass for recording and possibly live when I need to with my band. I do have some experience playing bass, about four hours haha. I'm thinking maybe a 5-string, used one once and like it more. I also like the idea of using a short scale because it would feel closer to using an electric guitar, what I play is Nu Metal, so like KoRn, Slipknot, etc. I had three choices I'm considering.

Ibanez GSR205, 5 string, full size, $250, kind of at the upper limit of my price range. Two active pickups.

Ibanez GSRM20, 4 string, short scale, $180, seems like it would work well for me too, passive pickups, smaller size so I could also easily use it.

Ibanez GSRM25, 5-string, short scale, $200, don't think I want this one, as 5-string short scale strings are hard to find, and when you do, they're anywhere between $30 and $40 a set.

I will be using a Peavy Vypyr amp, as it can work as both guitar and bass amp, what do you think I should get?
 
Re: First bass guitar?

As a guitarist who's learning to play bass myself, I'd make these recommendations:

- Short scale is easier to play. Long scales require some stretching your fingers aren't used to. My hands are still adjusting and I get nerve twinges periodically.

- There's something to be said for the simplicity and reliability of passive PU's.

- I went with a 4 string. Guitarists are used to looking at the top and bottom of the fret board and orienting themselves by the two E strings. With a 4 string bass, you can still do that with the low string, but a G as a high string will throw you off for a while. When you go to a 5 string, you no longer have the low string as a reference, and I'd stare at my fingers and say: 'Where in the hell am I?' You have to rethink and relearn the fret board layout. That will slow down the learning curve if you're used to a 6 string guitar. I returned the 5 string and went back to 4. If you're playing a 7 string guitar, then it's an easy transition.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

I'm a guitarist who thinks he's a bassist as well and I did what you're thinking of doing to advance my skills. In a fit of weirdness I bought an Epiphone EB3 out of love for the retro look, but it's going to be an uphill battle to make that bass work like a standard one.

One I tried out is this;
TobyIV_EB_Splash.jpg
It's very cheap. It comes in a 4 a 5 string. It's very light, very small while still being full-scale and sounded great. I was in the market for a not-P Bass that was retro looking so this one was sort of cut from the list due to looks. This was the most guitarlike of basses I've played around with, as the neck profile is slimmer and the body is way small.

BTW when you really go in and play, really get a feel for the neck and whether you like it on whatever bass you play. One of the basses I want in to try was a Tele bass with dual humbucker pickups and I was shocked at how huge and uncomfortable the neck was. P basses are slightly more elegant, but it's plain that basses are made with twice the lumber, and that will compound your dislike/not playing a bass. The little profile of my EB3 still gives me cramps from time to time in my left hand, and I'm not coming from a shredstick guitar.

I'm gonna be pretty sure there will be a Toby at whatever guitar store you're going to play at. They're all over the place.

I'll add that if I was an actual gigging guitarist, I would have not bothered with the EB3. I would have bought a Fender P/J bass, and if I needed a backup I probably would have bought one of these on sale.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

I just got a used Squier J-bass that has some good tones. However I really wanted a P-bass but the J-bass approaches those tones. Its easy to play.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

Go for a used Ibanez SR, skip the GSR models. (The "G" denotes the GIO series, the lower end stuff.) I picked up three 5 string models in the $150 range a few weeks ago, one even came with a case.



SAM_0521.jpg
 
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Re: First bass guitar?

FWIW, I found the 4 string basses made more sense to me coming from playing guitar. Short scale basses are easier to play, but they don't sound the way the bass guitar in my head sounded. J-bass necks are much more comfortable to my hands than the thicker P-bass necks, so I ended up with a nice little squier vintage modified. Great bass, sounds right, is comfy to play.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

The bass guitars listed in the opening post almost certainly have passive pickups running via an active EQ circuit.

In the suggested price bracket, you will struggle to do better than a Squier Vintage Modified Jazz Bass V. For short scale, active, track down a pre-owned Squier Mikey Way signature Mustang Bass and upgrade the pickup and controls.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

Funkfingers said:
In the suggested price bracket, you will struggle to do better than a Squier Vintage Modified Jazz Bass V.
Click to expand...

+1. I have Squire VM Jazz bass, and it's pretty nice. I'd get 4 string though, 5 may be confusing and lengthen the learning curve.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

Rob Insomnicide said:
So I'm a guitarist who is looking to learn bass for recording and possibly live when I need to with my band. I do have some experience playing bass, about four hours haha. I'm thinking maybe a 5-string, used one once and like it more. I also like the idea of using a short scale because it would feel closer to using an electric guitar, what I play is Nu Metal, so like KoRn, Slipknot, etc. I had three choices I'm considering.

Ibanez GSR205, 5 string, full size, $250, kind of at the upper limit of my price range. Two active pickups.

Ibanez GSRM20, 4 string, short scale, $180, seems like it would work well for me too, passive pickups, smaller size so I could also easily use it.

Ibanez GSRM25, 5-string, short scale, $200, don't think I want this one, as 5-string short scale strings are hard to find, and when you do, they're anywhere between $30 and $40 a set.

I will be using a Peavy Vypyr amp, as it can work as both guitar and bass amp, what do you think I should get?
Click to expand...

For nu-metal or other downtuned styles, you'll want to avoid short scale. The low-b can be kind of flabby on a long scale (34") bass, I can hardly imagine what it would be like on shorter. For this reason many basses intended for such styles have 35" scale. You should also look into getting a real bass amp or at least something like a bass POD run direct. The guitar amp will work, but it won't sound very good.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

Cheap Ibanez are garbage.

Cheap good used is Kramer Focus and some Ibanez Blazers or Roadstars. MIM Standard isn't too bad either if it wasn't for the finishes.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

uOpt said:
Cheap Ibanez are garbage.
Click to expand...

Might be true with some models or individual instruments. Certainly not true of my Ibanez Mikro bass - even though it was under $200 brand new.

Someday I'll put some Duncans in it but for now it sounds very professional as is.

It would make a terrific first bass, IMO.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

For those musical styles I might suggest getting used to a long scale actually if you plan on tuning the thing down pretty low even with the 5th string. That and 5 string short scales are harder to come by. Either way the neck should resemble a jazz basses where it is thinner at the top by the nut. It's easier when transferring from guitar, which also helps the case for a 4 string, but you sound like you'll really use a 5. Check out some esp/ltd stuff.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

Lewguitar said:
Might be true with some models or individual instruments. Certainly not true of my Ibanez Mikro bass - even though it was under $200 brand new.
Click to expand...

+1. The quality standard of imports keeps improving, and you can't automatically say they're 'garbage' until you've played some of them.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

Should have said "cheapest". I fully recognize that several companies have figured out how to make cheap usable guitars and basses.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

The nice thing about used Ibanezes is that the difference in the SRs is negligible visually all the way up to the 700 series, and a kid who wants a more aggressive looking bass will price an SR600 (almost the best) like a GSR200 (a Gio starter bass) because they just don't know or care, or they want a 5 string and that's that. If someone doesn't process the neck through and high quality woods used, you can conceivably find a 700 or 800.

Every single one of them is the same shape though. The ATKs and BTBs and the like are going to be priced right.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

You might be paying a little more, but you will struggle to do better than a Sterling By Music Man SUB Ray5. The neck is super narrow at the nut and doesn't widen out out a lot at the 12th fret. I've played several Jazz Basses that have a really wide neck at the 12th fret and even for me with my huge hands, it was uncomfortable to play. The Ray5 is also a little bit cheaper than the Squire. The Ray also has 2 more frets than the Jazz.

However if you want a 4 string, the Squire VM Jazz is a very nice bass to play.
 
Re: First bass guitar?

The OP made it clear from the music he's interested in that he only wants a 5 string, and short scale for 5 string doesn't work very well unless you get one made by somebody who really knows what they're doing ($$$) so I think we can stop recommending Squier VM's and the like.

I'd go with Dominus's suggestion, OP.
 
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