NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

MatelotFripon

MatelotFripon

New member
Allrighty,

Now I may get some flack for this one, but lately I've been dying for a Squier Bass VI ….. basically because right now I can't afford the PawnShop VI and also, the Squier model just looks amazing.

BUT

I've never tried it, no store will cary this item around my part of the globe ( Eastern Townships , Quebec ) and don't know anyone who has tried the fabled beast. The reviews on various boards are the same, great stuff for the $ involved, some issues with the crappy nut and stock-installed strings gage, also tips like inverting the bridge for better intonation….but besides those, critics are good, very good !

I need some info please !! Is there anyone in here who tried it, bought it, loved it, hated it ?!
 
Re: NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

I would truck right on by it and buy an actual bass.

You're not going to be able to play it like a normal bass due to the strings being close together like a guitar, but at bass gauges. The pickups are a little bass-light, as far as I found when I messed with one a bit. There's a set of switches that either turn the pickups on individually or phase them, but a bunch of unlabeled switches on guitars puts me off usually.

What you get is a niche bass sound for sweetening a string-heavy oldies song but something that has a really hard time finding traction in a modern or live setting. More oddball than a Hofner hollowbody Beatles-style bass to me.

Honestly? not fun to play and it sounded tragically tinny or really muddy through an Ampeg b15 on all voicings with the tones scooped.
 
Re: NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

Thanks Jon….
but the big thing is….. I am a bass player !

I wanted something different to record and play live with….. something to experiment with. I already modified my MIJ Northern Tele Custom as a baritone and I thought it could be exactly what I could enjoy tweaking with !
I love to add a lot of effect pedals to my bass set-up and I thought the bass VI could cope with it easier…..
I guess I'm gonna have to try to find out where to try one out…..
 
Re: NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

Well that's different...hehe
It may be a good bridger between the low end and the guitar tone. I dont think it does a very good job as a bass fill-in from a guitarist's perspective but coming from the other direction may be different. I hope you find one, but if you dont I'd take a whack at modding a single coil strat clone into one for cheap to see if you like it.
 
Re: NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

Take a tip from Tufnell.


That's right. The Fender Bass VI can't be played. The Squier is hampered by cheap hardware. The price of Staytrem upgrade parts is probably greater than that of the instrument.
 
Re: NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

I'll throw my experience in here. I tried a couple of the Squier VI's at a local store (not sure who convinced them to carry them). I liked the Squier, but ended up getting a used Pawn Shop off ebay. I am also a bass player first and do a fair bit of dabbling in guitar. This is an instrument I have gassed for, for about a decade now, so I was very happy to see the opportunity arise to own one with the Squier and PS series. Being a bass player, my goal was to use this as an actual bass and I feel like I have achieved that. Is it the same as my P-bass or Jazz bass? Absolutely not, but I really like the different sound it gives me and I feel it's a very usable sound for me. I've been using the middle and neck pups exclusively. My bandmates thought it had a good sound and it allowed me to play a couple of clean picking intros (as a 2nd guitar) since we only have one guitar in the band.
 
Re: NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

It's a Squier, like any Squier, with the same pluses and minuses. But it is pretty close to the classic Bass VI layout, in a very affordable package, and mass produced, which were things that till now have been unavailable. Even the Japanese reissues of the '90's, which were mocked at the time for being cheap knockoffs of the real thing, have almost doubled in value since. If you actually have a possibly musical use for an octave guitar (which is what they really are), I'd jump on one of these. I want one of the Squiers myself (and I actually prefer the specs over the "modified" Pawn Shop one). I have played both the Squier and the Pawn Shop (at the same shop). Obviously the Pawn Shop is a better quality instrument, but I dislike the way the pickups and switches are set up. I would convert it to a more classic setup if I got it. But for less than half the money, the Squier is pretty darned good, and has a much better control/pickup setup IMO.
 
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Re: NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

Totally off-topic here, but I named my dog Nigel. Nigel Ruffnel, because he goes to 11.
 
Re: NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

I flipped when I saw the Pawn Shop, haven't found a good one yet though. My bud has the Squier and it is excellent, love it.

I wouldn't hesitate for a second if you like it.

I am sure there are good Pawn Shop versions I just haven't found one yet.
 
Re: NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

I happen to like those little Squiers ! They are dirt cheap and most of them are pretty darn good outta the box but most of all, they are fun to mod !
 
Re: NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

A friend of mine has (or had?) two of these Squiers. Then, he bought two Burns Barracuda baritone guitars. Now, he is after a Schecter Robert Smith model. None of these seems entirely satisfactory. :scratchch
 
Re: NEXT GAS : SQUIER BASS VI ?! REALLY ?!

We have a entire area for bass guitars. thats where this thread should be :arms:
 
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