Acoustic Basses.

[skorpx1]

So this upcoming Xmas I might go get myself a nice acoustic bass and possibly some other equipment for my electric bass. Thing is I don't know where to start for acoustic basses. I know what brands suck and which ones are good, but I also need a reasonable price. (200-300 dollars) There's many different models of acoustic basses and iv'e done research on a lot of them and they all seem to have mostly same pros and cons. Iv'e looked at a few Ibanez (lol why?) Fender and Washburn basses and so far the Washburn is the most appealing due to the 5 strings available. Problem is that its out of my price range. The Ibanez however is right in the middle of my price range and is probably the least appealing but the best choice for my situation. Now, the Fender is the one that's right in the middle and I might go get it. Problem is that i'm not a big fan of Fender basses.


So the question to you, if you had the choice which bass would you go buy?

[FiLtH]

 I got an acoustic base at a yard sale for 25 bucks. Its a brand I never heard of, probably not worth much but bass players who try it out keep offering to buy it off me.

[branch37]

I've never heard much good about acoustic basses.  From my personal experience, they just dont have much volume and sound kinda boring.  I'm no bass player either so I could be completely wrong.   

[skorpx1]

I got an acoustic base at a yard sale for 25 bucks. Its a brand I never heard of, probably not worth much but bass players who try it out keep offering to buy it off me.

If you got that thing for 25 bucks at a yard sale, you got one hell of a deal. Unless its horribly screwed up or something along those lines, but if its not i'd like to know what brand and what model it is.

[morfiend]

 A friend has a fender fretless standup bass that was acoustic but he put a pickup in it because he couldnt be heard on stage with it. 

  That said it sounds great when he pulls it out and plays it unplugged!  I'd go with a fender to start if you can afford it.



     

[skorpx1]

A friend has a fender fretless standup bass that was acoustic but he put a pickup in it because he couldnt be heard on stage with it. 

  That said it sounds great when he pulls it out and plays it unplugged!  I'd go with a fender to start if you can afford it.



     

I too was thinking of a Fender as a starting bass but since I know my way around an electric bass, it wouldn't have mattered anyways. Acoustic and electric basses don't have a lot of differences, but I do know that Fender basses sound nice and I wouldn't mind playing one. However the Ibanez is something that iv'e ruled out and the Washburn is probably not an option depending on the current situation.

[morfiend]

  TBH, if I was looking for something like this,I'd check out the pawn shops!  You just never know what you might find and the price is always negotiable.

     Just be sure you know what to look for,you could end up with something that needs more repairs than it's worth.



   





   

[skorpx1]

  TBH, if I was looking for something like this,I'd check out the pawn shops!  You just never know what you might find and the price is always negotiable.

     Just be sure you know what to look for,you could end up with something that needs more repairs than it's worth.



   





   

Iv'e been to the only pawn shop in town recently and the closest thing they have to an acoustic bass is a 4 string ESP F-4E. It looks nice, but then again its the only bass in there that works nicely. If there was a Guitar Center in my city i'm sure i'd find a nice acoustic bass that suits my needs.

[TequilaChaser]

just because it might not be a Gibson, fender, taylor, guild, Martin etc does not mean the instrument will not measure up

I have seen, heard and played $125 +/-  off brand/cheaper brand axes at different music shops that played
and sounded just as good if not better at times than the more expensive brands...

just like I have tryed out identical model fenders or gibsons and maybe 1 out of 4 might of been worth purchasing

regarding Ibanez, you must of had some bad experiences with the brand... I personally have never experienced
any problems with the 5 or 6 guitars I have owned...

Everyone is different and each person will have their own requirements, their own "feel" for a particular instrument

since you are limited by your location, I recommend you to also look at: American musical supply ( www.americanmusical.com ) musiciansfriend.com and zsounds.com

all these music supply online stores have excellent return policys and customer service

Hope this is helpful

TC

[Motherland]

Don't look at the brand, just play a bunch of instruments and pick out the one you like the best.

Buy a used instrument. New instruments are stupidly expensive. The last guitar I bought was a Jaguar built before you were born. Made in Japan (nicer quality than modern Mexican Fenders supposedly), more original than Fender's current crop of Jags, and older instruments just have more character. Of course it was cheaper than buying a new Jaguar as well.