First bass

[AWV]

Ok. So my friend wants to play bass but we dont have much money. He thinks if he detunes his Steel string 'Normal'(As he calls it) guitar.

I told him that if you do that you will get bad sound and look like a twat. So what would you recommend as a first bass guitar. Thanks Bass forum.

[4_String_Formation]

You can get a pack / set thing from squier thats pretty good for the price seeing as you get an amp and strap etc.
( I know everyone on this forum seems to hate Squier but i think there pretty good for the price )

[AWV]

Ya I know everyone shuns Squier while the only crap thing about it is the Afiinity. Otherwise they're just low priced Fenders.

[BassInstinct]

Ya I know everyone shuns Squier while the only crap thing about it is the Afiinity. Otherwise they're just low priced Fenders.
i would definitely recommend against buying squire. i really don't think they offer much in the way of quality, and tend more towards the cheap and nasty end of the scale. i spent a long time researching what to get for my first bass. i read a lot of bad reviews (too many) and talked to a lot of shop assistants who usually said something along the lines of: "to be honest, i think you can get a lot better for your money" when asked about squiers. after much research, i ended up with a yamaha rbx370a because from all the research i did, yamaha appeared to offer good quality at an affordable price. i've had the rbx for nearly 5 years now and i can honestly and wholeheartedly recommend a yamaha. i think a lot of manufacturers probably skimp on the sound quality and construction, but i really don't think yamaha do.
here are some good places to check out user reviews.
http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Electric%20Bass#man
http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/reviews/bass_guitars/

here's a link for good beginner basses:
http://www.kellyindustries.com/guitars/beginner_bass_guitars.html

[AWV]

There's this nice cheap Yamaha bass in my local shop. Do you think it will do?

[Akira]

I have heard lots of good things about Yamahas. If you play it, like the feel, and think is sounds sturdy and reliable, I would definately go for it. I think you will be much more happy with it than a Squier.

[AWV]

I have heard lots of good things about Yamahas. If you play it, like the feel, and think is sounds sturdy and reliable, I would definately go for it. I think you will be much more happy with it than a Squier.

Oh no its not for me. My friend is looking for a bass and he wants me recommend him a good one..

This ESP LTD B-50 I saw is number one beginner bass in About.com. also saw that it costs only 179 off ZZsouns. But I saw one of them for 356 euros in my local shop.

[BassInstinct]

Oh no its not for me. My friend is looking for a bass and he wants me recommend him a good one..

This ESP LTD B-50 I saw is number one beginner bass in About.com. also saw that it costs only 179 off ZZsouns. But I saw one of them for 356 euros in my local shop.
i think it would be best if he tried to find a good balance between quality and low cost. its possible to end up spending next to nothing on a bass which may be ready for the junk yard after abut a year. thats the mistake i didn't want to make. its not always a good idea to buy something ultra cheap. sometimes you need to spend that little bit extra. i think he should go around the shops and try out all the basses in the shops, then decide upon a shortlist of the ones that he feels most comfortable with. then checkout all the user reviews of those basses online.
i'm aware that, sometimes a person needs to have a little knowledge beforehand of what he/she wants, but if a person has little experience of basses, they are not in the best position to know exactly what they want. when i bought my first bass, i just had to make the best guess given the knowledge that i had at the time. i was aware that, maybe 2 years from the time that i bought the bass, i would have have learnt a lot about what style i want to play, exactly what sound i want from the bass, how many strings is best for my style, etc. your friend, if he's a complete beginner, won't know these things until he's been playing a while, so he just has to make the best guess.
therefore, i would recommend something that is inexpensive(not too cheap, though), but has enough quality and durability to last some years.

[4_String_Formation]

Ooooh forgot about the Yamahas they are very good for the price because you can get some very good quality but still low budget basses.

[gaslight]

If an Ibanez GSR200 is within his price range I recommend it.

[Akira]

Oh no its not for me. My friend is looking for a bass and he wants me recommend him a good one..

This ESP LTD B-50 I saw is number one beginner bass in About.com. also saw that it costs only 179 off ZZsouns. But I saw one of them for 356 euros in my local shop.
Well I think he would like it.