I need some feedback on my next Bass

Gear
21

That is a very positive way to approach it. :+1:

The 304 was the only instrument I have ever purchased that I was not happy with.
Unfortunately I live in rural Ontario and with Covid adding to the complications trying before buying was not an option.

There is nothing wrong with the 304 from a quality standpoint. I just could not get the tone I wanted out of it I was looking for.

I have never purchased an instrument thinking about resale value because I have no intentions of ever selling it so I have always purchased new. Again, this is just one of my personal guidelines and I know a lot of others do not understand or agree with it and that’s fine. It’s a personal choice and that is mine. :slightly_smiling_face:

I looked at replacing the pickups and adding an active/passive switch to the 304 and I, or should I say @howard, decided that the circuit board was probably also different. After adding up all the costs, and the work to remove the 304 switch and replace it with the active/passive switch I decided to just take my own advice and just bite the bullet and purchase the one I really wanted, which was the 504. It was the right decision and I have never looked back.

I give a big THANK YOU to @howard for helping me decide how to proceed. If it wasn’t for him I probably would have just forgotten about learning Bass, taken the 304 purchase as a learning experience, and just gone back to my guitars and ukuleles
I’m sure glad I didn’t. :+1: :+1: :+1:

My early 1970’s Stratocaster falls into that realm. I got proper hell from from my wife when I showed up one day with it and she discovered that I had paid around $700 for it. That same Stratocaster now was worth worth 3X what I paid for it last time I checked. I haven’t played it for about a year but I am still not planning on selling it.

Fender used to have a service where you would give them the serial number and they would give you an evaluation. Not sure if you can still do that or not.

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22

Theres a Sterling by MusicMan Ray4 and Ray24 which have those slim jazz necks if you like sound of stingray but not those chunky necks.

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23

The 304 is like a camera that only shoots jpgs but you don’t like the Nikon colours :slight_smile:

I wanted to get a 605 but I couldn’t find one in stock in the colour I wanted so I ended up with a Sire M7.

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24

I shoot all my pictures in RAW format and colour correct in post. :slightly_smiling_face:

I had the same issue with the 304 and 504 and just kept checking several times a day for stock. I also had 3 music stores doing the same for me.

The only differences between the 500 and 600 series are the colour choices and body materials.

Do you think you will still purchase a 605?

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25

I know, that’s why I used it as an example :slight_smile:

Unlikely since the 605 doesn’t do anything that my M7 doesn’t do and I don’t even use the M7 that much. I might possibly buy a 604 one day but I have more than enough basses for now :slight_smile: maybe when the post covid sell off starts :smiley: I mostly play my Precision bass right now.

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26

Why not just go to a guitar store and demo them. I thought I would love a music man sterling 5, went and tested it and prefer my Ibanez any day of the week.

Just remember gear may make you want to play more, but it won’t make you play better. Some amazing tones have come out of thrift shop instruments.

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27

Ooo they are look good😍

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28

Thank You so much to everyone who took the time to comment! I got such great information and perspective from everyone’s comments and they have really informed my thought process on the matter. I feel confident for how I am going to proceed from here!

Bass Thank You
Bass Thank You1100×850 147 KB

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29

You are welcome.
Just remember it all comes down to personal preference.
Good luck :+1: :+1: :+1:

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30

You might want to go to When you get there, Sweetwater. Search for the PRS Kestral SE bass. Scroll down that page and you will see a video of a guy demo-ing the bass. I bought one last September. My first bass. When looking for a bass I hit the local GC’s, Sam Ashes and others and tried out alot of basses. This Kestral beats them all, including the 1500 dollar Fender American Professional basses. Mine has zero neck dive, plays better, looks better and sounds better than all the others I tried. Mine weighed in at 9.6 lbs., same as the Fender American Professional; but that Fender had so much neck dive, as pretty much all the Fenders I tried, that I would not even consider a Fender. But, that’s me. So, if you haven’t picked out your new bass yet, check out the Kestral at Sweetwater. They might be out of stock; but, to me, it would be worth waiting for. Ralph

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31

I bought the Yamaha BB-234. She is my #1 (and I have a few).
Sounds amazing, great quality, stays in tune and plays very well.

Jim

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32

If that’s the Fender Player Jazz that you’re considering; I have one. Love it. (I don’t know if that high brow review nails it for you?) :rofl:

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33

I had the Fender American professional fretless II for a bit, but I wasn’t feeling it. I would recommend renting first to try out the ones you’re interested in if you can.

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34

I bought the Fender Jazz bass you covet and used it for taking the training course.

After I became a badass (honorary title only), I decided I really wanted a 5 string.

I bought an Ibanez Premium SR2405W Bass in the Topez Brown sunburst color. I paid $1,599 for it (from Sweetwater).

Oh, my!!! My Fender Jazz bass is an inferior instrument compared to the Ibanez… and I am a Fender fan. This Ibanez is fantastic and has so much tone control. The playability is superb. It just makes me want to play.

I hope you will try to play the Jazz and the Ibanez Premium before you get the Jazz. There’s nothing wrong with the Jazz, of course. But, that Ibanez Premium SR2405W bass is on another level.

As you know, these models are available in a 4 string version, too.

Here is a YouTube video of it being played by a true badass.

Good luck with your search!

Cliff

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35

Oh man, I’m jealous. I’ve wanted one of the SR2400APL’s for years. And yeah, for me, that bass will absolutely blow any Fender (MIA custom shop, whatever) out of the water on all aspects. They are just fantastic basses of their type, and extremely high quality.

36

I have this odd thing with Ibanez, they look amazing but I am still not drawn to buy one.
I have tried very few, but the few I have are not for me.
I would love to fall in love with one but they are not connecting.
Maybe it is a good thing. :wink:

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37

I have literally never seen a used SR2400-APL. I search all the time too. People buy them and cherish them. There is exactly one still for sale new that I know of. And I have played it, dammit.

I can’t quite justify it as it’s an incremental upgrade over my TRBX604 (which I also love). It’s much nicer but not enough to justify the spend for me. But it’s the only bass I have found that would replace the 604, for sure - which I would also take over a MIA Fender, FWIW.

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38

This is where necks are such a personal thing. While I will admit the SR2400 is a better bass in all aspects, I prefer the feel of a Jazz neck. The thin SR necks are not my thing.

I was playing my GB-4 last night, which is a thin U and it was very comfortable. I think the slim C or U is my sweet spot. YMMV really applies to neck profiles.

I find the adjustment to the B206 a challenge, which has more of an Ibby profile, but on a 6 string a C neck would be a baseball bat

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39

They don’t make them anymore??

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40

I have a Yamaha TRBX604FM, and a BB735a. Once I got the BB, I almost never touch the TRBX.

The TRBX 5/600 series and the BB700 series are active/passive basses. The BB735a has a wonderful EQ on it. Actually, it’s just wonderful in every way (except it’s heavy!).

I can’t recommend the BB700 series enough! I love that bass almost as much as I love my dog! :smiley:

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