I got my Fretless P7 expecting it to be roughly the same quality as my Fender Modern Player Jazz (which is already a great bass for the price). Got it, and it blew the Fender out of the water. Insane quality, easily surpassing instruments over 3x the price. I now play that P7 as my main bass.
Personally I think a lot of the se series guitars are a lot better than most us/mim guitars ive owned or played. Had a us les paul and a se singlecut 245 and I sold my les paul instead and id make that decision every day
I play on an Ibanez five string, and I couldn’t imagine a better bass to play. The tonal options, variety of features, and appearance are stellar. Glad to see the brand appreciated here.
Wooo! FGN! I have 7 of em and they're AMAZING. Also a big Ibanez fanboy (have 9). I had to take a second to think about your #1 choice, and I agree. Schecter has come a long way, and I could only really ding them on their electronics quality on their older models (the really low end EMGs that were way too trebly), but their newer offerings including some of the more classically styled ones have moved away from that. I am actually eyeing several of them to check out, very impressed with where they've gone over the years! Great video!
I got my Jackson JS3VQ Concert Bass as my first for $275 on Reverb. It sounds massive, plays well, and I love it. No QC issues, and mine is a 2019 model (based on the serial). I am going to save up for an ESP LTD B-1005 Multi-scale bass. I love the sound of the Nordstrom pickups, the aesthetic is gorgeous, and the 37"-34" scale length is great for downtuning.
Love Ibanez basses! I've owned quite a few over the years from entry level to high end BTBs. Even the cheapest of them have great feeling smooth necks, sound great and are tons of fun to play!
I’ve owned several G&L basses and guitars-both USA and Tributes. The SB-2 and M-2000 Tributes are monster basses. I also owned USA SB-2. Two of the best basses I’ve owned has been Peavey Millennium 5+ and TL-5, but both over $600.
GREAT video series thank you for the past two videos I know this must have taken a ton of time to put together. Glad to hear Schecter ranked so high I have always loved this brand and have had excellent guitars form Schecter that I play everyday.
Was not expecting the bass list! But since I enjoyed the last ranking so much I got to watch this one. For guitar and bass I have a traveler guitar. They are very much sentimental to me after buying my first Strat style and open humbuckers design electric guitar. Also am a Steinberger (under Gibson) owner. I think the stock pickups are just fine, the bass sounds especially good to my ears. The body shape is what I’m really after. Very playable! Thanks Phil!
Glad to see Ibanez SR basses (and their other less popular bass styles) got some love... but Schecter definitely deserves it. I bought a "cheapo" Schecter Stealth as a cheap intro to 5-string, and it's really amazing how good it is... the P/H pickups sound really good, the setup was unbelievably well done (... 5 years later and I still don't believe it), the fretwork is amazing, and the bass itself is just an absolute tank. As my cheapest bass, it's always the one I think about selling for spare cash... but every time I decide "... no. It's worth way more than I'd get."
Great series man! Love the guitar one too! Maybe you could do one about lefty friendly companies. It’s always so hard to find decent lefty’s at this price point and not a ton of variety.
I’m actually happy to see Spector kinda high on this list. I bought one of their legend series basses and it’s amazing made me a huge fan of the brand.
Agreed about the Cort brand. I don't really think much of their guitars, but their basses are awesome. For what I paid for my GB75 - great hardware and sound, and very comfortable too.
I have a MIM Fender J-bass that I got for $300 a couple decades ago. I bet it's equivalent to the current $600 basses they offer. It gets the job done for me.
Funny but true . I bought the cheapest Ibanez I could find a few years ago. A GRS 100 with the single humbucker for 220.00. Bought it just to play with my youngest son and his band. Just in an attempt of building a better relationship with him after giving up music 20 years ago. The only thing I did was change out the plastic nut for a brass nut and added a .047uf Orange drop cap. Set it up with the low playing height I like. I didn't even change out the dime size pots or pickup. Three years later while playing everyday and continuing to build another collection of mostly higher end basses. That cheap Ibanez is my main reach every day more times than not.
@@blaiseroche I'm glad you're playing music again! That's awesome! I've had my Ibanez for about 3 years now, and I've kept it stock. It's sounded so great out the box, and hasn't given out, or needed anything changed.
@@Cyco_Rene423 Thank you. Best move I've ever made. And music made a world of difference with me and my sons relationship too. Who by the way is a hell of a guitar player today. Still I wish I had never stopped, it was apparently a problem for my ex spouse lol. Rule one, Never give up your passion.
Thanks for this! As a guitar player (who actually bought a guitar from your AZ store many moons ago) i have no clue about basses and need one for recording! Appreciate the info!!! 🙏🤘🤘
Hi Phil! You nailed this list down bro, Schector is my favorite bass company for the price point by far. And they have very good customer service if you need parts. REALLY liked this list, very helpful for someone with limited resources. Of course if you are lucky enough to be able to afford a top bass like the p bass or custom jazz stuff then good for you! But for the average Joe slapper, I think you can't go wrong with this list.
I love my Yamaha basses. Should have been ranked higher. They need to bring back the complete RBX line and the Myung signature bass sans the Myung name. Best 6 string bass around. Albeit I like the narrow string spacing of this model.
@@iutchube Yeah I have a RBX375 series that's 10 to 12 yrs old and still my favorite bass. I also have a 3 yr old TRBX305 series that's a decent back up. 3rd is my Spector 4 stringer.
Must agree about the value/performance/finish available from Schecter. Picked up an Omen 5 Extreme with a minor ding from shipping for a *song* at Music Store up in Köln (D) a couple years back, just to fulfill a crazy idea : a 35" scale "baritone" strung with the EB 20-40-60-80-100 set. When it's just the drummer and me bashing around in the band room, one instrument covers the entire spectrum. It's a blast jumping back-and-forth between crater-inducing low end on the bottom 3 (60-100) and HUGE chords on the top 3 (20-60), thanks to the factory-installed high-gain active pickups in what's officially supposed to be a "metal" axe. Rolling the FX/volume back a couple notches also awakes a gloriously clear baritone voice on the top strings, especially with a pick. With the upper octave on the 24-fret neck, it's also a kick to let the Bass Station II plugged in nearby rhythmically fill the low end and channel the "inner Jaco" all us low-frequency folk usually keep under wraps when the guitar player decides to show up... =)
Thanks for the list. Great to see that my favourite bass builder is in the top 3 😊. Also nice to see that Benton and Squire are as good as I've been contemplating getting them for my collection.
I love the fact that you listed the brand that I went with for my first Bass as #1, as a matter of fact, you even showed the model I purchased! I love it, it's a beautiful instrument and it feels great in the hands, no complaints!
Definitely interested in seeing sub 300 and over 1k in the Bass list as well as the upcoming guitar ones. The feel of these video harken back to who owns who videos of a few years ago.
Would love to see you review some of the different lines of Bacchus bass. The entry level Universe series starts at around $200, the Global starts at around $500 and the craft series which is made in Japan and starts at a little north of $800. These are Canadian prices so I imagine it will be slightly less for the USA. They seem to get quite a bit of love on talkbass, but would love to see a review of this brand from someone I trust.
I have owned a Cort Artisan A5 for 8 years and apart from needing to skim the top of part of one fret that was buzzing, it has performed faultlessly. It looks amazing, sounds superb and plays like butter. I also have a Vintage Jaco style fretless Jazz Bass. I understand the quality issues. I picked it up 2nd hand but basically new and barely played. I paid a third of it's retail value! The reason was that the neck wasn't seated in the pocket properly. You could actually see the screws in the gap between the neck and the body! I took the neck off, figured where it was binding and used a Dremel to take the tiniest amount off in one spot. Now it sits perfectly and is tight enough to hold the body on without the screws. A 5 minute job saved me AUS$400! I put on flatwounds and a bone nut (the original plastic one was so bad it still had dags in the slots) and I love it.
For me the rankings are less important than hearing the brand names themselves. Because there’s always at least one that’s new to me I’ll want to check out.
I love these rankings videos and you should definitely make this a series. You could rank pieces of gear under $600 (eg best amps, guitar, bass) for a specific genre, like metal, or jazz etc!
Really helpful video!! I agree with Vintage; my current Vintage VJ74 has the issues you mentioned. And I just bought a Cort B5, so I'm on the right track. This will help with my next bass in future!
I've had my Schecter Stiletto Elite Diamond bass since 2007 and gigged the hell out of it. It has NEVER let me down. Best bass I've ever owned. Everyone that's played it said it's the best they've ever played.
And just like that... Schecters are out of stock.... :D Thanks for this video Phil! I actually just bought an Ibanez Sound Gear SR300e used and although i absolutely hate the color, its the Chared Chamagne Burst, i got it for a great deal and it was practically brand new. We'll see how it grows on me, either that or i paint it in just the dark brown tone which i do like better than the champagne tone, or maybe just strip it and stain it to a nice woodsy grain. Keep the great content coming as always!
Schecter is making a serious play for the bass market across most price points and that they increased the lines offered since you made this video (and they actually make lefties fairly regularly), watch for schecter, theyre quickly becoming the go-to for basses
i have an ibanez that i got for £200 and i have never played an instrument that i felt liked me as much as i like it until i got this bass. very good value for money, might upgrade the pickups at some point.
I own an Aria Pro 2 and before I was ready to own a bass I got to chose a Fender P bass together so, I had the luck to play them side by side. The Aria was the best choice for tone with passive pickups and comfort. At 65 I now have arthritis, comfort is important now.
Every brand that was bought by Gibson went more ore less to the loo. I don't know why, they seem to buy brands just to ditch them. Thank you fro the reviews mate ! You made a very interesting comparison and I think you are fair in your judgment.
That was fast and furious. I bought a Sire P7. I’m happy with my purchase. I don’t think the neck is all that small. It feels pretty average in thickness and width.
@@anonymouscarrot2965 I think Phillip got that one wrong. The V series (J bass) is the only one with a thin Jazz neck, the P and M series are much chunkier. Possibly it's because the V series is the best known?
I've owned and gigged on most of these (Fender, Sterling, Squier, Sire, Ibanez, Yamaha, Schecter) and I'd put Squier at #1 - their Vintage Modified '77 is honestly one of the best Jazz Basses I've ever played. Looks great, feels phenomenal, and sounds super solid. I ended up modding mine with some Fralins, better pots, and a hi-mass bridge: it's now my #1 recording J and still cost under $600.
I was blown away by my Sterling SubRay. lists for $300 and I got 20% off - shipped. Frets and neck are great. Tuners needed some lithium grease. I don’t really play bass (just guitar) but wanted something to goof around on, and I’ve always loved the StingRay shape...
I love my Yamaha bass, I actually ended up choosing that over some Ibanez ones at the same price point. Mainly because I have smaller hands and their necks work wonders for me.
It would be interesting to know if the scores were weighed equally for each category. For example does quality and variety both score out of 10? I personally would give quality out of 10 and variety 5
Saw an interview with Marcus Miller on another channel. Very cool and accomplished musician. Have my Ibanez Soundgear bass for years, and love it! Thanks Phil.
Totally agree. I'm buying it to play it, not re-sell it. We need to get away from the brand value. Pick it up, and play it. If you like it, buy it. If you don't, well, don't.
and even further, a good luthier/guitar tech can turn a $50 guitar/bass into a priceless unique instrument. source: my roommate is a luthier and has turned many of my $50 guitars and basses into priceless unique instruments.
Peavey at one point manufactured basses that were among the best available at under a grand and Cirrus was an awesome playing 35" scale bass and it was 100% U.S. made and it's really depressing to see how the company has totally imploded on every front.
After Hartley Peavey died the company was sold and their manufacturing base at their home in Meridian, Mississippi was gutted and closed. I forget what year that was but that's when the company went from 100% US made absolute top quality instruments, amps, sound reinforcement etc. to basically slapping the Peavey name on imported junk. I'm from Louisiana and not far from former Peavey city in Meridian and my late father was friends with Hartley Peavey as we used to own a music store in our town and of course our top seller was Peavey back in the 80's. Anyway Harley died young, I forget what it was, and my dad commented several times after the Mississippi operation was closed that Hartley was spinning in his grave because he would have never put his name on imported crap and was all about providing US jobs and a great product for the price. Some of those 1980's Peavey guitars and basses even the very first ones were excellent- the T60 guitar and T40 bass! Great playing, great sounding with options galore and they were built like tanks but with excellent fit and finish. Oh the good old days...
I love Ibanez and Schecter, my two favorite brands. Not because of the name brand, but they’re the most comfortable in my hand, even with their extended range options. I love me a smooth thin neck on an stringed instrument.
WOWWWW I did not expect that #1, as soon as i saw the title I said "oh Ibanez will be number 1 easily" and then when i heard them at #2 I was like whaaaaaaaat could possibly be #1 then. Its crazy cuz, I have never picked up a schecter bass that I ever vibe with, they are all super heavy. Ibanez #1 for me but man, great list, great video!
I bought the Squire 70s modified jazz bass . Sounds amazing but I had to do a lot of work on it to get the action low enough . Fret filing etc . Now it's great but off the shelf it had terrible action .
Love my import Hofner Violin bass. I've had a ton of fun upgrading it to get close to the German version. I'm curious about Squier's classic vibe line of basses. I have a Classic Vibe Tele and absolutely adore it.
I was really expecting Ibanez to be #1. Ive always been amazed that you can get a bass so good for so cheap, and they are everywhere and have tons of variety. I’m sure Schecter is great, I just don’t have much experience with them.
The Fender Mustang PJ is an incredible bass. I have one in shell pink and it rips. Squier is probably the best brand in terms of variety if you ask me. They have vintage inspired stuff, super modern stuff, and stuff in between. I mostly own Squiers as they're cheap to pick up, easy to mod, and are just solid basses. I don't ever see myself paying more that a thousand dollars for a bass considering what's out there in the sub one thousand price range.
Ibanez makes such great basses especially compared to other brands at an entry to intermediate price point. I'd have Sterling higher personally. Their basses are phenomenal sounding and playing.
Wow! Super great presentatiom, was easy to lusten too and informative. I own a schecter stilletto exteme and love it! Only complaints are small like battery access, lack of thumb rest (love one built into yamaha pickups), maybe knob identification but like i say very small nit picks.
glad to to see my Cort Artisan C6 plus ZBMH(my finish wasn't perfect btw when bought brand new) made the Top 10 , i mean it's not the best but for the money I felt like i got a lot of bass!!! I no doubt feel like y'all know what your talking about Phil thanks for doing these list i do believe it's a very accurate assessment !
I was nervous when I saw the title of this video since I bought my first bass two weeks ago. Then I had a sigh of relief when Ibanez landed in the top two. Love my new $300 bass.
Thanks for doing this. I watched guitar one an I am a guitarist. However not being a bassist I have always wondered about their market. You never hear much about it. Also as a gigging musician I meet a lot of bass players and non seem to be into gear like guitar guys. All I ever see played are fender or squire, a few Epiphone and I think an Ibanez once. When you ranked schecter so high it makes sense. Never had a bad schecter guitar. I wonder why I never see them out on small local bands. At least up here in northern states in freidman territory.
Yes! I play exclusively Schecter basses, and not just because I am a lefty either! I've gone through 5 other brands and nothing compares to my Schecter basses.
Phil your lists are a lot of fun. No complaints. We are talking about budget friendly basses. Thanks for your time doing this review. Peace!
Nice to see Schecter got so high on the list. I've always been a big fan of them. Very under rated.
Thanks for giving the bassists some love Phil.
Great to see Sire so high on the list. Got one recently and it is my #1 out of 6 other basses.
I've always wanted to try one
I got my Fretless P7 expecting it to be roughly the same quality as my Fender Modern Player Jazz (which is already a great bass for the price).
Got it, and it blew the Fender out of the water. Insane quality, easily surpassing instruments over 3x the price. I now play that P7 as my main bass.
Yes, do a $600 to $1300 so we can see how PRS SE rank against the entry MIA Fenders and the higher priced Ibanez
...MIA wouldn't be compared to the SE. One is Made in America. It's not an import
You can get PRS S2 in that range, which are MIA (with import parts) that are awesome.
Yeah, if we remove the import-only restriction, I'd love to know how the MIA Performers do (that's my baby, satin blue MIA P-bass).
Personally I think a lot of the se series guitars are a lot better than most us/mim guitars ive owned or played. Had a us les paul and a se singlecut 245 and I sold my les paul instead and id make that decision every day
@@terribleliars123 I'm literally the opposite. Sold my PRS guitars and ended up buying an R8 and R9.
Opens up reverb, sweetwater and ams to spend money I dont have.
Thanks Phil!
I play on an Ibanez five string, and I couldn’t imagine a better bass to play. The tonal options, variety of features, and appearance are stellar. Glad to see the brand appreciated here.
I’ve had my Ibanez SR 400 since 2006. Active 3 band EQ. All stock. Love it.
Wooo! FGN! I have 7 of em and they're AMAZING. Also a big Ibanez fanboy (have 9). I had to take a second to think about your #1 choice, and I agree. Schecter has come a long way, and I could only really ding them on their electronics quality on their older models (the really low end EMGs that were way too trebly), but their newer offerings including some of the more classically styled ones have moved away from that. I am actually eyeing several of them to check out, very impressed with where they've gone over the years! Great video!
Cameo Appearance!
Totally agree about the Ibanez. Picked one up used on a whim for next to nothing and I still have it and haven’t upgraded it yet. A total surprise!
I got my Jackson JS3VQ Concert Bass as my first for $275 on Reverb. It sounds massive, plays well, and I love it. No QC issues, and mine is a 2019 model (based on the serial).
I am going to save up for an ESP LTD B-1005 Multi-scale bass. I love the sound of the Nordstrom pickups, the aesthetic is gorgeous, and the 37"-34" scale length is great for downtuning.
Solid list. Spector, Ibanez, and Schecter are my go-to bass brands.
Love Ibanez basses! I've owned quite a few over the years from entry level to high end BTBs. Even the cheapest of them have great feeling smooth necks, sound great and are tons of fun to play!
I’ve owned several G&L basses and guitars-both USA and Tributes. The SB-2 and M-2000 Tributes are monster basses. I also owned USA SB-2. Two of the best basses I’ve owned has been Peavey Millennium 5+ and TL-5, but both over $600.
GREAT video series thank you for the past two videos I know this must have taken a ton of time to put together. Glad to hear Schecter ranked so high I have always loved this brand and have had excellent guitars form Schecter that I play everyday.
Love the vids Phil! You’re my favorite RUclips channel for guitar!!! Keep up the great work!
I love my Schecter Stiletto Stealth 5 -- plays amazing from the factory, and sounds huge!
Was not expecting the bass list! But since I enjoyed the last ranking so much I got to watch this one.
For guitar and bass I have a traveler guitar. They are very much sentimental to me after buying my first Strat style and open humbuckers design electric guitar.
Also am a Steinberger (under Gibson) owner. I think the stock pickups are just fine, the bass sounds especially good to my ears. The body shape is what I’m really after. Very playable!
Thanks Phil!
Glad to see Ibanez SR basses (and their other less popular bass styles) got some love... but Schecter definitely deserves it. I bought a "cheapo" Schecter Stealth as a cheap intro to 5-string, and it's really amazing how good it is... the P/H pickups sound really good, the setup was unbelievably well done (... 5 years later and I still don't believe it), the fretwork is amazing, and the bass itself is just an absolute tank. As my cheapest bass, it's always the one I think about selling for spare cash... but every time I decide "... no. It's worth way more than I'd get."
Great series man! Love the guitar one too! Maybe you could do one about lefty friendly companies. It’s always so hard to find decent lefty’s at this price point and not a ton of variety.
I’m actually happy to see Spector kinda high on this list. I bought one of their legend series basses and it’s amazing made me a huge fan of the brand.
Agreed about the Cort brand. I don't really think much of their guitars, but their basses are awesome. For what I paid for my GB75 - great hardware and sound, and very comfortable too.
I gigged and recorded with a 400 dollar Ibanez for almost a decade. Definitely great basses for the money.
My SR406 was my work horse for years
I have a MIM Fender J-bass that I got for $300 a couple decades ago. I bet it's equivalent to the current $600 basses they offer. It gets the job done for me.
I love my Ibanez bass! Got it for $350 and it's my favorite bass out of my collection! I use it for gigs, tours, recording, etc.
Funny but true . I bought the cheapest Ibanez I could find a few years ago. A GRS 100 with the single humbucker for 220.00. Bought it just to play with my youngest son and his band. Just in an attempt of building a better relationship with him after giving up music 20 years ago. The only thing I did was change out the plastic nut for a brass nut and added a .047uf Orange drop cap. Set it up with the low playing height I like. I didn't even change out the dime size pots or pickup. Three years later while playing everyday and continuing to build another collection of mostly higher end basses. That cheap Ibanez is my main reach every day more times than not.
@@blaiseroche I'm glad you're playing music again! That's awesome! I've had my Ibanez for about 3 years now, and I've kept it stock. It's sounded so great out the box, and hasn't given out, or needed anything changed.
@@Cyco_Rene423 Thank you. Best move I've ever made. And music made a world of difference with me and my sons relationship too. Who by the way is a hell of a guitar player today. Still I wish I had never stopped, it was apparently a problem for my ex spouse lol. Rule one, Never give up your passion.
@@blaiseroche music bonds, and heals all. And yes! Always follow your passion! Haha.
Thanks for this! As a guitar player (who actually bought a guitar from your AZ store many moons ago) i have no clue about basses and need one for recording! Appreciate the info!!! 🙏🤘🤘
I would love to see another bass list like this (especially the 600-1000 range). Good list!
I would love to see all the category scores. I don’t care if a company only has one bass for under $600 as long as it’s a great one! 😉
Hi Phil! You nailed this list down bro,
Schector is my favorite bass company for the price point by far. And they have very good customer service if you need parts. REALLY liked this list, very helpful for someone with limited resources.
Of course if you are lucky enough to be able to afford a top bass like the p bass or custom jazz stuff then good for you! But for the average Joe slapper, I think you can't go wrong with this list.
A couple of yrs. ago, I was able to get a Spector Bass for $60 and it is simply a joy to play.
I love my Yamaha basses. Should have been ranked higher. They need to bring back the complete RBX line and the Myung signature bass sans the Myung name. Best 6 string bass around. Albeit I like the narrow string spacing of this model.
I also think Yamaha should have been a bit higher
@@raybbj Agree. Yamaha are the best basses in terms of value for the price. Any bass you pick is totally gig-able, reliable, looking & sounding great.
Bought an RBX 765a 20 years ago for almost nothing. Best deal ever.
@@iutchube Yeah I have a RBX375 series that's 10 to 12 yrs old and still my favorite bass. I also have a 3 yr old TRBX305 series that's a decent back up. 3rd is my Spector 4 stringer.
@@iutchube I have a red RBX765A and its a great bass.
All of the top five are phenomenal choices for a working musician with a tight budget! Great video!
Very useful information Phil. Thank you for not taking an hour to present this list. A sub $300 list would be cool.
Must agree about the value/performance/finish available from Schecter. Picked up an Omen 5 Extreme with a minor ding from shipping for a *song* at Music Store up in Köln (D) a couple years back, just to fulfill a crazy idea : a 35" scale "baritone" strung with the EB 20-40-60-80-100 set. When it's just the drummer and me bashing around in the band room, one instrument covers the entire spectrum. It's a blast jumping back-and-forth between crater-inducing low end on the bottom 3 (60-100) and HUGE chords on the top 3 (20-60), thanks to the factory-installed high-gain active pickups in what's officially supposed to be a "metal" axe. Rolling the FX/volume back a couple notches also awakes a gloriously clear baritone voice on the top strings, especially with a pick. With the upper octave on the 24-fret neck, it's also a kick to let the Bass Station II plugged in nearby rhythmically fill the low end and channel the "inner Jaco" all us low-frequency folk usually keep under wraps when the guitar player decides to show up... =)
Thanks for the list. Great to see that my favourite bass builder is in the top 3 😊.
Also nice to see that Benton and Squire are as good as I've been contemplating getting them for my collection.
I always greatly appreciate your lists. You've opened me up to some awesome gear. Please keep at it and thank you for all your hard work.
Awesome list Phil! After much research my first bass was a Schecter Omen Extreme 4 left hand model and I still own it to this day (5 years later!).
Thanks for the bid and recommendations. That Fuji company sounds very interesting.
I love the fact that you listed the brand that I went with for my first Bass as #1, as a matter of fact, you even showed the model I purchased! I love it, it's a beautiful instrument and it feels great in the hands, no complaints!
Definitely interested in seeing sub 300 and over 1k in the Bass list as well as the upcoming guitar ones. The feel of these video harken back to who owns who videos of a few years ago.
Would love to see you review some of the different lines of Bacchus bass. The entry level Universe series starts at around $200, the Global starts at around $500 and the craft series which is made in Japan and starts at a little north of $800. These are Canadian prices so I imagine it will be slightly less for the USA. They seem to get quite a bit of love on talkbass, but would love to see a review of this brand from someone I trust.
Lets see the mid range top ten worst to best (60-1000 usd price point). Loved this video. Keep this going, please.
Love the pacing of these vids!
I have to agree about Ibanez basses. They are great. I just always end up with Squiers or Fenders because they have that style that I like.
Definitely an Above $600 Bass Ranking video please!
I have owned a Cort Artisan A5 for 8 years and apart from needing to skim the top of part of one fret that was buzzing, it has performed faultlessly. It looks amazing, sounds superb and plays like butter.
I also have a Vintage Jaco style fretless Jazz Bass. I understand the quality issues. I picked it up 2nd hand but basically new and barely played. I paid a third of it's retail value!
The reason was that the neck wasn't seated in the pocket properly. You could actually see the screws in the gap between the neck and the body! I took the neck off, figured where it was binding and used a Dremel to take the tiniest amount off in one spot. Now it sits perfectly and is tight enough to hold the body on without the screws. A 5 minute job saved me AUS$400! I put on flatwounds and a bone nut (the original plastic one was so bad it still had dags in the slots) and I love it.
For me the rankings are less important than hearing the brand names themselves. Because there’s always at least one that’s new to me I’ll want to check out.
Right on for doing the video that you know might not get the most hits.
I love these rankings videos and you should definitely make this a series. You could rank pieces of gear under $600 (eg best amps, guitar, bass) for a specific genre, like metal, or jazz etc!
Really helpful video!! I agree with Vintage; my current Vintage VJ74 has the issues you mentioned. And I just bought a Cort B5, so I'm on the right track. This will help with my next bass in future!
I've had my Schecter Stiletto Elite Diamond bass since 2007 and gigged the hell out of it. It has NEVER let me down. Best bass I've ever owned. Everyone that's played it said it's the best they've ever played.
ruclips.net/video/SX71wmIijYc/видео.html
@@PhillipMcKnight Interesting.
And just like that... Schecters are out of stock.... :D Thanks for this video Phil! I actually just bought an Ibanez Sound Gear SR300e used and although i absolutely hate the color, its the Chared Chamagne Burst, i got it for a great deal and it was practically brand new. We'll see how it grows on me, either that or i paint it in just the dark brown tone which i do like better than the champagne tone, or maybe just strip it and stain it to a nice woodsy grain. Keep the great content coming as always!
I'm digging these ranked videos!
love to see you do the same video only on 5 string basses
Schecter is making a serious play for the bass market across most price points and that they increased the lines offered since you made this video (and they actually make lefties fairly regularly), watch for schecter, theyre quickly becoming the go-to for basses
Love this series! Keep them coming!
i have an ibanez that i got for £200 and i have never played an instrument that i felt liked me as much as i like it until i got this bass.
very good value for money, might upgrade the pickups at some point.
I own an Aria Pro 2 and before I was ready to own a bass I got to chose a Fender P bass together so, I had the luck to play them side by side. The Aria was the best choice for tone with passive pickups and comfort. At 65 I now have arthritis, comfort is important now.
I have a Sterling Stingray short scale and it is absolutely fantastic!
Every brand that was bought by Gibson went more ore less to the loo. I don't know why, they seem to buy brands just to ditch them. Thank you fro the reviews mate ! You made a very interesting comparison and I think you are fair in your judgment.
Thanks Phillip. Your videos are so helpful.
That was fast and furious. I bought a Sire P7. I’m happy with my purchase. I don’t think the neck is all that small. It feels pretty average in thickness and width.
The Sire P range has a bigger neck than the J range
@@anonymouscarrot2965 I think Phillip got that one wrong. The V series (J bass) is the only one with a thin Jazz neck, the P and M series are much chunkier. Possibly it's because the V series is the best known?
More videos like this please!
A great list Phil. And brands I wasn't aware of. Cool 😎. I own Yamaha and Hofner and I enjoy them both. Thanks.
I've owned and gigged on most of these (Fender, Sterling, Squier, Sire, Ibanez, Yamaha, Schecter) and I'd put Squier at #1 - their Vintage Modified '77 is honestly one of the best Jazz Basses I've ever played. Looks great, feels phenomenal, and sounds super solid.
I ended up modding mine with some Fralins, better pots, and a hi-mass bridge: it's now my #1 recording J and still cost under $600.
I was blown away by my Sterling SubRay. lists for $300 and I got 20% off - shipped. Frets and neck are great. Tuners needed some lithium grease. I don’t really play bass (just guitar) but wanted something to goof around on, and I’ve always loved the StingRay shape...
I love my Yamaha bass, I actually ended up choosing that over some Ibanez ones at the same price point. Mainly because I have smaller hands and their necks work wonders for me.
Great idea. Extremely useful.
Love your videos.
I love my ibanez sr bass. Its a sub 600 dolar bass that I just love to play. Glad to see you rank them so high.
Thanks for this list! I got my eye on Schecter now...
It would be interesting to know if the scores were weighed equally for each category. For example does quality and variety both score out of 10? I personally would give quality out of 10 and variety 5
Saw an interview with Marcus Miller on another channel. Very cool and accomplished musician. Have my Ibanez Soundgear bass for years, and love it! Thanks Phil.
If the bass is good, brand value doesn't really matter
Low brand value might translate to good deals on the used market.
Totally agree. I'm buying it to play it, not re-sell it. We need to get away from the brand value. Pick it up, and play it. If you like it, buy it. If you don't, well, don't.
Depends new or used
And if you are reselling
and even further, a good luthier/guitar tech can turn a $50 guitar/bass into a priceless unique instrument.
source: my roommate is a luthier and has turned many of my $50 guitars and basses into priceless unique instruments.
Yamaha best bang for the buck bass wise. Low end or high end 🤘🏻
Peavey at one point manufactured basses that were among the best available at under a grand and Cirrus was an awesome playing 35" scale bass and it was 100% U.S. made and it's really depressing to see how the company has totally imploded on every front.
After Hartley Peavey died the company was sold and their manufacturing base at their home in Meridian, Mississippi was gutted and closed. I forget what year that was but that's when the company went from 100% US made absolute top quality instruments, amps, sound reinforcement etc. to basically slapping the Peavey name on imported junk. I'm from Louisiana and not far from former Peavey city in Meridian and my late father was friends with Hartley Peavey as we used to own a music store in our town and of course our top seller was Peavey back in the 80's. Anyway Harley died young, I forget what it was, and my dad commented several times after the Mississippi operation was closed that Hartley was spinning in his grave because he would have never put his name on imported crap and was all about providing US jobs and a great product for the price. Some of those 1980's Peavey guitars and basses even the very first ones were excellent- the T60 guitar and T40 bass! Great playing, great sounding with options galore and they were built like tanks but with excellent fit and finish. Oh the good old days...
@@patrickfoster4586 Hartley Peavey is still alive, actually, but everything else you said is spot on.
This video is brilliant Phil! You are my favourite Nerd - where do you store all this knowledge!
I love Ibanez and Schecter, my two favorite brands. Not because of the name brand, but they’re the most comfortable in my hand, even with their extended range options. I love me a smooth thin neck on an stringed instrument.
WOWWWW I did not expect that #1, as soon as i saw the title I said "oh Ibanez will be number 1 easily" and then when i heard them at #2 I was like whaaaaaaaat could possibly be #1 then. Its crazy cuz, I have never picked up a schecter bass that I ever vibe with, they are all super heavy. Ibanez #1 for me but man, great list, great video!
I bought the Squire 70s modified jazz bass . Sounds amazing but I had to do a lot of work on it to get the action low enough . Fret filing etc . Now it's great but off the shelf it had terrible action .
Definitely need more of these videos, particularly >$600.
A well done video, Phill.
Interestingly, I'm currently shopping and trying to decide between a Schecter Stiletto Studio and an Ibanez SR500. Thanks for the listing.
aria's are really a hidden gem. amazing sound and it seems like they experimented with their designs quite a bit
I really liked what you said about schecter they've been a tempting choice for many reasons
Love my import Hofner Violin bass. I've had a ton of fun upgrading it to get close to the German version. I'm curious about Squier's classic vibe line of basses. I have a Classic Vibe Tele and absolutely adore it.
I was really expecting Ibanez to be #1. Ive always been amazed that you can get a bass so good for so cheap, and they are everywhere and have tons of variety. I’m sure Schecter is great, I just don’t have much experience with them.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge! This helps newbies like me make better purchase decisions.
The Fender Mustang PJ is an incredible bass. I have one in shell pink and it rips. Squier is probably the best brand in terms of variety if you ask me. They have vintage inspired stuff, super modern stuff, and stuff in between. I mostly own Squiers as they're cheap to pick up, easy to mod, and are just solid basses. I don't ever see myself paying more that a thousand dollars for a bass considering what's out there in the sub one thousand price range.
Affordable Schecters have always been solid. I bought a C4 bass for about $350 over 15 years ago and I still gig with it!
Ibanez makes such great basses especially compared to other brands at an entry to intermediate price point. I'd have Sterling higher personally. Their basses are phenomenal sounding and playing.
Wow! Super great presentatiom, was easy to lusten too and informative. I own a schecter stilletto exteme and love it! Only complaints are small like battery access, lack of thumb rest (love one built into yamaha pickups), maybe knob identification but like i say very small nit picks.
glad to to see my Cort Artisan C6 plus ZBMH(my finish wasn't perfect btw when bought brand new) made the Top 10 , i mean it's not the best but for the money I felt like i got a lot of bass!!! I no doubt feel like y'all know what your talking about Phil thanks for doing these list i do believe it's a very accurate assessment !
I gigged on my Squier Jazz for a couple of years until I started trading up. I only had to resolder the output jack; other than that, problem-free
I was nervous when I saw the title of this video since I bought my first bass two weeks ago. Then I had a sigh of relief when Ibanez landed in the top two. Love my new $300 bass.
Ibanez are great basses, you can without much trouble gig with a 300$ bass and a decent amp for years.
Thanks for doing this. I watched guitar one an I am a guitarist. However not being a bassist I have always wondered about their market. You never hear much about it. Also as a gigging musician I meet a lot of bass players and non seem to be into gear like guitar guys. All I ever see played are fender or squire, a few Epiphone and I think an Ibanez once. When you ranked schecter so high it makes sense. Never had a bad schecter guitar. I wonder why I never see them out on small local bands. At least up here in northern states in freidman territory.
Yes! I play exclusively Schecter basses, and not just because I am a lefty either! I've gone through 5 other brands and nothing compares to my Schecter basses.
I came here for the bass on the thumbnail and didn't get it, I really wanted to know what that bass's model was xD
I think it is a Spear Flextool bass. They had a J-P-MM pick-up configuration
Great insights - I learned a lot. Thank you :)
Thanks Phil for the bass love.
You didn't really elaborate on why G&L was ranked so low. May I ask why?