Category 
Basses
Derived from the double bass, which several manufacturers tried to electrify from the 30’s on, the electric bass guitar was created by Audiovox in 1933 and then perfected by Gibson, Rickenbacker, Höfner, and especially Fender in the 50’s and 60’s. Similar to the guitar in form, the original instrument had 4 strings stretched over a fretted neck but was soon to undergo many variations, just like guitars: acoustic basses, acoustic-electrics or electrics, fretted or fretless, with some models having 5, 6, 8 and even 12 strings.
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List of user reviews
Basses
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Characteristics 
- The Fender Jaguar Bass is an electric bass guitar that has two single coil pick ups and a variety of setting controls. The guitar comes in a few different versions, but the one that I have used was made in Japan. This guitar takes the basic make up of the Jaguar guitar and applies it to the bass, offering up the ability to change the tone of the bass sound in a lot of different ways. The neck is made out of maple and has an overall great feel to it.
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Utilization
- The configuration of the Fender Jaguar Bass is a bit more complex than most electric basses, but it is worth it to learn what everything does as all of the tone control settings can really be helpful. The bass has knobs for overall volume and tone, and also has a series of pick up switches and sliders to control your tone in a variety of ways. The weight is average for a Fender bass guitar and the feel is perfect as it is easy to follow all up and down the neck. Getting a good sound isn't hard at all as this is a versatile bass that is capable of getting tone for a variety of different genres.
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Sounds
- The tones possible with the Fender Jaguar Bass are versatile and are overall great sounding. I find it easy to get all sorts of different tones with this bass and for this reason I love using it in the studio. It makes it easy to switch from one type of tone to another without having to switch a bass or something else manipulating the sound. I have only used the bass for recording and generally use both an amp and a direct input box when trying to get a sound down, as this gives me options when I go to mix down. Although I haven't used it for any live shows, I can tell that this would also be a great bass for this application since it is so easy and quick to change tones.
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Overall Opinion
- I've used the Fender Jaguar Bass for about a year for recording and have to say that it is one of my favorite basses to record with because of its elite sound quality and versatility in terms of tone. The price is about right for a top tier bass, but is still aimed at those looking for a top notch bass as this isn't cheap. If you want a very cool looking and sounding electric bass guitar, definitely consider the Fender Jaguar Bass.
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Characteristics
- I am unaware as to where my Ibanez SR500 was built.
It has a Accu-Cast B20 bridge. This is very similar to almost every bass bridge I have seen.
Ibanez calls the Neck type an SR4
Its a little thinner to me than a Jazz bass neck.
It has 24 frets with a neck and a bridge pickup. Both pickups are Bartolini MK 1-4's
They sound exceptionally good too.
As for the knobs, you get a Main Volume, a Balance knob for the two pickups and a 3 band Eq totaling five knobs all together.
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Utilization
- Yes the top frets are accessed easily enough, but I can't say I use them much.
This is a great sounding bass (to my surprise) for how much I paid for it. The controls are easy enough to get a well rounded sound out of this guy.
The reason I got this bass mainly was the amazing tone for such a low price. The other big factors where how easy it is to play and how amazingly light it is. I prefer a light guitar/bass and this one is one of the lightest I have found.
No drivers
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Sounds
- I use a Peavey TNT 150 with some Mooger Fooger effects (Lowpass and Ring Mod). The peavey brings the low end punch and the effects bring the weirdness.
I really like cranking the Low EQ knob on this guy for the deepest sounds. Great tone down there. I also like thinning it out sometimes and playing some slap style bass which this bass does extremely well.
Directly in to the amp, this thing is very clean. You would need an effects pedal to change that.
This bass can bring the deep lows for electronica, great thick mids for rock and great pops for slapping. Its kinda of a jack of all trades.
Yeah, its a great tool for the many styles of music I play.
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Overall Opinion
- What I like most about it is the tone and its weight (or lack there of). There really isn't anything I like about this bass, maybe that it says Soundgear on it and most people think Soundgear is a cheap step child of Ibanez. That maybe true, but this bass deserves better.
I paid $420 at a local music store. It was a show room model with a small ding on top, but I don't care about such things. I played it and loved it and bought it that day and was very happy about the price.
Excellent sound. The bartolini pickups live up to there reputation.
I own a Carvin six string bass and a Fender JP 90. All of them have there purposes but I find myself going to the SR500 because of its versatility.
I would definitely buy this choice and highly recommend this bass for those on a budget who still want a good sound.
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Overall Opinion
- The D'Addario EXL 165 45-105 bass strings are a regular set of bass guitar strings. I have them stringed up on my Gretsch Junior Jet bass and they do the job quite well. This was the first time that I bought these types of strings as I don't change my bass strings all that often because I don't play bass all that often. I'm primarily a singer and a guitar player and I have a bass guitar to mess around with, so while I don't necessarily know about all the different types of bass strings that are available out there, I do know that the D'Addario EXL 165 45-105 bass strings do the job well and have a good sound to them. They have felt good on the fingers thus far and are overall pretty smooth feeling. I can't say what the lifetime of these strings are as I haven't had them stringed up for all that long, but this really depends more on how often you play with them anyway. D'Addario is known as one of the best and oldest string manufacturers out there and I wholeheartedly trust them when it comes to making strings. I prefer using Martin strings for acoustic guitars, but I love D'Addario strings for electric guitar and I have definitely now been swayed to use them for bass guitar as well. I like this particular gauge of strings since I don't have the biggest fingers, but if you like heavier gauges I would suggest looking into this same set of strings just in a different gauge as I believe they are the same in make up and the other difference is the size of the strings. These aren't an expensive set of strings, so if you are looking for a good set of bass guitar strings, the D-Addario EXL 165 45-105 bass strings are absolutely worth a buy.
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Overall Opinion
- The Martin & Co. B-1 is an acoustic bass guitar that has 23 frets and no pick ups, so it isn't an acoustic/electric. This bass is no longer made, but this is definitely one of the better acoustic basses that has been made by Martin over the years. It is a really easy instrument to play as the neck is quite fluid feeling and it is easy to play all around the neck. It is easy to access the top notes, which is essential for playing an acoustic bass and I like to play up high as it cuts through really well on an acoustic bass. The sound of the Martin & Co. B-1 is really crisp and full sounding and will cut through a mix well if you are playing with other acoustic instruments. The bass guitar also sounds pretty awesome recorded as I can usually get a round and full sound pretty easily. I usually record it with a tube condenser microphone like a Neumann M 149 or something similar as I find that this works great for both acoustic basses like this one and upright basses. The is a really nice looking guitar that is of great quality and I wouldn't expect anything else from Martin as their entire line of guitars is made extremely well. I haven't played all that many different acoustic basses as I find that they are pretty hard to come by, but this guitar definitely has a great feel and sound. Martin doesn't make too many other acoustic basses, but this is definitley one of the better ones that they make. The price is reasonable if you can find one used, so if you can find one of these basses around and are interested in getting an acoustic guitar, this is a great way to go.
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Characteristics
- The Ampeg SVT-8 Pro is a bass guitar amplifier head that can be used in a variety of different ways. The head is powered by tubes and offers a variety of different parameters to control your tone. The amp has a 1/4 inch input in the front of it and also has a variety of connections in the back including an XLR output if you wanted to use this as a DI box. The amp has parameters for gain, ultra low, bass, mid range, frequency, treble, and a master volume knob. It is possible to get a good amount of varying sounds with this amp because of all of different parameters that it has to offer.
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Utilization
- The configuration of the Ampeg SVT-8 Pro is really easy to follow as everything is laid out in clear sight and all of the functions are pretty easily accessible. Even if you don't have too much experience with bass amp heads, this is an easy amp to figure out and shouldn't take more than a few minutes to get used to everything. I've never seen a manual for this amp, but it is easy enough to use that one isn't necessary.
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Sounds
- The sound quality of the Ampeg SVT-8 Pro is pretty awesome all around. Whether you are using it with a speaker cabinet or going direct with it, you will get a pretty full bass sound that offers plenty of options to get all sorts of bass sounds. I have only used this amp head with for recording and usually will take it direct and I'm usually pleased with the sounds that I can get. I've used it with an Ampeg speaker cabinet a few times and to me blending the amp sound and a direct sound will give you the best possible bass sound while using this amp. I love this amp head because it is versatile and offers a full bodied sound.
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Overall Opinion
- I've been using the Ampeg SVT-8 Pro for about a year and have no complaints at all about this amp. It has a great sound and is capable of getting a wide array of bass sounds while offering all sorts of features that most amp heads don't have. Ampeg is one of the best when it comes to bass guitar amps, and the SVT-8 Pro is really one of their best models in terms of bass amp heads of this nature. The price isn't the cheapest but if you are looking for a top notch bass guitar amp head, this is a must see.
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Characteristics
- The DOD FX63 Deep Freeze is a stereo chorus pedal designed for use with bass guitar. It has a 1/4 inch input and two 1/4 inch outputs and is powered by either a 9 volt battery or a 9 volt power supply. It is not a rack mountable unit as it is a stomp box.
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Utilization
- The make up of the DOD FX63 Deep Freeze is really basic as it simply has four different knobs that each control a separate parameter. It has parameters for level, speed, depth, and hi EQ, which respectively are also labeled chill, cold, deep, and defrost. Good thing it has the real labels at unless I'm pretty sure I wouldn't know exactly what they were talking about! All in all, a very easy pedal to manipulate. I don't have the manual for the DOD FX63 Deep Freeze so I don't know how complete it is, but it really isn't necessary as the pedal is simple enough to use.
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Sound Quality
- The sound quality of the DOD FX63 Deep Freeze pedal is about average, but is certainly useful and usable. I've only used this pedal for bass guitar, which is what it is designed for but I believe that it would also work with electric guitar or any other electric instrument. This being said, since it is specially designed for bass guitar I really wouldn't recommend using it with anything else. This pedal sounds good, but probably isn't suited best for the recording studio and is better for live shows because of its make up and average sound.
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Overall Opinion
- I've had the DOD FX63 Deep Freeze for about four years and it is certainly a good chorus pedal for bass guitar. It is really simple to use and while it has an average sound quality, it is definitely usable and is more than an adequate pedal. The price is the best part of the pedal as it is extremely cheap, making it a perfect pedal for the beginner, but has a suitable sound for levels above this. If you are a bass player looking for a cheap chorus designed specifically bass guitar, the DOD FX63 Deep Freeze is absolutely worth a look.
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Characteristics
- The Boss GE-7B is a graphic equalizer pedal that is designed specifically for bass guitar. It is an analog unit that has both a 1/4 inch input and a 1/4 inch output and is powered by either a 9 volt battery or power supply. It is not a rack mountable unit as it is a stomp box.
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Utilization
- The make up of the Boss GE-7B EQ pedal is quite basic as it simply has seven sliders at fixed frequencies and another slider for overall volume level. While each frequency is fixed, this isn't too limiting because each is at a frequency that is related to the bass guitar. The pedal is overall easy to use as you simple use the sliders to get your desired cut or boost. I don't have the manual for the Boss GE-7B, but it really isn't necessary as it is simple in make up and use.
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Sound Quality
- The sound of the Boss GE-7B is more than adequate and provides more than enough control over your sound. While this has a good inherent tone, its all about how you want to use it and what you want to do with it. It has the ability to add to your bass guitar sound on the stage and in the studio, but I would really only recommend it for live shows. I love the sounds I get from this pedal when I plug in my Fender P-Bass into it and always feel that I get the most out of this pedal.
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Overall Opinion
- I've been using the Boss GE-7B bass guitar EQ for about two years and I definitely recommend it for the bass player looking to get a bit more control over their tone for live shows. While it is suitable for studio use as well, I only use it for live shows as I have other options for EQ in the studio. The price of the Boss GE-7B is about average but is definitely a good deal. Boss makes reliably built pedals that are priced right and will last a long time. Overall, the Boss GE-7B is worth checking out for all bass players.
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Characteristics
- The DOD Phazer 201 is an incredibly simple phase shifting guitar pedal that is analog based and has a 1/4 inch input and output. It is not a rack mountable unit as it is a foot pedal.
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Utilization
- The configuration of the DOD Phazer 201 is as easy as it gets as it only has a single knob. While this makes the pedal pretty limited in terms of the sounds it can get, it makes it really easy to use without any problems. The single knob controls the level of the speed, and while you can get only a few different tones with this pedal, the sounds that it does make are pretty cool. I don't have the manual for the DOD Phazer 201, but it definitely isn't necessary at all because of its really simple make up.
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Sound Quality
- The sounds you can get on the DOD Phazer 201 are pretty good, but you can really only get a small amount of different sounds because it only has a single parameter for speed. While this is a good parameter to have for a phaser pedal as it will allow you to get a slow moving phase sound as well as a fast step phaser type sound, it is still limited in its range of sound when compared to some other phaser pedals out there. I usually use the DOD Phazer 201 with a Fender Strat and a 1976 Fender Twin Reverb amp, so I have a pretty accurate and clean idea about what this pedal sounds like and while I like the sound it has, I just wish it was a bit more versatile.
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Overall Opinion
- I've been using the DOD Phazer 201 for about two or three years and it is a nice phaser pedal for the cheap price it has, but isn't a versatile pedal by any stretch. For this reason I would suggest getting a Boss PH-3 or another phaser pedal if you are looking for a true phaser pedal with a lot of parameters. This being said, the DOD Phazer 201 is a nice pedal in its own right and is fine for the player who isn't looking for anything to fancy.
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Characteristics
- The Gibson Grabber is a bass guitar made in the USA and has a single pick up with a tone and volume control knob for the one pick up. It has a 1/4 inch input and has a unique body design that I've never seen on any other guitar.
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Utilization
- The neck of the Gibson Grabber is fluid feeling and is overall pretty easy to play. The neck if pretty round and there is good room to play and feel comfortable. It is easy to play all around the neck, and while I'm not sure what the neck is made out of, I believe it is made of the same material that the rest of guitar is made our of. The guitar is pretty light for a bass guitar and the shape is unique and quite cool looking.
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Sounds
- The sound of the Gibson Grabber is really thick and gritty sounding for a bass guitar. Gibson doesn't make a ton of bass guitars, but the Gibson Grabber is a great sounding model that has a sound of its own. If you are looking for a bass guitar that is gritty and interesting sounding, this is definitely a great choice to try out. It is awesome sounding when you throw a bit of overdrive on your tone as well, or simply cranking your bass amp. I've gotten great results with the Gibson Grabber, both for recording and live gigging.
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Overall Opinion
- I've been using the Gibson Grabber for about two years and it is definitely one of the more interesting sounding basses that I have used. It has a certain thickness to the sound that is hard to describe, but once you pick up and play it, you'll definitely understand what I'm talking about. Getting one of these used isn't as expensive as you might think and is definitely a great choice for both intermediate players and professionals. It is great to have the Gibson Grabber around because of the unique tone and look it has and when you are looking for that gritty bass sound, theres nothing better.
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Characteristics
- The Fender Mexico Standard Series Precision Bass guitar has about 22 frets and two pick ups that are side by side under the strings. There are only two knobs, one for tone and one for volume and has a 1/4 inch output jack to send the bass to your amp.
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Utilization
- I don't know what the neck is made out of on the Fender Mexico Standard Series Precision Bass, but it feels great and is easy to play. It is easy to play and is easy to access the top notes and all around the fret board. It isn't too heavy in terms of weight, and the shape of the guitar has become widely known around the music products industry. It is easy to get a pretty nice tone from this bass as the inherent tone is pretty fat sounding.
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Sounds
- The sound quality of the Fender Mexico Standard Series Precision Bass is pretty good, and suitable for all types of music. I usually use this bass with a Fender Bassman amp without any effects for recording and can get some great tones. Although this Mexican version definitely doesn't sound as good as the American version of this bass, it still sounds good and has a very usable tone for live shows or recording.
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Overall Opinion
- I've been using the Fender Mexico Standard Series Precision Bass for about a year and have found it to be a great bass guitar for those who want a good bass but don't want to spend a lot of cash. Fender is known for making some of the best guitars and basses available, and this bass is a good example of what they are capable of at such a low price. While I prefer the American version of this bass, if you want to spend that much money, this is definitely a good substitute. All in all, this is a great bass guitar suited best for intermediate players.
