Yo Jeffery,
You'd be suprise at how many of us are Financialy Challenged!! Ha!!! So, you have $200.00 to spend. You may want to look in your local Nwespaper or at the Ads here at ActiveBass.com, or go to a Pawn shop. Don't laugh...Pawn shops sometimes have some Nice Bass's there.
Brand Name...You may not get a Brand Name bass for $200.00 but, you never know!!! :^D
Clifton

DONT BUY A CHEAP FENDER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
check on e-bay or sumthin. Cheap fenders are ridiculously bad. Anything is better. Try e-BaY

i would definatly go check my local guitar stores. they always have used guitars and basses for decent prices. my bass new was less than 200 i think, and i like it. its no high quality piece, but it sounds good. the only problem is that it has crappy action. its a Samick p-bass, i think it was an awesome bass to learn on. hopefully within the nex 6 months or so i'll be buying a high quality bass.
http://www.skateboarding.says.it

Hmmm...Ibanez sucking ??!?!?
I think you've been misinformed,Dude !
They FAR from suck...in fact,they are AWESOME !!
But...that's me...they are not for everyone..
You gotta TRY out different ones to see which ones are for you...and which aren't ...
$200 eh?...not a whole bunch a choices ,really...Clifton's right tho,pawn shops prob your best bet...
Ebay may have one for you,but I'd be wary of the 'sight unseen' thing,especially if it's a brand you are unfamiliar with !
Luck to ya,Dude !
Peace Ed

Yeah, what he said!

:-)

Well...the "High End" Ibanez guitars are nice...can't say the same for the "low end", IMHO...

DON"T BUY THE SQUIRE!!!! The best advice I can offer. I have one, it is what I started on but I'm getting a new bass real soon. I hate mine. I liked it before i got better now I realize how much it sucks. Bad pick ups and bridge. I'm turning mine into a project. I would check out the peavey Milestone IV saw one the other day for $199 and plays way better than the Squire at $230.

With 200 $ i think you should consider second hand basses only, woth some patience and a little luck you ccould find something pretty

thanks. you all kick ass. and i might look into that ibanez bass. maybe i can beg my parents to throw in a hundred dollars...so i can plot and destroy the...oh wait i mean just enjoy it all. =D.

Don't buy an Ibanez!!!!! All things Ibanez suck. If you're looking for an acoustic, you go Martin or Taylor, or even Takamine, but NOT Ibanez.

And as far as a bass, NEVER go Ibanez. I had a GSR as my first bass, and it was a piece. The electronics in it suck (my amp-cord hookup broke 3 times in the six months I used it) and its as stiff as a board.

Right now I have a custom Fender P-Bass, but it was about 1500 bucks, so I don't think you'll want something that expensive. I'm just gonna tell you right now that unless you seriously rip someone off, you're not going to get a good bass for $200. HOWEVER, I'd take a Squier over an Ibanez anyday. They both suck, but you gotta take one, right?

Sorry to hear you had such a bad experience with Ibanez, Will. I have a GSR200 and for its price/value this baby rocks bigtime.

It sounds like you just had a your share of bad luck with your particular Ibanez bass. If everything on your bass completely went to hell, what about Ibanez' or your store's waranty?

Peace,
Karl