I looked at Epiphones, too expensive, Yamahas, not good for slap, Carvin too expensive. i would without a doubt buy this bass again if it were lost or stolen. Thats all You need to know about this bass, if yo just startin out and need a bass BUY THIS BASS
Model Year: 2004
Price: $245.00 (new)
Where Obtained: worldmusicsupply.com
I luv this bass, it is the first one I have bought, and it is my favorite. the action is a bit high when you first play it, but who cares. If you are buying your first bass, this is the one to get, it's comfotable, and plays great. Best you can get for the money, If you pay that extra $15 for a nice finish, you'll get nothing but compliments, best Squier bass made.
The playability is good, the action is high, but can easily be adjusted. The neck is thin in the back, making it an easy playing expeience. This bass was made for slap, it sounds better than most Yamahas i have played slap-wise, its also a great blues and rock player, and ok jazz. this bass contains no flaws i can notice
I can't afford to play it on any good amps, so I'm probably not getting the best sound out of it. this bass fits almost all styles, except classical. As I said before, great slap bass. Not noisy at all, you can hear it well w/o an amp though. I wouldn't know if it would be better for stage or studio.
It is very good for live playing, i have played ones for school concerts and sound great. It almost never has to be tuned, i haven't had to adjust the truss or anythin. All the hardware is awesom on this, except for one loose tone knob. It has no changes do to climate, took it from NE to SC, no change in sound.
I love Fender basses so my opinion my be alittle bit bias. But overall i think this is a great buy for any bassist looking for a sound that is versitile.
Model Year: 2000
Price: $315.00 (new)
Where Obtained: mus
Sunburst, has a Jazz and a P bass pickup, Maple neck with a Rosewood Fretboard,2 Volume controls (one ofr each pickup) and a tone control,non locking tuners. Combination of a Jazz and P bass. I love it's handling and I feel it is great for any one playing out of their home or in a band playing smaller venues. Of coarse if you have the means grab the fender Deluxe model. I wish i had the money for it i play on it durintg my weekly trip to guitar center.
I love the way it plays. You really can do anythging on this bass from slap to playing with a pick and it sounds good for Jazz to death metal. Only flaws are because it is a Squier it has little problems with the bridge and with the strap srews.
I use it with a Fender Bassman100 and a ZOOM 505 Bass effects peddle. I love t6he sounds i get out of it. I find it better when i use Ernie Ball Super Slinky bass strings.
It isn't the most durable. If you are a touring musician you may want to consider the Fender model. But I play everyday with my band and it goes through a beating. I make adjustments here and there but nothing major. I've had it for 5 years and my only complaint is the bridge and the tone control knoob.
I looked at a bunch of other basses from OLP, Ibanez, Washburn, Yamaha, and even a Fender Mexican version of this Bass. The Squier had the best sound, and best feel for the money. Sure there were some $1700.00 Spectors I would have loved to had, but I need to pay my mortgage too you knonw...
Yes I would buy this bass again if it were lost, stolen, or destroyed. As a matter of fact, if I seriously consider playing paid gigs, I will buy a second one as a backup. This bass kicks tail!
The balance on a strap could be a bit better. The tail of the body is heavy and the neck is light, it tends to spin on the strap a bit.
My favorite aspect of this bass is the sound. Flexible, solid, and exactly what I expect from something Fender would put their name on. The worst aspect? The fasteners working out of the body. It only seems the small fasteners are doing it, and a dab of LockTite or Elmer's putty fixes it, but what a pain to have to fix a brand new Bass.
Last words? Play everything you can get your hands on. If you are just starting ask the salesman to show you a chord or two. How does it sound? How does it feel in your hands? Play with the knobs, move around to different amps, can you get the sound you want with it? If so BUY IT! Heck this thing is dead on in sound quality, and so close in build quality to the $1700.00 - $2200.00 basses if you play around with it, you can get there. The big thing is does it feel right... for me the answer to that question is yes it feels right, it fits, and when I find something that fits, I stick with it... if you find this bass fits your needs, you will find a great bass to stick with. Just make sure you know how to keep small fasteners from falling out...
Model Year: 2002
Price: $239.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Danny D's Music Center (Webster TX)
Indonesian made, 21 jumbo steel frets, agathis body, maple neck, rosewood fretboard. 1 master tone knob, 1 volume knob per pickup. Pickup type and config typical fender P/J with the Jazz pickup right at the bridge. Cheap passive pickups, but they sound great so who cares about the name? Great Candy Apple Red finish with white / black / white three ply pickguard. Standard chrome bridge, and non locking tuners (VERY stable though) all on a Fender P-Bass (authorized knockoff I know) body.
Action is a bit low out of the box, and I tend to play hard, so I smack the pickups with the strings when I slap the bass. Easily fixed by raising the strings with the bridge adjustments.
The neck is smoothe and slim, makes playing super easy, and tight.
I tried several other basses from Ibanez, Washburn, Yamaha, OLP, and even a Fender Mexican. This bass, for under $500.00 was the best sounding, smoothest playing bass I could get my hands on.
I use this Bass with a Crate BX-50 DLX, MBX-10 (through headphones in my home office), and a Crate BFX-2204 which a friend owns and I keep offering to relieve him of... I have also played it through a Fender Bassman 100. This thing has no odd sounds. Like I said above, it is tight and smoothe. Considering I only started playing this year, should tell you that the bass is easy to play on if I can get it smoothe... I have been playing a wide variety from Metal and Punk to Blues and Country. I get all the tone I could want out of this thing. I haven't found another bass in this price class that sounds as good, and even at double the price there are few that I have laid hands on that I can get the sound I want as easily...
I am considering doing some slight paint mods to the bass, cosmetics only though. This candy apple red paint is begging for some white stripes...
The guys I have been playing with (parties) seem to like what I can do with it, and it sounds great practicing. I would use this for live paid performance when I get to that point.
I practice daily for at least an hour, and it has been holding up great. I have never had to adjust the truss rod, only the bridge and pickup heights due to my heavy hand while slappin'. (I tend to manhandle the bass).
The strap locks got changed out for Schaller units the day I bought it. The Schaller lock screws I found out were smaller than the Squier ones. I had to use Elmer's wood putty to fill the void to make the strap locks work. The input jack has fallen out once. My only real complaint is that input jack. It has been dead stable with climate changes. I have only had to tune it three times since I bought it, all three times is becuase I was playing with somebody that had a defective tuner. (we put a stop to that with my wife's keyboard...)
I looked at ibanez GSR too, they look to plain and stupid, i liked how it had a recognizable authentic fender for that low of a price. It has great sound too. The only way it could be better is for it to not be a squier.
Model Year: 2001
Price: $170.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Guitar Center
Agathis body, maple neck, passive P and J pickups, great for a beginner bass
I had a slight problem- the G string bridge wouldn't stop vibrating and rattling really loud, a great bass to learn on
It can get spunky and funky, and it has dark growl, I had a crate BX-15, sound is pretty close to my deluxe fender J bass in terms of quality
I chose this bass because it was cheap and Squire
is the authorized step down from a fender rather than
an imitation so I felt I could trust it. It has proved a
great beggining bass. The only way this bass could
be better is to improve the pickups and fretboard,
and that would make it a Fender. This is a good
bass it is good in all ways but is not great. I have
found no weaknesses. Perfect for a beginner
Model Year: 2001
Price: $220.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Musiciansfreind.com
-Made in Indonesia. -maple neck and rosewood
fretboard -20 Medium Jumbo frets -4 strings -Two
volume (one for each pickup) and tone knobs -P/J
pickup arangement -passive electronics -sherwood
green metalic (hehe on purpose) -Strings-thru
bridge
I like the playability of this bass. The American
series fenders are better but they also cost a lot
more.
The sound quality is pretty good, its nothing special
but the pickups are good. I play Blues, Jazz,
Reggae, Classic Rock, tiny bit of punk and some
combinations of all of them, and it works great for
everything, I imagine it would work with anything
because of the P/J pickup configuration
This bass has never given me any problems. I had
to adjust the neck after about six months but only
slightly. It stays in tune for weeks some times, and
climate changes dont seem to be a problem. The
only thing that isnt so great are the knobs, two of
them fell off, but I glued them back on with no
trouble.
Spiffy. Not durable enough though. I hear buzzing in the background...
Model Year: 2001
Price: $300.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Guitar Center
Made in Indonesia. Neck made of rubber cement. 20 steel frets. 4 strings. 3 knobs. Output on the bottom. 3 pickups. Happy electronics. Graphite sparkly finish. Precision. Suspension bridge. Non-locling tuners.
The strings after a while start to rise up an incredible amount. Very annoying, and if I tighten the truss rod any more this thing is going to break.
I love this overall nothing i would change
Price: $180.00 canadian
Where Obtained: A friend of a friend
It's black with a white pick guard, 4 strings, at least 12 frests there are more i know tho, not sure what kind of pickup i'd say s/s/h
I looked at a few other models but chose this for the price. I don't know that I would be able to get anything close to this in playability and feel for $160. I guess it would be better if it had the higher quality tuning pegs and better pickups. But thats what they make the more expensive models for. Fender is giving a good deal here to those of us who are beginners or who just want to get a decent inexpensive bass.
Model Year: 2000
Price: $160.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Sam Ash - Arlington Heights IL
I got back into playing about 1 1/2 years ago after a ten year lay off period. I couldn't believe how much the prices of basses and amps have gone up in that time. I used to own a Fender Jazz bass and a Precision but I didn't want to spend the kind of bucks they get for those nowadays. At least not until I was sure that I was going to play again seriously. I know how cheap basses feel and sound because I've also had my fair share of them. I still can't figure out how Fender can make this bass and sell it so cheap. It looks and (more importantly) feels just like my old Fenders. I don't know how the quality of sound is compared to all of the new makes today because this is the only one I've played on in ten years. I do love this bass! I see from other eviews that its hit or miss with these basses. I guess I'm lucky because I got a good one. So far no neck warp and the action on it is sweet. I have small hands and can play this bass without any real problems (other than my bad technique habits)
As I said the action is sweet. The strings are low and the fret buzz is minimal. Like another guy mentioned, if you play all the notes right on, there is no fret buzz. (I'm working on it). The neck is thin like a Jazz bass which makes it a real pleasure to play on. For the money this would get an excellant rating.
I play through a Peavey TKO 115 amp which I suppose could be better. It's not holding up in the band I'm currently with. I switched the strings to flat wound right away because that's what I'm used to. The result is I lost a lot of the brilliance. But it sounds good anyway. I like to play all kinds of music but have been playing blues and pops in the band I'm in now. I will not get rid of this bass. I plan to get another bass and use it to learn slap technique, but I'll keep this one with the flat wounds for the old rock stuff.
So far I have done nothing to this bass to keep it set up right. It still plays like the day I bought it. I keep it clean and tune it up. That's all. I still looks brand new. The black finish shines like a mirror.
I looked at several other basses that were a great deal cheaper. But I stand by the old addage of you get what you pay for and I believe I did. Although I payed considerably less than retail, this bass is considered a middle of the road bass. The bass would be a great deal better with active electronics and different strings. My favorite aspect of this bass is it's action and it is of a fair size. If you are small instature or have small hands, you might wish to consider a different bass.
Model Year: 2000
Price: $247.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Skip's Music
This bass has the features you would expect from Fender. Made in Indonesia, I believe. It is made of hardwood, has a rosewood fretboard, 20 frets, five strings, 2 J-Type Pickups, 2-volume and 1-tone control, a standard P-bass bridge, butterfly chrome tuners, bolt on neck, and a sherwood metallic green finish.
The action is fantastic and reminds me of a "Rick". The neck took a little getting used to but it is extremely thin and a pleasure to play.
I use a Peavey practice amp at home and a Ampeg combo head w/15 for church. For effects I am currently using a zoom 506 bass multi-effects unit. Musical style is christian rock, praise and worship, and various forms of jazz. The bass itself has a very warm and full sound and has kind of a classic bass sound to it. I am not a big fan of the strings. They have that late 60's early 70's sound. Flat and thumpy. I am also looking at changing out to electronics and my effects unit. The tone control is very noisy. Could just be a bad pot or solder connection. Not a big deal to me as I rarely use the tone control on the bass itself.
Durability seems to be excellent. Fares climate changes and my young children with little difficulty.
If this bass got destroyed i most likly would'nt buy it again. But i am going to take all the hardware out and add better ones. Im going to install some active EMG pick-ups and better knobs and buy a new pickguard cause mine is a little warped. My favorite aspeck of this bass is that it is so durable. You would have to try and breack it. Sound is good and body style is beautiful.
Model Year: 1998
Price: $300.00 (new)
Where Obtained: American Music
It was made in the US. IT's made of a maple neck. It has 22 frets and is a four string. It has 3 knobs,1 for tone and 2 for volume. It has i humbuker and a single coil pickup that is passive. The pick-up's are P and J style.It has a natural black finish with a white pickguard. It is a P-bass with non-locking tuners.
It is ok for playabitliy. It has low action and it plays jazz good. Slap is pretty good but i've played better. The only flaw it has is that the tone knob is slitly off.
Right now i have a peavey 30 watt amp(which sucks). Soon im getting a swr working mans 4x10 cabinet with some kind of head. Sounds like crap with a peavey but sounds like an angel with any other amp.
It has been through alot and i love it for that. It plays fine in all weather.
I would definitely buy this bass again. It's the best bass I've seen out there for the price.
Model Year: 2000
Price: $219.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Guitar Center
The Squire P-Bass Special is an excellent and versatile guitar. A beautiful maple jazz-bass neck makes for easier and quicker fingering. It has that original Fender feel and look to it that just can't be found anywhere else.
As I said, the thinner jazz neck allows for easy, light fingering and a beautiful hold. It sits comforably, so you don't have to manhandle it into a good playing position. Excellent for beginners.
This bass can do anything as long as it's not to complicated or technical. Very Versatile.
This guitar takes a beating and keeps on soundin' great. Good for klutzes and over-passionate players.
I really love this bass. It really has that BASS look and sound. When you're on stage there's no doubt who's got the biggest guitar (it's a dick thing I'm told). I would deffintly replace it if I lost it because it is the best bass you can get for the money. It would be better if it cost less (because I can't afford to spend heaps on guitars, if you've got money buy like fifty of them).
Model Year: 2000
Price: $0.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Derringers Music SA Australia
Before I start I must mention that I recieved a fabulous deal from derringers music that's why I got the bass so cheap.
Made in Korea. 20 big frets. 4 strings. 2 volume knobs, 1 tone. Has basic P bass single coil pickups and noiseless jazz bridge pickup.
The body is precision style and has a sunburst finish
I have not been playing bass for a great deal of time, however I have played several different types of basses and this is, by far, the most impressive.
I play a wide variety of music from metallica to queen; b.b king to slipknot; classic funk to blink 182 and I can achieve almost all of sounds I need to do this from this one bass.
The neck is a Jazz neck with great, fast action. It plays really well compared to other basses I've played including the Squier Affinity P Bass and various Yammahas.
The only flaw I have found is that it does not keep in tune for very long, however, I believe that this is caused by the "newness" of the strings. Some people I know say they find it a little heavy but that doesn't bother me.
I play this base through my own custom set up at home or a fender bassman. I've already told you what music I play etc. and how well suited it is and how it compares to other basses. It has a nice full sound (real bassy). Even though I haven't done any recording with it I assume it would sound good because it sounds great live.
Like almost all Squier P basses this thing is built like a tank. Strong setup, hardware etc. I haven't tried to many Pete Townsend/Blink182 stage jumping antics with it but the strap locks seem firm and I think it would be great to play live with (haven't had the chance to yet. When I do it will be with a back-up but I always use a back-up even if I ever play a reckenbacker of something equally insanely good/expensive).
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