Help Me Buy a Bass?

These basses don't necessarily fall in lines with small hands of the OP though :rolleyes:

I disagree. I have small hands and have no trouble getting around the fretboard of both Jazz and Precision basses. Tal Wilkenfeld, for example, has very tiny hands and she can play the hell out of her Jazz and Precision basses. The Jazz Bass in particular is very narrow towards the nut, which is where your money notes are anyway.

Anyway, for the OP, here’s an excellent video that showcases the tones available on most of your Jazz-style basses. Lots of usable tones for pretty much every genre.

 
I disagree. I have small hands and have no trouble getting around the fretboard of both Jazz and Precision basses. Tal Wilkenfeld, for example, has very tiny hands and she can play the hell out of her Jazz and Precision basses. The Jazz Bass in particular is very narrow towards the nut, which is where your money notes are anyway.

Anyway, for the OP, here’s an excellent video that showcases the tones available on most of your Jazz-style basses. Lots of usable tones for pretty much every genre.


Guess, I meant the 4003 or 4002 lol
 
I'm mainly a bass player & have small hands too. I have no problem playing 5, 6, & 7 string basses. I tapped out at 9 strings LOL! I played a really cool 9 string a NAAM years ago but playing the lower strings down by the nut was a no go. 4 string necks aren't all that big anyway so just find one you bond with. The obvious choices, especially for recording are the Jazz & Precision basses. If you want really narrow necks, look at '60's Vox basses. They are tiny.
 
I’m not following you...

He doesn’t work for Fractal and this thread is about basses not bugs.
lol!
I thought Iaresee was in house, and since he's not, my comment doesn't make sense lol
I did mention a fender P & J bass though, so im in the right stadium at least.
 
I agree with the P-bass/Jazz bass sentiment. I personally have also had luck with Schecter Basses, specifically the Stiletto Studio Elite (4 string), though I've auditioned a number of their other active and passive models with pleasing results. Good variety of tones and reasonably priced. Yamaha, and of course, Ibanez also come to mind as solid choices.

YMMV on pretty much any bass though. I can't tell you how many $1500 basses I've tried that I wouldn't pay $300 for. If you have the time and patience, look for a deal on a used bass in good shape. I can tell you from experience, there's nothing wrong with any reputable brand bass in good condition that has a few miles on it. Put the savings toward a setup and new strings, and good-to-go.
 
As a dude that is built like a T-Rex with small hands, I will be one to say that you will hate the P-bank's beefy neck.

In Fender/Squier universe, you want to check out either a Jazz, Bronco, or Jaguar bass. This one I personally own and it's my #2 after my Gibson Triumph bass:
https://www.guitarcenter.com/Squier/Vintage-Modified-Jaguar-Bass-Special-SS-Short-Scale.gc

Also I own an Ibanez Mikro bass, that's my #3. They make a very comfortable to play 5 string which I own and it also comes in a 4 string version.

Both those basses nudged out my Rickenbacker 4003 which has a much beefier and "medium" scale neck that destroys my hands after I play it for 2 hours.

Hofner still makes a short scale 5 string in that price range that's decent. Sometimes you can find a used Chowny, short scale Carvin, or the used short scale Epiphone SG/EB-0 or EB-3 in your processor range too.

I hope that helps.
 
I disagree. I have small hands and have no trouble getting around the fretboard of both Jazz and Precision basses. Tal Wilkenfeld, for example, has very tiny hands and she can play the hell out of her Jazz and Precision basses. The Jazz Bass in particular is very narrow towards the nut, which is where your money notes are anyway.

Anyway, for the OP, here’s an excellent video that showcases the tones available on most of your Jazz-style basses. Lots of usable tones for pretty much every genre.


It depends how small your hands are and the proportion of palm to fingers. My hands are more palm than finger so 34 inch scale is no bueno for me and 32 inch scale aggravates my carpal tunnel syndrome, so I'm 30 inch scale and under for bass.
 
I forget Ibby makes basses. I'll go check these out at Guitar Center.

Similar to Trevor, but I prefer the Ibanez Soundgear... Have 2 and love them both dearly, the 5-string actives make a nice full rounded sound through the FAS lineup and direct to FOH.

+1 for Ibanez basses.

EDIT: should've kept reading, way to be @Admin M@ ;)
 
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