[ESPeter]

Sorry if this is long. I got carried away.

I'm a guitar player, not a bass player. I've been playing for around 8 years now, but I've only actually played a bass maybe a few times in my life. I'm the kind of guy that sits in his room and plays and writes music, but doesn't really get to play along with others cause I don't know anyone else who plays anything. Sad, I know, but that's partly why I haven't really played any basses. That said, I'm looking to buy an electric bass because for those few times I have played, I thought it was fun, and also so I can have actual bass guitar tracks for recording purposes.

I'm not looking for a top of the line bass, as I don't have that kind of money to shell out. So I was thinking cheap, but not crappy cheap. Something descent that will last me for a long time. Less than $300, I'd say. But even $300 is pushing it.

I'm asking for opinions, because my small town doesn't have a music store where I can try out basses. So I've been looking through Musician's Friend and I think I've narrowed it down to a couple Squire basses. And I don't want to hear any Squire bashing, cause that's not what I posted this for. There are alot of Squire basses, but after reading reviews and also picking what I thought I liked the most, I came up with these two.

A Squire Standard P Bass, Special Edition.

And a Squire Standard Jazz Bass

I'm not gonna turn this into a P bass vs. J bass thread either. But I have questions for anyone who might want to help me. I play mostly rock music (in all variations, from pop to hard to soft to classic, etc.) and acoustic stuff. From what I read, it would seem that the P bass would better suit me for that sort of music, but there's something inside me that likes the J bass more. I like the looks of it and it seems a little edgier to me for some reason. But then again, I don't know if it suits my style. I don't play alot of Jazz or Funk. So my main question here is, I like the J bass more but do you think it would be a mistake choosing it over the P bass given my musical tastes?

I'm open to suggestions of other bass guitars too, but I think I'm pretty set on one of those two. I've played a Squire P bass before but it was an Affinity series. I don't know much about bass, but I didn't think it was bad at all. I figured the next step up in Squires would be just great for me. But I want some opinions before I spend my money, cause I'm poor. Haha.

p.s. In this matter, I like to think I could care less for the brand name because it's more about the price:quality ratio, but I really don't want something like a Rogue bass. Haha.

[junior01]

Well to answers your question let me say this first: a Jazz Bass is not only to play jazz music...

But seriously the real question you should ask yourself is: What kind of tone are you after? 'Cause a P Bass has more of a growly thump sound whereas a J Bass tend to be more punchy and trebly. Or better yet, do you wanna sound like Geddy Lee of Rush or Steve Harris of Iron Maiden.

On a side note have you considered going used? You may get more bass for your money. Now i know you said you come from a small town but surely there is a big town nearby where you can go shop. If not there is always the classified...

Good luck.

[The_buffalo]

Like he said, there are rock players who play jazz bass, and jazz players who play P bass, so what it boils down to is which do you prefer? I bought a Squire Bronco bass, because I prefer the maple fret board & the short scale. I don't play it much, but I don't regret buying it either. If I ever do, I'll sell it & get something else - I'm under no obligation to keep it any longer than I want to.

[gamerguy9312]

You might want to look into the brand ibanez because they make great basses for a good price