Bass Guitar selection

Bass Guitar Onboarding

Basics

There are 2 types of bass guitars, Precision (P), Jazz (J), or Combo (PJ) guitars. Precision bass guitars are really good for laying down a strong foundation (It's designed with noise cancelling pickups), while jazz bass guitars have more character and sound great playing solos or more leading melodies.

For beginners, the Yamaha TRBX174 is a good choice (Guitar Center, $290, Online only), Yamaha

It's important to try out a guitar for comfort

I started with a Mitchel TB500, then moved onto a Yamaha BBP34. The build quality for the Mitchel was fine, but the Yamaha BBP34 has near perfect build quality. There's a big difference between the playability of a < $200 guitar and a < $400 guitar.

Amps

Probably go with Fender Rumble 25 ($150) or Orange Crush 25 ($250). Both are 25W. It's going to be loud enough for home playing. The next level up for a bass amp is around $500, mostly upgrading to a 10 inch speaker and 40W.

For a higher tech option, Fender Rumble LT25 ($230) contains some digital modeling built in, which can be a great way to explore new tones in a cost effective way without buying pedals.

Alternatively, getting an audio interface ($100) plus a good pair of headphones (You might already have it) is also a strong choice. You lose the "tone" of the amp, but that might extend your budget to buy a nicer guitar now and save up for nicer equipment across the board over time.

Onboarding