My Cheapest & My Most Expensive Basses! Which One's Better??

Just a bit of fun: Here's my cheap 1982 Ibanez Roadster and my 1968 Fender Precision bass. In my opinion, both sound great! What do you think?
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[@bobderosa4079]

The player makes the sound and you make both sound great.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Very kind of you to say. I definitely recommend focusing on playing rather than gear.

[@alejandrohualdez5550]

Always loved the old Ibanez basses, ever since I saw Sting using his fretless ones in the early eighties.

[@davebroad642]

No mistaking the sound of a Fender Precision. But preferred my Yamaha for long gigs, it was light with a fast neck. Sound was totally adequate, simple and clean. Did a lot of work with that bass.

[@lowtone9]

I have a 68 P bass and it plays like butter and sounds super. It’s the ultimate bass for me. I have others, but lately I’m playing an $89 SX Jazz that, after a little setup, is the only fretted Jazz I need.

[@Bassdriver]

I used to have one of those Roadstars and I miss it dearly. Lovely bass.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Very underrated bass... Thanks for watching!

[@ErixSamson]

This roadster sounds very good. I regret I sold mine in the 80's

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Thanks. They seem to be fairly cheap on the second hand market.

[@pattystephens8129]

I have a 1980 Roadster, my first bass 45 years ago and it’s still everything I need.

[@samlangton5228]

Thanks for this! Would love to see some gear videos on the amp side of things - preamp pedals, DI and heads. Appreciate your content - keep them coming!

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Thanks Sam. Will do. 👊👍👍

[@peekaboo4390]

I have a number of basses with Dimarzio's original and replacement's. I love them.

[@MrMjp58]

Engaging, clear and informative. A superb video. Both basses sounded great and your playing is exquisite. I've never owned a quality bass, but have enjoyed playing various instruments for over 50 years. I currently only have an old 'K' bass that I paid £20 for! It sounds ok but I had to 'detune' it by using a guitar A string for the G and moved the other 3 down one - to get it playable [I threw away the bottom E]. An odd arrangement, but it works for me.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Thanks very much for watching! Maybe it’s time to reward yourself with a new bass?

[@barrywein2185]

My 68 Fender Precision is my cheapest bass. Got it in 1978 for $225 US (what luck). It's also the last one I would ever want to part with. Luckily we don't have to pick only one.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Love that. People do forget that these incredible revered basses were all affordable back in the day. They were so well made though. Great story!

[@cperch37]

Love the Ibanez!

[@ethansong6091]

my favorite bass is fender Precision bass

[@MrCamelfan]

I have a BTB Ibanez 670 and the sound is so similar. The Precision is just that, a Precision. Lovely old school.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Yeah, the P bass pretty much does that one thing!

[@troublebrewing2121]

A lot of it is in the hands. Both sound nice. Depending on the feel/sound the songs needs is what bass I choose.Are you going through the Avalon? Got a Wal, Jazz, P, Höfner and Ibanez Musician myself, all do different jobs.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Great collection! Absolutely right as well. Yes; through the Avalon.

[@timpayne8238]

I love the Fender Precision. - It's just like my JV Squier 62 Reissue; this also has flatwounds.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Great bass 👍

[@omg_wtf]

I've owned all manner of basses, from 300 to 3k too... My fave ever? My Sire V7 V2. I absolutely love it. Pups are a little noisy so I may swap them but it's an unreal bass. Great to play.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Crazy isn't it? Cheap basses these days are amazing for the most part.

[@brandonmalone1893]

I have the same sire....and it's awesome

[@brandonmalone1893]

I put fender reissue 74 pickups in mine

[@brandonmalone1893]

I also have the same Ibanez in the video lol. But the old pickups are better

[@rossco420]

You have some beautiful bass guitars Dan, That Ibanez is 🔥🔥And your a great player too, That musicman is stunning , your fender p bass sounds phenomenal

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Thanks very much! I've slowly built the collection over the years.

[@pierrojules]

The choice here depends on your playing style and also the context. My choice in this case is the Ibanez because it provides more features to tune its sound than does the Fender.

[@themosaito]

I've listened to a lot of P basses and that one sounds really, really sweet. Congratulations. I agree with B DeRosa. Good fingers, good ear!

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Thanks Mo!

[@BOBANDVEG]

I'm a guitar player, but I got the sawtooth bottom line bass just for fun(purple)......the thing is awesome. Was playing super freak 5 mins after getting it

[@OnlineBassCourses]

I’ll check those out - never heard of them. Thanks for watching!

[@rocknchips1342]

pj is always gonna be a compromise.......but a damn good one! yamaha BB is a fine pj👍

[@PushSueAside]

I love that 82 roadstar and I’m not an Ibanez fan at all. Still looking. Great video. Cheers

[@OnlineBassCourses]

I wasn't really until this one...

[@alexcarter66]

Great video as ever Dan, the heady Gallery days seem like a life time ago

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Thanks Alex. They really do. Miss that place - you guys were/are all awesome!

[@robertbentley4646]

I love that old Ibanez..I'd prefer that over the Fender. And love the Rickenbacker. I'm currently looking for an old Ibanez like that. Hopefully at an affordable price.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Hope you find one Robert, they're cool basses...

[@martinnali8104]

I love everything about the Ibanez except for the headstock, which is just the look of it I don't like :)

[@robotusa88]

I own a lot of basses. My band finally convinced me to buy a new Fender P Pro I. It is a very nice bass. I have an old Vantage VS695B, P pickup configuration that I put Dimarzios in. Shhh.. I like the Vantage better :=)

[@OnlineBassCourses]

🤣 there you go... I wonder how many people there are that prefer their cheap bass to their 'nice' one??

[@jaschul]

Well, you've certainly got the perfect bass and strings for playing Motown or other '60s soul classics. For any other style, the Roadster probably makes more sense. (The P-bass does sound great tho -- I'm sure if you play "Bernadette" or "I Was Made to Love Her" you can conjure up James Jamerson's spirit.)

[@OnlineBassCourses]

It's certainly built for those styles. I have a vintage Fender Jazz, StingRay, Gibson EB3, Framus hollowbody, Ric 4001, and a new Hofner. They cover nearly everything I need!

[@jaschul]

@@OnlineBassCourses where'd you get a Framus? Pretty rare bass.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

@@jaschul I just found it going for quite cheap at a great bass shop in London - The Bass Gallery. Just one of those lucky finds.

[@pigfish168]

A real World review of the fender Bassman Amp i have seen behind you would be Nice. Having a bunch of vintage bases myself, I am wondering if vintage amps are a curiosity worth exploring? Cheers

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Thanks for the comment. Good idea! I’ll do that.

[@OriginalTLab3000]

I really, really like the Rodstar's sound! My most expensive Bass is a Sandberg and the cheapest one is a Cort. I prefer playing the Cort...

[@OnlineBassCourses]

That's really interesting...

[@pattystephens8129]

Roadster and Roadstar are two different basses.

[@OriginalTLab3000]

@@pattystephens8129 You are right, of course. At first glance, I thought this was a Roadstar, but it seems my memory was playing tricks on me. Maybe it's because I've never personally seen a Roadster with a 2+2 headstock and a pickguard? Anyway, looking up Roadstars and Roadsters is pretty confusing - especially because many people make the same mistake that I did.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

@@OriginalTLab3000 I had no idea! Ibanez love to make up confusing names - have you seen some of their new basses??

[@stephendallison1465]

Love me Cort az custom

[@CarlSmithAviationBroker]

Hi Dan - thx for all you bring to us out here… what thoughts and remarks do you have about multi-scale or fanned fret basses?

[@OnlineBassCourses]

You're welcome. Thanks for watching. To be honest, I've never played one but I love the sounds I've heard from Dingwalls. The B string sounds great because of the increased scale length. I'd love to try one actually.

[@darwinsaye]

As long as there’s a pickup in either the neck position or the P Bass mid-position I can get sounds I’m happy with out of pretty much any bass. Personally never got along with the Stingray types though.

[@denbogus5398]

My Ibanez Roadster PJ Active Bass sounded and played great, but it was too heavy to play! Standing up or sitting. Did one full gig with it, then sold it for my Rickenbacker. Much lighter!

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Good swap!

[@denbogus5398]

@@OnlineBassCourses Sold for £120, bought Ricky for £400 in 1992. Will NEVER sell!

[@OnlineBassCourses]

@@denbogus5398 Now that's a great deal!

[@Nettavis]

The real Fender Precision is the king.

[@TheHumbuckerboy]

I like that old-school classic tone.

[@Direwoof]

ye i have a austin P bass that i got for 200 ducks and it sounds just like a real fender precision and is really nice.

[@aseptime]

Indeed, your ibanez offers more playability. I agree with you.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

I think so. Both good basses for different reasons...

[@joejeffery8581]

Hard to think of a FujiGen Ibanez as a cheap bass! I picked mine up in a small shop in London in 1998 and have been in love with Ibanez of the era ever since. I'm curious to know why you switched out the electronics -- I find the Dimarzio style P in my '81 to be the hottest, most articulate P pickup I've played. The switch rather than blend or VV setup isn't the greatest, to be sure.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

There was something going wrong with mine and I wanted a bit more clarity so just decided to swap them out with literally the first pickups that I could find. I didn't think about it too much!

[@joejeffery8581]

@@OnlineBassCourses I think you've done it justice; the original has a more raw, intense P pickup sound. Your video has me thinking of changing the wiring to a blend or Vol/Vol and keeping the pickups. Thanks for posting!

[@robertrosejr1]

Love your collection Dan. I really like that Ibanez roadster What do you think of the Lakland P bass bass?

[@OnlineBassCourses]

It's an amazing bass. I'll do a video soon.

[@guynorend9022]

Tom Driessler plays a Lakland Skyline (as far as I can see from the Tiny Desk home performance) on "Nightrider" with Tom Misch. I love its sound, though it might come from the filters, of course. Good to hear about cheap instruments. My squier is cheaper than your Ibanez :) ; Compared to its bigger brothers, it has the right kind of sound (P), but I have the impression that it's less balanced, or 'compressed', and that indeed swapping the pu will (soundwise) yield a very acceptable bass.

[@willieelliott352]

Hi Dan, so what is the value(cost) of each of them....and I agree I don't like playing large necks either, they both sound great just goes to show that its not the bass but the player

[@OnlineBassCourses]

I bought the Ibanez for just over £300 and the P for just under £3000 years ago. That's probably worth more now. I doubt the Ibanez will go up in price but, with modifications, it's around £450 I'd say.

[@MrBeachMadness]

A P bass with flats is a unique sound. You can't really compare it to any other bass. Other than that, most basses sound good with a decent setup and broken in strings. I have a cheap mexi P with flats, a Stingray 4 and a Stingray 5...I usually reach for the P if I have to record something...it's got that sound that works in most situations. This is going to sound like sacrilege...but, at the end of the day, it's just bass. I've never encountered anyone that cared as much as I do about my tone. Usually I play a couple of notes and the sound guy or engineer says something like " ok, that sounds like a bass guitar...can I hear the kick please?"

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Not sacrilege at all. I very rarely play or record with anyone who cares about anything other than good playing and tone. There are a load of different ways to get there of course!

[@nunofernandes4501]

I'd choose the Ibanez in a heartbeat, it's beautiful and sounds great.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

You should look out for a second hand one - pretty cheap at the moment!

[@nunofernandes4501]

@@OnlineBassCourses I already have six basses! :) What I really need is to play with other people again. I modded a 5 string to high C last year and never used it in a band, I can't wait to unleash the potencial.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

@@nunofernandes4501 I hear you. I can't wait either! Hopefully not too long...Hang in there mate.

[@trevorblair5552]

Hi Dan, which year is your sunburst jazz bass? It looks great! 👍🏾👍🏾

[@OnlineBassCourses]

That one’s 1975. I’ll do a video on it soon.

[@KitBasher1]

Elite strings? Haven’t seen that brand in ages!

[@OnlineBassCourses]

I love them and the Bass Centre!

[@KitBasher1]

My old pal Fred used to keep Elites in stock for me and my students. I started using them and they were lasting longer plus had great sound and feel. I just recommend them to everyone - Fred got props for selling so many sets. - these days I’m using D’Adero XLs and NYXLs or sometimes GHS boomers. Not a lot of options in Michigan if you depend on the guitar stores. (Every time I’ve ordered strings online I’ve gotten a pack with at least one or two dead strings. Not sure why.)

[@dominicdurso3672]

Could you recommend a good place to go for bass repairs , possible pickup change , got a 20 year old sting ray in need of some tlc . Thanks , great vids

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Find a local luthier with good reviews. Ideally you need someone not too far away. You can send basses to people but I recommend you don't do that. So it depends where you live really...Ask around.

[@robertbarwick6197]

As Jaco once said..." The sound is in my hands" I believe that as well...the instrument is the tool.👍 I'm a fender guy myself so that's where my love is...my 74 P- Bass is the bomb with "Blue Steel" strings.👍

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Great quote. You have a cool bass!

[@christianboddum8783]

P-bass with flatwounds is THE bass sound, other sounds are useful but if there only had to be one, the P-bass with flatwounds is the way to go, deep and round um-umh!!

[@OnlineBassCourses]

I don't think rock bass players would agree with you but it is an awesome sound I agree!

[@christianboddum8783]

@@OnlineBassCourses Blame it on John Entwhistle ;-)

[@arsenije_wav8620]

@@christianboddum8783 p bass with flats is a sound I would only use if I'm getting paid. For my music, no thank you

[@christianboddum8783]

@@arsenije_wav8620 It's okay ;-)

[@pattystephens8129]

Lot of comments confuse the Roadster and the Roadstar

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Ibanez love to confuse with their names! Thanks for clarifying.

[@Thabassmon]

They both seemed fine, had they both been strung with the same strings (La Bella Flats), then there would be less if a difference. I'll put it this way, one is not substantially better than the other. It's not like the difference between a Ritter Roya and a Ibanez GSR200, now those two are worlds apart, these aren't. The price is but the performance isn't.

[@stevepethel6843]

Wow such honest review and sharing your preference for the cheaper bass. I never expected anyone to say that. You got character integrity.

[@themosaito]

Are your strings standard gauge, or are they the Original 1954s? Thanks!

[@OnlineBassCourses]

On the ‘68? The James Jamerson set. Not sure the gauge but they’re heavy.

[@germancalistri6624]

Very good thanks

[@OnlineBassCourses]

🙏

[@mastermanningtkd]

Not cheap if you spent a fair bit on the pickups? How much did you spend may I ask,

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Still very cheap in my opinion compared to many brands and considering how good I think it is. I don't remember but I think it was somewhere in the region of £100. I bought whatever was in stock!

[@RastaSaiyaman]

For those who don't know, THIS is what a 1982 Ibanez Roadster looks stock. www.basschat.co.uk/uploads/monthly_2019_02/165668_139338559454076_7689571_n.jpg.1d69ea0f899c9f2262b3b5105378823e.jpg So that Pickguard isn't original.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Thanks for that. I knew the pickguard wasn’t original as my luthier removed it and it’s helping to cover and shore up a hole by one of the pots.

[@paolozak3014]

Recent cheap basses are mostly crap, that Ibanez Roadstar is just 1. An unsung really well built gem and 2. Original rather aggressive pickups not for everyone

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Some recent ones are good, some not so!

[@faction95]

Can you do a P vs. J bass comparison?

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Good idea. Check my gear playlist though as I may have done one (I've forgotten!).

[@davidbrown6415]

Fender everytime, all the time :)

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Or 80%!

[@burp1914]

Dan, How do deal with the dead spots on the G string ?

[@OnlineBassCourses]

I ignore them! Or at least play somewhere else if it's a real issue. Mine doesn't seem to affect things too much.

[@paultraynorbsc627]

Excellent

[@IndigoJo]

Is the Ibanez a Japanese one? Not cheap like their current cheapo ones, just secondhand and not 'vintage'?

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Yes it's a Japanese one from 1982. Feels pretty solid!

[@justjames5859]

wow, lovely collection of basses, you deserve it Dan, been loving your videos at the moment, really helped my bass theory knowledge :)

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Thanks very much! Really glad you’re learning something. Keep it up 👍

[@gilberttiborjakub9890]

I am a die-hard fan of Ibanez basses : they have the best price / value ratio. Meanwhile the Fenders are good but criminally overpriced instruments.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

I suppose it depends which Fender you get. My ‘78 is actually incredible value. I don’t know much about the new ones...

[@hernanmartines5497]

ibanez

[@andrejcernansky]

I am not sure now, but is it possible that my comment was deleted? :)

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Not by me! What did you write??

[@andrejcernansky]

@@OnlineBassCourses Hi, I wrote that your precision is really cool and sounds lovely. I really love old Fender basses, I have two and my favorite is precision from 1969. It was originally olympic white, but now, since it is an old lady, it is more yellow-like. These things are beautifully aged. Yours looks like almost a new one, someone tooks a lot of care about that bass I guess :) In the case you would like to listen how my precision sounds and I would love to know your opinion, here is one example: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qHS5hJaaiNp5m5Y

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Cool. I’ll check it out! If you look close up, you can see some wear and tear on mine but it has been looked after. Thanks for the comment.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

It sounds great! Lovely playing.

[@andrejcernansky]

@@OnlineBassCourses Thank you very much, I really appreciate your opinion, because you are doing really great videos.

[@ΟΟύτις]

Ibanez are the best instruments. Fender are crappy.

[@OnlineBassCourses]

Good ones and bad ones with both I think...

[@TheRealMuddButt]

The Ibanez pre-mod with dead strings sounded so much better. The RS924 has a killer Pbass pickup up to par with the Gibson Grabber and Riper of the same era, simply an incredible rock bass. The single coil bridge pickup however needs some modding to get rid of the noise. Your mod made the Ibanez sound like a Fender P Special which isn't bad but in my mind it takes away from this wonderful instrument.

[@brandonmalone1893]

I agree totally