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Fender Squier P Bass

Summary
Price New Fender Squier P Bass @ Musician's Friend
Manufacturer URL http://www.fender.com/
Features 6.5 (67 responses)
Sound 6.9 (70 responses)
Action, Fit, & Finish 6.7 (67 responses)
Reliability/Durability 7.9 (65 responses)
Customer Support 8.6 (11 responses)
Overall Rating 7.6 (65 responses)
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Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: CAN 150 USED
Submitted 04/10/2009 at 12:04am by Brent

Features : 10
Made in China, 1999, Squier Affinity p-bass. You know the drill. Bode wod of unknown origin (alder?), cream with a whte pickguard. Volume/tone/input.

It has all the features of a p-bass so that means a ten.

Sound : 8
I play anything that is asked of me, wether it is rock, salsa, motown, top 40 or blues. I play this through a GK400RB and a 215 BW.

Not noisy. Very good p sound. Mellower than most. I have a Lakland Glaub and it is a little more open and hollow (less focused mids), but that's actually nice with flats. The original pickups do their job if you know how to play. It has a warm/fat sound. Many people comment on own good this sound and are flabbergasted when they see the name on the headstock !

It really sits wll in the mix.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
Since I picked this used, I have no idea how it was setup at the factory. But let me tell you that with a little love, this thing ranks very high on playability (and I have/had a lot of basses).

The neck on mine is straight and the fretwork is flawless. I suspect the original owner of having done fretwork and nut leveling on this bass. I like my action low to medium-low and I can get it as low as many higher dollar basses without any sort of fretbuzz.

The finish is a thick poly. The pickguard is really ugly and its cut leaves a lot to be desired.

Reliability/Durability : 8
I have yet to touch the trussrod, even after changing strings (I have to tweak it on my Lakland regularly). All the hardware seem solid except the jack, wich I'll have to change. T'll change the pots to CTS too while I'm at it.

Customer Support : No Opinion
No opinion on this. I'll fix problems myself rather than call Fender for a 10 year old bass.

Overall Rating : 9
I've been playing for nearly 15 years now in various bands. I've had a lot of gear and have learned not to look at the headstock when buying a bass. I bought this thing used where it sat, unloved, in a music store, for 150 CAN. It felt right the moment I held it in my hands.

It is a very serviceable p-bass for anyone who is into a mellower vibe. I really think I got a gem since most Squiers I have tried did not sound/play that good: you just have to get the right one by playing as many as you can. I'd put it in the same league as some 800-900$ basses I've tried and owned over the years, it is THAT good.

If it were stolen, I'd try to find another one as good as this one.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: USD 50.00 USED
Submitted 04/04/2009 at 05:35am by Danny Lee Mathis
Email: dannyleemathis at yahoo<dot>com

Features : 8
i recently purchased a 20th Anniversary
Baltic Blue 2002 Squier P and absolutely love it.
It is a well made Indo P bass.
i rescued it from a punk rocker for a song.
Had no idea it was a 20th when i went to pick it up.
Controls were smashed into the cavity.
Easy fix, i got lucky.
i noticed these Ps are wired different when repairing it.
The film cap is ground to the tone pot (capped to its self).
Not like the average Vol to Tone cap job.
It has a unqiue Low & Treb vibe to it.
The neck is a little fatter than average Ps of the same type.
It has a beautiful rosewood fretboard.
Walnut skunk stripe and one piece hard maple base.
It is an Affinity so i'm guessing either
Alder, Agathis or Basswood for the body material.
It also seems a lil fatter than most affinity Ps.
It has a fat feel like the older Fender Ps has.
The baltic blue is awesome!
The chics love the color...No joke.
Its scarred and scratched but it
has character with its battle scars.


Sound : 10
Unbelievable Sustain!
i'm a thumber (James Lee Jamerson style).
So i sent my basses up for that MoTown sound.
This bass can achieve Dug Pinnick rattle lows.
(Think: Life Going By: Kings X Ear Candy)
And it will hold those whole notes beyond the measure.
i was seriously astounded when i played that.

i tested it thru a Behringer BX 4500H,
2-10 Seismic Audio Cab with a 80s Fender BXR w/ 1-15 PylePro.

What else could any bassist want?
This bass is a chill maker on 3 with above rig.
Very surprised.


Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
Very low action. It came in setup so high a MatchBox car
could ride between the strings and fretboard.
i honestly had major doubts when i first saw it.
i actually gapsed inside when i saw it laying in
a trunk of a car with another bass on top of it.
True story... no joke.
After wrenching it, lemon oiling the board,
resetting the neck and securing the neck plate, pick guard and bridge
i decided that i wanted to keep this monster around for a while.
Nice work!

Reliability/Durability : 8
It's a proven battle ax!
It's A Tank! Would Trust It In Any Situation.

Customer Support : No Opinion
n/a

Overall Rating : 9
i've been trying to play rock and roll for about 30 years.
i'm not a "i'm gonna keep a bass for a lifetime" kinda player.
i'm a bass slut...i dig all types of 4 string basses.
Owned 67 Fender Mustang, 77 Fender P, 75 Ripper, 60s Teiscos,
Vintage Kay Basses ,Lots of Vin Roadstar II basses
the list goes on and on...
i felt a need to write about this
20th Anniversary P because of it's truly unique character.
i've owned possibly 4 or 5 Squiers and this one blew my mind.
If Squier says it's an Anniversary model or a
Limited Edition model take it to the bank, they mean it.
Because once they're gone they are really
hard to find but very much worth the search.

If lost or misplaced i'd search for another one.
Fender really did make these different from the rest.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 100
Submitted 09/28/2008 at 01:36pm by KS

Features : 7
I have the Squier starter bass, and it's seen me through my first three years of playing (yeah, I'm pretty skint). I can't complain, it does everything I need it to, I don't know that much about basses either so I can't say that much. I'd only say the sound isn't that great and when you pick up a better quality bass you suddenly realise how bad your own is, but it's really quite decent for it's price.

Sound : 7
It's good because you can play pretty much any type of music with it. I play in a band, again, no one style it's very mixed up, and playing through a live gig set-up it doesn't sound bad at all! It's also great for staying in tune, I hardly ever have to tune it unless I have been carrying it around a lot or banged it.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 4
It came in very good condition when it was new, but I've three times had to go and get the pick-ups and the lead contact repaired, it's had the plate on the front of the body replaced and the varnish chips off easily if you knock it by mistake. I've also had to do a lot of my own tinkering, raising the pick-ups, and lowering the strings closer to the fretboard. The volume and tone knobs are always falling off as well, I have actually lost the volume one now because it came off at a gig and I never found it again.

Reliability/Durability : 8
It's very reliable, I have hardly ever needed back-up, only time was when the lead contact died.

Customer Support : No Opinion
I've only ever gotten it repaired at my local guitar dealer which wasn't where I bought it, so I can't comment on this one.

Overall Rating : 7
The reason I'm reviewing this is because I was browsing this site looking at other basses, the reason being now that I've been playing for 3 years I'm looking to upgrade to something a bit more decent in a higher price range. As a starter bass it was good, and it wasn't pricey at all, I learnt to play on it and I suppose you get what you pay for. I wouldn't get another one of these, but I'd recommend it to beginners.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 07/31/2008 at 07:59am by W.Contin

Features : 8
Made in 1983, s/n sq=====,Beautiful sunburst finish,wbw pickguard. It's a p bass.

Sound : 10
This is one of the nicest sounding Precisions I've ever played.Beautiful growl and deep resonant bass sound. Wonderful mids and highs.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 10
One of the nicest Precisions I've had in my hands. Plays and feels like a vintage P bass,come to think of it I guess it is. Very good quality construction,not even a shim in the neck.

Reliability/Durability : 10
Typical durability.

Customer Support : 5
Haven't dealt with them.

Overall Rating : 10
I've been playing for 40 years.Most of that time I've had a 1975 Jazz bass. Always wanted a Precision,started looking around and researching and found out about these mij Squiers,about a week after I came across this bass and a Traynor amp going for a song.I could'nt be more pleased. The gent who owned this bass kept it in awesome shape and did'nt play a whole lot so this bass is almost like new.Like I say this bass sounds and plays as good as any Precision I've come across.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: USD 250
Submitted 04/16/2008 at 06:12pm by Ben P

Features : 5
20 Frets, Made in China, Solid body.
Just one pickup, the classic split P-Bass you know and love.
One tone knob, one volume knob.
I actually haven't replaced anything and am reviewing it as purchased (new).
The set-up is, put kindly, simple. Very no-frills.
This is not the bass you buy for bells and whistles, but you would at least expect what's there to be high quality. It's impossible to eliminate fret-buzz and have a reasonable string height. The neck doesn't have "dead" spots, but some frets toward the middle of the neck are certainly "wounded."
Overall: certainly not good, but not unplayable if you take good care of it.

Sound : 8
My experience with this instrument ranges from effectless, jazz/blues playing to effects-heavy prog/punk/hard rock.
I've played this through everything from little, crappy Crate and Peavey combos through a mid-range tube-preamp, SS amp Tubeworks (pre-Genz Benz). She was quiet on all settings. The only way to describe her sound is to tell you that she sounds like a p-bass. This instrument is a blank canvas, just with a bit of a duller sound than her legitimate sisters.
Overall, she sounds exactly as she should, but in a lower price bracket.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 6
You will need to sit down and fix the action, but it feels okay after a bit of work.
My knobs and output constantly came loose. Not very impressed with the hardware.
Overall, this bass requires maintaining. Expect to spend extra time with this bass, but it's worth it.
Grading this one is tough. I give its maximum potential an eight, but its factory settings a four. I'm splitting the difference and giving it a six.

Reliability/Durability : 3
This thing needs constant adjustment and fixing. She's cheap and you will probably end up seeing that. For example, the ground wire is an uninsulated hunk of chicken wire and BROKE INSIDE OF MY BASS THROUGH NORMAL USE. I brought it to a friend to re-soldier it and it's been fine since then, but this is not a reliable bass. Have a back-up instrument and be ready to sink time and money into this puppy.

Customer Support : No Opinion
I didn't deal with Fender support. I got it fixed on my own through a friend.

Overall Rating : 7
This bass is an entry level model. This is a fantastic first bass and great to learn on. It is unforgiving and will teach anyone new to playing bass to handle their instrument's set-up, how to do their own tinkering work, and how to get a good sound out of a cheap instrument. This bass lands exactly where it should for the price range, but that's not saying much.
Overall, this bass is a lot of work, but a good way to get started if you're broke.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: euro 110 USED
Submitted 03/24/2008 at 07:10am by Freek

Features : 7
Fender Squier P-Bass Affinity series, made in Indonesia. Standard P-bass configuration. Maple neck with skunk stripe, rosewood fretboard. Light weight body probably basswood. The whole bass weighs about the same as my LP Studio guitar! Thick blue probably polyurethane finish. Single ply cream pickguard. Neck is a bit wider compared to a Jazz bass but it plays fine.

Sound : 8
Standard config: 6.5 for sound. After upgrade(Seymour Duncan SPB-2 with 1 decent volume pot) and a new set of Rotosound Swingbass 045 a solid 8. MUCH better all around, more bass, more definition especially with the volume pot turned down. Ballsy P-bass sound that covers all the classic blues/rock ground. Good sustain. 1 pickup 1 volume seems limited but there's a lot you can do with the position of your right hand fingers and the pick.
The original electronics sound a bit woolly especially with the volume turned down. Small cheap pots.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 6
I got it used. The neck was bowed so i had to use the trussrod. 1/4 turn a day keeps the bass doctor away! The bolt is made of brass so it seems, soft material so be careful out there with the Allen key. I got a decent action also thanks to Gary Willis' informative site. Highly recommended. I couldn't get it perfect though, there's still some rattle above the 12th fret.
The tuners have some play, i tried to fasten the bolts at the back but this didn't help. Tuning is not entirely rock solid but i can live with it.

Reliability/Durability : 7
I already wrote about the tuners, they're not rock solid. I had no trouble with the other hardware so far. Finish: it's a used bass, it's a bit scratched here and there but not all the way through the finish. I'm a guitar player, i don't know if i'll ever gig as a bass player but i wouldn't hesitate to take this P-bass to a gig.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Fender had a web site. Lots of helpful info online. Actually i should write about Seymour Duncan's manual provided with the SPB-2 pickup: even i could mount it on the P-bass!

Overall Rating : 8
I have 25+ years of guitar experience. I wanted a bass (again) to fool around with. In the past i've had a Peavy T-40(heavy MF!) and a Yamaha BB-1100S(great allround bass). After upgrades and a new set of Rotosound Swingbass 045's (VERY important) it sounds fine to me. Good old fashioned supportive bass playing in the classic blues/rock vein is a breeze with this P-bass. I took it to a rehearsal room, with the original electronics. An experienced bass player tried it and liked it. For the price you can't go wrong. With a bit of work and extra investment i took it from a good beginner's bass to a gig worthy instrument. Price paid was inclusive gigbag and strap!


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: Euros 150 USED
Submitted 07/26/2007 at 02:56am by Hans

Features : 6
Made in Korea 1990, " S " serial number, so made at the Samick plant.
Torino red finished PLYWOOD! body, high gloss maple neck, rosewood fretboard. Standard hardware.
Split P pickup, 1 vol, 1 tone.


Sound : 7
It sounds like a P should. I fitted D`Addario chromes on it, the (original!) factory strings where eaten by rust. Now it sounds to my liking, and i must say that the feel of flatwound is so much better on the fingers...
When i play this bass, i play different then when i use my J, the instrument itself sorta "orders" me how to play it.
Despite it has a PLYWOOD body, this bass sounds very warm, and it punches right through the band, no adjustments on my amp, every control 12 o` clock, perfect!
It`s a bit noisy in front of a PC monitor, but on stage it is silent.
Because it has just one (very good!) sound, so not much diversity, i give this a...

Action, Fit, & Finish : No Opinion
I bought it second hand on internet, with a terrible bowed neck, with a hump in the middle, rusted strings, dirty all over.....

A total make-over saved the bass` life, i had to do a lot of work on the neck, but now it`s back in full force, and i am very happy with the result.

So because of this I can`t give an opinion

Reliability/Durability : 10
The bass is already 17 years old, so i would say it proved itself on reliability, even the original crappy pots work silently, and are never sprayed with contact cleaner!
The former users didn`t care for the instrument, when i looked at the state this bass was in...
After adjusting the neck it setted after a while, and now it stays ok.
The finish has some dings from normal use, and will stand surely another 17 years, the hardware will too.
I would trust every gig without a backup, solid as solid can be.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never contacted, no opinion

Overall Rating : 10
I`ve been playing for over 25 years, had cheap to very pricey instruments. I totally dig this kind of cheap worn instruments, and to patch them up. My challenge is that no matter what price, when you adjust it properly, every bass can sound good, it`s mostly in your fingers.
I love the gloss finished neck, i hate all the modern "silky" necks, mostly they are poorly finished, and some spots aren`t finished at all!
This instrument has already a lot of playing miles, feels really broken in, and it doesn`t break the bank.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: USD 250.00
Submitted 03/04/2007 at 01:19pm by Fenderbender
Email: ldbeachtec at hotmail<dot>com

Features : 9
The Squier Modified P bass is one of 3 new basses with Duncan special pickups...
Here is what Fender says.....
"The most popular electric bass of all time! The Precision Bass is considered by many to be the rock ???n??? roll bass; truly a workhorse of an instrument. Squier???s great new Vintage Modified Precision Bass offers the stripped-down and straight-ahead tone heard on countless recordings since the dawn of rock.
Features include an Olympic White-finished agathis body, one-piece maple neck with 20-fret rosewood fingerboard, three-ply Black/White/Black pickguard, thunderous Duncan Designed??? split single-coil pickups, chrome hardware and machine heads, and four-saddle chrome bridge."
Price was $259.00






Sound : 10
The sound from this bass was very very good the pickups are whisper
quiet.
I tried this through a Trace Elliot bass combo amp with one 15"/ a Berringer Ultrabass 3000 with a Peavey 1810 cab (18" black widow and 2 10" scorpions, also a Rogue practice amp and a personal headset practice amp.
It has the Fender P-bass mid punch but I was very impressed with the clean but full sound of the Duncan hum cancelling pickups.
I have been playing bass 30 years and have owned every type of Fender bass made, both USA and the "other" catagory Fenders (Squier and MIM's) this sounds about as good as anything Fender I have ever played or owned.
I play live and in the studio anything from Hank Williams Sr. to Aerosmith..
Works equally well live or recording again sounds SUPER in my opinion
(I am talking Apples to Apples here Fender basses), personal preference in other Mfgr. of basses is not the forum or focus for this review.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 2
The neck and finish is where the bass fell FLAT on it's face!
It came from the music store set up unusually high, I really did not think too much of this because I ALWAYS set up my own basses and intonation myself, I prefer the action low fast and smooth, I carry another stage bass for Slapping/Funk & Popping styles set up differently.
This bass has the worst neck I have ever owned!!! the first 2 frets are low causing excessive buzz the next 3 are pretty high and 7 through 12 have a bad bow buzzing again...
the final frets were also high!!! I prefer to keep S's on Supermans chest not on my ax's neck, no adjustment of the truss rod could straighten this out.
I then removed the neck released most of the tention on the truss rod
got out the masking tape and my fret files and a straight edge,and reworked the frets.
4 frets at different points on the neck required dressing them down to about 1/2 or more of their normal height!! (this should be unheard of in this day and age of automated production)!!
After an afternoon of filing, re-crowning and polishing the neck was at least playable.
The bow in the 8th through 12th frets was still there but significantly better, there just was no way to make it perfect without totally removing the frets and planing the rosewood fretboard. Tuners have a little play but hold tune ok, Bridge is typical light and should be changed out for a bit more resonance but is ok..
Body finish is ok.. Olimpic White no blems in the finish and highly glossy, but you can see the lines in the wood where the 3 pieces of the body are put together when held in the light at an angle.( this should have been filled and sanded better)but something has to give at this price.(eventually I'm pulling the frets filling with wood and turning the stock neck into a Fretless)
I ordered a Mighty Mite Maple neck and am now finishing it with the 2 step high gloss Nitrocellous Laquer to show the classic amber look of vintage Fender necks (Guitar reranch.com)the bass is worth keeping for the sound and light weight comfort.
I also put on a 3 ply Tort-White-Black pickguard, Full dress kit with chrome Ash tray and pickup cover and thumb rest, also a custom set of knurled knobs with Mother of Pearl tops, (all above accys. available on EbAy)

Reliability/Durability : 10
Typical Fender and Duncan, bass should last for decades.

Customer Support : 10
Usually Great caring people who have been helpfull to me when I needed them, I should have sent this bass back to them but then they would have had it for a month ot two.

Overall Rating : No Opinion
I love the sound and playing comfort, A real Eye catcher with the mods.
I'd replace it if stolen.
I checked out the neck on one of the Mod 70's Jazz basses later in the same store I bought this from and found some of the same problems with that neck (but not NEARLY as bad).
On the other hand I have an Affinity Chrome Red Squire Jazz bass I keep at our practice site that has the BEST neck I have EVER played!! Too bad it is noisy and sounds like crap.

I would just check yours over closely before you buy, some music stores like the one I bought mine from only offer store credit on returns.. hence the file job..


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: USD 250
Submitted 10/08/2006 at 07:49pm by Dave the Bassist

Features : 9
Standard Precision bass features, with rosewood fingerboard and 3-ply b/w/b pickguard. No suprises whatsoever in this regard, except for the quality of the Duncan-designed pickup. It has every feature you would ever want, assuming you wanted a P-Bass in the first place.

Sound : 9
I bought a set of Fender Stainless flatwounds with it, slapped them on, and it sounds great. Relatively bright with the tone up, warmer with it rolled down. I'm using it through a Fender Rumble 100, and while it may not have the most idiosyncratic or uniquely unusual sound, I bet I could make it work in 95% of the playing situations you could think of (maybe not slap funk, but certainly fingerstyle). Everything gets a little spicier when I send it through a Tech-21 progrannable pre-amp pedal, and it fattens up considerably through a vintage model or roars w/distortion as I like it.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 9
The neck was well adjusted, the nut was cut well, the intonation was right on, but the action at the bridge was not set up up well. Of course, if I had to pick one thing to not have been done right from the factory, that would be it. And since I was putting on a new set of strings, I would have probably had to do that to my liking anyway. Of course, if I didn't have allen wrenches at home, it would have been a problem since nothing (and I mean literally nothing) came with the bass at all. The fretwork was ( and I don't use this word lightly) awesome. Sliding your hand up the neck is a smooth as a babys bottom, and it put Mexi-P basses in the store to shame. Also, the frets seem smaller, like vintage frets, and this suits me just fine. The pickups could use some foam (or springs) underneath them. I can't quite get them as close to the strings as I want. The hardware seems standard, but relatively heavy-duty.

Reliability/Durability : 9
I could be wrong, but I think this bass will last. The finish is well applied and glossy, the strap buttons seem solid, and the hardware does not seem cheap at all. I feel like it's dependable, and I would use it on a gig without a back-up (although I might keep another in the trunk of my care, so as not to tempt fate).

Customer Support : No Opinion
N/A

Overall Rating : 10
I've been playing over 20 years, have owned eveything from Music Man to Rickenbackers, various Fenders (although never a P-Bass), a Gibson, and a couple of Ibanez's. What was I searching for that I could never find? The sound of flatwound strings (yes, d'oh, I am aware of the irony). For the record, I presently own a custom J-Bass w/Ken Smith pups & Bartolini electronics, and a Danelectro Longhorn. This bass may not be made of the fanciest wood, or have the most modern electronics, but I can get what I want out of it. I love the white finish & the rosewood fingerboard, and my favorite feature is that this is the same type of bass used by Dee Dee Ramone & Sid Vicious as well as James Jamerson and Duck Dunn. In other words, as much as any bass can, it really does do it all. The price tag was the icing on the cake.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 525 (CDN with Pack)
Submitted 03/22/2006 at 01:56pm by Recycled Head

Features : 8
Precision replica, made in china.
Mine is red and it is the entry level one (affinity series).

Everything is basic, tuners, bridge are ok. I've been lucky, I have it since 2001 and playability is so fair that I decided to upgrade pickup with a vintage split coil from Kent Armstrong 65$ with real AlNiCo magnets for each poles.

Stock pickup sucks (1 beefy ceramic magnet at the back of each coils) but you get what you pay for.

Sound : 8
As explained,I upgraded the pickup with something similar to a US Fender. It really worth the $65. I play with a Fender BXR200H with a BXR210 Cabinet. Nobody believes it is a beginner bass.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
Setup was so-so out of the box. I had it adjusted and restringed (DR Hibeam) by a pro a couple of times. I have apparently been lucky to get one that can be tuned almost as low action as a US one. I have a Japanese Fender Geddy Lee Jazz-Bass that matches any US made Fender and my Squier is really close. The non laminated white pick guard looks a bit cheap, I applied black "mac-tack" on it and it now looks like the guy from Cold Play P-Bass.

Reliability/Durability : 9
I used it live, finish is still good, for the rest, even a 10 000 Alembic or wathever custom shop bass needs to be adjusted when restringed and a back up is essential, I've seen a bass string failure only once in my life but I still remember the face of the guy limited to play on 3 strings...

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never deal with them but they have no Email adress on the whole Fender Website!!!

Overall Rating : 8
I have been playing bass for around 22 years. But more seriously in the last 5 years. I play in one coverband (rock alternative 80-90?s and actual) and one original band (we recently record our first demo) we are gigging regularly.

As explained,I upgraded the pickup with something similar to a US Fender Which I recommend, It really worth the $65. I play with a Fender BXR200H with a BXR210 Cabinet. Nobody believes it is a beginner bass. I own a Japanese Fender Geddy Lee Jazz-Bass that matches any US made Fender and my Squier is really close as far as playability. The sound is different since it is a P-Bass. Played with a pick, I'm not sure if a real connaisseur would make a difference sound wise with a Fender Precision US.

I do not regret my decision to invest on a pickup and a Fender Hardcase. If it would be stolen, I would shop for a Sunburst Mike Dirnt Fender Precision, and since it is made in Mexico, I would analyse the sound of its Pickup and upgrade it if necessary.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 800 (Australian Dollars)
Submitted 10/08/2005 at 12:43am by Anonymous

Features : 6
20th aniversary edition

you know the rest

mine came in a package with a gig bag, strap and the most hideous sounding bass amp

Sound : 6
mine was made in indonesia, and apparently the timber they use their is better than what they use on basses made in some other countries. as such it sounds slightly better than your average squire.
i play a wide variety of styles, and this doesnt really suit any of them. a really good bass player would be able to get an ok sound out of it.
there is just about no versatility with sound because if the tone is adjusted even slightly it will hiss and buzz.
played through the amp it came with it sounds terrible. it sounds marginally better with a decent amp

Action, Fit, & Finish : 3
the action is impossible to get right, its either massively too high, or it buzzes.
this thing will not stay in tune.
the controls are lose.
the neck and action needs to be adjusted all the time and its a really annoying and fiddley job.

Reliability/Durability : 5
i actually played live with it once, but that was only for a gig at school so it didnt matter.
ive had mine for 3 years and its in pretty good condition, but ive looked after it well and i have a very light touch when i play. i dont think it would stand being mistreated.

Customer Support : No Opinion
never dealt with them.

i recently got my amp fixed at a local music shop and got massively ripped off. im bitter.

Overall Rating : 5
ive been playing for a few years. as soon as i can afford it im buying a new bass. this is my only bass but i often borrow other peoples (yahmahas, ibanez, G&L).
if it were stolen, id be so very happy (i think its insured)
please somebody steal it from me.
i have a love-hate relationship with this bass. it is a piece of shit, but its still my first bass and for that reason im fairly attatched to it.
seriously though, dont by a squire, ever. theres better stuff out there for around the same or a little bit more money.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 100 (#) used
Submitted 10/03/2005 at 04:50am by Rich

Features : 6
It was made in China in 1999, and i paid a #100 for it second hand from a friend who didnt play it anymore, got a free broken gig bag with it. The reason it gets a six is that is taht its a good general purpose bass for a begiiner. As ive become better and learnt more about guitars and bass ive stopped playing it as it has sevral faults.

Sound : 5
The bass produces a constant buzzing unless the tone is set to zero, but as the tone makes no noticable diffrece to the pickups anyway it doesnt matter. The original pickups sounded weak and horrible so i put in new ones that just make it sound horrible.
But the sounds overall if played through a decent amp is ok.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 4
Where shall i start? The voulme and tone nobs fell of straight away. The tuners for the e and a strings are broken, theres buzz on the nut wheres its falling apart (my fault for trying to covert it to a left handed for my sister). The wiring was very shoddy, fell apart and had to be re-soldered. Im not heavy handed with it either. it just seems to be slowly falling apart.

Reliability/Durability : 7
Two more years and this bass will probably be unplayable. Ive used it for practise regualy for a year and a half and very occasionly to gig with, only as a backup when my main one was down. But it can take abuse and still remain at a constant averageness so it gets a seven.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Havent dealt with them.

Overall Rating : 7
Ive only been playing two years, i use a cort gb34 as my main bass through a vox t15 for practise alone and with band and a beringer ultrabass 1200 for gigs if i neeed to bring my own amp. If i lost this bass id think about buying a p-bass but only a decent one, not a low end model. The reason i give it a seven overall is that its my first bass and ive got good memories, if id just brought it it would only get a four, save your money and buy something better.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $65.00 used
Submitted 06/11/2005 at 05:31pm by Gregory P. Booker

Features : 5
made in China Affinity series,Black P-Bass, 4 strings, Chrome hardware, 1 Split pup,tone &volume. THE standard rock Bass. Finish was OK, I always check and tighten all the screws yes even the neck before even playing it you would be suprised how many screws are loose on even a high price insturment . speaking of price I got this at a yard sale from a chap that moved on to a 5 string Ibanez. He warned me that the sound was iffy but I noticed that the pups were way too far from the strings so I plunked down my $65.00 and took it away ( got leather strap gig bag and stand included...yea!)

Sound : 1
Needed a second bass to screw around with and this was in perfect shape no dings or cracks or wear on the neck. OK here goes,,, it sounds awful and bringing the pups up only brought on distortion soooo...... I'm going to put a set of good pups on change the pots and line the cavities with copper to ground it and maybe change out the tuners. Its no big deal really.Why even keep it I hear you moan, and this is the truth the neck is flawless and everything can be fixed but if you have a shit neck then no pup or hard wear swap will make it right . This feels great it just needs a little TLC.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
I play with very light pressure due to 34 years of drumming. I'm currently trying to stave off carpel tunnel and this means that I'm very picky with my action. I bring down the action as much as I can and adjust it while playing over a week or so until it plays itself without buzzing. fit and finish was about what I expected just about every thing needed tightening. Has good Paint and as stated the neck is awsome kind of c-shape light poly gloss and fret hight is good crown is nicely ovaled and no fret wire hang- over as so many cheap insturments have. But the seven is for the NECK.

Reliability/Durability : 5
As with all entry level basses you could gig with them up until a point but this one is so Poor of sound that I would rather play a string Tub then play this out live. It looks the part but needs some real goods to pull it off. strap buttons are for the birds I never keep them on ever, I always use a straplock system of some sort and tis a fool who depends without it.

Customer Support : 10
Fender is full of the most freindly people in this buisness and even though I have not delt with them for this bass I have had many encounters for various Amps and my other strat and a nagging small PA problem that they fixed for free I might add that as long as your cival I can't see why they wouldn't bend over backwards to help

Overall Rating : 5
Been playing Drums 34 yrs. Bass 25 yrs (Arco also) Guitar 18 yrs, Project studio owner 20 years (Can you say Reel to Reel) I've taught in private school for 8 yrs and private lessons for the same, I own way too much gear but for this review I'm playing through a SWR 4004 and a 65 vintage fender bassman with a JBL k145.15" and an ampeg 1-15 cab I go direct through an avalon M5 into a motu 2408 Into a mac G4 running motu digital performer with a full comlement of Waves and T-racks plug ins.
I like the neck on this bass and thats it for $65.00 I'd do it again as I said, any insturment needs something and this is a pup not bad if you ask me. Just one thing more, if I had a dime for every upgrade that I've made I'd be rich. I feel that if you want the best and DON'T want to change anything your just compromising yourself and contouring to someone else's best, not yours. Don't be afraid to pull out the wrenches and get your hands dirty those of us who know this wind up with the real peach insturments and give the industry something to shoot for. now excused me I 've got a Octava 319 mic that I'm Modifying as per June 05 Recording mag.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $60 used
Submitted 11/15/2004 at 10:27pm by Anonymous

Features : 7
I have a late 90's, early 2000's Squier Affinity P-bass. I bought this to use for marching band since I figured I wouldn't mind if it got rained on or frozen in the snow or roasted in the sun. It has turned out to be quite a handy and good sounding bass. It was already dinged up when I got it, and it is solidly built, but some of the hardware is kind of cheap (the G tuner worm gear wobbles a little and the volume pot is begining to go, but I think I'll replace it eventually). I modded mine with an on/off switch so I can click it off quickly and I sheilded the insides with copper foil, which completely removed the buzzing problem (it's quieter than my mexican Fender Jazz Bass). Everything else is pretty much stock and your usual P-bass affair.

Sound : 8
I play a variety of music; jazz band/marching band at school, stuff from The Who and Hendrix to blues standards and stuff inbetween. For jazz, I use our school's really nice Hartke 3500 with a 1x15 cab. For rock, I;ve used everything from a Fender Bassman 200 to an Ampeg SS140C guitar head thorugh a Kustom CTS 1x15 to a Kustom K200 with Crate 4x10's and 1x15's to a 350 watt PA amplifier with two 2x15 cabs and two 1x15 EV reflex folded horn speakers at the same time. The amp colors the tone heavily, but on each amp, I;ve noticed that there sometimes is a lack of clairity on the open low E through the third fret G; a different p/u would change that i'm sure, but i don't mind, I have three other basses to choose from if it bothers me. Clean, it can be very warm and smooth or bright and snappy, it can really respond to an amp setting change. I once used mine overdriven with a Tubescreamer through the above mentioned 350 watt PA amp when our band played "My Generation" by The Who outdoors (great for the bass solo and inducing feedback while our two guitarists smashed their guitars; that was a fun day). When overdriven, it can loose it's low end through a medium-small combo amp, but through a massive one like that with a graphic EQ, you can crank the sub bass to compensate and it sounds very cool.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
When I got mine, it had a hodge-podge of strings on it, so I put on a new set of GHS 45-105 gauge strings and it greatly improved. My friend I bought it from didn't know how to set up guitars, so the action was really high, so I adjusted and it plays perfectly. Also, the first three frets had a lot of wear so I reshaped them with a fret crowning file and it helped a lot. The wood quality is actually very good for a budget instrument and the cavities are very well routed. My complaints are the cheapish tuners (which i'm probably going to replace eventually) and the nut; the plastic must be too soft because it seems to be wearing down gradually. Also, it's a thin body so it can be neck heavy.

Reliability/Durability : 10
It's been thorugh cold rain and hot sun, falling over on the ground, getting near smashed on concrete, and hours of playing, and it still works great.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never dealt, I mod/repair it myself.

Overall Rating : 9
I've been playing guitar for 9 years and bass for 6, so i could safely say i'm experienced i think. This bass has served me well despite the life it has lived. I bought it to be a beater bass, i want to keep my two Jazz basses and my violin bass in good shape, so this one sees a lot of playing time in less than ideal playing conditions. If you plan on really playing out with these though, i'd reccomend updating some of the hardware along the way.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 0 ((Gift))
Submitted 10/16/2004 at 10:16am by Derek (penmachine.com)

Features : 7
A basic Precision bass with the usual split-coil pickup. Mine is an attractive blue colour, three-ply white pickguard, big-head open-gear tuners, rosewood fretboard with skunk stripe, and white Strat-style plastic volume and tone knobs. (I recently switched the knobs for flat-head knurled chromed aluminum ones, which I personally prefer, but the old ones were fine.) It was made in Mexico in 1998, probably at the same Ensendada factory that now makes the Mexican Fender-branded guitars and basses. So if I bought this same instrument today, it would have a Fender logo rather than Squier.

Sound : 7
Does the job. The pickup is nothing remarkable, but you'll get the fundamental P Bass sound out of it. If you're not careful with your EQ, it can sound a little harsh. A better pickup would probably improve that. I'm a drummer by trade, but when one of our bass players has needed a backup instrument, or we've brought someone else in to play who didn't have a bass handy, it's been good for gigs in front of crowds small and large, including an outdoor show at the Word Figure Skating Championships in Vancouver a few years ago. For your basic classic rock sounds, it works. Nothing complicated, and with talented fingers and a good amp (it's been through a GK/JBL setup, an old Ampeg combo, and DI'ed into a PA), it'll get your booty shakin'. Probably not ideal for a studio setting, since the pickup can be a bit noisy, but in a pinch it would work there too.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 9
Very nicely put together, with good action and fretwork. I changed the strings for thicker roundwounds recently, so the intonation is now a bit off and the A string buzzes a little when played open (though the pickups don't seem to bring that through to the amp), but that's nothing a proper setup job wouldn't fix. The pickup was well positioned, the paint job is nice, and the neck is quite fabulous if you like the thick-n-chunky P Bass style. I particularly like the neck finish, which is much more natural and "grainy" than the slick neck on my Squier Strat guitar.

Reliability/Durability : 8
Generally, it's taken some punishment. It's been schlepped around with a ton of other gear in my station wagon, protected only by a gig bag. My kids have played around with and dropped it, and cranked a tuner until one of the strings broke (not easy on a bass). At gigs it's been banged around. Like other P Basses, it's essentially a plank, and it takes a licking. However, the thin washers that held the tone and volume pots in place cracked a few months ago, so the knobs felt loose. I got free replacements from a local music store, screwed them in, and it's been fine since. So there are some cheap components that could wear badly over time.

Customer Support : 5
Never called Fender -- the problem I mentioned above with the pot knob washers was well after the warranty ran out. One advantage is that, since it's a P Bass, parts are everywhere, so I was able to fix the difficulty myself with one trip to the store, a few minutes with a screwdriver to pry off the old knobs, and no money spent. So third-party support and repairs are easy to come by, or you could learn to do them yourself. This is not a complicated instrument to fix.

Overall Rating : 8
I played classical guitar when I was a kid, forgot everything in high school, took up the drums at 18, and have been playing those professionally for 15 years, mostly classic rock for corporate parties, weddings, etc.. I have a Strat and silverface Fender Princeton and this P Bass with old Ampeg G-410 combo to play on the the side or as backup instruments for the band, and have been learning some piano with my six-year-old daughter more recently.

With a better pickup, this bass could probably be the main instrument for a serious professional who wants a P Bass. As it is, it's just fine for what it needs to do.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $229
Submitted 04/11/2004 at 01:19pm by Dan
Email: skier7777<at>beld dot net

Features : 7
I think we all know what a P-bass looks like, so I'll skip the small talk.

Mine is the Squier 20th Anniversary Edition however.

Sound : 5
It isn't the best sounding bass, but for all intents and purposes for me anyway, it works. I'm a guitarist, and I sometimes indulge in a bass, it does what it needs to. Very muddy sound though.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 9
The bass is great I really have no complaints with it, in this category at least.

Reliability/Durability : 8
I dropped this bass a while ago directlly on the tuners, I picked it back up and it was still in tune. The strap constantlly falls off the buttons. If I ever were to use this live I would duct tape the strap on.

Customer Support : No Opinion
N/A

Overall Rating : 8
It's a quality bass for someone whose main instrument isn't the bass.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 149 (ukp)
Submitted 08/26/2003 at 07:42am by raynault

Features : No Opinion
Features as per every review below. Not really worth rating as P basses are P basses are P basses

Sound : 1
Need to replace my knackered P bass active, not much money, so tried a Squier through the shops Laney amp. Lovely amp, really does nothing to flatter the sound.

I need a bass with a range of tones from muddy growl to bright and clear. This bass isn't it. No way Jose.

Noisy, thin and weak. Little or no punch when popping. Bends get cut short, making a honking, quacking sound. Pup microphonic. More noise from the plectrum attack than the strings ( not quite, but hopefully you'll get what I mean )

Tone pot interesting as an ornament. Sod all use for anything else.

Decided within 30 seconds the sound wasn't for me, but noodled anyways as I had time to kill :)

Action, Fit, & Finish : 4
In the interests of fairness, it was well set up. Action fine, fretwork fine. Some buzzes, nothing major, on the E
Tuners in name only. One particularly pleasant descending pop run had the G string down somewhere near F. Tune it up, play with a pick, fine, pop it, flat again.
Pots didn't feel right. Like the tuners, the action of the pot varied across its rotation. Vol pot felt off centre. Intonation OK across the range of the neck.
Hardware looked OK, but the strap pegs don't inspire.

Reliability/Durability : 1
Will it stand live playing?, in -my- hands?, nah. The nut looks like it would need replacing after a couple of string changes, the tuners do not inspire. Strap buttons appear to be capable of being replaced :)

Bridge OK.

I wouldn't buy this bass.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never dealt with them

Overall Rating : 2
Playing bass for over twenty years. Currently have a Fender Precision that has stood up well, but really needs replacing as I have hammered it into submission, plus, I just want a new cheap bass!

I would not buy one of these, preferring a Vintage or Yamaha instead.

I compared this to a Vintage P bass, which looked better finished ( still shyte strap pegs ), played better, sounded better, stayed in tune and had pots that did something useful, and a Yamaha RBX270.

I am torn between the Vintage and Yamaha. Both are similar in price, both are wholly superior in my opinion. Suggest trying them yourself.

There are good cheap basses out there folks, this isn't one of them. When finances improve, Mr.fender will claw more cash from me for a new USA P bass. Until then, he'll have to wait.

Try before you buy. If you are a beginner, take along a mate who knows basses, or get a number demonstrated to you through a clean sounding amp.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $125
Submitted 06/26/2003 at 03:19pm by Dustin Hinds
Email: physical_grafiti at hotmail<dot>com

Features : 3
Made in 1999, 20 frets, volume and tone controls, passive pickups

Sound : 3
This bass doesn't have a very good sound. In fact, it sounds like pure crap. It feedbacks extremely easy, it is very noisy, and it can not or will not produce any form of a bright sound.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 3
The action from the factory was nothing shy of horrible. The pickups were also very poorly adjusted. I took it to a guitar shop and had the neck adjusted, and action lowered, and it still is nothing but work to fret. The neck has a huge twist as it goes up, so it will buzz in some places, and not in others. The control nobs are loose, and my pick guard broke with a very minor amount of pressure applied. I have played other squires, and found that mine must be the worste in the world

Reliability/Durability : 6
This piece of crap is actually very relaible. It will give you the same shitty sound for years and years to come. The finish cracks easily, and dulls quickly. I believe the strap buttons are the most solid piece of hardware on the instrument. Truss rod never needs to be adjusted, because it never does any good. It is durable though. I have dropped it severl times, and it playes no crappier.

Customer Support : No Opinion
N/A

Overall Rating : 3
I have been playing for about 2 years, and even I can see the true low quality of this bass. I keep wandering if the people who posted before me have ever played any other bass. I have played one worse in my lifetime, and it didnt even have a name. Overall, it sucks!


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $100
Submitted 06/09/2003 at 01:09am by charlie
Email: jazzlunchbox<at>attbi dot com

Features : 8
just a normal squier p-bass. the paint is kinda crappy. but i like the SRV/tommy shannon look so i want it to come off. neck is nice. i got mine for christmas but it was 100 bucks brand new. amazing deal.

Sound : 8
i play in a classic rock/blues band and its great. i would prefer a bigger sound but its pretty good. i have a used fender BXR100 amp i am using. i can tweak the tone quite a bit with that amp so i dont have many problems with it. i just wish it had a bigger sound and i could get brighter like a Jazz bass

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
beautiful to play. i absolutely love the action. the finish sucks tho.

Reliability/Durability : 10
every gig ive used this bass on and every gig others have used it on we have used it without a backup and its perfect. no problems. its been dropped a lot. thrown around in the back of pickups and lots of crap. the only thing is that the pickguard broke around the jack. after many practices with lots of duct tape involved to keep the cord in, my dad made a replica of the section out of metal. its perfect now.

Customer Support : No Opinion
never had to deal with them

Overall Rating : 9
ive only been playing about 5 years but i play alot. if it were stolen or lost i would buy something better like a fender jazz bass but if i only had 100 dollars to spend. i would head straight to the squier p-basses.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: $230 (Cdn) used
Submitted 03/06/2003 at 07:23am by MistahMojoRyan
Email: retiredhedge at hotmail<dot>com

Features : 8
I believe this is a late 90's bass from Korea. I think the body is alder under a sunburst finish.
Volume/Tone/Input...it's a P. I find it hard to justify less than 10 given that it is what it is. But oh well.

Sound : 8
Very nice sound; classic. I've converted it to fretless and it's great! Also changed the pups to Basslines which makes a huge difference especially as a fretless w/ flatwounds. Great sound overall.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
I bought this bass used from a music store and as with all stringed instruments I buy, I had to set it up to my liking.
The finish was pretty weak. Thin finish and paint...I couldn't care less.

Reliability/Durability : 8
Solid bass, reliable, it will last a long time. I would depend on it for anything.

Customer Support : No Opinion
N/A

Overall Rating : 8
Been playing on/off for 14 years and have and have been through numerous guitars/basses/amps.
I wouldn't go looking for a Squier but I definitely wouldn't rule them out against Essex, for ex. Great classic P feel and sound and vibe. Like any other lower end bass, you have to weed out the bad ones.
Love the tobacco sunburst finish albeit a cheap one.
I don't think it's a great beginner bass on account of it's thick neck but it's great backup or for noodling around on and modding for the more experienced player.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 1000 (Hrivnas) used
Submitted 01/18/2003 at 08:40am by Vladimir Kornienko

Features : 7
The sticker on the back of the headstock says "Fender. 50 Years of excellence", so it was 1996. Made in China. 20 frets. 2 pots, a passive P-Type pickup. In a word, a usual P-Bass. Arctic White with a white shell. As for the wood, I'm not sure. Bought it used from a friend in 2002, for the equivalent of ~$190. It has all the features I need, but I don't need much.

Sound : 9
I play various styles, but Precision has always been a rock bass rather than a jazz one. No one ever spit on me for trying to play jazz on it, though. The sound is OK for almost everything I play. I've played it through a Fender Bassman and Peavey's Basic and Bandit. One little flaw is there's no sustain on the low G note (E-string 3rd fret). Dunno why. A bit humming at times, but not much enough to annoy. The sound rather depends on fingers, I think. I can get almost any sound I want out of this bass. I didn't expect it to sound like an expensive one, but I was surprised that it sounded good enough anyway.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 9
Don't know about the factory settings, since I bought it used. I have customized it to suit me, and I'm quite happy. Some complain the pickups are too close to the strings, but I think it's more often a problem of one's playing technique - I play quite softly, so it's all right with me. No flaws noticed. Looks good on me :)

Reliability/Durability : 9
I have been using it for a year and a half live and in studios in various situations, and nothing has ever got broken. The hardware is reliable. The finish is a bit worn out already, but when we have worn a thing for 6 years, it has a right to wear out, so no problem. The strap buttons are solid. There's a change in the neck behaviour during a change of season (in early winter and in spring), but with no need to readjust the rod - it's still playable. I haven't tried to bang it against a wall, so I won't say 'rock solid' - but I do rely on it.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never needed any.

Overall Rating : 9
I've been playing bass on and off for 5 years, and guitar for 11 years. If it were stolen or lost, not sure I would buy exactly the same one again. The thing is, there are Squiers and Squiers. This specimen is a good one, but people say there are bad ones also. I like almost everything about mine. A lucky combination of the price and the quality. Sometimes I miss a Jazz Pickup, but well, maybe next time :)


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 300 (euro)
Submitted 01/15/2003 at 04:29am by badmatafaka

Features : 7
spartanic equiped, but enough:
- strat shape (white pickguard, creamywhite solidbody)
- 4 strings
- 2split-single-coil (passive electronics)
- 1volume poti
- 1 tone poti
- classical bridge

Sound : 9
first, it depends on the amp. you can play with a 2500? bass an cheap amp and it will sound like shit,...
...or you play a squier with an warwick-amp and it will sound warm and good.
if you don't like anyparts of the bass, you can replace them!!
the mail thing is that the body and neck ist good. and that's what it is!

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
the setup wasn't ideal!
i corrected the strings to the best (lower) level. now i can tap faster and the strings don't touch the frets.
when i slap i recognise that the string are too low, but this sound also grooves.

Reliability/Durability : 7
this bass is still OK. of course it has several wounds, but so it seems to be more authentic.
i think i can believe in my bass and can play without backup-bass.

the finish of the neck could be a little more better.

Customer Support : No Opinion
i gonna shit on the warranty, because everything ist still OK!

Overall Rating : 9
i bought the SQ P-bass as a starter set. it's my first bassguitar, but i play E-guitare for a very long time (12 years and i played 20 hours a week at least), because i wanted to improof my musical horizont.
now i slap or i play with pick or finger for 4 hours a day.

course i dream of a warwick corvette, but it' s better if you can play a cheap bass very well, than you have got an expensive bass and you're unable to play.

i found out that most of the musicians (not the professional ones), who say that an instrument is garbage, are the most terrible guitarists, i've ever heard. for those guys, a small whistle would be the best instument. maybe they hear also a difference between the different types of plastic that is used.

i think, that i would buy it again, because of its fair price and the offered quality.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $100
Submitted 12/30/2002 at 12:15am by Zakk
Email: laidiesman_69_<at>hotmail dot com

Features : 1
it is a 4 string peice of shit if you ask me. but almost all squier guitars are

Sound : 1
ive had one for about 3 years and ive played for about 5. At first i thought it was good because i didnt know what was good. Now i realize. it is a peice of crap. its sounds horrible with the crappy linup of pickups. to much feedback. the bridge is worthless.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 4
well it looks ok until you hear it then it looks like it sounds. it doesnt look stunning but it is ok looking

Reliability/Durability : 1
i swear if i dropped it it would shatter into a million peices. it is very very very unreliable 3 of my friends who have had squiers have broke them, from the crappiest reasons and 2 of them were the squire p bass.

Customer Support : No Opinion
hhaha ur funny

Overall Rating : 1
if you dont already own a squire p bass do not ever ever ever buy one unless you wqnt a guitar to smash for fun on stage or something which is what i will be doing with my p bass peice of crap. DONT GET THIS> IF YOU HAVE IT ALREADY,DUMP IT, SMASH IT, PEE ON IT FOR ALL I CARE.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: $269 (Canadian)
Submitted 12/26/2002 at 06:32pm by Nick K

Features : 8
2001 Squier P Bass, made in China. It is blue with a white pickgaurd. I love the colour and stratocaster/precision look! It came with a cable and tools, has one passive split-single coil stock pickup, maple neck, and alder body. Looks more expensive than it is :-)

Sound : 9
Typically I play guitar. Have been playing for 7 years. Decided to pick up a bass to keep things interesting. Compared to the low-end Ibanez and Washburn basses, this one smoked. It sounds great, you would never know it was cheap. The pickup's are surprisingly quite and clean. The bass has a very versatile tone that is FULL. I play this bass through a digitech preamp and use it for recording at my little home studio. This bass provides me with more than i needed, and definitely more than I paid for.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 9
The action is excellent, there is no rattle from the strings. The finish is flawless and the fit seems to be alright. No problems that I have noticed.

Reliability/Durability : No Opinion
I only use this bass at home. I gig with a six string guitar.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Have not had to deal with them. But I must say that www.fenderplayersclub.com has been helpful for picking up some good bass tips. It's nice that they provide this free community for the musicians that have purchased their gear.

Overall Rating : 10
Like I said before. I've been playing guitar for 7 years; just started playing bass...many guitarists think if they can play guitar they can naturally play bass, but bass-playing is different and highly under-rated. This guitar is great for learning bass techniques as it plays well...and it sounds good for me to use for recording. My only complaint is that i wish it had a neck pickup for a more versatile sound...but I love the single coil it does have, it gives it a very raw, natural sound...but in a good way.

I would definitely buy another squier bass... infact I am so impressed with the company that the next guitar I buy will be fender (i would not buy a squier guitar because I've always dreamed about owning an authentic Fender Telecaster).


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 170 (Canadian) used
Submitted 11/29/2002 at 12:56pm by Anonymous

Features : 7
This is your typical Squire P-Bass, candy-apple red with maple fingerboard/neck. It has one tone and one volume pot and a thick yet crude pick cover (good for a place to put your thumb when it's not resting on the top half of the split single-coil pickup). Rates a 7--it is a P-bass and has all the features of one.

Sound : 8
I play all sorts of pop: pop goes the weasle, pop goes the sarcasm, pop goes the music. It's fine for me and my song writing partner of 20 years. Actually, I quite like the sound and the fact that it's very easy to get that sound--a punchy, growl that reminds me a pack of wolves hitting the ground after falling off a cliff. I play it though a Zoom 808b and like what comes out of it and into what ever I am using to traslate the electromagnetic waves into sound waves--Traynor Bass Master YBA-1 into 2 15" Peavy Scorpions speakers, a 60 Watt RMS Garnet Deputy with an 18" speaker (and this is supposed to be a guitar amp!), the Zoom 808B, my Berhinger V-Amp 1.0, or my M-Audio Omni I/O into the computer--but I gotta watch those levels. So far I have received nothing but compliments about the sound this bass--even from people with the real things dating back to the early 70s. Unsure about recording on the hard drive--the first time I ran it direct to the Omni's pres and, well, it was hot enough for tape but way too much for digital. Have set up some compression on the Zoom and am looking forward to trying again (I usually avoid any effect that restricts the sound). My only complaint is that the pots are filthy buggers that crackle and spit when I adjust them (or kill the sound entirely). Will replace as soon as I remember to take the beast into the shop. I give it an 8 cause nothing is perfect--even for the price.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
Average to good for finish, action and 'fit'. The neck is as stright was it will go. Believe me I tried--every time I crank the truss rod, it immediately loosens itself up to where it was before. Thus, the action's 1/16" higher than I'd like, so what! I kind of like fighting with some of my instruments. I actually consider guitars and basses to develop more character the more I drop them on hard, concrete-like surfaces (but you wont't catch me doing that on purpose with my G&L S-500 or my Godin Multitac nylon). The score of 6 reflects the fact that it is average-to-good in these categories.

Reliability/Durability : 7
It's surrived, unscathed, dives onto concrete flooring from hights in excess of 4 feet. I think it can survive more abuse. Have giged without a back up--it's a bass, come on. The neck is not willing to be tightened. Who cares about the finish--these things just fade with time. Besides the prettiness of an instrument rarely has much to do with it's playability or sound. It's only important for marketing and, God knows, there's too much emphasis on such crap in western society as it is.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never contacted them. Don't much care for large corporations, anyway.

Overall Rating : 10
I've been playing electric stringed instruments for close to 30 years. Bass for 17 of them. If it was stolen I'd probably think about buying and drinking a case of beer--but with the cost of beer in Canada that would be close to 1/5th of the cost of the thing to begin with. Therefore, I'd probaly save the $20 for a better, 5-stinged fretless custom--unless there's some company smart enough to make stock basses with a Fishman Powerbridge type set-up to go with the traditional pick-ups (why is it that all the good ideas don't come from the corporations?). However, I do like the simplicity and sound of a P-bass so I might get another one. In reference to the last guiding question in this cateory, yes there is something I'd like to share: the prices of musical instruments, on the whole, are outrageously over priced. But then major corporations like CBS, General Foods, and the Moronic Bush Family, Inc. wouldn't be able to afford all their research into mind control (i.e., advertising/marketing).


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $129
Submitted 11/24/2002 at 03:14pm by Anonymous

Features : 4
- It's cheap
- It has four strings
- It's got the 'Fender' look, and if you blank out 'Squier' some people
might be fooled into thinking it's a real bass
- It's not bad looking. If looks and price are more to you than sound,
playability, usefulness, or anything else, this may not be so horrible
for you.
- A great guitar to destroy on stage with no guilt
- Hmm, can't think of much else

Sound : 2
Sounds like a plywood guitar.
Hey, wait a sec...

Action, Fit, & Finish : 2
It plays like a wet 7" thick sponge.

Reliability/Durability : 8
I've never had to adjust it, and it's taken lots of abuse sitting in the
back of my closet. The strap has always stayed on.
See? I can say good things about this bass..

Customer Support : No Opinion
Bwah! That's funny.

Overall Rating : 2
I have been playing bass for more than 14 years. I'm not an elitist. I
own a couple cheap basses, and a '78 Fender Musicmaster shortscale. I
knew what I was getting when I bought the Squier, and it STILL managed
to disappoint me.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 400 (200)
Submitted 10/25/2002 at 12:29am by Anonymous

Features : 3
This is a 1985. 4 string. Japanese made Squier Precision bass , 19 frets. It has passive elecronics with one split-coil humbucker. Controls are volume and tone. Finish is 3-color sunburst. I bought it used for 400DM. (200$)
I'll be honest with the rating. Thoe it has only one pickup and 2 controls (vol and tone) I will give it a 3. (I don't understand how can anyone give 8, 9 or even 10 for so simple bass-this rates are reserved for professional instruments with 3 band eq and piezzo)

Sound : 9
For this price, it is far better than one could assume it to be. It doesn't fit my style anymore-acctually I'm selling it but it served well for 6 years. It is one of those basses with universal sound -that's what is good about Fenders. I played it with tone on 0, without effects, so it has beautifull warm sound; very similar to Fender. I play it live and never noticed any hum. I'll rate it in it's price cathegory, so it will be 9.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
There is significant fret buzz on low action (although frets are pretty after 17 years of playing). I don't know what was it when it was new but now it deserves a 7.

Reliability/Durability : 9
It is very, very durable and reliable guitar. I play it only live and never needed backup (except once when A string broke because of year and a half of constant playing).

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never had to deal with them.

Overall Rating : 9
I play bass for 6 years now and it was my first bass. I would deffinitely recomend it to any begginer or player on budget. If it was stolen I wouldn't buy it anymore. It served well for years, but now it is time to replace it with Jazz bass.
One IMPORTANT thing is not to mix it with Indonesian, Korean or Chinese Squiers that are manufactured today. It is significantly beter and you can get used one for a price of a new I/K/C Sqier. They don't make them any more so if you are a begginer, need a simple bass to serve you for years, this is your choice.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $300 with an amp and some other stuff
Submitted 08/16/2002 at 01:33am by Mike
Email: muzikman182<at>yahoo dot com

Features : 8
not sure of the year made in "indonesia"

20 frets 4 string

1 volume 1 tone passive pickups

alder body ...

you can check the details at www.fender.com and follow the links to squier


Sound : 7
Great for many kinds of music
i am using some funky synth pedals and a squier practice amp that came with it

Action, Fit, & Finish : 6
good set up but i had to lower the action

some freting problems on the higher frets

I have had some wiring problems with the pick - ups but it nothing electrical tape can fix

Reliability/Durability : 9

it hasnt warped yet !

i can depend on it

i will probably not take it ti vigorius gigs without a back-up. but not because it is not reliable but because i like a variety

SO far Great !!!

Customer Support : No Opinion

Overall Rating : 8
Grat for the bucks !!!


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: N/A
Submitted 08/05/2002 at 05:42pm by andy shaub
Email: bassandy at myeweb<dot>com

Features : No Opinion

Sound : 10
this bass sounds excellent when you play funk. i play it with an ibanez distortion pedal for bass and a peavey TKO 115 amp. with some tone and eq adjustments i can play anything from funk to heavy metal

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
ive owned this bass for about 2 years and its still sounding absolutly excellent. ive scratched the finish a few times from being careless. ive done some adjustment w/ the pickups an it makes it sound great

Reliability/Durability : 10
the guitar is really durable. its fallen over a lot since ive got it and nothing ever happens to it. its a very solid guitar. the tone and volume knobs need tightening every 6 months or so because i play with them constantly

Customer Support : No Opinion

Overall Rating : 9
ive been playing bass for about 4 years now and ive owned a squire for most of them, so i dont have much of an opinion on comparing w/ other basses but in my band we play mostly funk(old style red hot chili peppers)and i play through a peavy TKO 115 amp and the bass sounds great. i lowered the strings on the bridge so all the slaps & pops sound clear and funky


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $150
Submitted 07/06/2002 at 02:02am by Baboui

Features : 7
I have the 1999 model which was crafted in China. It's black with a white plastic pickguard, and it comes with tone and volume knobs. It still has the original split-coil pick ups, but I removed the frets after I got a TRBII 5.

Sound : 8
Before I pulled out the frets, I played a lot of funk stuff - mainly pre 'make yourself' Incubus - and I just loved the sound that would come out that little monster. It had a deep, trebly sort of sound which I liked very much. Once I yanked off the frets, I have noticed it has a sort of mellower tone to it but there is still a trace of the high end tone to it. I'm thinking of getting another one and just leave the frets alone after I put some DR Hi-Beams in it.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 6
When I got this bass, I knew nothing about playing the bass. It was a very beautiful, black glossy finish. But the pickguard was poorly fitted. It bulges right by the pick ups.

Reliability/Durability : 9
This bad boy is built like a tank. I can't believe it still plays after all the abuse it's been through. I once ripped out the input jack and had to solder everything back myself after drilling a new hole for it on the pickguard. And it's been rained on, dropped, and disassembled numerous times. The gears on the tuning pegs tend to slip out of allignment, but I think that was from dropping it a couple of times.

Customer Support : 10
I've never had a problem with, but I remember the guy who recommended it to me. He was very helpful since I knew nothing about bass guitars back then.

Overall Rating : 9
This bass goes very well with my style of playing. I'm definately going to get a second Squier P-Bass and eventually end up with the 5-string version.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $200
Submitted 05/24/2002 at 02:30pm by OmegaPhreak

Features : 8
2000 Squier P-Bass. Made in Indonesia. It has 4 strings and two knobs(volume and Tone. Split P pickups. Flawless Blue finish. Came with a gig bag, strap, and tools.

Sound : 10
I play Funk and Jazz. I love the sound of this bass. No rattle or hum. The OEM Fender strings are crap though. The secret to getting this guitar to sing is to go out and get you some DR Hi-Beams. The sound went from muddy to clear and bright as soon as I put these on. Adjusting the tone knob with these on it showed a lot more variation in sound.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 10
The intonation and action were perfect on mine strait from the factory. The finish is a close to perfect as Fender gets. Beautiful and mirror like. The knobs are sturdy and a lot quieter than my freind's PRS.

Reliability/Durability : 8
This thing can withstand a hell of a lot. I take real good care of mine though.

Customer Support : 10
I bought mine from Musician's Friend. The have great customer support and I also have a warranty from Fender.

Overall Rating : 10
If this bass were stolen. I would hurt the person who stole it first, and then rush out and get another on just like it. For the price you cannot beat this guitar. The thing I want to do with it is get some semore Duncan pickups installed on it. I love this bass!


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $300.00
Submitted 04/02/2002 at 12:42pm by Willie McLaughlin
Email: willie826<at>yahoo dot com

Features : 7
Made in Mexico think it a 99 4 string Squire P-bass bought it as a pageage deal with the amp and case At KRA Music in Columbus Ohio Paid aroud $300.00 Make a great starter bass and amp my son ened up playing it but I'm gonna get another for my self I usally play Rythem guitar but like to practice bass for emerancys this is a great deal for someone who don't play all the time the ony differants i see between the fender and the Squire is the finish on the bass is not as heavy on the Squier

Sound : 8
I play country and Old Time Rock & roll My son Play hard Rock I don't use Efects and it has a good clean sound for me My son Uses a Zoom506 bass efect pedal get all the sound he need a versitle Bass We play it through a Squire 15 watt amp I have played it through a fender 100 watt amp great sound out of the bass the only thing I had to do is have intenation set a little

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
Pretty good had to have a little reset do on the bridge no big deal
every thing eles on the bass was great

Reliability/Durability : No Opinion
Have just use it around the house and out a few time with my band so far so good

Customer Support : No Opinion
I believe the place i bought it would take care of any promblems I haven't had to deal with fender so can't tell you about there service but that where It best to buy from the same company I have dealt with KRA music in Columbus Ohio for over 18 years

Overall Rating : 7
I have been playing music for over 30 years I feel this is A great beginner or back up bass would probly buy a better bass if I played bass for a living but even if that if you take cre of the Squier I think it will last a long time


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 650 (Deutschmarks)
Submitted 03/11/2002 at 05:38am by andy m
Email: andrew dot morgan<at>erlangen dot netsurf dot de

Features : 5
Standard Squier P-Bass, Exxxxxx serial (1986 made in Japan). Original Olympic White (ie cream) with red tortoise scratch plate now all heavily dinged from 10 years of rough gigging. Over the years Ive modified it somewhat - I hate more than 4 strings so Ive got a Hipshot on that drops E to D (Improved bass response too), Ive got a Badass II Bridge on that Im not 100% happy about - The string riders seem to be too soft but the sound is tighter and more focussed with it on. Schaller strap-locks retro-fitted too.

Sound : 10
I went to buy a bass with DM1300,- (around $500 at the time) and found this bass for DM650 ($300) after trying several at the higher price. Soudn and feel were classes away from anything else at anywhere near the price and its been my main bass ever since. I keep meaning to buy a "real" fender as a replacement but now Ive got my Squier set-up I rarely find a precision of any make or age that plays or sounds better. Ive played everything from surf to punk and the sound has always been perfect - good low growl and enough mids for chords to shine. I play through an old Peavey MkIV with 2x8" and 2x15" (all peavey black widow). Channel 2, High gain input, high and low on 0, sweepable mids set on 800 and dialed all the way out, variable "smile" on the graphic depending on the live situation. All controls on the bass wide open and this bass cuts through two marshall half-stacks like a knife through butter.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 6
When I got the bass I was a beginner so I dont kmnow what the factory set-up was like. The chrome fell off both poti-knobs after about 5 years and after 10 years of playing and gigging the original bridge was just a lump of rust that ate strings so I replaced it. The original fretwire was too soft and several frets wore out quite fast (3/4 years) but i had them professionally replaced and no trouble since. Ive spent quite a lot of time adjusting teh action and had to raise the nut a bit but now its sweet. Slight fret-buzz but then I play generally very hard with a pick and lots of chords so no real problem there. In the studio I have to play a bit softer to get a clean sound but thats good practice anyway.

Reliability/Durability : 6
Ive been gigging this bass for over 10 years now and I havent been kind to it. The paint has stood up pretty well, there are lots of dings where its fallen over or been thrown about but nothing has worn. The chrome (nickel?) on the knobs was a bit cheap and fell off very quickly and the bridge rusted eventually but I had sweated all over it and never cleaned it so no complaints there. A couple of the tuner blades worked loose and started to buzz so I padded them with some glue - no problems since. The neck is very very forgiving, I rarely have to adjust it. I try and have a back-up at a gig but only because I break lots of strings - the bass itself has never let me down.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never needed it - i use a local shop for repairs if needed.

Overall Rating : 10
I have been playing for about 14 years. I also own an epiphone thunderbird which I love, also sounds good but is harder to play and doesnt have the cutting edge of the P (especially dont play chords on it). Im trying to get another one exactly the same as a back-up. I have played various other fenders but havent yet played another bass that I would seriously consider buying (Im not into warwicks etc) that I really preferred to mine. There are undoubtedly better instruments around but this one suits me perfectly.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: N/A
Submitted 03/02/2002 at 02:54am by MooshimanX
Email: MooshimanX at yahoo<dot>com

Features : 8
2001 Squier P-Bass, made in Indonesia. Black Finish, White 1 ply Pickguard. One Tone, One Volume knob. Pretty standard P Bass stuff. Plywood Alder Body, Fender calls it "solid hardwood." One split coil P style pickup. Input jack is located on the pickguard, which makes your cable stick out and poke things. All the standard P Bass features. A learning bass or fun bass to complement your guitars.

Sound : 6
The sounds depends on the amp you use it through. It came in a pack with a Squier BP-15, which sucks tone away and leaves a distinctly "metallic" tone (I mean like a a hollow piece of metal, not like the musical style). However, when played through other amps, sounds like a typical bass, although maybe a bit cheap sounding. I have found a very (and I mean very) cheap yamaha guitar amp that sounds terrible with my Stratocaster signifiganly improves the sound over the Squier amp. If you buy the pack that has this amp and the P bass, don't immediatly blame the odd sound on the bass, try another amp. the pickups are super cheapo standard squier issue, although if you have this bass just to complement your guitar collection or as a throw around bass, you probably won't care too much. If you want to really fix up this bass, replace the pickups with Seymour Duncan Quarter Pound P Bass, or DiMarzio P Bass Pickups, which will signifigantly improve the sound. On the stock pickups, the tone and volume knobs function decently, although I would not expect a big range of sound. Remember that this is strictly a throw around or beginner's bass.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
When I got this out of the box, everything was set up fine. I liked it fine. But after the initial satisfaction with having the instument faded, I wanted to get rid of the fret buzz. Becuase I don't like to screw it up too much, I haven't adjusted it. If you press down on the frets hard enough, you don't buzz too much. I assume that it can be fixed with a set up, but as the buzz is very little to moderate, I will deal with it until it is unbearable. The finish looks great, although a bit normal. I personally am tired of the whole black guitar, white pickguard thing, but I really don't like the other colors avalible on this bass. The finish and wood will dent easily. I baby all my new guitars, computers, everything. I don't like to break things. But I have small dents in the back, (where no one will see it anyways) that I don't know the origin of. The nut is of course plastic, which will result in a replacement if you use the instrument too long. However, you probably will have improved enough to move on to another bass, maybe a Standard or American Standard Precision or Jazz Bass.

Reliability/Durability : 6
This Bass is decently reliable. It donesn't fly out of tune all the time, which I appreciate. I also like that you don't have to tweak it a whole lot. But the electronics and hardware are bare bones at best, and likely wont last any serious playing. As for gigging this without a backup, if you have the stones to gig this thing, then go ahead and do it without a backup. You have already proven yourself as fearless and daring.

Customer Support : No Opinion
It comes with a One year warranty that I haven's used. I can't say how good support is.

Overall Rating : 8
I haven't played that long, but I know what I want and need out of a bass in this class. If you are looking at this bass, then likely you want similar things that I wanted. I think it is a good, fun bass. As long as you only need something that makes a "bass like sound" then you may have a find. Tone Freaks/Upgraders, look to the Standard (Mexican) Series. There is just too much cheap hardware and low quality wood to be turned into a really really great bass. Pickups will help you if you really need a decent sound and don't want a whole new bass. A good bass for what I use it for. Cool Fender styling, and a great price. A good buy if you know what exactly you are buying and the limits that it has.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $200
Submitted 02/23/2002 at 09:38pm by Erich Bohme
Email: danilo_droguett<at>hotmail dot com

Features : 10

Sunburst Squier P-bass. A chinese cousin of the american Fender Precision classic. It has the basic features (tone and volume knobs, pasive electronics, four strings) but REMEMBER, this bass-guitar was designed back in 1957 so it remains true to the original.

I rate the features of this bass with a 10 because back in 1957, these features where everything you could have hoped from a bass guitar.


Sound : 6

I use it with an american Fender RAD 25W bass amp. The sound is alright (warm, somewhat dark) if you're playing ballads like The Eagles in fingerstyle but it got pretty dull when playing KISS so I have to go using the pick very close to the bridge to get a punchier/lighter/metallic sound. I have played the original Fender Precision bass and what I know is that Fender sound is kinda frustrating if you're going to play KISS.

The problem with the sound is the same problem all pasive Fender basses have but if you're looking for a good bass at this price then this is the right choice. Really better than YAMAHA, Epiphone, Washburn and Samick.

A good trick here is to change strings for better ones. The strings supplied are very low quality.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 9

As I've pointed before, this bass remains true to the Fender P. The fourth tunning peg feels kinda loose and it came with a poor quality nut but these problems are alright if you consider the price of it.

While it doesnt have the shinny look on the headstock the finish of the body is great (sunburst). The day I went to purchase it I checked all the Squier basses and could notice that most of the colored basses, even some sunburst finishes are honestly an immense turn off. Some shapes are slightly different that the real Fender bass but, rare thing, if you watch closer the thing you're buying you can find that some of the instruments have really a high quality finish, equal of better than some of the Fenders. I thought it was pretty strange that P-basses from the same manufacturer are out there having drastic differences between them. The one I finally purchased looked so good that all of my friends pointed at the finish by saying that it was so "exquisite".

All in all, about finish I would encourage the people with this bass in mind to check closely the differences between basses from this very manufacturer...


Reliability/Durability : 9

Rather heavy and well constructed. Nothing to miss from the Fender you can buy in the same music store. If you really want to know what's good or bad about this bass then ask about the Fender because it is basically the same thing but made with cheaper workers from Industries in undeveloped countries.


Customer Support : 10

The input for the cord plug went loose once, nothing that you can't solve yourself but I used the service because I wanted them to check everything else on the bass. The people where very kind and even gave me some tricks to keep it in excellent shape.


Overall Rating : 9

It may sound rather weird. Four years ago I decided I was going to play bass (I played guitar) because I needed something to absorb my free time and emotions after my girlfriend left me. The best decision I have ever made (the bass, not the girl!)...

While the sound is somewhat dark for my taste, the finish and knobs of the one I have are really amazing. The only thing I hate from this bass is the white pickguard -would have liked to ahve a black one but there are no Squier sunbursts with black pickguard, sad to say...

Apart of this, I am planning to replace the pickups for a Gibson EBO Humbucking pickup but this is just because I like the way that those early 70's Gibson basses sound.
I can say that the only difference between Squier and Fender apart of the name are the tunning keys, pickups and strings.

I recommend this bass to anyone interested in a good instrument at this price range (I rate it with a 9). Obviously, if you want to pay up to $1000 then I think the Rickenbacker or Alembic basses are the best ones around.



Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 150 (#)
Submitted 01/30/2002 at 01:32am by Anonymous

Features : 6
Pretty basic, nothing too special but it does the job.

Sound : 6
I play indie/punk/rock and it sounds good through a decent amp but through a smaller practice amp the E and A strings loose some of their depth.

Action, Fit, & Finish : No Opinion
The bass was pretty well set up and it everything was where it should have been.

Reliability/Durability : 7
The body and neck of the guitar is bomb proof but the tone knob keeps falling off so you have to keep a screwdriver handy. I do use it without a backup and overall its quite reliable.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never had any problems

Overall Rating : 8
Fairly good quality cheap bass that sounds reasonable and is good to play.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: #130 (English pounds)
Submitted 01/07/2002 at 01:23pm by Zeeb warrior

Features : 5
4 string bass with 2 controls (volume and tone.) Tone control makes very little difference to overall sound nomatter how much you turn it.

Sound : 8
I play mostly punk- this bass sounds great! It is really punchy and warm sounding but is deep sounding too. The E and A strings sound good but the D and G strings are too loud and come out of tune easily.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
Strings come out of tune easily but the rest of the bass is solid. The shiny black finish chips relly easily though. Nothing else on this bass had to be adjusted (apart from when I snapped the scratchboard)

Reliability/Durability : 8
I have played this bass for 6 months now and it has withstood bangs and crashes into doors and walls. It worked well live (no need for a backup) but my strap comes off really quickly. The bass hasn't needed to be repared and when the scratchboard snapped it wasn't due to dropping the bass. (The lead was in the bass and when I pulled it out I bent the scratchboard snapping it.)

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never needed to contact fender.

Overall Rating : 9
I bought this bass as a starter bass and it has performed brilliently. Take care of it and it will last a long time. I don't own any other bass and don't need to (this bass will sound good for ages) but I hope to get a new bass soon. If someone stole my bass I would hunt them down and retreive it or buy a new one. My friend owns a washburn which sounds bad next to mine (to high pitched and stringy.)


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $340
Submitted 11/19/2001 at 04:54am by Anonymous

Features : 6
4 string bass, with only 2 controls (volume and tone) with a bad finish. This is a passive bass with a precission body style.

Sound : 7
If you like Maiden, and you're starting to play you will find this kind of KLA KLA sound in this bass.
The first and second strings sounds pretty good, but the third and the last are quite noisy and so much dark.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 5
The finish is horrible specially the controls, but the touch of the strings is pretty good.

Reliability/Durability : 7
Is a cheap bass and is made just to play, so this bass will souns allways in the same way, don't woory about it!

Customer Support : No Opinion
Don't know! When i have problems a resolve them by me.

Overall Rating : 6
Good bass to start to play, even you can play live with it...Begginers allowed.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $150-200
Submitted 11/18/2001 at 06:14pm by DT
Email: ferkungamabooboo at aol<dot>com

Features : 4
Standard Mexico 2000-01 Squier P-Bass. There's not much I can say about it, its all standard stuff.

Tone and Volume, but the Tone doesn't do much for me.

Nice for price though.

Sound : 7
Decent, but I'm only a beginner (3 months!)

Does buzz a lot, especially on the two end strings (G- and E-strings), but you can get around that by a few things, so it does stop.

There's little variety to the sounds, unless you tune it to quarter steps or something... it does make a solid sound though, especially for the price .

Action, Fit, & Finish : 6
The bass was set up fairly well when I got it from Guitar Center.

Some of the pegs do loosen pretty easily though.

Pickups were pretty good, but the are set so that the E string clicks on the pickups some... it does get annoying after a while.

Finish is good.

Reliability/Durability : 10
Everything on this is sold. I've actually dented walls with this.

If i dont do anything stupid, the stuff probably will last, but I'm hoping to change a lot of it to get different sound.

The strap buttons are solid.

Customer Support : No Opinion
No chance to use, and don't want any. Heard Fender's tech support is awesome.

Overall Rating : 8
It's a good beginning bass for beginners. The ringing is VERY annoying until you find out how to fix it.

If it were stolen, I'd seriously track the person down. Just because I'm broke most of the time. (fragments are fun)

It sounds pretty good with this 5-string the guy who's teaching me has.

I wish the tuning pegs would lock. that would make my E-string very nice.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $220
Submitted 10/29/2001 at 01:39pm by John

Features : 3
Bought in 1997 as a starter bass. Made in Indonesia. 4 string, 20 frets. One volume, one tone, split P-style pickups, passive elec. No frills basic bass. Can't complain for the money

Sound : 2
Beginner bass with a beginner sound, very limited.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
Action was very good for the price, neck was relatively straight. Fretwire wasn't files very well, but at least I have never sliced my hand on it.

Reliability/Durability : 9
Solid construction all around. Pickups crapped out only 3 weeks after I bought the bass. Good beater bass otherwise.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never dealt with Fender directly. Took to GC repair for warranty pickup replacement. Replacement pickups had to be ordered from Indonesia. Took 5 weeks. GC tech installed loaner pickups so I could continue playing.

Overall Rating : 3
A good bass for a beginner fir the price (not committing too much $$$ and finding out bass isn't for you). Bass is for me and I outgrew this one in about a year. Bought a used Zon from a friend (like night and day). Sold the Squier to my boss for $100.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US around 200
Submitted 09/15/2001 at 10:05pm by Ronny Thumbs
Email: son-of-kazan at home<dot>com

Features : 7
1999 I think. No bells or whistles, just a volume and tone, but that is really all you need. I could go on about the stupididty of active electronics and so forth but I will save you the time.

Sound : 8
I play with the tone all the way up and I have noticed some fret noise, but I kinda like that sound anyway. It used to buzz, but I got a better amp and it stopped buzzing almost totaly. However I have noticed when I turn the florescent lights on in my room it starts buzzing like a beehive that you set on fire with bottlerockets. All in all it is a good sound a simplistic punk type approach, I play with a pick and have no complaints.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 9
I think I might have lowered the action a hair a few months after I first got it, but it was my first bass so I didn't know what I was doing. The finish is still in excellent condition which is remarkable if you see how much I abuse the poor fella.

Reliability/Durability : 10
As I mentioned before, I put this baby through hell and there isn't any noticable dings or scratched. There are a few dents on the backside, but those are from the arms of a chair I sit in when I play sitting down and from my knees when I play standing up. I once threw it into a wall and it bent the G string tuner and it was loose, but I stuck a piece of duct tape in it and fixed it right up. I would definatly gig with it without a backup, which is saying a lot...(remember Krist Novoselic throwing his Ripper in the air at the '92 VMA's? I've been there before...)

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never had to deal with them. In fact I never sent in my waranty card.

Overall Rating : 9
I have been playing with it all my days as a bass player (a whole year and a half) I love this bass, perhaps it's the sentimental value or whatever, but I love it, plus it's got heart, you know, like the little engine that could. This is the little cheap bass that all the hotshot "I play a 17 string Ibanez $25,000 bass" people say sucks, that actually is a real nifty bass. I plan on using it my whole career, not as a main bass but as a backup, just for the sake of playing my first guitar. I also own a Cort B4 fretless that I like except for the active electronics (too confusing) and the action is too low. If someone stole this I would hunt them down, hang them up by thier toes and beat them with wet leaves until flesh started falling off.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 239 (Canada)
Submitted 08/25/2001 at 05:10pm by Kris
Email: kris_storbeck at hotmail<dot>com

Features : 9
I dunno how old my guitar is, but i recently bought it, it was cheaper then the yamaha bass, and sounded better, features were great, thats all i can say.

Sound : 6
I like the sound but i can hear my fingers move on it, but im mostly into the Mark from blink 182 bass guitar sound, oh well it still has an ok sound

Action, Fit, & Finish : No Opinion

Reliability/Durability : 10
I would love to be on stage with this guitar if i knew more. But im gonna try. the guitar i think will last me long! nice strap button solid, i can depend on it! the neck hardly needs to be adjusted. Since its a bass, i would love to have my friend with the fender guitar, not bass, to be with me asa backup. but if its any other basses, i like being alone!

Customer Support : 10
I dont know how long it is in warrenty, i got mine at lakeshore and they were very nice!

Overall Rating : 10
I am just gonna upgrade my guitar till its da bomb, if i lost it, i would find out who stole it and steal their money to pay for the lost. i love the feeling when you hold it, i dont like the bit feedback, i compared it to the yamaha one, yamaha was more expensive and didnt sound as great or anything. i whish though it had a bit better sound. I think anyone who starts playing like mne should get this one!


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $200.00
Submitted 08/22/2001 at 09:31am by r hall

Features : 8
The bass is about 2 years old. I think that it's a Mexican model, though I'm not sure. People always bitch about U.S. basses are better. Look wood is wood, and dimensions are dimensions. If the wood was cut, aged, and put together correctly, the foundation is correct. Mexico has a similar climate to the U.S, so theoretically the wood properties should be similar.




Sound : 2
The original pickups and electronics sucked. I had them replaced with authentic Fender products. This drastically changed the sound. Replaced the original nut with a graphite unit. This upgrade was not at all expensive.

The bridge was replaced with a Carvin unit, and ferrules were added.

I play through Hartke, and now the bass sounds like a jem. I've had offers up to $700 dollars for the bass, but I won't sell it.

Next on the list is a Sadowsky preamp.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
The bass is about two years old now. It is Natural Maple with the maple/rosewood neck/fretboard combo. Bought it from guitar center. It was the only "Natural" Squier that I've seen to date. Most of them have that crappy paint on them.

Also, had my tech make me a tortise shell (I spelled that wrong) pickguard to replace that shitty one ply thing.

Reliability/Durability : 10
Very solid bass. It is also very well balanced whether playing while sitting or standing.


Customer Support : No Opinion
Haven't had to use them.

Overall Rating : No Opinion
I bought this bass because I saw it as a diamond in the rough. It had a really good look (natural wood, etc), and a really nice natural tone. I believe that if a bass sounds good unplugged, it can be made to sound good plugged in (with some work of course).

For me I was able to build a custom P bass for about $550.00 (bass included) that I wouldn't trade for the world.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: N/A
Submitted 08/17/2001 at 07:55pm by Joe
Email: audiotalk at hotmail<dot>com

Features : 9
it was made in the us. 20 frets. solid top. volume and tone controls. single coil pickup. maple neck. satin finish. thinline body. non locking tuner. thin scale.

Sound : 10
great for beginers. rich full sond. it is pure and great.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 10
loved how it was put together. no problems at all.

Reliability/Durability : 9
i play live and i get compliments. i will probably pass it down to my kids if they want to play on it.

Customer Support : 10
i got a 30 day warrenty that i didnt even need as far as i am conserned

Overall Rating : 10
all i can say is that it is perfect for beginners. and i would die if i lost it. GO OUT AND BUY ONE


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $200
Submitted 08/01/2001 at 06:38pm by Joe

Features : 5
To start off, this bass costs about $200. Ranking from 1 - 10 in each catagory is ranking for a $200-$400 bass. It's totally different when you get inot the $500+ prices. Just remember that.


This is a pretty good bass for the beginning player. I have no clue where Fenders are made, let alone Squire. It's got passive Electronics. Bad buzzing, so don't use it for a gig! This bad mama bass is only good for practice and learning whats what about bass playin. The only controls are Volume and Tone (not much to work with).

Sound : 4
I suits the style of "beginners". No amp efects. No amp in the world could help this bass. Likes are that it helps new bass players very well for the player on a budget. The only dislike is the bad humming.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
No flaws. Finish isnt bad. Not much to say for a cheap bass.

Reliability/Durability : 4
My jack is about to die, so thats the first to go on this bass. Hardware doesnt look like it's gonna last. This bass was designed thinking the player would get a new bass in 3 - 4 years.

Customer Support : 7
Customer support for Fender is very good if you go back to the store. No luck emailing.

Overall Rating : 6
I've been playin a year. I'm close to being the nw owner of an Ibanez EDA 900. If it was stolen, definitly buy somethin else. All other basses I've played for that cost $300 sound way better. But thats the way it goes gettin a cheap starter bass.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $200
Submitted 05/31/2001 at 08:49pm by Martin
Email: mar24tin<at>yahoo dot com

Features : 6
cool for beginners. it doesn t mean is a cool bass.
squier black/white was my first bass and i was very satisfied until i played other basses. in that moment a knew a had a piece of junk in my arms. but if you look at the price is hard to get something much beter.

controls: tone, volume and...stop!
materials: cheap.


Sound : 5
sounds like a cheap bass, what do you spect for 200$???
advice: dont try to record, sounds like a bee.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 4
maybe japanese, usa or mexican models have a great finish.
chinese finish is toooooo bad.

Reliability/Durability : 5
another advice: dont use this bass on a gig, i didnt do it but a friend of mine had a big bad night...mare

Customer Support : 8
never went to repair store. a strong bass.

Overall Rating : 9
i played this bass for a year 1/2.
now i have a Ibanez EDB-690 and a Washburn freetlees. now, if i didnt have this two beauties and i should have to start like a begginer, from zero knowledge i'll buy it again without a doubt because is hard to buy something with a cool sound, great finish, nice feature, powerfull pickups, selected a expensive wood, etc. everything for 200$??? that impossible my friend. (im talking about brand new basses, of course).
its a nice bass because its a cheap bass.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $220 or something.
Submitted 03/19/2001 at 11:31pm by Anonymous

Features : No Opinion
3 silver knobs. A split P bass pick-up. A jazz pick-up in the bridge.

Sound : 7
It sounded good enough for the price.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 1
This it where it gets a little rough. Everything seemed fine .

EXCEPT THE SANDING OR POLISHING OF THE EDGE OF THE FRETS. SO ROUGH THEY SCRAPED MY HAND. TERRIBLE.

Reliability/Durability : No Opinion
I ONLY HAD IT ONE DAY !!!

Customer Support : No Opinion

Overall Rating : No Opinion
I been playing guitar for about 6 years. I bought this bass for fun and just laying down some grooves.I WAS EXTERMELY DISAPOINTED to get this home and start playing it . Soon I noticed the HORRIBLE job done on the finish on the edge of the frets. I have played 100 dollar Peavy's with a way Nicer finish. It was so bad I think the factory might have not even finished it !!!!! The sound was alright to me. But the finish made it feel like a piece junk. I returned it the very next day. Then Up-graded to a standard Jazz bass.

If you like a nice finish and you plan on a Squire , my advice is to check the finish very carefully.

If all squires are that bad. Fender is laughing pretty good on the labor costs they are saving !!!


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $200
Submitted 03/10/2001 at 11:43am by Anonymous

Features : 5
This bass was made in 1902 when a giant fat man sat on a chair, destroyed it and decided to make a curved coffee table from it. This same table was passed down generation to generation untill the current founders of Squier ripped the top from the table a voted it the new standard of Squier guitar body's. It has 24 vibrating machines (i refuse to call them frets), 1 horrid p-style pickup, 4 unlocking detuners a volume and tone controll that changes the sound from shitty to shitty. The pickup is obviously passive and the bridge was luckily placed at the bottom of the body. (Good Job Squier)

Sound : 5
The sound sounds like a distinct gurgle known to come from a baby's mouth after puking accompanied by a swarm of thousands of killer bees buzzing rambuncsiously over the noise of someone farting all too loud.
it doesn't suit my music style, it doesn't suit music. You can get some good fart noises though.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 5
Every string was set up at a different hieght from the fret board, but at least the fret board wasn't entirely impossible and aggravating to play. Well maybe it was but at least the....uh....this bass has less personality and tonal range then Britney Spears.

Reliability/Durability : 6

Customer Support : No Opinion

Overall Rating : 1
There's a time where everyone breaks down and cries but I do every day when I try to play with my friends. It's not to bad.. with a lot of praying and finger blisters we can all make it out of the squier expireince alive. I also own an Ibanez EDB 690 bass wich I would like to have sex with after playing my squier.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $190
Submitted 02/26/2001 at 12:39pm by Anonymous

Features : 5
This P Bass was the bottom line issue from a few years ago, bought it a two years ago from guitar center. It has the two single coils put together that is the standard squire p bass config, Passive.

I don't know what the body and neck are made of, I think it's lead because it weights a TON. It has the cheap bridge, big tuners, etc.

Sound : 1
Let me tell you, this bass is noisy and the tone is dead. I've played this bass on everything from vintage tube bass amps to digital bass amps and the quality NEVER improves. The sound is thin with the fender steel strings, and when you turn the volume down even a little you lose all of your balls *like THAT*.

The sound of this bass is really my biggest complaint. I could care less how it looks. Can't record direct because it's too noisy and the upper frets have a clearer and MUCH louder tone than the lower frets that are muddy and useless. I would be ashamed to take this bass out in public.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 3
The action when I took this home from GC was so high it was almost unplayable, but since I didn't know any better at the time I thought "that's the way basses play" HA. I adjusted the truss rod for a period of months, every other day trying to get the strings to lay low without buzzing. Did not happen.

The frets were not filed down on the ends, which sliced little pieces off my fingers every once in a while.

It wasn't until a buddy of mine who PLAYS bass picked it up and explained to me how badly I needed to torch it Jimi style. He handed me over his mexi-jazz and I about hit the roof!

Reliability/Durability : 2
Sure you can play this bass live, if you wanted to. If the bass was a very unimportant part of your sound. If you wanted little pieces of your fingers to get ripped off while you played. If you wanted to constantly fiddle with the tuners to keep it in tune.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Haven't dealt with Fender, I hear they have wonderful customer support, maybe I would go to them with my complaints. But maybe since I paid $190 brand new for it, I shouldn't expect it to be worth a damn.

Overall Rating : No Opinion
My Personal STRONG opinion is:

Many people will tell you that this bass is good for a beginner. This bass is good for a kid who you think is going to let it collect dust. Don't buy this bass for anyone you think is REMOTELY interested in pursing the instrument. Save up a little, buy a better USED bass. One that has good sound, will play with out buzzing like a bee keeper after drinking a six pack, that can have a good action. Look around, don't be fooled by the rhetoric and BRAND. This is Squire NOT Fender.

After I learned how wrong I was in purchasing this bass (which has a resale value of SQUAT, obviously) I pursued a finer fender jazz bass and I am much happier.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $250
Submitted 01/30/2001 at 03:09pm by Anonymous

Features : 8
It is a nice little guitar with just the things you need. For instance it has only a volume and tone knob which is really all you need.

Sound : 4
I really am dissapointed with the sound Quality. It is constantly buzzing and is really kind of boring i guess you could say in the sound department.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
It was definately in great condition when i got it and hasn't scratched or anything else yet so i'm pretty happy with its construction.

Reliability/Durability : 9
I am definately not afraid to rock out on this little guy because it is sturdy and is just (probably) never gonna fall apart.

Customer Support : No Opinion

Overall Rating : 9
This si the perfect beginning bass for anybody. I love it to death (except for its sound). If you are just starting or just need something to jam on during a practice, this si the perfect little bass for you.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: N/A used
Submitted 01/25/2001 at 05:54am by Nicola
Email: Nicoliavitch at hotmail<dot>com

Features : 6
I don't know when this bass was made or even where it was made but it rocks! It has 19 frets, 4 strings. Volume and tone controls. Ive got a Black one with a white scratchgaurd. Although I got no accessories, this is a really great bass for begginers.

Sound : 10
I like to play a lot of rock and blues sort of stuff on my bass which is good 'cos it'll sound good playing anything. It can go quite loud when you really want it to! It has a rich, warm sound. It has a large variety of notes. I only really play it in my study so I can't tell if it sounds good in a studio/stage yet. I like the shape and contours for your body which the bass has. It makes it more comfortable to hold.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
It's perfect! I can't really find any flaws or problems with it.

Reliability/Durability : 7
I think the bass can cope with live playing. I think it will last for a really long time unless I start smashing it (nirvana style). I would use this bass without a backup.

Customer Support : No Opinion

Overall Rating : 10
I have been playing for a while now. If it were lost stolen broken whatever then I would not buy it again. I would buy a Tanglewood Warrior 3 because it looks so much more interesting! I love the fact that I've got it!


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: N/A
Submitted 01/11/2001 at 06:39pm by Anonymous

Features : 5
Uh let's see, A single precission pickup, 19 frets, a volume controll and single tone control. Dispite the small amounts of features, this is a great bass to start out with. simple and straight forward.

Sound : 7
I actually sold this bass about 8 months ago (I have been playing bass for a year now) and I got an Ibanez SR390. The sound for this bass was ok. I had a cheap Gorilla practice amp, so I really cant say anything about this bass, good or bad.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
I bought this bass used for $175 and one of the tuners were loose, which I fixed with some super glue. The action was a bit too low, but that was adjusted.

Reliability/Durability : 8
It's a big heavy old bass. built like a tank.

Customer Support : No Opinion

Overall Rating : 7
I'd hafta give this bass a 7. It's a PERFECT starter bass, but after about half a year of this, I got tired so i sold it for the ibanez soundgear, which had more controls. I didnt have that much versatility with this bass, but when your starting out you really dont want a bass with 400 different controls. so, if you're gonna start playing bass, GET THIS ONE!!!


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: N/A used
Submitted 12/25/2000 at 06:56pm by Anonymous

Features : 9
Basic really. P-bass body, passive single p-bass pickup. Red w/white pickguard. Bought it from a friend, so there were stickers on the fretboard and a pick holder on the front of it, but, though it looked cool and all, I took them off for a clean look. Not sure of materials, but don't really care all that much to be honest. Basic string-thru bridge um, bridge. Butterfly tuners. Single volume and tone knobs. Nothing real fancy, so I'm happy. I don't really need 100 controls and a wild paint job or anything. Stickers work fine when I need something different.

Sound : 10
I love this sound. The only problem with it at all is that if you hit the pickup, you hear a click, but I play close to the bridge most of the time anyway, so I don't worry about it too much. It's got a really great sound for punk music. I use dean markley blue steel ML strings on it right now, but I'll change it to ernie ball hybrid slinkys when I change strings next. It's usually pretty quiet too, which is a good thing. Very bright in my opinion. Like I said, perfect for punk w/right strings.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
When I first got this, the action was a bit high. It was very difficult to play. I lowered it, but it still wasn't very easy to play. I also had to lower pickups then. I didn't know what was wrong, still don't, but I kept using it, and shortly after I started using it, it worked fine. I now love this thing more than anything. The volume control doesn't work though. When I first used it, it worked perfectly. When I used it again, it didn't work. It went from off to on directly, no actually volume control. I just use the amp to adjust volume, and it's fine, so I'm happy with it and don't care, but some day I may get it fixed so I can use it when I need to w/volume control.

Reliability/Durability : 10
This thing is very sturdy. When I got it, I put strap locks on it right away, but thats' just me. I always use straplocks. I don't like dropping guitars. The only problem with this was that the screw was too small at the bridge end, so I had to move the hole up about 1/2", and it went in tight (very tight). It's sturdy. The neck end horn screw went in tight and fine right off, so it's sturdy. Not problems other than that. Finish is strong. I think it's got a scratch or two on the back, but that's from my belt buckle I'm guessing. I depend on this for sure.

Customer Support : No Opinion

Overall Rating : 9
I've been playing bass for a year. I own a peavey milestone II that I got off my friend over the summer that I use every once in a while, but really only as a practice bass. I also have an ibanez SR 400, which I love, and have had since I first started playing a year ago. I actually use this bass more just cause I'm used to it now, and the strings on it are new, so it's got a better sound. My ibanez is my "show bass" so to speak, cause it works really well and doesn't have any problems. I love this bass very much, and I use it a lot. I play punk music usually (not in a band on bass though, but I still play a lot), and I'm also in jazz band. This works well for both actually. Tone control works very very well. Volume knob doesn't as mentioned above. This bass is also neck heavy. I didn't notice it when I bought it, but it really bugged me for a bit, but now it doesn't. It's still neck heavy, but maybe the strap I use holds it better or something? I dunno. It just doesn't really seem as heavy anymore, so it's really comfortable. I like the thick neck on it. They're fun to play on. I bought this bass w/o trying it. There were no strings on it, but the neck was good still, and I had played it a few months earlier and loved it. I also got a very very good price on it. It was in near mint condition (with exception of stickers, it was actually), and he sold it to me for a very very cheap price (I actually paid more than what he asked for cause his price was too low!). It's a great bass, and if you want something to play on, pick it up. P-basses are great. Squiers are good for learning, or even when you know what you're doing. They're very sturdy and feel like a professional bass I think. If you have the money, go for a fender standard, and if you have even more money, get an american p-bass. I love them. The only basses I'd get over a p-bass would be a music man stingray bass (4 or 5), maybe a jazz bass (I love them too. I'd get either a p- or j-bass. I love them both exactly the same), or if I could, a custom fender bass. Jazz body with a p-pickup, maybe a p- and j-pickup combo, and a 24 fret neck (maybe), Something along those lines.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $212
Submitted 12/08/2000 at 04:37pm by spartacus
Email: spxrtxcus<at>aol dot com

Features : 5
It is pretty well equipped for a beginning bass, i got it a couple years ago, and have been beating on it pretty bad since then. I think it's gotten one setup in its life, but i pray for it late at night when i'm alone in my room, so its doing good. really, really good.

Sound : 5
the sound quality is pretty good. it would be better if it wasn't equal to or worse than it, however, it also might not be quite so good if i smashed it on a [large] rock in southern california, where i don't live, have never been, and have no desire to go. actually, one time i did want to go there, but i didn't. cuz it was kinda far from my house. really, really far.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 6
over time my once decent action on the bass has degenerated into approximately .3452001 inches at around the 12th fret. i attribute this to 'make the action on your bass pretty bad' gnomes. these are secret, magic creatures that venture into our music rooms late at night and yank and pull the strings with all of their might. all their might isn't a lot, but if they do it every night, the action gets bad. really, really bad.

Reliability/Durability : 8
I've punished this thing more than a pair of jewish twins in germany in 1939. its hit walls, cars, guitars, siblings, churches, stages, amps, beer cans, venus fly traps, and there are barely any signs of dents or other imperfections, or as i like to call them, gangly badoodles. hot and cold weather don't affect the bass too much, and if they do, i don't notice (probably cuz i'm a dirty mick, and dirty micks don't notice too much, except when their only source of food [potatos] runs out, and their whole family starves to death or moves to america). and to leave your country. its really, really sad.

Customer Support : No Opinion
never dealt with it. EVER. reall, really never.

Overall Rating : 5
Its a good bass for beginners, or people that are in awesome bands and are planning on smashing the bass at the end of the show. i don't know anyone in these bands, and even if i did, i probably wouldn't tell anyone, nevermind the few strangers that might have read this review. all i know is, and this is actually not all that i know, although it is a tiny bit is, damn, you've got me off track, and i forgot what i was going to say. i can't believe you. thanks a lot. seriously, why did your parents have you? you don't deserve to live. nope. not you, you are a waste of vital nutrients and water. i'm ashamed that you are reading what i wrote. absolutely disgusted. fine. k. bye.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $150
Submitted 11/25/2000 at 12:11pm by mike krzywick
Email: mikedcracker<at>hotmail dot com

Features : 7
my bass is a 2000 squire p bass, made in china. it has passive electronics, 20 frets, rosewood fretboard, dont remember what wood its body is, black body, white pickgaurd. Its a really simple bass, with a really simple sound.

Sound : 5
I play in a punk band and the noise isnt really punchy enough for what i do. I play with through a fender bxr 25 and it gets pretty solid sound, but it doesnt stand out in any way. It has almost variety in sounds. I've only been playing bass for six months, and 2 monthes after i got this bass i despertely wanted a new one. If the style of music requires crappy bass sound, u would love this bass.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
The action, fit and finish wer fine when i bought it, the volume and tone knobs came off three weeks after i got it, and the g string saddle was upside down.

Reliability/Durability : No Opinion
I havent really tested its durability, but it isnt very reliable. the output jack broke a month ago, but thats something that all p-basses suffer from.

Customer Support : No Opinion

Overall Rating : 7
It's a decent beginners bass i guess, but i got tired of it really fast, and i suck. if it were stolen i wouldnt be that mad, (i just got an american series jazz bass so i wouldnt be missing it) the only reason i would be upset about this bass being stolen is if i didnt have anything to play. I wouldnt play it live without a backup if i had a choice, and this will be my backup. Overall, this bass is just average, and if u r looking for a cheap, average bass this is your bass


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: N/A
Submitted 10/09/2000 at 09:33pm by Jeff

Features : 7
This was a 1996 squier p bass, black finish with white pickguard, 20 frets, 4 strings yada yada yada, you know the drill. It had a rosewood fretboard, and was made somewhere in korea. Not big on features, but it's a P-bass, you know?

Sound : 6
This was an okay bass. I borrowed it from the "bassist" in my former band who didn't wanna play bass, actually, and then returned it after a month. I played it through a rented Frontman 15B, and.. well, it sounded just.. average. It's not really versatile, it just does one or two sounds. It hummed like a bitch, I recorded at home with it, wasn't too happy with it.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 9
The action was decent, I didn't really know what I wanted back then, seeing that it was my first bass. There were no big scratches either.

Reliability/Durability : 10
Okay, this is where the bass really shines. It's really reliable, never had a problem with it during the short time I had it. The bassist in my band played with it, dropped it a few times, worked fine. It'll last. I'd gig with it without a backup, cause it's not a bad bass.

Customer Support : No Opinion

Overall Rating : 9
I've been playing guitar for 2 years, and I switched to bass 6 months ago, when I got this bass from my friend. I returned it after a month and I rented a squier jazz bass for another month. Right now I have a hohner b2b headless, and an ibanez rickenbacker 4001 copy. If it were stolen, I wouldn't care, cause it's not that great, ya know? I'd probably get a standard jazz bass, though, if it were stolen. Umm... that's it. It's a good beginner's bass, I learned off of it, so it's not bad... that's right... not bad...


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $200.00
Submitted 09/15/2000 at 11:20am by Roland
Email: hall_roland at hotmail<dot>com

Features : 7
My Squier is one of the better low end basses. It is a natural Maple that orignally had a white pickguard.

Since I bought the bass, I've upgraded the pickups to authentic Fender Alnico Precisions. I've had the pickguard changed to a brown tortise shell, added a Carvin bridge (it's aluminum, so it's really bright), and I've also added furrules, a brass nut, and a hipshot tuner. The electronics were also changed. Squier equipment is notorious for electronic failures. Now the bass sounds like it is supposed to. There is nothing squier about this bass anymore!

I play through an Eden setup with a Zoom 506 pedal and a Dunlop Crybaby Bass Wah. I only use GHS boomers. (They're cheap and they last a long time). This bass sounds good live, or in the studio. Personally, I believe that you don't have to buy a Curbow, Zon, or Alembic to have a good sounding bass.

It's all in the fingers folks!

Sound : 10
Many people don't know that there is a diffence in body wood types for the "natural" and painted guitars. The painted ones are nothing more than plywood. Trust me, you don't want that. It will be a few months before screws start "stripping" themselves out of their holes. If you can get ahold of a naturally finished instrument, get one. To me, they even sound better. You don't have all of that damn paint covering the natural tonal characteristics of the wood. Play both types dry, and listen to the resonance of both. I promise, you will notice a difference in overall sustain.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 10
Mine underwent major changes, but originally it was o.k. The strings were too high to properly fret notes. This was a minor adjustment though. The original pickups had more buzz than I can take, but they didn't last for a week after I got the bass.

The finish is excellent. Natural Maple, with a maple neck, and rosewood fingerboard.

Reliability/Durability : 10
It's a Fender, so it will last. No problems to report.

Customer Support : No Opinion
I've been going to the same tech for years. Never had to use customer support.

Overall Rating : 10
A decent bass with tons of potential if placed in the proper hands. Basses don't have to cost a million dollars to sound good. Proper tuning and maintenence, and a common sense approach will yield a quality instrument. Play several squiers before deciding on one.

Add another two to three hundred dollars for upgrades, and this will be comparable to an American Precision bass. Nobody will know the difference when they hear it.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: 175 (GBP) used
Submitted 08/15/2000 at 06:24am by Allan D Jackson
Email: none

Features : 7
1994(?) Japanese model in bright red with white pickguard (like Hank Marvin's Stratocaster!!!). Standard passive split pickup with single volume and tone controls. I didn't like the volume and tone control knobs because you couldn't tell the setting by looking, so I pinched a pair off a friend's Gibson Les Paul (he had replaced them - I don't really steal from my friends!!!) Pretty basic really.

Sound : 8
I play through a HH Electronic B100 amp which gives me the tone I want - that's all I really care about! I had some trouble with the pickup humming when I first got it, but after dismantling, cleaning, and setting it up I have had no more trouble.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
This is the first bass I have bought so the action seemed OK when I got it. I have made adjustments since to fit my playing style. I have only one niggle - I can't seem to set it up so that I can play slap (the strings always hit the pickup, or the action is too high). That might not be the fault of the bass.

Reliability/Durability : 10
I have never actually gigged with this bass, but I have done a lot of practice. It has been in the boot (trunk) of my car for 2 heavy rear impacts (the last time with the amp) and has survived unhurt both times. Built to last (don't let anybody tell you otherwise).

Customer Support : No Opinion
N/A

Overall Rating : 9
I have been playing this bass for 5 years now and I love it. I have played all sorts of music from rock to jazz and it suits me fine. I would prefer it if it had an active pickup, but who can complain for the price. If it were stolen I would probably not get another but I have no intention of getting rid of it ever!!!


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $219.00
Submitted 06/28/2000 at 10:37am by Johnny Beamsderfer
Email: Jbeamsderfer<at>netscape dot com

Features : 5
Typical PBass style and hardware. Took the pickup cover from my older 1973 PBass for a finger rest. Black finish, white pickguard, dark wood fingerboard.

Sound : 7
Sound is a relative quality. Sometimes a tradeoff is necessary. It sounds like a typical PBass, which is my preference. I use a single, easily transportable Peavey Combo 300 amp, which equalizes properly depending on club or room size.
I play open handed, close to the bridge, so the sound has a tendency to be a little thin from the instrument, and so my emphasis on equalization. My preference has always been D'Adadario flat/round strings, but I never change strings unless they break. This set has been on for the 5 years I've had it, but carry a cheap set of spares just in case. Also went 12-13 years once between string changes. And no, I play in a lot of loud bands!
I've been playing professionally for over 35 years, and playing multiple venues requires transportability and versatility. That equals a robust and reliable instrument. Like this one!

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
Not bad for an el Cheapo. Neck straight, not prone to warping. Bridge easily tuneable for upper neck harmonics. Finish is holding up better than my original PBass, especiall against sweat and tobacco staining (but that was a natural wood finish anyway).

Reliability/Durability : 9
I love that first question about withstanding live playing. It damned well sure better!! A guitar is just a tool, no matter how elitist some players might be about their cherished whatever.
(Did have some recent problems with the horn strap mount pulling out in the middle of a set. Used stuffed bar napkins to get through the night, and then used plastic wood. No problems since.)

Customer Support : No Opinion
If you have to rely on the manufacturer for support, then you haven't bought from the right dealer. A good dealer will understand your needs. As a tool, one cannot be without their instrument when playing professionally. Buy it right the first time (as they say, you get what you pay for!).

Overall Rating : 10
Hey, I know, Squires ain't cool, are they? Of course, there's been problems, albeit minor. The point is it works, all the time, and helps the income. Fender has done a dynamite job of cloning their line.

BOTTOM LINE: YOU CAN'T GET BETTER THAN THIS FOR THE PRICE! Unless, of course, you're one of those arrogant types who would rather fight than switch. Fine, guys. I'm a working professional musician, and most of you who read this aren't. Just get the job done.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $219
Submitted 06/23/2000 at 08:39am by ruth kartmazov
Email: joerosen<at>isdn dot net dot il

Features : 6
normal p-bass. made in 1998 in korea. 20 frets, 4 strings. one precision split-coil pick-up, one volume, one tone. passive electronics. off white with white pickguard.regulag bridge, bolt on neck construction. regular tuners.

Sound : 4
well.. i'm only a begginer, but i already know-that bass sucks. metal sound, likr playing on a fork. used it with old vantage amp, and Peavey mark VIII amp through 2x10 cab.noisy like shit, to bright sound. no vriety at all, tried it with different types of strings. I HATE THIS PIECE OF JUNK!!

Action, Fit, & Finish : 4
the action was as bas as possible when i bought it. even adjusting the truss rod and the bridge didnt help. the pick up adjusment doesnt metter, because it sounds terrible anyway. the finish was good. but i didnt buy it to be a kitchen table.

Reliability/Durability : 10
well... it is strong. wont break. i wish it will.

Overall Rating : 4
im a beginner. i hate this bass. i cant even sell ut because nobody wants it. i wanna get a new one. i wish it was stolen, then i wont have to sell it, and its a good punishment for the thief.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $180 used
Submitted 02/15/2000 at 10:51am by T Kronvall
Email: merzbau at hotmail<dot>com

Features : 7

Pretty standard Bass - this is what you think of when someone says the word, basically. Alder body, Rosewood neck, 22 frets, Black finish that's really think but ships really easily. Mine's probably from the early 80's, if I use the age of my amp to judge. It's got one split, passive pickup, one volume, one tone, and that's about it. It's all original, and it looked brand new when I bought it (used) about 10 years ago, so I know exactly the wear it's stood up to. Not weird or fancy, but very good overall. I hate giving this a low number, because i really don't see what features it needs, but it's about as bare-bones as you can get, so a 7 it is.

Sound : 9
I play it through a Fender Bassman Compact 50 watt combo amp, and quite honestly, the sound is awesome in almost every respect. Good bass response, and lot of highs as well, so it sounds really alive when you play it. I get a real Wedding Present - type tone out of it usually, because the amp distorts really quickly, and I play hard, with a pick, and the tone suits me just fine. I also run it through a Big Muff Pi pedal, which sounds really really nice. Very broken and raw and aggressive. My only complaint is that it picks up a lot of pick noise when you play, though you can remedy that by rolling back the highs either on the amp or the bass itself. It affects the tone quite a bit though, and I've pretty much gotten used to the fact that it will tick whenever I play it. You can't really hear it live anyway. You can get a pretty warm and full bassy tone with the tone knob all the way back, but it's kind of muffled, because it's cheap and passive electronics, and that's not really my sound to begin with, but it's pretty much an all or nothing thing. But I've taken it from metal to bad jazz to indie pop to noise rock all on the same amp, so I'm pretty happy with it. You'll get the sound you want out of it.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 10
It was used when I bought it, but in like new condition, and it really was a beautiful instrument, as far as my memory can be trusted. The finish was bright and clean and mirror-like, and everything was perfectly straight and true and easy to play. I was only in 9th grade though, and hardly an expert. Considering how well it's stood up, I'd have to say it was put together pretty darn well for something that's supposed to be a knock-off of the real thing. I've played a friend's "true" P-Bass, and honestly can't tell much of a difference except for the pickups.

Reliability/Durability : 10
It's only ever had to be set up once in the 10 years I've played it. It never goes out of tune unless you subject to extreme climactic variations. It's survived 2 trips down the cellar stairs (though one time the fall was broken by me), a car accident, and the time I threw it off the stage when two strings broke at once. It's losing little pieces ofthe finish here and there, and it doesn't shine like it used to, but the only repair I ever did was to the tone pot, which blew on me about 3 years ago. I actually think they just did it for me when I had the rest of it set up, because i can't imagaine that kindof thing bothering me enough to address it (it stuck in the full on position, which is all you really need anyway. It's the only bass I've ever owned, so I play out with it all the time, ad the only problem is when I break a string, and that's aplaying style thing morethan anything else. I'd have to make a deliberate effort to damage it past the point of playability. It doesn't hum, the intonation is good, it's (almost) always in tune. Can't ask for more.

Customer Support : No Opinion
never tried. Never had to.

Overall Rating : 10
I learned to play on this bass 10 years ago, and it has never let me down. Any problem I have ever had was so negligible compared to how good it sounds and how easy it is to play (the strings are set kind of weird, and always have been - they sit pretty high off the body, but fairly (not incredibly) low along the neck, so you can fret easily, but still have a lot of room to pick - I prefer that to some basses I've played which were really low the whole way along). I've never questioned the tone, which is quite honestly very good. If it were stolen or lost, I would probably buy a Hagstrom bass somewhere to replace it, because I like Hagstroms a lot, but on the other hand, if I bought a Hag tomorrow, I would definitely keep this bass too. Sentimentality may have a lot to do with it, since it's theone I leanred to play on, but I think the fact that I play out about once a week, and recorded a couple of seven inches and a cd using it, and nevre really had any problems at all with it ever, or any question that there was aburning need to find something new speaks a lot. It was never meant for professional use, I'll grant you, and I'm hardly a professional now, but I honestly can't imagaine needing a whole lot more from an instrument than what I get out of this one. It's cheap enough to get started on without much worry, but it will stand by you for a long long time if you want. Or at least mine has. Maybe I got lucky, but I would recommend it to anyone.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: N/A used
Submitted 02/08/2000 at 09:16am by Brad Henderson
Email: titaniumangel<at>yahoo dot com

Features : 5
Alder Body. Black with white pickguard. One split coil pickup. One volume pot, one tone pot. Bolt-on maple neck with rosewood fretboard. This is your typical P-Bass.

Sound : 5
I play in a Christian rock band, and before that I played in a grunge band. It has your typical 'p-bass' sound to it. The pickup sucks, and the tone pot does not work all that well.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 1
Allright, here is where my major gripes are: you can fix a bad action, but the thing I HATE about fender basses is that headstock that weighs about nine tons. This bass is ballanced terribly. I do not like to have to support the neck with my hand, it makes fretting notes a pain in the butt. The action set-up from the factory wasn't too bad, but the weight of the headstock weighs too much for the instrument to be comfortable. Mabey a few pounds of lead in the bridge would help, but that would also kill your back.

Reliability/Durability : No Opinion
Its a fender... in other words: This thing is a tank. If I sharpened the headstock I could use it to cut down trees (but headstock isnt supposed to be that big!!!)

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never dealt with them.

Overall Rating : 1
The heavy headstock outweighs (no pun intended) any good merit that the bass has. If you are looking for a good bass to learn on, move on. I recomend an Ibanez (GSR 200). On the other hand, if you learn on one of these and get good, switching over to an Ibanez will make playing feel effortless, and will make you sound like a god. If this bass had a light headstock, or was ballenced good, I would rate the instrument much better.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $200
Submitted 02/01/2000 at 10:53am by Jimmy

Features : 5
20 frets, 4 strings, single pickup, one tone control, one volume control. Prety simple. This is defidently a "beginner" bass. I bought this bass for the simple fact to find out whether or not i like playing the bass. It's not a huge investment, so i figured what the heck. Overall it is a good bass, but it is nothing to call home about.

Sound : 7
It has an ok sound, but then again i am judging it on a peavey 20 watt microbass amp. It has a pretty clean sound, not perfect, but for what you pay for it...it's not going to be a studio bass.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 6
My Squier P Bass has a loose fit on the output jack for the cable. Other than that it is in really good shape.

Reliability/Durability : 7
This bass is built pretty well. I beat it up pretty good and it still plays good. It is defidently a "Beginner" instrument, and can handle the mishaps of the beginner player.

Customer Support : No Opinion
never had to need it


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $200
Submitted 01/25/2000 at 02:08pm by Anonymous

Features : 3
Korean made Squier Bass. 1999. 20 frets. One pickup, one tone, and one volume knob. Solid poplar body, rosewood fingerboard. Genero-tuners of dubious orgin, no accessories included.
Yup, the options are mind-blowing aren't they? About as simple a setup as you can get. Not that this is a bad thing...for 200 bucks or less, you better keep it simple.

Sound : 5
Okay, I confess to being a guitar-player. I bought this bass to put some kind of bottom end on home recordings, thinking that *anything* would be better than nothing. Well, not being a real expert on bass sounds, I am satisfied. It booms fairly well and the fretwork is actually good enough to keep everything from buzzing badly. With the tone-knob on full, however, you can really hear the frets clicking. I try to keep it as muddy as possible. I suppose in a performance situation, it wouldn't stand out as a piece of crap, but it does tend to show its warts on my porta-studio. I have to keep it pretty far back in the mix or it embarrasses me. And don't even get me started on my piss-poor bass playing technique...
It sounds like a bass to me. At such low frequencies, the nuanes of tone tend to escape me. It booms and I guess that's what I paid for. Buying anything more expensive would have been casting pearls before swine. I'm satisfied.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
Black finish, white scratchguard. Everything is in fine condition. No flaws on the paint, so I guess the Korean quality-control has improved. Action is high, but so goes a bass. Seems about as easy to play as any other bass I've picked up. Neck is straight and all of the knobs have stayed in their proper place and seem tight.

Reliability/Durability : 7
When there aren't any bells or whistles, there really isn't anything to go wrong. Discounting some kind of catastrophic failure of the neck, I don't see anything unreliable about this guitar. Its about as exciting as a tax audit, but its certainly sturdy.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never dealt with Squier/Fender. Considering the way they mass produce these pupppies, I doubt they would spend a lot of time on the phone trouble-shooting with me.

Overall Rating : 6
I've been playing the bass all of a year, but have played the guitar for about 8 years. I am one of, if not the world's crappiest bass player. BUT, I'm slowly learning the ropes. This bass is as good an instrument as I deserve. A solid beginner instrument, to say the least. I'd highly recommend it for anybody who is learning to play.
In my alter-identity as a guitar player, I have worked my way up to professional gear. I know from experience that really good equipment shouldn't be wasted on beginners...you play too badly in the beginning to really get the tone out of a quality piece of gear. This amp is a bare-bones instrument for newbies, plain and simple. I like. Go buy.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $250
Submitted 01/23/2000 at 01:19pm by Jerry Cork
Email: jcork at turbonet<dot>com

Features : 9
Red, rosewood fingerboard, basic P-bass with a poplar body. The tuners looked cheasy but did fine. If you buy one, *shield it* with copper tape from Stewart-McDonald or Carvin. Without chielding it's noisy.

Sound : 9
It was a good sounding instrument! I liked it better than my American Standard as far as the tone. Shield it and you will have a good bass for the money.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 7
I fiddled with the truss rod a bit, adjusted the bridge, and shielded it (but it was inexpensive to start with). I find some Squiers have pretty brutal fret levelling; this one was good.

Reliability/Durability : 9
The poplar body probably would strip out the screws holding the strap buttons eventually. I used it on several gigs and was happy with it; I only tuned it between sets.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Nevers asked them for help.

Overall Rating : 9
I think you get a great bass for the money. I also find a lot of variation in quality control on lower-end Fenders (they have to save money somewhere). Check them over carefully and spend a few minutes polishing them up, and Squiers can be great basses.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: AUD $400 (With amp)
Submitted 01/16/2000 at 06:49pm by David Scarlett
Email: scarlett<at>alphalink dot com dot au

Features : 6
Not many features, just has one (Passive) split coil pickup, tone and volume controls. 20 frets, top-load bridge. I didn't, but you can get it in a "Bass Pack," which has a strap, video, squier 15w amp, and a gig bag.

Sound : 9
I use it clean through my Fender Frontman 15B, and it has this rich tone which sounds _GREAT_. I would strongly recommend getting it with this amp. Only thing is that you can't get much variety in the sound. I also use it through a Peavy 150w, sacrificing tone for volume, I occasionly use it with chorus (Built into the Peavey), which sounds pretty good.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
The only problem was the original action, but that wasn't too bad, more of a personel preference thing. Other than that I've never had to modify anything on it.

Reliability/Durability : 8
The strap can slip off if it has a twist in it, but otherwise it is solid as a rock.

Customer Support : No Opinion
Never dealt with them, but I think it has a good warranty (or was that my amp.....)

Overall Rating : 9
This bass is perfect for a beginner, the only bass I'd recommend over this (For a beginner) is the Squier P-Bass Special. IMO, get it with a Fender Frontman 15B. I would imagine the Squier amp it comes with in the "Bass Pack" wouldn't sound anywhere near as good.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: english pounds #250
Submitted 01/11/2000 at 04:17am by Joe de Wolf

Features : 8
it's a good bass in the standard precision style but suffers slightly from a lack of features meaning your average bass player might moan that he hasn't got anything to play around with when you want to make a stupid sound.but for me,the split pick-ups really make the bass a pleasure to play.

Sound : 10
top sound; it'll rock your world!

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
action is good,but the third fret had a bit of buzz that needs checking,so i'll get round to it

Reliability/Durability : 10
this bass was my first bass and i still have it now.it isn't the sort of bass that you'd want to be using for recording purposes but for live playing it'll do the job fine.it's also built to last;mine has suffered heavily (numerous moments of being thrown around the room when my group's drummer refuses to shut up when we're tuning up) and still makes the sort of sound that makes the earth quake beneath your feet!i swear to God,this bass will live longer than you will.

Customer Support : No Opinion
to be honest i've never had to contact the company but i'm sure Fender will be as fragrant as their usual selves if i ever want to talk to them

Overall Rating : 10
i basically want to say that this is a top bass for your first bass and is also useful to have around if your main bass is in the shop.i refuse to compare it to other basses because at this price range,it really has no equal.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $150 used
Submitted 09/06/1999 at 01:47pm by Josh
Email: josh<dot>stanley at home<dot>com

Features : 6
I have an early 90's Squier P-bass. During that time, squier started wxperimenting and put 21 frets on it. Well it's back to 20 now. simple but very desirable P-bass pickup with one otne and one volume. A deep red finish. Tuners are in great condition. Got it with a Gig bag. Okay, so I gave it a 6 because it is very bare of any features, but that adds to the beauty of the bass. Expect everything else to be much higher.

Sound : 10
Ooh I like funky bass riffs. Ok so I only listen to alternative and classic rock, but I like to turn that tone knob down low sometimes and just start pumpin' some funky booty bass. Very nice sound; from very light (for a bass) to way down deep. Oh, and I play it through a Crate 15 watt KEYBOARD amp. I actually got it because it was on sale and it has a high, mid/high, a mid/low, and a low tone control instead of just high, mid, low. Sometimes I use my Zoom 1010 effects processor with it, but only when I'm just messing around.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 8
I am primarily a guitar player, so I was disappointed by the aciton of it, but i soon learned that all basses are much harder to play as far as holding down the strings. So for a bass, it's pretty good. Pickups are rock-solid. I bought it used, and somebody had put quite a few nicks on it, but only 2 are visible from the front. Tuning keys are perfect (which you rarely find on used equipment).

Reliability/Durability : 10
Read my other reviews. I am careless with my guitars. This bass especially has taken a beating, but I haven't done any damage to it yet. The guy who owned it before had to have TRIED to kill it or something cause I haven't damaged it at all. My band's drummer is also a guitarist and bassist and except for his bass, I don't even have a backup. I wouldn't need one, though. Everything on this bass is very sound.

Customer Support : No Opinion
I bought it used.

Overall Rating : 10
I have played guitar for 2 and a half years, but the bass for just about a year. I love my bass. When I first bought it, I was kind of embarrased to have a Squier instead of a REAL Fender, but I have learned that the only difference is the name on the headstock and that it's not made in the USA but by some Chinx in a military prison's sweatshop. Oh and no offense to anyone reading this who's oriental in origin. Just being facetious. Oh and if you've read any of my other reviews, you know I have a Epiphone S-310, a Peavey Mystic, an Epiphone Excellente, a Peavey Bravo 112, a little Epiphone tweed amp, a Crate KX-15, and a Zoom 1010.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: N/A
Submitted 08/09/1999 at 03:58pm by Anonymous

Features : 7
21 Fret Neck, 1 P-Bass Pickup, 1 Volume, 1 Tone Knob. Very simmilar setup to a Precision Bass. Came with Bass Kit (Bass, 15w/8" Amp, strap, bag, cable, tools). Doesn't seem to be lacking on any major features.

Sound : 8
It's quiet if you turn the tone knob down, but the more you bring up the highs, you get a lot of fret noise. Good solid lows though with tone set low. Sounds good without any effects, but even better with them.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 9
No problems right from the factory.

Reliability/Durability : 10
Mine's been beaten, but still looks brand new. The paint chipped once when it was hit by a falling tent pole, but other than that "nick", it's help up great.

Customer Support : No Opinion
No problems yet to know 5 year warranty

Overall Rating : 8
I got this as a first guitar, and it's been faithfull to me so far. I would strongly reccomend it to someone else looking to start. I routinly bring it to big gigs (1000+ ppl) w/ no backup, and don't feel I'd ever need one. I only wish it were a 5-string, but that's not the guitar's fault.


Product: Fender Squier P Bass
Price Paid: US $199.00
Submitted 01/07/1999 at 05:59pm by David
Email: headbang at interactive<dot>net

Features : 6
This bass guitar is designed to be a cheeper version of Fender's Precision Bass. It has one P Bass pick up, a tone knob and volume knob.

Sound : 8
The sound of this bass is very good. So good, in fact, that many people would complement me on the sound. It's sound is very authentic P Bass sounding. I do lots of "open mike" gigs and go to professional rehersal halls on a regular basis.

Action, Fit, & Finish : 1
The workmanship looked good in the store. But after just 6 months, the neck started to warp big time. I'm very angry. Also, the tone knob fell off--so I just turn the thing that the knob goes on to change the tone.

Reliability/Durability : 7
Hardware is good. The tuners work great and I dont see any problems in the future with any other aspect of the bass.

Customer Support : No Opinion
No experiance yet.

Overall Rating : 2
My over all feelings about this bass is that it is not worth buying. I bought this to use as a practice guitar to leave at the place that I reherse so that I dont have to keep lugging equipment around. Granted I only paid $200 for it, the bass should still be functional enough to use for practice situations, which it is not.

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