Buying a cheap bass to learn to mod/setup?

[Alfonso Alba]

Besides learning to play bass, I would also like to learn how to setup, fix and modify a bass to my liking. Thing is, I don't want to use either of my two basses as a test platform. They're not expensive or anything, but I like them the way they are and don't want to mess them up. Both of my basses are practically new and I haven't even replaced the strings but dread the day I will have to.

I've read several NBD posts about cheap basses that people bought for modding, so I've been thinking about buying a cheaper bass, like a second hand Squier Affinity (about $100 round these parts), tear it apart, put it back together, try to set it up the best way I can, etc. Basically just learn how to do this stuff. I'm not too interested right now in modding, but eventually I might be.

I'm not in a hurry but I just want to know if I should jump on a good opportunity when it comes.

 

[Vinnie Boombatz]

I'll be blunt, if you half half a brain, read up a little beforehand (or watch YouTUbe videos which can tell you how to do pretty much everything these days) and have some basic tools (correct size hex wrench or tool to adjust the truss rod, capo, feeler gauges, correct size screwdriver and/or Allen keys, small ruler or string action gauge that measures to 64th's, and reference something like Fender's set up specs page if you have a Fender bass of course located here: How do I set up my bass guitar properly?) you can't really damage your bass learning to do a basic setup.

Most people are terrified at adjusting the truss rod, mostly from people on forums like this saying things like, "If you don't know what you're doing, leave it to a pro" and "You can damage or break the truss rod if you don't know what you're doing."

While that second statement is true, unless you're a total reckless moron, it's pretty darn hard to break a truss rod unless that's your ultimate goal and unless you're trying to do it on purpose, or there is something inherently wrong with the rod and it was going to break anyway. One thing you can do is use the wrong size wrench and strip the truss rod out, but again, only a moron would do that. In the 25 years of playing guitar and bass I've never damaged or broken a truss rod.

When I got my first guitar when I was 14 I would take it apart and put it back together, and learned what things did. My setups probably weren't great, and I had no book or manual telling me what to do, just learned it as I went along, and I NEVER damaged my guitar, broke a truss rod, etc.

As far as changing your strings, if you don't know how to do that, start there. It's kind of like the equivalent to learning how to put gas in your car, adding oil if it's low, or putting air in your tires. Everyone needs to know how to do those things. After you've done that, move on to the BASIC setup. That means adjusting the relief, action, intonation and pickup height. There are other things that can be done in a basic set-up like filing nut slots, but unlike the relief, action and intonation, this is one thing that you CAN easily screw up, so for now just stick with those few things, and I promise you, unless you just aren't good with tools and have zero common sense, you can't break or damage your guitar. The worse thing you could do is put it far out of spec and you'll have to take it to someone to have them set it up properly. This ins't necessarily a bad thing. Have someone set it up for you how you like it, then take measurements of everything and write it down so you know where you tend to like things and as a reference point for when you screw something up (because you will) and can easily go back to where it was.

Screwing up a setup isn't necessarily a bad thing because it forces you to think and problem solve and means more time trying to correct a problem, and that equates to gaining a better understanding of the instrument and how everything interacts and comes together to get the guitar setup properly. Just like any other skillset, it takes time, but seriously, setting up a bass isn't rocket surgery

 

[TDR1138]

I’m all for learning setups and mods/repair on the Affinity line. They actually make a great bang-for-the-buck line, especially the recent ones. Two suggestions - first, look for ones with the open back tuners; they seem to be a better tuner IMO. Second, look into a Wilkinson bridge for them. They’re usually under $20 online, bolt right on, and make a huge difference in terms of stability and quality. Every Squier Affinity bridge I’ve had (guitar and bass) has had stripped height adjustment screws and just haven’t been the smoothest when it comes to adjustment. (All have been bought used, though, so that may have something to do with it.)

Right now, I have an Affinity J with the Wilkinson bridge and a set of Chomes on it as my “house bass.” It plays great, took a setup well, and I think I’ve only got about $120 into it including the strings...

Good luck!

 

[Malak the Mad]

All great advice, so far! And yeah, a Squier Affinity is a great place to start learning the "nuts & bolts", figuratively and literally, of what goes into a bass guitar and what makes it tick. I'll also second the suggestion that @TDR1138 made about finding one with open-back tuners. I once had an Affinity Jazz with closed-box tuners and they were the only real flaw in the instrument. Everything else was perfectly fine.

 

[Spidey2112]

You never know... you might set the test instrument up so well, you may play it more than you do your others...

 

[GIBrat51]

I bought a very cheap bass several years ago, to practice working on. Starfire violin bass; $129, including shipping. Yeah, I did practice set up, string changes and stuff on it; but I also practiced soldering, changing electronics, and nut/fretwork on it, too. Yes, string changes, truss rods, and set ups can be intimidating if you've never done it before. But, unless you want to get into doing the other stuff, buying a sacrificial goat like I did is probably not necessary. As long as you're careful, and aren't someone who should never be allowed to handle simple tools...
In my case, I learned a lot of stuff that I would never would have, by practicing on, say, my Alembic. And the little Starfire proved to be remarkably tough. It survived everything I did to it, and I finally just put a good set of strings on it; set it up for real; and it gets played just like every other bass I own. Sounds and plays pretty darn good, too...