Amazon had a Labor day sale on guitars so I sprung for this Peavey Bass Guitar to replace the guitar that one of my brothers convinced me his son needed. Well, my nephew was graduating from high school. I did say no, but didn’t stick to my guns. That bass guitar only cost me $50 from a pawn shop—it was such a sweet player with a nice feel. I thought I could find a another one, but alas, no such luck.
The Millennium BXP 4 Tiger-eye I chose didn’t cost me as much as they are selling it for this week because of a 20% labor day discount. At less than $200 this instrument will never be an heirloom, but it will be nice looking and functional. It’s features included:
- 34 inch scale
- Hard rock maple neck with rosewood fret board
- 2 way fully adjustable torsion rod
- Basswood body with highly figured quilt maple top
- Two straight single coil pickups, hum canceling when used together
I liked that it has a passive pickup system which means no more futzing with batteries. It arrived in pristine but unplayable condition. This is often the case with new instruments of any ilk sold by non-music shops. Fortunately my other brother, the luthier, had given me the ABCs of buying a decent instrument. Unfortunately he lives in Texas so getting him to tweak the neck and string heights will be a challenge.
I looked for an instrument that I had played before so that I would know how it felt in my hands. This feel is important because if you don’t do this you will often end up replacing the offending instrument which will almost always cost you more in the long run.
I also look for a guitar with a good adjusting rod in the neck. Instruments warp and bend, especially wood 
instruments. Having an adjustable truss bar gives you the ability to adjust and tweak as the guitar ages. (Pictures: Parson’s Diablo, a guitar whisperer’s dream ride)
There are some good bass guitar adjustment guides out there. Although I have been known to play around with guitars and basses, I am not a player. I am also not mechanically inclined. The price for a basic setup in Seattle is $65 which seems a bit high to me for setting up a new instrument. But what do I know?
If my brother isn’t gonna be in town anytime soon, and I have a need to make this instrument available, I may just have to spring for the setup costs. Or maybe I can get my friend Fran to do it for me. ;0)
The Bis Key Chronicles 
I wish I could “set-up” a bass. You need some tools and good tuner. It also doesn’t hurt to have done it a couple hundred times. $65 is a good price. I’m almost positive that I paid $80 for my bass set-up in Boston and that was over 20 years ago when $80 meant a lot more to me than $65 would mean to me (or you) today.
No worries Fran. My brother the luthier just pinged me and he will be in town to teach me how to do it. He taught me how to do it on an accoustic guitar so I have every confidence that this will work. Cheers.
Pingback: Play Violin With Fretless Guides | Violin Lessons Online For Beginners
Ten minutes under Pete’s tutorage and the bass is perfect. Lot’s of tricks, but basically an easy job to adjust the truss rod.