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Pros:
- Good price
- Easy to play for beginners
- Solid electronics
Cons:
- Not the best pickups
- Okay hardware
Getting yourself intro guitars is not an easy task. Getting yourself into bass guitars with no knowledge of instruments is even harder. While as a complete novice you want a quality instrument that will make your entry into the world of bass guitars as easy as possible, you don’t want to spend a lot of money on something that might not even be a long-term interest (I mean… who knows). BUT at the same time, you don’t want a bass guitar that will be so bad it will tarnish your entire experience. And that’s where beginner-friendly, affordable bass guitars come into play. Squier by Fender Affinity P/J Beginner Electric Bass is one of the best examples of quality and price balance. Without further ado, let’s talk if this model is worth your time or money.
Build
This model is a traditional Fender. You get a double-cutaway body made of Alder with gloss polyurethane finish. Alder provides a balance of low, mid and high frequencies. It is lightweight enough for you to play for hours and not get tired but not so lightweight that it feels and sound toyish. The neck is regular C-shaped with a gloss finish. It connects to the body through the 4-bolt neck joint. The rosewood fretboard with dot inlays is pretty well polished and won’t cause you any trouble. Overall, the tonewood and build of this bass guitar are pretty decent. Nothing that would make you risk everything and put all your life’s savings into it, but definitely good enough for what you are paying.
Hardware
So, every time I am reviewing a lower-priced instrument I feel the need to preface it with “in this price range” or “you should not judge it like you would something in a much higher price range”. As annoying and repetitive as it might sound, this is very true. This bass guitar comes at a much lower price ($200) than most high-end guitars, so when it comes to hardware, there had to be corners cut. In case of this Squier, you get a standard headstock with decent quality tuners, a fixed vintage-style bridge, and four adjustable saddles, a synthetic bone nut, and a set of standard die-cast tuning machines on the headstock. Given the price range and the market for this guitars, this is a nice set of hardware that will serve you well for years.
Electronics
The PJ (Precision/Jazz) setup allows for nice tone variation. The passive pickups: single-coil Jazz bass bridge pickup and traditional split single-coil Precision bass pickup allow for versatility of sound and tone. All in all, this might not be a high-end Fender but performance-wise, this is an okay setup that will allow you to get the tone that you want. Unfortunately, some people have had an issue with one or the other pickup, but that is, of course, a fixable issue.
Squier Affinity PJ Sound
What can I say about the sound? Well, first of all, don’t expect a custom shop Fender quality. But as far as a beginner bass guitar is concerned, Squier Affinity P/J Beginner Electric Bass kicks a punch and has a pretty versatile tonal range. What you can expect from this model is a nice definition, decent enough output and versatility in sound.
Conclusion
Squier by Fender Affinity P/J Beginner Electric Bass is a great entry-level bass guitar. It allows you to have control of the sound while not making it too hard for beginners. The Alder wood, decent pickups that allow for versatile tone, and functional hardware provide pretty much anything you can ask for in a beginner bass guitar.
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