Fender Squier Debut Series Beginner Precision Bass Guitar, Matte Dakota Red | Starter electric bass for adults, 2-year warranty, free lessons included, matte finish, under $300, classic P-Bass tone

I’m going to start by saying I’ve been playing bass for just shy of 40 years. I own over a dozen other basses in varying price ranges, and have built a couple of my own. I got my Debut because in all these years I have never owned a straight up Precision Bass, they’ve always been P/J, J/J or some other pickup configuration. The price was right and other reviews were very favorable. This one will be as well. I was very impressed with the build quality of a bass of this price point. The satin finish is very smooth and the two tone sunburst just looks fantastic. The hardware is of good quality as well. The tuners, while not the greatest, hold the strings in tune and are classically designed. The bridge is adjustable for the string action and intonation. The ceramic pickups are well constructed and deliver a great tone. The controls are the traditional P Bass controls consisting of simple volume and tone. The round wound strings deliver a bright tone and don’t feel too harsh on the fingers. I played this through a Fender Rumble 25 and a 79 Fender Bassman, both amplifiers complimented the tone of this bass. The set up from the factory was impressive. The intonation was pretty much dead on accurate and I only adjusted the string height to my personal preference. The weight of this bass came in at 8lbs 7oz. The weight was balanced and didn’t have the typical neck dive as lighter basses sometimes display. The fretwork is well done and the neck has a very nice feel with the nut at 38mm or 1 1/2 inches. All in all it’s a great bass for a beginner. This is also a great platform for someone looking for a bass to mod. Squier really came through with a very affordable beginner bass. It is an excellent instrument for its price point. I would recommend their Sonic Series or their Affinity Series for a higher grade level of quality, but at this price, they’re may be others (and I have tried them in this price range) but the Squier Debut is the best of them in my opinion. It’s a great beginner bass with the backing of a brand name company and excellent customer service.

I’ve been playing and teaching music for years, and I picked up the Squier Debut Series Precision Bass as an affordable, no-nonsense instrument—and I’ve been genuinely impressed. Right out of the box, it feels solid and comfortable. The neck is easy to play, especially for beginners, but it doesn’t feel cheap or toy-like. The classic Precision Bass pickup delivers exactly what you’d expect: a full, punchy low end that sits well whether you’re practicing, jamming, or laying down simple bass lines. Tone-wise, it does the job extremely well for the price. It records cleanly, works great with pedals or a basic amp, and holds tuning better than many entry-level basses I’ve tried. Setup was decent out of the box, and with a basic string change and minor adjustment, it plays even better. What really stands out is how usable this bass is—not just for beginners, but also for teachers and players who want a reliable instrument without spending a fortune. I now use it regularly for lessons and practice, and it’s become part of my main rotation. If you’re looking for a beginner-friendly Precision Bass that still feels like a real instrument, the Squier Debut Series is a fantastic choice. Fender absolutely nailed the balance between affordability and playability here. Highly recommended.

This review by my hubby, who plays bass. Summary: This is an amazing bass and a fantastic value. It has worth to the new bassist and the veteran alike. I’m thrilled with it. For the new bassist: This is an outstanding bass for a person wanting to explore the instrument. The price is amazingly low and the quality high. It is a very sturdy instrument, well made and very playable. The single pickup Precision Bass (P Bass) design is a classic...simple and easy to understand. The neck is very comfortable and the sound is true. I’d only suggest two things for the new bassist. First, when it arrives you may want to have a “set up”. If that term is new to you, don’t worry. It merely means making small mechanical adjustments (using Allen wrenches, included with the bass) which make it more playable. You can search and find out to do a bass setup. Better, have a bass player show you how to do it. It will make your playing more enjoyable. Second, consider buying a new set of strings. The strings felt cheap and “gritty” to me... a decent set of bass strings will run you about $30 and will be worth it. This is a marvelous intro bass. And it’s way more in addition to this. For the experienced bassist: I’ve been playing a while but wanted a P Bass platform to get the PB sound I was looking for. I was startled to see these released via Amazon in May 2024. I was very skeptical at this price point, yet owning two MIM Fender Jazz Basses, I was intrigued. Plus, I really wanted a P Bass body but a J Bass neck...which is exactly what the Debut Series has. A couple of bass buddies whom I respect each bought one and raved about it out of the box. For $130, that was enough for me, so I ordered one. And I’m thrilled. I’ve played it nearly 20 hours now and have played in public as part of our church’s worship team. It is super comfortable to play, clearly the equal of either of my $800 JB’s. And the sound! A genuine P Bass! Listening to it on a full sound system, I was astounded to get that sound from a $130 bass. Not a single one of my bandmates suspected my bass was this inexpensive. Instead, they commented on how good it sounded in our mix. Further, several knowledgeable musicians who heard it commented on its clarity and how it added to our overall sound. Details.... I did several things but not much to modify this bass out of the box. First, I got rid of the stock strings...they felt really cheap. I replaced them with a set of Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats. Man, did that work. Flats on a P Bass is a classic set up and there is a reason it is so well regarded over the decades. Second, I heard some 60Hz hum when I first got it, so I opened up the cavity and did a full shielding with copper tape, all soldered to ground. Hum fully eliminated. Silent when unplucked, even with volume and tone knobs turned wide open. I have not messed with any other hardware. The pickups work just fine for me. The tuners are fine...smooth and hold the strings in tune, rock solid. I had zero fret issues. . I did a full set up when I got it. The neck was flat, so I had to loosen the truss rod a little over one full turn to get to my preferred 0.3mm relief. The saddles were very close to true...I only tweaked them about a quarter turn each. Great action, zero fret buzz. Intonation was spot on out of the box, I didn’t touch that. So, I got my desired P Bass-J Neck for $120 plus a new set of strings. I’ve played it for hours and it balances perfectly and the neck is a joy to play. I’m thrilled and amazed.

Great Bass with good sound with all the high quality you would expect from Fender. Easy to play especially because of the 38mm nut width, which is the narrower than most Bass guitars making it much easier to navigate the fretboard. especially if you have small hands and fingers like me. ON THE DOWN SIZE I agree that there are sharp fret ends which feel like "sprouting" or sharp along the edges of the neck, you way need to file them down so as to not get pricked by them

After purchasing the Squier Debut Stratocaster for my son, I decided to roll the dice on the Squier Debut P-Bass to see if I got as lucky. Out of the box I expected sharp/overhanging frets and issues with the action. I expected janky tuning keys. To my delight the frets were perfect. Just like with the Strat. And that same matte finish on the relatively thin neck (which I love) and the black matte body make for a great playing experience. Upon my first bit of play time with the bass the action, actually, doesn't seem too bad. And those tuning keys seem just right to me, in my limited time (so far) with this bass. I can't say anything definitive, at this point, regarding the action, tuning retention, or tuning accuracy but I'm going to put this bass through setup and, if there's any glaring issues, I'll revisit this review. If 2 months have gone by and you don't see an edit, it's because I didn't find any issues and my review stands at 5 stars. This bass reminds me of my first bass guitar, an Epiphone Accu-Bass (which was just a Fender P-Bass clone). This Squier weighs noticeably less. Functionally, it's no different than a Fender Precision, though you may want to upgrade the pickups and pots at some point in the future (if it's necessary is debatable, unless you're a professional, in which case why are you buying a budget line bass guitar?) The neck profile is just right for my shorter fingers, and I feel like it would be a perfect bass for someone new to the craft. The price point? I can't see how this can be beat. My only advice would be to avoid the bundles you might see on offer with this bass. They are easy to fall for but, in my opinion, not worth the extra money. I know because, in my own excitement, I opted for a bundle which (supposedly) includes an Amp, Gig bag, strap, guitar cord, yada, yada, yada. I got a gig bag (Fender branded, so that's neat) for an electric guitar. The bass will not fit. Fortunately, my son is in need of a decent gig bag for the previously mentioned Strat so that's cool, I guess. The 'amp' is about the size of a bedside alarm clock. And it sounds like a bedside alarm clock too. It does have a headphone jack, which is how I will likely use it, but headphone 'amps' are all over amazon (plug them into your bass, plug headphones into them or Bluetooth) and they are relatively inexpensive. The strap just never showed up The guitar cord, a Fender branded cord, was the only truly useful item, for me, that bundle. I really feel like you can just source better items on your own and I wish I had done that myself.

This is a really amazing and great entry bass for the price. YouTube reviews were accurate, though many complained about sharp frets — I did not have that problem; the fret board felt great. It has the same pickups and general materials of other squires so it’s a great deal. After breaking mine in for a few weeks it sounds really good, far better than any other bass in this price range and more like a $300.

At the -very- least, this bass body alone is well worth the price. The MIM Fender (alder) equivalent body goes for $250. I bought this for just the body, but it's a pretty playable, simple bass--just takes some setup. The neck on mine came bowed backwards, but the truss rod adjusted well enough so it actually has pretty decent action. The frets could use some edging, but seem good-to-go otherwise, and I was surprised the intonation was already taken care of. The pickup sounds good, but it's pretty weak--easily replaceable (for about the same cost as this whole bass), and not an issue until you get a gig. Sounds good and weak is certainly better than loud but sounds bad. If you're someone who likes to work on your bass/to modify a low-end bass to make it play like a higher-end Fender (with tool marks, and maybe a little actual damage that the pros don't leave), this deal is hard to beat. If you're someone who wants a "try out the bass" bass, this deal is hard to beat ... just make sure you get the thing set up well before you decide on what you think of The Bass. A well set up bass make a lot more difference than a higher level of finishing, or even higher quality, as far as getting a good playing experience. -- I caught some talk online about these ... the PU is a few millimeters neckward compared to standard Fender, but there's room in the existing rout to move it so a standard replacement pickguard will fit. Just be sure to carefully mark the depth of the PU mounting screws on your drill bit, or you may drill through the back. The pickguard screw holes don't all line up, so you'll also have to drill a few of those. It's probably a 15 to 30 minute job, depending upon experience and how precise/painstaking you want to be. The neck pocket is standard, so that's an easy replacement. I converted mine to 32" scale with a medium scale Jaguar neck. The original bridge holes show, but not so much if you mark or stain them the color of the top. So, on top of the above, if you're someone who'd like to convert a 34" scale PBass to a 32", this deal is hard to beat.

I’ve been playing guitar for about 20 years and finally decided to start recording my own material. I wanted to pickup a cheap bass just to record some tracks and ended up really enjoying this bass!! I’ve heard people complaining about the quality, but at this price point it really is a great value. I didn’t have to make too many changes out of the box, so far I just changed the strings and cleaned up the frets a little and slightly had to adjust the truss rod. Seems durable, doesn’t feel cheap in the hands. I’ve read some complaints about the paint/finish being dull, I don’t mind it. It’s a nice matte looking finish, there were just the smallest tiny lil imperfections in the paint job but I paid less than $200 for a bass so I am not complaining. I picked up the sun-burst myself. I think this bass is a great starter for a beginner or just a guitarist looking to noodle on a bass for recording purposes or just in general. I knew I wanted a budget bass guitar, but I wanted a name I could trust. Im not a rich man (yeah we can go into the whole “but you’re rich in family and friends and it’s all about your perspective in life” but I’m talking about financially rich) so if I want new guitars and equipment, I try to stay on a budget so I can still feed my family and pay my bills AND also enjoy being a musician, Squier/Fender makes that possible (props to Amazon letting people do payments now!! I can afford mid-range and high-end Squiers now lol). My thing is if you can make cheap equipment sound like pro gear, your skills are pretty good and it doesn’t matter if you don’t have that $3k PRS or that USA made Jackson King V you had to sell your kidney for! This bass serves its function well! Just get it, you’ll be happy. I’m slappin’ da bass all day (…..had to do it….you would too)!

Un bajo que cumple su funcion calidad precio acorde a la publicacion, precio justo

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I've played guitar for 20+ years and got this bass for fun to jam some of my favorite riffs, surpassed my expectations & sounds great, i play it through a Positive Grid smart amp. Now that being said its not perfect but for the price i literally cant complain. My ONLY issue with this bass was the frets were slightly sharp enough on the edges to scratch the skin on my finger if you're moving fast on the fretboard. I took a small edge filer to clean up the sharp edges and it fixed everything. Not sure if other buyers had the same issue but it wasnt too bad of a fix. Overall 8/10 in terms of quality and sound.

Its a very nice bass for the price if you just wanna get into bass and have a low budget i recommend this alot