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The original starter four-string, the Squier Affinity Series Bronco Bass resurrects one of Fender's first student model design with vintage tone and feel at a budget-friendly price point. Bringing together a svelte agathis body and 30" scale maple neck perfect kids and players with smaller hands, the model is finished off with a specially-designed single-coil pickup and chrome two-saddle bridge for unparalleled tuning stability. Ideal for newcomers to the bass, the Bronco is also an attractive option for guitarists who switch over to a four-string from time to time.

When Justin Meldal-Johnsen's guitar tech handed him his first Mustang a decade ago, he was immediately enthralled with the short-scale size and blown away by all that it could do. So when it came time to design his signature bass, he wanted something as close to his own personal vintage '66 Mustang as he could get, resulting in the JMJ Road Worn Mustang. It features the same Daphne Blue finish, with a detail-conscious relic job featuring an authentic ‘60s-era aged pearl pickguard for that vintage vibe. Importantly, it’s also outfitted with a custom-spec, single-coil Mustang pickup that’s voiced as closely to JMJ’s vintage original as possible.

As a product of the '70s (with a brief reissue in 1997 headed by Squier), the Fender Musicmaster Bass is a shorter-scale, stripped-down version of the Fender Mustang Bass. Distinguish between older and later models by the tuning keys: the former sported triangular tuning keys while the latter is Mustang-style. If you're looking for a real vintage bass at a far more musician-friendly price, the Fender Musicmaster Bass may be your pick.

The Epiphone Viola Bass puts the look, feel and tone of McCartney's iconic Hofner Violin Bass into the hands of mere mortals and working musicians. The warm, woody sound of the hollow body and mini-humbucker punch that set off a revolution joins up with a wholly comfortably short-scale neck to make the Viola Bass a total joy to play, whether you're a skilled player looking for a different sound or a beginner who wishes they'd have joined a certain band in Hamburg in 1960.

Features a mahogany body with a short-scale maple neck, rosewood fretboard, and BassBucker pickup.

Introduced two years after the Mustang guitar, the Mustang Bass was the first student-level bass produced by Fender as well as the last production bass designed by Leo Fender before he left the company. Targeted towards younger players, the Mustang Bass offered a shorter 30-inch scale length as well as a lower price-point than the Precision or Jazz Basses of the mid-'60s. The split single-coil pickup was also smaller than that of the P Bass, but still captured a wide range of bass tones.

Years of Production: 1966 - 1981

Body Style: Offset solidbody

Wood Composition: Alder body, Maple neck with veneer Rosewood fingerboard

Design Elements: Bolt-on neck, dot inlays, 30-inch scale length, split single-coil pickup

Finish Specifications: White was added as a finish for the Mustang bass in 1975.

Notable Players:  Bill Wyman, Tina Weymouth, Fred Smith

Thanks to Paul McCartney and the Beatles, the Hofner 500/1 Violin Bass shot to stardom and has since become a legendary instrument -- it's even been called the "Beatles Bass." First produced in the late '50s by the German company Hofner and then distributed to the U.K., the 500/1 has been in production until today, its unique, violin-like body shape inspiring the design of many others. Its semi-hollow body and hot, blade-style pickups are just a few of the parts that make up the singular Hofner 500/1 Violin Bass.

Similar to the ES-335, the Gibson EB-2 was a semi-hollow bass with that classic Gibson shape. A single humbucker on the neck and a shorter scale length identify the EB-2 and set it apart from the likes of the EB-2D, which was released in '66 sporting two neck pickups. The EB-2's tone and style attracted notable bassists like Chas Chandler of the Animals and John Entwistle.

The Hofner Club Bass 500/2 is very similar to the more iconic 500/1 as used by Paul McCartney, with the single cutaway "Club" body shape replacing the "Violin" body shape. Electronics and wiring are effectively identical. Far fewer Club Basses were built and sold and they remain quite rare.

Years of Production: 1965 - 1970, reissued 1994 - present

Features: Double-bound body with German Spruce top, maple back and sides, pearloid pickguard and control plate, Nova-Sonic humbucking pickups