Silvertone LB11 Bass Guitar and Amp Package, Sunburst

I recently purchased this bass because I was overseas and wanted to keep playing without bringing my "nice" one out with me. It arrived in a timely manner and I was eager to get it out and see how it rolled. I will review everything that comes with it.First and foremost the actual Bass Guitar- I got the Cobalt Blue and it is a nice shade of blue. No scratches, dings, dents, or warping. Its about mid-weight compared to most basses and the neck is of the thinner variety so those with small hands will enjoy it. The guitar right out of the box needed the neck adjusted, the factory had tightned it down WAY to much which causes that annoying string vibration you hear. Not a big deal, just take the included allen key and loosen it up and it sounds fine. It has two control knobs which would help beginners if they were marked but for normal players of the bass its fine. It sounds good and feels good, very well put together. Two of the strings were dead right out of the box but that is not suprising. Alot of shipment Bass Guitars can come with dead strings since they have been sitting around for so long. I bought some DR Black Beauties (i prefer coated strings) and put them on and they sound amazing. I can see this as being a good practicing bass for around the house too.The Amp- The amp is fine. It is small, and if you turn it up loud its scratchy and distorted but please realize that this is a SMALL practice amp. Its loud enough for you to turn to 6 and sit back and learn some new songs or practice old ones. For a package deal its not bad at all. You cannot use this for a gig or playing with friends, but if its just you at the home alone slappin the bass it will work just fine.The Bass Cable- Its junk. It looks and feels like a cheap extension cord and that is what it is. Get you a good 6-12 foot Monster cable from Amazon and throw this one in the junk drawer. It will work if it is for a short period, but the quality is so bad that you need something better to get a good sound into your amp.The Gig Bag- Its a cover. Yes it is called a gig bag, but no one would take this to an actual gig unless you just wanted to have all your stuff fall out of it. Its flimsy, no padding, not impressive. It REALLY is fine just as a dust and element cover which is what I am using it for. I have a hard case that it will get carried around in. Just be forewarned that if you pack alot of stuff in this thing and use it to lug your base around it will probably last just as long as a two legged cat in a dog fight.The tuner- This thing is kind of junk. Get a Snark-n1 from amazon for 10 bucks. Its accuarate and easy to use. This thing just gives you a couple lights and isnt very accurate. I tuned it with the tuner then hooked it up to my tablets tuner and it had tuned the entire Bass almost a half a step up (the tuner on my tablet works of frequency (Hz) and is VERY accurate).The Pics- Dont know, I use my fingers, but the seem alright for pics.....kinda hard to mess that up.The CD- this will teach you how hold a Bass Guitar. Thats it. There really isnt much on here and if you are looking for an instructional video I would look elsewhere. Try GuitarCenter, they have instructional videos/cds/and lessons available and will be much more worth your time. Or just pick it up and teach yourself.All in all I can say that this was given 4 stars because of the price and the quality of the bass and amp which is really what you are paying for. That whole thing would be 5 stars if I didnt have to spend the extra money on better accessories, but sometimes its just worth it. I would recommend this to others who need a practice bass for a low price, or beginners starting out. Definitely a good buy in my opinion. I hope this helps!

If you're looking at this starter set, you're probably in a similar position as I was. And you're looking to start playing bass guitar, but aren't so self-assured or financially inclined that you're looking to spend a lot of money on a beginning instrument. Which brings you to starter sets in the first place. You want everything you need at a good price while not sacrificing playability. And to me: that's exactly what this set is.The bass itself is quite nice, exceeding my expectations. Any pictures you find online usually wash out the shine and make the color look flat and boring. But it's a pretty striking, deep, shiny black. It's not a $1000 bass, but it looks way nicer than the price would make you think it does. As for sound, I've never played a bass before, so I have nothing to compare it to. However, the amp brings the sound through pretty cleanly and warmly. And I really have no complaints.The thumb rest on the bass just seemed to detract from the aesthetic appeal, and got in my way when moving down a string. I find it's just as easy to rest your thumb on the pickup when playing the E string. Although it can be removed easily and in short order with an average-sized Phillips screwdriver, it leaves kind of unsightly screw holes behind, that had low-laying, somewhat jagged edges. I filed that down carefully with some sandpaper, and it's now fine. If there's anything I have against the bass, it's the thumb rest. Since it's removable, it's really no big deal. Just making note of it.Regarding accessories:The case is, as others have said, not capable of protecting against anything except scratches or dust. It's better than nothing, but the bottom-mounted zipper makes casing and uncasing awkward and slow, and I always worry about the fabric pulling on one of the tuning keys and untuning it.The picks are picks. Rounded, triangular pieces of plastic. I haven't used them, because I've preferred finger-plucking so far. Feels way more assured and direct, plus I find it easier to mute strings with the pick not in the way. But they're a nice addition, for those that want them.The strap is extremely simple. It feels somewhat cheaply made and thin, but it will suffice, temporarily. Just like the case, eventually you'll probably want another, better one.The tuner feels kind of lightweight and flimsy, but it seems to work okay. I have no thoughts that it will break soon unless I'm rough with it.The DVD was a nice addition, and did teach me a little. But most of the material can be absorbed in a single viewing, and probably figured out completely in three or four. It's also quite short. Also a nice addition (and includes electric and acoustic guitar sections) but you will want more books, DVDs, a teacher, or all of the above to really get onto learning the bass.The bass guitar had been on my sizable list of "Instruments to try out, eventually..." for some time, but upon starting the anime series Beck (which any rock fan would love, regardless of age or thoughts toward Japanese animation) I realized it was simply time to start. And I don't think I could have picked a better starter set for the price. I've only had this thing for a day, but currently I'm 100% satisfied. Shipping was super-quick, too. I'll add to this review if anything breaks.Now if you'll excuse me, I'd like to continue practicing...