I second what purplez says. my first bass was a squier p bass that came with i practice a amp. I think i paid 150 for the whole package. It's not a professional bass but it's great to practice on. Played a bunch of gigs with it and it never gave me a problem.
A Schecter Raiden or (more preferably) a Schecter Stiletto. I've had both, first a Raiden Special 4, now a Stiletto Custom 5. Both sound great and feel amazing to play. I found my Raiden used for about $200, and the Stiletto used for $350. I started on an Ibanez EB400, which was nice, but the pickups were lacking.
I agree, second hand is the best way to go. I found a second hand Fender Jazz, with practice amp for a fair price. Worst case, you can always resell it if you are unhappy with it.
I was lost, with all the different makes and styles, complicated with my natural gift of being left handed (which kind of limits some of available basses on the market). This forum helped me find my direction and continues to help me be a better bass player (though I have long way to go).
Best out-of-the-box bass I have ever owned. This model uses Gibson humbuckers (same as in the thousand dollar Gibsons). All I had to do was adjust the set up to my preferences.
It is not cheap ($500) but you can find used ones. But if you can manage to pick one up - hopefully after playing one so you know it works for you - you won't need to buy another bass for a very long time. It will work for whatever kind of music you want to play.
I admit I prefer a Fender-style bass - it's what I learned on and have played for a long time. But I always end up having to do a bunch of mods (swap out pickups, shielding) to get a Fender to sound the way I want them to. Not with the Thunderbird Classic.
