I just looked at the Sam Ash website and they have a couple of bass starter kits for around $239. Look there, it's a good place to get some reference. One of the packages is a Squier bass...Squier is Fender's low priced line...my son has a Squier Stratocaster and most of my friends who are really accomplished guitarists have played it and raved about it, comparing it very favorably to a "real" Fender Strat.

Another website/catalog that most of my buddies swear by is Musician's Friend, you may want to check them out; again, if for nothing else, just for reference in terms of what's available and the price ranges.

My daughter has asked me many times what makes a good bass player (I have been a reasonalby mediocre but capable one in the past); I say that it's the guys who play more than just the root notes or components of the chord and who play what I always call "figures". She didn't understand this until she gave me a copy of some new Cream Greatest Hits CD...then she heard what Jack Bruce did when he played with Cream and understood waht I meant.

Best

AA