Week one: strings and picks
Strings sit in a warehouse under tension and dull before they are ever played. A fresh set of the gauge you intend to keep costs about nine dollars and changes the feel of the instrument more than anything else on this list.
Picks are personal and unknowable in advance. A mixed pack answers the thickness question in an afternoon.
Month one: the setup
Not a purchase — an adjustment. Relief, action and intonation leave the factory generic, and an hour of work makes a budget instrument play like a more expensive one. This is the single best use of money in a first year.
Month six: the amplifier, maybe
If the pack’s amplifier is a real practice amp with named channels and a headphone socket, keep it. If it is an unbranded box with one knob, this is where it starts to hold you back — and it is worth replacing before the instrument is.
What to leave alone
The guitar or the bass itself. The gig bag. The strap, unless it is narrow and the instrument is heavy. Those three are usually the same items you would have bought separately.
What is missing entirely
A tuner, in packs that do not include one. A stand, so the instrument stays out and gets picked up. Both are cheap, and both change how often you play more than any upgrade to what is already in the box.
The questions players ask
Should I replace anything immediately?
The strings, if the pack has been in a warehouse, and the picks, because thickness is personal. Both are inexpensive and change how the instrument feels straight away.
Is the bundled amplifier worth keeping?
If it is made by the same company as the instrument and has a headphone socket, yes — for years. If it is unbranded and has neither channels nor a headphone output, it is the first real upgrade.
Last reviewed 2026-08-18
