Great advice on this thread.
IMHO about the last thing you want to rely upon in getting a good recorded bass tone is a bass amp sim. I've tried all the usual suspects and I end up feeling like I'm just polishing turds all day long. Sims will make a poorly recorded bass all puffy and pillowy. Gross!
So you have to have a well recorded bass to start with, and if you are just now buying your first bass, then the adventure begins. First q, what tone do you seek, smooth jazz, or rawk? Motown?
This will certainly determine what type of bass you buy, and just as importantly, what type of strings you put on it.
Just as important, do you have someone near you that can set up a bass? Intonation (do the strings play a true octave) is incredibly important.
And some basses are easier to play than others. String height and string separation width on the fretboard are factors.
Sorry if this is hitting on the obvious.
So if you are looking at an entry-level all-rounder, great but you will guaranteed want something else later. My first bass was a Yamaha, too! It took me a good while to learn how average it was. You might get an Ibanez for your first, but stay far away from the cheap Ibanez, the quality control is just not there, especially with the electronics.
Better yet for your first bass, get a made in Japan fender jazz bass. Hard to go wrong there. Look up p-j combinations, you might like those.
Next up, string choice. A lot of new basses come with roundwounds, which might not be great for a beginner. Noisy fingers. Switch out for flatwounds, or even better, tapewounds.
Next, do you play with soft, accurate fingers, or a pick? Don't overlook a nice felt pic, the thick ones they make for ukulele players.
All of this is enough to get you into trouble. :)
Cheers,
-Tom