The state of Bass magazines today

JAUQO III-X · #1 11-01-2008, 05:43 PM

What are your thoughts on the state of Bass magazines today(the instrument not the fish)?

JimmyM · #2 11-01-2008, 05:51 PM

Too small and too many ads.

Lesfunk · #3 11-01-2008, 05:59 PM

I stopped reading them years ago. They no longer spoke to my interests.
Every once and a while I'll flip through one at the store.

KeithPas · #4 11-01-2008, 06:02 PM

I generally like the Bass magazines that are available. There are some that seem to be designed to appeal to certain age demographics and they usually don't interest me too much but the up side is that....its still a bass magazine. There used to be no bass specific magazines at all.

Jumbotron · #5 11-01-2008, 06:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyM

Too small and too many ads.

+1

All musician mags seem like this to me now. For example, if you compare Guitar Player of today to Guitar Player of even 10 years ago, you'll see that the content is mostly gone, in favor of splashy pictures and ads. BP is the same way (though a little less extreme, since it hasn't been around as long).

Deacon_Blues · #6 11-01-2008, 06:29 PM

I used to read those magazines. Nowadays there's a wealth of free information on the internet (e.g. TB) so I don't feel the need to read them anymore.

I also have less time to read those and they are rather expensive, at least the few you find in the magazine stores. Funnily (or sadly?), in many of those magazine shops there's 5-50 different pron magazines, but you'd be lucky to find a good music magazine that deals with the music instruments and equipment I'm interested in. So the lack of these music magazines in the stores are definitely a major reason why I'm not buying too many of those.

I guess they're rather ok otherwise.

kesslari · #7 11-01-2008, 06:44 PM

Glad to know it's not just me...
Though magazines are great to keep and read in the loo.

JimmyM · #8 11-01-2008, 07:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kesslari

Glad to know it's not just me...
Though magazines are great to keep and read in the loo.

I think it was Jeff Schmidt who called BP a "one dump" mag. He's not entirely right. Takes me two

steve21 · #9 11-01-2008, 07:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyM

I think it was Jeff Schmidt who called BP a "one dump" mag. He's not entirely right. Takes me two

This.

RedemptionBass · #10 11-01-2008, 08:16 PM

Icky-bad.

Munjibunga · #11 11-02-2008, 12:38 AM

They are what they are. I like BP just fine.

bassteban · #12 11-02-2008, 12:57 AM

I usually skim through two old BPs per visit to the 'reading room'. Too many ads, little meat, & often the reviews are IMO thinly veiled ads.

keb · #13 11-02-2008, 01:15 AM

I don't read them anymore. As the old Buggles song goes, internet killed the magazine star... or something like that.

soong · #14 11-02-2008, 05:14 AM

Dont come with cool cds and toys like Guitar World does.

-5 pts.

Darkstrike · #15 11-02-2008, 05:59 AM

Two words-

Monkey balls.

I like Bass Gear Mag though, they're bringin' the good read back!

mike_v_s · #16 11-02-2008, 06:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JAUQO III-X

What are your thoughts on the state of Bass magazines today(the instrument not the fish)?

I've stopped buying them. I never read them for the interviews and (compared to what is available online) the gear info is watered down. A big +1 on the reviews looking like ads. In fact, there is no doubt in my mind that, between the ads, reviews, and "testimonial" of a famous bassist's tech, one of the Bass Players I picked up a while back was little more than a promotional piece.

I agree our most recent offering is (so far) a cut above, but I'll still be using the internet for my gear information gathering.

Mike

RedemptionBass · #17 11-02-2008, 09:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Darkstrike

I like Bass Gear Mag though, they're bringin' the good read back!

Hmmmm, I wouldn't know. Despite having paid long, long ago and sending off a few emails and being told that it's shipping "next week", I have yet to see an issue.

jimbob · #18 11-02-2008, 09:35 AM

I dont subscribe to BP anymore. I currently subscribe to G Player and G World and they are essenially the same magazine so I will not renew either one and just pick up the ones I want from Books-a-Billion. I read Making Music which is more of a lifestyle mag.

Matt Till · #19 11-02-2008, 11:19 AM

**** Sandwich

scottice · #20 11-02-2008, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedemptionBass

Hmmmm, I wouldn't know. Despite having paid long, long ago and sending off a few emails and being told that it's shipping "next week", I have yet to see an issue.

Weird. Have you sent Mr. Bowlus a PM?