Is Fender overrated?

[Warhawk]

I own five Fender basses and like them all but I love my G&L L-2000. The G&L is simply what works best for me. You need to find a store where trying out different basses isn't a problem.

Are Fenders overrated? As a whole, perhaps. But they do put out some really nice basses and guitars. Just gotta try 'em out before buying.

[Freekmagnet]

Pretty much every single bass ever made is directly influenced by a Fender P bass or J. Therefore, it is impossible for the Fender bass to be overrated. Dave Pushic would not exist if there was no Fender.

Is it worth it to go and pay $1000+ for a 2013 AmStandard Precision when you could buy a perfectly good Squier for a couple hundred bucks or a Dave Pushic for a base price of $900? I can't even answer that question for myself. Would owning a 2013 AmStandard Precision be something to be proud of? I can't answer that either. Nowadays, the Fender brand is just a logo stamped on to a headstock in a few different factories all over the world.

If you're buying a Fender, you will be buying a tried and true piece of gear that will work in any playing situation. Their product was perfected a long, long time ago. One thing you can say for sure about Fender, is that you know what you're getting for your money.

[Snakeman1066]

Originally Posted by Cyrus987987

I have played a lot of basses. I own a lot f basses. I always say I'm going to start gigging with my other basses, but I can never shake my fender. You want your answer? Look at pictures of all the greatest bass players and they all play fenders. But they aren't for everyone, they are amazing basses and are not over rated, but they are not the only amazing basses. Keep in mind any bass is a lousy bass if it has a bad set up.

Originally Posted by Revolver

Umm, nope . . .

Some of the greatest players might own fenders, but a substantial amount of these players use other basses as their main instrument (especially these days).

It's funny....Looking back at almost every major bass influence in my life...they have all played Rickenbackers..lol (all but one)

i can tell as a working Session player...if you don't own or have access to a Fender P or Jazz bass most producers will look down their noses at you or flat out refuse you work...

Funny story...I once showed up at a recording session with a non fender bass and was told that i would not be allowed to record with it...So i borrowed a P bass and laid down the track...after the producer left the booth the engineer and i re-recorded the track..nobody but us was the wiser in the end..in fact, the engineer remarked that he liked my bass better than the Fender...especially after the producer remarked on how well the track turned out on the finished product..lol

most people hear with their eyes...

again i say...find your "blue jean" bass regardless of what is on the headstock

[JimmyM]

Know what's overrated? Buying basses by internet consensus.

[punkjazzben]

Oh, and its anecdote A versus anecdote B in a tight showdown of subjective opinions tonight at TB Stadium!

[pacojas]

yea,... this thread has cured my porn addiction!

[bmc]

Originally Posted by JetBlackJazz

Fender Standard American Jazz- $1300

http://www.dpcustom.com/

Dave Pushic custom bass, base price- $900 (+ about $400 for higher end fb, lams, and woods)

Fender is overrated.

Over rated by who?

At least the Fender will retain its value on the used market.

[awilkie84]

Originally Posted by bmc

Over rated by who?

At least the Fender will retain its value on the used market.

Only because people tout them as the end all & be all of basses. In reality, they probably cost MUCH less to manufacture than one of those customs.
Your argument also is based on the point of people flipping basses. If someone's buying a bass for life, they're not going to care about resale value.

[JimmyM]

Originally Posted by awilkie84

Only because people tout them as the end all & be all of basses. In reality, they probably cost MUCH less to manufacture than one of those customs.

And...?

[Stumbo]

Originally Posted by punkbass45

Is it just me?

Yes.

[awilkie84]

Originally Posted by JimmyM

And...?

No and needed. Fenders only retain their high resale value because of the fanboys who hold them in such high regard, despite being old technology paired with cheap production methods & sold for higher profits than most other companies.

If the fanboys would realize that they're paying for nothing more than a mediocre instrument and a name emblazoned on it then the prices would drop & Fender would be recognized as the rehashing cash grab that they are.

[JimmyM]

Wow, I had no idea I was so stupid. Here all this time, I've played Fenders because I thought they were very nice instruments at a fairly reasonable price. But you're right...I've just been a fanboy for 35 years. A real sucker. A blockhead, an oaf, a boor, a bumpkin, a hayseed, a clodhopper, a peasant, a rube. Thank you for setting me straight. I'm going to set fire to all my Fenders because I know now that even though I like them, I'm only fooling myself. Please don't hate me anymore. I finally figured it all out, thanks to you, and I really really want your approval as it truly means the world to me.

[chuck norriss]

Originally Posted by awilkie84

No and needed. Fenders only retain their high resale value because of the fanboys who hold them in such high regard, despite being old technology paired with cheap production methods & sold for higher profits than most other companies.

If the fanboys would realize that they're paying for nothing more than a mediocre instrument and a name emblazoned on it then the prices would drop & Fender would be recognized as the rehashing cash grab that they are.

Right. Graham, Marcus, Jon Paul Jones, Jimi, Jaco, Jamerson, Sir Paul, Esperanza--all fan boys.

[chuck norriss]

It's not overrated; it's the standard. Coca Cola, Heinz 57, Tabasco, Fender. You don't have to like it.

[vin*tone]

This thread will never go away. Ever.

[matjaz123]

I dont think fender is overrated but overpriced. 60 years selling the same guitar... for that kind of price?
Few years ago I was fan of the fender basses, ofcourse anybody knows that guitars, but today I want something "new", more lighter (weight of the bass is important to me and yamaha A2 is confirmed some things) and thiner neck, pickups...

[JimmyM]

Originally Posted by matjaz123

I dont think fender is overrated but overpriced. 60 years selling the same guitar... for that kind of price?
Few years ago I was fan of the fender basses, ofcourse anybody knows that guitars, but today I want something "new", more lighter (weight of the bass is important to me and yamaha A2 is confirmed some things) and thiner neck, pickups...

If nobody was buying it, they wouldn't sell it. And every time Fender tries something different, it usually stiffs. What would YOU do if you ran Fender?

[matjaz123]

My intention was not to offend any fender owners. I owned fender jazz 70' y.2009 for 6 months and was nice and polished and beautiful guitar. But just because somebody ran fender that doesnt mean that he must promoted it. I know some friend that his guitar or whatever is the best option and everybody is wrong if they think opposite.

edit: you said fender tries something different. What? Stiffs? Yea because of reputation.

[rubbadubdub]

It depends on your Squier. According to information elsewhere on the net.... When the Koreans started to undercut the price of the very high quality Japanese Squiers, Fender stopped Japanese production and set up in Korea having very low cost plywood instruments made. Young Chang (an ex Fender employee) got the contract but soon saw a gap in the market left by the higher quality japanese instruments. He started to make higher quality basses and guitars but at a price to compete with the Korean guitars that he was also making for Fender.
This forced Fender to go back to having the Japanese instruments built and they soon simply changed the transfers to say 'Fender' rather than 'Squier' so that they now had a mid market product but with an upmarket brand name. It was a successful marketing strategy and Young Changs 'Fenix' brand went from being a top seller in Europe to disappearing in a few years.
So, depending upon which Squier you have you may end up spending money on a cross grade or even possibly a down grade.
A lot of people now agree that Fender are making some of the most consistently good instruments ever. If you research the companies history you will find that there were periods where quality could not be guaranteed from one instrument to the next.
The bottom line is that you cannot simply 'upgrade'' by name/logo alone.
A lot of people say that some of the top line Squiers made currently are as good or sometimes better than the USA made models. Then there are the Mexican models which opinion varies on.
Only you can decide in the end so my advice would be to ignore the name on the headstock if you can and try as many basses as you can get your hands on and don't rush into a decision. Your Squier may be just fine as it is. If you can afford to keep it and buy another bass you can simply sell the one that you like the least later.
It's sometimes difficult to judge a bass or even an amplifier in the shop or without living with it and tweaking the set up over a few days.

[can_v]

Nope, I don't find it overrated.