I bet they only have a hand full and drop ship. Adam has said they are looking to do a production run vs having master builders make each one.
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Adam Nitti Signature model- seriously?
- Thread starter Evan Ciambrone
- Start date
I never pay attention to Ibanez. Watching Fieldy and the nu metal players fumble around on them as a kid ruined the brand for me. But, if they offered to make a signature model for me that would cost $7,000 I would do it because it's funny and everyone would be scratching their heads like we are right now.
For 7k that bass better do things my wife won't do.
I've been thinking about this for the last few hours. Let me give you my first thoughts as a marketing executive: you don't always introduce new products only due to forecasted sales figures. Ibanez knows the 6-string market as well as anyone in this community, and their forecast probably reflects a realistic sales expectation. But I bet the introduction of a very high-end Signature version is much more a positioning effort (which probably will not have direct payback in the short or long term) coming off sales, but rather from brand image.
I assume that they intend to take steps to widen their brand footprint, and believe they can have a better presence in all segments, from today's already strong entry-level instruments and mid-priced high quality bass guitars. Now they start to stretch it to higher-end professional-grade, boutique-like instruments. Think of it as the natural extension from their last few years of launches: from standard SRs, ATKs, Groovelines and BTBs, then to the "newer" SR Premiums and Prestiges (and their BTB single-cuts, that I didn't know they offered), more recently through their Workshop, fanned-fret models, now to the super high-end Nitti model.
Perhaps this is also a good attempt to make sure they're not cornered into a position they seem to have put themselves into: too much focus on budget. I hate to say this, but I believe Ibanez offers too many models with too much of a value-for-money. Think of it this way:
All products positioned rigt on the green line have the same perceived value-for-money. An economical, low priced bass (e.g. a GSR200), has great value for money, because it delivers what it's expected to, at a very low price. A Fodera Ying-Yang, which costs about 25 times more, might be seen as having the exact same value-for-money. It does cost 25 times more, but it has much more of whatever to want to assign to it, from workmanship, components quality, status, etc.
Where do I believe Ibanez wants to position itself with most of their non-entry level instruments? BELOW the green line. They try to deliver the same performance (call it quality, versatility, modern design, or whatever you appreciate in your axe) for a lower price than their more direct competitor in each segment. All products positioned below the green line have a better value-for-money than the products above the green line (which cost more, to deliver the same performance). Ibanez has been caught in a bit of a trap of staying for too long on the lower half of the chart. I guess they would love to own a bit more of the very profitable right-end of the chart, where production cost doesn't have a 1:1 correlation with price, and therefore much higher margins:
Wow, I wrote too much. I guess this post will get quite a few TL/DR, but I wanted to get it off my chest. I've been expecting this kind of move from my favorite bass guitar maker, and I may be seeing strategy where there's none, but it would make perfect sense for them.
I assume that they intend to take steps to widen their brand footprint, and believe they can have a better presence in all segments, from today's already strong entry-level instruments and mid-priced high quality bass guitars. Now they start to stretch it to higher-end professional-grade, boutique-like instruments. Think of it as the natural extension from their last few years of launches: from standard SRs, ATKs, Groovelines and BTBs, then to the "newer" SR Premiums and Prestiges (and their BTB single-cuts, that I didn't know they offered), more recently through their Workshop, fanned-fret models, now to the super high-end Nitti model.
Perhaps this is also a good attempt to make sure they're not cornered into a position they seem to have put themselves into: too much focus on budget. I hate to say this, but I believe Ibanez offers too many models with too much of a value-for-money. Think of it this way:
All products positioned rigt on the green line have the same perceived value-for-money. An economical, low priced bass (e.g. a GSR200), has great value for money, because it delivers what it's expected to, at a very low price. A Fodera Ying-Yang, which costs about 25 times more, might be seen as having the exact same value-for-money. It does cost 25 times more, but it has much more of whatever to want to assign to it, from workmanship, components quality, status, etc.
Where do I believe Ibanez wants to position itself with most of their non-entry level instruments? BELOW the green line. They try to deliver the same performance (call it quality, versatility, modern design, or whatever you appreciate in your axe) for a lower price than their more direct competitor in each segment. All products positioned below the green line have a better value-for-money than the products above the green line (which cost more, to deliver the same performance). Ibanez has been caught in a bit of a trap of staying for too long on the lower half of the chart. I guess they would love to own a bit more of the very profitable right-end of the chart, where production cost doesn't have a 1:1 correlation with price, and therefore much higher margins:
Wow, I wrote too much. I guess this post will get quite a few TL/DR, but I wanted to get it off my chest. I've been expecting this kind of move from my favorite bass guitar maker, and I may be seeing strategy where there's none, but it would make perfect sense for them.
Don't worry. It's only worth $5000 once you take it out of the store, and it's only worth $3500 once you ding it for the first time. By the second or third gig, you'll be playing a $2000 bass.
So, it's a bargain!
(I failed mathematics)
Bryan R. Tyler
TalkBass: Usurping My Practice Time Since 2002
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- May 3, 2002
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They also put a Snickers bar in every control cavity, so there's that to consider.
You must really hate Fender then. Some of the most inept players ever have used Fenders. Heck, I have a Fender - that should tell you something about the brand.
For seven large, it better be a dark chocolate Snickers!
I wonder what kind of reaction this bass would have had it the same price was the same but it was a new design with some fancy woods?
Bryan R. Tyler
TalkBass: Usurping My Practice Time Since 2002
Staff member
Administrator
Gold Supporting Member
Supporting Member
- May 3, 2002
- 28,948
- 20,933
- Disclosures
- Reviewer: Bass Player Magazine
The fact that it doesn't look pricey doesn't help; they've been putting out very attractive SR models for a couple of years now that make this look incredibly plain in comparison. Quilted maple has been common on even lower end instruments for decades now, and the very ordinary plain blue trans finish isn't an eye-catcher. The Gerald Veasley sig was also quite plain though with a similar price tag; they probably really only expect to sell a handful of the full price sigs to collectors.
songwriter21
I have an obsession for wood. The musical kind.
I propose legislation prohibiting artist model basses being named after anyone other than the top 10 bassists, or maybe the top 20 bassists...if we can agree on who the top bassists are.
Further proposal: only one bass model per person.
Further proposal: only one bass model per person.
This has nothing to do with sales of the model itself. They won't sell a handful. It's a marketing tool for the entire brand and he'll get exposure through the ads. Most of the buying public hasn't a clue who he is, and this will increase his visibility and add "street cred" to the brand. They may eventually release a low cost clone. If it'd give me his skills I'd pay 20K for it, LOL.
Makes no sense to me. Some the best basses I know were named after people I didn't know at first like the Fender Reggie Hamilton Jazz. By the way, I looked up Reggie Hamilton, and realized I had heard a bunch of his music without knowing it.
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I don't agree. The bass is a neck-through with higher end electronics (passive Bartolini® xxM56C pups in the bridge and neck and a custom Bart 3-band EQ...the pups and pre-amp alone are 700 bucks) and a figured maple top, that you will not find in a 600 buck axe. You really mean it's a low-to-mid spec?
Agreed. I would pay a lot more, actually. As much as I could afford, to be honest. drool
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