Are basses like wine?

[LordDog]

Interesting question OP. I have always wondered, when looking through eBay etc, why a 70's Fender Jazz will go for upwards of £1500, whilst a MIM will go for £300. Although there are huge differences between different basses, even different USA 70's Fenders, I think that a lot of it is just commodity fetishism, like many other things that we all drool over. Does a £6k bass really sound stunningly different to a £500 bass? Does it sound £5500 worth of better? Who knows? I don't. As long as my basses sound good to my ears. and they get me to where I want to be right now, I'm content. Also, I don't have thousands of £££

 

[Robroy]

 

[Watchootognbout]

Confession. I am like a thousand years old. Whatever. But this means that I remember when "vintage" instruments were first starting to be a thing back in the late 1970s. Of course, the most important thing for a Fender was to be "pre-CBS" because everyone knew that when CBS bought them, everything went to hell.

Now, all of the then-reviled 1970s basses (from any major maker, really, but of course Fender is always prominent) are vintage instruments and command top dollar. And cheap beginner instruments from those days are being sold as amazing tone and mojo machines. Even instruments from the 1980s are being sold as "vintage."

Do we all now simply think that old instruments are better, regardless of their origin or craftsmanship? IMO we are in a golden age of instrument quality, and while I agree that there are some old gems out there, there are also plenty of old pieces of sh and much of what people hear (or see) in them is a product of imagination and silliness.

Now get off my damn lawn.

How can anyone know?Really?
Is there anyone here that was around when the questioned bass was made that accurately memorized the tone of said bass so as to compare it to it's tone today?

Does the first Teisco Del Rey sound better than my Washburn T-14NMK?

 

[ThuzzleFump]

Gaaahhhhh!!!

 

[40Hz]

I personally think some of the new stuff is every bit as good or better than the vintage stuff. The keyword being "some."

The same goes for vintage. Some vintage instruments are great. Some are the pits. And most fall somewhere in between.

Age is no magic pixie dust. A good bass is a good bass regardless of the year of manufacture.