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Are Sadowsky basses over rated?

#321
Green Lantern said:
Granted they are good bass guitars, and people like Will Lee and others would not play them if they did not like them. My understanding is the basses are made over seas and then he just puts them together in Brooklyn.

To me they just seem to be enhanced Fender jazz basses. I know Fender also makes jazz basses with active electronics for under $2,000 that appear to be just as good as the Sadowsky's. I played their Metro basses and thought they were good but I was not blown away by their sound or quality. They actually sound similar to the Fender sound, but the active electronics help it sound a little more modern. Am I missing something here?
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This is a super subjective question, not an altogether bad question, but a super subjective question that you'll never get a solid answer on.

All of us like certain basses (for many different reasons) and because of that, our opinions will be all over the place and trying to get a consistent read on anything would be like trying to heard cats......impossible.

There are literally hundreds of bass manufacturers (I know, I looked them up) and to ask anybody if any of them is overrated is an impossible question to ask based on peoples perceptions, personal feelings, bias's, etc. etc. etc.

I like Sadowsky basses and I think they sound amazing, I've never owned one but I don't necessarily think they're overrated based on my experience of listening to them at various venues. I do think other "extremely popular" brands are........brands that shall remain nameless in order not to start a war.

I guess the only way your ever going to truly know is if you play one, and experience it for yourself if even only for a little bit.
 
#322
liverbird said:
Yes, from the shop. Bought from new. I guess I underestimated the problem. An initial setup didn't help much but I thought a fret stone would take care of the 'S'. It didn't.

Besides, we're talking international sale here. A return is complicated due to the cutom fees and taxes.
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So, did you discuss this with Roger? I'm pretty sure that in addition to making his customers happy he would prefer not to have an instrument with his name out there on the gigs with major issues.
 
#324
One of my fellow Pittsburghers and TB'ers just got a NYC model, and said it's amazing. I still don't get it, as I was at Roger's booth at NAMM, trying his stuff, and was thinking "meh"...same with Dingwall's low-B string (although the Dingwalls sounded way better than the Sads, imo).

To each his/her own....
 
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#325
bassfacer22 said:
I think i've told this story before.. I met a guy who had the most incredible sounding 4-string sadowsky bass.. it was unreal.. I played it and it was butter.. the sound was so beautiful even out of some ridiculous low-end crappy amp/speaker setups..

The next time I saw this guy, he had a 5-string Sadowsky.. the thing was, it for some reason did not compare to the 4-string before.. I don't know why exactly but it goes to show you, when a bass sounds good it just sounds good. There are so many factors and when all of them come together by miracle, you have a good sounding bass.. it can be expensive or not..

So in this case, as expensive basses go, you just need to get the one that sounds soooooo good.. and for whatever reason, this particular 5-string Sadowsky didn't sound as good.. as the 4-string.

So in this particular story, Sadowsky is overrated etc..

but the reality is that most (maybe 85-90%) Sadowsky basses are so good and do sound unreal and feel like butter..

which brings us back to no, they are not overrated..

I haven't had the time to read through 16 pages of yes/no posts (just like mine!) but has the OP even played a lot of Sadowsky basses? obviously not if they have to ask...
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Wonder if the 5 string was a NYC or not. One thing I like about hand made basses is that the wood is hand selected and everything is matched up. Even if it is CNC after that, the wood selection in my experience can up the % of having a magical bass.

songwriter21 said:
One of my fellow Pittsburghers and TB'ers just got a NYC model, and said it's amazing. I still don't get it, as I was at Roger's booth at NAMM, trying his stuff, and was thinking "meh"...same with Dingwall's low-B string (although the Dingwalls sounded way better than the Sads, imo).

To each his/her own....
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Sadowsky is weird though. The first time I played one I had the exact same impression. But these are subtle basses that grow on you. For example, most people don't understand how the preamp works for a while. Its not something you boost very aggressively at all. You also need to mess with subtle changes on the tone control and be real familiar with the Jazz tone before it really makes sense. Sometimes this won't happen off the bat. Conversely some basses that have wowed me off the bat lost their luster over time the more I used them.
 
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#326
Wonder if the 5 string was a NYC or not. One thing I like about hand made basses is that the wood is hand selected and everything is matched up. Even if it is CNC after that, the wood selection in my experience can up the % of having a magical bass.


*edit - ha.. just saw what I wrote..

I mean I don't know if it was a NYC bass...

It was just the tone and sound of the 4-string was something special.. you just had to hear it.. could of been the pickups placement and god knows.. but when he played the 5-string it didn't sound or feel as special as when he had the 4-string..

but in-any-case, he wanted to go 5-string.. so he had to get it.. and lost the 4.. oops..

When I run into this guy again I will ask and check out if he remembers if it was a NYC bass..
 
#327
As said before this is highly subjective. I love my Metro RV4. When I first got it, over 10 years ago, the bass did not make me sound awesome. But, that was me, the weaknesses in my playing and technique. The Sadowsky made me a better bass player.

Where it stands out, is in a band context, it cuts through the mix. As a hobby player I play in many not good sounding rooms, like bars. With my fingers and my Sadowsky I can always get my tone, even on provided half broken amps. I can concentrate on making music and enjoying it, not on fighting gear.

For others it could be a different bass, from a different brand. It is all good.
 
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#328
This will be my answer on all threads that talk about technique over gear... it says it all..

"I can concentrate on making music and enjoying it, not on fighting gear."

Sadowsky basses let you just play and sound good.. you don't have to change saddles/bridges/tuning pegs/knobs/frets/necks/nuts/etc..

this is why they aren't overrated.. they make them with quality parts already and they make you sound good and you don't have to fight them..

- imagine a room with 10 kids beginning on bass with 10 $200 basses..

- now imagine a room with 10 kids beginning on bass - $3000 sadowsky's..

-- which kids will grow up with better technique and understanding that you don't have to fight instruments/gear??
 
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#331
Checking the prices in the classifieds lately, there's a lot of basses that you can ask if they are overrated. I won't say that Fender Custom Shop basses are overrated but they are definitely overpriced, they cost more than vintage Fenders in some cases
 
#336
NYC's and Warwick MasterBuilt's are way beyond the limit of my budget, but the used Metro RV5 I bought 8 years ago is the best sounding bass I've owned. Whether it's the wood, workmanship, pickups or preamp I don't know, but I preferred it to the chambered NYC I tried.

As with everything the gear has to speak to you, but this Sadowsky bass isn't overrated at all.
 
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#337
The value of an instrument is what the musician is willing to pay for the instrument.

In my career, I have rolled through instruments like tube rollers roll through tubes. Once I found what I liked, the need to change was over. I simply prefer some manufacturers over others.

To be honest, with the advances in manufacturing, I have replaced a few high end instruments with some lower end instruments, especially those that were on the fringe.

And as I have said before, I like my RSD Chinese Verdine White Sadowsky as much as my Japanese Will Lee Sadowsky.
 
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#338
A NYC Sadowsky or a Woodstock Spector will cost $5.5K to $8K+. So will a host of other boutique shops charge for similar specs, fit and finish.

A new Warwick MetroLine Sadowsky will cost $3.5K+. A Fender Custom Shop Jazz or Precision Bass is $3K+.

I find my MetroLine Will Lee is about equal in all respects to my US Spector despite the price difference.
 
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#339
bucephylus said:
Since we seem to have reanimated this zombie, and the thread sort of turned into a Fender vs Sadowsky diatribe(;)); perhaps, I will use this as an opportunity to update on my on going Jazz Bass investigations.

Marcus Miller somewhat famously was quoted as saying that a player needs to get their sound together, and then get on with playing. It has taken me a little longer than most (LOL); but, I think I'm finally getting there. And Roger's stuff is a big part of that.

A lot of this question is so relative to the individual player. A lot of cats can take a MIM Fender Jazz bass and be perfectly happy with it. For them, any kind of upgrade probably isn't "worth it."

To me, Roger's big contributions are his preamp for the Jazz Bass, his METICULOUS construction detail, and his setup perfection. You get those together in a Jazz Bass, and you get pretty close to what turns my gears. I can't speak to the P Bass aspects. To me, the P doesn't require a preamp; but Roger makes P's and then whether or not the player uses his preamp, the other two parts of a Sadowsky bass kick in; and a lot of cats on here love them.

Back to my own situation (and I'm a little slow, so please bear with me); I have been working with these two Jazz Basses the past few years:
View attachment 575540
That's a '97 Jazz Deluxe in Shoreline Gold and a Metro RV4. I am one who thinks the Fender on the headstock has some value in audition situations vs anything non-Fender; so, where I have been at is that the RV4 just sounds so amazing and plays so perfectly, I was trying to bring the Fender up to the same standards. You can see here I had already replaced the Fender preamp with the Sadowsky preamp.

The next thing that happened was that I put a bling pickguard on the Fender (what the heck, Shoreline Gold = bling, right?); and I became dissatisfied with certain elements of the Sadowsky humcancelling pickups, and replaced those with Delano JMVC4 single slugs. Actually, I tried to find a set of the Suhr single slug pickups, couldn't find them, and then opted for the Delano's because they had some similarities in construction. Then what happened was that the Delano's were SO superior to the Suhr's that I started using the RV4 exclusively. But, I didn't want to give up on the Fender. So, I had a fret level done on the Fender, which addressed the playability aspects; but, the sound still wasn't there. So, finally I bit the bullet and sprang for another set of Delanos:
View attachment 575535
And, voila, now these two basses pretty much behave and sound the same; and both meet my sound objectives.

Neglecting the pickups, I have about $1500 all told into the Fender; and that would compare to maybe $1700 to $1800 that you would pay for the RV4 on the used market (I purchased the Fender used). So, the difference is about $200 to $300; but, I had to do a lot of leg work and know what I was going for to get the Fender up to speed. Also, I installed the preamp myself and didn't count that.

My conclusion is that if you want to get the sound that Sadowsky Jazz basses offer; their market cost is "worth it." If you don't need that sound and an MIM is sufficient; then, they may not be "worth it."

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

BTW, at this point, I am pondering moving the RV4 to have the NYC shop build me something a little more specialized. We'll see. Would that be "worth it?" It could be for me, for reasons I don't feel the need to justify. Good luck in your bass questing.:D
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Since the Zombie seems to have arisen again, I guess this is another chance for me to update my Jazz Bass adventures, following my previous post.

I ended up selling off the SG Fender (still miss that bass), improving my parts Jazz Bass, and trading my RV4 towards an NYC build. In fact, the NYC build has my original Delano pickups in it; which was something of a new build for the shop. So, here are the current pair:

IMG_0319.jpeg

IMG_0139.jpeg


Both, of course, sound more similar than different. The Sadowsky weighs about 7 pounds 12 oz, the Parts Jazz weighs about 9 pounds 12 oz. I probably gig the Fender more often, which is more about attitude than anything else. Had it out on the gig last night. Everything about the Sadowsky just works and plays better. The Sadowsky is the "everything I could wish for in a Jazz Bass" instrument.

As to the perpetual TB banter about "worth it;" each player needs to make their own decision. In my own case, I don't feel the need to explain my own reasoning to anyone; but, will say that I don't ever plan to sell the NYC. Hard stop. Best of luck to others on both sides of that "fence."
 
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