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Are you a Bass Snob ?

Are you a Bass snob

  • Would never play live with a Squier

    Votes: 78 14.2%

  • Would worry me either way

    Votes: 43 7.8%

  • Wouldnt think twice if it sounded great

    Votes: 430 78.0%
  • Total voters
    551
#141
Lead guitard = MIA Strat
Rhythm guitard = Gibson SG / Vintage Tele
Me = Squier CV60 Jazz

I have no problem playing the Squier at practice or on live gigs. The name on the headstock is of no concern, as long as I'm getting a great sound out of it and it feels good. The Squier fits the bill, on both counts.

I'm constantly getting compliments on my "great tone" from both my guitards and crowds we play for. Playing a vintage or boutique instrument is not going to make you a better player (IMO/IME).

BTW: I earn 2x what my guitards earn at the day job, so cost is not the issue. In fact my next bass is going to be either a Squier VM fretless Jazz or a Squier Deluxe Jazz V. :bassist:
 
#142
I am definately a bass snob and for all the right reasons.

My first bass was a 91 Fender GMRll Jazz Bass Special. Within a year I realised I needed a P-Bass sound so I sold it for the same amount I paid for it ($900). I mistakenly replaced it with a 93 Ibanez 5-String ($600). If I ever catch the Korean that built that bass I'll tear them a new one. Within six months I was trying to off load that bass and the only potential buyer was a porn shop. I ended up keeping that bass and displaying it at gigs a living proof of why you should never buy a Korean made Ibanez. I'd like to think I all but destroyed the Ibanez brand name in our city for a couple of years.
I ended up trading it in for $250 on a Hamer 5 string which was a great bass at that time for me.
Eight years later I put the Hamer up for sale and again couldn't find a buyer. So I removed the name from the reverse headstock and sold it as a quality MIJ bass.
Apart from my Greco Les Paul bass and my SUB Musicman I have stuck with USA or MIJ Fenders.

So the logo is everything when it comes to re-sale.

The world's greatest bass for you may not be a Fender but it is the easiest brand name to re-sell when you are looking for something else.

Be a bass snob like me and tell everyone else to go jump!
 
#143
Hilton Marsh said:
I am definately a bass snob and for all the right reasons.

My first bass was a 91 Fender GMRll Jazz Bass Special. Within a year I realised I needed a P-Bass sound so I sold it for the same amount I paid for it ($900). I mistakenly replaced it with a 93 Ibanez 5-String ($600). If I ever catch the Korean that built that bass I'll tear them a new one. Within six months I was trying to off load that bass and the only potential buyer was a porn shop. I ended up keeping that bass and displaying it at gigs a living proof of why you should never buy a Korean made Ibanez. I'd like to think I all but destroyed the Ibanez brand name in our city for a couple of years.
I ended up trading it in for $250 on a Hamer 5 string which was a great bass at that time for me.
Eight years later I put the Hamer up for sale and again couldn't find a buyer. So I removed the name from the reverse headstock and sold it as a quality MIJ bass.
Apart from my Greco Les Paul bass and my SUB Musicman I have stuck with USA or MIJ Fenders.

So the logo is everything when it comes to re-sale.

The world's greatest bass for you may not be a Fender but it is the easiest brand name to re-sell when you are looking for something else.

Be a bass snob like me and tell everyone else to go jump!
Click to expand...

FYI, I'd edit your post and replace the "MIJ" with MIJ or the PC hounds will be at you ass real soon.
And I may be wrong, but you could get slapped with a TB rule violation as well.
 
#144
I wouldn't consider myself a "snob" but I wouldn't own a Squire mainly because every one I personally have handled just feel and sound kind of weak to me. I have yet to find one that matches or exceeds the quality of the basses I currently own. That said I've seen cheaper instruments done up with good electronics, hardware and setup turn out sounding pretty good once they've been massaged.

It really doesn't matter what we all think here but if a Squire blows your skirt up then by all means buy it and grind out every note like there's no tomorrow.
 
#145
In the 70's - there was a local band who did a lot of Average White Band - Blue Oyster Cult - and Elton John covers. The Bass player had a bass with fantastic tone and he was one of my favorite bassist to go and see. I finally snuck a peek at his bass - It was a Kay (a very cheap japanese model) since then I never snicker at the "knock off's -
I own a Sigma (Martin knock-off) i have more expensive guitars - but I write on that one.
the Squirer series is a very nicely built affordable model - that lots of people can buy and play - I guess that's the purpose to get instruments into peoples hands and see what happens - anyway that's my 2 cents
 
#148
Nice Ric avatar there buddy.

Jjango said:
Gear snobbery is just plain silly. We all know that <insert name of great bassist here> would still rock the house on a Squier. I hope not to offend anyone, but I really feel that people who slap Fender decals on Squier basses have an ego problem of some kind/or "small man's complex".

I own some very nice basses, but have played sub-Squier, no-name copy basses on a gig if the no-name gives me the sound I need.
Click to expand...
 
#152
I think at some point when i was younger and got my first really nice bass (my Warrior) i became a bass snob, but as i grew up, played more instruments, and became a well paid professional, i let it all fall away.

I've met some amazing players who play cheap (money wise) gear because they play everything they can get their hands on and when they find that diamond in the rough they are confident enough in their skill set to buy it.

I recently (Sunday) picked up an MIM Jazz with an ash body and i can say for a fact that i have played every Fender that is for sale in Milwaukee and this was the best one i played. I'm not saying that others weren't just as good, but sound, feel...all of it was so close that i saw no reason to spend the extra bones when i picked up my jazz.

I'll play it out...playing it at rehersal tonight and i'll bet that 9.5 out of 10 people won't know it's an MIM.
 
#153
Catching up on this thread has reminded me why I bought my Squier in the first place...

I was on a business trip and stopped in at a local music store when I had some time to kill. Saw a DAJV on the rack there.

I always liked the look of this bass, and thanks to the rave reviews ON TB I picked it up and was immediately blown away! Bought it on the spot and brought it home on the plane, in fact!

At this point in my life, I can pretty much afford to buy any bass I like (but I'm kinda cheap! :D) and I'm all about looks... I like tobacco burst and natural basses, not a big fan of PGs, love the 4+1 headstock... So the DAJV fit the bill perfectly for me. Thought so when it first came out, too!

As I've told people in the past, "When Fender makes a bass that looks like this, I'll buy it. But right now they don't, so this is what I got instead."

And, contrary to my worries, I have had no questions as to the quality of the bass - in fact, my bands both said it cut through the best and had the best tone they'd ever heard!

So - until Fender makes a bass that looks and sounds like my Squier, I'm stickin' with it! :D
 
#154
Bongolation said:
I would never set foot on stage with bargain or low-end gear. It's poor presentation, and your presentation is more important than your sound.
Click to expand...

The gear matters far less to the audience than you think it does.


Bongolation said:
Lots of people here will disagree -- which is not surprising considering how remarkably few of their performance photos we see in threads here show acts with the slightest clue about professional presentation in any form. :rollno:
Click to expand...

We can't tell how they sound from the photos. I'd take a great sounding band wearing street clothes over a spiffy-looking mediocre-sounding group.
 
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#157
My guitar is a Fender Starcaster its worse than Squier but I take it to school and play it anyway. I bought it for 100 dollars, but I can still, tremolo pick, finger tap, cross hand tap etc.. on it. Ive hade since I bought Christmas 06' and I still play it. Never bought another guitar.
 
#158
I've never seen a squier that really looks like (let alone feels/sounds like) a true quality instrument. I wouldn't play one live because I can't stand poor sound when there's people listening to me, and i'm sorry, but you can't pass off a squier as a superior quality instrument.
 
#159
Here is my new baby!!!

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#160
Nope not at all and here's why; I think its a real put off/down especially towards those who are beginners or just can't plain afford high end stuff. I'm in the video production business and I see people with low end gear (sub 10k) produce stuff that blows people who have production studios in the range of 100k out of the water. The same applies here, if you can play then play on what feels right.

Besides I would hope as a community that we're all here to help each other out. To the poster who thinks its all about looks on stage, your just plain fricken nuts! I can't tell how many shows/concerts I've been to and not once do I look at what gear the musician is playing, I care about sound.

I can afford what I can afford and someday I'll get a higher up SR series or the Schecter I tried.
 

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