Could someone please explain why they bought an artificiality aged (relic) bass. I don't get them. I'm not slagging anyone off just curious.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Artificially aged (relic) basses, what's the point?
- Thread starter gazzatriumph
- Start date
- Status
I don't have 50 years to wait for a natural relic finish.
Probably because they like the way it looks.
Same reason why people buy wooden furniture or home furnishings that look rustic/worn.
Same reason why people buy wooden furniture or home furnishings that look rustic/worn.
The point in it's entirety is some (seems quite a few) people like them. It's a finish option like any other in my opinion, might as well debate the merits of different colors. I don't "get" a lot of the options available in the bass guitar universe, but I don't get hung up trying to understand them, either. To me, to each their own and more options is usually better than fewer options.
Last edited:
Looks cool. I have a 25 year-old one I got newish that the paint is starting to fail on and getting thin in a couple places. Yeah, it takes half of forever for it to happen naturally.
You might as well ask people who bought green and purple metal flake finishes why they bought green and purple metal flake finishes.
It's simply a choice. I love my relic because it plays great, sounds great, feels broken in like no other bass (have you tried a neck on a well relic'ed bass?) and I think it looks cool. Side benefit: I do not worry one bit about it getting banged around.
It's simply a choice. I love my relic because it plays great, sounds great, feels broken in like no other bass (have you tried a neck on a well relic'ed bass?) and I think it looks cool. Side benefit: I do not worry one bit about it getting banged around.
Cheers for the replies, so from what I gather people like them because they look old, fair enough. I prefer my bass to look in good nick. Not convinced they would play any better than a standard bass of the same make just because it has been relicked.
Can someone please explain why they prefer to keep their bass in good nick?
Just as soon as someone explains what "good nick" means.
Jeff62 nailed it -- side benefit of a relic'd finish is you don't give a rat's patootey if and when it gets bumped around. 
I remember 60 Minutes doing a story in which an Iranian shop keeper, I think, was running over a freshly made Persian rug with his car. When the reporter asked him why, he shrugged and said that it's what Westerners preferred.
In this context, "in good nick" means "in good condition," but it's also a play on words, in as much as one might put nicks in a new guitar to make it a relic.
"In good nick" is a common phrase in Australian English, and probably also British English. "Nick" has multiple meanings in these varieties of English. It can mean "to steal," as in "someone nicked off with (stole) my bike." I can also mean "to leave," as in "I'm going to nick off (leave) work early." If you look up "nick" in an Australian dictionary you'll see half a page of definitions.
Funny thing is I know some people who buy reliced paying more(obviously the process adds to the cost) but when buying a non reliced bass they want to pay less if its got some dings
Personaly I dont care one way or the other if the bass works as it should.nice finish is very important though
Personaly I dont care one way or the other if the bass works as it should.nice finish is very important though
The Road Worn treatment Fender gives their RW instruments has some worthwhile differences to me...
They use a thin nitro-cellulose lacquer finish rather than a poly finish. It feels very different under the hand, IMO, in a good way. They also do significant shaping to the fretboard edges resulting in a smoother feel. The RW offerings also often have different pups than the standard MIM models so they truly are more than just standard models beat with an ugly stick.
I've played the RW Jazz below for over 7 years. It was the sole survivor of a my 12 bass-buying GAS frenzy between 2005-2011. I kept it not because of how it looks but how it feels and sounds.
Lastly I don't have to worry about dings... the bass below has been been through some trauma, post purchase but you'd be hard pressed to determine what is new damage versus what it was born with
Some eye-candy...
They use a thin nitro-cellulose lacquer finish rather than a poly finish. It feels very different under the hand, IMO, in a good way. They also do significant shaping to the fretboard edges resulting in a smoother feel. The RW offerings also often have different pups than the standard MIM models so they truly are more than just standard models beat with an ugly stick.
I've played the RW Jazz below for over 7 years. It was the sole survivor of a my 12 bass-buying GAS frenzy between 2005-2011. I kept it not because of how it looks but how it feels and sounds.
Lastly I don't have to worry about dings... the bass below has been been through some trauma, post purchase but you'd be hard pressed to determine what is new damage versus what it was born with
Some eye-candy...
- Status
