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Bass + Guitar Center =

#81
All of this stuff aside, if GC were in trouble they would be contracting rather than expanding; when I discovered they were opening a small store in my home town (Lubbock, Tx), I knew that meant they were entering secondary markets where the small stores had the choke hold, which is a good thing.

A lot of people wax philosophically about the "big box demon squeezing out mom and pop" and to a great extent this is true, but anyone who ever had the evil old man that ran Tarpley's Music back home smile all the way to the bank while he charged you MSRP will tell you that "mom and pop" made a decent living off of having a monopoly. If GC, Long and McQuade and other chains of their like have done one good thing, it's the fact that they've made gear more affordable.

Comparing it to the demise of Borders is, while fair, not quite apt; dropping $20 on a book and not liking it is a far cry from dropping a couple grand on a Warwick or Spector just to discover that the neck is too clubby or flat and the highs sound like cellophane. Musician's Friend and other online storefronts will eradicate GC as much as eBay Motors has eradicated CarMax; what is "easier" is not necessarily "better" and a good chunk of people are still going to want to drive it (or play it) before they buy it.
 
#83
Nickthebass said:
Sadly this may become a reality.

The Bass Centre in London no longer has a physical shop it is online only. Bear in mind that this was the only bass shop in London for a long time. When it was out in Wapping it was even on the "knowledge" for London cabbies. (That meant it was one of the locations that a black cab driver had to know in order to pass his test.)

Basically the problem they found was that people would come in and try stuff and then buy online from Thomann in Germany. I was genuinely shocked at the passing of the Bass Centre and I try to support the few dedicated bass stores we have in the UK, like Bass Direct and The Gallery.
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Was this the bass and drum centre on Denmark Street? That place had cool stuff, but th staff wasn't that friendly.
Is that WD music center still on Denmark Street?
 
#84
LothrtheTerribl said:
All of this stuff aside, if GC were in trouble they would be contracting rather than expanding; when I discovered they were opening a small store in my home town (Lubbock, Tx), I knew that meant they were entering secondary markets where the small stores had the choke hold, which is a good thing.

A lot of people wax philosophically about the "big box demon squeezing out mom and pop" and to a great extent this is true, but anyone who ever had the evil old man that ran Tarpley's Music back home smile all the way to the bank while he charged you MSRP will tell you that "mom and pop" made a decent living off of having a monopoly. If GC, Long and McQuade and other chains of their like have done one good thing, it's the fact that they've made gear more affordable.

Comparing it to the demise of Borders is, while fair, not quite apt; dropping $20 on a book and not liking it is a far cry from dropping a couple grand on a Warwick or Spector just to discover that the neck is too clubby or flat and the highs sound like cellophane. Musician's Friend and other online storefronts will eradicate GC as much as eBay Motors has eradicated CarMax; what is "easier" is not necessarily "better" and a good chunk of people are still going to want to drive it (or play it) before they buy it.
Click to expand...

I agree. That's why GC and MF are now the same company. Brilliant business strategy.
 
#85
Bonerific said:
Lol "mouth breather"
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Hey! Some of us have sinus problems. And we are badass slappers who need to let the world know about our badass-edness!

J/K. I've never really encountered the loud slappers. Usually, it's some high school kids who are plunking around on basses either way out of their price range, or the ones that they think look cool, like an SG bass or a Thunderbird with flames or skulls painted on. That gets way more annoying then someone with some skill playing too loud, which I really haven't encountered yet.
 
#87
I was in GC last night because I wanted to A/B the different styles of Jazz Bass (Am Std, AM Spec. Geddy) The salesman who couldn't have been more than 25, was very nice and helpful. I got to try all the basses I wanted. When I was done, he said that he had a used 75 reissue and recommended that I try it (guess I looked old enough to know what a 75 sounded like :) ). So he brought it down and Yahtzee! Found the sound I was looking for!! Gave me a good price on my trade in to make the overall deal pretty good and threw in a couple of sets of strings.

Now the store was somewhat busy and he had other customers but I was pleasant and patient and was in the store no more than an hour.

Maybe this is rare but here's a shout out to Damian! and to others - it pays to be nice.
 

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