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Bass Player Mag.....Is It a Mag....

call it whining if you like......it's your money and you want to pay for a glossy advertorial,with a few pages of content,knock yourself out.....

i used to buy bp's when it resembled a magazine...times are tough i know,but when the plumber comes to the house i expect more than some glossy advertising and a bill...... because the business climate it tough doesn't mean the readers are going to tolerate paying for it's survival ,and receive nothing in return


I have to agree with you.. but I also suggest you write a letter to the editor. say the same things.. hell say it meaner.

the more of us who write the magazine and tell them what we think of the product, the better our chances of seeing it improve.
 
about 8 bucks cdn with taxes here....i have not seen the other thread.....i understand the economy thing,but i think they have gone past the tipping point.......i don't know if it's just me but i like mags to have something in them to read....

For the first time in about 6 months I bought an issue of Bass Player. The very issue you are talking about.

It will be a cold day in hell before they ever get my money again. I have to agree with the sentiment of most of your thread posts (just sort of skimmed the thread). That issue was a joke. I think I read the SWR reviews and that was about it. :mad:
 
call it whining if you like......it's your money and you want to pay for a glossy advertorial,with a few pages of content,knock yourself out.....

i used to buy bp's when it resembled a magazine...times are tough i know,but when the plumber comes to the house i expect more than some glossy advertising and a bill...... because the business climate it tough doesn't mean the readers are going to tolerate paying for it's survival ,and receive nothing in return

Well, it is whining. I actually like to read glossy advertising personally, let's say I have a professional interest in it, but I certainly understand that most people don't.

That said;
If you don't like it, don't buy it, there are plenty of magazines that I wouldn't take even if they were free.

The gist of what I meant by:
Based solely on the posts in this thread, I would suspect that the "read it and put it back without paying and then whine about the content on a forum" types won't be able to do that for much longer. :D
Is that I think to trash BP or any publication on an open forum; but yet still make an effort to read it without paying for it is a little disingenuous at best, and pretty much negates any “point" that was trying to be made by whining about it in the first place.
 
Well, it is whining. I actually like to read glossy advertising personally, let's say I have a professional interest in it, but I certainly understand that most people don't.

That said;
If you don't like it, don't buy it, there are plenty of magazines that I wouldn't take even if they were free.

The gist of what I meant by:

Is that I think to trash BP or any publication on an open forum; but yet,still make an effort to read it without paying for it is a little disingenuous at best, and pretty much negates any “point" that was trying to be made by whining about it in the first place.
i know what you meant......i just don't give any credence to it.... i have every right to express my opinion on it's lack of content.....you don't get to dictate what is printed here........i think it disingenuous to dress up ads and call them content......but like i said it's your money not mine
 
so what ?? I don't spend my money on that mag for Gospel Bass! and yet, the last issue i bought had, sure enough, a big feature on GOSPEL BASS.

and guess what, i read it.

I'm not happy with the magazine currently either. but instead of bitching on this forum about it, you should still be buying and send your bitches and complaints to the editor.
that way he not only has your input, but some more money to (hopefully) make positive changes.

oh, and heres another thing. OUR WORLD IS COVERED IN ADVERTISEMENTS.
If our life was converted into a magazine, you would have an advertisement in between every word. three in between every paragraph and two pages of pure ads in between every other page. If there was a picture on the page anywhere, it would be made of pixelized images of advertisements in order to get into your subconscious.

don't like ads? stop buying ****.
well isn't that special.....i like to get some value for my money....perhaps you think that i have to buy a new chevrolet before i'm entitled to voice an opinion on it's styling.....
 
well isn't that special.....i like to get some value for my money....perhaps you think that i have to buy a new chevrolet before i'm entitled to voice an opinion on it's styling.....

no, i don't.

but i do think we have a culture of complaining about things without doing anything about trying to fix what we don't like.

didn't your parents ever tell you to "stop complaining and do something about it!" ?

I think it's asinine, and pointless to complain about something, without doing anything to try and fix the problem.

Maybe if we all decided to be proactive about things we don't like in this country, we wouldn't be in the finanicial, enviromental, socio-political clusterf*ck we are all in.
 
no, i don't.

but i do think we have a culture of complaining about things without doing anything about trying to fix what we don't like.

didn't your parents ever tell you to "stop complaining and do something about it!" ?

I think it's asinine, and pointless to complain about something, without doing anything to try and fix the problem.

Maybe if we all decided to be proactive about things we don't like in this country, we wouldn't be in the finanicial, enviromental, socio-political clusterf*ck we are all in.
probably,but i don't think it applies to publications from other countries...
 
It's too bad cause you go into the local Barnes & Noble here and there's one bass magazine -- Bass Player -- which can be read cover to cover in about 20 minutes, but meanwhile there are 3 or 4 magazines for drummers that are all substantially sized and any of which is probably a good 1-hour read from front to back. (I make a habit of reading drum magazines just to stay conversant with my drummer friends and maybe pick up some things I can apply as a bassist.)

I'm not saying this to slag Bass Player, I'm just saying I can't figure out how the drum community can support 3 or 4 quality monthly publications, whereas just one publication for bassists is out there and even that one seems to be on the ropes.

Though I guess it does put the lie to that notion that drummers can't read... :hiding:
 
I must say that I have been a subscriber since day one and over the years it has been a good magazine but in the last few, there have been less things to read and I usually go through it in one day and it goes on the pile of the rest of them. I dont think I'll be subscribing too much longer if they keep putting more ads in there.
 
no, i don't.

but i do think we have a culture of complaining about things without doing anything about trying to fix what we don't like.

didn't your parents ever tell you to "stop complaining and do something about it!" ?

I think it's asinine, and pointless to complain about something, without doing anything to try and fix the problem.

Maybe if we all decided to be proactive about things we don't like in this country, we wouldn't be in the finanicial, enviromental, socio-political clusterf*ck we are all in.

Ok. I agree with some of that.

But I think Jim (without wanting to put words into Jim's mouth) started the thread to make some observations about a magazine relevant to most people that visit this forum. I know I don't have to explain the way this or any forum works -topic+posts+opinions+info+dissenting opinions etc etc.

I don't see how this thread's topic is any different than a thread in say the Effects Forum that complains that the Gadzooks button on XYZ Company's Dirt Pedal is flimsy or doesn't work.

Same idea in my mind.
 
I just received the April BP in the mail today. GREAT issue! I also got my renewal notice. $2.00 a issue. Lets see, $1.69 for a 20oz Coke at SA, $2.75 gallon gas, $5.25 pack of smokes, stop at the bar on the way home from work $5.00 for a Bud. And you think $2.00 for the mag is to much????? Times are tough for all business these days. Quit buying them and there will be NO bass mags on the stand.
BTW, The new issue cover story is Metal's New Golden Age
Bass notes, Eric Mingus, Dave LaRue, Jerry Jemmott
Soundroom, Orange Tiny Terror & Isobaric cabs, Music Man Classic StingRay 4 &5, Basslines NYC Phase II pickups
Transcription, Jimmy Hendrix's "Izabella"
So I am going to drink my $1.69 Coke have a couple of .25 Camels and enjoy my magazine
 
Bass player magazine via subscription in the US is about $1 per issue. How can you argue with that even if there is plenty of advertising?

+1. Twelve bucks a year for a magazine subscription? A meal at Applebee's costs more! I paid more than that to see Avatar!

Me, I'm all for the advertising in BP. It's a great way to get educated on things on the bass world. I'll never even get to try 1/10th of all the stuff advertised on BP, so most times this is the only exposure I'll get to all these products. So when I post here on TB, I won't have to say, "D'uhh! What's an Ampeg?"!
 
i never really checked bass gear mag out before... its great! I like thr flipbook and i think i am gonna get the harcopies.
:bassist:



i am still hanging in there with BP, for whatever reason. I have had it since the '90 issue with sheehan... but it has fallen in content in the past couple years no doubt.....:hmm:



Bass Gear mag do it awesomely as a digital PDF ( free digital "flipbook") so I cant figure why Bass Player Mag doesnt do it this way as well on a subscription type deal.
No physical printing and freight costs = must be a bonus for keeping costs down.

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It's not a conspiracy, not an issue of them "pulling their heads out", IMO it's purely survival. It's sad; I also have been reading BP since the beginning and will miss it if it fails. Based solely on the posts in this thread, I would suspect that the "read it and put it back without paying and then whine about the content on a forum" types won't be able to do that for much longer. :D

There's no whining going on. It's just a fact, a sad fact that Bass Player Magazine has fallen pretty low, and what they're selling just isn't worth what they're charging for it.

I'm not buying what they're selling, and neither are a lot of other people judging by the content here.
 
Here's my $.02 - yes, it's thin. Yes, it's mostly advertising. Yes, I'll be letting my current subscription lapse and won't renew.

The thing that has gotten my blood boiling the most is this - ever since Jonathan Herrera took over, the grammar, spelling, and factual accuracy in some of the articles and reviews has taken a complete nosedive. I realize that alot of folks probably don't even notice, but I do. As just one example, the word "petal" was used when referring to an effect PEDAL. There have been more, but I don't wanna get my blood pressure up right now...

As for factual accuracy, here's a choice tidbit - I was reading a "review" of some new bass guitar a few issues back, and ON THE SAME PAGE, in 2 different places, the body wood OF THE SAME BASS was noted as being both Ash AND basswood.

EPIC FAIL.
 

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