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

[Jim Campbell]

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.

well i wouldn't be too hard on herrara.....i imagine he's between a rock and a hard place , and probably wearing a lot of different hats these days.....i would venture that he is doing what he can with limited resources,but in the end there has to be more in there to make it a magazine worth buying

 

[archer121]

well i wouldn't be too hard on herrara.....i imagine he's between a rock and a hard place , and probably wearing a lot of different hats these days.....i would venture that he is doing what he can with limited resources,but in the end there has to be more in there to make it a magazine worth buying

I agree that things are tough right now and the folks at BP are doing what they can and right now it's simply a matter of survival. However, when I received the April issue in the mail today and saw the cover My firs thought was "***... Murderface on the cover?!?" It would have been better if they had Brendon Small, Bryan Beller and Murderface on the cover together.

 

[SteveC]

It is a joke, I am not going to renew this year. especially since they put out an electronic news letter that has basically all the same stuff in it. The only prob is. I cant read the news letter in the................well you know.

YOu could if you had a Kindle or iPad.

 

[d180fuzz]

well i wouldn't be too hard on herrara.....

It's "Herrera".

i imagine he's between a rock and a hard place , and probably wearing a lot of different hats these days.....i would venture that he is doing what he can with limited resources,but in the end there has to be more in there to make it a magazine worth buying

Be that as it may, I still don't believe there's any excuse for the sort of shoddy editing I'm referring to from a national publication. It erodes any semblance of authority or credibility and speaks to the quality of the magazine. Isn't that what this thread is about?

Plus, his shirt's too tight...

 

[Jim Campbell]

It's "Herrera".



Be that as it may, I still don't believe there's any excuse for the sort of shoddy editing I'm referring to from a national publication. It erodes any semblance of authority or credibility and speaks to the quality of the magazine. Isn't that what this thread is about?

Plus, his shirt's too tight...

actually no......it's about content ,the lack of which makes it not worth buying......it would seem that if there is no money to pay for articles etc. that the editing would suffer too.....

 

[d180fuzz]

actually no......it's about content ,the lack of which makes it not worth buying

Yeah, I got that from your original post. What I'm saying is that what little content actually makes it into the magazine is marred by a lack of attention to detail; and this makes it, at least to me, not worth buying.

......it would seem that if there is no money to pay for articles etc. that the editing would suffer too.....

Why? Lack of resources and fine editorship are not mutually exclusive. I've read many low-readership newsletters and publications that are impeccably written and edited - even without massive (or any) advertising revenue.

Unless, of course, it's the sort of scenario where you find someone else to do the same work for less money and as a result, the end product suffers...

 

[Jim Campbell]

Yeah, I got that from your original post. What I'm saying is that what little content actually makes it into the magazine is marred by a lack of attention to detail; and this makes it, at least to me, not worth buying.



Why? Lack of resources and fine editorship are not mutually exclusive. I've read many low-readership newsletters and publications that are impeccably written and edited - even without massive (or any) advertising revenue.

Unless, of course, it's the sort of scenario where you find someone else to do the same work for less money and as a result, the end product suffers...

it could be that people have bigger work loads than they used to and either are too busy or resent doing more for the same money.......i've seen businesses that reach a point where employees lose hope.....who knows....maybe the proof guy got laid off

 

[d180fuzz]

....maybe the proof guy got laid off

Was "the proof guy" named Bill Leigh? The quality of the magazine took a marked turn for the worse when he got "laid off"...

There, I said it. Bill was an insightful, deep-thinking person, whose editorials were a pleasure to read. I don't know the specifics of his ouster; all I know is what happened to the magazine after he was gone. His departure sent waves through this forum last year:

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=523752

 

[P-oddz]

I'm with the defense guys here.

As your budget decreases, you have to let go of talent. This means the remainder is squeezed into filling multiple gaps (wearing multiple hats). Maybe your chief editor goes. Maybe it's a copywriter, so on. This can lead to problems with efficiency, and continuity. The price of materials, not to mention the increase for cost of mailing has left many places, including where I work (a catalog production company that no longer can afford to produce catalogs) high and dry. Just a fact.

For the complaints about more ads than content - where do you think the revenue comes from? If you're not willing to pay for a subscription, who do you think pays the bills? For those complaining about content specifically, (I didn't subscribe to see metal bassists, cartoons, etc.) I say buck up! It's called BASS PLAYER, not JAZZ BASS PLAYER, or PROG-ROCK BASS PLAYER, or any additional limited category one can imagine. I personally don't care about the bass player for the Jonas Brothers, but as a fellow musician - he deserves as much recognition for the instrument as the next guy, and hell, even perhaps my 10 minutes of attention to read how he approaches music.

In short, if you don't like the magazine - don't subscribe. I personally like receiving a publication that spotlights my main interest, even if it's not telling me exactly what I want to hear at all times. Just my opinion anyway.

 

[Jim Campbell]

Was "the proof guy" named Bill Leigh? The quality of the magazine took a marked turn for the worse when he got "laid off"...

There, I said it. Bill was an insightful, deep-thinking person, whose editorials were a pleasure to read. I don't know the specifics of his ouster; all I know is what happened to the magazine after he was gone. His departure sent waves through this forum last year:

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=523752

leigh was good.....but could they afford to keep him....personally i feel they couldn't afford not to

 

[jerry]

...yes, I just received the new one. I thought it was a comic book.
I'm a diehard so I'm hanging in there.

+1, I remember a time without a bass-mag. When you get the magazine by subscription, it's as cheap as a candy-bar. It's going to be a sad day for this cowboy if and when print media goes away!

 

[Dan Knowlton]

Sure, it is not what it was before this crash - but I am going to keep subscribing. They cover stuff that I would never be exposed to (being an old guy) and I get a gem or two out of every issue.

The wheel turns and I would like to have BP continue.

Dan K.

 

[Jazzerbone]

Good special issue that recently came out about session legends and studio gear. Interviews with the best in the buisness and lots of advice on how to be a studio player. Info you wouldn't find anywhere else.

 

[Roy Vogt]

It's the only Bass Mag I still subscribe to. A reality check is the nearly $80 US that Bass Guitar (UK) costs to get in the States for a year as opposed to $1 an issue for 2 years for BP. I think Jonathan is doing a good job in a challenging time. EM, EQ and Mix have all shrunk in this Recession/Depression/Era of Economic Suckage/Whatever.
I do like Bass Professor (Germany) but it's only out quarterly....Immer gut fur miene Deutsch-Aber, Ich kann nur ein bischen Deutsch gesprechen und gelesen. Time for another Messe so I can get my Euro-chops back.....

 

[eddievanbassman]

i got that magazine for free, GC had a box of mags they were throwin away and i got a couple of bass players.

 

[tombowlus]

It's the only Bass Mag I still subscribe to. A reality check is the nearly $80 US that Bass Guitar (UK) costs to get in the States for a year as opposed to $1 an issue for 2 years for BP.

Hey, Roy, if you don't mind reading an e-mag, you can check out Bass Gear Magazine for free!

 

[Roy Vogt]

Hey, Roy, if you don't mind reading an e-mag, you can check out Bass Gear Magazine for free!

I do like Bass Gear, Bass Musician, and Bass Frontiers. All of them are fine online magazines.

 

[jgsbass]

I have been reading both Bass Player from the beginning, and still remember the day that Guitar player came out. So this is a long historical perspective I have over this issue. There is nothing left to Bass Player that can't be picked up from alternate sources. I love having a hard copy in my hand ( I'm old, what can I say) and don't enjoy e-mags as much as a print copy. I love Bass Gear magazine as its informative and a truly beautiful piece of publishing. The last few issues of Bass Player have given me nothing. A few ads, maybe one or two articles and a review or two. But as others have pointed out, 27 pages of the 74 are info and of those 27, they're just not doing it for me. I'm sure that the Death Metal theme will excite a lot of readers and maybe bring ina few more but theres really not much info thats new and informative about the main subject. I figured out that I got something I liked from 15 pages: thats about 20% of the magazine that struck my fancy. And that means that Bass Player lasts less time than a newspaper in my hands.
I wonder if the whole Metal theme is this years April Fools joke: BP is notorious for having something in their April issue thats a parody. And they missed my favorite genre of metal: Crab Core.
So I think I'm done with BP. Might browse the next issue as it has the NAMM eye candy, but that stuff is covered elsewhere by multiple sources.

 

[CG Jones]

After buying off the stands for a year, I recently subscribed to BP because of the lower per-issue price, although I have yet to receive my first issue. I'm already having doubts about extending the subscription when the year is up, based on what I've been reading here.

A couple of weeks ago I bought my first copy of Bass Guitar Magazine, and I was blown away by the sheer amount of content -- especially when compared to BP. Too bad the overseas subscription rate is more than I can afford right now.

Online mags are OK for what they are, but I'm an old fogey who still likes reading off of paper.

 

[tombowlus]

Online mags are OK for what they are, but I'm an old fogey who still likes reading off of paper.

Just to be clear, Bass Gear Magazine is available in both a free e-mag format and a high-quality print publication (116 pages per issue).