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Best Boutique Bass Shopping Experience?

Which retailer(s) or dealer(s) provide the best boutique bass shopping experience?

  • Bass San Diego

    Votes: 5 15.6%

  • Bass Northwest

    Votes: 4 12.5%

  • Bass Southwest

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Bass Central

    Votes: 6 18.8%

  • Bass Club Chicago

    Votes: 1 3.1%

  • Bass Exchange / Amp Shop Ventura

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Manufacturer-Direct (Fodera, Sadowsky, Lull, etc.)

    Votes: 5 15.6%

  • Other (Your local high-end dealer)

    Votes: 14 43.8%
  • Total voters
    32
  • Poll closed .
#21
The LA Bass Exchange was a cool place, for sure. I went in there when Dave Avenius was working there. He treated me great even though I wasn't even playing at the time. That visit was partly responsible for motivating me to take up bass again. Do not confuse the Bass Exchange/Amp Shop in Sherman Oaks with the old LA Bass Exchange. Totally different. After being treated poorly I will never set foot in the Amp Shop again even though it's an easy drive from my home.

I've had good experiences with Bass Northwest, Rocket Music, Perfect Bass, and Luthiers Access Group. Also have had numerous conversations with Rob Elrick, Chris Stambaugh, and Ken Lawrence. All were patient and helpful. Michael Tobias even took time once to talk with me regarding my lowly MTD Kingston 5. :cool:

M. M.
 
#22
The only place I've had first-hand experience with is Philadelphia's Bass Specialties.
They've downscaled a bunch, no longer have a storefront, and are pretty much by-appointment-only.
This seems to allow them to concentrate on delivering an excellent service experience to people who are actually interested in appreciating what's on offer.
They were out supporting the Bass Boot Camp this year and it was a pleasure to talk to them.
I'm also favorably impressed by Rocket, just by what I see and read here at TB.
The rest are so far, for me, just ads in BassPlayer, although they all seem to have their fans. I'd love to check them out personally at some point.
 
#23
My best experience has been with the Bass Gallery in Camden, London.

I bought almost all of my touring gear there & they looked after my basses.

Martin , Alex & Jon are great to deal with.

I've spent hours at a time in that store.

Since landing in Canada, I can't say I've found anywhere even close.

Bass Northwest in Seattle were pretty decent & friendly.
 
#27
Chris (owner) and George at Bass San Diego. I bought my 1st 'real' instrument in 1969 (Selmer Mark VI alto sax) and worked at 3 stores since and haven't had a better experience in music stores than BSD!
Both of these gentlemen are truly nice guys and are willing to help in any way they can.
They just need to open a location about 100 miles up the coast. :thumbsup:
 
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#31
groooooove said:
i don't think a retail environment is ever really the place to find a boutique instrument, be it electric bass or a violin, the workshop of a relatively unknown genius will always yield the best results.. from my experience at least.
Click to expand...
Well, as I posted above, I bought a new Selmer Mark VI alto sax at a mom & pop retail shop here in southern California and it was a killer horn. As a matter of fact, 2 of the finest saxophonists in the world each told me never to sell it, but if I did, they wanted 1st dibs. :)
I bought both my Sadowsky RV4 and Fodera E5S at Bass San Diego. Both fine instruments indeed.
So, I'll say I've faired pretty well when it comes to purchasing instruments in non-workshop environments. :)
 
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#36
Testing123 said:
Well, as I posted above, I bought a new Selmer Mark VI alto sax at a mom & pop retail shop here in southern California and it was a killer horn. As a matter of fact, 2 of the finest saxophonists in the world each told me never to sell it, but if I did, they wanted 1st dibs. :)
I bought both my Sadowsky RV4 and Fodera E5S at Bass San Diego. Both fine instruments indeed.
So, I'll say I've faired pretty well when it comes to purchasing instruments in non-workshop environments. :)
Click to expand...

my best friend plays on an old mark VI so i can agree that those horns are the bomb.

maybe i do need to visit some of these places...

thanks for the insight!
 
#37
Roscoe East said:
Okay, I don't know which one I went to, it was almost 25 years ago and I don't know the LA area so couldn't have told you where I was then much less now!
Click to expand...

It would seem that you visited the old LA Bass Exchange which closed in 2002. They were located on the south side of Ventura Blvd in Tarzana. The Amp Shop is on the northwest corner of Ventura Blvd and Woodman Ave in Sherman Oaks. I don't believe the Amp Shop added the phrase 'Bass Exchange' into their name until after the real LA Bass Exchange closed. :meh:

M. M.
 
#40
I'm a big fan of Bass Club Chicago. There's a lot of high end basses (usually several of each) and you're welcome to "play the wall".

Big +1 on "not Rudy's". My last two experiences there were pretty bad. Considering I was ready to spend money and walked out determined not to... that's bad.
 

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