A friend of mine that plays guitar has that attitude. He marvelled over what a great deal the SX I play is, but keeps telling me I should get a Fender and keep the SX as a backup (wait a minute - if they are so great, why do I need a backup?). Funny thing is, he is telling me this while playing an MK he got for only a few hundred dollars. He does own some higher end ones (a Les Paul he got signed by Les Paul, a MIDI ready Fender that he can use as a synthesizer, a stunning semi hollow Gretsch and a few others) and yet he usually brings the MK (and I am just across the street from him in a nice neighborhood).
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.
Brand snobbery
- Thread starter peaveyuser
- Start date
A friend of mine that plays guitar has that attitude. He marvelled over what a great deal the SX I play is, but keeps telling me I should get a Fender and keep the SX as a backup (wait a minute - if they are so great, why do I need a backup?). Funny thing is, he is telling me this while playing an MK he got for only a few hundred dollars. He does own some higher end ones (a Les Paul he got signed by Les Paul, a MIDI ready Fender that he can use as a synthesizer, a stunning semi hollow Gretsch and a few others) and yet he usually brings the MK (and I am just across the street from him in a nice neighborhood).
rockstarbassist
Inactive
ha, yeah if it's got a name or some crazy design that no one's seen before, they're like "yeah, that's cool but my MIJ fender, well that's a bass..."
kinda funny, in a sad way for them.
i experience this everytime i bust out the Dingwall!
Everytime I would show up at a gig with my Gibson RD Artist.
Everytime a couple of years ago when I asked a Guitar Center employee if they carry any Gibson Basses. (Funny now they do) His eyes would roll back in his head.
Now granted I've only been playing live for a little over a year (i needed something to do after college), but when I got started I was definately worried about what other bass players would think of the stuff I was playing. In the world of country cover bands in this area, there's quite a few Musicman players, and I was toting out my brand new Yamaha BB404. I learned to not care, even though moved to a BB605, and now I have a nice shiny OLP MM3 five stringer that's undergoing mods to be a second option. I know my stuff sounds good, I've got the recordings to prove it. It seems to me that most snobbery comes from older players who have never bothered to look into newer brands/technologies, or young players with gear that far exceeds their ability because mommy and daddy wanted them to be happy. All the bass players I associate with appreciate the operator, not the equipment.
This all kind of reminds me of how many guitar players talk about highly reputed guitar players. You may have heard it before. They throw out all the names, Van Halen, Vai, Malmsteen, DiMeola, Holdsworth, Page, Metheny, Eric Johnson, etc. This one or that one is great but that other one sucks, etc. Well, they are all great and they all have their own thing. Perhaps one is specialized in song writing, while another is specialized in shredding and another..... It is probably best to take each player at face value and appreciate their particular skill set(s). There is brand snobbery in guitar players, not just the gear. I realize it is not just guitarists but they seem the most prevelant with the judgemental attitudes.
rockstarbassist
Inactive
The best thing about TB is that it has really educated me about gear. I wouldn't have my wonderful USA Peavey Millennium V if it weren't for TB. I would have simply dismissed it as a "just a Peavey" if I hadn't learned just how high quality Peavey basses are, especially the American made models. The same thing is true about TBC and other basses I have had the pleasure of owning.
The other important point is there is simply no such thing as the "best bass." I love the Cirrus/Ken Smith tone, many don't care for midrangey sound. I love the Stingray tone. Many find it harsh or not versatile enough. I love the P-bass tone, but to my ears, it is a really bad choice for contemporary slap playing. Anybody who trips too much about the gear choices of others needs to be ignored.:scowl:
The other important point is there is simply no such thing as the "best bass." I love the Cirrus/Ken Smith tone, many don't care for midrangey sound. I love the Stingray tone. Many find it harsh or not versatile enough. I love the P-bass tone, but to my ears, it is a really bad choice for contemporary slap playing. Anybody who trips too much about the gear choices of others needs to be ignored.:scowl:
rockstarbassist
Inactive
I have nicer/more-expensive equipment than my bass instructor, but that's only becuase I'm at a point in my life where I can buy what I want and I like nice tools. My teacher, however, can outplay me with a 2 rubber bands on a broomstick standing on his head in the dark.
I spent more than 10 years racing bicycles. There is always guys with the most expensive/newest/lightest equipment. What wins races, however, is great fitness and tactical skill - neither of which can be purchased.
It doesn't matter what the activity, as long as your equipment isn't hindering your performance, skill is what gets the job done.
I spent more than 10 years racing bicycles. There is always guys with the most expensive/newest/lightest equipment. What wins races, however, is great fitness and tactical skill - neither of which can be purchased.
It doesn't matter what the activity, as long as your equipment isn't hindering your performance, skill is what gets the job done.
Hey peaveyuser:
When I started playing back in 1987, I was 13-14 years old and my parents refused to help me get anything because they thought if I was in a band I would use drugs. I tried to tell them "no that's college and it's much more expensive" but this was the 80s and nothing but Headbanger's ball hair metal bands; they saw one video one time and said "hell no."
Back then (TBers in my age range know EXACTLY what I'm talking about) there wasn't any good gear for low-moderate prices. The stuff made in Asia back then was terrible, only Japan and US stuff was any good and with the minimum wage back then being around $4/hour, you had to get the inexpensive stuff. My first bass had no name. Seriously! A P-pickup, triangle headstock, no name, all black. It was $80. My little no name amp (yes, again all black, no name) cost even more at $125.
These days you have a lot more to choose from in the low-midrange price range, and a lot of it is damn good! And the overseas market has vastly improved. Everything for bass from effects to strings to amps and instruments are now more affordable than ever. But as others have said in their replies, it is how you play, your attitude and your flexibility that makes a good bass player even better. Good gear can help, and yes, at age 34 I have bad GAS just like most folks on TB but none of my gear makes me a good bass player. All the gear does is get the sound I have in my head coming out so I (and people I am playing with/for) can hear it.
The snobs you run into (from the "oh but that model isn't as good as..." people, to the "Man you should try blank or blank, it's so much better" people,) don't deserve your time. As you stick to playing through HS and beyond you will find the gear that makes the sound in your head come out (and to the detriment of your finances, that sound will unfortunately change as you get better and fall more in love with the instrument
! ) and THAT is what counts the most. Gear snobs just don't know where it's at. The most expensive or just the coolest gear in the world will never take the place of being supportive of your bandmates, learning to find your own style, striving to get better at what you do, and enjoying the hell out of playing! No gear can replace the big-ass grin that shows up on everyone's faces, especially yours, when you are locked into a good groove. The next snob you meet just smile, feel sorry for them, and go play!
When I started playing back in 1987, I was 13-14 years old and my parents refused to help me get anything because they thought if I was in a band I would use drugs. I tried to tell them "no that's college and it's much more expensive" but this was the 80s and nothing but Headbanger's ball hair metal bands; they saw one video one time and said "hell no."
Back then (TBers in my age range know EXACTLY what I'm talking about) there wasn't any good gear for low-moderate prices. The stuff made in Asia back then was terrible, only Japan and US stuff was any good and with the minimum wage back then being around $4/hour, you had to get the inexpensive stuff. My first bass had no name. Seriously! A P-pickup, triangle headstock, no name, all black. It was $80. My little no name amp (yes, again all black, no name) cost even more at $125.
These days you have a lot more to choose from in the low-midrange price range, and a lot of it is damn good! And the overseas market has vastly improved. Everything for bass from effects to strings to amps and instruments are now more affordable than ever. But as others have said in their replies, it is how you play, your attitude and your flexibility that makes a good bass player even better. Good gear can help, and yes, at age 34 I have bad GAS just like most folks on TB but none of my gear makes me a good bass player. All the gear does is get the sound I have in my head coming out so I (and people I am playing with/for) can hear it.
The snobs you run into (from the "oh but that model isn't as good as..." people, to the "Man you should try blank or blank, it's so much better" people,) don't deserve your time. As you stick to playing through HS and beyond you will find the gear that makes the sound in your head come out (and to the detriment of your finances, that sound will unfortunately change as you get better and fall more in love with the instrument
! ) and THAT is what counts the most. Gear snobs just don't know where it's at. The most expensive or just the coolest gear in the world will never take the place of being supportive of your bandmates, learning to find your own style, striving to get better at what you do, and enjoying the hell out of playing! No gear can replace the big-ass grin that shows up on everyone's faces, especially yours, when you are locked into a good groove. The next snob you meet just smile, feel sorry for them, and go play!I gravitate towards instruments with a particular type of sound. I also tend to think more highly, initially about an instrument with a brand name. {Brand-name companies have spent much time, energy and money to try and get those feelings across to the consumer. (marketing 101)}
That said though, I don't particularly care about the name on an instrument if it plays well and sounds good.
If I were to say 'Mercedes', most people would probably agree that there is a certain image or awe that goes with it. If I were to say 'Yugo' though, most folks would instantly have a bad impression of the brand. I feel the same could be said of instruments. Generally speaking, most people consider spending their hard-earned money on something that the masses agree is a good product for the money.
All it takes is for someone in a position of fame to change the image of a brand (ie. why companies endorse), and then snobbery moves the other way. Record a bunch of famous tunes with that model (or brand), and you have a new 'Insert Name Here'. Couple that with the fact that the instruments were likely originally dirt-cheap and many older players had one like it when they were younger (and now have the income to buy a nostalgic piece), and you have a brand name with potential investment value.
I too don't care for the snobbery (I rather prefer my Korean made guitars over all of my other brand-name varieties), but accept it as a fact of life in this market-driven society.
The joke is on the folks who think that someone who plays a cheap knock-off, isn't really a 'player'.
That said though, I don't particularly care about the name on an instrument if it plays well and sounds good.
If I were to say 'Mercedes', most people would probably agree that there is a certain image or awe that goes with it. If I were to say 'Yugo' though, most folks would instantly have a bad impression of the brand. I feel the same could be said of instruments. Generally speaking, most people consider spending their hard-earned money on something that the masses agree is a good product for the money.
All it takes is for someone in a position of fame to change the image of a brand (ie. why companies endorse), and then snobbery moves the other way. Record a bunch of famous tunes with that model (or brand), and you have a new 'Insert Name Here'. Couple that with the fact that the instruments were likely originally dirt-cheap and many older players had one like it when they were younger (and now have the income to buy a nostalgic piece), and you have a brand name with potential investment value.
I too don't care for the snobbery (I rather prefer my Korean made guitars over all of my other brand-name varieties), but accept it as a fact of life in this market-driven society.
The joke is on the folks who think that someone who plays a cheap knock-off, isn't really a 'player'.
Honestly, I see far more "snobs" here than I encounter out in the real world out playing.
Doesn't seem to matter if I'm playing a Pre CBS Fender, an inexpensive SX or a hand made Bacchus, people seem to react the same. That ought to tell ya something. They're into the music,and the band, not the name on the headstock.
Doesn't seem to matter if I'm playing a Pre CBS Fender, an inexpensive SX or a hand made Bacchus, people seem to react the same. That ought to tell ya something.
They're into the music,and the band, not the name on the headstock.this is my opinion. everyone likes what they want to like. for some reason, don't know why either, everytime i play a bass besides a fender with maple fretboard, i am not pleased. Doesn't make me a snob does it? I don't rip on peoples basses right in front of them, but i do have my opinion (usually based on their skill and tone). also i tried a peavey cirrus 5 and it just wasn't very good.
In my opinion if everybody has a bass that they don't like ( i just don't like jay turser and epiphone) but i don't go calling people not real bass players because of they own that bass. I only can say i don't like a particular brand if i've tried it out, this is also my opinion i don't think epiphones and jay tursers are bad i just don't like the feel. There are bad basses though, but you can't say anything until you've tried it out yet and even if someone plays a bad bass it doesn't make them any less of a player. I'm talking about people who just see the most hyped and common names and dismiss everything else as bad, or the opinion that anything under a certain price range sucks ( this type of immature opinion is usually said by ignorant kids and teens).
Heres a few things/stories. If I'm listening to a bassist play and his tone is awful, his technique is awful, and he's got some mad fret buzz generally (sub-conciously) I'll label him as bad, and that usually ruins the rest of the band for me. But I never look at the headstock and say... squire.. .eww he sucks. Look at Reggie Wooten he plays a squire, and he can show probably any Tber on guitar, and most guitarists.
But if I do talk gear with some friends at school I don't act all snobberish because I have "good" gear (or what some think is good gear), when in reality I've just gotten good deals for the most part and had a pretty good summer job. Example: one friend has a Spector NS2000 neckthrough quilt black, active, emgs the whole deal you know. And I absolutely hate it, he knows it, because I played it for a gig once when I useing a squire (a while ago) and came of the stage with some major crampage. He is one of my biggest idols (he's a monster), but I can't stand his bass. And if we're talking to other bassists about gear, I'll usually say I hate the spector, and he hates my precision. Its all good.
And next, I'm noticing more and more that haveing a nice bass isn't about fancy features. It's about being comfortable. I'm starting to realize I can my modulus flea and my warmoth jazz and people won't be able to tell a difference, but if someone sits in for me, they can tell a difference. It's how I attack each note, where I place it in regards to the pocket, how I groove if you will. The only basses I can tell major differences is with my p and everything else, since the P has flats. And it can obtain a more stand-up type tone (if desired) or that sweet funk'n tone like motown.
And ya- if I play the warmoth nobody knows what it is, but its a beautiful emerald green dye quilt so they automatically assume its nice. But then they start thinking it cost thousands of dollars when it was more like 300.
Anyway
/rant
Dan
But if I do talk gear with some friends at school I don't act all snobberish because I have "good" gear (or what some think is good gear), when in reality I've just gotten good deals for the most part and had a pretty good summer job. Example: one friend has a Spector NS2000 neckthrough quilt black, active, emgs the whole deal you know. And I absolutely hate it, he knows it, because I played it for a gig once when I useing a squire (a while ago) and came of the stage with some major crampage. He is one of my biggest idols (he's a monster), but I can't stand his bass. And if we're talking to other bassists about gear, I'll usually say I hate the spector, and he hates my precision. Its all good.
And next, I'm noticing more and more that haveing a nice bass isn't about fancy features. It's about being comfortable. I'm starting to realize I can my modulus flea and my warmoth jazz and people won't be able to tell a difference, but if someone sits in for me, they can tell a difference. It's how I attack each note, where I place it in regards to the pocket, how I groove if you will. The only basses I can tell major differences is with my p and everything else, since the P has flats. And it can obtain a more stand-up type tone (if desired) or that sweet funk'n tone like motown.
And ya- if I play the warmoth nobody knows what it is, but its a beautiful emerald green dye quilt so they automatically assume its nice. But then they start thinking it cost thousands of dollars when it was more like 300.
Anyway
/rant
Dan
In 25 years of off and on gigging I have rarely heard anything derogetory about a specific brand I may have been playing ... except when I was in high school. 
So evidently, some people never grow out of that, but I've been lucky not run across many of them.
Lately, I have had a few bedroom wankers see my G&Ls standing by for duty on a set break who walk over and say "Man, you get a great tone out of those off-brands. Have you ever tried a Fender Strat?"
I usually say yeah, I've owned about 20 of them but I finally decided to step up.
So evidently, some people never grow out of that, but I've been lucky not run across many of them.
Lately, I have had a few bedroom wankers see my G&Ls standing by for duty on a set break who walk over and say "Man, you get a great tone out of those off-brands. Have you ever tried a Fender Strat?"
I usually say yeah, I've owned about 20 of them but I finally decided to step up. 
One of the bands I play in started doing a Beatles set. The guitar player would whip out his $1200.00 Ricenbacker 360/12, what a beautiful guitar(just killed on Ticket to ride).I'd whip out my Rogue VB-100. Killer tone with a set of labella flats. $179.00 shipped from musicians friend.
I own basses from $4000 to $179. That rogue got a pretty good work out for 2 years without a single breakdown. Never once heard any smack about that cheap bass.
I own basses from $4000 to $179. That rogue got a pretty good work out for 2 years without a single breakdown. Never once heard any smack about that cheap bass.
Latest posts
-
Does the truss rods engagement add stability to the neck?- Latest: Zootsuitbass
-
-
