Buying a floor model?

[somebrains]

I equate floor model with a bass treated less gingerly than 8 owners since new.

They never give you Craigslist price, so why not look for a better deal?

 

[rickster4003]

Wouldn't it be a wall model? I've never actually seen a bass at a store on the floor.

 

[Ross W. Lovell]

Hey all,

I'm looking to buy a Fender Pro Precision. Going to my local Long&McQuade (canadian big music store) to check out the bass but they have no new stock of the model/colour I want, only the floor model.

I've only played upright bass till now, so this is my first electric bass and I'm a bit unsure of buying procedure: do I order a brand new one and wait the 2-8 weeks it takes to get it and risk it being a dud (it seems weird to buy a bass without trying it)? Do I pick up the floor model? If I do, do I negotiate a discount because it's been played by others?

Let's keep this on topic (I know we TBers like to wander), so here are the answers to the questions you'll inevitable ask:

• yes, I've tried many basses (what's available at my local music stores)
• yes, I had a specific sound in mind (p-bass)
• yes, playability & comfort was my first requirement in searching for a bass & the '63 neck feels great
• yes, this is a fancy enough purchase that I'm being picky about the colour I want
• yes, I am going for a more expensive model because it felt and sounded better to me in comparison to the available MIM or Performer models in the store

Thanks for the help in advance!

When negotiating.....they are floor models if EVERYBODY can take it down without a salesperson.

They are New stock if you have to ask a sales person to take it down for you and should have NO damage or wear.

 

[buldog5151bass]

Not so by ago, every new bass at a store was a "floor model". If it has defects/marks/whatever, a discount is in order. Ask for a discount because x.

 

[Keger Jupit]

Hello, OP! Welcome to the electric side of the fence. I've never bought anything other than a "floor model". I've played every example of bass "X" a store might have in stock, & then bought the best player of the group, but they have all basically been floor models.

The only exception was when I had a bass built for me years ago. Thankfully, I LOVED it, so that worked out.

Happy hunting!

 

[Rogatien]

Long and McQuade offers a 1year warranty on most new items. They also offer a 30 day hassle free return. I think you have to pay restock fee on special orders and financed items.
Also, when you buy a guitar/bass from them, new or used, you get a free restring/full setup. It's a great store policy.

Exactly. With Long & McQuade, you're in good hands, they'll take care of you. The 30 day hassle free return is a huge plus. And I'd go with the floor model.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Hey all,

I'm looking to buy a Fender Pro Precision. Going to my local Long&McQuade (canadian big music store) to check out the bass but they have no new stock of the model/colour I want, only the floor model.

I've only played upright bass till now, so this is my first electric bass and I'm a bit unsure of buying procedure: do I order a brand new one and wait the 2-8 weeks it takes to get it and risk it being a dud (it seems weird to buy a bass without trying it)? Do I pick up the floor model? If I do, do I negotiate a discount because it's been played by others?

Let's keep this on topic (I know we TBers like to wander), so here are the answers to the questions you'll inevitable ask:

• yes, I've tried many basses (what's available at my local music stores)
• yes, I had a specific sound in mind (p-bass)
• yes, playability & comfort was my first requirement in searching for a bass & the '63 neck feels great
• yes, this is a fancy enough purchase that I'm being picky about the colour I want
• yes, I am going for a more expensive model because it felt and sounded better to me in comparison to the available MIM or Performer models in the store

Thanks for the help in advance!

Ok let me get this straight, this bass is the color and sound you like, you are probably going to get a discount as it is a floor demo, have you ever heard the fable about one in the hand is worth two in the bush?

Buy the demo!

 

[BAG]

Long and McQuade offers a 1year warranty on most new items. They also offer a 30 day hassle free return. I think you have to pay restock fee on special orders and financed items.
Also, when you buy a guitar/bass from them, new or used, you get a free restring/full setup. It's a great store policy

If the bass you played feels like the one for you then buy it.

If you want brand new you take the (very small) chance of it not feeling or sounding like the one you played. The Long and McQuade policy would give a lot of peace of mind for buying a new one though.

 

[Tad]

If there is nothing wrong with it, ask for new strings and a setup to your taste and take it home.

 

[pbassjbass]

I think every new instrument I purchased was a floor model. I want to play an instrument, first. I don't remember getting a special deal, but it was a price I was happy with and a setup (within 30 days) and strings are generally part of the deal. It's a negotiation. Find something you want, and know what you are willing to pay. I agree on color and all that, I keep my basses for decades, so its got to be right. The nickels and dimes fade away.

 

[JW56789]

My advice for the 'I really want exactly what I want'-type questions: IF this is not a time-sensitive purchase (in other words, you must have it for an oncoming booking or some similar circumstance, i.e., not just a case of G.A.S.), wait until you find just what you want. Otherwise, I guarantee you that you may 'settle' for this one, you never completely warm up to it, and 2 weeks from now L & McQ will get in EXACTLY the one you wanted.

On the other hand, if this particular one would be 'close enough' with the right discount, and this is your first electric bass, be sure and take an experienced electric player to 'look over your shoulder' that this particular example is simply a demonstrator, and otherwise solid and ready to go, save for some fingreprints or a slight mark here or there. And that the action as it sits is useable.

 

[Tim Skaggs]

Hey all,

I'm looking to buy a Fender Pro Precision. Going to my local Long&McQuade (canadian big music store) to check out the bass but they have no new stock of the model/colour I want, only the floor model.

I've only played upright bass till now, so this is my first electric bass and I'm a bit unsure of buying procedure: do I order a brand new one and wait the 2-8 weeks it takes to get it and risk it being a dud (it seems weird to buy a bass without trying it)? Do I pick up the floor model? If I do, do I negotiate a discount because it's been played by others?

Let's keep this on topic (I know we TBers like to wander), so here are the answers to the questions you'll inevitable ask:

• yes, I've tried many basses (what's available at my local music stores)
• yes, I had a specific sound in mind (p-bass)
• yes, playability & comfort was my first requirement in searching for a bass & the '63 neck feels great
• yes, this is a fancy enough purchase that I'm being picky about the colour I want
• yes, I am going for a more expensive model because it felt and sounded better to me in comparison to the available MIM or Performer models in the store

Thanks for the help in advance!

You being an upright player, it's understandable why you would be concerned about getting a dud if you ordered a new in box model, but downwrong basses are much more consistent from bass to bass than are uprights. That being said, most downwrong basses are made primarily of material that was previously growing vegetation, so there is some possibility of getting a bass with characteristic or two you don't like. It's just not as much risk as comes with an upright. A new-in-the-box model would likely be very similar to the one you have played, or maybe better.....

I think it comes down to money you can save vs. dings you can't live with. There is something about a new from the factory unmolested instrument, but getting to keep a significant number of your own dollars will often outweigh that new bass smell....

 

[SgtHulka]

I have seen basses played at big box stores where people put them down against the cabs and they fall constantly, resulting in loud crashes. If I'm noodling there for an hour I will hear it more than once. I'm willing to bet it happens more than I know. Even if there's no visible damage, I believe it rattles the electronics, and that he can crack the truss rod or graphite rods. I don't know any other way to guarantee you won't get that unless you get a new bass and then try it out on the floor yourself. Often problems reveal themselves later.

If you insist on buying a floor model I personally would make sure to have them show you how and to adjust the truss rod in front of you and to demonstrate the stability of the neck, excetera.

 

[Paulabass]

I only buy floor models. I want the one I'm playing. However- Long and McQuade really do not give a hoot what the people trying their instruments do. A lot of them (specially really popular models) have been badly mistreated.
Check it over, ask for a discount on every tiny little mark. I tend to go to music stores often enough that if something tickles my fancy it's only been there for a day or two. I did buy a P-bass that looked like it had gotten caught in an airplane engine. I assumed it was used. They checked it's history, and it had never been out of the store. I also bought a Gibson 335 that came back from a 2 year rental and it was perfect. The computer automatically adjusts the price as inventory ages, and I got it for a grand!
Buyer beware.
Note- If an instrument needs a set-up, take it elsewhere. Very few L&M's have a competent repair person anymore. Chances are good it will just be a store salesperson doing the work.