I don't know anything about your local bands, but look at any successful band on youtube/tv/vh1, etc. You think that's how they dress around the house? I have to wear a suit to work everyday, so I'm just saying...
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CG/Fender rant
- Thread starter brekfustuvluzer
- Start date
I don't know anything about your local bands, but look at any successful band on youtube/tv/vh1, etc. You think that's how they dress around the house? I have to wear a suit to work everyday, so I'm just saying...
Honestly I can take or leave the cosmetics. I play in a blues band and occasionally in a country/roots/southern rock band, both of which that sunburst RW Precision I tried out would be right at home.
Last week I showed Mrs. Dogbone the Roadworn Precision on Fender's website, and it literally took me two minutes to convince her it wasn't a joke or a spoof website. She just couldn't wrap her mind around the relic idea.
So needless to say, if I come home with a new $1200 bass to submit for her approval, it probably better at least be shiny.
Well, for me that's the $1200 question. Is there a way to get that feel/playability without all the cosmetic nicks and scratches?
It's been mentioned that Fender heat dries the wood or something. If they could and would do that and produce, oh I don't know, a MIM "50's reissue NOS" or similar, well there's a good chance that would be my next bass.
Tried a RW yesterday and is about as close to a natural relic as I've seen. I should know relic since I've been around for 55 years. Takes one to know one as we used to say as kids. I was never a fan of the MIM Fenders but these are WAY different. Like an old friend. I am not for the rusted bridges and screws since my naturel relic would never be rusted to the degree that I have seen. The rusting has been taken a bit too far. If you consider a Custom Shop relic goes for $3000, $1200 is a bargain. As I understand Mexico uses the same process as the Custom Shop to relic. The RW will probably be my next bass and not because of how it looks but how it plays and how it feels. IMO this is the best thing Fender has done in a long time.
So let me get this straight. There was a bass. It played and sounded great by your own account. You didn't want to buy it because its made in mexico and its $1200 bucks.
Relic debate aside, I think the roadworns are great. I don't care where an instrument is from (like that really should affect the price?) if its a good instrument. While caring less where its from, I like to see if I can justify if its a good enough instrument for that chunk of change (whatever the amount they're asking is)
Remember, the only difference between MIM Fenders and MIA Fenders is, that MIMs are made by Mexicans in Mexico, and the MIAs are made by Mexicans in California.
Also, for what its worth, I really want a fiesta red jazz. I've been duly impressed with all the RoadWorns that I've played.
wrong, wrong, and wrong. i dont have a problem with basses made in mexico. fender has very clearly decided that the mim basses are made cheaper so they can reach a different market than the mia. they were offering the mim p standards at under $600. why would anyone pay an extra $600 for relicing on a $600 bass? you could use that extra cash to buy an mia with upgraded electronics, better fret work, and not have to worry about the body cracking at the neck joint due to the wood not being completely dry or the pickguard shrinking or the neck being bent beyond truss rod tweaking. if you think the only difference between an mia and mim is ONLY where it is made, then consider yourself lucky because you will be equally as pleased with a $600 bass as i will with a $1500 one. ignorance is bliss they say.
the 75 jazz ri is no longer there. but the 78 is at the guitar center in dallas off of LBJ freeway (635) if anyone is interested.
LilRay
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- Dec 27, 2007
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Heck we don't need bass guitars to survive either, so I really don't get your point.
What about actors wearing makeup on TV?
What about the stage cloths that practically all bands wear to portray an image? Everything about popular music, from metal to Britany is first and foremost image driven.
As far as old naturally reliced instruments versus new reliced instruments, and stories to tell, I'd like to find the old Fender that could say anything... This is getting too philosophical. Unless you are running around naked or in a bear hide, killing your own food, and living in a cave, you are partaking in some form of our materialistic (image driven) society. We all have a fake appearance. And if you have an old instrument that was reliced before you got it, you are portraying an image to others that is in fact fake. If you don't get that there is nothing left to talk about.
As far the "I'm only giving my opinion" stuff, no kiddingThat's all any of us can do, no?
I'll only respond to your last quandry about instruments and stories to tell, as I see your other "points" or issues as irrelevant And INCENDIARY.
Your "factually" right in that instruments have no history or "stories" to continue using the same terminology. However they are an item we as musicians cherish and therefore their "sentimental values" are held by those who loved the person who used them.
Tell James Jamerson Jr that the "Funk machine" has no history or story.
Same can be said of Jaco's kids and the bass of doom.
The instruments "Mattered" to those who used them therefore they "Matter" to their loved ones.
We give our instruments life, often naming them etc. If you can't see the pride in carrying someone elses "Mojo" on vs manufactured " Fake Mojo" then the point is lost again.
All my instruments were gifts from my Pop. I've got a Fender Jazz that I got for my 20th birthday that I wouldn't trade for a truckload of "Boutique" basses. Because I know the "Story" behind it. I know how he had to bust his backside, I saw the blood, I saw the cuts, burns, blisters all the pain he endured to obtain it for me and the joy he had in giving it to me.
That MATTERS to me. That's the "REAL MOJO" Period. If that's lost on you I feel sorry for you.
Prayers,
God Bless, Ray
maybe i need to clarify because there are a lot of posts like this. the road worn was AWESOME considering it is a mim. if it sold at $700 i would now own one and be on tb touting how great they are. the $1300 am std p bass was also AWESOME, but this one was awesome at $1300! i was just surprised at the quality of the mim (as in worth more than $500 like they usually go for) and surprised by the price (as in this bass wasnt worth $1200). hope this makes more sense.
I'm not 100% sure what the "rant" is questioning?
$1200 is about street price for a new RW. They are mighty fine playing instruments and apparently are worth it to the folks who are buying them.
Folks are willing to pay $2k for a Rickenbacker, MIJ Squiers are collectable, Ampeg is being manufactured in Vietnam. 20 years ago I would have thought that was crazy talk.
But anyway, I'd like to know more about this $600 fretless P bass?
my rant is that the mim bass that looks like its 30 yrs old is twice the price of the mia that IS 30 yrs old. i dont understand this logic.
Hey don't feel sorry for me, I have a great job, a nice house, and a bunch of nice basses
You aren't really comparing the average 60s/70s Fender to the Funk Machine, or the Bass of Doom are you? I appreciate that you have an old bass that was your dad's, and I'm sure it has sentimental value to you -- not because it's an old bass, but because it was your dad's. However, most people with an old Fender bought it already old from a stranger -- if this is a mojo event for you, then have at it! However, to me this whole mojo thing is really silly -- it's just another way of saying an instrument looks old and feels broken in -- like a Roadworn Fender!
all the talk about mojo in a bass makes me sick. the damn funk machine itself would sound awful in some peoples hands, and ive seen people make a $150 lotus sound like a sadowsky! the mojo isnt in the bass, my friends, its in people who play from the heart.
Look at my gear list and say that again.
You obviously didn't read very far into the thread. I'll answer each of your points for you.
Labor is cheaper, hence the basses are cheaper. The MIMs are cheaper to produce. Its cheaper to make a MIM relic bass than a US Custom Shop relic bass. Its reaching the market that wants a Relic'd Fender at a lower price point.
They're not the same bass as the MIM Standards not by a long shot. Think of the RoadWorns to the rest of the MIM line as the American Vintage Series is to the rest of the American line (excluding the CS) The RoadWorns are the MIM flagship models.
The Road Worn is like what, a hundred bucks cheaper than an American Standard?
The Road Worns use the same exact hardware as their Fender Custom Shop counterparts.
Both Fenders have the same 'level' of fretwork. At both price points Fender really doesn't do anything other than a basic fret level. I can say that after owning nearly a half dozen Fender American Standards in the past yeyar.
The wood in the Road Worns is actually specially treated during the relic process. Its kind of "baked" in a way and its dried out. Just the the Custom Shop models. The only difference in their finishes (aside from being different nitro formulas) is that one Relic is done by machine, the other is done by hand. This makes the bodies very resonant.
The pickguards are made out of metal. Of course they will shrink and expand (like every other type of metal) but I think thats pretty much normal.
I've had the same happen to MIA necks right out of the box. You bring it in, and they replace it. Problem solved since the neck has a lifetime warranty. I know a lot of guitar techs, and I do set up work myself for people. I've yet to see or hear of any problems with out of the box RWs from anyone, and I haven't seen it on TB.
The problem with the RW series is that it is not the standard MIM built instrument. It has features that are similar to Custom Shop Relic and Closet Classic Basses. The nitrocellulose finish alone is more costly to apply than urethane finish. From descriptions and pictures from owners and Fender, the fretwork, neck treatment, hardware, etc, are top notch. Add to that, the aging treatment (similar to Custom Shop treatments) the labor costs make the $1200 reasonable and much more affordable then the $2500 to $3000for comparable Fender Custom Shop instruments.
It is not a standard P- or Jazz bass that has been made to appear worn.
From Fender Site:
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Model Name Road Worn 50s Precision Bass®
Model Number 013-1712-(Color #)
Series Road Worn Series
Colors (303) 2-Color Sunburst,
(340) Fiesta Red,
(Nitrocellulose Lacquer Finish)
Body Alder
Neck 1-Piece Maple, C Shape,
(Nitrocellulose Lacquer Finish)
Fingerboard Maple, 7.25 Radius (184 mm)
No. of Frets 20 Vintage Style Frets
Pickups 1 Precision Bass Split Single-Coil Pickup (Mid)
Controls Volume, Tone
Pickup Switching None
Bridge American Vintage Precision®/Jazz® Bass
Machine Heads Vintage Style Reverse Tuning Machines
Hardware Nickel/Chrome
Pickguard Gold Anodized Aluminum
Scale Length 34 (864 mm)
Width at Nut 1.750 (44.5 mm)
Unique Features Distressed Body, Neck and Hardware Creating an Aged and Worn Appearance,
Vintage Styling,
Gold Anodized Aluminum Pickguard,
Synthetic Bone Nut
Strings Fender Super Bass 7250ML, NPS,
Gauges: (.045, .065, .080, .100),
P/N 073-7250-005
Accessories Deluxe Gig Bag
Case Deluxe Gig Bag
Introduced 1/2009
Notice Product Prices, Features, Specifications and Availability Are Subject To Change Without Notice
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I don't see the correlation.... A well painted woman reliced? What do you do scape some of the makeup off of just parts? Put a few dings in her face? But yeah in the case of a woman I can understand creating that mojo yourself!
Thanks for clarifying, wasn't sure whether you wanted to discuss the MIM or the relic aspect.
On the surface it seems the 39 year old Fender fretless is somewhat underpriced. But it was mentioned that the neck may not have been original, so that could have a tremendous reduction on street value. With that said, the RW is a current mass produced model with a street price around $1200, not much GC can do about that.
Remember, it wasn't *too* long ago that 70s Fenders, particularly late 70s models, did not have very good reputations.
Considering how much of an emotional attachment folks have with instruments, it's hard to find much logic when it comes to market value and street price of instruments.
Blah blah blah, I beat you to it Hawaii Islander.
Thats because you're ahead of me by 3 time zones!
I was actually just trying to be funny and a little thought provoking at the same time. Obviously you can't take this too literally. Ray referred to Roadworns as having a "fake appearance," because the wear appearance was done at the Fender factory, instead of in the wild. I was merely pointing out that much of life is analogous to the Roadworns in that much of life is filled with "unnatural" (fake) appearances created by man rather than by nature and yet as a society we tend to accept them without a second thought.
