I just came back from GC. I can't do it. My gut tells me that it just isn't the right time to make that sort of commitment for something that is a toy for me since I do not do paid gigs.
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.
Cure for GAS: RECESSION!!!
- Thread starter Dr. Cheese
- Start date
BTW, if I do get something, it will be either a Fender P5 or an American Deluxe Jazz V.
it is evident that your GAS has not been cured, despite your thread topic
it is evident that your GAS has not been cured, despite your thread topic
Knowing I can't get something pretty much cures me. I think Foderas are gorgeous, but I have zero GAS for $8,000 basses.
I may be a bit of an old schooler.. but before the internet, Ocationally we would get together with other local musicians, swap basses for a few hours. Offer up trades...
Cured me of GAS a few times...
Gave me GAS a few times...
when money isn't available, try the barter system...
Cured me of GAS a few times...
Gave me GAS a few times...
when money isn't available, try the barter system...
I only buy gear if I have the CASH for it it. Nothing is purchased with credit. Ive had to sell a few basses to get another, but thats the way it is. I sold 2 basses to get my MTD KZX5 Ltd. That cured my GAS for a long time.
My G.A.S. was so bad that I traded four basses and an effect pedal for a Fender "Geddy Lee" Jazz bass. That's how tight the money situation is for me right now. I don't regret it though, four basses that I hardly played in exchange for a bass that I can't put down. Seems reasonable to me.....for the time being at least.
Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada
I just got a Bongo 5 at a good price due to someone needing to pay rent. I feel bad for the guy. He traded it in Saturday, I saw it in the store today (and returned my new Stingray 4H that I had JUST bought last Friday, because of this Bongo.) The Bongo 5 was $699 (which is a great deal up here) so I bet the guy barely got $400 on the trade. Sucks for him. (It has some dings... so I think it was priced accordingly, but sounds and plays amazing.)
If I had been in the store when the guy was trading it I would have offered him cash for it! More than what the store probably gave him. Poor guy.
Sadly he was probably only given $300 for it.
I just went through the whole process recently.
The thing that gets me is that I found myself GAS-ing for a bass when I had no problems with the basses I own. An economic downturn is a good time to take stock in what I already had.
I own more than a few basses now and I have ALWAYS had the money in hand or saved up.
Only a couple of my basses were bought new. Most of them are used which can occasionally present issues but I haven't run into one yet that couldn't be fixed.
PLEASE don't think about putting yourself into debt for a bass, regardless of the state of the economy. When my tastes started running in the over $1k direction I set up an Orange account with ING and just started putting in money every paycheck. It's a lot easier to save when you have a goal in mind. And a lot more comfortable buying something that you can pay for right away and be done with.
Only a couple of my basses were bought new. Most of them are used which can occasionally present issues but I haven't run into one yet that couldn't be fixed.
PLEASE don't think about putting yourself into debt for a bass, regardless of the state of the economy. When my tastes started running in the over $1k direction I set up an Orange account with ING and just started putting in money every paycheck. It's a lot easier to save when you have a goal in mind. And a lot more comfortable buying something that you can pay for right away and be done with.
You have to get gas free! The best way is to get the gear you "really" want. It's worked for me (finally).
I'm a user of the one year interest free options.
I make sure I have about half the cash up front which goes into the first month or two payments. I have the rest of the cash in reserve. But this way I don't actually take the cash out of the bank for my purchase.
It's a whole lot harder to put the money back into savings than it is to take it out.
I make sure I have about half the cash up front which goes into the first month or two payments. I have the rest of the cash in reserve. But this way I don't actually take the cash out of the bank for my purchase.
It's a whole lot harder to put the money back into savings than it is to take it out.
If a recession isn't enough to scare the GAS out of you, try turning up the heat some more by buying a new house when nothing was forcing you to do it right now. We paid off our old house about four years ago and were enjoying living mortgage free but my wife really put the pressure on to trade up. I had (still have!) some real fears about doing what we did when she first started discussing it at the end of last year, but she really put the pressure on to do this.
Things went very well and we really love the house and neighborhood, but I'm still terrified.
Things went very well and we really love the house and neighborhood, but I'm still terrified.
Wise move. Part of my job has to do with following the ups and downs of Wall Street. Right next to my monitor is an inch-thick stack of really bad news, and that's just the stuff that's entered the public domain. Behind closed doors, ALL the alarms are going off. This slide is going to seperate the ants from the grasshoppers.
One rather nice aspect of the current market collapse is that I'm seeing a LOT LESS of the "You're PREAPPROVED for the XYZ-Bank Mastercard" or "Act NOW to open your BRAND NEW ACCOUNT WITH US and get a FREE Toaster Oven" crap that has plagued my mailbox ever since I bought my house. My credit rating is way up from where I was just 3 years ago, and that is from the wise use of credit, paying on time, and getting ahead of the game by paying off lots of debt.
Even still, my mortgage broker next-door neighbor is hurting- he had a guy who was moving into Houston from California (new job, I suspect), had sold his house and had ~$120k cash in hand to put down on a $290k house, had a good-paying job, (over $100k), but had missed a car payment 3 years ago and a credit card payment around the same time (divorce), 679 beacon score, and he was turned down for a mortgage. THAT is what lenders would have been tripping all over themselves to lend to just a month or two ago. Talk about bad timing! He ended up buying a condo in a distress sale for $80k, in an all-cash deal, but now he has no roof because of Ike. He had extensive interior damage as well, his insurance hadn't kicked in yet, so now it's all on him to fix it. FEMA is giving him $1400 to fix it all, and it's about $20k worth of damage. He's pissed, as you can imagine.
Even still, my mortgage broker next-door neighbor is hurting- he had a guy who was moving into Houston from California (new job, I suspect), had sold his house and had ~$120k cash in hand to put down on a $290k house, had a good-paying job, (over $100k), but had missed a car payment 3 years ago and a credit card payment around the same time (divorce), 679 beacon score, and he was turned down for a mortgage. THAT is what lenders would have been tripping all over themselves to lend to just a month or two ago. Talk about bad timing! He ended up buying a condo in a distress sale for $80k, in an all-cash deal, but now he has no roof because of Ike. He had extensive interior damage as well, his insurance hadn't kicked in yet, so now it's all on him to fix it. FEMA is giving him $1400 to fix it all, and it's about $20k worth of damage. He's pissed, as you can imagine.
That's great advice, but I am naturally a collector of anything I find interesting. If I get the perfect bass, I will want to imperfect bass that looks interesting. That is just my personality.
I am not that way with just basses. I am that way with anything that gets my attention so I have to "stand outside of myself" sometimes and put the brakes on.
