Do headstocks ever become a buying factor.....

[neonrust]

I have often found that the shape of a guitar(bass or 6-string guit-fiddle) headstock can be a deciding factor of a purchase. There have been several times that I have loved the body and playability of a guitar and just COULD NOT buy the thing because I hated the look of the headstock.

Feel free to call me shallow, but this is just how my brain is wired.

 

[FingeringAm]

weird it wouldnt even come into my mind until i go to tune the thing

 

[Ampeg SVT]

I dont think it matters as much as how the bass looks, sounds, and plays

 

[fretlessman71]

What is it you don't like about some headstocks? Is there a functionality issue?

 

[neonrust]

Sorry. HAHA.

New to the polling thing and didn't edit correctly.

The shape of the headstock is what I meant......my humblest apology's folks.

 

[MyUsernameHere]

What is it you don't like about some headstock's? Is there a functionality issue?

Some are just ugly or don't fit with the rest of the design aesthetically. Think Ken Smith headstock on a J bass. Yuck.

 

[nbw]

I try not to get hung over on how an instrument looks anymore but I will say that a headstock is a make it or break it as far as aesthetics go for me. No matter how good the rest of the bass may look, if the headstock looks goofy it's just a goofy looking bass. Call me weird, but I'm more judgmental about headstock's then bodies.
haha

 

[Figjam]

I wouldnt say Id ever buy a bass solely becasue of the headstock but sometimes the headstock is the first thing that attracts me to a certain bass, and thats the reason i first pick it up to try it.

 

[ishouldbeking]

Yeah, in a weird way i guess i'm a headstock snob... some just drive me insane. Given, my tastes almost always sway towards vintage/classic-styled gear anyway, but i really can't stand the headstocks on things like Warwicks, or on an Ibanez.

As much as I like Fender style headstocks, I think Gibson style look even better... the best of all, however... is the 70's Guild headstock. Awesomely cool. But of course it's all a matter of taste anyway, so YMMV, IMHO, yadda yadda.

 

[McThumpin]

I'm with you neonrust. An ugly headstock is a definite dealbreaker. In fact, it's probably the first thing I look at aesthetically in new or unfamiliar instruments. Shallow? A little. It's a mojo thing. I'm not into fat chicks, either.

 

[Mingus]

A li'l. As much as I'd like to have an MTD someday, I'll prolly stay away from the mass produced ones because their headstocks aren't as pretty.

 

[steve21]

As long as it doesn't neckdive I don't care.

 

[UncleBalsamic]

No not really.

 

[lowbass68]

Me no need no stinkin' headstock!

 

[PikeoftheLake]

The one thing that's keeping me from buying a Fender Precision is the headstock. I can't believe that after all these years they don't match the headstock with the body. there's nothing uglier than a rosewood board, 3 tone sunburst and that bland, wooden headstock.

 

[UncleBalsamic]

The one thing that's keeping me from buying a Fender Precision is the headstock. I can't believe that after all these years they don't match the headstock with the body. there's nothing uglier than a rosewood board, 3 tone sunburst and that bland, wooden headstock.

Some people like it. I do.

Wouldn't it be boring if everyone had the same tastes.

 

[JimB52]

The more it looks like a Fender headstock, the more likely I am to like it.

 

[lowtide]

I think headstocks are most definitely in the deciding factor . . . and a bass without a headstock is the fugliest of them all

 

[TheChristoph]

I always kinda groan a bit when I see Fender-alike headstocks (on non-Fenders of course). I realize that's a huge percentage of the bass population, but still. It can't be that hard to come up with something even a little different!

 

[Grebig]

for me it depends on the brand.Dean basses for example,I like the "pointy" headstock over the basic normal looking one.Some basses look better with all the tuning pegs in a row like a Fender and some look better with 2 on top and 2 on the bottom like a Spector.that's just my preference.