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Does adding a battery devalue a bass?

magic8161

magic8161

Supporting Member
Mar 4, 2003
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Milwaukee
www.jimmyprinceshow.com
#1
Thinking of getting a Duck dunn Korea Lakland. its from 2007 but it has a Battery compartment someone put in. at least I think it wasnt factory installed? does this make the bass worth less?

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#3
Pretty much any mod de-values the instrument, particularly an irreversible one such as this. Correct me if I am wrong but that is just a standard P bass. An active P bass isn't really desirable on the open market. If it was, you'd actually see them made on a regular basis. That being said, this looks pretty well done so it wouldn't destroy the value, just dent it.
 
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#5
From my experience, the majority of music instruments lose value when resold, whether or not any modification has been made or their condition.

One exception I've observed to this cycle is in regards to rare vintage instruments or boutique instruments that are highly sought after. Be advised, That's not always the case.

But, as with most music instruments, it will lose value regardless.
 
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#6
This is the deal. I bought my G&L Back from guitar center 45 days ago today,(they have a 45 day return policy) Its a Nice LB100 Empress. I like the bass but I wish it had a Jazz neck. I always liked the Lakland and have had GAS for a duck dunn a while now. Theres pros and cons on each. Such as, The G&L is made in the USA and a bit lighter weight. but the resale value is low. ( I change basses like a baby changes dipers...lol) The Lakland has the Jazz neck Im looking for and holds its resale value better. I love the way they both play so I would think its preference. I have a few hours to decide. this is my G&L bass that I would be returning to guitar center.
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#9
Not looking to Flip at all. If that was the case I would try and sell the G&L and not return it to guitar center for what I paid for it.. I just Get gas every now and then and If i do wind up selling it I dont want to loose money. I do want a jazz neck and I always wanted a Duck dunn. My question at first was if a mod devalued the bass. I dont want to pay $800 for the Duck Dunn and find out in a year or two I have gas for something else and loose money on it if i sell thats all. If the mod is going to devalue it I will wait for another one to come up and keep the G&L for now.
 
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#13
Jeff Scott said:
Yes, an irreversible mod does, indeed, devalue an instrument. I take it you bought this bass to be a player, not a collectible, so don't worry about "making money" on it when you sell it. It's just an inexpensive, Korean made, instrument, in the first place. :cool:
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Didn't buy it yet. I just don't want to pay $800 for it to find out in 2 or 3 years when and if I sell it it's worth only $600. I guess im asking is it worth th $800 with the mod. Lakland has a mod upgrade on there site but im sure this is not factory done. Since i seen theses run for around $800 without a mod i was just wondering.
 
#14
when you buy New , 99% of whatever ... you Will lose money .. ! = depreciation


if you buy Used , at the right price , hopefully the biggest depreciation drop has already occurred .. ! which means you'll lose a bit Less ..

buying something used/old/vintage/rare ... it will only be worth whatever the market will bare at any given time .. !! if you need money , market is down = you'll lose ... usually when the market is up , i'm not ready to sell = lose .. ha
 
#15
sheltjo6 said:
From my experience, the majority of music instruments lose value when resold, whether or not any modification has been made or their condition.

One exception I've observed to this cycle is in regards to rare vintage instruments or boutique instruments that are highly sought after. Be advised, That's not always the case.

But, as with most music instruments, it will lose value regardless.
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Does that mean my US Jazz Plus is a rare vintage? I bought it brand new in the early 90's for $625 out the door. These days when they show up at the usual places, prime examples are going for $1400 and up. Heck even the ones with the kubicki pre and lace sensors removed are going for around $800. I've always been in love with mine.
 
#18
magic8161 said:
What do you think that would cost? I'm not real handy with tools.
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They're fairly straightforward to assemble, and they usually drill things like the neck, bridge, output jack, and pickup holes. I found the most difficult thing was to put the tuners on. I knew how to solder, so if you don't know how to do that, putting the electronics is tricky. (Maybe you could hire someone to assemble it.)

The body is about $400-450 painted, the neck will be about the same. Bridges run $60-100. Tuners, maybe $50-75, pickups are about $100-150, other miscellaneous parts are about a hundred bucks, 30 bucks for strings, etc. All told, I'd guess it would cost about $1200, if you bought everything new yourself.

I've put a few together. Most of the time, I find someone selling a body or neck on eBay for a more decent price, and then use parts from other basses to put it together. But it always ends up costing me somewhere between $800-1000.
 

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