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Does price = quality/sound
- Thread starter mybassisalemom
- Start date
MDBass
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- Nov 7, 2012
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- Endorsing Artist: Dingwall-Fender-Bergantino-Dunlop-Tech 21-Darkglass-Nordstrand
I had an SX Jazz bass about five years ago that, once I swapped the stock pickups for SD Antiquity II's and gave it a proper fret dressing and setup, played and sounded better than the MIA Fender I had.
I sold the Fender shortly thereafter, and eventually sold the SX as well simply because it was STUPID heavy (slightly over twelve pounds).
The two basses currently in my stable that I know I'll have for the rest of my days are a Spector Coda (born in 2010) and a Spector NS-2 (born in 1979), although the Warmoth build I just picked up (wenge/ebony neck, ash body, Aguilar Super Singles) is probably on that now list as well
For me, and this is just my speculation, it goes from company to company and what the companies do during "the times." Personally there's a lot to be said about the quality of the neck build, as in how the frets are dressed and what kind of metal is used for the frets. Also, is it a quarter sawn neck, 3 piece, 1 piece, etc...
You can always swap electronics and pots to make a bass sound better. You can swap a bridge(if I could I would put a G&L bridge on all my basses) but a good quality neck really makes the feel of the instrument. And if the feel is right, your hands play right, if that makes sense.
What someone really should ask themselves, is it worth it to upgrade a $500 bass, put $500 into making it sound better or should you have just saved a little extra and bought the usa made bass that has all the high quality craftsmanship and materials in it?
You can always swap electronics and pots to make a bass sound better. You can swap a bridge(if I could I would put a G&L bridge on all my basses) but a good quality neck really makes the feel of the instrument. And if the feel is right, your hands play right, if that makes sense.
What someone really should ask themselves, is it worth it to upgrade a $500 bass, put $500 into making it sound better or should you have just saved a little extra and bought the usa made bass that has all the high quality craftsmanship and materials in it?
There is a big difference in sound, construction and playability between cheap and expensive. Big difference. The good thing is, that if you can't tell the difference, there are plenty of acceptable cheap basses on the market. I have a MIJ Squier and a NYC Sadowsky. Great basses for what they are. But two completely different instruments.
This. I am sure you can make a Squier to be better or similar to a Fender MIA Standard: Put some hipshot tunners and bridge, a stellar tone or J retro, pickups of your preference: norstrand, lindy, lollar; a pickguard from Jeannie, dunlop straplocks, send the bass to be pleked by Mike Lull or Lakland etc. By the time this is say and done you have spent more money in the Squier than in a Fender MIA
No need for all that. Get to the shop and make sure the one you choose does have a decent neck and fretwork, and can be set to play how you like. Do a bit of a setup at home (I often do some work on the nut - it's one thing I have found to be consistently substandard on budget basses!). Consider the pickups, sure, but don't assume the stock ones need improving - some do, some don't.
Like any product, you get a lot of quality difference for the first few $100 and then you get to a point where the quality change is small. Thereafter you are in the subjective range where other elements come into play. I think it would be useful to talk about where these price break points are rather than a heated slugging match of cheap versus expensive.
Davo
Davo
For the record I just want to say that fenders in general are over priced. Especially for how unreliable their quality control is. This goes from MIA all the way to squier. My point being, there's a huge difference between the name fender and the name spector(for example).
The price break is how bad you want that blood wood top on a walnut body with a wedge neck and pale moon ebony fretboard. Hand carved from a tree that the Buddha once meditated under.
The other thing to remember is technique and what you are playing through
Agree, I am a firm believer that there is limit in the quality of the available components that you can get. In my opinion, once you hit the $ 1,500 USD you reach the limit of them, most of components will be very close if not identical to a $ 5,000 USD bass with same specs: Bridge, tunners, pickups, pots, screws, body wood, neck wood, fretboard wood.
Of course there will be some difference specially in the fret work and the customer service department and people paid for those difference and there is nothing wrong with that.
A lot of it is psychological. When we play a cheap bass, we might lack the confidence that we sound good.
And when we play an expensive bass, we feel good about what we are playing and thus mentally we like how we sound.
A lot about sounding good is related to how we feel about our equipment.
That is the definition of bad quality right there....excessive variation.
Point proven.
Amazing how almost any thread descends to the level of Fender bashing.
In general, no. Price is a response to supply and demand and is not directly connected to quality or sound. There is a second order connection, e.g., the reason for demand outstripping supply may be because of high quality and/or good sound, but it's not necessarily so. A pristine 1950's P bass will draw a huge selling price even if it sounds like doo doo.
I love it... As a rule yes. In general no.
The answer here is definitely maybe. My experience with basses is that higher price is always better quality but not necessarily sound. Lakland 55-94 was my most expensive and highest quality bass. Don't really like the sound of Barts in a J/MM config though. I'm sure my experience doesn't represent everyone elses though.
The answer here is definitely maybe. My experience with basses is that higher price is always better quality but not necessarily sound. Lakland 55-94 was my most expensive and highest quality bass. Don't really like the sound of Barts in a J/MM config though. I'm sure my experience doesn't represent everyone elses though.
You're certainly entitled to your opinion, however wrong it may be... I would bet that for every pro playing a Spector, there are probably 10x as many playing Fenders - just sayin'...
Amazing how almost any thread descends to the level of Fender bashing.
No doubt...
- georgestrings
based on my experience of owning both low end and high end basses and using them for
rehearsals, gigs and studio I would have to say no as far as live goes. Once mixed into a
live band a low end bass sounds fine as long as the intonation is accurate. But for recording I
have found that my high end basses work better. Might be just my imagination but the Sadowsky
basses I have seem to sit in the mix better and faster with less processing in the DAW. But I use a
2nd hand Fender RW P for lots of gigs where I don't want to take a higher value instrument and it sounds and plays great.
As far as the hollow body option I have used a Klira and a Hofner and cannot tell the difference between the two when played live.
rehearsals, gigs and studio I would have to say no as far as live goes. Once mixed into a
live band a low end bass sounds fine as long as the intonation is accurate. But for recording I
have found that my high end basses work better. Might be just my imagination but the Sadowsky
basses I have seem to sit in the mix better and faster with less processing in the DAW. But I use a
2nd hand Fender RW P for lots of gigs where I don't want to take a higher value instrument and it sounds and plays great.
As far as the hollow body option I have used a Klira and a Hofner and cannot tell the difference between the two when played live.
MDBass
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Fender and Spector are different companies in almost every possible way: Fender was the first electric bass manufacturer and started two decades before Spector did (which made them the standard by default, there are likely 10x more pro Fender players than all other brands), Fender is now a huge corporation whereas Spector is still runs like a small business (Stuart and a couple other guys still hand-make every US build), their designs and tones are literally nothing alike, etc.
Comparing them really serves no purpose at all, especially considering both brands offer everything from budget to boutique models, aside from starting a 'my-dad-can-beat-up-your-dad' contest
Is this a serious question? I ask because anyone with just a tiny bit of experience in the consumer world knows the answer.
How are basses different from anything you can buy? Hint: it's a rhetorical question, and they're not.
How are basses different from anything you can buy? Hint: it's a rhetorical question, and they're not.
MDBass
Supporting Member
- Nov 7, 2012
- 8,590
- 14,890
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Dingwall-Fender-Bergantino-Dunlop-Tech 21-Darkglass-Nordstrand
I'd put the break at about $2,000, but otherwise that's right on the money.
That being said, if I had spend $2,000 on a new instrument I would absolutely expect excellent fretwork and customer service, they certainly don't cost an extra three grand
I have both expensive and inexpensive basses. I find the tone can be altered for relatively little money, but what you are really paying for with a more expensive instrument is build quality and reliability, which can't really be fixed easily like swapping a pickup.
