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Fender Lame-o American design experience Fail
- Thread starter Kirk Bryant
- Start date
If you want a truly custom bass, this is not your answer. I think this allows a customer to get a stock bass in the configuration they want with very limited choices. It also provides sales at list price for Fender. If you want a custom bass, go to a luthier, if you want a custom Fender bass, go to the Custom Shop at Fender. I can't imagine what the issue is... it is what it is, no more, no less. Perhaps in the future, if this concept is successful, they will offer more choices. In the meantime, don't sweat the small stuff, go to warmoth and build the bass you want. Should be about the same price.
Its not a custom shop, they just allow you to take any parts from their American product line and mix and match them. They are not making any parts specially for it because that would be custom shop. Its really just taking parts from their line up and allowing you to make a unique bass. If you want a custom bass go to a custom retailer. Sorry but all your complaints are unreasonable.
Can we change the title of this thread to "I don't like Fender anyway but I'm glad they gave me something else to complain about"?
I don't think it's a case of not liking Fender. I think it's a case of liking Fender too much. "I want a Fender but Fender doesn't make the Fender I want. Fender this. Fender that. Here a Fender. There a Fender. Not the exact Fender that I want Fender. Fender. Fender. Fender."
The OP has said multiple times that he actually likes Fender and owns a bunch of their basses.
Yeah, I was gonna say this.
The conclusion I drew from following that thread over time, unfortunately, is that even if one is willing to pay the premium for these (arguably limited) options, there's a pretty decent chance the final product will have one or more issues.
Which is too bad, I was hoping it would succeed and expand to include single-coil Ps myself. Oh well. As has been said, there are plenty of other options.
"Fender American Design Experience" sounds like an attraction at Disney World! Didn't someone from Disney recently take over as the head of FMIC? Coinsidence? I think not.
D
These basses are now imagineered for your pleasure!
It's like complaining that the car dealership does not have the car you want in plaid.
The quantity of "STRIKE"s, "!" and "WTH" in your post belie your claim, you come across as pretty darned pi$$ed about it, or at the very least, some set of emotions other than "calm and serene". If that was not your intent, you might want to reconsider your writing style.
The "service" could be completely useless, I wouldn't know or care, you just seemed to be taking personal offense at it. It's just another marketing ploy, nothing to get excited about. I'm not terribly surprised that Fender would be hyping something this underwhelming...
Fender? Hyping something that's underwhelming? That cannot be!! (pawn shop/road worn/carbonita/etc etc etc etc)
whats the difference between a 700 dollar MIA fender bass and a 2k fender bass besides 1300 dollars?
Was the OP a little over the top? Sure. But I am genuinely surprised at the responses defending the exceptionally small number of choices available. For example, why have chrome as the only color option for hardware? They make basses with black hardware, so they obviously have black hardware readily available, so why not offer it as an option? Is there any good reason for not offering it? The hamburger-in-a-pizza-joint and the plaid-car comparisons made earlier aren't even close to being good analogies.
I think they would be money ahead if they were to offer more options, like basswood or mahogany bodies, and pau ferro or ebony fretboards. It's not like those are uncommon or hard to get. They could offer more options for neck and body woods, and anything they don't have handy they can order from Warmoth, which is licensed by Fender anyway.
That is, they could if they were interested. They obviously aren't.
I think they would be money ahead if they were to offer more options, like basswood or mahogany bodies, and pau ferro or ebony fretboards. It's not like those are uncommon or hard to get. They could offer more options for neck and body woods, and anything they don't have handy they can order from Warmoth, which is licensed by Fender anyway.
That is, they could if they were interested. They obviously aren't.
Whenever someone tries to sell me on an "experience" that doesn't involve Jimi, I cross the street.
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
yeah i guess youre right when buying new. tons on the used market for that.
I just struggle with the fetishizing of fender basses in general. Love mine for what they do though i guess.
I just struggle with the fetishizing of fender basses in general. Love mine for what they do though i guess.
While maybe the OP is extremely passionate about the downsides to this, I do have to agree him. There are fewer options in the 'Design Experience' than if you just browse their basses on their website the old-fashioned way, and anyone who's been window shopping on their website for a while knows that. While it is just a marketing ploy, it's a marketing ploy which is designed to get people who literally have no clue otherwise to think they're getting a custom deal at the expense of the appreciation of life-long Fender fans.
The "turn your vision into a reality" slogan does not reflect the experience at all, which is very disappointing.
