Here's the best approach: start another company, do something great and different...and then sell the brand to Fender.
Boom!
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Fender's lack of bass evolution
- Thread starter lucas303
- Start date
Here's the best approach: start another company, do something great and different...and then sell the brand to Fender.
Boom!
Fender always were the absolute leaders in innovation - Leo's bolt on neck concept revolutionized the manufacturing process and resulted in affordable and very robust instruments. The old joke was that you could swing your way out of a bar fight with your Fender and it would still be in tune! So from the very start they were wildly innovative and, as others have said, they are still creating. OK, I don't care for the look of the Acoustasonic but I have to admit that it is innovative. All that said a through-neck bass is not something that Fender would do, other companies do that already. P and J basses (and the countless copies thereof) probably account for more than half of the bass market world-wide and until something better comes along that is how it will stay.
I was just about to make such a post until I realized there's probably some online pickup truck forum out there badly in need of a post asking why Ford hasn't sufficiently innovated since it introduced the F-150 so my hands are tied. I'm so sorry.
Or look at a good bulk of their MIJ 80s output: different pickup configs (some with angled mountings), different types of active electronics, different body styles, and even a plethora of construction material for different models
Technically, Fender really has a "been there, done that" snark response to this thread
Only SWR, Sunn and Genz Benz aren't around anymore, and the world didn't stop because of it.And, where are some of these companies, now?Sad, actually.
I think for the most part it's a tried and true formula that has yet to fail them. Why reinvent the wheel if the wheel you have makes a fortune.
Sure, keep the classic designs and come up with new ones...this is what others do, but if what sets them apart from the others is their focus on what they are good at gains the confidence of there clientele, they may not choose to change for that reason.
Then again maybe they accidentally hit on something that worked and can't come up with anything new...
Sure, keep the classic designs and come up with new ones...this is what others do, but if what sets them apart from the others is their focus on what they are good at gains the confidence of there clientele, they may not choose to change for that reason.
Then again maybe they accidentally hit on something that worked and can't come up with anything new...
C'mon Jimmy, everyone knows how bad we are at juggling basses here, and we all know that sexy Fender headstock and watermark get you more money back and a less angry spouse.
The original P and J models were radical and innovative musical instruments when they were first introduced decades ago and are still successful today. Therefore the cliches - "Why mess with a good thing?" and "If it isn't broke don't fix it" apply in this case. They've been successful with the J and P for 60-ish years. Also, I'm sure they've considered investing and retooling a new and different model and they've determined that it's not worth the financial risk to change their proven business model that's made them the leader in the guitar industry longer than my lifetime.
The most innovative bass they ever made was the Kubicki Ex-Factor but credit for that awesome bass goes to the late great Phillip Kubicki who was a Master Fender Luthier up to the time he left Fender to start his own guitar building business. He couldn't keep up with demand so he eventually sold the rights to the Fender Custom Shop for four years and then took it back after that.
The Kubicki Ex-Factor was the most advanced and innovative bass Fender ever made.
The most innovative bass they ever made was the Kubicki Ex-Factor but credit for that awesome bass goes to the late great Phillip Kubicki who was a Master Fender Luthier up to the time he left Fender to start his own guitar building business. He couldn't keep up with demand so he eventually sold the rights to the Fender Custom Shop for four years and then took it back after that.
The Kubicki Ex-Factor was the most advanced and innovative bass Fender ever made.
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Evolution? On the second day Leo created the Fender bass and it was good.
I'd have to try it first of course but I would seriously consider it.
I think the PJ Mustang, and some variations of the Jaguar, are actually good examples of where Fender has innovated, by taking a classic model and updating and upgrading it. I see Mustangs and Jaguars as niche instruments, not unlike my Lakland Decade, but they fill a niche or three.
I'd be first in line for a re-release of the American Deluxe Zone
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That brings the number of people who wouldn't mess with me up to...let me check my list. One.
Oh, I see. Since the 17th century the pattern for violins has been established. It only took Leo about 4 years to establish the current P Bass.
