Fender's lack of bass evolution

[Dave Leighton]

They work for me...

 

[obieito]

Who the heck wants something really new from Fender?
I don't think anyone goes to Fender when they think of something innovative.
Fender means classic. And that's what they have to keep doing, with little exceptions or caprices here and there.

 

[buldog5151bass]

Why should they?

1. The Precision and Jazz are the two best selling models in history, and still are.

2. When they introduced different models, they didn't sell nearly as well.

 

[Mechanical]

How often does this thread come up? Like once every six months or so?

Remember the Dimension, Aerodyne, etc. etc. etc.?

 

[Nephilymbass]

Anyone else notice Fender's lack luster efforts to come up with new designs? The "new" models are just P and J re-treads or re-configurations. When's the last time they introduced a new through neck model?

This in response to that keisel thread?

anywho. Fender is likely never going to be innovative again. It's a company owned and run by "suits" who make money of a dead legends designs. It is what it is. I own two. I suggest anyone who wants a "classic" bass guitar check out a fender. Are they for everyone? No probably not.

 

[Tom Gallo]

If only Fender didn't have that darned monopoly on the bass market.

 

[g-dude]

Ok I've thought real hard about this for literally minutes... like how a violin or a cello is pretty much how it was centuries ago? It's because they got it right early on. No point in changing what works. That's why kids now are mostly playing the same instruments as kids 60 years ago. Precision, Jazz, Les Paul, whatever, they all just work. They just need new paint.

They didn't get it right "early on" - instruments evolved slowly, and we more or less stopped evolving them because there wasn't a demand for additional innovation after the 18th century or so. They also existed alongside similar instruments such as the Viol that eventually faded into relative obscurity when compared to the violin.

Innovation in instruments is driven by need, and those innovations are maintained as long as music utilizes them. The Octobass does indeed meet a need, the need for stupidly low notes — but the relative lack of music that requires one when combined with the expense of constructing the instrument means that it will always be a musical oddity.

 

[Rolling Thunder]

Players want innovation...as long as it is something they already know and love.

Yep, case in point is the parallel universe and alternate reality lines.

Probably already been said, but I will bet that whatever you want Fender has already built and sold it. Of course, this is within reason, Fender is not likely to start building ERB's beyond 6 strings. They try a lot of stuff, not much sticks. When you have probably built and sold more basses than every other company combined, you have hit on a good thing and as long as people keep wanting those P's and J's, thank God Fender is still around to do it!

Brings Strandberg to a studio, gets asked if you own a P-bass....

 

[g-dude]

I'm curious...
Let's detour a little bit..

How many of us would buy a 24TET fretted bass? Extra frets (of a different colour metal) between the regular frets (of standard colour metal)? How much extra would you pay for it?

Sure, could start of with lined fretless with extra lines... but the frets would help with pitch precision during the quarter tone modulations.

We could jam along to our favourite the Jacob Collier tunes, and them make some more.

The rest of the bass could be old style... but maybe spruce that up too with the latest ergonomic understandings, and electronic tech.

Would you buy? What price would be right to just buy for try?

As my granny used to say, "37TET or GTFO!"

Just kidding - she didn't swear.

 

[g-dude]

How often does this thread come up? Like once every six months or so?

Remember the Dimension, Aerodyne, etc. etc. etc.?

In retrospect, I sort of wish I had gotten an Aeordyne versus some of my other Fender purchases.

 

[VolverseLoco]

I give Fender a free pass for being stagnant and stuck where they are. People love the P bass and Jazz bass, and that's what they do best, I think. It's the ridiculous design changes of the Jackson flagship metal bass model that Fender either did or allowed to happen, since they bought Jackson and turned those pointy head stock heavy metal machines into church going brown 'concert basses' with downright ugly pointy body parts. No free pass for that. There's another thread floating around here about this same topic, but as it applies to Gibson, but Gibson having bought Kramer can immediately fix that by dusting off the old tooling of Kramer basses and start cranking out 2021 model Strykers. They wouldn't have to gamble on a new design and if they used any other paint color besides black or brown, they'd bury ESP.

 

[ClusterFlux]

Who the heck wants something really new from Fender?

If they made an Acoustasonic Bass that sounded like an upright, I think they'd sell them by the truckloads.

 

[ClusterFlux]

How often does this thread come up? Like once every six months or so?

Remember the Dimension, Aerodyne, etc. etc. etc.?

They still make the Aerodyne, and afaik it still sells fairly well.

 

[Jeff Scott]

Fender probably feels through neck would be a flop. Just like a Ric 4003 bolt-on would probably be.

There were quite a few bolt-neck Rick models, actually. Not as popular as their neck-throughs, obviously, but there are many who do like them. The one I owned (2030GF) was the most aggressive (in a good way) Rick bass I've owned.

If you start any innovative threads here, they just get ignored.

So, I am not the only one to have noticed this anomaly, eh?

I'm curious...
Let's detour a little bit..

...maybe spruce that up too...

How about a spruce top on an innovative bass?

 

[g-dude]

If they made an Acoustasonic Bass that sounded like an upright, I think they'd sell them by the truckloads.

I don't think they'd be able to pull that one off convincingly. Would be impressed if they got 50% there.

 

[Richard Martin]

If you want to see a lack of innovation just go check out Gibson's offerings.

 

[lordradish]

Anyone else notice Fender's lack luster efforts to come up with new designs? The "new" models are just P and J re-treads or re-configurations. When's the last time they introduced a new through neck model?

When (based on what I see here on TB, every day) 75 percent of bass players seem to be fine with a P or J, why would you? Fender made their success on some early cutting-edge things. There are better cutting edge things out there. If ya want cutting edge, there's always boutiques.

 

[Deleted member 165050]

If you want to see a lack of innovation just go check out Gibson's offerings.

Yawn...

 

[lordradish]

Does every thread need a reaction thread these days?

Good point. Do we need a Fender post every day?

 

[lordradish]

If you want to see a lack of innovation just go check out Gibson's offerings.

True, but again, if people are looking for innovation, they're generally not looking at the legacy brands, to begin with.