Gibson Acquires Mesa/Boogie

[alaskaleftybass]

Not hopeful for this. Gibson have a bad reputation for this sort of thing. Scared of a Fender - Sunn/SWR deal. Would be a real shame. I hope I'm wrong.

One of the great travesties of the bass amp world. I remember Sunn's were absolutely bullet proof and tone monsters. John Entwistle had a wall of them onstage. I owned one in the late 70's and it rocked. Then Fender bought the company and sunk it. Probably because it was better than Fender.

 

[ihixulu]

I can't believe I'm quoting my ex governor but strange times... "corporations are people" - the people in charge of a company make a huge difference in how it's run and the quality of its policies toward subsidiaries. Others here have already pointed out that Gibson is under new management, one that seems to be less greedy and incompetent as Henry Juszkiewicz's. It's entirely possible that nu-Gibson saw in Mesa a stable, successful company that could be a profitable part of their portfolio without needing much input or excessive oversight.

Sometimes, there is no saving the brand as the market position is simply too weak. In the case of Sunn, it didn't even exist as a company when Fender tried to bring it back, to no avail. SUNN was nothing more than a nostalgia brand by then, imo, and most players had either moved on or had no attachment to SUNN. SWR was behind the curve and Fender tried to update it with new products but it was too late. Fender didn't destroy or degrade those companies, they were dead or floundering to begin with.

I'm going to wait and see how this develops without assuming the worst.

 

[MordBass]

I don’t think you have this right. Perhaps you are not familiar with the cost of the Subway D-800, D-800+ and WD-800? (the successor to the Walkabout, which was driven by suggestions made here on TalkBass)

The TT800 got me to sell off my Eden/CA9 rack and the Subway 112 and 115 are next for me. In fact, I even have an 80's 215 roadready that has been a great coffee table for years now. I blew the speakers out after about 15 years of owning it, so I placed it face down and had a piece of glass cut for the top.

 

[popgadget]

Greenboy shut down the site. Aguilar was acquired by Korg USA.

Although the Greenboy site closed, the fearful plans are all still available for free download from speakerhardware.com.
The Fearless, Dually and Bassic cabs are still available from the authorized builders (like me) that have always built them. So actually not much change in Greenboy land.

 

[Deleted member 165050]

I can't believe I'm quoting my ex governor but strange times... "corporations are people" - the people in charge of a company make a huge difference in how it's run and the quality of its policies toward subsidiaries. Others here have already pointed out that Gibson is under new management, one that seems to be less greedy and incompetent as Henry Juszkiewicz's. It's entirely possible that nu-Gibson saw in Mesa a stable, successful company that could be a profitable part of their portfolio without needing much input or excessive oversight.

Sometimes, there is no saving the brand as the market position is simply too weak. In the case of Sunn, it didn't even exist as a company when Fender tried to bring it back, to no avail. SUNN was nothing more than a nostalgia brand by then, imo, and most players had either moved on or had no attachment to SUNN. SWR was behind the curve and Fender tried to update it with new products but it was too late. Fender didn't destroy or degrade those companies, they were dead or floundering to begin with.

I'm going to wait and see how this develops without assuming the worst.

For Fender you can also add Genz Benz, Guild and Tacoma.

 

[laklandplayer]

Gibson will probably run Mesa into the ground like every other acquisition they've tried.
I'll be amazed if its still going in 3 years. I get it, the owners are old and want to retire and I'd sell it too if I were them. But if history is an indication, company acquisitions generally don't go well, just look at what happened Eden, Tobias, SWR, & Genz Benz, the jury is still out on Ampeg. Since Gibson is far more interested in the guitar amplifiers, look for neglect to the bass models. Gibson has never done bass very well.

 

[Passinwind]

Sometimes, there is no saving the brand as the market position is simply too weak. In the case of Sunn, it didn't even exist as a company when Fender tried to bring it back, to no avail. SUNN was nothing more than a nostalgia brand by then, imo, and most players had either moved on or had no attachment to SUNN.

Yep. I had the rather unpleasant chore of cleaning up a big mess of very unreliable Sunn PA gear installs in many schools all over the Seattle right around that time. And Fender wasn't exactly in great shape at that time either, far from it.

 

[Roland GR 88]

And for all us Canadians this is potentially great news.
Mesa didn’t like stores to cherry pick products from their catalog to stock and sell. Mesa preferred that they take the whole line or nothing at all. This is why some L&M’s don’t carry Mesa and some do.
Gibson and their brands are distributed by Yorkville in Canada so this could mean every store will have access to the line and stock sitting on the floor.
We can only hope.

 

[mmbongo]

Does anyone remember Lab Series Amps?



Thought so.

I do! I went to a jam a few years ago and the guitar player showed up with an L5 and I begged him to sell it to me he would not do it!

 

[Silky Johnson]

I've noticed a major decline in Mesa over the past 20 years. As such, I don't really care what happens to them. They were already well on their way to the crapper.

Lol wut

 

[agedhorse]

I can't believe I'm quoting my ex governor but strange times... "corporations are people" - the people in charge of a company make a huge difference in how it's run and the quality of its policies toward subsidiaries. Others here have already pointed out that Gibson is under new management, one that seems to be less greedy and incompetent as Henry Juszkiewicz's. It's entirely possible that nu-Gibson saw in Mesa a stable, successful company that could be a profitable part of their portfolio without needing much input or excessive oversight.

Sometimes, there is no saving the brand as the market position is simply too weak. In the case of Sunn, it didn't even exist as a company when Fender tried to bring it back, to no avail. SUNN was nothing more than a nostalgia brand by then, imo, and most players had either moved on or had no attachment to SUNN. SWR was behind the curve and Fender tried to update it with new products but it was too late. Fender didn't destroy or degrade those companies, they were dead or floundering to begin with.

I'm going to wait and see how this develops without assuming the worst.

With Sunn, that company was basically dead before Fender acquired it. While they resurrected a few legacy models, Sunn was the basis for a line of PA and stage lighting gear that was hoped to expand Fender into new markets with dedicated branding. Fender did introduce a couple of new bass amps into the mix, but I don’t recall any new guitar amps models.

 

[baxter_x]

Gibson was/is an institution also I think. I believe they do have a history of self-destruction.

True, but not since they changed the CEO I think

 

[baxter_x]

With Sunn, that company was basically dead before Fender acquired it.

THat's the problem with this thread. People keep on giving example of brands they " killed" without knowing these brands were already going down!

 

[Eddie LeBlanc]

I do! I went to a jam a few years ago and the guitar player showed up with an L5 and I begged him to sell it to me he would not do it!

Yep. Several years back did an intro show for a B.B. King concert (about a year before he passed in 2015). He was continuing to play his Lab Amps. He said he loved 'em, even though they weren't made anymore.

 

[fdeck]

Andy, here's hoping that things go well for you, and that we continue to receive your frank and informative insights.

 

[Pops OB]

It could be a good thing.


ROTFLMAO!

 

[Deleted member 165050]

THat's the problem with this thread. People keep on giving example of brands they " killed" without knowing these brands were already going down!

So when Fender acquires a brand that subsequently dies that brand was already going down, but with Gibson it is because they are evil destroyers determined to wreck healthy beloved brands? I think I will call this...

Brand tribalism.

Ps Genz Benz, Guild, Tacoma.

 

[VolstateMark]

Yeah, I’m not doubting the business case for either party. Just pointing out the obvious advantage for Gibson would be to take a larger “boutique” brand with high name recognition and a built in consumer base. Re-engineer the products and send production overseas for cost control. That’s what I would do. It’s a business model that works. If you can make a Mesa amp that costs less you’re going to sell more. It’s a smart move. Understandable but not easy to cheer for.

Basically what Loud did with the Ampeg brand.

 

[agedhorse]

It could be a good thing.


ROTFLMAO!

Interesting, I don’t find it nearly as funny as you do...

 

[MordBass]

Basically what Loud did with the Ampeg brand.

Exactly. The question is... can they find the sweet spot where they offer a lower priced range without tainting the perception of the higher end products?
That seems to be one of the main issues in instances like this. With higher end gear, prestige is part of the value proposition. There's the exclusivity of owning it, not seeing 5 of them at every local show, the angle that they cater to a "higher end" crowd... etc
Thats all part of the package at the end of the day.