Has anyone "downgraded" from a boutique bass?

[BioDriver]

I went from Warwick to Fender/FSO. The only regret I have is the late 90s Thumb BO with the slim, solid wenge neck. But aside from that, the passive P tone is king for a reason, IMO/E.

 

[ToneMonkey]

"Boutique" is in the eye of the beholder. But I sold a mint (original owner) EBMM Stingray 4 and replaced it with a Fender Player P. I don't consider it a downgrade at all.

 

[Federighi]

Pull up a chair….

We buy instruments for hundreds of reasons, and a lot of guys ego would probably not allow them to go to Squiers after Alembics. I could, and I'm glad I did.

...I wanted to love the boutique stuff. They are beautiful instruments. Who wouldn't want a 4-string Ferrari?

I've let go of a Fodera, Ken Smith, Alembic, Kubicki, etc. and now play a plain old Fender MIM P bass and MIJ Jazz bass.

It took me many years to realize that Fenders (or Fender clones) are my favorites. I just think they sound and feel the best when you find the right ones...

... I have found that there is a lot of less expensive gear that is well made, comfy, sounds good, and will take a nice setup. If you are not hung up on name brand of bragging rights, you can get a bass that will play just fine for modest money...

+100

I share the same sentiments as you gentleman. In my experience (and for my taste), I've found that a solid Fender is all you really need.

 

[MattF007]

I have owned way too many basses including a Ken Smith. I bought the Ken Smith bass because I always wanted one and it was available. Construction was impeccable and was a beautifully crafted instrument. I ended up selling it as it wasn’t my sound and much prefer the feel and sound of a Fender Jazz.

 

[jimmydean]

Sold my Sadowsky P/J for a Dean Rhapsody that was a better sounding active and a Squier Jazz that was better sounding passive bass .

 

[Yogi Bear]

I too have had several high-end basses…

Adamovic
Drake
Mike Lull
Alembic
Warwick Masterbuilt
Serek
Dingwall
Roscoe

They were all great basses in their own right, but am very happily playing a Yamaha BBP35 these days, and it is my only bass. I don’t think I have ever been happier with my choice of instrument.

 

[GIBrat51]

I recently had to put my boutique bass for sale due to an unforeseen financial situation. It's my sole bass, so my intention is to grab a cheaper bass in the US$1,500 range when it sells.

I went to the store today to try some basses and came away disappointed... Basses I happily owned years ago seemed unplayable. 7.25-inch and 9.5-inch radiuses felt odd and uncomfortable. Action and string height felt miles apart from my bass's neck relief of 0.010" and string height of 2/32. Strings were stiff. The Fender Jazz Ultra's preamp sounded metallic and sterile.
I guess a lot of these issues could be fixed with a proper setup, but I don't know. I guess I've been spoiled.

Has anyone "downgraded" from a boutique bass? How was your experience?

No, not really. Unless you consider a used Alembic Epic a "boutique" bass, I don't think I've ever had one. Most of the 25 basses in my herd would, if new, sell in the $1600 - $3400 category. And, to be honest? I had a bunch of those before I bought the Alembic; which, if you go by the used price? It would fall in the middle of that price range...
Maybe it's because all my basses are lefties, and thus aren't quite the "assembly line" products that some righties are, but my basses in that price range are really very well made. For example; I would put my '13 Gibson Thunderbird up against any other bass, build-wise, that I've ever had in my hands - even my Alembic. Yeah, the ergonomics do leave a little to be desired, but it's built and finished as well as anything I've ever held. However...
Yes, I'd say that any bass you take down off a store wall, is pretty much guaranteed to need a set-up. Every one of mine came to me needing one - usually a very complete set-up. And, since I bought most of mine when I lived in Las Vegas, NV? Well, the only 2 that didn't have a serious case of fret sprout after 6 weeks, were my 2 aluminum-necked Kramers...
In today's age of CNC-machined bodies and necks, the only thing that really sets boutique - and other high-end basses apart from the herd, is the quality of the electronics; the quality of the hardware; and, most of all? The amount of time that skilled hands have been on it. Skilled hands and serious QC costs money; the fewer people involved, the cheaper the bass can sell for.
In any case... yeah, some of my basses have had to have some tinkering when I got them; however, all but a tiny handful came to me used. Some of them, very used. But, it speaks to their quality, that you'd be hard pressed to tell that from how they sound - and play...

 

[Snert]

I guess there was a time when they were more affordable and available.

My Series II cost less than $5k near mint secondhand. 20ya they weren't bringing much money. If I could get 6 string SII that was to my specs, or close, for something like that money, I'd jump on it. But it's not going to happen.

 

[pbass2]

Haven't downgraded, but I have an awesome boutiquey Pbass, and also a MIM 70's reissue P that I popped some Fralins in. My tech did his magic setup, and I gotta say, the MIM is my #1 right now.

 

[klattman]

Most basses in your typical music store play like crap. I would make no conclusions based on that.

Rarely do I ever see a bass with a halfway decent setup. Wildwood did a great job on both a bass and guitar from them. CME and sweetwater are better than most. anything sitting in most stores needs a ton of help.

 

[cdef]

Another former Alembic owner here. My Series I was fine sitting in the den, but turned out impractical, awkward and cumbersome on the class of gigs we played. Most fatally, it would not hold its tuning under hot stage lights.

My other bass was an inexpensive MIJ Precision copy that did stay in tune and sounded great (with a Bartolini replacement pup). It saved my @** on many a night, so after a while the conclusion was obvious.

 

[Short4since64]

Unfortunately. Had a BC Rich custom, Eagle style body, 32 scale, control on the instrument for power amp volume via voltage on the ring of a 3-conductor cord, badass bridge, bone nut, schaller tuners. Stolen. Went back to something orders of magnitude cheaper.

 

[Koshchei]

I’m the opposite. I recently tried an Alembic and Fodera and was very underwhelmed. My favorite basses are Spector & Rickenbacker with my Fender right there in a close 3rd.

This reflects my experiences too. I tried out a bunch at a really expensive show room, and wound up giving up on the $7000+ basses and playing a Rick 4003 they had on the wall. I just couldn't get them to sound as good (to my ear).

 

[600 Ohms]

I had a super high end Alembic Series I that I sold for Fender style instruments and couldn’t be happier.

 

[Rocket Queen]

From a couple of Alembics to a $99 Glarry GW101 25.5" bass, tuned in fifths. Top that.

 

[IronLung1986]

I still have my Pedulla but have stopped playing it for the most part in favor of my Stingray. It's honestly too high maintenance. Hard to keep in adjustment and feels different every time I play it. Tough to keep the notes singing the way you want and tough to get the strings equal to each other in volume and feel. It has to be so finely dialed in it's crazy. The ergonomics are also distracting. The Stingray is ready to work every time and gives me the least hassle of any of my basses.

 

[Juggernaught]

It's interesting that most of you came from Alembic. I guess there was a time when they were more affordable and available.

It's true they got much more expensive... 10-15 years ago you could pick up a used Essence for under 2k, a Rogue for just over 2k. Heck I saw a Series I (80s though) going for 3500 once. But I think the real reason is for many people thinking about a "custom" bass, they have so much mystique about them: beautiful instruments, they do a great job advertising their builds on their site, and it's easy to believe all of those layers of wood are doing *something* special to the sound. And some real legends are attached to the brand.

My Alembics were truly wonderful to own on their own: they were beautiful instruments, very precise and well made, and a joy to play, *especially at home*. But when I was seriously gigging all of the potential nuance was just lost on just dialing in to the mix, which was just way more complicated than it needed to be. Plus it made me feel more than just a little silly up there with a 5k bass on some gigs (you know the ones I mean).

 

[carsonchilders]

I moved from a newer Modulus Quantum with buckeye burl top to a Yamaha BB5000. I finally found the vintage vibe mixed with modern features that I always wanted (tight string spacing, 24 frets, all passive, neck through).

 

[MasterMonkeyMan]

Most basses in your typical music store play like crap. I would make no conclusions based on that.

I hear you. Many years ago I found a very well priced Pedulla Thunderbass at a local (non-chain) shop in town. When I brought it home I found myself asking what was all the hubbub I was hearing about Pedulla and high end basses.
The action was horribly high, the intonation sucked. I was ready to return it.
I spent time putting new strings, adjusting the truss rod, saddles and intonation. Made all the difference. Turned into a gem.
You would think that even though it was a used instrument, the shop would've given it a little attention. Maybe that's why it sat in the shop for such a long time.
It worked out good for me cause I wound up getting it for a very good price.

 

[PennyroyalWe]

I don’t know how you all do it. I once owned a Carvin and a Gibson, and those were too rich for my blood. Had me anxious whenever I picked them up. Ended up selling them before I went and put dents in them.

I stick to my Squiers, and I’m wonderfully happy not giving a single hoot about when I smack into an amp corner or the ceiling or whatever.