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How Is It Possible?!?

P

plangentmusic

Inactive
Jun 30, 2010
1,922
45
Manhattan
#1
Squier offers a "Jam PAck" which is a bass, a strap and a PRACTICE AMP -- for $249.00. Use a coupon at GC and get it for just over 200 bucks.

Okay, figure it out. If you bought the practice amp alone, that's at least $75.00 Add the cost of the cardboard, and shipping -- another $30.00 Of course, there's a set of strings -- $15? And I do believe the bass has a pickguard -- they go for $45, but let's say that these are only $25. The strap, even if it's junk is worth $10.

Oh, and they include a tuner. Let's say wholesale it's $15.

Almost forgot -- a cheap gig bag -- eh, maybe another 10 dollars.

Added up -- $195.00

That means the bass cost is...FIVE BUCKS.

Keep in mind, the store and the manufacturer are making a profit, and the sales man is making a commission. And they have to pay for advertising.

??????????!!!!!!

Okay, so an Affinity bass isn't a stadovarious, but it's not bad. Hey, tear the neck off and the pull the guts out and use just the body and you're on your way to building your own bass for a lot less than you'd pay retail.

If nothing else, I think this shows the incredible mark up on instruments.
 
#3
A. You usually don't have to pay extra for strings and a pickguard if the bass usually comes with them.

B. The stuff you get with starter packs is usually of lesser quality than the normal (even Squier) stuff. For example, the EB-0 that comes with the Epi starter pack is plywood, not mahogany.

C. When companies buy things like cheap straps and cords for these things, they purchase in huge quantities, so they cost nothing.

So... you get what you pay for... not that amazing of a deal at all.
 
#4
Staunch said:
A. You usually don't have to pay extra for strings and a pickguard if the bass usually comes with them.

B. The stuff you get with starter packs is usually of lesser quality than the normal (even Squier) stuff. For example, the EB-0 that comes with the Epi starter pack is plywood, not mahogany.

C. When companies buy things like cheap straps and cords for these things, they purchase in huge quantities, so they cost nothing.

So... you get what you pay for... not that amazing of a deal at all.
Click to expand...

Yes, of course buying in bulk makes their materials less expensive. But all companies buy in bulk.

And you're serious about the plywood vs mahogany?
 
#6
Staunch said:
Yes indeed.... I have one that I bought to have some modding fun with... and it's plywood.
Click to expand...


I'm not doubting it, I'm just of the notion of "Who cares?" It's so dirt cheap anyway.

I'm not suggesting anyone go out and buy this stuff, I'm just bringing up the point that a playable bass cost 5 dollars to make.

Hey, I think a $299.00 CV is as good as any $700 Mexi bass. So how much more does it take to make a REALLY good bass? Does another thousand dollars really give you something ten times better?

Just food for thought.
 
#7
They probably also count on people buying them and then immediately buying either Fender or Fender licensed parts for replacement, not to mention repairs. Also, if toyota made a super cheap version of the Camry or something, with the style, drivability, and comfort of the real thing, but with a smaller engine and less features, and then offered the same thing with all the features and of very high quality, they've basically guaranteed themselves the future business.
 
#8
billiam5billion said:
Also, if toyota made a super cheap version of the Camry or something, with the style, drivability, and comfort of the real thing, but with a smaller engine and less features, and then offered the same thing with all the features and of very high quality, they've basically guaranteed themselves the future business.
Click to expand...

They do, it's a Yaris. Not the same comfort or style as a camry but not bad. I bought a new '08 in 07. MSRP was just under $12k for a brand new toyota; I paid less out the door than that and also walked with a 70k warranty. I think its toyota's best kept secret.
 
#9
plangentmusic said:
Squier offers a "Jam PAck" which is a bass, a strap and a PRACTICE AMP -- for $249.00. Use a coupon at GC and get it for just over 200 bucks.

Okay, figure it out. If you bought the practice amp alone, that's at least $75.00 Add the cost of the cardboard, and shipping -- another $30.00 Of course, there's a set of strings -- $15? And I do believe the bass has a pickguard -- they go for $45, but let's say that these are only $25. The strap, even if it's junk is worth $10.

Oh, and they include a tuner. Let's say wholesale it's $15.

Almost forgot -- a cheap gig bag -- eh, maybe another 10 dollars.

Added up -- $195.00

That means the bass cost is...FIVE BUCKS.


If nothing else, I think this shows the incredible mark up on instruments.
Click to expand...

I believe you're vastly overestimating the manufacturing cost of the amp, strings, packaging, pickguard, and just about everything else. Do you truly believe it costs $45 to make a pickguard in China?

Strings can be had for $15 per set retail, and they're high markup items.

Remember Fender is buying boat loads (literally) of mass produced low quality stuff in China. The amp and tuner in particular are going to cost next to nothing.
 
#11
xed said:
They do, it's a Yaris. Not the same comfort or style as a camry but not bad. I bought a new '08 in 07. MSRP was just under $12k for a brand new toyota; I paid less out the door than that and also walked with a 70k warranty. I think its toyota's best kept secret.
Click to expand...

Exactly-if somebody buys a Yaris for a great price, and is happy with it, when they go to trade it in they'll be more likely to get another Toyota than to move on to another company. If somebody buys a Squier starter pack and then progresses to the point that they need an upgrade, they'll go with what they already know.
 
#13
Handyman said:
I believe you're vastly overestimating the manufacturing cost of the amp, strings, packaging, pickguard, and just about everything else. Do you truly believe it costs $45 to make a pickguard in China?

Strings can be had for $15 per set retail, and they're high markup items.

Remember Fender is buying boat loads (literally) of mass produced low quality stuff in China. The amp and tuner in particular are going to cost next to nothing.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't doubt it either if you were overestimating a lot of the parts - the fries in a fast-food meal are marked up by %500, and soft-drinks (or pop or soda, whatever you want to call it) are marked up %1200. Raw materials cost next to nothing - the wood that goes into a ukulele that can cost up to $1,000 probably costs between $50-75 on average, it's the labour that marks everything up so much, so they maximize efficiency in the building process. I think on average what we would pay for something, would probably only cost at most HALF that for them to actually make. So the $75 amp, would probably only cost between $20-40 for them to make, of course you'd also have to factor in the packaging, and shipping.

You might not be far off about most of the bass actually costing $5 though - I'd probably say that the whole pack would cost them $75-150 to actually make, which is exactly how they can sell them at such low prices.
 
#14
Anyone remember the 1970s?
What did your $300 get you then?
A plywood POS that sounded AND played like what it was: crap.

A least these things are half-decent quality for beginners to start out on. They have it pretty easy now.

How is it possible?
The workers who make this stuff are paid next to nothing.
 
#17
Yes - the strap costs $2 to make, as do the strings. The amp costs around $15-20 to make, a pickguard less than $1 (factory cost).

Then you factor in the fact that everything is made by automated machinery, so labor is at a minimum. Some of the vendors we work with use robotic paint lines, so even that is done without labor cost.

Yes - it is still amazingly cheap, but it is not a $5 bass. Maybe $25 to make. crazy, eh?

For GCr to sell it at $200 it has to cost them around $120, and the factory cost has to be around $50-60.
 
#19
Well, the amp doesn't "cost" GC $75, that's just the price they advertise it at. And by selling a pre-packaged kit, Fender is making it easy for the dealers to sell to parents who don't know anything about this stuff. They buy a box and it's got everything their child needs to get started playing bass. Fender's counting on that starter kit being a way to get someone else into playing, learning about GAS, and because they started with the Fender logo when they progress they'll probably be more inclined to buy another Fender.

The retail price of the components is nothing. I'd be surprised if the actual cost, including overhead, shipping, and marketing for the pickguard, gig bag, strings, and strap is much over $30 total. Figure a 5% margin to FMIC and these items would wholesale to the dealer for $31.58 ($1.58 profit on a cost of $30, is 5.00% of cost).

John
 

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