How much would you put up with for the perfect sound?

[AdmiralBumblebe]

Title is the question. Spurred by my ownership of a boutique instrument that sounds incredible, but I've experiences numerous issues that I'd normally consider unforgiveable on an instrument of $500, let alone 18x that.

But... I put up with it, because in 30 years I've never heard a bass that gets the sound in my head so effortlessly.

In retrospect... I'd do it all again, but I'm curious how much TBers would put up with?

 

[bdgotoh]

Must haves for me:
-comfortable, easy to play neck, no obvious fretbuzz, truss rod that's easy to adjust

-comfortable body with contours, no sharp edges or protruding screws on the bridge

-light weight - 9 lbs or less, closer to 7.5 is best

How a bass looks or a little noise doesn't usually bother me.

 

[M.R. Ogle]

That would become my recording bass.
I'd find something else for playing gigs.

 

[luciens]

For me, the only things I really truly can't tolerate are:

- a fingerboard that won't get and stay flat
- a high action
- no bridge pickup
- won't stay in tune

I can literally deal with just about anything else. Short of things breaking or falling off, or it tearing up my arms, pretty much everything else is nice-to-haves or just isn't a huge deal. Like the finish, the color, the type of wood, that kind of thing. It can even be a fretted bass if it's really something desirable.

I have found, though, that I can get that at or below about $2000, so I haven't yet run into a situation like yours, where it cost 9x that figure, but it apparently has bad QC or design issues. I'm almost afraid to ask... In that situation, though, I might be considerably more demanding and particular about things that aren't important at the $2k level....

L

 

[BassFishingInAmerica]

I think I’m completely opposite from the OP. The more I spend, the less I’d be willing to put up with, regardless of sound. Anything over $3000 better be perfect in every aspect.

 

[Killing Floor]

I'm snotty about hardware. Don't have a moment's patience for crappy bridges. If it comes on a Glarry it can't come on a $300 bass, let alone $3-4-5,000+. I'm talking to you, Fender.
That and top end pickups with low end preamps. I don't get it.

 

[dmt]

If the tone is perfect and it plays well (nice neck, mainly), I’ll take up to 9.5 lbs and less than beautiful. For example, my favorite P bass sounds perfect and plays great, but it’s definitely a bit heavy for me at 9.5 lbs., and it’s a plain black with white pickguard that I find visually boring. Somehow, it also has the least attractive rosewood fingerboard I’ve ever seen, too (though it is real rosewood). But it sounds perfect, I dig the neck, looks okay (boring, but okay) and...it only cost me like $800. There’s something about a less expensive instrument that’s a bit freeing - doesn’t carry the weight of outsized expectations or the background fear of it being damaged, lost or stolen.

Meanwhile, my most expensive instrument is an AVRI Tele guitar that sounds perfect and is light and looks great - but the neck bothers me. So, I don’t play it much and am in practice kinda keeping it for fetishistic purposes, I guess. The thing is, it’s a Fender, so there’s hope that one day I’ll get around to swapping in a different neck so that I can actually enjoy playing it. There was a lot of hopes and dreams plus money invested in it, so I want to make it work.

Another terrific sounding one is my Les Paul guitar. Again, a little too heavy at 9.5 lbs., but it also looks great on top of its great tone and neck, so I can handle the higher price. The tone plus neck and looks = a winner. Just wish it weighed less.

I guess for me, if the neck isn’t there, it won’t get played much and it’ll always be in danger of being moved on (though I’m very slow to pull the trigger on selling, so I have a few instruments that mainly sit). If the light weight and neck are there, I’ll accept good-but-not-great tone and play it but not love it. For love, I need the tone and the neck and the look.

Currently, after putting in a Novak neck pickup, new Hipshot bridge and Ultralight tuners, my SG Bass has it all for me - weight, tone, looks and neck. Even got it used, so the initial purchase price wasn’t too bad and it accordingly doesn’t feel too precious (though the cost of the various mods did bring the total price back up). Can’t put it down these days. That’s what I want - the whole damn package

 

[buldog5151bass]

I'm more worried about how it feels/plays. Tone is dependent on alot, including the amp.

 

[Zooberwerx]

From my brother's website:

1. 20% of the money will buy you 90% of the sound.
   
   
   • Corollary: Another 30% of the money will buy you another 5% of the sound.
     
   • Corollary: You can't buy the remaining 5% of the sound because nobody can agree about what it is.
     

 

[Volker Kirstein]

Title is the question. Spurred by my ownership of a boutique instrument that sounds incredible, but I've experiences numerous issues that I'd normally consider unforgiveable on an instrument of $500, let alone 18x that.

But... I put up with it, because in 30 years I've never heard a bass that gets the sound in my head so effortlessly.

In retrospect... I'd do it all again, but I'm curious how much TBers would put up with?

There is no "perfect sound!"

 

[40Hz]

I can - and have - put up with a lot for the sake of tone over the years. Back in the late 60s through the 70s it went with the turf. But these days, with the level of engineering available, and the working knowledge builders have since acquired about how to do it right, there’s no longer an excuse for it.

I’ve since become far less tolerant of having to deal with “issues” that affect newer gear. Especially when it comes to higher priced equipment.

We can do better. So why not expect and insist on better?

 

[jmon]

Reliability is critical. I wanna plug it in and have it play. Every single time every time. This goes for Basses, amps, mics.....Also cars, people....The last things I wanna do is worry about something being on point and having to fiddle with it as a gig is about to start. Once something screws me this way it’s gone. Nothing bothers me more than having to deal with something not working. I was ready to fire a guitarist for this reason. Seemed like every gig something in his rig would go out mid set. Cables, power packs ect are cheap. Replace them already. Don’t troubleshoot your rig at the gig. Just sayin....

 

[RayWithFlats]

If it took a vintage bass to give me the sound I was looking for then I’d have to put up with the issues that come with older instruments. If it was an expensive new bass it’d have to be perfect before I put the money down, especially since you can get 90% there for a lot less money which frees you up to tweak your rig to get closer. (Either that or get a cheap short-scale and fretless too and expand your tonal palette that way.)

Also, it’d have to be a bass that sounded equally good in live and recording situations, perfect tone is only perfect if it’s there for you every time.

 

[micguy]

If it doesn't have enough reliability/stability to be playable at a gig, what it sounded like at home is irrelevant. I build instruments that not only sound great at home, but at the gig. Yes, I bring spare cables and a few tools to deal with potential tweaks I might someday need at a gig, but the thing has to be able to survive a trip in a car (at 20 below or 100 above), and be playable.

I guess I don't put up with much, but mostly because I don't have to - I can (and do) build basses that sound and work well without any significant issues.

 

[REV]

There is no "perfect sound!"

I have to disagree. There may be no universally perfect sound but I have played gigs where I have achieved exactly the sound I want. Of course the next gig might be a disaster, but just the fact that I was able to achieve it at all is good enough for me. Wabi-Sabi

 

[nilorius]

I have allready done it, when i bought my Ibanez GWB1005 in 2006 with a big discount. I think it cost me 2000e. And also - there is no perfect sound all, it can be for each one.

 

[zubrycky]

As long the bass is playable, I don't care.

 

[sonojono]

That and top end pickups with low end preamps. I don't get it.

Sounds like a bass that starts with I and ends with Z.

 

[Keith Guitars]

OP's question leaves me wondering about what issues he/she has experienced with their 'boutique' bass.
Are these problems with craftsmanship? Materials? Reliability? I would need to know more.
Since OP's post suggests that the bass cost $9k, my expectations are VERY high - there would basically be almost nothing I'd be willing to overlook.
I am ruthless with QC evaluation on my own instruments and everything else that comes through the shop, and at that price point I would feel
justified in pointing out the smallest issue.

If they are craftsmanship issues, there are certain considerations - it's hard for any small shop to compete with the consistency of factories
when it comes to things like gloss finishes, for example. Neck shapes, body carves etc. are also much more likely to vary from piece to piece
with handmade instruments, and for many people that is part of the charm of a handmade instrument.

Issues like bad glue joints or parts that fit poorly are a different story, and those should not be let off the hook at any price point.
As someone who makes my living building and selling guitars, I feel we are at a point where ANYONE who wants to take money for their work
should be getting a lot of things right - bridge position, pickup mounting, electronics/shielding, fret treatment etc.
The quality of these aspects has gone up tremendously on lower-priced instruments, and if they can do it, then everyone should.
There's really no excuse (NOTE: again, this applies to people who want to sell their work. For home/hobby/amateur builders I have no judgement.)

OP: if you can describe the issues with a bit more detail, I'm sure it would be helpful to everyone here.

Cheers,
Martin

 

[HG1180]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. For me, my 13lb P-bass with a huge baseball bat neck is more than what I could ever ask for in a bass, I love it to death and I wouldn't trade it for anything. But then again there are a HUGE number of people that prefer light, agile basses.

I think what you are able to put up with depends on how much skill you have when it comes to repairing and upgrading your instrument and the amount of time you have to put into an instrument. Not a whole lot of skill but you have a lot of time? Tons of skill but a uber-busy schedule? Balanced skill and time?

A beginner bass player may not necessarily have the skills to repair and upgrade their instrument, the vast majority of them simply want to plug and play, maybe fiddle with some knobs here and there, but overall I think they would want a reliable, good quality, entry level instrument in which they can learn and experiment on whilst they're finding their sound. If you have to constantly repair issues on an instrument when you’re first learning it will do nothing but turn you off of the hobby and make you set it down and never think about it again, but if you have fun playing and learning on an instrument, it will lead to a healthy, long-standing experience between you and said instrument.

However, a more advanced and experienced player should (though not all do) have the requisite skills and experience to reliably repair and upgrade their axe of choice. Ive seen countless extremely skilled bass players in my local music scene alone that play on cheap, mediocre quality instruments and make them sound incredible. But these basses will most of the time break or fail in one way or the other, and from what I've seen, the bassist themself will repair their instrument.

As for my experience though, about the only thing that I absolutely cannot put up with is failing electronics, I need a clean signal and if a pot or wire is scratchy or loose, I have to fix it. But I also know, and have, fixed and upgraded my bass many times. For me its very rewarding soldering in new pots and pickups, putting on a new bridge, cleaning up the pickguard, etc..
I like my instrument to grow with me.

But thats just my 2 cents.