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If i had $8499...
- Thread starter gustobassman
- Start date
I despise politicians of all ilks. If I ran for office, I'd have to hang around those knuckleheads. ... 'scuse me, BRB ... I've gotta go puke.
and your saying you can pick out the $8500 guitar during a blind study of 5 different basses using all the same materials and electronics..each priced accordingly...
Sorry bro..dont buy the logic ..I do dig Phish though at least we have that going for us ... well I did til they started charging me $70 to see em... but alas
I used to work for guy who had one painting in his New York condo that was worth $5,000.000. To him it was worth every penny. I also know people who spend a lot on cars and would never spend a dime on art.
The value in most things is based on what the market will bear, and how much you want it.
The value in most things is based on what the market will bear, and how much you want it.
And then there's reality. No offense.
I remember seeing Al Caldwell playing his nine string Conklin with Vanessa Williams. No pyrotechniques, just the solid playing the gig called for.
A friend bought one of Al's basses, a semihollow nine and stopped by a local store. I was playing it and a guy asked "what do you do with all of those strings?".
So I played "My Girl".
It's a bass... you do whatever you do. There is nothing to prove in whatever bass you're holding. If it's pretty, you don't have to play pretty. If it's expensive, you don't have to put on a show. And if it has a lot of strings you don't have to use every one on every song.
If someone is disappointed because of some unfounded expectation of others... they'll live.
And yeah, I do gig mainly with $5k+ basses on a regular basis and I do whatever the gig calls for, just like on any other bass I own. Ultimately they're tools... really, really nice tools.
It's funny how basic some folks can make this. Wood most definitely is wood. If that were the only thing that went into making a quality instrument...
It's difficult to even try to rationalize this without the potential of the arrogant card being thrown so here goes...
everyone does not play on the same level. Everyone does not have the same appreciation of or needs in an instrument. Most people couldn't tell a $300 student violin from a Stradivarius... they'd likely choose the shiny one given the choice. But that doesn't mean that some people can't tell the difference. Or appreciate an instrument that makes what they do easier to accomplish.
No, this does not mean that Fodera owners generally speaking are better in any way. But I'd be willing to bet that some of them bought their instruments for the pure reason of propelling their playing and that experience cannot be found everywhere by everyone.
So generally speaking, if your playing doesn't lead you to seek out an instrument like that, count yourself as lucky. You got off much cheaper than some of us
. If OTOH you really appreciate the feel of a bass that really connects with you in your hand and that bass happens to cost some coin, decision time.I've come across some very affordable instruments that I really like. I "could" gig with many of them. But the basses I play day in and out, the ones that really push my buttons required a decent financial outlay... and I don't regret a penny of it. File that under life's too short...
I'm a bassist.
without resonating at *all*????
really?
in any event, you can have that one. i want one that does resonate as it gives me the results i want.
and as to can you pick out something in a blind test? dunno, could i tell the difference by playing it? yeah.
the bottom line will be that if you don't care, you don't care.
if you do care, you do.
really?
in any event, you can have that one. i want one that does resonate as it gives me the results i want.
and as to can you pick out something in a blind test? dunno, could i tell the difference by playing it? yeah.
the bottom line will be that if you don't care, you don't care.
if you do care, you do.
That's the truly funny thing about this. Many folks act like the wood is the big expense in making an instrument. Probably because there's so much of it on most basses.
So they complain about price and are clueless as to what's involved in running a business building at this level.
"Hey, I can buy wood at Home Depot!"
Yes, you certainly can.
Brad Johnson said:That's the truly funny thing about this. Many folks act like the wood is the big expense in making an instrument. Probably because there's so much of it on most basses.
So they complain about price and are clueless as to what's involved in running a business building at this level.
"Hey, I can buy wood at Home Depot!"
Yes, you certainly can.
I totally agree, wood, hardware, electronics are all a fraction of the price. The hours of working and shaping and perfecting are what costs the most. Perfection doesn't cost 200 bucks.
Where have I been?
I got here just in time for a fight!!
But seriously how come Bass Player Mag is our source for "truth, justice and the American way"?
Call each of these builders and ask them their motivation. They Will tell you.
If you go into luthiery to get rich, you're nuts. So what are the other motivations?
I know several builders and none of them treat their works as widgets. And many are genuinely happy when they're customers are pleased with their work. At least they seem to be... I guess it could all be one big lie.
Nah, these guys dig what they do at least as much as their customers. It's probably a good time once again for a hypothetical cost breakdown for the folks who aren't business minded and don't understand that the business pays for just about everything that goes into making a high end bass... including experience. It's not just wood and rent.
Then they could sell at the cost they thought was fair... aka "at a loss".
Brad Johnson said:That's the truly funny thing about this. Many folks act like the wood is the big expense in making an instrument. Probably because there's so much of it on most basses.
So they complain about price and are clueless as to what's involved in running a business building at this level.
"Hey, I can buy wood at Home Depot!"
Yes, you certainly can.
As I recall, in the Dan Atkinson experiment where he used "home depot" plywood and a "good" bass making wood, the listening samples poll came out to 50/50 basically disproving that wood matters for sound.
and your saying you can pick out the $8500 guitar during a blind study of 5 different basses using all the same materials and electronics..each priced accordingly...
Sorry bro..dont buy the logic ..I do dig Phish though at least we have that going for us ... well I did til they started charging me $70 to see em... but alas
Fortunately blind study gigs are few and far between.
curbowkid said:
Right...a Civic and an 8 series BMW both get you from A to B....but what would you rather drive?
Well who could possibly argue with that?
Seriously, that is some funny ____.
Thanks.
tastybasslines said:
Didn't they compaire a fender too a pine bass? I haven't looked at the thread in forever.
I do however notice differences in basses being made with harder woods like wenge, ebony, bubinga and fun stuff like that.
Yep, which is why IMO focusing on the cost of wood vs. the cost of the bass is pretty naive or at a minimum uninformed.
