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I'm confused

#21
GM60466 said:
I understand that the are close to producing their 1 millionth jazz bass. They are doing something right.

G
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+1

They are not necessarily the ultimate, but they are iconic. THey have a long history and popularity going for them. It is no coincidence that Sadowsky, Lull, Nordstrand, Elrick, Modulus, AC, Dingwall, LowEnd, Fodera, etc and so forth all make Fender styled/influenced basses, and some for some of them that is their bread and butter. That is to say nothing about the equally large quantity of lower end manufacturers doing the same.

Fender is a standard by which things are judged for that reason, but hardly the ultimate. I'd say an MIA Fender is dead center in the scale. Anything with that kind of longevity will be what similar products are judged against.
 
#22
Sorry about the typo I put "crapped" instead of "cracked." Ah ok. Well I guess I would really need to try all the models they have out there to make a decision but yeah, they are doing things right, I don't disagree with that. They have nice basses. I don't know what I was expecting but I was just expecting something a little different. Maybe that "sweet" sound I heard is what people like in them. That's perfectly fine. I also get how they are the standard. I was probably expecting a sound that would blow my mine. I guess that didn't happen but it doesn't matter. I've learned something here on tb so it's all good.
 
#23
Well remember, they are a standard, but plenty of things exceed the standards. Also, being mass produced, there are good ones and bad ones out there. With the sheer volume they crank out, you really have to play a ton of them (and own quite a few) before you have a reasonable cross section of their products. However, if the whole package just sucks, maybe they just arent for you. With the number of companies out there, you aren't losing much if you swear off Fender forever. You will still be able to find a good bass I am sure.
 
#25
Fenders are very overrated mainly bacause it's all anyone knows, like ampeg people only think it's the best because they heard the name a million times.

Though I do love mt '81 MIA P, mainly because someone else played the living crap out of it before me and broke it in.
 
#27
EagleMoon said:
They're not the "ultimate" bass. But they do work for most situations. They've been used for years and for good reason. The biggest problem with playing any basses at GC or any chain store like that is that the basses aren't set up properly and usually have old strings. It's very hard to really judge a bass properly in that case.
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they're also usually dirty and gross which makes it even worse
 
#28
Tropic said:
Aren't Fenders supposed to be the "ultimate bass" that everyone swears by? I went and played some in GC and I admit they were nice but they aren't all they are cracked up to be. I was playing a MIA Jazz and I like the tone, it was very sweet sounding but it wasn't anything to die for. Am I missing something?
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Don't fret over it. Takes time to learn what you really like. When you learn that, you stick with it if that's your thing. There will always be something new you want to try, and that's cool too. Sometimes you have to play it for a while till you know if it's right for you or not. Some guitars fit like a glove. Most need to be set up.
 
#30
Ive always been a fan of Fender basses, I used to own a nice MIM Jazz that I picked up for $100 in a pawn shop. Sadly, it was lost/stolen a few years ago. Since then Ive looked into buying a new Jazz but things have been tight and I dont have the $$$. I recently bought myself an SX Fretless Jazz and it feels good to have that Fender feel back in my hands.

Though I do love me some Fender, I wouldnt say that theyre the end all be all that some people make them out to be. Ultimately, its all about what feels and sounds right to you. And what may sound/feel great in one person's hand, may not be so in another's.
 
#31
Wow, this is the third thread like this i've seen today.

There's no such thing as "ultimate". It refers to an imaginary concept. Everything in the material world has strengths and weaknesses. Bottom line: if you pick up a bass and it doesn't speak to you, put it back up on the wall and move on to the next.

...Then again, if it does speak to you, then put it back up on the wall and proceed to the nearest psychiatrist. :p
 
#32
LowEndDrew said:
Wow, this is the third thread like this i've seen today.

There's no such thing as "ultimate". It refers to an imaginary concept. Everything in the material world has strengths and weaknesses. Bottom line: if you pick up a bass and it doesn't speak to you, put it back up on the wall and move on to the next.

...Then again, if it does speak to you, then put it back up on the wall and proceed to the nearest psychiatrist. :p
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They all speak to me :help:
 
#33
Tropic said:
They all speak to me :help:
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Well as you play em they all seem to speak to you... the more expensive the more they tend to 'talk'! Some expensive basses just don't talk to you and it varies from person to person. Like the Marcus Miller jazz is a sweet sounding/playing bass but it just doesn't speak to me. The one that spoke to me was an American Standard Precision bass in blizzard pearl with maple. This was unfortunate... I wish the bass that spoke to me was cheaper! It was a 2008 on sale because the 2009's were bumped up in price so they had to get all the 2008's out. The sale price was $750. :bawl:

They tend to play differently than basses exactly like it. I've played basses with the same specs and it just didn't feel the same... And I liked the original bass before I saw the cheap price. The tone sounds different even though to others it sounds the same and they playability is different than other bass though to other people it feels the same. It's been almost 6 months since I played that bass, and I haven't played a bass like it since! It was my bass soul mate! If I could have 2 basses it would be my sterling and that bass! :bawl:
 
#34
Absentia said:
Fenders are very overrated mainly bacause it's all anyone knows, like ampeg people only think it's the best because they heard the name a million times.

Though I do love mt '81 MIA P, mainly because someone else played the living crap out of it before me and broke it in.
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Serious?:scowl:

I don't know of anybody who has heard the name Fender or Ampeg and said, "I've heard that name so it must be the best". I played Ampeg because it was the amp that sounded the best to ME. I play Spector because they sound and feel great to ME. This is the same with Fenders and any other make or brand of anything.

If Fenders are so overrated, there wouldn't be so many being used consistently. With so many other makes of basses, Fender seems to be doing something right in order to have stayed in business all these years.
 
#38
Tropic said:
Aren't Fenders supposed to be the "ultimate bass" that everyone swears by? I went and played some in GC and I admit they were nice but they aren't all they are cracked up to be. I was playing a MIA Jazz and I like the tone, it was very sweet sounding but it wasn't anything to die for. Am I missing something?
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uh no.....they were just the "first" and WERE the best at one time....now (many) others have bypassed them in quality, sound etc (IMHO)......and NO I am NOT trying to start a Lakie v Fender argument here...may companies have bypassed Fender (Sadowski, Lakland, etc for more "standard" basses)
 
#40
In fact fender is like blue jeans, you can wear other style of pants, but the blue jeans is the most common because it was the first to be so solid, kind of the same with fender, except that before fender, electric bass didn't exist.
 

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