Im Just No Gettin The Boutique Thing

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

Ah ok, thank you very much

 

[Angry Mob With Pitchfork]

Marcus sounds pretty awesome with his Fodera here with Miles Davis.

 

[Brad Johnson]

Now they are decidedly more refined if I’m not mistaken ... hope you didn’t pay them too much (personal taste... don’t like angular things... I like the smooth and harmoniously connected curves and lines of the good old times, the only partial exception being the Rickenbacker’s bass) ...

How so? What is more refined about them. The five is a bolt-on much like a Fender while not being a direct copy. I figured out decades ago that neckthroughs aren't better, just different.

 

[Brad Johnson]

Marcus sounds pretty awesome with his Fodera here with Miles Davis.

Yep.

 

[Brad Johnson]

Good for you ... especially the bargain on the bass ... in Europe this would be unthinkable ... period ... hence we work and do with what we have ... period ... I acknowledge my lack of direct experience on Foderas ... period ... for sure the build quality is top notch but, for all reasons already explained (long story above) I don’t buy the boutique thing ... (by the way, I’m happy if you are rich Brad ... nothing against this) ... final period

You think I'm rich? Okay.


I've bought basses from other countries. Sold them into other countries too. Geography doesn't have to be a major impediment IME.

 

[Brad Johnson]

There is a characteristic P bass sound but they can sound quite different instrument to instrument. The Avalon is okay but there are plenty clearer, more accurate, organic sounding DIs. Picking Fodera as a sample of boutiques is also fraught with peril. The many maker’s basses sound very distinct from each other. One may love one and not others. I’ve heard and played Tobias basses I’d take home and ones I would never take home. His country of origin is irrelevant. His absence of bias and reputation as a top tier gigging and session bassist is relevant.

Let's not get carried away, Harry... but thanks.

 

[Brad Johnson]

Chadds for me the Avalon is the best it my knowledge is not so wide ... I was considering buying a second hand one .. what may be considered as a serious competitor in this regard?

Depends on what your intended use is. U5's work great in the studio, not all that tweakable live IMO.

A friend of mine has my former Mike Pope Mitre Box for sale in the classifieds. As far as clean preamps go it's tough to beat. Not inexpensive.

For gigging I wouldn't use a preamp anymore.

 

[Mr_O'B]

Yep.

Brad, we have the same mentality when it comes to basses.

What someone believes is great tone is subjective, so a person should find basses regardless of cost and brand that meet their personal preferences!

My personal favorite bass tone is a good Fender bass, but I would also like to one day own an AV j-bass or a passive Stenback j-bass. The cost of the Stenback is not within my budget, but I would purchase one in a heartbeat if I had the money, because I love the tone!

I am in no way a Fodera fanboy, because every wood combination that Fodera can put together isn’t my preference! However, the bass tone in the video below is fantastic! Regardless of cost, I would own it in a heartbeat if I had the money!

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

Depends on what your intended use is. U5's work great in the studio, not all that tweakable live IMO.

A friend of mine has my former Mike Pope Mitre Box for sale in the classifieds. As far as clean preamps go it's tough to beat. Not inexpensive.

For gigging I wouldn't use a preamp anymore.

Thanks Brad ... I’ll have a look at it ! (I do not gig anymore now unfortunately ... job, family, kids etc. etc. )

 

[Jonithen]

I just got word my first boutique bass has been completed and is ready for shipping. I'm absolutely lit up and can't wait to try it out. This was a leap of faith.
Do I need it? NOOOOPE. I wanted it and was in a good position to pull the trigger, and I'm hoping everything come out beautifully.

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

Brad, we have the same mentality when it comes to basses.

What someone believes is great tone is subjective, so a person should find basses regardless of cost and brand that meet their personal preferences!

My personal favorite bass tone is a good Fender bass, but I would also like to one day own an AV j-bass or a passive Stenback j-bass. The cost of the Stenback is not within my budget, but I would purchase one in a heartbeat if I had the money, because I love the tone!

I am in no way a Fodera fanboy, because every wood combination that Fodera can put together isn’t my preference! However, the bass tone in the video below is fantastic! Regardless of cost, I would own it in a heartbeat if I had the money!

Nice tone I have to admit but nothing that couldn’t more or less be replicated with a jazz bass objectively .. the instrument here has somehow a good “body” in the bass range but keeping a “base growl” which is quite strong ... the guy seems to play it effortlessly which is also surely a merit of the instrument ... as for all Fodera I’ve seen, the neck is sawn flat at the heel .. aesthetically this is a feature I highly dislike although it’s likely done on purpose to maximise playability (why they just don’t extend it to make it round with the same number of playable frets? Had this to do with neck through construction adopted by Fodera?) ...
Are the pickups SD NYC? Good humbuckers with exposed pole pieces ... I wish Fender could issue a version of the Elite jazz bass with an option for pickups like these or Bartolini soap-bars ! Something like the MIA Zone P bass but with upgraded electronics ... I could buy hundreds (literally) of Foderas honestly but ... I always feel that it would be an exaggerated thing for me as I’m not a professional player ... could buy one if I could find Brad’s bargain but this has little chance to happen I think ... before retirement, who knows ...

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

You think I'm rich? Okay.


I've bought basses from other countries. Sold them into other countries too. Geography doesn't have to be a major impediment IME.

Don’t know but, if you actually are, it’s better for you ahahah ... I made up some good money but I had to work hard in several countries progressively losing contact with almost all my friends and ... in a way ... a kind of normal life so to speak ... I learnt a lot of different languages and saw many interesting things which helped me understanding what I could only hear on TV in the ‘70s/‘80s when I was a kid ... in the end, the only thing which remained stable from when I was younger is the passion for music ... I hope to administer myself sufficiently well in the next 15 years to reach retirement with sufficient wealth (will Italy pay pension schemes in 15-year time? Who knows?) to see my kids graduating and staying at home with my wife playing when I feel it’s the right time ...

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

Marcus sounds pretty awesome with his Fodera here with Miles Davis.

Don’t want to be polemic ... but ... that was the new marvel bass at the beginning of the ‘80s, when everything had to be renovated and different from what formed the collectivity’s imagination from the end of the ‘60s onwards ... the look of the bass in a way fits the look of Marcus and Miles in the videos, which I find a big ridiculous but, those days, it was a must ... surely he would have found the bass a joy to play and provided with more tone options than its Fender, but ... listen to the bass tone in Tom Browne’s “Browne Sugar” and in Dave Valentin’s “Land of the third Eye” and “The Hawk” albums ... that is Marcus still wearing elephant foot jeans and playing a jazz bass and the tone is pure funk trademark !

 

[Mr_O'B]

I just got word my first boutique bass has been completed and is ready for shipping. I'm absolutely lit up and can't wait to try it out. This was a leap of faith.
Do I need it? NOOOOPE. I wanted it and was in a good position to pull the trigger, and I'm hoping everything come out beautifully.

Don’t sound apologetic about buying a boutique. I hope it turns out to be everything that you imagined it would be!
You should be lit up with excitement!

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

Don’t sound apologetic about buying a boutique. I hope it turns out to be everything that you imagined it would be!
You should be lit up with excitement!

I agree ! NBD is always NBD !

 

[Mr_O'B]

Nice tone I have to admit but nothing that couldn’t more or less be replicated with a jazz bass objectively .. the instrument here has somehow a good “body” in the bass range but keeping a “base growl” which is quite strong ... the guy seems to play it effortlessly which is also surely a writ if the instrument ... as for all Fodera I’ve seen, the neck is sawn flat at the heel .. aesthetically this is a feature I highly dislike although it’s likely done on purpose to maximise playability (why they just don’t extend to make it round with the same number of playable frets? Had this to do with neck through construction adopted by Fodera?) ...
Are the pickups SD NYC? Good humbuckers with exposed pole pieces ... I wish Fender could issue a version of the Elite jazz bass with an option for pickups like these or Bartolini soap-bars ! Something like the MIA Zone P bass but with upgraded electronics ... I could buy hundreds (literally) of Foderas honestly but ... I always feel that it would be an exaggerated thing for me as I’m not a professional player ... could buy one if I could find Brad’s bargain but this has little chance to happen I think ... before retirement, who knows ...

I hear you, I don’t put boutique basses on pedestals like some TB members! However, I also don’t dismiss boutiques either that have the tone that I like.

I’m a bass fan, so I am open to all basses that sound good to my ears. I never buy into the mindset that my skill level isn’t deserving of a boutique bass. Boutique builders don’t care about a bassist skill level. Life is to short to not get what you want within reason!

 

[Booty Shaman]

If you support a luthier, you're also supporting:
1) Lumber trade corporations
2) Pickup design/production corporations (unless custom pickups are made by the luthier or a small scale producer)
3) Hardware design/production corporations (unless custom hardware is made by the luthier or a small scale producer)

In most cases 2) and 3) are still made by major corporations, and 1) goes without saying pretty much always, unless a luthier has someone provide him wood that circumvents corporation-based trade.

Also, there's nothing wrong with major corporations, they make cheap instruments for millions of players worldwide. Without major corporations, there'd just be no bass/guitar players around. I know I wouldn't be one.

Corporations aren't people (Even if the Supreme Court thinks they are). I tend to choose people over corporations. Personal choice.

 

[Brad Johnson]

As far as wealth being a requirement to buy a boutique bass, does anyone feel the same way about buying a 10 year old Camry?

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

I hear you, I don’t put boutique basses on pedestals like some TB members! However, I also don’t dismiss boutiques either that have the tone that I like.

I’m a bass fan, so I am open to all basses that sound good to my ears. I never buy into the mindset that my skill level isn’t deserving of a boutique bass. Boutique builders don’t care about a bassist skill level. Life is to short to not get what you want within reason!

I agree with you but for the Stenback ... heard it in the hands of Paul Turner who’s a sort of endorser of this brand I think but it seemed to me another iteration of the jazz bass concept ... I may have to document myself better however in this regard ...

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

As far as wealth being a requirement to buy a boutique bass, does anyone feel the same way about buying a 10 year old Camry?

For my not very Italian but rather Teutonic mindset ... yes it is ...