Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
KORG ACQUIRES AGUILAR
- Thread starter 57pbass
- Start date
Hopefully it's not a "Catch And Kill" model. I've seen it happen too often in other sectors. Behemoth company buys small high quality (often American) company. Keeps things status quo for a year or two, then starts to relegate it to a lesser status than the Bohemoth's brand. 6-7 years later the small quality brand is dissolved. Aguilar is too good for such a fate; but it's that fate that may be.
Agreed. I've been waiting to see if Yamaha expands the line at all(or updates some of the more modern products).
I am sure Aguilar will continue to make the same high quality products they always have with the new ownership.
Wrong, SWR was already running itself to the ground by staying stuck in their legacy. For example, SWR arrived way too late proposing class D and lightweight stuffs.
If its like all the others Fender, Tobias, SWR, Ampeg, Trace Elliott, etc., etc., the quality will start to suck they will find a cheaper way to make the same things and new gear will come from China eventually. The older stuff will go up in price for a short period of time then crash drown on value. Hopefully not, but I have seen this movie before many times.
LOL, yesterday some TB'er on here started a thread that he wanted to start an amp company. Very timely indeed. He really ought to do it. If nothing else, he does well and enjoys his career, but also he may get something going good and get bought out for a tidy profit.
We're all aware of the ugly side of music industry takeovers. Fender and Gibson have both killed some terrific boutique companies over the years, but Korg is different, IME.
Korg has had a pretty solid record as a distributor, carrying a number of smaller brands here in Canada. They were handling Canadian distribution of the SE line for Paul Reed Smith at one point (they may still be, for all I know), and I didn't hear of any trouble with parts availability, etc. PRS isn't exactly hurting these days!
I didn't get the impression that Ampeg was doing all that well under LOUD. I haven't noticed any issues with Ampeg since the Yamaha takeover in 2018, and I imagine that the relationship will probably be good for the brand in the long term.
Similarly, I'm thinking that this might not be bad for Aguilar...
Korg has had a pretty solid record as a distributor, carrying a number of smaller brands here in Canada. They were handling Canadian distribution of the SE line for Paul Reed Smith at one point (they may still be, for all I know), and I didn't hear of any trouble with parts availability, etc. PRS isn't exactly hurting these days!
I didn't get the impression that Ampeg was doing all that well under LOUD. I haven't noticed any issues with Ampeg since the Yamaha takeover in 2018, and I imagine that the relationship will probably be good for the brand in the long term.
Similarly, I'm thinking that this might not be bad for Aguilar...
D
Deleted member 165050
Guest
As far as I can see there's nothing in the Korg group (which includes Vox) that is in direct competition with the Aguilar range... that bodes well.
D
Deleted member 165050
Guest
Let's hope that arrangement doesn't go the way of the Trace Elliot one, with Gibson-badged TE guitar amps.
Im glad aa of now those Aguilar employees are able to keep their jobs.
Im ok with korg, i have 2 synths (minilogue and wavestate) and am super happy with both of those. Hope they continue Aguilar with keeping us bass players as the focus there.
Yamaha seems to be keeping the Line6 stuff as focus. And id consider one of their bikes as well.
If i had to guess, theres probably more to the story than we’ll know with Korg acquiring Aguilar.
Im ok with korg, i have 2 synths (minilogue and wavestate) and am super happy with both of those. Hope they continue Aguilar with keeping us bass players as the focus there.
Yamaha seems to be keeping the Line6 stuff as focus. And id consider one of their bikes as well.
If i had to guess, theres probably more to the story than we’ll know with Korg acquiring Aguilar.
Not necessarily true all the time, unfortunatelyI don't understand why many TBers here are concerned! this is just business. Nobody buys a successful company to ruining it and loss a lot of money.
If you're going to keep bringing up Tobias, keep in mind Michael chose to sell and take the non-compete. He wanted out of it. Then he came back with MTD. MTD instruments are stellar.
I'm sure had his son not agreed to join the company, MTD would have been on the market. These guys aren't getting younger and can't keep building and managing the business forever.
Last edited:
Yamaha, being a Japanese company, immediately jumped on the Heritage line and pushed it.
Yamaha has also done great things for Line 6 - including catering more to bass players.
But I agree about Korg. They are a solid company with incredible distribution. You can see it right in the Mesa press release, it almost sounds like a sigh of relief for their 71 year old boss. Aguilar is probably in good hands.
Remember too, the namesake for Aguilar hasn't really been a part of the company for over a decade.
