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Made in America???

Where was your (main) bass made?

  • Total voters
    441
Rudyboy98

Rudyboy98

Supporting Member
Jan 25, 2008
2,554
5,242
Beach Cities, CA
#1
Do you care if your bass is American made?

I am curious if you have American or Foreign Made basses. Do any of you have a preference? In other words: Does this factor into your decision to purchase a bass at all?

There are many great basses built in many countries around the world. (Too many to mention, so I won't list any brand names!)
I am personally the owner of a Japanese made bass and a Korean made bass. I am about to take ownership of a custom built bass made right here in the good 'ol US of A. :cool:

Please share your point of view. Are American basses made better or are they less than or equal to (quality wise) than basses that are made in other countries?

On an additional personal note: I do prefer to keep Americans working in our instrument factories! :hyper:
 
#5
Most mass produced bases are cut en the exact same cnc routers, be it in china or us, We are mostly paying for the difference in the exchange rate/salaries.

In my case, the basses I like (rics and old fenders) are all made in the US, so I don't have a choice. If ric moved its production facilities to china, and kept its original suppliers, then I'd buy an overseas ric in a heartbeat.
 
#8
Criteria for my choices in basses are neck, playability, sound, quality of construction, weight, finish. I never spent any time questioning where it was made or what day it was made on. My number one bass is made in NYC. My number two is made in China. My number three is a vintage precision.
 
#9
My number one, number two, and number three were all made in America. Number One is my Carvin IC4, Number Two is my Mike Lull M5V, Number Three is my Carvin IC6. Love 'em, although the sixer's fallen out of favor. When I get my Carl Thompsons, I expect them to become my number one and number two. Not sure which will be which, we'll see. They may even get the same slot, as they're supposedly going to be 'twins' (according to Carl), one fretted, one fretless.

I did have a Canadian-made bass (Dingwall) that was my number one until I traded it for my Lull. Also had a Warwick Ltd Edition Bleached Blonde Thumb for a while. If I get another Canadian bass, it's definitely going to be an F Bass, those things are sooo nice.
 
#13
which country you mean with America? USA, Canada,Mexico, Brazil , Guatemala ?? we have 35 countries here plus 16 territories. There are excelent mass produced basses made in USA also I am sure there are amazing luthiers in every contry in America, from Canada to La Patagonia.
 
#16
Yes - I have played quite a few UK-made basses over the years; but I have never liked them enough to buy one!

I nearly bought a Status - but not quite what I wanted. Tried many Wals and hated every one! I tried Sei basses and they were not really my thing...

When it comes down to it, I tend to fall for that exotic foreign quality of the mysterious USA....:p
 
#17
To me it depends on the manufacturer. Lakland and Sadowsky basses both have US made lines and foreign made lines but both models have just as much attention to detail as the US models. However, a company like Fender or MTD also have foreign made models but don't compare to the build quality that the US models have. There are definate differences between the two lines.

I owned a Lakland Skyline 55-01 deluxe, which is a Korean-made Lakland. That bass, before I sold it Monday, was my go-to bass for quite some time. It had the feel, the playability, and after I gutted the electronics, the tone of any high-end US made bass out there. I have no prejudices between who makes my bass as long as it's put together by someone who cares about good quality.
 

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