Man music stuff has gotten expensive

[Smooth_bass88]

This topic has been popping up a bit lately around here. Hard to disagree. I am often times shocked at some of the asking prices I'm seeing for basses right here in the TB classifieds. Seriously! I want to ask some of these people "what the heck are you thinking asking that much for a used ______?"

 

[MDBass]

Tuffshed.com

Those don’t appear to come with a lot: as they say “location, location, location”

 

[Leonid Nidis]

You're in the US, things are cheap.
https://www.guitarcenter.com/Squier/5-String-Electric-Bass.gc
CV Jazz 5 for list price of $499
Or you could get an Affinity for $250
There's a G&L 5 here for a grand, Stingray5 for $1300, ESP 5 for 850, Yamaha for 450 ...
https://www.guitarcenter.com/Used/Electric-Bass.gc#narrowSideBar

Try living elsewhere

Exactly,everything is more expansive in europe.
I hear in the US you dont even need to buy gear,people clearing garages just put old ampegs and fenders to the curve

 

[Swipter]

If I save my whole income for 4 months then I can afford a Squier CV. (I have Master Degree in Engineering)
Do you feel better now?

I, somehow, do not believe that statement.

 

[Swipter]

Thanks for all the replies. I have looked Ibanez and Peavey basses. Back in the day I wanted a Peavey bass. They look really nice. I have never played either. I am going to try to play a Squier P, one day, to see how it feels. I did go to guitar center and try a MIM Fender P bass but it wasn't talking to me.

I understand priorities. My priority is 14 cats and a feral cat colony. My wife is heavily in to this. I do buy music stuff as needed, like the Scarlett Solo I just got. I love that thing and GK online amp sim.

 

[buldog5151bass]

1. Look at prices in the 1960s and previous. Other than boutique gear, all prices now are comparatively lower.
2. Look at the prices of entry level upright basses. Look at the prices of mid tier upright basses. Look at the prices of professional upright basses...
3. Still plenty of bassists here (at least pre COVID) gigging weekly with Rumbles and Squiers.
4. Go back to the 60s. Even most semi-pro and professional bassists had one instrument and one amp. James Jameson, who probably played bass for hire 60+ hours per week, generally had one electric bass at a time, and one upright his entire career.

 

[bassdude51]

Generally speaking, there is about a 3% inflation rate every year here in the USA. Doesn't seem like much but in time, it becomes significant. Around 30% a decade. Yes, stuff does get more and more expensive. (Wages also go up or at least they are supposed to.)

On Google, we can find Inflation Calculator. It is interesting to see the value of the 2021 USA Dollar compared to 50 years ago.

Back in the mid 60s, a Fender Bass was about $300. That would be about equal to $2,500 in today's money.

On the other hand, today we can buy a Squier Bass for about $330 which in mid 60s money would be about, $42. As an old "boomer", let me tell you that there were no $42 basses back when I was a kid.

So, in a way, music gear is cheaper today than ever before.

Yesterday, in Columbus, Ohio Craigslist, I saw someone selling an Ibanez Bass for $25. That got snapped up quickly!

So, today a USA made Fender is more or less selling for about the same price as it did in the mid 60s, when we take into account inflation.

Used gear is the best value!

 

[Lagado]

Bare in mind that wages have stagnated for the last 40 years.

 

[Koshchei]

I realize I haven't bought anything new since my Fender American Standard Jazz bass in 2006 or 2007 but things are so much now. Every 5 string I look at, new or used, is thousands or close to 2k.

Amplifiers? Bergantino is like buying a house. Others are no better, including Aguilar or ampeg. Traynor? I had to get up off the floor. I guess $500 for my Eden WT405 in 2005 may be comparable to today, but I don't know. I do know it's 16 pounds.

I see you guys with 10 amps, 20 basses and think, wow. Then someone will post a thinning the heard bass, that costs 3.5k.

I never realized I was among so many rich people here on Talk Bass.

I have two basses and two amps. If I thin the herd then I will have no herd.

Thanks for reading

Somebody has champagne tastes if you're only looking at 2k-adjacent instruments.

Also, since when is Traynor expensive? The YBA-100 works out to something like 600USD, and the SB class D amps are much cheaper than that.

 

[Harper]

Yeah. I've got 19 basses, acquired over 20 years or so. I played for several years before that, but the early aughts is when I stopped trading stuff off, for the most part. Some of them are high end, some of them are budget line, but I think most players would agree that "budget line" in 2021 is still pretty damn good, relative to budget instruments from 30 years ago.

But still...I live my life pretty cheaply. I drive an old car that's paid for, I don't really spend money on clothes. I do spoil my kids, but as far as spending money on myself, bass gear is my one hobby/expenditure.

 

[Swipter]

Somebody has champagne tastes if you're only looking at 2k-adjacent instruments.

Also, since when is Traynor expensive? The YBA-100 works out to something like 600USD, and the SB class D amps are much cheaper than that.

I have not seen those.

 

[Harper]

ALSO...most of my higher end stuff was bought used or scratch and dent. As pointed out above, life is about choices.

 

[skycruiser]

No matter how expensive or how many, you can still only play one at a time

I just got my 2nd bass and feel bad seeing my BB434 sitting there unplayed most days. I think I will be a one-in one-out kind of player once I get all my bases covered.

 

[lomo]

Bare in mind that wages have stagnated for the last 40 years.

Actually , lower and middle income wages have stagnated. Top 10% wages have gone up. Top 1% have rocketed, and top 10% tax rates have plummeted. It is what it is.

 

[COYS]

We have the same conversations on guitar forums.

The cheap stuff is now made easily and made well by CNC, so the entry level gear you can get today is very affordable and is worlds better than what it was in the 70s or 80s.

At the same time, the high end stuff is still handmade which is getting more expensive all the time, and there are now boutique marques whereas there weren't any back in the day. Now there's someone around every corner wanting to charge $7,000 for a guitar, bass, or amp.

Another factor is that we don't think of the value of money today vs. back then. Often when you compare what a piece of music gear costs today vs what it cost in the 60s, they're actually pretty similar when you consider the value of the dollar.

Also, our perceptions are skewed by Reverb. Lots of uninformed folks ask crazy prices for things, but that doesn't mean any of it is selling. Asking isn't getting.

 

[iTzPrime]

Well taking inflation into account - things actually got cheaper. With globalization and much better production techniques the 500$ ibanez is probably better than the 500$ American Fender from the 80s (around 1800$ adjusted for inflation).
Pedals are cheaper and I think even boutique basses are cheaper due to rising competition and better knowledge (bought one a year ago - great decision)

 

[Afc70]

No matter how expensive or how many, you can still only play one at a time

Unless you’re Michael manring !

 

[David Vector]

I often just try to look for the best deals on used items, and also see if there are less-expensive but still well-regarded alternatives to a given piece of gear that will get the job done. Like getting a 2003 Sterling 4H for $950 instead of a new one for $2.2K. Or opting for a $300 Behringer D instead of a Minimoog at 15 or 20x the price. Or going with a Warm Audio WA76 instead of one of the pricier 1176 variants. Etc., etc.

 

[logdrum]

In San Francisco 120K family of 4 income is considered poverty level. Then there's also inherited income or money from loved ones/family. Explains why some Starbuck's barista rock new Teslas or have a new car every 4 years.

 

[RichardW]

Don't waste your time looking in other peoples' pockets.

As long as you have a roof over your head, food in your belly, and clothes on your back, you're already living like a king compared to most of human history, and millions of people today.