Musicman no longer including hardshell cases?

[InhumanResource]

Not where I come from. It's a cheap out on a fairly pricey instrument. More below...




Exactly.


UMM, ,that's kind of the point of having a case to begin with, eh? The case takes the knocks so the instrument inside doesn't.


Anyone who actually has to travel with an instrument they actually care about is taking a chance of it getting hurt in anything less than (at a minimum) a hard case. In this price range not including a hard case is Bull S&it.






Again, exactly.


Yeah, let us know how that works out for you.

What about the other angle?

I would be curious as to how many purchases actually are in a scenario where they NEED a hard case. My bet is that EB has done the math on this and it makes sense to cut costs in this particular area, as the majority of purchasers are probably gig bag only folks and those who are actually touring and doing fly dates just, you know, buy a case.

I don’t want to pay a higher price on the instrument to subsidize an across the board offering that most of us don’t need.

 

[steveinohio]

I used gig bags for a long time. Every instrument I did this with eventually suffered. I like their convenience a lot. The protection is lacking.

 

[ole Jason]

No shoulder straps is a really weird design decision for a soft case. It looks like the EBMM branded Mono bag is more of a 'hybrid' case, meant to be hand carried like a typical hard case. These are the worst types of cases IMO, it's the worst of both worlds. You don't get the portability and light weight of a bag and you don't get the rigid protection of a hard case.

The new Harmony guitars come with a nice Mono Vertigo bag. I'd rather get something like that than the proprietary EBMM Mono case.

 

[tb-player]

I feel like I’m the only person in the world who doesn’t like Mono bags. I’m a Gator guy.

 

[MasterG]

Junk and nothing but a cost cutting measure for Ernie Ball.

 

[Windreaper]

I used gig bags for a long time. Every instrument I did this with eventually suffered. I like their convenience a lot. The protection is lacking.

There are gig bags and gig bags. Been using nothing but Reunion Blues Continental bags for the past decade. The only way to damage your instrument in one of these is to drop a 200lb rack case on top of it, or drive over it with your van.

 

[tbz]

My bet is that EB has done the math on this and it makes sense to cut costs in this particular area, as the majority of purchasers

My bet is that they did the math and realized they could make this change, save money, and still fool some folks into believing it wasn’t a direct downgrade.

Its a bit odd to think otherwise without any evidence. Especially as this company has made some dramatic price increases with minimal additional accompanying features, on this product line, for the last half decade or so.

 

[newwavefrank]

To each his own, but I will admit I don't really get the "gig bags are so much more practical" angle unless you are taking public transportation to the gig or something to that effect. I just bought a Modulus that came with a Mono bag. Its a nice bag, but personally I would rather have a hard case. The bag is just about as long, Maybe a little thicker, and not enough lighter to be a factor. I don't really care what anyone else uses, but I do have to disagree with the "everybody uses gig bags" comments

 

[steveinohio]

There are gig bags and gig bags. Been using nothing but Reunion Blues Continental bags for the past decade. The only way to damage your instrument in one of these is to drop a 200lb rack case on top of it, or drive over it with your van.

My stuff travels in a trailer and gets moved a lot. I like the convenience of bags but gigging with them is out. I’ve never had any protection issues using a case. After using bags for about eight years I’m going back and sticking with cases.

 

[Windreaper]

My stuff travels in a trailer and gets moved a lot. I like the convenience of bags but gigging with them is out. I’ve never had any protection issues using a case. After using bags for about eight years I’m going back and sticking with cases.

Yeah, I'd use a proper road case (or SKB Bass Safe) if my bass was in the trailer with heavy racks and PA equipment. For pretty much every other scenario, give me a nice bag every day of the week. Lugging around a heavy case gets old real fast.

 

[InhumanResource]

My bet is that they did the math and realized they could make this change, save money, and still fool some folks into believing it wasn’t a direct downgrade.

Its a bit odd to think otherwise without any evidence. Especially as this company has made some dramatic price increases with minimal additional accompanying features, on this product line, for the last half decade or so.

It’s possible. If timing were different and we weren’t seeing rampant cost increases everywhere else I would be more inclined to believe it is purely a cash grab, however right now I think it is equally possible that they were looking for a way to tighten the belt while maintaining their margins vs another price hike.

Of course they are going to pitch it in a positive light, who wouldn’t? And as we see in this thread, plenty of people are fine with it and some are not. If they are smart, they did the math and it made sense to go this route.

 

[shnapper]

Gotta love “Shrink-flation”….

The machine sucks more money and gives less Yum Yum…

 

[Lesfunk]

Well, to me it looks like they’re giving you something that isn’t a hard shell case, but isn’t really a gigbag either.
I think I’d prefer one or the other.

 

[Bassinthemudd]

Any company that prioritizes playing over collecting is ok in my book.

 

[Gizmot]

Take a closer look at what this new case is. It is NOT a gig bag. There's no shoulder strap. It is a semi-rigid case. It carries like a hard case but isn't as hard. This is a cheap semi-rigid case with the name "Mono" slapped on it to instill confidence in less observant buyers.

I own, and love, a real Mono Duo bag. It's a great piece of gear. This thing is not. And it is NOT an upgrade from a hard case. It's NOT a gig bag. It's just a cheap not-so-hard case.

Well - - you are right - or so it seems. The cases appear to be well-made (like Mono typically is), but there's no shoulder strap (whenever I use my Mono case, I typically just use a single strap even though it has two). I guess I need to see one of these in real life to know if I'd like it or not.

 

[DanGroove]

While I certainly agree with the first part, I feel the opposite about the second. Take a hard case to just one gig and you are going to find all sorts of new scratches and wear on it. A gig bag doesn't show wear nearly as much. I mean, they *will* wear and chances are the first casualty will (eventually) be a zipper. But if you want to keep a case looking nice while actually using it... forget it.

This is exactly why I always transport my basses in their hard case. If you're getting scratches on it then things are banging into it. The case is there to catch the scratches and dings so my bass doesn't

 

[BassyBill]

I’d take a Mono gig bag over an SKB hard case for any bass, any day of the week. And physics will tell you padding protection > rigidity, anyway. F=ma.

 

[FLStudiobassist]

Music Man cases are made so well too. Definitely a downgrade. I basically bought my Stingray Special for the OHSC

 

[two fingers]

Well - - you are right - or so it seems. The cases appear to be well-made (like Mono typically is), but there's no shoulder strap (whenever I use my Mono case, I typically just use a single strap even though it has two). I guess I need to see one of these in real life to know if I'd like it or not.

Same. Slung over one shoulder. Subway 115 in the other hand. One trip load in.

 

[KenD]

Revenge of the short term thinking bean counters.