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my new essex.. wow
- Thread starter fenderphil
- Start date
If the 5 string jazzes had just a slightly wider spacing at the bridge I'd buy a handful, and repaint them in the 60's fender colors. =)
All i am going to say about Essex basses is this, if the actually cost is about $20 to make, where is the wood (alder, etc) coming from? Can U make good music with it, sure, some could with a rubberband and jug, but should you. It just another novelty item in pretty colors
for model building enthusiast. A starter bass for tweens and past their prime armchair players nostalgic for a bygone era, not professional gigging musicians, you know the ones that pay all their bills by playing. I don't see any of them jocking for an Essex endorsement deals 
for model building enthusiast. A starter bass for tweens and past their prime armchair players nostalgic for a bygone era, not professional gigging musicians, you know the ones that pay all their bills by playing. I don't see any of them jocking for an Essex endorsement deals 
All i am going to say about Essex basses is this, if the actually cost is about $20 to make, where is the wood (alder, etc) coming from? Can U make good music with it, sure, some could with a rubberband and jug, but should you. It just another novelty item in pretty colors
Why shouldn't someone make music with an SX? Writing and playing music isn't a privilege for the wealthy, it's a freedom for all.
How a person plays is far more important than what they play.:scowl:
Agreed. So there is a company out there that doesn't have a big mark-up and still makes quality instruments. I don't see a problem with that. If it sounds good why should the price matter? That just doesn't make sense.
Does it matter WHERE the wood comes from?? Not to me.
Without SX, I would have not gotten into playing (again)...since then, I have joined a band, making music and having GOBS OF FUN!!!!!! Why is it that you suggest (or at least my interpretation of your post) that people should only make music with instruments that cost WAY more???
Why do you degrade ANYONE for playing...regardless of who they are or what they play?!?!?!?It just another novelty item in pretty colors
Who cares if you are some almighty bass player earning a living with whatever you are playing...or a pimple faced teenager that sits in his/her bedroom and tries to play their favorite song...isn't that better than going out and doing drugs, getting pregnant, tagging up walls, etc, etc.
And what if the person playing their beloved SX is a "past their prime armchair players nostalgic for a bygone era"...
SO WHAT!!!!!! More power to them.
Doing something that makes you smile, and doing something that keeps your mind active, your heart pumping, and your soul alive...
WHAT IS WRONG WITH ANY OF THAT?!?!?!!?
There is an ingrained psychological response to price. Most people equate price with quality. A $1400 MIA Fender HAS to be twice as good as a $700 CIJ Fender, right?
It's not true, of course.
I heard a story recently about a guy who had a vineyard in California and made wine. He was trying to make a name in the market and was selling his wine at a very inexpensive price point, but was going nowhere. He got some business advice from a consultant who told him "People won't think your product is good or worth anything unless you attach a greater value to it." So, he tripled the price of the wine and made it look more like a boutique/luxury item, and his sales skyrocketed. Same wine, different label image and price. Psychology.
As someone mentioned earlier, with CNC machines and increased trading relationships with overseas manufacturing centers as well as people (like Kurt from Rondo) who provide good specs, the quality and consistency of "cheapo" offshore goods has really gotten high.
Obviously you can buy from other/known makers and get an instrument with better materials as far as wiring harness, nut, bridge, etc. and with some additional human interaction with the product that is missing from some of the Asian factories, a better setup, out-of-the-box playability, and so on.
I'm not in the greatest financial situation right now. And I am coming back to bass after 10 years away (mainly because I had to sell off all my gear when I became a father) so right now I have a humble SX P-bass and a simple Turser '54 P-copy, and that's it.
And you know what? They both sound and play great, and did as soon as I got them. All that was needed was new/better strings.
Are they comparable in quality to an MIA Fender? Nah. Is an MIA Fender "worth" 10-15 times more as far as quality, sound, construction, materials and playability to my $100 cheapies? BIG no.
Hey I know a lot of "old" bass players that will kick the crap out of these so-called players "in their prime" because they're just that much more experienced players. Nothing teaches better than experience. Unless you injure your hands you can play bass until you're 100!
I have the SX P-bass (I can never remember the exact model number off-hand) in the sunburst finish with maple fingerboard... it's a beaut to look at, and it sounds pretty darn good. SX basses are definitely a steal. True, they're no high-end bass, but for what they cost, they're awesome. I'll most likely be picking another one up in the future.
I am an Advocate for everyone's right to play, as well, as everyone's right to play a proper instrument. And, I do not think an Essex bass is a proper instrument. I don't believe they use the woods they say they use and, if the do they goes our ecology, and I don't shop at Wal Mart for the same reason. It weakness our economy and enslaves us to recent peasant farmers half a world away.
But its okay for you, you are special a true American, sorry I offended your busta bass playing ass
- Jan 23, 2008
- 960
- 7
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Spector Basses
Looks great!
I'm still waiting for a LTD P, then I will know what all the fuss is about.
Only if our economy relied on making cheap basses. The only industry china has taken over is the happymeal toy industry. And even if you want to make cheap basses, why should some Chinese guy be forced back to the farm because of your whims?
Anyone who knows anything about economics know that it works on a global scale. Division of labor lets countries where $20/day is a kings wage, produce thing we want cheap. The changes from agrarian to industrialized to modern societies don't happen overnight, and just because someone doesn't get to come home from a high paying job and argue pseudo-economics on the internet, doesn't mean they're miserable- and surely does not make them dispensable to our economy.
But thanks for the ignorantly bigoted and xenophobic assertion!
I'm still waiting for a LTD P, then I will know what all the fuss is about.
Only if our economy relied on making cheap basses. The only industry china has taken over is the happymeal toy industry. And even if you want to make cheap basses, why should some Chinese guy be forced back to the farm because of your whims?
Anyone who knows anything about economics know that it works on a global scale. Division of labor lets countries where $20/day is a kings wage, produce thing we want cheap. The changes from agrarian to industrialized to modern societies don't happen overnight, and just because someone doesn't get to come home from a high paying job and argue pseudo-economics on the internet, doesn't mean they're miserable- and surely does not make them dispensable to our economy.
But thanks for the ignorantly bigoted and xenophobic assertion!
maybe its the particle board body?
just makin a joke.. im a fan of cheap basses too, glad u found a nice one. i will have to try one if i see one. johnny a
Ah, give him a break...he is entitled to his opinion based solely on hearsay and his opinion based on one bong hit too many.....
Oh and Ender, they are made of what they say they are made of and they are for real. A washtub with a broom handle and one string is a proper instrument too....and even the lowly SX is way above that!
I have said, and am saying again, Rondo could charge 2x as much for most of the SX line and they would still be a great value!
And while we are on that, I don't care if Kurt makes 60% on each bass.....what a retailer/dealer makes is no concern of mine. If I can get a decent bass at a decent price, well now we are talking! I bought my first SX expecting a lot less than I got. I was not expecting a Sadowski or Rickenbacker for 130 bucks. What got was a bass I would have paid 300 dollars for.....
To each their own!
All i am going to say about Essex basses is this, if the actually cost is about $20 to make, where is the wood (alder, etc) coming from? Can U make good music with it, sure, some could with a rubberband and jug, but should you. It just another novelty item in pretty colors
I'm going to disregard you "one for the punters" comment, and general condiscending tone for a second here.
I've gigged the snot out my no.1 SX for over three years now. It's seen wagon loads of stage time.
I'm sure Jimmy's SX's have seen more than a show or two as well.
There isn't a better bargain in the bass world than these SX basses IMO. From stock to modded, you sure as hell can do a lot with these things. I've done reasonably well playing mine.
.. and yes, I also own "the real deal" as well as my SX copys.NOW, if you "problem" is with Chinese made products, (which it seems it is) , and the politics that go with that, go blow your smoke elsewhere.
This isn't a political forum.
Yep this forum has several of them. I have been looking at the SX PJ the only reason I have not got it yet is I don't care for finished necks, but at that price factor I may just deal with the gloss neck or take some 0004 steel wool to it. I have learned you can get some great stuff on a budget I have a squire I play all the time and love it. If I owned a 1000.00 bass not that I have that to spend it would not make me a better player, or if I had a 60.00 instrument cable vs my 12.00 lifeline. And then there is the kid down the street with a cheap rig and a cheap bass that will smoke us all.
You know, repeating a falsehood isn't going to suddenly make it true.
Have you tried out some Essex basses? People who HAVE say that they easily compare with instruments 5 times their price. There are plenty of people who gig and record regularly and successfully with them.There are people who have modified them and who have confirmed that they are made of the woods they say they use.
You don't think an SX is a "proper instrument"...Why? What makes a "proper instrument" so? Have you ever played an SX? If so, how long ago?
So you mean you shop at the stores that only carry AMERICAN MADE items?? What store is that?? Do you drive ONLY American Made cars? What type of TV do you have? Where are your clothes made?
But its okay for you, you are special a true American, sorry I offended your busta bass playing ass
Don't attack me directly without knowing anything about me. You are the one that came into this thread and bashed on SX and those that play them, when the op was only sharing THEIR thoughts on THEIR new guitar...
dude, careful
read the TB rules...if you don't agree with someone's position, that's fine...stay clear of personal attacks, though...
everyone IS entitled to a position, after all.
