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Not playing anymore with expensive bass
- Thread starter OptimalOptimus
- Start date
I would give a try to a used Squier Contemporary Active precision bass.
Can be bought for spare change and you may get 70% of what your Spector gives.
Can be bought for spare change and you may get 70% of what your Spector gives.
Yeah I paid around 4k new for this one 2 years ago... At the time it was fine but yeah. And I don't really play anymore os it is kind of a waste to have this expensive bass ( to me )
You may also find a very good USA Peavy on the used market. Very affordable but great sound and built to last.
I may be misreading, but if you paid 4K new, you won’t get 4K for it now. I don’t know how well Spectors hold their value, but do your research on what you can expect.
that said, even if you get half, that’s still $$, and you can get a lot of bass for under a grand (used). Whether that difference you can pocket is worth it to you, that’s for you to decide.
The question I’d ask is if you see yourself playing again in the future, and whether you’d miss your Spector then vs want something different then…
For a reality check, look at the TB classifieds and reverb listings. Expect less than half the new price, and further deduct any fees or shipping.
If you want it gone quickly, asking price needs to be attractive, below the going price for a minty new, but used bass.
If you have more time and relationship with a store that does consignment, that might net you a bit more.
If you still want a bass, used is the way to go.
If you want it gone quickly, asking price needs to be attractive, below the going price for a minty new, but used bass.
If you have more time and relationship with a store that does consignment, that might net you a bit more.
If you still want a bass, used is the way to go.
I wouldn't sell a bass I knew I liked for a question mark (the uncertainty of finding another bass I like as much) unless I really needed the money. If I was able to get a bass I really liked before selling my more expensive bass that would be a different matter. I don't know what the resale value is on Spectors but I'd be surprised if you'd end up with enough to make the sale worthwhile (again, unless you first find another bass you like better or as much).
Unless you are conveying that bills are not getting paid or people are not eating, then I vote no. What's the purpose of losing money on a sale in a very soft market to just buy a lesser instrument? What you spent on that bass back in the day is a sunk cost and no longer relevant.
as of yesterday pm there is a real nice squire p-bass five offered here in the classifieds, $475 iirc. it's posted by a TB member from washington ( the state. ) i'd grab it myself except just paid to have my garage re-sheet rocked.
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Thanks @MultiScaleMale for doing the research I was thinking about. Saying the Spector sells on Reverb for $2K, I would guess the OP will end up with maybe $1600. Unless he is looking to get into a $300 used Squier, it just isn't worth the shuffle. Not much sub $1000 will begin to mimic the Spector - let alone equal or surpass it. There is no doubt I would keep the Spector and know that I have a good bass I enjoy playing every once in a while. The use of the $500 or $1000 proceeds of the shuffle will be long forgotten but the ache of trading off a great bass for a marginal one will linger....
Treat it like a car and make sure you have one that allows you to have a transport (assuming you are in the US and not in a metro area like NYC with an excellent 24X7 subway system)
Porsche 997 vs Toyota Camry logic.
You did not call yourself @OptimalOptimus for nothing. I am sure you'll find the right balance
Porsche 997 vs Toyota Camry logic.
You did not call yourself @OptimalOptimus for nothing. I am sure you'll find the right balance
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The operative word is could. I got a loaded body here in the classifieds for 290 but really the going rate is about 400 for a loaded body (By the time I got tuners , neck and tools I was almost at 1K. But even if you just got the body, you need to have tools (soldering iron, solder, flux just to get the electronics added. Then there's the neck which may require work. Easily, even if you are handy but no tools, the initial outlay is going to be 1K and you are going to make rookie mistakes. If you pay someone to assemble - still 1K if not more.
It will get cheaper for the next build as you learn from your first, but the first one will have issues. Might be better to just get a Sire and be mostly set.
If you need the money, sell it. More important to take care of the bills and family.
I went through something somewhat similar, except I wasn't selling an expensive bass, but a cheap bass in order to eat! That's how dire my situation was.
That was long ago, and my situation has improved exponentially, but I never forget those days. So, if I ever needed to sell my basses due to financial hardship, it wouldn't be the end of the world and I'd make due with an inexpensive one. Fortunately, I'm not doing music for a living, so if I had to do without any bass at all, that'd be fine, too!
Also, if you're barely playing, just sell it. Plenty of nice inexpensive basses around, especially used. If you ever start playing a lot again, and/or your financial situation changes, get a nicer bass then.
Honestly, if all I was doing was home playing it wouldn’t really matter as much to me about how expensive or nice a bass was. I could get by with a cheapo or parts bass just to mess around at the house. I have nicer, more expensive basses that I gig with because I want a certain tone and ergonomics. If I wasn’t gigging, I wouldn’t need anything as specific. If you don’t need it, sell it and spend the money on something you need/want.
Have you looked at Legend 5's? I have an old Legend 5, and even though I also have a Forte 5 I still find the Legend is quite satisfying to play.
See you in six months with your "The one that got away" post.
See you in six months with your "The one that got away" post.
Unless your financial situation is particularly bad I highly advise against selling... You will only get about 1700-2000 USD back on this, it will be very hard to sell a spector locally so you may have to resort to Reverb and get ripped off by their stupidly high fees, pay shipping, pay for shipping materials etc.
You will come out with about 1600-1700 USD all said and done, used market is very slow at the moment.
Personally I sold an LT myself to buy a different Spector and had it listed locally for a few weeks without a single offer, had to open it up to the larger market on Reverb, all in I lost about 1000 on it and only owned it for 6 months.
Also the prices of these basses new are rising dramatically, when I was saving to buy an LT I watched the price go up 400 USD in the space of about 3 months so if you ever want a nice bass like this again it will cost a lot more to get another one.
You may pick up the bass actively again in the future and if you do, you will be glad you have a nice instrument to return to.
You will come out with about 1600-1700 USD all said and done, used market is very slow at the moment.
Personally I sold an LT myself to buy a different Spector and had it listed locally for a few weeks without a single offer, had to open it up to the larger market on Reverb, all in I lost about 1000 on it and only owned it for 6 months.
Also the prices of these basses new are rising dramatically, when I was saving to buy an LT I watched the price go up 400 USD in the space of about 3 months so if you ever want a nice bass like this again it will cost a lot more to get another one.
You may pick up the bass actively again in the future and if you do, you will be glad you have a nice instrument to return to.
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I started collecting/accumulation basses around 7 years ago and I was up to 32. I've since downsized to 17 and am looking to get down to 7 or 8. I've had $5,000 basses and I have $200-$500 basses, plus some in the $800-$1,600 range. The Fodera is gone. The Wal is gone. The Rickenbacker is long gone (good riddance). I passed on an Alembic I had on loan. I've found that some of my favorite basses are the ones in the lower to intermediate price range. I love my $200 Ibanez Talman and my $600 Bruce Thomas Signature Profile bass. One of my favorite basses is a Spector Legend that cost me $450 plus a little extra for some work I had done to it. Check out a Spector Pulse. Great basses for around $1,000 new and less used.
that's a possibility, i can't deny that. but FSOs are parts basses to begin with, so what we're really doing is reimagining the instrument with only ourselves in mind. to wit, i have no special skills with woods or tools (i can solder!), but my first ax, from nothing but the various parts i picked for it, was a real success (the "blonde P-bass"). i got lucky with the neck (it's a great one for my hands). the rest of the parts fit. the only hitch was "the looks" --- what did i want it to look like (i.e., what was i willing to settle for)? answer: i had a pickguard custom made, that defined "the look."
if the first neck had been a fail, i would have tried another one, and another, until i found a neck i liked. that said, i'm choosing necks based on my preferences and the specs advertised, so as long as they match up i'm at least in the ball park. and FWIW, i think fretless necks are easier to deal with than fretted ones, so there's that.
