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Pros and 'Unusual' Basses.

Begore this post i would bet many of us were unaware of that model
Number
If you didn't know about the L-2000 before this thread, that is on you. That model is an important part of the Leo Fender legacy.

Leo-Beginning.jpg
 
Also, G&L has had some big name endorsers in the past. IMO, the reason they are not more popular than they are is that they are not nearly as plug-and-play as any of Leo's other designs. The passive bass and treble controls are something you just don't see on other instruments and take some getting used to.

DeeMurrayG&L1000.jpg
 
I'd also guess that G&L's advertising/endorsement budget is a fraction of Fender's. Some mfgs let the product speak for itself, other mfgs bombard us with endorsements and advertisements. The ones that spend a fortune on advertising of course become bigger and dominate the marketplace. But are they better? Not necessarily. But they sure do generate a ton of revenue don't they?

Apple's dominance in it's marketplace is mostly due to advertising and slipping their product into TV shows and movies (endorsements). For the first few years the iphone was out, there wasn't a TV show or movie that went by that did not have at least one appearance of an iphone. Newscasters were even slipping in the catchphrase when covering stories, it was pure oversaturation. They don't necessarily have the highest quality or the most feature laden smart phones, but their endorsement/advertising model will generate tons of revenue.
 
Begore this post i would bet many of us were unaware of that model
Number

I would not take that bet.

A wise and foresighted policy. :D

Im aware of g&l but never paid attention to models they just
Like Fenders with a handsome appendage on the headstock to me. Jk

If you didn't know about the L-2000 before this thread, that is on you. That model is an important part of the Leo Fender legacy.

Leo-Beginning.jpg
I am with the guys who do know model names/numbers, after all, G&L is an iconic brand, the last of the Fenders, really.

BTW, the bass that James Lomenzo is playing in that photo posted eons ago is an ASAT. I am sure most of us here know that one, also. :cool:

I used to own a JB-2, great bass that I only sold in order to help out a friend with a gift for his grandson.:) Otherwise, I'd still be rockin' it! :bassist:

Jeff_9240-800.jpg
 
There's the major fault in your logic right there. Visible, full-time pro musicians in no way represent a cross-section of what a typical bass player experiences or thinks. You might as well ask why if PC outsells Mac by such a huge margin, why almost all pro graphic designers use Macs when you can get the same software for PC.

I think you hit the nail on the head here. If PC=Fender and MAC=Custom/Exotic then PC is accessible and generic, while MAC is proprietary.

The Mac is more specific (MusicMan, Warwick, Rickenbacker, Fodera, etc.). Using graphics or making music on a Mac is faster and easier than on a PC due to it's specificity. The PC can do these things and can do them well, but the Mac does what it does more efficiently. However, more software is developed for the PC which makes it a better platform for developers (mods) and also lends itself to clones (Alternative P & J basses ).
 
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Fender is the only brand EVRYONE including non musicians are aware of. It is well respected worldwide.
Among NON-MUSICIANS,for two reasons.

Due to Fender visibility.
And the fact that many just "parrot"what they've heard others say.
And that's just laziness and ignorance.

Plenty of other brands have risen over the past 30 something years to get a fair cross section of their increasing quality and visibility.
Some started out quite mediocre.But have quickly increased in sound quality and craftsmanship.
 
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I don't think laziness or ignorance has anything to do with it, Many of the greatest musicians have played Fenders for over 60 years. Fans have seen these iconic instruments in the hands of the greats forever. Gibson comes close but onl a small percentage of us ( me included) own Gibson basses.
 
It's slot like Harley Davidson. There are plenty of companies who build high end boutique Harley clones that in many ways may be superior( more hp, higher quality components etc,) but for many only the real deal will do so they'll buy a premium Harley(screaming eagle etc) and or modify to suit. The same goes with Fender you can buy a $7000 custom shop and or mod your Fender to suit.
 
I think this extreme conservatism is the result of industry trends.

Producers and engineers are rewarded based upon timely delivery of marketable, non-challenging material. There are exceptions of course but they're increasingly rare. An engineer can plug in a passive fender, replicate the same settings on their gear they've used 100s of times before and hit the record button to achieve a standard useable sound and not go over budget. If the same engineer was rewarded for capturing creative musical performances the idea of modern styled instruments would be embraced. It's gotten so screwed up that producers are routinely hired for their signature sound rather than their ability to faithfully capture musicians performances.
 
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Especially not Marcus Miller, Geddy Lee and Steve Harris?
I'm quite certain that all these guys played Fenders by choice before ever getting endorsements and any $ they get from Fender is a very small percentage their personal income. Not sure where Steve got his original but as we all know geddy got his in a pawnshop and Marcus's Mom purchased his on 42 nd st and he still plays it.
 

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