Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
And three here in the classifieds for less than that. As @Mushroo said, now is a great time to grab one. Or two.
I bought mine new for the warranty and because it was zero percent financing. Quality is worth it every time and to the person thinking that a company can’t raise prices doesn’t know how supply chains work. $600 was low for a quality piece like this so the 8.3% hike isn’t much and considering that labor very much figures into costs as well as parts. Companies hold out as long as they can but to survive they must pass on cost to the consumer at some point. Economics 101.
$750 would still be worth it, it’s high quality and great customer service.
Back to how damn good it sounds....
$750 would still be worth it, it’s high quality and great customer service.
Back to how damn good it sounds....
Seconded!
Great amp - I love the simplicity of it: plug in...a couple clicks in either direction...great tone.
This stuff above.
Also think that Quilter has established themselves in the marketplace. I remember seeing one of the guitar amps like 6 years ago in a very specialty pedal "boutique" in Austin. Never heard of them, and the shop guy told me it was a kind of a specialty product for guy looking for a huge clean power platform for guys who get all their tone from pedals. It looked weird and I'd never heard of Quilter at the time.
Even a few years ago, Quilter stuff was kind of unknown, the EQ was different, etc... Now they have a bunch of models, amps, cabs, people know they work, etc... They are established as a legit product in the market place, so they can price accordingly.
The $649 price puts it above other 800-1000 watt amps from Ampeg, Peavey, and TC Electronic. Of course the Quilter smokes all of those.
Then there's this:
Fender Rumble 800 - 800-watt Bass Head
800 watt Fender Rumble for $599. Of course the Quilter will destroy it as well, but I'm afraid this will really hurt Quilter because people will buy it just for the Fender name, and it's $50 cheaper. They even added dual Speakon outputs and it's 2 ohm stable.
Then there's this:
Fender Rumble 800 - 800-watt Bass Head
800 watt Fender Rumble for $599. Of course the Quilter will destroy it as well, but I'm afraid this will really hurt Quilter because people will buy it just for the Fender name, and it's $50 cheaper. They even added dual Speakon outputs and it's 2 ohm stable.
Be patient, Quilter hasn't released any details about their MIC bass amps yet, let's wait and see what the price point will be. I bet it will be competitive with other MIC amps like Ampeg, Peavey, TC, Fender, etc.
If you want to compare apples to apples, then compare the $649 MIA Quilter with other MIA amps like Mesa Boogie.
Different companies are trying to hit different segments of the market. The Mesa D800 amp costs $800 - but it seems like a lot of people bought it. Things like service, QC, reliability, brand reputation, and all those things go into why someone would pay whatever for an amp.
Ampeg, Peavey, Fender are really big companies, and have a WIDE range of products to hit a big segment of the market. Fender has the cheap 800w Rumble head, but also has a 800w Bassman head that sells for $1000. Both are 800w class D power sections.
Be patient, Quilter hasn't released any details about their MIC bass amps yet, let's wait and see what the price point will be. I bet it will be competitive with other MIC amps like Ampeg, Peavey, TC, Fender, etc.
If you want to compare apples to apples, then compare the $649 MIA Quilter with other MIA amps like Mesa Boogie.
Yeah I should have pointed out that Fender Rumbles, Peavey, TC...etc...are made in....well who knows where?
We raised our prices because we had to. I am probably going to regret posting this, and I hate to make this about politics, but politics are having an effect on our business. I am posting this to correct the misinformation earlier in this thread. Also, please don’t let this divulge into what we should do about China. I am posting this give you some insight on what all of your favorite US manufacturers are trying to figure out right now. This is going to be a controversial statement, but from our perspective the trade war we are in with China is hurting our US manufacturing way more than our Chinese manufacturing.
We are a US based manufacturer that sources the best components we can buy. As someone else pointed out, electronic components are almost exclusively manufactured in China these days. We live in a global economy and everything has a supply chain that is several steps from raw materials. You have things like our cardboard boxes that are made in Los Angeles but the raw materials come from China. Our knobs are like that too. They are injection molded in Orange County but the plastic beads and dye probably aren’t made here, we have no idea where but the cost went up. Think about how many companies components get passed between before they end up in a finished good. Everyone from the importer and on just got faced with a cost increase and a higher inventory balance sheet. No one wants to make less money so that just gets passed onto the next company and ultimately the consumer.
For example, electronics had a tariff at 2.5% whether they were raw materials or a completed assembly. That went up to 12.5% in October and threatened to go up to 27.5% in January. As you might know, the January bump is in the middle of a 90 day hold right now but who's to say where it will be once those 90 days are up? There is no talk of the 12.5% going back down. That’s just the electronic components. Covers are up way more than 27.5%. Almost everything we buy just got more expensive. How do you plan for having no idea what your parts are going to cost?
Compare that to if we just made the whole product out of the same spec parts in China. The Chinese factory buys everything locally without an inflated cost and then we buy it directly from them and pay one tariff on whatever harmonized code the finished good is sold under.
Let me be clear though, there are no plans to move Bass Block 800 production to China. The Bass Block is our best seller and we regularly have more batches made at QSC. We are trying to figure this out.
PS. Just a pet peeve of mine, but is your amplifier really US made if you use an ICEpower module? Literally the amp part isn’t made in the US.
We are a US based manufacturer that sources the best components we can buy. As someone else pointed out, electronic components are almost exclusively manufactured in China these days. We live in a global economy and everything has a supply chain that is several steps from raw materials. You have things like our cardboard boxes that are made in Los Angeles but the raw materials come from China. Our knobs are like that too. They are injection molded in Orange County but the plastic beads and dye probably aren’t made here, we have no idea where but the cost went up. Think about how many companies components get passed between before they end up in a finished good. Everyone from the importer and on just got faced with a cost increase and a higher inventory balance sheet. No one wants to make less money so that just gets passed onto the next company and ultimately the consumer.
For example, electronics had a tariff at 2.5% whether they were raw materials or a completed assembly. That went up to 12.5% in October and threatened to go up to 27.5% in January. As you might know, the January bump is in the middle of a 90 day hold right now but who's to say where it will be once those 90 days are up? There is no talk of the 12.5% going back down. That’s just the electronic components. Covers are up way more than 27.5%. Almost everything we buy just got more expensive. How do you plan for having no idea what your parts are going to cost?
Compare that to if we just made the whole product out of the same spec parts in China. The Chinese factory buys everything locally without an inflated cost and then we buy it directly from them and pay one tariff on whatever harmonized code the finished good is sold under.
Let me be clear though, there are no plans to move Bass Block 800 production to China. The Bass Block is our best seller and we regularly have more batches made at QSC. We are trying to figure this out.
PS. Just a pet peeve of mine, but is your amplifier really US made if you use an ICEpower module? Literally the amp part isn’t made in the US.
Last edited:
Thanks for the info @peteratquilter !
I think most of your USA customers are very aware, and understanding of, the situation. Hopefully your comments will help your international customers get a better sense of what's going on. Without veering into politics I'll just say, Quilter seems like a great company, and I hope the international trade situation improves in a way that benefits both the company and its customers.
I think most of your USA customers are very aware, and understanding of, the situation. Hopefully your comments will help your international customers get a better sense of what's going on. Without veering into politics I'll just say, Quilter seems like a great company, and I hope the international trade situation improves in a way that benefits both the company and its customers.
Thanks for the info @peteratquilter !
I think most of your USA customers are very aware, and understanding of, the situation. Hopefully your comments will help your international customers get a better sense of what's going on. Without veering into politics I'll just say, Quilter seems like a great company, and I hope the international trade situation improves in a way that benefits both the company and its customers.
Thank you for understanding and for your support
it means a lot to us.
Thanks for the perspective from the manufacturer. I think we need more of this so we can all be better informed, ie, paying $1k for a cab isn't as hard to swallow when we know that we're not taken advantage of by the manufacturer.
As for the taxes, IMO these are growing pains. We have to get a handle on China, particularly as regards their theft of IP. No doubt at some point there will be some "Made in PRC" clone of the Bass Block, that costs about $35. That's not right and needs to be dealt with. For everyone's protection.
I'll also say thanks for dropping by and filling us in @peteratquilter . It's great to know that the companies you buy products from are engaged. Makes you feel good about your choices.
Really interesting. I think we have to change our understanding of what some of this language means in the modern world.
There is a cool essay called "I, Pencil" and tells how a pencil is made from the perspective of the pencil. Talks about all the materials and people who are involved in something that seams so simple. Stuff like the guy who build the road, that the truck that traveled on, that was transporting the graphite, that was mined by some guy in some other country... Kind of insane when you start thinking about it. And for something as simple as a #2 pencil. Now think about something like the BB800 and how many pieces and components there are.
But I digress. Love the amp, appreciate what you guys are doing.
Really interesting. I think we have to change our understanding of what some of this language means in the modern world.
There is a cool essay called "I, Pencil" and tells how a pencil is made from the perspective of the pencil. Talks about all the materials and people who are involved in something that seams so simple. Stuff like the guy who build the road, that the truck that traveled on, that was transporting the graphite, that was mined by some guy in some other country... Kind of insane when you start thinking about it. And for something as simple as a #2 pencil. Now think about something like the BB800 and how many pieces and components there are.
But I digress. Love the amp, appreciate what you guys are doing.
You know, in today's market all of us musical instrument manufacturers are pretty much just trying to get by. I don't think you have to worry about being taken advantage of with pricing. Somethings might be more than you are willing to pay for them, but the race to 0 started a long time ago. Everyone is trying to make everything for as affordable of a price as they can. Forums are a specialized place where people have more knowledge than the average customer and are generally willing to spend more money to get a better product. The bulk of consumers buy what they can afford.
Cabs are the bane of every amplifier manufacturer's existence. Putting tolex on is skilled labor that takes time and is expected in this traditional market. It costs a ton of money to have done and essentially adds no perceived value. Double whammy!
Can you send me a link? Couldn't find it with a search. We didn't announce anything new at the show...
