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So what does a $25k bass actually get you?
- Thread starter FollowMeDown
- Start date
I know a guy with a 10k watch.
I don't even have a watch.
My friends have 800 euros iPhones. Why?? To use whattsapp?
What's the difference between a Skoda, a VW and an Audi?
Why do people buy jewelery?
What about those 5k tvs?
I have 6 basses and a double bass. I can only play one at a time. So what?
I don't even have a watch.
My friends have 800 euros iPhones. Why?? To use whattsapp?
What's the difference between a Skoda, a VW and an Audi?
Why do people buy jewelery?
What about those 5k tvs?
I have 6 basses and a double bass. I can only play one at a time. So what?
I managed a High End Audio Shop in 85' to 2002. We sold a Linn [Scotland Company] CD Player for 20K. It was machined out of a solid block of Aluminium [ Tech reason for that but I won't bore you] at the Rolls Royce Factory. I took it home and heard Music on my CD's I did not know existed. One example on a Classical piece when listening to a cheap 10K Mark Levinson CD Player
a section of the Music just flowed along with song; on the Linn you could tell it was done in jest, the rhythm and tempo of all music played on Linn made lesser CD's presentation seem out of tune and time. Like most things you reach a point with all things fairly equal if you want 5% better sound the price doubles or triples; then if you want 1% better sound from 'Almost Perfect' it may be 1000 times the price. Also of course there are aesthetic price uppers like a Diamond watch band etc. Quality Workmanship and materials have other benefits other than sound and a Talented Designer is a huge equation in actual performance of any Musical or Electronic product. [ many other product type's also]
a section of the Music just flowed along with song; on the Linn you could tell it was done in jest, the rhythm and tempo of all music played on Linn made lesser CD's presentation seem out of tune and time. Like most things you reach a point with all things fairly equal if you want 5% better sound the price doubles or triples; then if you want 1% better sound from 'Almost Perfect' it may be 1000 times the price. Also of course there are aesthetic price uppers like a Diamond watch band etc. Quality Workmanship and materials have other benefits other than sound and a Talented Designer is a huge equation in actual performance of any Musical or Electronic product. [ many other product type's also]
Driving? Not really. Maybe a road trip. But I don’t need a Lamborghini Aventador to enjoy the ride. It will impress everybody outside my car, though.
Believe or not, some people do enjoy driving. Some even do it competitively. And what you need or like has zip to do with them.
So, a week and 500+ posts later and the OP hasn't returned. @Munjibunga , can we officially pronounce this thread Lownered?
I can't see a slab bass being worth that much... but perhaps for an upright acoustic with hand carved front and back back and if it came from really good woods? I used to live out in the Blue Ridge mountains and had a neighbor that was a luthier. His trademark was carving animal heads instead of the scroll. I played his first bass - he wasn't a super artist, but the bear head with inlaid ivory teeth set it apart. This was 25 years ago, and I thought it was overpriced at $6k back then. But for an acoustic of very fine quality, comparable to my 'cello, I could see it being worth the price of a modest new car.
When Steve Jobs died a lot of Apple investors were concerned. I owned a few hundred shares at the time and wasn’t worried in the least. My argument was that a competent company like Apple will choose the right person for CEO. I specifically said “right” person, not “best” person. I don’t need a Ferrari to drive to work, in fact it would be a waste of horsepower. I dive a Prius, which is actually the right car for me because I drive 75 miles a day and it costs me $25 a week for gas; the Ferrari would cost a lot more to fill. A $25,000 bass may be the best bass you can buy, but is it the right bass for what you need?
How long does it take to build a completely hand made one off instrument out of the very best materials, how in demand is the builder and what level of prestige is attached to have one of their basses?
All of those factors, plus more, probably come into play when we're talking very high end custom work. The hours involved in detailed inlay, custom shaping, of standard dimensions and grade AAA materials all add up.
I can't comprehend building a 25k bass, but I can see how that sort of price could be reached. It's easy to put 100 hours of work into a custom bass, even at twenty dollars an hour that's 2 thousand, before materials. (What's a fair hourly rate for an experienced trades person?)
If we were talking about a CNC manufactured instrument to standardized specs, with some hours of hand work for set up, fit and finishing and high, but not extreme quality materials, then a few thousand is probably a fair range. Add triple A grade woods, fancy inlays, complex electronics and special finishes and there's probably another few grand involved. Beyond that many hours might go into one off design features, custom specs, and experimental features. (all of this is just my approach, I don't speak for any other builder.) How much any or all of these things are worth depends on the customer and their ability to pay and/or their desire to see their desires fulfilled I guess...
All of those factors, plus more, probably come into play when we're talking very high end custom work. The hours involved in detailed inlay, custom shaping, of standard dimensions and grade AAA materials all add up.
I can't comprehend building a 25k bass, but I can see how that sort of price could be reached. It's easy to put 100 hours of work into a custom bass, even at twenty dollars an hour that's 2 thousand, before materials. (What's a fair hourly rate for an experienced trades person?)
If we were talking about a CNC manufactured instrument to standardized specs, with some hours of hand work for set up, fit and finishing and high, but not extreme quality materials, then a few thousand is probably a fair range. Add triple A grade woods, fancy inlays, complex electronics and special finishes and there's probably another few grand involved. Beyond that many hours might go into one off design features, custom specs, and experimental features. (all of this is just my approach, I don't speak for any other builder.) How much any or all of these things are worth depends on the customer and their ability to pay and/or their desire to see their desires fulfilled I guess...
So, what is the total cost of great hardware, and electronics? Sorry, but even retail, it just isn’t that much. A well-built neck? Custom hardware, yes, that will cost. But very few manufacturers, if any, custom build hardware for each and every instrument they build. Fancy wood and somebody to build it. And that person building it will probably spend it on that fancy car you just helped him buy.
As an aside, I had a friend with a few Shure Beta 58s so he brought them along for a show featuring lots of kids from the local schools. After the sound check we switched to my SM58s because they were far kinder to our performers.
So what is the most anyone has ever spent on a player (rather than a sought-after collectors piece-even if a player?)
(For me $2k Australian for a new 2008 Fender Jazz. I played a Ric worth more but neither it or my Fender were as much fun as my Ibanez.)
So what is the most anyone has ever spent on a player (rather than a sought-after collectors piece-even if a player?)
(For me $2k Australian for a new 2008 Fender Jazz. I played a Ric worth more but neither it or my Fender were as much fun as my Ibanez.)
I guess it comes from the luthier who feels his bass is worth 25 thousand. Some chairs or tables can be worth millions. But I believe its the craftmanship that sets a price like that not the sound..or the way it feels when you sit in a chair or how good the food taste on a certain table.
Sure. We've been lownered. Further, I did a thread a long time ago posing a question along the lines of, "At what price point do you start to lose bang for the buck?" I think the consensus was somewhere in the $1,500 to $2,500 range. After that you're paying for the symbol on the headstock, at least from the sound/playability perspective. Yes, more money will get you fancier wood, big name electronics and the like, but like the sound of my Fender as much as that of my Fodera. That said, I feel different when playing a Fodera.
Almost no one in the general public knows what a Fodera is, leading to the question, "Fedora - is that better than a Fender?" So there's no real status to be gained by playing the Fodera. So I feel different playing the Fodera - it's like I have a greater responsibility to play better.
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This one isn’t 25k but it’s not cheap either... Alembic Brown Bass. And it sounds pretty damn good...
Hold my hand - Hootie cover | Rockin'Robby
Hold my hand - Hootie cover | Rockin'Robby
I have two Basses, both Fenders, one a US Standard and the other, an American Pro. Both cost roughly $2500 AUS and both are incredible! They feel great, they sound great but you know why they are both great? Because a) I love them and b) I own a Mesa Boogie Bass Prodigy Four88 Head and a Powerhouse 410. A crappy to average guitar will almost always sound decent through a great amp but the greatest guitar will not sound nice through a crappy amp. I’ve tried many times. 2 very good guitars sound unbelievably great through that amp and speaker set and that’s how I know how much to spend on guitars and not a penny more!
Uh.. it seems there truly are a lot of very wealthy people replying to this thread ... some of them seem to be really strutting around saying several times “I had multiple Foderas, Alembics, Ritters ...” ... ok, and who cares honestly?
We play bass to make music and achieve a good tone .. the bass tone-quality generation curve attains higher values following the increase of the bass’ cost .. that’s normal and that’s what could be expected ... however this is an asymptotic trend ... at 25k USD or EUR or £, we will be looking more at the aesthetics of the instrument rather than noticing remarkable tonal difference with cheaper basses ... in my opinion a lot of this is pure vanity items display ... anyway, as somebody may get called in for replying again with funny considerations on life and philosophy, money is yours wealthy Sirs, spend it as you prefer but do not expect to always be praised for your choices
We play bass to make music and achieve a good tone .. the bass tone-quality generation curve attains higher values following the increase of the bass’ cost .. that’s normal and that’s what could be expected ... however this is an asymptotic trend ... at 25k USD or EUR or £, we will be looking more at the aesthetics of the instrument rather than noticing remarkable tonal difference with cheaper basses ... in my opinion a lot of this is pure vanity items display ... anyway, as somebody may get called in for replying again with funny considerations on life and philosophy, money is yours wealthy Sirs, spend it as you prefer but do not expect to always be praised for your choices
Living in Silicon Valley and being part of the car culture I encounter a lot of people that buy things because they are expensive.
It’s to impress other people.
For perspective however, my old boss at EHI made ~ $30K per workday. You get to a point where the money genuinely doesn’t matter. It’s more than could be spent
It’s to impress other people.
For perspective however, my old boss at EHI made ~ $30K per workday. You get to a point where the money genuinely doesn’t matter. It’s more than could be spent
