Anybody ever tried a bass from Sweetwater's demo selection? They have some nice options in there and who wouldn't like to save a couple bucks.
Thanks in advance.
Steve
Thanks in advance.
Steve
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Sweetwater Demo Basses
- Thread starter Desmoface
- Start date
No basses yet, but my Sire S7 Vintage was a demo, got almost $100 off. Near mint, I had to look really close to see the ding.
I had great luck with a Gibson TBird demo in 2018. I think it was under $900 and already had a Babicz bridge on it. They said the finish had flaws, and I could barely see where the nitro wasn't applied well in the corners. It turned out to be my "number one" for several years. I've put many more flaws on to that finish over the years.
I say go for it.
I say go for it.
Demos and unboxed and 'seconds':
IF you are going to buy one, then get out the magnifying glass and scan every inch of it as if you were trying to carry it into a deeply secure, classified area, find one tiny, tiny little something virtually invisible to the naked eye, then go squalling back to the seller and burn them here on TB for trying to slide one by you, do yourself and all of us a favor:
DON'T DO IT.
If on the other hand, a little something here or there that would seem like no big deal (and I don't mean a big paint chip, bent key, obvious BAD stuff) and you're glad to not send all your Benjamins to the buy,
GO FOR IT.
IF you are going to buy one, then get out the magnifying glass and scan every inch of it as if you were trying to carry it into a deeply secure, classified area, find one tiny, tiny little something virtually invisible to the naked eye, then go squalling back to the seller and burn them here on TB for trying to slide one by you, do yourself and all of us a favor:
DON'T DO IT.
If on the other hand, a little something here or there that would seem like no big deal (and I don't mean a big paint chip, bent key, obvious BAD stuff) and you're glad to not send all your Benjamins to the buy,
GO FOR IT.
The last 'showroom demo' I bought was one of these . . . .
. . . from Chicago Music Exchange. Not visible in this stock photo, but mine had a sunken spot about the size of a split pea in that stretch between the bridge pickup and the bridge, under the strings. Completely painted, no cracks or bare spots, just a tiny sunken spot. I got it as new with the warranty card and all the case candy, in a Fender FB620 gig bag, for right at $420 bucks.
NO WAY I was going to complain, and it's one of my favorite basses, no practical effect on anything about playing this bass.
The pitiful thing is that there are those among us who would have become crazy mad about it, even though they described it in the ad. Lighten Up !
. . . from Chicago Music Exchange. Not visible in this stock photo, but mine had a sunken spot about the size of a split pea in that stretch between the bridge pickup and the bridge, under the strings. Completely painted, no cracks or bare spots, just a tiny sunken spot. I got it as new with the warranty card and all the case candy, in a Fender FB620 gig bag, for right at $420 bucks.
NO WAY I was going to complain, and it's one of my favorite basses, no practical effect on anything about playing this bass.
The pitiful thing is that there are those among us who would have become crazy mad about it, even though they described it in the ad. Lighten Up !
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Hey everyone, thanks for the replies. I could live with a bump or 2 as long as it's just cosmetic. Which would you go for ?
Fender American Professional II Precision Bass - Black with Maple Fingerboard
This one has a chip right by the strap button, just concerned about the location and the possibility of hidden damage to the wood where the screw is, like maybe the strap button will fail at some point. Love the color though: Fender American Professional II Precision Bass - Miami Blue with Maple Fingerboard
This one seems to be the cleanest of the bunch, I guess I could live with the color:
Fender American Professional II Precision Bass - Mystic Surf Green with Rosewood Fingerboard
Or just suck it up and pay full price to get the one I really want - keep thinking about the old saying, "By once, cry once", LOL. Fender American Professional II Precision Bass - Olympic White with Maple Fingerboard
This one's kind a cool: Fender American Professional II Precision Bass - Dark Night with Rosewood Fingerboard
Fender American Professional II Precision Bass - Black with Maple Fingerboard
This one has a chip right by the strap button, just concerned about the location and the possibility of hidden damage to the wood where the screw is, like maybe the strap button will fail at some point. Love the color though: Fender American Professional II Precision Bass - Miami Blue with Maple Fingerboard
This one seems to be the cleanest of the bunch, I guess I could live with the color:
Fender American Professional II Precision Bass - Mystic Surf Green with Rosewood Fingerboard
Or just suck it up and pay full price to get the one I really want - keep thinking about the old saying, "By once, cry once", LOL. Fender American Professional II Precision Bass - Olympic White with Maple Fingerboard
This one's kind a cool: Fender American Professional II Precision Bass - Dark Night with Rosewood Fingerboard
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Why, yes; yes, I have. The Sweetwater store is about an hour's drive from me, and I've been there more than a few times (it's really nice to be retired). My only problem with their demo basses, is that not many of them are left handed. But, the last time I tried out a lefty demo bass, it was a Guild Starfire I. I would have preferred the Starfire II, but... Guild doesn't make lefties. However...
How was that bass? Well, it's sitting on a stand in my living room right now, which should tell you something. I did have to tweak the setup a little, after I put a set of GHS #3120MS Precision Flats on it; but, I sort of expected that. I'm very happy with it; and if my Bass Herd wasn't complete as of a few days ago? I'd have no qualms about buying another Sweetwater demo bass...
I'd rather pay extra, not to have KFC grease and other bodily fluids and a wonky setup, dings, warped neck, trussbar issues, blah blah...
No, I am sure there are some decent ones, but still no, it is a lottery and I always lose.
If you want to save some cashola---go on Stratosphere Ebay and buy the body, loaded or not, neck, the hardware etc. He has a bunch of Fender American Pro's. Put it together yourself. No case to pay for, do you need a case? Not me.
No, I am sure there are some decent ones, but still no, it is a lottery and I always lose.
If you want to save some cashola---go on Stratosphere Ebay and buy the body, loaded or not, neck, the hardware etc. He has a bunch of Fender American Pro's. Put it together yourself. No case to pay for, do you need a case? Not me.
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You bring up a good point. I was thinking of paying them to do a setup to make sure the truss rod works as I've read about some Fenders coming from the factory with bat truss rods.
You can always send it back, but then you gotta wait for something else. Nothing is 100%, I have even sent back new basses with bad trussrods, etc. I trust nobody to set up my basses anymore, same with my oil changes. Slackers.
I haven't bought from SW, but I did buy an 'Open Box' (customer returned) bass from Musician's Friend. Fender Ultra Jazz. It was the exact bass I had on my bucket list and came in at 12% off. It was as new with all case candy, plastics on parts, etc, etc. Reason for return I speculate is that the preamp wasn't working right. 1 dead / defective battery (of 2). New batteries and it is great. The thing that bothered me was that MF never bothered to remedy the obvious defect before reselling it. Sell, return, resell, etc etc. If the bass was a different color or other deviation from what I really wanted, the 12% would not have been enough to sway me. Also - in my case the preamp seems to be the reason for the return. I am sure there are legit issues with high frets, marginal necks, etc that cause people to return instruments. If you buy make sure there isn't anything really wrong with it before settling in with it.
Fender American Professional II Precision P Bass LOADED BODY, Mystic Surf Green | eBay
He sells the necks too. Basically you can save $500+. They come with the seriel paperwork and a little leather zipper bag with a fender sticker--bout it, but thats all you need.
He sells the necks too. Basically you can save $500+. They come with the seriel paperwork and a little leather zipper bag with a fender sticker--bout it, but thats all you need.
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I bought a Fender Roasted maple, for my American Pro ii stratosphere body, i think it was about $1200.00 total.
Nothing wrong with buying a Demo from them , it's checked out , full warranty and you save a few bucks and yes , I have bought a few Demo items .
I bought a demo US Geddy Lee Jazz from them. Couldn't find a scratch on it. Sold it about year and half later during pandemic for $600 more than I paid for it when they were had to come by.
I bought a demo Schecter Riot 5 online from SW. Saved 300 bucks. Not a mark on it. Full warranty. Changed the strings. Nice looking ax. Really heavy. After playing it for a few months I sold it. I hated the neck on it. My fretting hand would get cramps after playing it for a short time. Didn't work for me. I have an older US Masters EP5 that has a neck that I can play for hours no problem. That's what I'm talkin about.
Personally, if I were contemplating buying a demo with a chip in the finish, to save a couple of hundred off the new list price ; I'd save an additional ~$400 by getting a used one, in excellent condition.
Seriously, TB members are the tip of the iceberg, in terms of runaway GAS, and flipping brand new instruments at a significant loss.
You'll have no problem picking up a near mint condition American Professional II Precision, including the case and all accessories, for ~$1300.
You might even get it as low as 50% off msrp.
Just keep an eye on whether the original owner has made any modifications (maybe you want to hold out for an unmodified stock example, in your preferred colour / maybe your not fussed about colour, and you consider it an upgrade if they've swapped the pickup, and added a drop-tuner).
