Man people are getting all riled up over this aren't they? I think people just need to accept the fact that good products WILL be copied. It's not just guitars and basses, it's Rolex watches, Oakley sunglasses, and a zillion other products out there in the world. Is there really any argument that the knock offs are as good as the real thing? Maybe in low end Fenders/Squires, but you don't see a real knockoff company with product lines that directly compete in the price ranges of the real ones, because nobody would buy them. The SX vs MIM thing is one argument, that's mainly Fender's fault for their QC. SX does not have a line that competes with MIA Fenders, at all. The Brice basses might be about as good but they're not Fender copies, and are much more expensive.
Let's face it, if MM wanted no copies to be ever made they would require OLP to be held to a higher standard than they do. The same goes for Fender and everyone else. They market the name and don't seem to care if their lower line is crap. Personally I would buy an SX over an OLP, as many others here seem to be doing right now. SX quality, from what I see, has been consistent. Fit and finish issues aside, they use pretty good pieces of wood! That alone is probably the main reason they're so popular, because you can fix the hardware, electronics, etc and make your own "Warmoth" type bass for hundreds less. Is it gonna be as good? Probably not, but for what it costs it can't be beat. My SX is only original in the body now, but I have less than $300 in it overall and it has the best parts possible in it. That's barely what I can get a used MIM Fender for and there's not much of a comparison there, in body resonance alone.
I think people say SX is a POS because they're expecting $1000 basses for $150 and it's just not happening. The body wood is good, the hardware and electronics are "acceptable", and the fit and finish is hit or miss sometimes, but most seem to be pretty good as of late.
The point is, if SX can make a competing product and charge half as much as the OLP, then OLP is the one in the wrong for allowing that to happen. I doubt anyone is gonna come in here and say their SX MM is better than a EBMM Stringray, and if they do I think they're crazy. SX is competition for OLP, nothing more.
Let's face it, if MM wanted no copies to be ever made they would require OLP to be held to a higher standard than they do. The same goes for Fender and everyone else. They market the name and don't seem to care if their lower line is crap. Personally I would buy an SX over an OLP, as many others here seem to be doing right now. SX quality, from what I see, has been consistent. Fit and finish issues aside, they use pretty good pieces of wood! That alone is probably the main reason they're so popular, because you can fix the hardware, electronics, etc and make your own "Warmoth" type bass for hundreds less. Is it gonna be as good? Probably not, but for what it costs it can't be beat. My SX is only original in the body now, but I have less than $300 in it overall and it has the best parts possible in it. That's barely what I can get a used MIM Fender for and there's not much of a comparison there, in body resonance alone.
I think people say SX is a POS because they're expecting $1000 basses for $150 and it's just not happening. The body wood is good, the hardware and electronics are "acceptable", and the fit and finish is hit or miss sometimes, but most seem to be pretty good as of late.
The point is, if SX can make a competing product and charge half as much as the OLP, then OLP is the one in the wrong for allowing that to happen. I doubt anyone is gonna come in here and say their SX MM is better than a EBMM Stringray, and if they do I think they're crazy. SX is competition for OLP, nothing more.
! Surely an established company wouldn't want to make itself look bad. When I began reading all the references to OLP's QC problems I was disappointed,
almost offended. IMHO, it's dishonest, or at least deceptive, for a company to trade on it's good reputation by distributing so many instruments that were essentially unplayable out of the box.
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