Vintage basses pricing. Seriously?

[Bass Viking]

Here's a theory; an instrument that's been played a lot over decades seems to get better the more it's played. It's not a quantifiable thing but when you pick one up you can feel the mojo immediately. That can't be built in on a production line. Being old isn't enough. I played an old Gibson archtop that was a gift to a GI leaving for the Korean War. He never came home and the guitar remained in the case unplayed for nearly 70 years complete with hang tags attached. It sounded like crap, even after it was restrung. I've played new basses that have this "mojo" but they're luthier built in one man shops like Ken Lawrence. There's $10K and worth every penny. It's not the age, it's the history played into it.

The idea of mojo is so subjective that it's tenuous at best. It's possible that old instrument sounded great the day it left the factory and the Gibson archtop sounded like crap right from day one. It's difficult to say how much playing improves the tone of a guitar/bass unless you own the same one for 30 or 40 years.

 

[robboy]

• I think the whole vintage thing is just a matter of personal preference. I had a 66 Jazz that I played for many years. I didn't like giving it to airlines when I toured so I bought a 2008 Jazz bass off the wall from a music store. Way better bass in all ways. Sound, finish, playability, etc. Sold the 66 and never regretted the sale. I used to buy and sell alot of guitars on Ebay and some vintage instruments were great and some were crap. Just like today. Go play 20 different instruments of the same type and they will vary. Fender is pretty consistent but Gibson is awful. Things are pretty much the same as they were 50 or 60 years ago when these things were cranked out in the cheapest way possible just like today. Just cause it's old doesn't mean it's great.

 

[Rick Ammazzini]

I have been browsing the old Fender's in particular and the prices blow me away. Call me naive, call me ignorant but what makes an instrument that was made in the 60's and the 70's cost anything between $2.000 and more than $8.000? Where the electronics made by superior or advanced components? Were the trees from which the wood came any better than those of today? Did the procedure of building a quality instrument not improve? Or is it simply nostalgia of the teenage years that idolizes everything about that era?

What makes an old 1960s Corvette better than a 2017 Corvette

 

[dpaulb]

What makes an old 1960s Corvette better than a 2017 Corvette

It's looks and that it's easier to work on is about all.

 

[selowitch]

A Strad is not better than the best modern violins, and the latter are much cheaper.

+1. And I think many people believe that Strads must be better because they`re so costly.

They are valued for more than just their utility as musical instruments; they are also rare antiques built by a legendary maker.

 

[BassFishingInAmerica]

At some point, musical instruments cease being tools and are transformed into pieces of art.

 

[selowitch]

At some point, musical instruments cease being tools and are transformed into pieces of art.

When I’m buying, they’re tools; when I’m selling, they’re works of art.

 

[rocketboy]

I thought the madness came with the reefer??

Well, you've got to consider that with different drugs there will surely come different sorts of madness, maybe? It's always felt like that to me, at any rate...

 

[Bubba PhD]

My '67 Bass V is not a work of art, or part of a collection. It's heavy, only 15 frets and tuned high C, it's not what most bass players want in a daily player. However, it is much more valuable than just a product of manufacture. It is a fine instrument and has been a member of the family and a daily player since dad brought it home for Christmas over 50 years ago. Like a friend, we have memories together, struggles and victories that show in our collective battle scars. Call me "mad" as I have been offered seemingly obscene prices "for a Fender Guitar". But, like my dog, it's not for sale.

 

[Zonked]

When I’m buying, they’re tools; when I’m selling, they’re works of art.

Yeah, I guess people view basses differently.

To many pros, a bass is simply a tool to play and create music. Nowadays you don't need to spend large sums to get a fully professional quality instrument.

A pen, is also a tool .......a simple tool for writing. Here is a great deal!

" This pen has the works. It is crafted from rhodium-plated silver and features a clip that resembles a wristwatch. This limited edition model was created to honor the world-renowned Swiss watch making industry. Just to ensure that no one misses the intended tribute, the pen also features replicas of watch movements on the barrel that include rubies and a sapphire dome. A mere $19,000 will make it yours."

Do you NEED this pen for writing?

No, but some people WANT it and they have the money.


Some have said that people people buy based on their priorities.

Some people place a high value on vintage or historical values of basses. Others on exotic fancy woods and name brands. Yet others place a value on being "different" that Fender and on and on.

The good news is that there are basses for all us.

 

[Jim C]

The value is based on collectability and not the fairy dust or mojo associated with old instruments.
As robboy mentioned, there are plenty of good and bad 60's and 70's Fenders.
I had a dead mint 58" burst that was not a great player and didn't sound THAT great.
It sold for big money since it was unmolested and clean.

Mopar Super Birds selling for $500K?
A new GT mustang will blow the doors off that old pig; HP. handling, braking, maintenance, etc.
Old one looks cooler though

OTOH, I choose to play a 60' P that had the finish stripped.

 

[alembicman86]

I have been browsing the old Fender's in particular and the prices blow me away. Call me naive, call me ignorant but what makes an instrument that was made in the 60's and the 70's cost anything between $2.000 and more than $8.000? Where the electronics made by superior or advanced components? Were the trees from which the wood came any better than those of today? Did the procedure of building a quality instrument not improve? Or is it simply nostalgia of the teenage years that idolizes everything about that era?

OK, here's the deal. For some unknown reason, Fender cannot recreate the basses of old with a reissue. It's just not possible. They may be able to get the necks and bodies close to specs. But there is something about the way the pick-ups and windings age that gives these basses that '60s and '70s unique sound and tone. I own a '60 and '75 Fender Precisions. The neck on the '60s is somewhat flatter in structure but plays like butter and sounds "old". The neck also has clay dots. The '75 has a maple neck completely different that the older bass. Still a wonderful rock solid instrument. It is simple. If you want the vintage sound you have to spend the $ for a vintage instrument. Years ago you could find them at pawn shops, garage sales and pennysavers. With the event of the internet everyone thinks they have quality vintage which simply ain't so. Save your money and buy vintage, they aren't making more. Consider it an investment.

 

[selowitch]

One of the real joys of the Fender family of instruments is that there's something for everyone at every price point, from the humble Squier Affinity P-Bass to a $40,000 pre-CBS Precision Bass and everything in between.

 

[da old guy]

anything is worth *exactly* what the highest bidder is willing to pay, the highest bidder sets the price

ans: nostalgia combined with the law of supply and demand

is one piece of canvas with paint splatteted on it "worth" $25,000,000.00 and another essentially worthless only because of a tiny and almost invisible signature down in the lower corner?

now, does this logic apply to ampeg svt amps? are the 60s and 70s units really superior sonically and or technically? or is pricing also a case of nostalgia as with period fender guitars? or some of both? not a rhetorical question

 

[selowitch]

I can completely understand nostalgia.

If I could somehow have back the basses from my early teen years (which I previously owned), I probably would. But I wouldn't pay $1,000 for any Precision Elite II and even if it were the very one I used to have (signed by Stevie Ray Vaughan—how stupid was I to sell it?), it wouldn't have the original pickups/electronics, so I'd probably still pass.

I can still remember how the case used to smell when I would open it up in 1984 or 1985.

 

[N. Kentucky Bass]

They say high prices are due to supply and demand.

Does that mean demand (and prices) will drop after the Baby Boomers who grew up in that Old Fender Era and were inspired to play music by those heroes of yesteryear ... die?

 

[MordBass]

They say high prices are due to supply and demand.

Does that mean demand (and prices) will drop after the Baby Boomers who grew up in that Old Fender Era and were inspired to play music by those heroes of yesteryear ... die?

Likely not because as years go by there will be less examples of those basses in each category of condition which raises the value. Also, boomers or not.... those electric basses started it all and MANY of todays heroes are still playing on those very designs if not those actual years.
Its not like Duesenbergs got cheap once the turn of the 20th century rich people died.

 

[Mastermold]

OK, here's the deal. For some unknown reason, Fender cannot recreate the basses of old with a reissue. It's just not possible. They may be able to get the necks and bodies close to specs. But there is something about the way the pick-ups and windings age that gives these basses that '60s and '70s unique sound and tone. .....

I've discovered this as well. If you are seeking that tone and feel of a pre-CBS Fender, reissues can be very good, I own (and have owned) several stellar examples. But they don't feel the same as the real ones if that's what you're after.

 

[selowitch]

I've discovered this as well. If you are seeking that tone and feel of a pre-CBS Fender, reissues can be very good, I own (and have owned) several stellar examples. But they don't feel the same as the real ones if that's what you're after.

They are similar enough to satisfy a whole lot of people.

 

[Mastermold]

They are similar enough to satisfy a whole lot of people.

Yep, close enough is good enough for probably most folks, especially when looking at prices.