Of the 28 Roadstar IIs currently on Reverb, only three are over $1k and they're all less than $1200. Majority between $500-$800.
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Vintage Fenders. Why??
- Thread starter tb-player
- Start date
Neck pockets were never an issue with me. My first Precision, 1974, had a gap. It still played some great music with a lot of fond memories.
Some have called me a hero. I don't necessarily agree. I just like helping people. Over the years I have helped many people bury the horrible burden of having to live with an old, heavy, overrated vintage Fender bass. If you or anyone you know is struggling to get through the day because you have a vintage precision bass with an A neck in your life. Please feel free to reach out to me via DM, and I will gladly pay take it off your hands.
G&L made basses with 2+2 headstocks in 1984? Maybe they did, but when I think of G&L basses, I think of Leo building on/plagiarizing his previous work.
Hi guys, I got an offer to try and possibly buy 80s(1981 or 1983) Precision bass but I have no clue if these basses have same value potential as these older ones and I don't want to run into sellers words as his price is around 2300$.
If anybode has comments on this it would be really heplful. Thanks
If anybode has comments on this it would be really heplful. Thanks
FMIC was owned by CBS from (?)1964(?) until 1983. All of the issues you see being discussed here could potentially affect 1980/81/82 (and some)/83 models as they can the 70s models.
Add into that CBS might have been feeling some of the numbers slipping if you consider they were willing to "dump" the company in the early 80s. When profits start falling, companies cut man-power and then, material costs and, when it comes to man-power, they try to get rid of the workers making the most money, first (ostensibly the oldest, most knowledgeable employees).
I'm not trying to dissuade you. I just want to point out that this thread might just as easily be about that early 80s bass as it is about the 70s basses.
No, I more meant the body/pickup design. Mainly what I was going for was that the Roadstars had two concurrent and rather incongruous designs (i.e. one that was derivative of Fenders and one that looked like a mishmash of G&Ls and Guilds or something) and that the ones that deviate most from Fender styling are fetching the higher prices. That's probably because of scarcity and the fact that they were likely the higher end models in the first place, but it might also show a bit of a generational shift away from the thrall of traditional styles.
Correlation is not causation. "generational shift"? I think the premise and anti-premise of this thread goes to show no one has given up on Fender (or quite a few FSOs).
You have people extolling the virtues of the older instruments while others are praising the newer ones. Maybe they're choosing two different sides of the same coin flip?
While it's true 7ender seems loathe to move into some of the technologies, their market share seems to be doing just fine.
Then ...
Why do you suppose people are asking $2.5K for their '79 P-basses? Here's a hint: they're averaging a sale price of $3.2k on Reverb, right now.
I wish my $XX,XXX car held value as well as my (not-quite) "vintage" P-Bass.
A necks are a disgrace. I'll gladly get rid of such any pre-CBS abomination if I ever get my hands on one.
Yes I understand. I would like to have something classic but I do not really care about numbers and hypes(I am not blaming it but I am only player not collector). In few days I will try some MIJ from 90s so I would like to compare these and make some conclusion.
I mean I did say that it was most likely due to them having been the higher level models in the first place.
I'm not saying that Fenders are going out of style, I'm saying that it would be interesting to see if the bubble moves more into the 80's styles when Gen-X takes more of the retirement-age demographic from the Boomers. I.e. what is the average age of those who buy vintage Fenders over time and does that stay constant? Or does it trend upward (or downward!). Younger generations are going to have a much wider universe of "what made rock music".
What is usually said is that between 1972 to 1981-82, the Fender guitars and basses have a lower quality. It does not mean that you can't find one that could be good anyway. For the one you are talking about, I think that it is more important than ever to test precisely everything on it before buying it. And about the prize the seller wants, I think is a little bit to high. At the end, and it is just my opinion, taking an actual Fender Professional II would be better. You buy it new and have more certainty about the quality. All of this for a lower prize.
Smooth_bass88
vaxx!
- Oct 31, 2006
- 12,123
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- have been on nationally released albums, charting on the Billboard 200
possibly, yeah. I've owned other vintage Fenders that I've sold for one reason or another. And I've owned many many newer Fender basses. This one just seems to have "it" which is why I snatched it up. I even compared it to a colleague's original '65 jazz. The '62 played and sounded much better.
Great thread with some beautiful pics. As a newer player, I don't think I could pick up any bass and say whether the tone is good or bad, extremes excluded of course. Since I've never played with anyone else I have no reference, the "tone" from my bass/amp sounds great, to me. An experienced player could pick it up and go "yuck!" I have been researching a higher end bass because I want something nice and to start my bass collection while slloowwlly working on my skill collection. I realize that money does not equal skill and it ain't the bow, it's the Indian. So I did a quote for my birth year p bass (1964) with Fender CS, and it was just under 6k. I don't mind the $ and could order it but EVERY choice (body wood, neck wood, fret wood, frets, pups,etc,etc) I honestly don't know enough to understand each nuance. My specifications are 99% asthetic and I never plan on selling it, simply just playing and enjoying it. However, in my research I found Warmoth. Exactly what look I want and a third of the price and lots of positives on this forum. I'm going to order the parts from Warmoth, build a gorgeous bass and just keep practicing. In a few years when I'm playing 64ths with one finger and improvising Jaco riffs I'm sure I'll get some cool custom shop bass simply because....Now OTOH, if I somehow fell into an old beautiful Fender, then I would certainly be sharing with all of you! Great forum that has helped me (and confused me) immensely. Thx to all
Welcome to TB! May your journey be rewarding and fruitful.
I hear almost nothing but good things about Warmoth. I believe they're one of two big (American) companies who are allowed to make 7ender replacement parts as a matter of course.
I wish I could purchase from them, but I can't even get a custom-made 24 fret neck from them.
Anyway, you have found a great place for knowledge and there are some friendly people here.
Good luck and good times!
I had to quote myself. I've been thinking about this. Truth be told, I love the idea of vintage basses! But moreso, I love the idea of relic basses. The idea that a guitar was used to put food on the table, buy a car, put your kids through college, home improvements...the whole thing. I appreciate that people can use their creativity to help themselves and others. My biggest problem is I have a hard time paying the money to acquire a real deal pre-CBS Fender. In my opinion, there are too many better options for far less money out there to justify the collector market asking price.
The collector market is a rich person's market. No question. And you're right, no one needs a collector instrument to play music and be happy.
As many have stated, the mojo is a real thing. I've played a 1963 p bass and a 1961 j bass that both almost seemed to have a magical power- tone that can't be described or replicated. For that reason alone I see why people pay what they do. I'm sure it's hard to find the perfect one but once you do….
