What is a Sleeper bass really...

[Jack Butler]

I didn't want to send the other guy's thread off on a tangent. I always thought part of what makes a sleeper is low price compared to build quality. For me, that was Kramer. The Focus 7000's(MIJ) up until very recently could be had under $300 for a clean one. The Kramer Pioneers(MIA) were the same but usually closer to $400. Both were insane quality for those price points. Peavey T-40's I know less about but I think they used to be considered sleepers. Now, any not abused T-40 seems north of $1k. To me, that kind of goes against sleeper status. You can get a lot of really good used basses in the $1,000-$1,200 range, so at that point the T-40 is just a bass. If that's what you want then great but at that price point it's of reasonably expected quality. Same for my beloved Kramers, I think they are still in sleeper range, but prices are creeping up. If a Focus were going for $1,000, it would still be a quality bass, but it wouldn't be anything special at that price. So in my opinion no longer a sleeper. Just curious if others view it this way, or if sleeper simply means just lesser known but good quality.

 

[Jeremy Crockett]

I had the same question.

 

[SleepyShark]

I just interpreted it as a bass that punches above its expected weight. Maybe a parts bass or a pawn shop hack job that brings the thunder once it gets plugged in.

A sleeper means something that's underestimated, generally.

 

[B-Mac]

Yeah, I was going to post on that thread, but then so many started talking about modded basses, which to is not a sleeper at all.

To me a sleeper is like back in the 60’s you could order a plain looking car, but get all the extras including the high output police engine and no one would ever know you had a race car.

Same kinda thing goes with a sleeper bass. Something that is inexpensive but hits way over its price range but very few people know about it or acknowledge it due to headstock snobbery. To me…that’s a sleeper

Prime example: Deans made in Czech Republic. Spector performance and low price.
That’s a sleeper.

 

[WG Plum]

 

[jd56hawk]

sleeper: something that achieves sudden unexpected success after initially attracting little attention, typically one that proves popular without much promotion or expenditure.

 

[enormungus]

Hello, other guy here. When I think sleeper, coming from a very heavy automotive background, it is something that yes is underestimated and punches way above its weight. "Unexpected performance" I think would be a good way to summarize it. That's unexpected performance whether by the factory or through mods one may not realize are there at first glance.

A stock bass from a no-name brand or a brand known for lesser "performance" that sounds and plays just a good as a bass known to be a much higher performer would be a sleeper because its performance is unexpected. A car example would be my dad's Mazdaspeed 3. It looks like a regular Mazda 3 hatchback which doesn't turn any heads and is associated with picking up groceries and kids from practice while sipping gas. This "grocery getter" happens to have a turbo added under the hood from factory allowing it to keep up with my turbo drift car that has no problems breaking the tires loose and getting sideways at 70+mph which is unexpected, making it a bit of a sleeper.


On the other hand, a bass that was originally a low or mediocre performer, modified to be a high performer but with those modifications not being visually apparent would also be a sleeper since the higher performance is unexpected.
My buddy's old Land Cruiser in stock form never had the words "fast" or "quick" used in a sentence to describe it. After he tossed a sizeable turbo into it pushing right around 1000+hp, it would surprise the pants off anyone while fully loaded with giggling gear heads. It was modified but the performance was very unexpected as it still appeared stock.

I'll agree that some of the basses in that thread aren't exactly "sleepers" since visually you can tell they are clearly modded, but those who only know a bass by what the headstock says may still be surprised, I guess putting them into a grey area.

 

[marchone]

From the earliest days of Squier QC issues to the present player comments I’d say the whole brand is a sleeper now.

 

[Biggbass]

First Gen Fender Road Worn 50's P bass. Definitely a sleeper imho. Best $600 I ever spent on a used bass. So far I've used it to record 4 albums and it still has the same flats that came on it.

 

[jd56hawk]

According to the Bass Player's Guide To Big Big Tone...

 

[foal30]

MTD Beast and Grendel

Given how nice the 3 Czech Spector were I tried and the high praise of Dean Czech maybe Czech Basses in general could be sleepers

 

[foal30]

Roddy Piper

 

[foal30]

Brutus Beefcake

 

[TheReceder]

To me the Peavey Foundations used to epitomize being a sleeper.
It was sold as an intro bass, with high quality build and over performing electronics. The only problem is they were distributed without being set up.
But I'm very biased... I own several and won't let any of them go.

 

[JamesDeGrandis]

I guess that taking a $179 Mikro, and dumping in EMG GZR pickups, Gotoh Tuners and Sunbeams would make it a sleeper...
Except for the fact that everyone does that and it's not really "unexpected" anymore.
I would then say the sleeper is the Kala UBass.
Because it is almost not a bass... But it is...
That's like having a car that is also a boat.

 

[Bent77]

I think a bass is only a sleeper in the mind of another who perceived it as either unworthy brand, or from someone who only knows certain brands

 

[40Hz]

For me, a sleeper is any one of a number of otherwise excellent basses (regardless of the price or brand) that somehow just never caught on.

Examples (for me) would include the: Fender Dimension, Gibson Triumph, Ovation Magnum, and Godin Shifter.

 

[Discount Bassy]

I'd lean towards the definition of a "sleeper" bass being something cosmetically unattractive or non-functionally damaged that sports quality hardware and electronics...something ugly that performs exquisitely. I don't think the price or brand of such a thing matters much. An inexpensive bass brand that is underrated is a good bass brand that punches above its weight, price-wise. A sleeper would be a bass that looks as if it was used to hammer nails, but has a neck straight as an arrow, killer sound and playability. I could be wrong.

 

[BassFalcon]

I concur with the rest referencing the automotive origin of the phrase. With that in mind when a bass is described as a “sleeper” my first thought is something along the lines of a squier or glarry, nothing visually impressive, but with an immaculate fret job and setup and something like some nordstrands and a John east preamp “under the hood”. Much like the cars the phrase references it won’t impress anyone that doesn’t know what’s “under the hood”

 

[Gregory H]

I wasn't sure about posting these in the other sleeper thread because there aren't any mods that I know of, but I ordered this bass, and then the guitar a few days later, based on hearing somewhere about how good Samick instruments can be. I got both of these delivered for just a hair over $600, and they are both incredible playing and sounding instruments.

I think maybe 2 years ago the Cirrus might have been considered a sleeper but seeing the current used market makes me think the cat's out of the bag. In any event, I couldn't pass up the chance to have two kind of matching, over the top obnoxious late 80's / early 90's instruments and I am a much happier man for it.