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Where did all the Ken Smiths go?

#101
Kmrumedy said:
Been the in the market for quite a while for 4 string Ken Smith, mid-late 80's BT preferred. It's like finding hen's teeth.

Right now on Reverb, there are 97 Foderas for sale and only 13 Smiths (I'm not counting Burners. Just American made Smiths). Currently 1 Smith came up for sale this week on TB.

I've noticed in the last two years or so, Smiths are showing up less and less for sale everywhere including TB.

The timing coincides with Ken's announcement of American Smiths now being made by Brubaker.

I haven't played the new ones, but they certainly don't look like the same quality of the old KS production crew.

What do you think is driving this? Are people holding onto them now since the Brubaker deal?

They are worth quite a deal more than they used to be, so are the collectors snatching up the old ones and holding on to them??

Thoughts?

(BTW - I had Ken make me a BT5 in 1989 which I still own. Only bass I ever bought new and only bass I have ever kept more than a few years. Never owned another bass that comes close to this Smith.)
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A Smith bass, like yours, is one of my "dream" basses. Glad you've found your "keeper".
 
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#102
Samatza said:
There is no doubt Smiths we're very popular and highly regarded over many years.

At the time gigs were plentiful, local specialty stores were lined with boutique basses and we could afford them because we played 4-5 dates a week for good pay.

Today gigs are 3 a month pre Covid and pay has not increased at the rate of boutique prices.

Boutique has therefore exceeded the reach of many players and the mass produced, more affordable offerings have filled the void.

In the 90s the local Alembic dealer advertised new Series 1 basses at $4K, today I'd have to pay around $40K. My income has not increased tenfold in that time so they went from expensive to out of reach in that time.

Is it wrong? No, costs have increased and bespoke work takes time, it is inefficient and expensive. Mass production techniques have improved and cost per unit is a lot lower. This widened the gap between mass production and boutique in recent years.

My advice is if you own a Smith and love the sound then hang onto it. If your taste has moved on then use something else but still consider keeping your Smith, you may regret selling it.
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Very good advice.
 
#104
Great forum discussion. I emailed Ken Smith, and they are not taking any orders right now (no deposits). He said they 4-5 customers waiting for each bass that comes off the assembly line, and he is just going down the list of emails - first come first served. Amazing, and well deserved. The Ken Smith sound and tone are in a league all their own. Must have something to do with the 20-30 year old collection of tone woods.
 
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#105
I'd say just buy a Fodera if you want that style of bass and are willing to spend that much money. The golden age of Ken smith is when Vinnie Fodera worked for Ken smith back in the 80s between the time he spent at Spector and starting his own company. So really the best Ken smiths out there are really Foderas without the hype and current popularity of having that butterfly on the headstock.
 
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#106
Nephilymbass said:
I'd say just buy a Fodera if you want that style of bass and are willing to spend that much money. The golden age of Ken smith is when Vinnie Fodera worked for Ken smith back in the 80s between the time he spent at Spector and starting his own company. So really the best Ken smiths out there are really Foderas without the hype and current popularity of having that butterfly on the headstock.
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That's a Fodera NYC in my profile pic. But have to say, not quite the same sound as a Ken Smith. Maybe I need to look in the used market for that tone. Cheers!
 
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#108
I check Reverb for Smiths every day and the market is STALE.

The same 15 basses, mostly with prices so high it's funny.

One has gouges in the front of the body and is still listed for $1500-2000 more than I'd pay.

Should be interesting to watch.
 
#109
Looks like you are looking for something like this. Such a cool bass
 

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#110
Been browsing the smith threads. I found one, just from luck.
Swamp_Ronin

Thread 'NBD Ken Smith BT-4 Custom'

This was unexpected. I was in Seattle last weekend (catching Marcus Miller) and the day after I was gonna browse guitar shops for fun. I went to my favorite shop, Emerald City Guitars. They usually have some old Fenders and the odd nice bass to check out. I saw they had a Stanley Clarke and I wanted to see one in person. When I got there, they were jam-packed with primo basses- Alembic, Lull, Ritter, a fretless Pedulla, Modulus- Basically a 90's bass jackpot. I was told an older player in town had passed away, and his collection was on consignment. All of the basses were in rows. Then I...
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#111

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