molan

[quote name='OutSpoon' timestamp='1458498208' post='3008092'] Or is this just the cost of doing business and he should Do The Right Thing? [/quote] Be careful with a Fodera. You could, theoretically, get caught out on either side of the Atlantic if you don't have the correct paperwork. The butterfly in the headstock requires official export papers signed by the US dept of agriculture and fisheries confirming that the abalone used has come from a verified and sustainable source. If examined and you don't have these papers then it could be impounded and I'm not even sure you have a right to it back! In terms of getting a UK receipt of purchase you'd need to find someone who's happy to say they sold a Fodera knowing that they aren't officially for sale in the UK (although there's obviously routes through European retailers).

[quote name='Grassie' timestamp='1458588661' post='3008917'] Ooh, so how do you become a Fodera salesman? Can anyone do it? Any jobs going? Go on - gissajob. [/quote] Stage one is to move to another country No UK Fodera retail options any more.

I've been gigging my white Cora a lot recently. In fact, so much so, that I've just bought another Cora so I can keep one at home and leave the other at the rehearsal space when I need to

[quote name='mcnach' timestamp='1453993002' post='2965103'] Funny that. A big reason I got my pair of 1126 was that they fitted perfectly in the boot of my small car (A3 Sportback), as you may remember I found something yesterday... I have a couple of BF cabs that almost but not quite fitted in my boot. I always carried one in the boot and another on my backseat. They looked like they *almost* could fit but it was impossible to get both there. Last night I was transporting 3 sets of speakers with my seats down, and after unloading at the end of the night I decided to leave the two BF in the car overnight. What I found was that with both cabs in place in the boot, I could pull the backseat up just fine... and voila! They do fit after all! It's just that there's no extra clearance to get them in or out without loosening the backseat backrest first. I'm not saying that it will solve your problem, of course... but if you think they are almost there but not quite, perhaps it'll help... and then you can let your lust for the 1126 go wild? [/quote] Unfortunately my car is a 'coupe' so I can't convert completely. The rear seats do fold but I I'd have to load through the car so it would be a bit of a pain. There is enough space in terms of volume but it's the load angle getting the 1126 over the lip of the boot that causes the problem. The ones that amazed me were the Aggie Sl112's - I can fit two of those in the same space!

I really like the 1126 cabs - unfortunately they don't fit in the boot of my car

[quote name='Nicko' timestamp='1453124946' post='2956546'] Mine are set to off as I've never found these add anything to my sound. I reckon they should remove the circuits, offer this as a stomp option and make the amps cheaper. Discuss.... [/quote] They already have - it's the new Nano http://www.markbass.it/product_detail.php?id=250 Ok, so it's only a 300w head and has some other differences but basically it does appear it was designed to be small, super light and with less features to get the price down.

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1452700349' post='2952581'] Really? Not being an arse here, but I'm genuinely surprised if what you are saying is true. I've never met any bass player who has said they have bought anything because of "x" player, let alone Dave Swift. But then again, I'm not a marketing guy or in charge of purchasing for a shop so what you saying could be true! My viewpoint, and I may be pretty ignorant here, is that Aguilar have a set of products that are loaded with selling points - which in themselves make the products sell. The DB750... what's their competition? Well, theres not many big block amps like that to choose from certainly... and the THs are great products which sound very different to the MarkBass, TC, Genz etc with what they are competing against. Aguilar seemed to have nailed that "vintage influenced but lightweight" in terms of their class D stuff. I would have thought that alone would be a bigger selling point... How many people have bought Dingwall, Citron, Sadowsky, Fodera, Rob Allen, XYZ because of seeing/hearing them in Swifty's hands on the TV? I would wager that those people are in single figures, if present at all. Conversely, Berg have zero endorsers... yet seem to have put them in a position of high visibility and with a great reputation. Now whether they as a brand are selling cabs in a comparative number to Aguilar, I wouldn't know. My gut feeling is that the endorsement thing is primarily to score points over a different brand - "we've got x player" - but I don't think the consumers really care... but I do think consumers are impressed by pages full of endorsers - as stated before and in your last paragraph Barrie... especially if they are guys that they have heard of. I still don't reckon there's many people buying on the strength of one person using it, with MK being the notable exception. [/quote] I think you're totally missing the point of artist endorsements here. There are a minority of people who may buy something because they just love that individual player but it's really not that many people. However, lots of people will buy stuff because they are used by people they know and respect. Seeing something that's used by top gigging players week in week out is a huge sign of appreciation to many people. They understand and/or believe the players use the gear because it doesn't break and it sounds good. The small minority of bassists that spend time here on BC analysing stuff to death may well not 'get' endorsements but they really don't represent that many 'real world' players. I'd estimate that at least 75% of the people who walk through the door at the shop have either never heard of BC or have a vague knowledge that it exists but never actually visit. However, ask them about top 'name' players and they are far more interested and engaged. There's also a huge misconception about the supposedly free or super-cheap prices endorsees get on equipment. I've personally 'brokered' several deals for some very high profile bassists and the discounts aren't that great, often the same price a shop would get and some even pay more than basic trade prices.

[quote name='EBS_freak' timestamp='1452606275' post='2951520'] Do other players really have the might to sell equipment like this? Dave Swift for example - loads of endorsements... but does anybody actually buy this stuff because Dave Swift uses it? How many extra units has Aguilar shifted because of his using of their gear. [/quote] The simple answer to this is a resounding yes! As someone who sees buyers making decisions on what to buy pretty regularly I've been a keen observer of what helps to sell something. Dave's association with Aguilar has most certainly helped them shift a lot of heads and cabs from my personal experience. All of these, that I can remember, have been from experienced gigging players as well. Dave has an enormous amount of credibility amongst a lot of everyday folk out there. He is one of the hardest working pro players in the UK scene and he always uses Aguilar amps, either the big DB750 for larger gigs or the TH500 for smaller ones. He's not in a 'superstar' band so there's an acknowledgment that he probably lugs his own gear around and doesn't have an enormous budget for replacements. This means people accept that there's a major reliability factor involved in his gear and this is seriously important to regular gigging players. Then there's the variety of musicians he plays with. It may well be that Dave's tone is his own but people certainly recognise that he plays with everyone from Lemmy to Tom Jones to Kylie so there's a belief that his gear can be adaptable to different gig requirements. He's also known to record a lot of material so tonal excellence from his gear is expected as well. Top all this off with someone who's very visible on TV and makes lots of public appearances at events and you have a really strong brand endorsee and this absolutely translates into hard cash sales Start adding all the other respected Aguilar players and you can build a really good picture of the brand and understand how their endorsements develop a strong brand interest and generate loyalty.

[quote name='bassman7755' timestamp='1446980448' post='2903838'] Not gigging right now but otherwise I'd have been well up for it, nice to see some genuine innovation, any idea how much these will retail for ?. [/quote] £699

[quote name='edpirie' timestamp='1446621187' post='2900801'] So they're not the same in technical terms, but according for one BC'er who uses both there's no discernible difference in practice. Which is great news if you can't afford the PJB's, but if you can it would be worth trying them because we're all very different the way we hear things and so for some there might be a clear difference to justify the higher price. Fair summary? [/quote] Definitely agree on the way people hear things. I was talking to an MD from a big London theatre recently. He bought one set of the PJB's to try out and heard there was a cheaper alternative so have them a go. The next week he ordered five sets of the PJB's - one as a personal backup and four sets for key musicians in the pit. Of course, he's using them in a high end professional situation so a) He's likely to have very sensitive ears and it's easier to justify the higher price for better quality kit.

[quote name='ambient' timestamp='1446594432' post='2900746'] But they [i]look[/i] the same . [/quote] That'll be the manufacturer saving $150K of tooling costs - seriously that's how much it costs just to set up the builds on these! The difference in price is in the interior components. One set are low cost, cheap to obtain parts, the others are specifically designed to reproduce bass frequencies, at volume, for a significant amount of time