Bass as an investment?

[bassace]

If you find a bass, any bass, that gives you a buzz when you play it, you feel that your playing's so much better on that instrument, you get the sound you like and it makes you smile every time you play it - [i]that's[/i] an investment.

[KiOgon]

[quote name='bassman2790' post='1329130' date='Aug 5 2011, 07:26 PM']Is there such a thing? Is there a particular bass that I could buy now, and use as a bass, not lock it away in a glass cabinet, that will hold it's value or even increase in value over the next ten years?[/quote]
How about one of these? [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=149356"]Only 30 made/to be made![/url]already light reliced so no worries about using it, but looked after - who knows the value in 10 years

[dc2009]

[quote name='bassman2790' post='1329172' date='Aug 5 2011, 07:53 PM']Limited edition Warwick it is then [/quote]

*ahem*

[bartelby]

[quote name='bassman2790' post='1329216' date='Aug 5 2011, 08:30 PM']A much better investment opportunity agreed, but rather difficult to get a tune out of a reel of copper [/quote]

Not difficult at all:

Edited August 6, 2011 by bartelby

[Guest MoJo]

[quote name='dc2009' post='1329931' date='Aug 6 2011, 02:27 PM']*ahem*[/quote]

Beautiful guitar but I'm not really after a fiver

[Vibrating G String]

[quote name='bassman2790' post='1329681' date='Aug 6 2011, 02:36 AM']Most of the basses I've bought in the past have been sold, due to GAS, usually at a loss.[/quote]
I think the emotional element makes investing in some toys you love a bad idea. Without it you can be more disciplined to buy and sell only when the deals are in your favor. GAS and investing don't mix

I think a more reasonable goal is to minimize the cost of GAS, I try to do this by knowing what I want and then watching eBay for deals that fit. Though sometimes I just have to have it and buy anyway

[joe_bass]

What do people reckon on Sei bass?

[BigRedX]

As a Sei owner myself I have to say no. They are all too different. IMO one of the things you need to make a musical instrument brand collectable is consistency across a model range, so if you try one example, then another example of the same model will be close enough to give very similar results.

Each Sei Bass is an individual creation and although there is a limited number of body shapes available just about everything else - woods, hardware, pickups and electrics are down to what the individual customer has chosen. All the basses are fantastic but each has been tailored to that particular customer's requirements. They are like bespoke suits - you can appreciate the quality but don't expect someone else's to fit you.

[joe_bass]

[quote name='BigRedX' post='1331195' date='Aug 7 2011, 06:39 PM']Each Sei Bass is an individual creation and although there is a limited number of body shapes available just about everything else - woods, hardware, pickups and electrics are down to what the individual customer has chosen. All the basses are fantastic but each has been tailored to that particular customer's requirements. They are like bespoke suits - you can appreciate the quality but don't expect someone else's to fit you.[/quote]

Interesting. So highly customised basses wouldn't really be the way to go then.

[WalMan]

[quote name='bassace' post='1329695' date='Aug 6 2011, 11:00 AM']If you find a bass, any bass, that gives you a buzz when you play it, you feel that your playing's so much better on that instrument, you get the sound you like and it makes you smile every time you play it - [i]that's[/i] an investment.[/quote]
What he said.

I lucked onto my Wal probably getting on for 30 years ago now. I sort of knew the name and got a good deal as it was up s/h in the drummer in my then bands shop. It's now insured, and probably worth substantially more than I paid, but it was never bought as an investment. It was bought to play, and was my workhorse for 25 years until I got the G&L's and semi retired it. Even if it were now an investment it could not accurately be called one as I love it dearly (we've been through much) so the chances of a sale any time in the near future, if ever, are slim to BA.

Don't buy as an investment, buy as an instrument to be loved and used, or sold if you don't get on with it playingwise. If over the years it turns out to become sort after and worth a lot more, then that's just gravy & hurrah!

[Gust0o]

[quote name='bassman2790' post='1329130' date='Aug 5 2011, 07:26 PM']Is there such a thing? Is there a particular bass that I could buy now, and use as a bass, not lock it away in a glass cabinet, that will hold it's value or even increase in value over the next ten years?[/quote]

I'd suggest any reputable brand, and avoiding the budget lines within those brands.

I'm thinking, to see an appreciable return over a ten year period, you'd most likely want something which was already on the cusp of 'vintage' or whatever the right term is.

Still, it should be good enough to just get a decent bass and realise the profit later on - as so many people, who've kept their (then) pretty standard Fenders with them since the 1970s

Of course, to realise the value in an investment you have to redeem it - it's the one thing I'm not so good at, even with my cheap basses

[BigRedX]

[quote name='joe_bass' post='1331218' date='Aug 7 2011, 06:51 PM']Interesting. So highly customised basses wouldn't really be the way to go then.[/quote]
If you like the basic designs and you want a fantastic bass to play that is built exactly to your specification then IMO you can't really go wrong with a Sei.

However if you want a bass that you can definitely sell at some future date for more than you paid for it then you need to look elsewhere.

There are custom basses that are/will be collectable and will go up in value, but they are ones where the USP is the same across the range.

This is why Wals are so desirable. The things that are important about the Wal sound the pickups and the electronics are the same from one instrument to the next.

Of the current UK custom builders the ones I'd watch would be ACG, Enfield, GB and Gus. However don't expect any of them to go up in value until they are out of production.

[alanbass1]

A Mk 1 Wal in good nick sub 2.5k would be a decent investment and one you will unlikely to loose money on as long as you kept it in good order. Old Fenders (pre CBS) will always be good investments if original, but that's the problem now days - there are so many fake or bastardised examples that I would be wary of anything being sold under the going market value which is in excess of 5k. But if you do get an all original example that plays/sounds good it will be a gilt edge investment.

What was said in other replies around proven consistent designs being the best bet for 'investment' reasons. Ltd editions can be a little hit and miss - I lucked out getting hold of a couple of Rickenbacker Chris Squire's at reasonable prices as these seem to be in demand and don't come up too often - I think these are the only basses I have bought with investment in mind, although the real reason was me being such a Yes nut when I was at school in the 70's I wanted them for that reason most. Other than that I can't think of a Ltd edition bass that has that 'demand' factor.

Bear in mind making an investment typically means holding onto the bass for a good few years. I've had my '62 P Bass 36 years, which my Dad paid 100 for, and my Stingray for 31 years, although this did cost me 450 new.....The thing is, they have both paid for themselves hundreds of times over (as have most my other basses) through gigging and recording.

[Roland Rock]

[url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=149699&st=0&gopid=1332394&#entry1332394"]These[/url] are quite collectable, apparently

[Vibrating G String]

I often hear people recommending basses that are already inflated as a good investment, I don't agree with that. Also if you look at what has gone up the most, it is lower end stuff that sold millions. For a collectible to command a high price it needs a large group of people who are nostalgic about it and some famous players who are well known for using it. You want something that can appreciate greatly from what you have to pay not something that has already skyrocketed. A 70's jazz bass in the 80's cost $300 now it's $1500 or more, a 500% increase. Buying a vintage Fender today for $3k you'd need it to go to $15,000 to make the same return.

What's hot today are generic mass produced models of the nostalgic peoples youth, strats, teles. A closet full of cheap Ibanez's may be the ticket for investment. Buy them for under $100 today and sell them for $500 in 20 years and you'll beat all but the best guitar investors.

[Vibrating G String]

[quote name='Roland Rock' post='1332398' date='Aug 8 2011, 09:09 AM'][url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=149699&st=0&gopid=1332394&#entry1332394"]These[/url] are quite collectable, apparently
[/quote]
OLP basses have tripled since going out of production compared to the prices they were closed out at. An awesome investment that's well above pre CBS Fenders.

[Vibrating G String]

[quote name='Gust0o' post='1331232' date='Aug 7 2011, 10:59 AM']I'd suggest any reputable brand, and avoiding the budget lines within those brands.[/quote]
I'd say just the opposite. The most inflated Fenders from the 50's - 70's are the low end models of that time periods catalog, strat and tele over jaguar and jazzmaster. The biggest gains in 80's models are the low end squires from Japan. Ibanez from the 90's, you heard it here first