Bass Shopping in New York

[BigRedX]

Just back from a week in New York and I thought it might be useful to share my experiences checking out the various shops selling basses.

First off I have to say that I have zero interest in Fender basses so those of you wanting info on buying one in the US will have to look elsewhere, however, all the shops I visited did seem to have a large range of both new and vintage/second hand, so unless you're looking for something particularly unusual at least one of the stores will should have what you want. Of course whether the price is any good I couldn't say...

First off - 48th Street. This is the NYC equivalent of Denmark street but with better customer service. Most of the shops seem to be owned by [url="http://www.samashmusic.com/default.asp"]Sam Ash[/url] now. There's a dedicated shop for Guitar and bass with a large selection of basses including quite a few unusual second hand instruments. Unfortunately most of the interesting stuff for me was so badly set up that trying them out was not a pleasant experience. There was a great looking Ibanez Rolf Spuler fretless for around $700 but the strings were so old that it felt lifeless. Same with the Alembic - can't remember what model it was but the price tag was close to $3000 and it might have been the worst feeling expensive bass I've ever tried. There was also a 70's Ampeg Plexiglass bass with a neck like a banana.

On to [url="http://www.mannysmusic.com/"]Manny's[/url]. Nothing that really grabbed my attention, but the set-up of the basses meant that at least I could get a decent idea of what they were like. Some nice-looking high-end Spectors and Sadowskys among the more conventional fare.

Finally [url="http://www.rudysmusic.com/"]Rudy's Music[/url]. For me this was more like it! Lots of basses I'm unlikely to encounter in UK stores including a 10th Anniversary Ritter, a good selection of Modulus basses, a pair of Sukops and a really nice Pedulla Pentabuzz. If you're looking for something a bit different this should be your first port of call. Also the basses are in a room of their own on the 3rd floor so you're not disturbed by the massed shredding guitarists that seem to be a US music store fixture...

On to the 14th Street [url="http://www.guitarcenter.com/"]Guitar Center[/url]. Lots of Fenders and Music Man basses plus a few other brands but nothing to catch my eye. They had a great selection of interesting second hand guitars, but the bass selection seemed to be just a few 70s Fenders. Disappointing.

However there's more interesting stuff on the Lower East side in [url="http://www.ludlowguitars.com/"]Ludlow Guitars[/url]. A Veillette Minotaur that I might have considered if upper neck access had been better, and a CT inspired Pelosi. A few blocks away for second hand/vintage stuff there's [url="http://www.rivingtonguitars.com/"]Rivington Guitars[/url]. Nothing caught my fancy bass-wise, but if I was in the market for an interesting guitar there were several that looked worth trying.

Finally across Brooklyn Bridge and down into DUMBO (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass) for [url="http://www.sadowsky.com/"]Sadowsky Guitars[/url]. It's a good thing that I'd written down the address before going as there's nothing on the street to announce their presence. The showroom/workshop is on the 5th floor of a very anonymous looking building and only by checking on the touch-screen in the lobby could I confirm I was in the right place. I open the door to their 'suite' and I'm greeted by the sight of two people folding and packing t-shirts. "Hi, I'm Roger" says one of them "do you play guitar or bass?" Led into a room with one wall full of instruments and a whole range of different amps and speakers to try them through. Spent a very pleasant 90 minutes just trying all the different models through and SA200 amp. Fantastic! Super-comfortable to play, and nicely balanced with none of the issues that make Fender basses awkward for me to play. If they'd had a fretless in the showroom I might well have had to buy it. One thing that did surprise me though was that after all the great things I'd read about the Sadowsky pre-amp, I preferred the passive sound with just a bit of treble roll-off - great tone!

And that was all I had time for. I would have liked to also visit the Fodera workshop, but I looked just a bit too dificult to reach simply using public transport, plus a week in New York is never enough time no matter how well you plan your visit. However it will give me some things to put on my 'to do' list for my next visit!

[Born 2B Mild]

Excellent. Thanks for sharing that useful info with us. Maybe BC can start up an online guide to places of bass gear interest around the world!

[Faithless]

[quote name='BigRedX' post='306356' date='Oct 14 2008, 06:10 PM']Just back from a week in New York and I thought it might be useful to share my experiences checking out the various shops selling basses.

... First off I have to say that I have zero interest in Fender basses ...[/quote]


Ah, some cool report here, and +1 for the 'quequed' one!


P.S. That man "Hi, my name's Roger' wasn't actually Roger Sadowsky?

[Tee]

To think, my brother lives in NYC and could browse these shops, if he was in the slightet bit interested. I almost got him to pick me up a 2nd hand bass i saw online, in a shop local to him.