NJE Posted January 20, 2009 Share Posted January 20, 2009 I love BGM simple as that. Ok they very rarely give anything a bad review (I remeber a bad review of a warwick and a brazillian Dalegerio? bass) but to be honest the standard of even cheaper gear at the moment is really high and its all down to the individual, all they can do is give their opinion and it may be that what they get sent is not that bad. To be fair the squier basses made now are superb basses for the money and i would not give one a bad review but some people think they are rubbish. There is always at least one good sized article of interest for me to read, they get some cool gear in and look at a range of prices, its not full of adverts and articles about bizarre bass players from bands you have never heard of like the american mag. I buy Bass Player too when It looks good but to be honest I have been really dissapointed with the last three issues and managed to read each issue in less than five minutes in WH SMITH because of the lack of any really enjoyable content.....this month ooh guess what another article about chris squire, or blo*dy Victor Wooten......AGAIN! Now saying anyone is right or wrong just my humble opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bass_ferret Posted January 20, 2009 Share Posted January 20, 2009 Interesting thread. The irony of proclaiming the best when it is the only has always amused me. There have been somethings that Bernie has been unhappy about recently with GB reviews, comments on the finish when its not actually a new bass (all GB's are customer basses - Bernie does not build them for review), and slagging off the LED show when the reviewers own bass has the LED show spring immediately to mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve-soar Posted January 20, 2009 Share Posted January 20, 2009 I'm looking at the review of the Brazilian D'Alegria Dart Deluxe 5 string. (Issue 37) It got a score of 2 out of 5 for value for money, that is average. It costs £2981, it looks like it was made from a panel of an MFI wardrobe, the pickup cavities are embarrassingly too big for the size of the pickups, it has problems with the finish, there was a problem with the pick up pan control, the controls felt insubstantial and there was little tonal variation, according to the reviewer, Stuart Clayton. There was a high degree of neck dive, the nut was cut badly, which on a 3K bass is totally unexceptable. But Stuart awarded this £3000 bass, with all of these faults a 3 out of 5 for build quality, which equals a good score. I would have awarded the following, cosidering the pric, 1 star for build quality, 2 for sound quality, as Stuart says it could give a good slap, finger, pick sound and 1 star for value for money. 1 star = poor, 2 stars = average. Now, 2 pages before, there is a beautiful F Bass which is over £300 less, is a six string and is a thing of beauty. I have a subscription the BGM and on the whole I like it. The reviews are well layed out with good quality, large photos of the products. The interviews are a little tame and short and the amount of advertising is pretty reasonable compared to some publications. I find with BGM that some editions are pretty good and then the next edition will go off the boil a little. I would like to see reviews of the newer, Britsh bass builders, such as Shuker, ACG, Jim Fleeting. I also think that a CD may be a good idea, with review samples, lessons and such, it may hike the price up but it is a bi-monthly publication, so I think it would make a less noticable difference to your pocket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budget bassist Posted January 20, 2009 Share Posted January 20, 2009 [quote name='obbm' post='385863' date='Jan 20 2009, 11:47 AM']The editor of BGM came up from Devon and supported the SE Bass Bash in September. He had his own session and talked about the magazine and answered a number of questions about the magazine, some quite pointed. At the end of the day it's a commercial undertaking. If you don't like it OP then I challenge you to start a rival magazine and make it pay. BTW I have no connection with BGM, it's editorial staff or its publishers.[/quote] Your cables have gotten good reviews in there though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Clayton Posted January 22, 2009 Share Posted January 22, 2009 [quote name='bass_ferret' post='385938' date='Jan 20 2009, 12:35 PM']Interesting thread. The irony of proclaiming the best when it is the only has always amused me. There have been somethings that Bernie has been unhappy about recently with GB reviews, comments on the finish when its not actually a new bass (all GB's are customer basses - Bernie does not build them for review), and slagging off the LED show when the reviewers own bass has the LED show spring immediately to mind.[/quote] If you are referring to the recent 5-string fest which featured a GB Rumour bass, then please be aware that I am the only BGM reviewer with a GB bass that has the full LED light show. I love LED's (although i never use them on gigs, obviously!), but I was not part of the team that reviewed those basses. Stuart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EBS_freak Posted January 22, 2009 Share Posted January 22, 2009 (edited) [quote name='Stuart Clayton' post='388156' date='Jan 22 2009, 01:29 AM']If you are referring to the recent 5-string fest which featured a GB Rumour bass, then please be aware that I am the only BGM reviewer with a GB bass that has the full LED light show. I love LED's (although i never use them on gigs, obviously!), but I was not part of the team that reviewed those basses. Stuart[/quote] [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=hV58amI1vLU"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=hV58amI1vLU[/url] 4:28 ...but the audience reaction proves a point - and you have more than the necessary chops to back it up! PS - hows the book looking? Edited January 22, 2009 by EBS_freak Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EBS_freak Posted January 22, 2009 Share Posted January 22, 2009 [quote name='BeLow' post='388175' date='Jan 22 2009, 07:00 AM']Is GM perfect - No Is there anything better out there which is genuinely focused on the UK Market - No Does the team make an effort to take on board views - Yes Is the publishing of a magazine in such a specialist niche going to allow indepenedence from advertising revenue - No Do the reviews allow you to read between the lines - Yes (if you use your brain) Will Mark King fanatics love the articles on grunge bassists (or vice versa) - Probably Not I think it is necessary to be realistic about these things - if you are a purist jazz player you are a small niche in what is already a small niche, to build on what OBBM says - at that level of specialism you would probably have to resort to a DIY publication and accept a degree of amateurishness. Perhaps you could write some articles for BGM? I was a great fan of the Bassist Magazine, I think it was a bit better than BGM in some hard to define way, but it was in the hayday of UK Bass playing and there was lot going on (Wal, Jaydee and Trace elliot were really active vibrant British companies then). Within the commercial constraints I am happy to be able to get hold of the magazine and enjoy it for what it is and have to accept its limitations. Its not perfect but it is there to be able to buy. But hey if you don't like it exercise your consumers rghts and don't buy it, buy bassplayer or something else.[/quote] +1 that man. Well said. Articles? Where do I sign up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Clayton Posted January 22, 2009 Share Posted January 22, 2009 [quote name='EBS_freak' post='388162' date='Jan 22 2009, 02:33 AM'][url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=hV58amI1vLU"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=hV58amI1vLU[/url] 4:28 ...but the audience reaction proves a point - and you have more than the necessary chops to back it up! PS - hows the book looking?[/quote] haha, yeah they work on that gig! I meant I never use them on regular gigs! The book is coming along... slowly...! Cheers Stu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gafbass02 Posted January 22, 2009 Share Posted January 22, 2009 I love it and can't wait fir the next one every time I finish the last. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clauster Posted January 22, 2009 Share Posted January 22, 2009 I like BGM despite the fact that it took them 8 months to sort out my subscription, I even think the reviews are good. Yes, they are positive about almost everything they review, but there is very little dodgy kit released these days. As Alex Claber (among others) has pointed out, they could be a bit more on-the-ball with technical facts, and IMO could do with longer reviews of some things (eg the head to head of the Boss GT10B and the New Line6 multi FX modeller). I also think they have a good range of Cover interviewees. Peter Hook is a recent example. The technique columns ususally have something for everyone. It's not perfect, but I'm not complaining as nothing ever is. Another good recent magazine for the gigging bassist is Performing Musician. Its obviously aimed at all musicians, but usually has one or two bass related reviews and they're a bit more in depth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.