Ashdown Basses?! Woo!

[uk_lefty]

Just now, BigRedX said:

Is it?

Even he decided it needed changing in 1957. And again in 1976, and again in 1979...

🙄

[Woodinblack]

5 hours ago, Stub Mandrel said:

I think it's simpler that that - people who bought Fenders back then wanted them to look like Fenders.

Even these days look at the flack the Starcaster gets...

Not just then, now too. I view them like bands really - after a while when the original people go and the band is all new people, they want to make new things, but people just want to hear the original stuff, while saying 'why don't they make new stuff any more'.

And once it becomes more corporate business, they know that any time their machines aren't churning out new reissues of a Jazz or a P, that machine isn't being as profitable as it could be.

Its a shame they can't have a true 'custom shop', unlike one where they just make the same things in other colours for a lot of money, a place they can come up with new designs which are allowed to 'fail' (ie, not make huge runs).

[Stub Mandrel]

2 hours ago, uk_lefty said:

And the winner is Leo from California!

Clarence Leonides Fender, actually 🙂

[PatrickJ]

32 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

Its a shame they can't have a true 'custom shop', unlike one where they just make the same things in other colours for a lot of money, a place they can come up with new designs which are allowed to 'fail' (ie, not make huge runs).

They did for Tye Zamora and his custom 6 string bass.

[BigRedX]

4 minutes ago, PJ-Bassist said:

They did for Tye Zamora and his custom 6 string bass.

Which kind of re-inforces the point that Fender should stick to what they are best at.

Or at least do a lot more R&D before unleashing another bass that isn't a P or J on the public.

[lemmywinks]

I've always thought it's perfectly acceptable for Fender to just make Jazzes, Precisions, Teles, Strats, Jaguars etc. It's what they do and if there's one company that should be making the original classic designs that everybody and his uncle wants to own then it's them. Never really saw the demand for them to be groundbreaking in this day and age when there's plenty of companies doing that and producing great instruments the world over and we've never been more spoilt for choice - let Fender be Fender and make those boring old designs that sound pretty good and sell like hot cakes.

 

That's why it's all the more disappointing when a company like Ashdown announces they're collaborating with a well known bass builder to produce a new line of basses and they turn out to be more Fender copies. Boooooooooooooooooooring.

[Woodinblack]

16 minutes ago, PJ-Bassist said:

They did for Tye Zamora and his custom 6 string bass.

Well, that is good. Good in that I don't necessarily want that, but I would fender kept a range of 'interesting' shapes or ideas going.

[lemmywinks]

14 minutes ago, PJ-Bassist said:

They did for Tye Zamora and his custom 6 string bass.

That's a perfect case in point - Fender made a high end custom shop bass to the spec of a talented player in a popular (at the time) band and it never got off the ground. IIRC Tye Zamora struggled to sell his own personal ones. 

[Woodinblack]

3 minutes ago, lemmywinks said:

That's why it's all the more disappointing when a company like Ashdown announces they're collaborating with a well known bass builder to produce a new line of basses and they turn out to be more Fender copies.

I would agree with that.

If you want a fender, buy a fender. If you want a better fender go to a custom fender builder. If you are another company go for something else.

[PatrickJ]

17 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

Which kind of re-inforces the point that Fender should stick to what they are best at.

Or at least do a lot more R&D before unleashing another bass that isn't a P or J on the public.

I assume Tye was heavily involved in the design of it, so it was probably quite personal to him.

9 minutes ago, lemmywinks said:

I've always thought it's perfectly acceptable for Fender to just make Jazzes, Precisions, Teles, Strats, Jaguars etc. It's what they do and if there's one company that should be making the original classic designs that everybody and his uncle wants to own then it's them. Never really saw the demand for them to be groundbreaking in this day and age when there's plenty of companies doing that and producing great instruments the world over and we've never been more spoilt for choice - let Fender be Fender.

+1 to this, but I have no problem with other companies making their own versions, I love my Sandberg P basses (Type II's) and my custom is a tweaked J bass design.  It's just what I like.

Bringing this thread back to Ashdown, I can't see a compelling reason to buy one of their basses when they are near identical clones and more expensive than an official Mexican model (even the deluxe ones).  In the video posted earlier even Mark himself didn't seem very excited by the P and J's and the other two designs didn't really seem that special.

[BigRedX]

18 minutes ago, PJ-Bassist said:

I assume Tye was heavily involved in the design of it, so it was probably quite personal to him.

They must have essentially done for free (and then paid him to use it). I can't see any other reason why he would have picked Fender to make this bass when there are so many other luthiers out there who are already making something similar and doing a much better job of it.

[lemmywinks]

18 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

They must have essentially done for free (and then paid him to use it). I can't see any other reason why he would have picked Fender to make this bass when there are so many other luthiers out there who are already making something similar and doing a much better job of it.

His were masterbuilt instruments, I think Jason Davis made one of them so they'll be as good as anything, he actually built a few interesting basses. Not your run of the mill Fender or even the custom shop series.

Edit - here's some Fenders built by him:

Edited February 18, 2020 by lemmywinks

[Stub Mandrel]

1 hour ago, lemmywinks said:

That's a perfect case in point - Fender made a high end custom shop bass to the spec of a talented player in a popular (at the time) band and it never got off the ground. IIRC Tye Zamora struggled to sell his own personal ones. 

When someone is selling their own Custom Shop Signature basses you have to ask why?

[Stub Mandrel]

12 minutes ago, lemmywinks said:

His were masterbuilt instruments, I think Jason Davis made one of them so they'll be as good as anything, he actually built a few interesting basses. Not your run of the mill Fender or even the custom shop series.

Edit - here's some Fenders built by him:

Hmm. Triumphs of bad taste over great skill and fine timber.

Designing and building great instruments are not necessarily skills that go together.

[AndyTravis]

2 minutes ago, Stub Mandrel said:

When someone is selling their own Custom Shop Signature basses you have to ask why?

Their popularity didn’t dwindle...their audience became more selective...

erm. He also isn’t in AAF anymore. It’s a chap who plays Schecter basses.

[AndyTravis]

Wow. Quick google states he’s recently had Cancer.

Medical bills?

What a sad state of affairs. Hopefully he recovers/is recovering - no date on the page.

 

[PatrickJ]

AAF were rhe first band I saw live when I moved to London , dont remember if Tye was playing his sig bass or not, I wasnt a bass player back then so wouldnt have cared.

Some of those Master built Fenders aren't bad at all!  I like the body shapes and wood finishes on 1 and 2.  But again, that's my personal preference and wouldnt appeal to the many I'm sure.  Not keen on the control layouts though but again that's only my preference.

Edited February 18, 2020 by PJ-Bassist

[lemmywinks]

1 hour ago, Stub Mandrel said:

Hmm. Triumphs of bad taste over great skill and fine timber.

Designing and building great instruments are not necessarily skills that go together.

I like 'em! Kinda a GB Spitfire built by Fender vibe going on with them.

[AndyTravis]

2 minutes ago, lemmywinks said:

I like 'em! Kinda a GB Spitfire built by Fender vibe going on with them.

Spitfires are pretty, and a graceful adaptation of the J style.

These Fenders look like someone has a 90’s Tobias Fetish but only bought jazz bass shaped jigs.

Edited February 18, 2020 by AndyTravis

[lemmywinks]

Funnily enough spotted one of the el cheapo range Lodestones on Facebook just now (while looking for less hideous basses obviously) for £175:
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/504336910485159/

 

Gonna assume the seller is paying you the £175 to take it away rather than the other way around. Not too far from you @AndyTravis

[lemmywinks]

3 hours ago, AndyTravis said:

Spitfires are pretty, and a graceful adaptation of the J style.

These Fenders look like someone has a 90’s Tobias Fetish but only bought jazz bass shaped jigs.

 

I also have a Tobias fetish (it's the only one of my 3 dream basses I've never owned) and now play Jazz shaped basses so that's fine by me!

[AndyTravis]

15 minutes ago, lemmywinks said:

Funnily enough spotted one of the el cheapo range Lodestones on Facebook just now (while looking for less hideous basses obviously) for £175:
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/504336910485159/

 

Gonna assume the seller is paying you the £175 to take it away rather than the other way around. Not too far from you @AndyTravis

It’s battered 😟

[JottoSW1]

On 18/02/2020 at 20:23, AndyTravis said:

It’s battered 😟

Then deep-fried

[AndyTravis]

Just posted on Facebook - must’ve had a delivery.

Think These are the special artist orders from Namm.

[stewblack]

I love a gold bass with matching headstock. I like the shape of this bass. I have always believed that tort is the only pickguard which goes with anything and always looks better than any other colour or design. 

I have changed my mind! There is something jarring about the gold /tort combination.