ajkula66 Posted February 15 Posted February 15 7 hours ago, lemmywinks said: almost like they don't care about basses at all. They don't. This is coming from a guy who owns half a dozen Gibson basses and has owned many more in the past. The only time Gibson put some serious thought into their bass guitars as well as into marketing them was a short sting during the Norlin era which brought us Ripper, Grabber, G-3, Victory and a couple of lesser known/less successful models. Gibson sells guitars and mandolins, and has been for well over a century. That's their bread and butter. They had to design and produce bass guitars along the way but these were treated as an afterthought 90% of the time. Fender's marketing philosophy has always been a very different one. These new Standards will sell well, IMO. The power of the brand name on the headstock should never be underestimated. 4 Quote
Geek99 Posted February 15 Posted February 15 7 hours ago, PainInTheBass said: But imagine it was a bass, it would look pretty cool right? Yes, like the green too Quote
neepheid Posted February 15 Posted February 15 6 hours ago, ajkula66 said: They don't. This is coming from a guy who owns half a dozen Gibson basses and has owned many more in the past. The only time Gibson put some serious thought into their bass guitars as well as into marketing them was a short sting during the Norlin era which brought us Ripper, Grabber, G-3, Victory and a couple of lesser known/less successful models. Gibson sells guitars and mandolins, and has been for well over a century. That's their bread and butter. They had to design and produce bass guitars along the way but these were treated as an afterthought 90% of the time. I feel your pain. I was a hardcore apologist for them for years but I'm done now - they really don't give a s#it about basses or bassists, have moved from disinterest to naked contempt in the last few years and I'm done. 1 Quote
Terry M. Posted February 15 Posted February 15 1 hour ago, neepheid said: I feel your pain. I was a hardcore apologist for them for years but I'm done now - they really don't give a s#it about basses or bassists, have moved from disinterest to naked contempt in the last few years and I'm done. I visited the new flagship Gibson store in central London and was in and out in not much time at all. The Bass section might be smaller than the staff toilets! Impressive store otherwise I thought. 1 1 Quote
NancyJohnson Posted February 15 Posted February 15 2 hours ago, Terry M. said: I visited the new flagship Gibson store in central London and was in and out in not much time at all. The Bass section might be smaller than the staff toilets! Impressive store otherwise I thought. It's inevitable. The Gibson bass choice is limited to three or four models and a limited colour choice. You'll probably find a larger breakfast cereal aisle in you local Lidl. 4 Quote
Supernaut Posted February 15 Posted February 15 Hmm Fender's QC is okay at best. Shouldn't have to play multiple basses to find a good one. Quote
ajkula66 Posted February 16 Posted February 16 (edited) 2 hours ago, Supernaut said: Hmm Fender's QC is okay at best. Shouldn't have to play multiple basses to find a good one. True, but that's been the case for most of the 45+ years that I've been playing bass. I've owned several stellar Fender instruments - not just basses - but have come across way too many from different eras where the QC crew seemed to have been on a general strike when these were leaving the factory... Edited February 16 by ajkula66 Quote
Geek99 Posted February 16 Posted February 16 6 hours ago, Supernaut said: Hmm Fender's QC is okay at best. Shouldn't have to play multiple basses to find a good one. Probably truer these days than in the past… Quote
Mrbigstuff Posted February 16 Posted February 16 1 hour ago, Geek99 said: Probably truer these days than in the past… I suppose with it being a scaled up operation and parts getting cheaper that wouldn’t be a surprise. However, there are still absolute dogs in the vintage market, all be it lots were modified. 1 Quote
Supernaut Posted February 16 Posted February 16 1 hour ago, Geek99 said: Probably truer these days than in the past… The 70s called. Quote
Stub Mandrel Posted Sunday at 13:43 Posted Sunday at 13:43 On 14/02/2025 at 22:04, Geek99 said: Penicillin was discovered in 1928? One reason why fewer soldiers died in ww2 insulin was also discovered in the 1920s? I was thinking about medicines available in the 50s. Quote
tauzero Posted Monday at 02:01 Posted Monday at 02:01 On 14/02/2025 at 21:29, Stub Mandrel said: Just a thought, but when Fender have brought out something truly different (point headstock, radical body shape, two octave neck, super thin neck, tbx tone control, micro-tilt etc.) no-one bought them. I think people did buy them (which is why you can get them second-hand) but because they didn't instantly sell in huge numbers like the extremely established Ps and Js then Fender just ditched them. Quote
kwmlondon Posted Monday at 08:58 Posted Monday at 08:58 (edited) 6 hours ago, tauzero said: I think people did buy them (which is why you can get them second-hand) but because they didn't instantly sell in huge numbers like the extremely established Ps and Js then Fender just ditched them. I think that there is a consistent markt for Strats, Teles, Precisions, Jazz etc. Stuff like the paranormal series will have a market, but much smaller and once the people who want one have bought one there's no ongoing demand. Smaller makers can do well making niche products but Fender's business plan is built on big numbers so it makes sense for them to do the odd special edition or limited range and then move their huge manufacturing capacity back to products they know will sell in big quantities. Bear in mind that if a company gets it wrong that's game over. If you want to see a proper scare story look up the motorcycle manufacturer KTM and their woes through overproduction. https://www.wheelsguru.com/stories/ktm-financial-crisis/#google_vignette Edited Monday at 09:01 by kwmlondon 1 Quote
Terry M. Posted Monday at 09:31 Posted Monday at 09:31 7 hours ago, tauzero said: I think people did buy them (which is why you can get them second-hand) but because they didn't instantly sell in huge numbers like the extremely established Ps and Js then Fender just ditched them. I'm wondering if this is why they scrapped the Dimension Bass. I felt like it was only me who liked that bass(I know it wasn't really) Quote
lemmywinks Posted Monday at 09:38 Posted Monday at 09:38 There's still gaps in the Fender/Squier range though such as the lack of a proper active Jazz in between the Squier Affinity and MiM Player Plus ranges. Think the Contemporary J bazz (not with humbuckers) is discontinued. It's like they just saw Sire gobble up that part of the market and thought "yeah that's fine, we'll just make weird stuff nobody wants" Quote
Terry M. Posted Monday at 09:51 Posted Monday at 09:51 The latest versions of active Squier Affinitys are REALLY good though. I briefly had a 5 string black Jazz V. 1 Quote
neepheid Posted Monday at 10:28 Posted Monday at 10:28 54 minutes ago, Terry M. said: I'm wondering if this is why they scrapped the Dimension Bass. I felt like it was only me who liked that bass(I know it wasn't really) I liked the Dimension, especially the Modern Player one with the triplebucker. Unfortunately, when Fender was having its short MIC adventure, my head got turned by the Starcaster, and I ended up disliking it very much! Quote
lemmywinks Posted Monday at 10:36 Posted Monday at 10:36 38 minutes ago, Terry M. said: The latest versions of active Squier Affinitys are REALLY good though. I briefly had a 5 string black Jazz V. There's still nothing there to compete with a Sire V7, Cort Fusion or the old Sadowsky Metro Express line, the £400-£600 price point is where it's at for a lot of people and all Fender/Squier have is passive instruments. Quote
Terry M. Posted Monday at 10:42 Posted Monday at 10:42 3 minutes ago, lemmywinks said: There's still nothing there to compete with a Sire V7, Cort Fusion or the old Sadowsky Metro Express line, the £400-£600 price point is where it's at for a lot of people and all Fender/Squier have is passive instruments. I think my point is it can "reach" into the space you mentioned between itself and the MIM Fender Player Series due to the quality. I wasn't comparing it to other brands. Quote
Terry M. Posted Monday at 10:46 Posted Monday at 10:46 15 minutes ago, neepheid said: I liked the Dimension, especially the Modern Player one with the triplebucker. Unfortunately, when Fender was having its short MIC adventure, my head got turned by the Starcaster, and I ended up disliking it very much! Would you consider snagging a used Dimension one day? I personally wouldn't rule that out based on an American Deluxe V I tried once with the single humbucker. It didn't sound like a Stingray (no big deal to me) but I don't think it was supposed to. I liked its inherent voicing. Quote
neepheid Posted Monday at 10:52 Posted Monday at 10:52 (edited) 6 minutes ago, Terry M. said: Would you consider snagging a used Dimension one day? I personally wouldn't rule that out based on an American Deluxe V I tried once with the single humbucker. It didn't sound like a Stingray (no big deal to me) but I don't think it was supposed to. I liked its inherent voicing. I would, if the price was right. At the moment, they're going through a bit of a "rose tinted spectacles" period. There's a Modern Player one local to me but they want like £500 for it - get poked - they were like £300 new back in the day. Edited Monday at 10:53 by neepheid Quote
Terry M. Posted Monday at 11:00 Posted Monday at 11:00 4 minutes ago, neepheid said: I would, if the price was right. At the moment, they're going through a bit of a "rose tinted spectacles" period. There's a Modern Player one local to me but they want like £500 for it - get poked - they were like £300 new back in the day. The power of the Fender decal (as we know too well) strikes again mate. £500 is too much based on the new original price. Quote
tauzero Posted Monday at 11:39 Posted Monday at 11:39 2 hours ago, kwmlondon said: I think that there is a consistent markt for Strats, Teles, Precisions, Jazz etc. Stuff like the paranormal series will have a market, but much smaller and once the people who want one have bought one there's no ongoing demand. Smaller makers can do well making niche products but Fender's business plan is built on big numbers so it makes sense for them to do the odd special edition or limited range and then move their huge manufacturing capacity back to products they know will sell in big quantities. Presumably the upper echelons of Fender aren't stupid, so they'll know that all they have to do is keep churning out Ps, Js, Ps with J pickups, active Js, and whatever other parts bin specials they can come up with, and they'll sell. If they bring out something else, it won't sell in such large numbers. So what's the point in bringing something out that you know won't sell in large numbers and then discontinuing it because it didn't sell in large numbers? Why not go the other way to the Squier label and produce non-FSO basses under a different name, creating some lower volume innovative instruments called (for example) Mudguards? They'd have all the CNC machines and the finest Mexican craftsmen in both Mexico and California. Quote
shoulderpet Posted Monday at 12:17 Posted Monday at 12:17 36 minutes ago, tauzero said: Presumably the upper echelons of Fender aren't stupid, so they'll know that all they have to do is keep churning out Ps, Js, Ps with J pickups, active Js, and whatever other parts bin specials they can come up with, and they'll sell. If they bring out something else, it won't sell in such large numbers. So what's the point in bringing something out that you know won't sell in large numbers and then discontinuing it because it didn't sell in large numbers? You hit the nail on the head there Quote
neepheid Posted Monday at 12:31 Posted Monday at 12:31 50 minutes ago, tauzero said: Presumably the upper echelons of Fender aren't stupid, so they'll know that all they have to do is keep churning out Ps, Js, Ps with J pickups, active Js, and whatever other parts bin specials they can come up with, and they'll sell. If they bring out something else, it won't sell in such large numbers. So what's the point in bringing something out that you know won't sell in large numbers and then discontinuing it because it didn't sell in large numbers? Why not go the other way to the Squier label and produce non-FSO basses under a different name, creating some lower volume innovative instruments called (for example) Mudguards? They'd have all the CNC machines and the finest Mexican craftsmen in both Mexico and California. That's why they own the likes of Charvel/Jackson etc.? No? 1 Quote
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