madbassplaya
Well-known member
- Joined
- Feb 28, 2010
- Messages
- 200
Boutique Basses or Music Man Basses...
Every now and then I get bad GAS for some type of boutique bass. Something that is flashy and fancy. Usually it happens after I watch a band where the bassist has something that is eye catching.
Nothing wrong with the boutique basses at all and I'm not bashing them, at all! They are beautiful basses that are put together very well and to the owners they are worth every penny.
I was reminded today while talking with a friend why I love owning a Music Man so much. First off, my friend has a hand built custom boutique bass. He bought the bass used and is the 2nd owner. The bass is stunning! It's got all the fancy woods and a 5 piece neck. It's what I've seen some call a "hippie sandwhich." So he calls me today is worried about his bass. He noticed it needed a set up so he started to tweak it and realized he had maxed out the truss rod. It plays alright but has a ton of relief in the neck. Much more than any of his other basses and he's gonna have a luthier look at it to see if anything can be done. I know wood differs and can react in different ways, but I've never seen a EBMM maxed out. This bass is less than 10 years old as well and my friend does amazing set up work. I see older Music Man's for sale all the time with fully functioning trussrods. I think another key here is how Big Poppa and crew make sure that the wood they use is as dry as possible. They don't just take someones word for it.
The next thing we talked about is electronics. It amazes me that many builders don't do this in house. I know that some spec out a pickup for their stuff, but some don't even do that. They just use stock pickups that anyone can get. From what I understand, this is not true at EBMM. The engineers there have designed the pickups and preamp from the ground up for each instrument.
Lastly is hardware, specifically the bridge. I don't understand why every boutique builder feels like they can use a Hipshot bridge. I'm sorry but if I'm paying $3-4000 for a bass it better have a bridge design that I can't buy from guitar parts store.
So what is left besides wood, workmanship, and fit & finish? Not much and when it comes to this I'll still put my Bongo against any boutique out there. Every EBMM bass that I have touched has had incredible fit and finish and workmanship. Maybe not the same wood, but I know that it's a quality resonant piece that has been properly prepared.
Other than my friends "Fancy top" I feel our basses are neck & neck in quality. My neck pocket is just as tight as his and his bass cost more used than mine did used. I have a Bongo 5 HH currently and have had several other EBMM basses including Stingrays & Stingray 5's as well and they have all been beautifully crafted instruments. Big Poppa and crew have found a way to do it right without shafting the customer.
Proud to play and own a Music Man bass.
Every now and then I get bad GAS for some type of boutique bass. Something that is flashy and fancy. Usually it happens after I watch a band where the bassist has something that is eye catching.
Nothing wrong with the boutique basses at all and I'm not bashing them, at all! They are beautiful basses that are put together very well and to the owners they are worth every penny. I was reminded today while talking with a friend why I love owning a Music Man so much. First off, my friend has a hand built custom boutique bass. He bought the bass used and is the 2nd owner. The bass is stunning! It's got all the fancy woods and a 5 piece neck. It's what I've seen some call a "hippie sandwhich."
So he calls me today is worried about his bass. He noticed it needed a set up so he started to tweak it and realized he had maxed out the truss rod. It plays alright but has a ton of relief in the neck. Much more than any of his other basses and he's gonna have a luthier look at it to see if anything can be done. I know wood differs and can react in different ways, but I've never seen a EBMM maxed out. This bass is less than 10 years old as well and my friend does amazing set up work. I see older Music Man's for sale all the time with fully functioning trussrods. I think another key here is how Big Poppa and crew make sure that the wood they use is as dry as possible. They don't just take someones word for it. The next thing we talked about is electronics. It amazes me that many builders don't do this in house. I know that some spec out a pickup for their stuff, but some don't even do that. They just use stock pickups that anyone can get. From what I understand, this is not true at EBMM. The engineers there have designed the pickups and preamp from the ground up for each instrument.
Lastly is hardware, specifically the bridge. I don't understand why every boutique builder feels like they can use a Hipshot bridge. I'm sorry but if I'm paying $3-4000 for a bass it better have a bridge design that I can't buy from guitar parts store.
So what is left besides wood, workmanship, and fit & finish? Not much and when it comes to this I'll still put my Bongo against any boutique out there. Every EBMM bass that I have touched has had incredible fit and finish and workmanship. Maybe not the same wood, but I know that it's a quality resonant piece that has been properly prepared.
Other than my friends "Fancy top" I feel our basses are neck & neck in quality. My neck pocket is just as tight as his and his bass cost more used than mine did used. I have a Bongo 5 HH currently and have had several other EBMM basses including Stingrays & Stingray 5's as well and they have all been beautifully crafted instruments. Big Poppa and crew have found a way to do it right without shafting the customer.
Proud to play and own a Music Man bass.
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