Question re Sterling By Music Man

[kevins]

this is not anything intended to be mean or harsh but i was wondering why and when were these started. ive always had beyond a ton of respect for musicman working their butts off on every bass made and paying the laborers a decent wage and have often cited that as a reason to support them over the ridiculously over priced american fenders and other stuff that has horrible low quality counterparts to it.

i guess my question is this, are they made well? do the workers in the country care about what they're doing as they do here? i know for fender workers in mexico the workers are actually offered medical benefits and other american comodities in the factory and paid a decent wage for where they are. are the workers treated fairly?

its not a "foreign dudes cant make basses" thread im starting here but im asking because id like to be certain the next time i say musicman is probobly the best company out there making basses right now, that theres nothing i dont fully believe in that statement.

 

[tommixx]

As far as I know all Ernie Ball Music Man Basses are still made in the USA. You may be talking about the budget line basses and these are NOT Musicman in the sense that you are calling them Music Man but are intended to be more affordably priced budget instruments and do not have the Ernie Ball Music Man logo anywhere on them that I know of. I do say that Music Man is the best value in Musical Instruments these days without hesitation. I have sold 2 people on them in just the last week or so that has resulted in them going out and buying EBMM over another product that should probably remain nameless...

Peace,

T

 

[koogie2k]

Well now...if you would...change the title of the thread. I know all of a sudden there will be a rash of BS that will spread saying "Musicman's are made in BFE...blah blah blah." Then next thing you know....there will be 10,000 threads wanting confirmation.

Really....all Musicman guitars and basses are made in SLO, California....that would be in the United States of America.

The Sterling line is probably what you are thinking. Yes, they are well made too. Made overseas by leprechauns who ride on their unicorns and are paid with gold coins.....

 

[TheAntMan]

Hmmm, careful not to slip off you soap box and break your crown over there.

Seems that the "poor workers" you are concerned about probably dropped on their knees and thanked God that they had work to feed their families. Especially in this global economic crisis. Unlike some of us USA workers who have been out of work for over a year. I am glad that EBMM is able to satisfy both the needs of the overseas workers and the homeland customers looking for a more affordable and still high quality instrument to play.

I have no problem buying a Sterling by Musicman instrument. They are awesome instruments at a price many of us can afford. As you can see from my signature, I have not skimped on getting some EBMM instruments but a SBMM is also in my future. Worried about world hunger? Buy a SBMM and feed our Indonesian family and our USA families also. Best of both worlds.

Anyway, just my point of view for what little it is worth.

--Ant

 

[the unrepentant]

I have no problem buying a Sterling by Musicman instrument. They are awesome instruments at a price many of us can afford. As you can see from my signature, I have not skimped on getting some EBMM instruments but a SBMM is also in my future. Worried about world hunger? Buy a SBMM and feed our Indonesian family and our USA families also. Best of both worlds.

Anyway, just my point of view for what little it is worth.

--Ant

Or get two, for the price of one EBMM

 

[maddog]

hmmmm.

Maybe asking something like:

"How's the quality of the SBMM stuff?" would have been a better approach.

and there are do-overs 'round these parts.

the just saying,

 

[Bloodfist]

Really....all Musicman guitars and basses are made in SLO, California....that would be in the United States of America.

I thought they were made in LaLa Land...Wait...that is California....

 

[Aussie Mark]

In a country where unemployment is 27%, and the government mandated minimum wage for union covered workers is around US$70/month, working on the factory floor for a foreign owned company is an attractive proposition, as the wage will probably be around twice the minimum, with decent OH&S standards and other benefits. Because of this, SBMM would have leverage to cherry pick the job market and hire good staff.

In terms of the history of SBMM, some basic searching of the forum would get all the answers you need. Why are kids so lazy these days?

 

[bovinehost]

i was wondering why and when were these started.

And you might have just asked that question, just as it sits there above, and avoided some of the political minefields that sometimes just beg to explode.

For a while, there was a relatively inexpensive brand called "OLP". Which stood for "Officially Licensed Product". Some people liked them. Some people did not. It's always like that. So those were built for a few years and then the contract on them expired.

But there was still a market for a mid-priced Music Man style instrument. So along comes the Sterling by Music Man line, which is licensed by Ernie Ball. It seems to me that more people like these than don't. I've played them and I think it's fair to say (although still just my opinion) that they are quite a bit beyond the now defunct OLP line in terms of quality.

Which is to be expected; they do cost more than the OLPs did.

So to be clear: Music Man instruments are built in one place, and that place is San Luis Obispo, California.

Sterling by Music Man instruments are built overseas and licensed by Ernie Ball Music Man but not built in San Luis Obispo, California, which is in any case not overseas if you live in the continental United States.

ive always had beyond a ton of respect for musicman working their butts off on every bass made and paying the laborers a decent wage and have often cited that as a reason to support them over the ridiculously over priced american fenders

And you can still do that with no qualms whatsoever.

i guess my question is this, are they made well?

Yes. I've played the basses and the guitars and they are damned fine instruments.

There are lots of ways to address your question, but I think I covered the salient points, don't you?

Jack

 

[Big Poppa]

kevins really a strange title and kind of rambling post.....

I picked the best company in the world to liscense the sterling by music man to. They have a social conscious and make a quality product with integrity.

Now please re weord you title thread....thanks

 

[tommixx]

And you might have just asked that question, just as it sits there above, and avoided some of the political minefields that sometimes just beg to explode.

For a while, there was a relatively inexpensive brand called "OLP". Which stood for "Officially Licensed Product". Some people liked them. Some people did not. It's always like that. So those were built for a few years and then the contract on them expired.

But there was still a market for a mid-priced Music Man style instrument. So along comes the Sterling by Music Man line, which is licensed by Ernie Ball. It seems to me that more people like these than don't. I've played them and I think it's fair to say (although still just my opinion) that they are quite a bit beyond the now defunct OLP line in terms of quality.

Which is to be expected; they do cost more than the OLPs did.

So to be clear: Music Man instruments are built in one place, and that place is San Luis Obispo, California.

Sterling by Music Man instruments are built overseas and licensed by Ernie Ball Music Man but not built in San Luis Obispo, California, which is in any case not overseas if you live in the continental United States.



And you can still do that with no qualms whatsoever.



Yes. I've played the basses and the guitars and they are damned fine instruments.

There are lots of ways to address your question, but I think I covered the salient points, don't you?

Jack

+1 and Nuff said...



Peace,

T

 

[bovinehost]

Now please reword your title thread....thanks

Got it.

 

[sitonmybass]

I got the chance to try a Sterling By MusicMan SB14 at the Guitar Center here in Clearwater, Florida where I live and was HUGELY impressed. I am an ex OLP owner/player and found these new instruments to be quite impressive regardless of price or place of origin.
I see a Ray 35 in black (because it comes with a rosewood fretboard) in my future.
There's been talk of us going out on tour with Jimi Jamison (former lead singer of Survivor) as his live band and I would rather take the Ray 35 than one of my more expensive EBMM's.

 

[Hellboy]

I´ve tried three Sterling by Musicman-basses and they were fantastic. I like them alot. Lots of quality for the money. Well done, indeed. All thumbs up.

//J

 

[ivbenaplayin]

I like the one about the Leprechauns...

 

[kevins]

kevins really a strange title and kind of rambling post.....

I picked the best company in the world to liscense the sterling by music man to. They have a social conscious and make a quality product with integrity.

Now please re weord you title thread....thanks

sorry bout the title i think i could have done better with that, and im glad to hear that! still the best bass company out there by far. i tend to ramble. but im really glad to hear that.