Recent Corona Experience & Stingray

[the unrepentant]

To add my 2 cents to the comments about Fender quality, my take is that the ones coming out of their Japanese factory are actually superior to their American models today, especially for the money.

The Japanese have always made great guitars if i'm honest, i'm always finding old japanese guitars on ebay still in GREAT condition for their age, you don't see a lot of old american things though because in the same price range they're not as good (Bar EBMM of course but you still dont see a lot of them) but these are like £300 when they're new basses... you just don't expect that stuff to last! Anybody familiar with the westone thunder?

 

[Duarte]

I've said it before and I'll say it again...I just like basses.

I still love the Encore P bass I have.

It's body is made of plywood, its neck made of 'wood' and its pickup is like two small black processed sausages and sounds like it too. It has stings and plays notes and you can tune it. It's a bass innit?

Of course, what would I rather own/play/look at/hear/show off? The Ray. I don't know what my point is here. Maybe it's that quality isn't what matters if you really LOVE the bass. But of course, get a quality product, ie a Music Man.

 

[Duarte]

and speaking of japanese instruments, how did the japanese SR4s compare to US of A ones? In terms of quality and that...I could have bought one off ebay but chose on american because of the percieved better quality. (contradicting my previous comment?)

 

[Smallmouth_Bass]

Were there ever Japanese made SR4s?

I know there is a lot of talk about Fender and quality issues or that they are hit and miss. I don't play that many Fenders, so I don't really know. I do own a 2002 MIA P-Bass (P/J) and it is one of those instruments that when you pick it up, you just know it's a great fit and it almost melts in your hands (that's a good thing...). But for the fact that it is a 4-string, it would probably get more playing time.

One thing that is for sure, they must be doing something right because they keep on selling. Maybe it's partly due to the fact that they've inherited a name and a reputation. Or the fact that they have so many players that they attract many players. I don't know, I'm not a business man or market analyst.

One thing I do know, is that this probably doesn't really make any difference to EBMM. They make consistently good instruments and as long as they keep on doing so, many players will keep on choosing them.

I'm with Zak; I love bass and it's good to know there are a lot of choices and and companies that make some nice stuff.

 

[Aussie Mark]

the Japanese products let themselves down in the accuracy of the reissues and in the inferior quality of the hardware.

A number of the MIJ Fender models come standard with US pickups. I've owned a couple and they were very nice instruments. In terms of reissue accuracy, that's a valid observation, as the MIJ basses tend to replicate the general look rather than the detail.

Back in the 70s and 80s, brands such as Greco, Tokai, Burny and Ibanez were produced at the Fujigen and Terada facilities that were the equal of most anything coming out of the US at the time. The quality of those instruments blew Fender's and Gibson's quality out of the water in those days.

 

[MondoKen]

I'm the OP

I wasn't bashing Fender as much as I was expressing my frustration in purchasing one. I would guess by the sales numbers that they are much more popular than MusicMan. But fit and finish are something I look for in a guitar. I get as much joy cleaning and maintaining it as I do playing it. If I didn't really care I would probably be very satisfied with a Squier. They honestly sound okay to me. But quality is a selling point to me. I would suggest going to Guitar Center to examine the finish on a painted Fender. Many will show lines in the finish which according to Fender's own CS is wood changing due to environmental conditions or just plain old rough sanding. I saw a new Blizzard Pearl Strat prominently displayed at the Arlington GC. The painted area between the back cover and the neck had a quarter size area where it looked like the paint had pooled before curing. I've just seen this kind of workmanship way too much. It's not saying that I haven't seen some nicely finished Fenders but they seem to be rare.

BP, are the environmental conditions in SLO so much better than Corona that MusicMan equipment is spared?

FYI, I still want a Fender. I really do!

 

[Big Poppa]

we have the most stringent enviornmental control in San Luis Obispo

 

[MondoKen]

BP, my question was tongue-in-cheek

BP,

My question to you was tongue-in-cheek. I thought the environment response from Corona seemed a little lame. The bass in question had a tag on it signed by four different inspectors. Have you ever watched the George Lopez Show? His mother inspects aircraft landing gear parts, but she admits to never looking at them.

Ken

 

[oli@bass]

His mother inspects aircraft landing gear parts, but she admits to never looking at them.

BTW, every time I see this thread's title, me brain thinks "Beer"!!

 

[Duarte]

Were there ever Japanese made SR4s?

Yeah there were for a short period. Don't really know much about them myself, I'm sure Jack knows, and I'm sure sure that BP knows.