boltoph wrote:blue wrote:kill_me_sarah wrote:If you can't hear the difference, then there is no difference.
lies!
LIES!
Sure, you can swap the pickups, or question how good your ears are....but keep that bass for a few years and you'll not only hear the difference, but especially, you might
feel the difference...
Let me expound on this point.
In order for a company to make money selling you their "inexpensive" product they are going to have to make obvious shortcuts. The main ones are the quality of 1) Parts and 2) Craftsmanship. So look at the parts variables that entails.
Electronics: The pickups and tone pots in cheap guitars are shit, period. They will need to be replaced adding cost to your "bargain". Why? Cheap pickups don't have as much output as good pickups do. That signal loss needs to be made up in gain somewhere else which introduces a whole host of other issues. They're also prone to all sorts of noise issues ranging from lights, radio signals to anything electronic. Ssssszzzzszzszszszssssszzzz. doesn't sound good on a recording. Scratchy tone pots only add to that noise, if they function in the first place.
Wood: Cheap wood warps...period. There is absolutely no getting around it. That cheap instrument you played and bought in the store that was in tune the day you bought it simply will never be in tune again at some point down the road. Whether that happens 5 or 10 years down the road isn't the point. When it happens during the best solo you ever played or the best track you almost got recorded is.
Craftsmanship: In 2 words, it matters. Today and tomorrow. I would rather have someone salivating over when they can get their hands on my vintage guitar than someone waiting to throw another log on the fire. Instruments are investments. Cheap investments are a waste of money and may as well be used as kindling. Make the argument all you want about how much use it will see, someone, somewhere, at some point in time will gladly give you every penny you paid for a good instrument and then some. If it saw little use, it will just be worth all that much more. If you want your stuff to end up in some garage sale selling for $10, be my guest.
Everything else: The tuning keys, the bridge, the frets are all very important components. What good are cheap ass tuning keys with inaccurate gear ratios if you can't find a dead center tuning? What good is a cheap ass bridge that has no sustain or constantly breaks strings because it's metal is too brittle and has sharp edges? What good are frets that end up making the guitar buzz in a year? These are critical components that can be replaced but by the time you do it you would have been better served buying the good instrument in the first place.
If you can't tell the difference between a cheap instrument and an expensive one now, give it time. I guarantee you will be able to with more experience. I'm not saying every instrument has to be a museum piece or even the most expensive you can find. I am saying that the more money you spend, the more likely it will fit your needs today, and tomorrow, and end up costing you less in the long run. And then there's that whole return on you investment thing.
Unlike computers and software. There you are on you own brother.
EDIT: Oh yeah, and basses. You can skimp on those. It's just low notes anyway.
EDIT AGAIN: Unless you WANT to be a bass player, and then all the other rules apply. If you're just recording with it just make sure it stays in tune, plays well enough, and sounds good enough and you'll be fine.
