SurroundedByManatees Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 (edited) I'm wondering why the early 80s are often (topics on the www) referred to as the worst period for Fender when it comes to quality. In my experience, basses from that era are especially very well built. Ive had a 82 precision special, and currently own a 83 standard sienna burst jazz. Both are very well built, much better than most (from second half of the)70s counterparts in my experience; tight neckpockets, good overall fit/finish, way more rounded curves than in the 70s... I cant understand why these fine early 80s instruments seem to have a bad reputation, while big money is paid for late 70s Fenders. Have I been lucky with mine? Please share your experience with early 80s Fender basses, and tell us how good or bad they are :). Edited June 12, 2018 by SurroundedByManatees Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ead Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 Not a Fender historian by any distance, but isn't it related to the general malaise at the company at that time as CBS were working towards selling the business.. The Fullerton factory closed in '84 (I think) and production switched to Japan (for US basses) until Corona opened in '87. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wateroftyne Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 I'm not sure I've read a lot of criticism of early 80s Fenders..? They'd downscaled production significantly, and seemed to take a lot more care over things. Far better than the back-end of the previous decade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cato Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 It's the 70s Fenders that used to get the most serious flak. Although prices for instruments from that era have been rocketing up in recent years. I don't know how bad QC was at Fender in the 1970s but it doesn't take that many instruments leaving the factory with a serious fault to tarnish the reputation of an entire brand. If everyone knows someone who has owned or played one of the dodgy ones, word soon gets around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 80s fenders don't have a bad reputation as such, they are better than the late 70s its just that by the early 80s the japanese instruments had stopped being a joke and had surpassed the quality of the fenders so in comparison they didn't seem as good 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muppet Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 I also had a Sienna Burst Precision from 83 and it was much better than a late 70s (78) Precision i had. The best 70s basses I've seen are the vintage reissues...! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SurroundedByManatees Posted June 12, 2018 Author Share Posted June 12, 2018 (edited) From what i believe to have read a while ago, templates for the bodies were worn out in the 70s, resulting in too wide neck pockets and other sloppy fits. Ive had a few from the 70s which were not built too precisely. They played and sounded well though, but were heavy. Obviously by the early 80s things had changed, these 80s ones are of a very different build quality. I did compare a 79 and an 82 side by side; totally different bodies. So I was surprised to read several posts on the net that the early 80s are (along with the late 70s) a bad era for usa fender. Maybe those persons bought old stock late 70s basses in the early 80s... Anyway; within my experience I would say the early 80s basses are the opposite of avoidable. Edited June 12, 2018 by SurroundedByManatees Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drTStingray Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 Early 80s was possibly the real trough of popularity of Fender - indeed guitars generally as keyboards began to dominate pop music and guitarists and bass players lost work as a result. Also Fender rather belatedly finally started producing active basses at that time and compared with say an Ibanez Musician or Stingray were really not perceived as very good. All that said I've seen nice Fender basses for sale from that era such as walnut Precision models - as stated previously they did try and sort out quality at that time - however they were not that popular in that era for the reasons mentioned - even the reissues didn't get good reviews at the time though they are now quite sought after and the 80s Fenders you see for sale look nice now. You have to remember many of us grew up with 70s heroes who played - 70s instruments. Even if they were heavy etc, they produced good tone and look like the basses we saw famous musicians using. 60s Fenders such as pastel coloured ones were really associated with an era which was pretty much out of date and quite uncool in that era as well (although even then there was a bit of snobbery around pre CBS Fenders). How times change!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleabag Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 Paying a 4 figure sum for vintage ( early ) Fenders is mostly about the ' fever ' that that permeates these mass produced planks, not the quality of the instrument The only reason to buy one these days is that you're unlikely to lose money on it, due to the Fender fever mentioned Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick's Fine '52 Posted June 13, 2018 Share Posted June 13, 2018 I don't think early 80's Fenders do have a bad reputation. Some 70's instruments can be heavy and there are some with QC issues, but the 80's ones seem much better. Referred to as the 'Dan Smith' era, where he shook the place up a bit. I think the reason they haven't risen in value in the way that even some poor 70's ones have, is because they were remodelled, and no longer had the vintage vibe, something that traditional Fender players have always looked for. For example they introduced a one-piece white guard on Jazz basses, coupled with the black numbered knobs, the truss rod access was now at the headstock end, and the decal looked cheap and nasty. Maple necks with black dots on Jazzes didn't help either. I think many players didn't feel it was in keeping with Fender tradition, even though the quality probably improved from the late 70's. Add to this the fact that at the same time (Well, early '82 anyway), Fender introduced their Vintage Reissue range, which were excellent quality, and had the vintage vibe, and were probably the same price at the time. Fender Japan had also started their own range of Vintage Reissues, which were even better, and even cheaper. I don't think they are bad instruments, or have a bad reputation, I just think many of the models of that time have never been particularly fashionable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorks5stringer Posted June 14, 2018 Share Posted June 14, 2018 Ah, the 80's: if you remember them, you weren't there.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted June 14, 2018 Share Posted June 14, 2018 On 12 June 2018 at 13:55, Muppet said: I also had a Sienna Burst Precision from 83 and it was much better than a late 70s (78) Precision i had. The best 70s basses I've seen are the vintage reissues...! You mean 80s, production started in 1982 and many reckon the 82 to 85 period was the best, before they moved from the Fullerton factory Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muppet Posted June 14, 2018 Share Posted June 14, 2018 1 hour ago, gareth said: You mean 80s, production started in 1982 and many reckon the 82 to 85 period was the best, before they moved from the Fullerton factory Sorry I was referring to the latest range of American Vintage Reissues, such as the 74/75 Jazz basses for example. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted June 14, 2018 Share Posted June 14, 2018 8 minutes ago, Muppet said: Sorry I was referring to the latest range of American Vintage Reissues, such as the 74/75 Jazz basses for example. Oh right, sorry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
micguy Posted June 20, 2018 Share Posted June 20, 2018 In the early 80's nobody (at least where I live) wanted a Fender from any era - everyone wanted guitars and basses that were pointy, with locking Floyd rose tremolos on the guitars, and Fenders were the same tired old, curvy things - without Floyds. If I had know where things were headed, I could have bought a bunch of old Fenders from the 60's for cheap, and..... alas, not to be. I have no idea if the Fender instruments from that era were great or not. I'd bet as time goes by, since very few were bought in that era, the scarcity thing might make them valuable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norris Posted June 21, 2018 Share Posted June 21, 2018 IIRC in the mid-80s the 70s Fenders were regarded as poop and nowhere near as good as the 60s guitars. But then has been mentioned, they were not the most fashionable guitars around then either. Everyone was after headless, pointy or super-strats. I went for an Aria SB-1000 myself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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