Is this the end for the boutique bass?

[Boodang]

The OP drops a bone with the barest morsel of meat on it and basschatters make a banquet out of it.... but I guess it is a place to chat about basses...  even so! 

[Hellzero]

7 hours ago, MacDaddy said:

Meh. Already done in the 80

 

 

Indeed, but it looked like it was designed by Elon Musk...

 

That said, I really like my BassLab L-Bow V, excellent on all aspects, and feather light as it's hollow carbon:

 

[Merton]

On 08/09/2025 at 20:31, Dan Dare said:

Is this a complete the sentence competition? If so, I suggest:

 

Boutique basses are bought by lawyers, medics and well-paid weekend warriors in the vain hope that spending lots of cash will make up for lack of talent.

 

Over to you lot.

Stop talking about me 😟

 

😀

[Rich]

"Is this the end" is a daft clickbait question. First, what is "this"? Secondly, what is "the end"? Thirdly, if by "boutique" you mean custom built basses, then of course it isn't. As long as there are people wanting instruments built to their own desires and specifications, and as long as there are luthiers willing to build them, then there will be 'boutique' basses. 

[Misdee]

 I remember a time when the relevant question would have been are Fender-style basses dead? When it comes to trends in bass design, it's a classic example of that old adage about swings and roundabouts. There was a general consensus that Fenders had become outmoded by such "useful" innovations as active electronics, graphite necks and neck-thru-body construction. I know it's hard to believe nowadays, but it's true.

 

In the mid to late 1980's if you went shopping for a nice new bass (and by nice I mean pretty expensive) in the UK then the shops had plenty of boutique basses but a scant selection of Fender-derived designs. You could go into mainstream retail shops and buy a Wal, Status, a proper German-made Warwick, Jaydee, Overwater Music Man ect but the plethora of fancy Precision and Jazz-style basses that proliferate now just weren't there. The basses Fender were making weren't very appealing to most discerning players, and it was harder to find vintage examples than it is now, for various reasons.

 

 At some point in the 1990's someone must have plugged a Fender bass into an amp ( probably an Ampeg), tried playing some songs with a band, and said "Hang on a minute, this actually sounds quite good!" and we've all ended up where we are now. 

Edited yesterday at 09:07 by Misdee

[Hellzero]

Your analysis is good @Misdee, but you forgot that those playing guitars or basses nowadays are, by 80%, old people like us (what's the average age here on BassChat, 50 to 55, I guess, or even 55 to 60) and have decided that older is better, so went back to the Fenders they couldn't afford when they were younger and skint...

[Mrbigstuff]

1 hour ago, Misdee said:

At some point in the 1990's someone must have plugged a Fender bass into an amp ( probably an Ampeg), tried playing some songs with a band, and said "Hang on a minute, this actually sounds quite good!" and we've all ended up where we are now. 

Ah that would be Pino Palladino! 

[MacDaddy]

On 09/09/2025 at 19:46, Hellzero said:

Indeed, but it looked like it was designed by Elon Musk...

 

That said, I really like my BassLab L-Bow V, excellent on all aspects, and feather light as it's hollow carbon:

 

 

 

IIRC you are not in the UK and therefore unable to bring this to a Bassbash so I can have a go? 😟

[Misdee]

18 minutes ago, Mrbigstuff said:

Ah that would be Pino Palladino! 

Him, and also various young men from Seattle in need of a good wash.

[Misdee]

2 hours ago, Hellzero said:

Your analysis is good @Misdee, but you forgot that those playing guitars or basses nowadays are, by 80%, old people like us (what's the average age here on BassChat, 50 to 55, I guess, or even 55 to 60) and have decided that older is better, so went back to the Fenders they couldn't afford when they were younger and skint...

I'm sure that's also a factor. But it was harder to find old Fenders in the U.K, and dealing directly with oversees builders was also much more difficult. Transatlantic phone calls  in those days cost more a minute than a lap dance does nowadays. Bass players were limited to what retailers wanted to stock. The internet changed everything. 

 

When I first went to the USA in the mid-'80's it was a revelation. The guitar shops were chockablock with Fender basses of every vintage. I'd been on the lookout for ages for a nice ',70's Jazz Bass in the U.K. In America I had literally a dozen to choose from locally.They weren't particularly cheap, but they were certainly plentiful. The biggest problem was how to get one back to the U.K. 

Edited yesterday at 11:17 by Misdee

[Woodinblack]

11 minutes ago, Misdee said:

Him, and also various young men from Seattle in need of a good wash.

 

Seattle? Like Krist Novoselic and his Gibson RD Artist and thunderbirds, or Jeff Ament with his Hamer 12 strings?

[Misdee]

27 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

 

Seattle? Like Krist Novoselic and his Gibson RD Artist and thunderbirds, or Jeff Ament with his Hamer 12 strings?

No , like other players using Fenders, like Ben Shepherd. 

 

Come to think of it, the first time I saw Jeff Ament he was playing a fretless Precision, if I remember correctly.

Edited yesterday at 11:46 by Misdee

[Hellzero]

1 hour ago, MacDaddy said:

IIRC you are not in the UK and therefore unable to bring this to a Bassbash so I can have a go? 😟

Indeed but @Chris2112 is in the U.K. and owns one too...

 

 

 

[LeftyJ]

21 hours ago, Misdee said:

Him, and also various young men from Seattle in need of a good wash.

 

Funny thing: many grunge and indie guitarists of that time started playing Fenders because they were available cheaply. Especially their offset models (Jazzmaster, Jaguar, Mustang) were available at pawn shops all over the US for silly money because they were either deemed too finnicky / complex or silly 24" student guitars that no serious player would ever want to own. It's what set off the Fender offset craze, first fuelled by Fender Japan who started producing them again and since the late 90s there are many US and MIM models too. 

 

Might be the same with the basses: came back in style because influential bands could get their hands on them cheaply when they started out. 

[thebrig]

It would be good if the OP would come back and actually explain what he means by his question. 🤔

Edited 4 hours ago by thebrig

[cetera]

The answer is 42

[mcnach]

On 08/09/2025 at 19:17, bassplayer76 said:

Boutique basses…..?

 

you need to give us a better prompt 😄

[bassplayer76]

Probably just a personal feeling that could be zeitgeist - been through a few boutique basses but still go back to trusty old squier jazz bass. Seems to be the winner. That said, I did own an 80’s Smith 6 string that sounded incredible, but couldn’t ever get used to the 6 strings. 

[BigRedX]

I doubt that custom or boutique instruments will ever go away given that they have been in mainstream usage for over 50 years now.

 

And you should be glad that they exist, because the alternative would be people like me hacking vintage instruments apart to get them to do what we want.

[chris_b]

Boutique instruments have been around for hundreds of years, Steinway (from 1853), Stradivarius (from late 1600's) etc. Boutique basses will always be in production.

Edited 1 hour ago by chris_b

[Lozz196]

Not sure if brands like Sandberg count as boutique, but if they do I can’t see them fading out.

[tauzero]

Here are ten reasons why it's the end for boutique basses. Number six will shock you.

[tegs07]

1 minute ago, tauzero said:

Here are ten reasons why it's the end for boutique basses. Number six will shock you.

does it include the 10 most difficult bass lines ever on a boutique bass 

and come with an AI photo of a lady in a very tiny bikini?

[cetera]

Scott's Bass Lessons next vid:

 

"Why Boutique Basses Crush Everything!"

[thodrik]

2 minutes ago, cetera said:

Scott's Bass Lessons next vid:

 

"Why Boutique Basses Crush Everything!"

Bass number 5 will SHOCK you.