Here is what some musicians are saying about the new Fender prices.And i will add as i come across more...
"I was going to get the 62 vintage P bass when it was $1500 last month. Its now like $1950 which is a joke"! ...
"Ive been looking for a Geddy Lee Jazz and they went from $750 to over a grand. To Craigslist I will go"!!
"Its really hard to spend my money on a Fender product right now. I actually bought a HSS Deluxe Strat last month and it is like $300.00 more this month. That is a joke".
"they can have it and let the folks who have to buy new pay for it"
"i don't buy new guitars, so this doesn't affect me one bit
the used market is great right now"!
"You probably can count on new guitar prices going up, and Gibson will likely be the increase leader, if historical trends are a valid indicator".
"Strats are considerably more than they were not that long ago.
Fender has always been more conservative on the increases than Gibson though".
"I would love to buy a new Gibson, but they have priced themselves way out of my budget.....and even if I could afford a new one, I would be too scared to take it out of the house for fear it would get damaged".....
"I am damn mad. I love Fender guitars and amps. I own 4 Fender guitars and 2 fender amps"...
"I know!!!! I couldn't believe it either. Been looking at getting a '62 RI Jazzmaster, but they can forget it. I'm not gonna pay two grand for it. Nor am I going to pay over a grand for a Mexican made Jazzmaster (even if the hardware was made of 24k gold!). They'll come back to reality if enough people boycott. How can we "Buy American" if this is what American companies are doing? Get real Fender"...
"If any of you have been frustrated by the MAP pricing from Fender and their insane price increases along their entire line along with their main competitor Gibson, please go to
https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/
and register a complaint for FTC to investigate a price-fixing/collusion possibility between Fender and Gibson. This only takes a few minutes and the wizard there will guide you through the process. I believe there is already an investigation by several states on Fender price fixing policies.
I have always been a Fender man and have never played anything else but I am not happy with the corporate practices of Fender.
Thanks "...
..."I just noticed they jacked the prices up on their amps too. $1199.99 for a DRRI.
I bought one new 3 years ago for $729".
I agree completely, I own Fenders and many other kinds of guitars too, the last time I bought a Fender it was the year 2002 and paid $800 for it, they have been increasing at the rate of almost $50 a year in the last 4 years.
ReplyDeleteI was going to pickup another Strat for a backup guitar when they were $1000, the next thing I knew they jumped from $1000 to $1275 overnight, an increase of $275 in the blink of an eye.
When asking a local guitar store clerk about it, he just pretended it wasn't happening and said that they were still a $1000 but the thing is "what model?"....in other words buy a Mexican Strat instead for $750 or a nasty roadworn strat for $950.
I will not be purchasing an American Fender at the higher price nor will I buy any of there cheaper imported ones either, instead I'm focusing on alternative brands that I won't be mentioning in fear that they may get the big head and jump up in price also.
Yea,i agree,the jumps in price are,well,rediculous.They are too much too quick!And my other gripe with Fender is the ol' "new car" sales approach!(How many Strat models are there now?Hum...do i see a blog there somewhere?)The idea is,create a new model and they will buy!I wish now i had held on to ALL the Strats i have owned,i could go back to school and another degree!
ReplyDeletei bought my american strat deluxe for $1,200 in 2006 around this time of year. i was looking on ebay earlier tonight to see what these things were going for just to see what i could theoretically get out of it, and this one guy posted that these things are retailing for $1,600 now on musicians friend. I thought the guy was trying to scam people with that ridiculously high price, until i checked into it myself and my fears were confirmed. Fender: GET FUCKING REAL
ReplyDeleteThis is bull. I purchased a MIJ 62 RI strat for 350 used 5 years ago. Granted, that was a great deal, but given what I've paid in the recent past, there's no way in hell I can justify paying almost a grand for a mexican guitar or more than 2k for an Eric Johnson strat. No way. Looks like I'll be watching for a deal on craigslist and ebay, or I'll go back to playing musicman. They make a better strat anyway. Screw you fender, my disposable income will go elsewhere.
ReplyDeleteJust so you know ....
ReplyDeleteI was going to buy a Fender '52 Hot Rod Telecaster ... At Guitar Center and Musicians Friend the price was around $1639.00 - They have sale days on the holidays and you could have puicked one up for around $1300.00 - A week later the prices went to $2059.00 which is more money than a new custom shop strat was last year.
Price increase at retail is about $500.00 !
By the way I lost my job recently so guess what I am not going to be buying. ANY FENDER GUITAR.
I am afraid that Fender custom shop guitar days for $2,000.00 are gone my friend...
ReplyDeleteA year ago:
ReplyDeleteEric Clapton Custom Shop Strat $2100.00...
Now it's selling at list price, $3500.00.
I think it's about time that something is done about this. Gibson is being equally aggressive in their increases as well. It's sickening.
They are price fixing the market, and it's illegal. Love the products, hope they go broke from greed. This just isn't sane.
A great comment from above...yea,sure does sound like price fixing.And in,my opinion,Gibson has been high priced for a long while now...
ReplyDeleteAs much as we would all like to think we live in a perfect world here is a bit of reality for you.. Wake up.. I am a well known boutique amp manufacturer and at the beginning of 2008 tubes, tolex,transformers,and even wood has increased dramatically, in some cases double. I have seen my manufacturing costs increase by 1/3 easily.. This is no joke people..Also take into account the tighter lending standards that impacts quantity control.. Blame the housing market crash/ collapse of the dollar whatever but don't blame Fender, Gibson.. These guy's just don't sit around and say hey let's price fix the industry..From my chair they are just trying to stay in business..It's rough out there now..Believe me..
ReplyDelete