It might not be too surprising that it's been many years since I've taken the time to visit a music store properly. Meaning, I didn't just walk in, get some packs of strings and leave. But, I didn't see this coming? Or did I and I'm just lying to myself.
As some of you may know, I'm in Florida again, this time it's a very short trip and I did not come to deliver a guitar for once. I'm attempting to finish a few builds I already started, but also, since it might be the last trip of the year, I'm attempting to visit old friends as well.
Yesterday my friend Mike and I decided to visit a new Guitar Center that opened up near his house in Hialeah. Truth be told the store looks great, the layout is perfect, even though it's quite smaller than the stores I worked for back in the day.
I kept looking for American made guitars, electric guitars, that is, and found myself blown away by the fact that they stocked almost none.
Where are the "real guitars"? (the elitist in me shouted).
Ok, I admit it. There are import guitars that are quite good, and I would not minding owning some of them myself, but there was a bar, a goal, a threshold of professionalism, one strived to achieve, back in my day at least.
It must be, at least in this store, that 99% of the guitars hanging on those walls are Chinese imports. I saw, maybe 20 "made in 'murca" guitars, out of what? A thousand +
It would not bother me one bit, if it wasn't for the pricing of the imports. I'm looking at Epiphone Les Pauls, that back when It was me smiling at you as you thought of buying your next six stringer, would have been $549, selling for $1499 and nobody is thinking "WHAT THE FUCK?"
Inflation?
Some of it, for sure, but it just can't be the whole picture. I mean, the darn things are built in China, how is it that the production prices in China tripled? How?
Someone might jump in here, and correctly point out, that prices are what they are, and if someone is willing to pay more, they will just increase the price, and thus my point is moot, but here's where I'm plating a flag, just for us to discuss.
Is the guitarist mindset that different now?
When I was doing this for a living nobody, and I do mean, nobody would even think about paying that much money for an import. It's not compatible with the perception of reality.
But, of course, if these are the prices. That means that people are paying for it, that the barrier, the shield, the obstacle, the voice of your mom inside your head, all that is gone, and you think it's fine to pay $1500 for something that we could speculate costed $200 to make tops.
MenO's fell off the rocker
Maybe... But I think I have a point here... and I can't be alone.
MenO
almost forgot... as I stated before... I started a TiK Tok Account, are you on there??
https://www.tiktok.com/@meno.meninski
Say hi!
Shrinkflation ?
I too wonder how mass manufactured electric guitars could cost so much.
I could set up a CNC to cut blanks into guitars. Then just put the components into their routed slots, and sell it. So, where's the cost?
I wonder how many of them would sound good?
That said, the guitar industry is not selling as many, so the raise the price to keep the same income. Happens with all the "want" industries.
by the time I'm too old to play, an American guitar will cost more than my car
Maybe.
However, i believe we will revive small scale manufacturing on a wide scale in America. And then a new guitar will cost whatever you trade for it. Something that someone made that is about the same hours of craftsman time to build.
I have electrics that were made in the USA (small builder) and UK. I don't really look at new guitars much, but some prices seem to have gone up a lot. You can still get some pretty cheap axes from some of the less well known brands that get good reviews. I would think with all of the mass produced stuff that it comes off the same sort of machines. Some of the added value will be in the parts they use, but the name on the headstock matters too.
I'm not sure if I will buy many more guitars as I don't play so much now and I have some nice ones. I do envy current kids for the cheap and decent gear they can buy.
I have a friend who "was done" buying and probably had not bought a guitar in over a year. But, in the last few months, he's gotten 5 more.
It comes in waves! lol
Yeah, things can change. I may well be buying other music gear.
it's ok to resist... but we all lose the battle eventually! LOL
we hit in late 90s the option of running a deflation , and so the Marketeconomy wonders and stopped acting as a SOCIAL MARKETECONOMY as they found in 200ßth to get a even more crazy way to transform it into a pervert Marketeconomy Managers got paid millions for chassing people off the job telling companies they dont need this much Workers anymore only to gain those money for themself ( managers ) so this crazy Inflation of hundreds of Percentages in some cases got born, without any logical reason.... the problem which got caused in all of that the income of a NORMAL Worker isnt much higher as in 2000 whenever the costs of Living raised by lots of percentage. This is why People cant effort any MADE in AMERICA or MADE in GERMANY anymore... this is why they spent their money on ALIEXPRESS and TEMU WISH or how ever they get called... they bring their money to china and so this self made Problem gets more and more in trouble... and it all started by some LESS ones which got greedy as hell and changed the really well running system :D
so... it's gonna get worse then!
also i hope @meno you know who i am :D smile your old german friend of the helpie Days... and im Still running the Helpie-caster :D
I know, my brother, I remember the bemble! hahahah good to see you still around
sure man , old but gold
yep as the funds get carried away , to the place we normally dont want to grow more.....
It is a sign of the times in a few ways really.
My $1100 Gibson Les Paul is now magically $2500+. This is nothing but inflation.
The Epiphone that was $300 is now $1100. Surely this is another sign of the times as Asian manufacturers flood the market with cheaper knock offs, build some brand loyalty and up the quality through practice, then jack up the price.
I have a mexi Strat that is worth $1100. Back in the day, that is a $200 guitar but these days, it plays as nice and stays in tune like a USA model used to.
Times have changed for sure and I enjoy searching out the used ones for discount gems much more than visiting the rich mans store for ridiculously expensive new ones.
Oh, and tiktok can suck it.
You know... when I worked for Samash Music, we sold American strats, new with a hard shell case for 800 bucks.
That would get you a Squier today... it blows my fucking mind.
Btw, Im not sold on tiktok, but I'm trying to grow my guitar brand, so I'm testing it out... seems like it's gonna be a fail, I have to say.
You are talking to a marketing and brand growing guy here and TikTok has its place. That place is only branding and easy, trendy video content that is useless except when shared to Facebook and Instagram. Facebook can suck it too but is the best for clicks on calls to action and instagram is good for spamming brand messages. All works a little but you have to decide where to spend your money and time.
What you should also do is brand a hive account and link your website in every post, load it with key words for SEO. Not 100% sure if a dozen hive front ends with identical/duplicate content helps or hurts with google but we are testing to find out for sure.
It makes sense that if prices are so high, it's because people are still paying; otherwise, if market rules still apply, people would stop buying and prices would correct. That's the theory at least, so there must be something we are missing.
I was thinking the other day that prices keep on inflating despite our huuuuuuuge gains in productivity in the last 100 years, so if we account for that it only means that money printing has been insane (so insane that it surprasses our gains in productivity (more products = less price)). The only reason it hasn't corrected yet is because there's still enough money in the hands of buyers to keep the gears spinning. Insane! Either people are not saving anymore and just decide to spend on overpriced stuff, or we are getting severely in debt to buy -- well, yeah, in Brazil you can pay by credit card in up to 12 installments
Anyways. I got my Epiphone Casino inspired by John Lennon in 2012 (I think) and it quintupled in price ever since, no joke. I would not be able to afford it today.
I had a very special Casino back in 2009, I miss that guitar all the time. Like you, can't even consider buying one for myself these days.
Yeah, maybe, probably, perhaps... from a Luthier point of view.
how come you are being targeted by spamminator? don't seem right to me.
Oh yeah! by spaminator, hivewatchers, hivewatcher, steemcleaners, adm, guiltyparties, logic and all their gang of incurable idiots. It's been more than two years since these retards arbitrarily and unjustifiably blacklisted me and since then they have stolen all my author rewards and the rewards of my "curators" by zeroing absolutely everything I publish on the blockchain.
Pero no te preocupes hermano, que a todo cochino le llega su sábado y el de éstos marranos está más cerca de lo que ellos creen ya que no escarmientan. Yo ya estoy amolando los cuchillos y tenedores para darme banquete muy pronto.
nunca te dijeron que onda?
Nope, en realidad no. Como ya dije recientemente en respuesta a otro usuario en mi último post, estos carajitos son demasiado cobardes y cretinos como para hacerlo públicamente y a la vista de todo el mundo.