Budget VS Boutique

[aleclee]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

its a sad reflection on our current society based on mass production and mass consumption that the way that all regular amps used to be made (such as fenders. marshalls, voxes etc) is now considered "boutique quality".

Yes and no. Adjusted for inflation, an early Fender Twin sold at a boutique price point. We're lucky to have usable gear available at a variety of price points, even if the budget stuff isn't built to the specs of the good stuff.

 

[Chickenwings]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

yeh its good to be able to get nice sounding stuff at a good price. I just prefer stuff that is built to last rather than being consumable.

 

[MetalManiac]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

Planned Technical Obsolessence. Budget gear today is purposely engineered, or at least built to substandard measures, to insure it will not last beyond 5 years , or perhaps a litel more depending upon initial cost parameters. Thats okay- "pay me now for boutique, a mil-spec amp that will last the test of time, or pay me later for another budget amp that is disposable, and not worth the cost to repair" makes no difference., except that the boutique amp sounds better than disposable amps, and at some point will pay for itslef after the second cheap amplifier bugs out.

 

[aleclee]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

No argument about pay me now or later. Just pointing out that consumers benefit from having a choice, even if most make the wrong decision IMO.

 

[SongsForTheDeaf]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

I think play what feels and sounds good to you... I have played many vintage amps, boutique and found I enjoy the sound of Fender Devilles and Mesa Lonestar Specials the most out of the dozens of amps I have tried at band volumes... sometimes I find the boutiques to even be kinda sterile and you almost don't wanna gig with it or damage it. I like an amp thats built good and can take the gigging life without worry

 

[VHTJay]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

Definitely in the Boutique camp. I went through a few production amps for years and they were perfectly fine, but never blew me away. I always felt there something lacking in each and I would try to compensate via pedals or extensive EQ'ing. Then I paid a little more, bought my VHT Pittbull UL and that was all she wrote. Since then, I have had a few high end amps and while all are slightly different, they have all sounded spectacular. You definitely get what you pay for IMO.

 

[59Bassman]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

...you go to the shops in your Ferrari to buy a pint of milk... It looks cool, gets admiring glances gives pride of ownership... but does the milk taste any better than if you walked?

 

[59Bassman]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

...you go to the shops in your Ferrari to buy a pint of milk... It looks cool, gets admiring glances gives pride of ownership... but does the milk taste any better than if you walked?

 

[mdambros]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

...you go to the shops in your Ferrari to buy a pint of milk... It looks cool, gets admiring glances gives pride of ownership... but does the milk taste any better than if you walked?

The milk may taste the same, but the trip there was a helluva lot more fun!

 

[Agileguy_101]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

...you go to the shops in your Ferrari to buy a pint of milk... It looks cool, gets admiring glances gives pride of ownership... but does the milk taste any better than if you walked?

This comparison is irrelevant. Most people who buy Ferraris don't use them in a professional driving setting. I use all of my boutique gear when I play live, for money, and I like it way more than production stuff. That said, there is some mass produced gear that I have that is great, but I've modded most stuff like that I've owned.

 

[SongsForTheDeaf]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

Some here are saying boutique is meant to last versus budget but to be honest in my experience they both have defects sometimes or break. I have actually had more experience with boutique stuff breaking then my standard stuff, I'm speaking mostly about pedals and amps. The problem with gearheads today is they constantly are buying and trying to change their setup instead of buying what you NEED and tweaking and learning to use your gear to its best. I find when you do this and say play with a Hot Rod Deville or fender twin reverb and your pedalboard that you have used for over a year you will most likely sound better than the guy with the matchless and the 2 grand worth of boutique strymon and wampler on his board that he keeps buying and interchanging.... Just my 2 cents

 

[JeffB]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

Use what works for you. People in this day and age seem to be way too concerned about how other people spend their own money. And for what its worth, it is usually the "have nots" crying about the " haves". Extremely prevalent on these boards and other gear related forums (whether guns, or guitars, or cars, or whatever).

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Budget VS Boutique

I tend to look at it like everything up to about year 2000 is made good enough....and after that, there was a general cheapening of everything, and it eventually ended up being US/UK companies making a high line and a Chinese budget line.

So, the bottom line is you're best off taking advantage of the poor economy, if you can, and buy older production models and 90's boutiques that people are dumping cheap because they want newer boutiques. And don't buy solely on price, but pinpoint the ones that everyone can agree are definitive tones.

My greatest passion in gear is amps. The right ones, dialed in to be good as new or better, are what I like. In my life, I've owned around 90 amps. I've sifted through a lot, sold most, regret selling some, and ultimately kept the ones I couldn't bear to sell. They ranged from average production models to hand built boutiques.

Here's my keepers.

95 Bogner white chassis Ecstasy 101B with all the options. 412 and 212.
97 Matchless Chieftain 212 combo.
87 Marshall 2550 50W fullsize Jubilee fullstack.
84 Marshall JCM 800 4103 100W 212 combo. (4) 6550. My newest, which is getting dialed to perfection over the next month. Tubes, pots, speakers.
74 Fender Pro Reverb 212 that was restored to blackface specs by it's original owners, Aspen Pittman and his cousin. Best blackface I've ever heard or owned.
98 Gibson GA-30RVS EL-84 212 combo. Basically 2 AC-15's in stereo w/reverb. (Joe Perry model)
08 Orange Tiny Terror head. Sounds killer, and sounds different than all my other highgain heads.
2010 Fender Vibro Champ. My travel amp, which I won in the raffle at the last User Group Day.
2001 Vox Valvetronix AD60 blue grill head. My favorite modeling amp that sounds great plugged into my Marshall basketweave 1960AHW.

You'd be sick if you saw some of the amps I've sold off. Celebrity owned Marshalls, old Risson head, 4 Blues Pearl boutiques, a lot of Fenders, Matchless Chieftain and DC-30, Soldano, Mesa Tremoverb and 295, and even my main amp in the late 80's....a 2555 Jubilee head I bought new with money I scraped together as a teenager. I wish I'd never sold that one...or the DC-30.

I guess what I'm saying is I don't base a purchase on whether it's a production amp or boutique. I just like good ones. And within months of owning them, they're perfectly dialed in with tubes, speakers, and any cleaning and maintenance they may have needed.