First of all let me say that I'm new here in this forum and have spent the past few days reading through as many of the threads as possible. It's a great site with many knowledgeable and generous bassists and luthiers offering up their services for all to read. I look forward to interacting and learning while being here.
I will say that I am kind of shocked to learn about all of the feuds and animosity between folks here and over at TBDB. I don't know the whole story, and quite frankly, i don't care. I'm here to learn and to interact with my fellow bassists and I'm staying out of that stuff.
Anyway, not to beat a dead horse or bring up any bad feelings, but I thought I'd give my opinion, for what it's worth, on the whole affordable plywood and hybrid basses out there today subject. Whether it's a New Standard, one of the fine looking Romanian or Chinese basses Ken Smith has to offer, an Upton or any other cheap (5K and under) bass, the choices today for bass players in this market are staggering. The quality, sound and playability of all of these basses, from what I have both seen in person and read about is so much higher than what I had to start out with when I was first learning. When I was first starting, there just weren't these kinds of options, at least that I was aware of. You simply went with whatever the local shop had to offer in your price range, which is more like settling for a poorly set up piece of junk than choosing an instrument. We should all be glad that aspiring bassists can so easily get their hands on a well setup, decent sounding, entry level bass to start learning. Bravo to all of the fine luthiers and shops doing their best to get good basses into the hands of players!
For full disclosure, I own an Upton Hawkes Laminate and for what it is, it's great and I've been very pleased with it. It's my main axe on the road and does the job wonderfully for the kind of music I play. Would I take it to audition for the symphony? Probably not. I don't think anyone is suggesting that. I was in the market for a plywood bass for the road and I checked out a bunch of basses and in my price range and within a reasonable drive form where I live, it was the best option for me. I personally wouldn't buy a bass sight unseen and have it shipped, but I'm also lucky to be on the east coast, a short drive from some great shops. Upton is not the only choice and as you say, Ken, the New Standards are a "different breed" but that comes with a price, and I wasn't in the market to drop 5K at the time. I was in the market to spend 2K and the Upton was the one I liked best after playing a bunch of basses.
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One thing that used to bother me personally over on TB was all this excitement and bragging about these great plywood and Hybrid Basses with Upton included in the mix. I rarely got a fraction of the excitement introducing a Dodd, Gilkes, Prescott or other great REAL handmade classic of what we saw when the new Home Depot Hybrid hit the store shelves.
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In regards to this comment, I think it only makes sense that these low cost plys and hybrids attract so much attention. Most players, myself included, can only dream of getting a chance to play on, let alone own a master quality bass like the ones you own and sell, Ken. You are clearly a perfectionist and connoisseur and the world needs people with your experience, knowledge and skill both as a player and as a luthier and shop owner. However, the truth is that you are passionate about a class of bass that only really affects a small fraction of the bassist out there. What am I going to say about those basses that you or others with a knowledge base and experience to match yours haven't already said? Most of us simply drool over the pictures, read what you have to say about the basses to learn a bit and move on. You are driving and selling Ferraris and most of us are in the market for an affordable and reliable Honda.
Now, with low cost, instruments, a lot more people have played them and even if they haven't, people feel more comfortable joining the conversation without feeling dumb or inferior. That's what these forums are for, right? to get everyone talking and offering up opinions so we can all learn more.
Plus, it's fun to be excited about an instrument that one actually has a chance of owning.
Anyway, just my two cents. Glad to be here.
Corey