Just an observation: Since the recession kicked in in 2008, it's very noticeable that the number of boutique gear being sold, traded around, and discussed has drastically decreased. I remember in 2006-2007, I have to wake up in the wee hours so as not to miss great deals on boutique stuff and there are a lot of them. Now, the economy is slightly recovering, I still don't see any sign that the situation will get back to where it was. I do know for a fact that a number of boutique gear owners have gone overseas, quit guitar playing, and got sidelined by their other hobbies. Are the current generation of players not so interested in gear any more or it's just that softies have burned out on boutique gear?
Boutique Gear & Soft forums
- Thread starter edgie
- Start date
superpotato_30
New member
The boutique market on soft is close to if not practical idleness otherwise known as dead.
For me, im posting here but i hope more to get buyers from overseas such as from guys on tgp,harm central, etc.
To me, what people wanna know nowadays on soft is stuff like.. oh what guitar should i get, any pickups to recommend me? I dont mean to diss anyone but look at the technical aspect on soft for at least the guitar section. Its practically dead. You ask stuff like 'where can i buy this guitar and at what price?' and you get pages of replies. You ask stuff about boutique pedals or electronics you get 0 replies or maybe a few from the same usual guys.
No boutique talk/informative talk = no interest or no idea in the current topic hence 0 replies hence you've wasted your effort and hence implying its harder to sell boutique stuff due to the lack of interest and thus this reflects that the singapore boutique market is beyond crap if i may so boldy say. Sure there are the guys out there who still value these sort of talk but how many are around?
Ive given up tryin to talk to people who think boutique gear is all fancy and a waste of money. There are of course nuances to this arguement but dont get me started on that.
This is my opinion. Dont like it so be it ( This is for potential flamers )
Oh oh and just for fun lets see how many replies this thread gets
For me, im posting here but i hope more to get buyers from overseas such as from guys on tgp,harm central, etc.
To me, what people wanna know nowadays on soft is stuff like.. oh what guitar should i get, any pickups to recommend me? I dont mean to diss anyone but look at the technical aspect on soft for at least the guitar section. Its practically dead. You ask stuff like 'where can i buy this guitar and at what price?' and you get pages of replies. You ask stuff about boutique pedals or electronics you get 0 replies or maybe a few from the same usual guys.
No boutique talk/informative talk = no interest or no idea in the current topic hence 0 replies hence you've wasted your effort and hence implying its harder to sell boutique stuff due to the lack of interest and thus this reflects that the singapore boutique market is beyond crap if i may so boldy say. Sure there are the guys out there who still value these sort of talk but how many are around?
Ive given up tryin to talk to people who think boutique gear is all fancy and a waste of money. There are of course nuances to this arguement but dont get me started on that.
This is my opinion. Dont like it so be it ( This is for potential flamers )
Oh oh and just for fun lets see how many replies this thread gets
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Cavett
New member
I find that Soft goes through phases...
There was period when there were lotsa actual playing exchanges than discussions involved among guitarists.. Softies like Dhalif, Sofyan, Chanmin, Satch, and the likes were constantly putting up tracks and stuff, even leading up to the very first online SOFT Jam...
Then there was a period when all the "pedal specialists" and "pedal enthusiast" guitarists will be postings regularly. Softies like Goose, Edder, Blueark, Ized, etc.. will be hoarding the forums in a good way talking about tone chasing with pedals, booteek or otherwise..
Rite now seems to be the age of softies asking for opinions. Like what dudelove mentioned, softies asking for "what distortion should i buy? what pickups should i get?" are sprouting up alot these days... This seems to be the new phase and I wonder what it will be next...
As for the booteek pedals thingy... I believe these softies have moved on to more playing (or other things) than spending time online in Soft I guess.. Especially now with booteek pedals being more accessible than before
There was period when there were lotsa actual playing exchanges than discussions involved among guitarists.. Softies like Dhalif, Sofyan, Chanmin, Satch, and the likes were constantly putting up tracks and stuff, even leading up to the very first online SOFT Jam...
Then there was a period when all the "pedal specialists" and "pedal enthusiast" guitarists will be postings regularly. Softies like Goose, Edder, Blueark, Ized, etc.. will be hoarding the forums in a good way talking about tone chasing with pedals, booteek or otherwise..
Rite now seems to be the age of softies asking for opinions. Like what dudelove mentioned, softies asking for "what distortion should i buy? what pickups should i get?" are sprouting up alot these days... This seems to be the new phase and I wonder what it will be next...
As for the booteek pedals thingy... I believe these softies have moved on to more playing (or other things) than spending time online in Soft I guess.. Especially now with booteek pedals being more accessible than before
the_insomniac
New member
Well, sellers who do trade in decent gear have been banned recently on the pretext of "commercial selling"..
Phil
New member
It's a new and younger generation, that's all. And younger enthusiasts are often cash-strapped. And since most are just starting out, you see the influx of questions centered on 'how to' and 'what to buy' and 'where to get'.
If I may say so myself, I have gone through the phases of gear-whoring and now know what I need and am contend with what I already have. Also, as you get older, new hobbies emerge, new responsibilities, etc, and something has to give. I guess what gave was my time spent here. I guess many other older member have the same predicament.
If I may say so myself, I have gone through the phases of gear-whoring and now know what I need and am contend with what I already have. Also, as you get older, new hobbies emerge, new responsibilities, etc, and something has to give. I guess what gave was my time spent here. I guess many other older member have the same predicament.
No worries Phil, it's not really a main priority of mine.: )
Back to the topic, you guys pretty much said what I'm feeling but hesitant to say as I may offend some, the boutique scene is just dead here. I hope it's just a temporary thing. One more thing that I think killed the boutique sales and trading in the used section is the availability of paypal services here. It made dealing at TGP a lot easier hence our predicament now.
Just a few weeks ago, I started a thread about a Skreddy Screwdriver Deluxe and I only got one reply. 3 years ago, it would have at least 5 pages of replies. I sound like a really old guy stating this. haha.
dudelove
New member
I'm fine with Soft being full of discussions that does not cater to our interests, to put it in a nicer way. But I really do hope the demand for 2nd hand boutique effects recovers. Any logical person would rather sell his pedals locally than to go through the hassle of shipping, and waiting the long wait when buying.
Btw, even in the US market for boutique effects is down. The reason why you see SO many great pedals at great prices in the emporium and no one snapping them up is because people seem to really need money..
Btw, even in the US market for boutique effects is down. The reason why you see SO many great pedals at great prices in the emporium and no one snapping them up is because people seem to really need money..
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Jumpin'Jellybean
New member
Hahah, anyone selling boutique distortions? You've one customer here. I'm looking for an upgrade over my off-the-shelf one.
dudelove
New member
Oh yeah Edgie, I remember those days... Heh. They were fun.
We all move around and settle on different stuff (like my current interest in extended range guitars)... but you should be fine if you stick to the SOFTies of the same "generation". Just like a batch in school... we just move up and around together. I speak to several guys and we just talk gear off-site.
We all move around and settle on different stuff (like my current interest in extended range guitars)... but you should be fine if you stick to the SOFTies of the same "generation". Just like a batch in school... we just move up and around together. I speak to several guys and we just talk gear off-site.
naviros
New member
Really..? I seem to sell off my pedals within a day or two... I guess it really depends on what is "hyped" during that period.
Given that there are like... truckloads of boutique drive pedals out there, consumers are literally spoilt for choice. I wouldn't be surprised if Keeley got superceded by (just an example) Wampler, or with whatever new gizmo that's up and coming. Though I must say, it is tempting when you see Keeley modded stuff selling for under 150 bucks...
Given that there are like... truckloads of boutique drive pedals out there, consumers are literally spoilt for choice. I wouldn't be surprised if Keeley got superceded by (just an example) Wampler, or with whatever new gizmo that's up and coming. Though I must say, it is tempting when you see Keeley modded stuff selling for under 150 bucks...
Godspeed64
Active member
Tell me about it. It's so hard to sell stuffs nowadays that you're better off just keeping it.
I don't think it's the economy anymore, more of the mindset and the culture. Miss the good old days. There were times where I could buy a pedal today, not like it, and sell it tomorrow without making a loss. Oh well!
Plus nowadays, I seem to notice a rise in misleading threads; AKA:
Selling _____ CHEAP! Inside: Offer your price.
Selling Keeley-modded ______! Inside: Never state it's a DIY mod and not an actual Keeley.
The worse IMO is the link within a link. I mean, can't you just repost the entire thread? Edit, Copy, Paste, Post. Simple?
And plenty of wrong classification/spelling of items.
I kinda miss not being able to talk on threads.. I wish James brought this back but with an option to allow the thread starter, aka the seller, the option of filtering the unwarranted comments on his thread.
I don't think it's the economy anymore, more of the mindset and the culture. Miss the good old days. There were times where I could buy a pedal today, not like it, and sell it tomorrow without making a loss. Oh well!
Plus nowadays, I seem to notice a rise in misleading threads; AKA:
Selling _____ CHEAP! Inside: Offer your price.
Selling Keeley-modded ______! Inside: Never state it's a DIY mod and not an actual Keeley.
The worse IMO is the link within a link. I mean, can't you just repost the entire thread? Edit, Copy, Paste, Post. Simple?
And plenty of wrong classification/spelling of items.
I kinda miss not being able to talk on threads.. I wish James brought this back but with an option to allow the thread starter, aka the seller, the option of filtering the unwarranted comments on his thread.
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loldude333
New member
I tend to agree with the phases concept, its logical. For me now i've realised that what i need is just an amp plus a guitar, plus volume pedal, nothing else. So my interest in boutique stuff is now rather dead.
keithC
New member
i kinda agree... i was kinda sucked into the whole pedal thing and used to have a ptjr totally filled with effects, a wah which i hardly used, a phaser which i almost never used.. all boutique. much later i stripped down and now im using a line6 m9, which is by far, the most i've ever gotten out of $500+
may i also add that technology has slowly decreased the need for handwired, analog, "toneful" pedals. the delay sounds i'm getting out of the m9 is nothing far from awesome!
pedals seem like a journey to me. its a path of exploring sounds, picking those you like, incorporating those you love into your style, and rejecting those you dont need. after exploring, you will filter out those you dont need. and soo the effects journey more or less ends until a revolutionary effect appears in the market again that causes major gigantic GAS to happen.
may i also add that technology has slowly decreased the need for handwired, analog, "toneful" pedals. the delay sounds i'm getting out of the m9 is nothing far from awesome!
pedals seem like a journey to me. its a path of exploring sounds, picking those you like, incorporating those you love into your style, and rejecting those you dont need. after exploring, you will filter out those you dont need. and soo the effects journey more or less ends until a revolutionary effect appears in the market again that causes major gigantic GAS to happen.
PatheinRaindropMoe
New member
hehe, there can only be so much of booteek gear talking when one realised that everything is a cycle and the same ole type of effect thats being in limelight..
but but, wheres the music da...
but but, wheres the music da...
