3rd Batch colours/colors

[vracula]

purple looks great ! Gold on so-cal is not bad too but I really don't like slime green

[JHo66]

I just purchased a Candy Green So Cal for about $850 and thought that was a little high for what it is. $1100 is WAY too much for a solid color, bolt neck guitar with cheap(ish) hardware and no case.

It IS a nice guitar, but not for $1000 or more. Should be around $750-800 as it is spec'd.

Just my .02, YMMV.

[Newc]

Well, MSRP is always on the high side. It's basically considered "the most you can charge for it without being considered robbery".

And since goods and services are priced according to the average wealth of a given area, you may find them more expensive in say L.A. than in the midwest, because of the average income difference. Therefore, MSRP allows the "rich" areas to price things higher yet leave room for "not as rich" areas to offer the same relative affordability.

[JHo66]

But is that price MSRP?

Sweetwater has them listed at $999 and has the MSRP listed at $1199, so I was under the assumption that the $999 (now $1099) was MAP and not MSRP.

No one charges/pays MSRP any more do they? It seems to me MSRP has just become an inflated figure to use when making people feel like they're getting a 'deal' when they pay MAP (which is essentially the new MSRP as far as I can tell).

[Ayrton]

I thought the guitar was a bit steep at $999 (considering the trem and lack of case).

[srommes]

I think Charvel might get a little reality check with this batch if everyone is going to actually charge $1100 for them. Alot of people were buying these on ebay using the Microsoft live.com 25%-30% back and getting these for $800 new. Now, with the price increase and the Microsoft live.com holding steady at 8% the largest discount will be $88 putting these at $1012. I may be wrong but I wouldn't be surprised if this affects sales noticeably.

[Newc]

But is that price MSRP?

Sweetwater has them listed at $999 and has the MSRP listed at $1199, so I was under the assumption that the $999 (now $1099) was MAP and not MSRP.

No one charges/pays MSRP any more do they? It seems to me MSRP has just become an inflated figure to use when making people feel like they're getting a 'deal' when they pay MAP (which is essentially the new MSRP as far as I can tell).

MAP is Minimum Advertised Price. From what I can tell, Charvel are treating it the same as MSRP. At least most dealer are. Some dealers were actually advertising the first batch for over $1000.

[Newc]

I think Charvel might get a little reality check with this batch if everyone is going to actually charge $1100 for them. Alot of people were buying these on ebay using the Microsoft live.com 25%-30% back and getting these for $800 new. Now, with the price increase and the Microsoft live.com holding steady at 8% the largest discount will be $88 putting these at $1012. I may be wrong but I wouldn't be surprised if this affects sales noticeably.

The higher price might also just be for the new colors, with the black still at $999. It does seem like a fair trade - limited colors for a slight upcharge, but again we run across the issue of $100 increase every year, or with every new batch.

[JHo66]

MAP is Minimum Advertised Price. From what I can tell, Charvel are treating it the same as MSRP. At least most dealer are. Some dealers were actually advertising the first batch for over $1000.

I know what MAP is, what I'm trying to determine is whether the $999 (now $1099) is actually supposed to be MAP or MSRP.

When I first saw the $999 figure I assumed that was MSRP since that is usually what is advertised by the manufacturer. But when they first came out I was being quoted $950 and up, which is way too high if MSRP was actually $999. Then when Sweetwater got some in they had a price of $1199 listed as MSRP with the sale price at $999 which led me to believe $1199 was MSRP and $999 was actually MAP.

If $999 was actually MSRP then these would be priced about right with the usual 20-30% off drop from MSRP to MAP. They would be about $700-800.

But like I said before, if the dealers and/or Charvel are treating $999 or more as the actual sale price, these are way overpriced for what they are...

[joelayres]

I know what MAP is, what I'm trying to determine is whether the $999 (now $1099) is actually supposed to be MAP or MSRP.

When I first saw the $999 figure I assumed that was MSRP since that is usually what is advertised by the manufacturer. But when they first came out I was being quoted $950 and up, which is way too high if MSRP was actually $999. Then when Sweetwater got some in they had a price of $1199 listed as MSRP with the sale price at $999 which led me to believe $1199 was MSRP and $999 was actually MAP.

This is the kind of bullshit that pisses me off.
They play fuggin games with this price and that price and try to convince you that you are getting a good deal.

These things are indeed good guitars, but adding the extra hundred bucks makes them much less attractive. My local dealer is currently selling the black Tele's (Style 2 2H) for 799 and includes a Fender/SKB hardshell case in the deal. Black SoCal's and Style 1 2H's are 899 with a case and the colors are 999 with a case. This tells me that if he can afford to sell the black teles for 799 with a hard case, actual dealer cost for these is 500 or less.

In addition, out of the box these things all need a proper fret dress and setup - so add 50 or 60 bucks to the price for your total cost because every one that I've played from a dealer is set up like shit, but a proper fret dress and setup makes these into good players.

[Flatpicker]

The higher price might also just be for the new colors, with the black still at $999. It does seem like a fair trade - limited colors for a slight upcharge, but again we run across the issue of $100 increase every year, or with every new batch.

It may be every year because there was no price change from batch 1 and 2.
I don't see what the big deal is about $100? It seems that the people here screaming about the price increase weren't going to buy at the lower price anyway.

[joelayres]

It may be every year because there was no price change from batch 1 and 2.
I don't see what the big deal is about $100? It seems that the people here screaming about the price increase weren't going to buy at the lower price anyway.

Sorry, dude, but you are making assumptions - I own 2 of them - a SoCal and a Tele, and will not be buying more if they persist with this bullshit. Even 999 is on the high side - 800 - 850 is where they should be. I say this because as I mentioned in my earlier post, while these are indeed good guitars they all need a proper fret dress and setup to reach their potential. Setup from the factory is really bad. Don't believe me, try this experiment - go play a production model at the dealer and pay close attention to the frets and setup, then walk across the store and play a USA Strat or Tele which is selling for the same price of 999 and includes a hard case. Gauranteed you will see much better attention to detail on the Strat and Tele than the Charvels.

Sad thing is, a good guitar tech can level the frets and have the guitar in perfect order in a half hour or less. Even if Fender are paying their final assembly people 50 bucks an hour (which is highly unlikely), it would cost them all of 25 extra bucks to deliver a guitar that rocks out of the box.

In a good economy, the price increase would still be considered high at 10%, (5-7% would be acceptable) but in a bad economy the smart thing to do would be to at least hold the price steady.

[Flatpicker]

Sorry, dude, but you are making assumptions - I own 2 of them - a SoCal and a Tele, and will not be buying more if they persist with this bullshit. Even 999 is on the high side - 800 - 850 is where they should be. I say this because as I mentioned in my earlier post, while these are indeed good guitars they all need a proper fret dress and setup to reach their potential. Setup from the factory is really bad. Don't believe me, try this experiment - go play a production model at the dealer and pay close attention to the frets and setup, then walk across the store and play a USA Strat or Tele which is selling for the same price of 999 and includes a hard case. Gauranteed you will see much better attention to detail on the Strat and Tele than the Charvels.

Sad thing is, a good guitar tech can level the frets and have the guitar in perfect order in a half hour or less. Even if Fender are paying their final assembly people 50 bucks an hour (which is highly unlikely), it would cost them all of 25 extra bucks to deliver a guitar that rocks out of the box.

In a good economy, the price increase would still be considered high at 10%, (5-7% would be acceptable) but in a bad economy the smart thing to do would be to at least hold the price steady.

Yeah, I'm making assumptions.
You kind of have to on a msg board. It's not so much you as people who go off the handle with any price increase. My look at it is, that's the price take it or leave it. no skin of my ass either way. They don't sell, FMIC will change the policy.
Do we know if american std strats are going up 100 also? Could be an across the board increase...

[joelayres]

A price increase MAY have made perfect sense if the economy were in a better spot, but what is a more likely scenario is that sales will fall off and instead of coming to their senses they will instead discontinue them. A price increase could even be substantiated by the addition of a hard case OR even upgrading to a German made Floyd - the dollar has gained enough against the Euro that there is now probably little to no difference in actual cost between the German and Korean versions.

Corporate America - gotta love it.

[arbiter]

The SoCal I had sounded great and I liked the guitar and all but it had a warped neck. When I bought it, the only other one left was the no pickguard strat model... when I returned it, all of the other ones were back and were being sold as used.
$50 would be nowhere near enough cash to fix that thing... more like $300, for a new neck. Even still, because of where these things are made, the price is never going down, which is ridiculous because a guitar made in USA - where labor is more expensive - will have more corners cut on it than the same guitar made in Japan would.. and since the Japanese workers can devote more time to the guitar for the same price, their guitars are better.

USA > Japan is all hype.. I'd rather see them move this line to Japan, keep the same price, and watch the wood quality & QC improve.

Sorry, dude, but you are making assumptions - I own 2 of them - a SoCal and a Tele, and will not be buying more if they persist with this bullshit. Even 999 is on the high side - 800 - 850 is where they should be. I say this because as I mentioned in my earlier post, while these are indeed good guitars they all need a proper fret dress and setup to reach their potential. Setup from the factory is really bad. Don't believe me, try this experiment - go play a production model at the dealer and pay close attention to the frets and setup, then walk across the store and play a USA Strat or Tele which is selling for the same price of 999 and includes a hard case. Gauranteed you will see much better attention to detail on the Strat and Tele than the Charvels.

Sad thing is, a good guitar tech can level the frets and have the guitar in perfect order in a half hour or less. Even if Fender are paying their final assembly people 50 bucks an hour (which is highly unlikely), it would cost them all of 25 extra bucks to deliver a guitar that rocks out of the box.

In a good economy, the price increase would still be considered high at 10%, (5-7% would be acceptable) but in a bad economy the smart thing to do would be to at least hold the price steady.