Boogies from China

[vermillion]

Quoting myself: "It shouldn't even have the Mesa name on it, it would be styled similar but branded "Petaluma" or something. (couldn't call them Randall, hehehe)"

Some brands have been able to successfully create a dual identity (for the most part) Fender/Squier, Gibson/Epiphone, PRS/SE

The Ned Steinberger electric upright bass product line even has three tiers, USA/Czech Republic/China

Years ago, cars from Japan were considered inferior and today companies like toyota and honda are selling well and have good reputations.

So, what about Mesa creating a brand extension? (It wouldn't be named "Mesa/Boogie")

 

[Fixxer6671]

To do something in China and market it as MESA would cheapen the brand and get away from what this company set out to do.

If MESA went the gibson route and started an over seas amp line, that would suck equally. Also some jackass would probably say, the overseas brand is just as good as the US brand. Wither way, Mesa canibalizes their own business.

Although given the used market, I wonder how much Mesa is losing by not having an amp in that price range?

Honestly, part of the allure from me is that MESA is made the old fashioned way, the same way fenders and gibsons are.

 

[Mountain Fever]

My other costly 'hobby' is good quality stereo equipment. This started back when I was in high school and my uncle who was in the Merchant Marine brought me back a Sansui receiver from Japan. It was so clean and pure it was to die for. Kenwood was another top brand later followed by Yamaha and Marantz.

They all decided that they would make the leap from high quality to mass market appeal. Everything plummeted...the price, the qaulity...even the weight of the piece due to using cheap components. The last straw was seeing a Sansui Amp at Costco for under $100....total POS!

Many of these companies have essentially had to buy back their good name. Marantz has probably come back the furthest and Yamaha close behind. Many others have become irrelavant or gone out of business.

It would be hard to understand why Mesa would ever make that kind of choice. Only greed could cause someone to sell out. They compete directly against only a small handful of true competitors and most of us seem quite willing to pay something close to top dollar for something close to best quality.

Why would anyone want to change that equasion?

 

[CoG]

So, what about Mesa creating a brand extension? (It wouldn't be named "Mesa/Boogie")

I don't know if that would work out very well for them. The Mesa name doesn't really mean that much to non-players, who are the people who buy bargain-priced new gear. And the "budget" amp market is getting pretty **** crowded these days.

For me, like I said, I would rather buy an amp from a Chinese company than an American company that's just using Chinese labour.

The only "budget" Mesa I could see myself buying is if they made, like, some kind of little single-channel, 4-knob, 5-watt 1x10, like a Mark I Jr. US-made, of course, preferably in a cool cabinet...

 

[Rocky]

So, what about Mesa creating a brand extension? (It wouldn't be named "Mesa/Boogie")

they could call them Besa/Moogie

 

[dennq45]

Arent there enough cheap amps on the market already?

And when all the good paying jobs leave the country because everybody wants cheap, no-one will buy domestic products and we can all have a job working for minimum wage!

"Gee my kids cant find a good paying job" I hear it all the time. Think about it. Your money exits the country when you buy foreign goods...
Some people dont know what side their bread is buttered on.

How many Mesa's are the Chinese buying?

 

[PreventThis]

I would not buy a Mesa if it was manufactured in China. Here in America enought companys have gone to China and we constantly are losing jobs here. I bought my Mesa partly because they arent mass produced like pretty much every other amp company. The other reason I bought it was because the quality of these things compared to other amps just completely blows others away. So having Mesa build amps in China would obviously drop the cost but along with that you would also drop the quality significantly, and they would no longer be one of the more rare amps on the market. Thats my 2 cents.

 

[MetalMatt]

Mesa's built it in China is a move backwards not forward. Plus the Mesa warranty probably wouldn't be the same, remember those 30 day warrantees. I'm more than happy to lay down a huge chunk of my hard earned money so It can go back into the pockets of Americans that worked hard to hand build a product I love.

 

[ThunderMonkey]

OH Hay-ELL NO ! :twisted: I could write several long paragraphs about why that wouldn't/won't happen and be more eloquent with my response but my .02..... simply .... NO !

 

[Matterra]

No way in hell. Half of my decision on going with Boogie over a VHT was quality control and customer service (the other half being versatility/longevity). Now I know both Boogie and VHT are made in the US, but it just goes to show you how much someone can care about quality. I know I wouldn't consider a Chinese Boogie a "true" Boogie.

I also always think about the jobs issue. I always read about guys who learned a great deal from cool jobs working in factories, but now, all those jobs are outsourced to China, Korea, Indonesia, etc. Its really really sad, but statistics show that, at the current rate, the only jobs that will be readily available in ten or so years will be in the fast-food and nursing industries.

It really sucks.

However: I'm currently debating between a Japanese Ibanez or a USA Jackson, and I have to say, the Japanese Ibanez is looking really really tempting... mostly due to the price. (Especially considering I am only 15, and have no real job yet)

Its really a tough battle when talking broadly, but when it comes to gear at the level of Boogie, its a simple answer of "no".

Also: Mesa/Boogie does have a huge amount of prestige that goes along with their products. Everyone in my Jazz band were awed, before I even set up, and my Mark IV and Stilleto 2x12 were still under the covers.

 

[user 6002]

No way. Mesa/Boogie has a reputation of being a kick-*** ALL USA, ALL handmade Amp company; it shouldn't be dirtied with anything less.

 

[Mr_You]

:twisted: :evil: :twisted: :evil: :twisted: :evil:
DIE THREAD DIE!!!
:twisted: :evil: :twisted: :evil: :twisted: :evil:

 

[Machine Gun]

:lol:

 

[goneloco]

"made in china"hell they'd probaly be made better,no popping or anything