Larsongs wrote: ↑Wed Jan 03, 2018 4:00 pm
I'm not so sure any Fender not built in the USA should have the Fender logo on it.
You may be right, but for better or worse that horse left the barn a long, long time ago.
Larsongs wrote: ↑Wed Jan 03, 2018 4:00 pm
rather than downgrade the Fender name, make better Squiers & elevate Squiers' reputation. That said, there are some good Squiers. Especially the CV Series.
I think it makes sense to have different price/quality tiers- if a $200 Squier was as good as a $1500 Fender, you'd be undercutting your marquee product. That said, I agree that Fender has room for improvement on the QC front.
Larsongs wrote: ↑Wed Jan 03, 2018 4:00 pm
Regarding Gibson & Epiphone....I don't know anyone who's ashamed of their Epiphone Elitist Casino's & many of their other Guitars. They don't need or want the Gibson logo. Everybody knows they make great Guitars.
Epiphone was an established brand with their own product line when Gibson bought them though, and Epiphone continued to have their own unique products- there never was a Gibson Casino. Although they're now known for making Gibson copies in China, that earlier history is still a part of the Epiphone legacy. Squier doesn't have that, from the beginning their instruments were offshore Fender copies... sometimes great ones, but they were still always a sub-brand of Fender.
Larsongs wrote: ↑Wed Jan 03, 2018 4:00 pm
Putting the Fender logo on sub quality Guitars does nothing to improve Fenders' name & reputation. Sub Par QC already affects Fender & Squiers bottom line & has potential buyers already looking elsewhere. Like G&L or Boutique.... Quality counts.
The Fender logo still has a LOT of market value though. I do think G&L makes a better product at the same price points, but nobody grows up with posters on their wall of rock gods playing G&Ls. I sometimes wonder what Jimi would have played in the '80s.
Larsongs wrote: ↑Wed Jan 03, 2018 4:00 pm
Customers shouldn't have to rebuild a new Guitar. IMO that's a huge negative with many Squiers.
I think that's an exaggeration. You may WANT to rebuild a Squier to suit your preferences, but even a $99 Bullet is a playable instrument after the initial setup that all factory-fresh guitars need. Not as nice as a $1500 Fender, but playable at least.
Larsongs wrote: ↑Wed Jan 03, 2018 4:00 pm
If Fender wants to sell more Fender Guitars......build better Guitars & give Customers what they want at reasonable prices.
That's exactly why Fender started making instruments outside the US to begin with- to be able to offer products at lower price tiers. QC is always going to be an issue in the price/quality matrix- a $99 Bullet is going to have a lot less attention paid to it than a $1K Classic Series Jazzmaster.