Showcase prices

ironfist

Junior Member
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Has anyone noticed that many Showcase items aren't discounted at all?  I'm not complaining since Warmoth can charge whatever they like, but it seems a little strange.  Even Carvin discounts their guitars in stock to a certain degree.  I'm in the market for a Deluxe V neck with a standard 5 inline peghead, and since I'm still pondering what I want and have no timeframe on my build, I check the showcase every week.  Right now there's a simple maple/rosewood neck on there for $179, the exact same price you'd get it for if you just called up and had them make it from scratch.  I've noticed this with other pieces as well, although many other items are still discounted of course. 
 
They make some discounts, but usually on exotic/experimental stuff... As the price on "simple" stuff is quite low (as this neck you've said) and than don't have discount, but you can see the wood and ships WAY more fast than a custom order...

Discounts always are nice ( :icon_biggrin:), but I don't think Warmoth is going to do much more than already do...
 
well, the flip side to that is you can see what you're getting, a luxury you wouldn't normally get when doing a custom order, in addition to getting it quicker than a custom order. I don't necessarily see a reason they need to discount what is the same quality items as their normal custom order stuff, only available quicker and with a preview.
 
Okay, that make sense.  I see that they do discount some stuff, especially if it has some weird grain or knots or the the like, or if it's a strange one-off.

Doggone it, I still can't decide what kind of neck I want!  I'm thinking Goncalo Alves, but what for a fretboard... pau ferro?
 
The main thing that they discount is solid-finished strat and tele bodies; they must have a 'cheap body' day where the paint shop cranks through a bunch of 3-piece bodies with ugly grain. As for the rest of it, I've come to the conclusion that these guys are the best value out there already. All the competitors (stew mac etc) selling cheaper product don't even let you see it at all; they treat their product like it's totally interchangeable.
 
Another advantage to showcase pieces, is that it will be in your hands a lot quicker than if you custom ordered it.
 
Im so anxious about doing "custom order" on a product I can't see. So I'm your typical "showcase-only" buyer. Bless the showcase  :hello2:

There may be more people like me, explaining why there is no real discount on the showcase items

+1 to shipping time
+1 to "see before buying"
 
po_0784 said:
Im so anxious about doing "custom order" on a product I can't see. So I'm your typical "showcase-only" buyer. Bless the showcase  :hello2:

There may be more people like me, explaining why there is no real discount on the showcase items

I'm like you.  I'd love to do some finishing myself and be able to say I did it, but frankly I'm not ready to take that plunge (time, patience, money or room in my house to do so) so I would buy pre-finished, and like you, I like to see it first.
 
Yeah, I didn't think about the delivery time and being able to see before you buy.  Now that I think about it, that's a huge factor and probably helps boost sales.  I wonder if that's why Warmoth changed the name from the "thrift shop" to Showcase.  The old thrift shop had more seconds and unpaid custom orders (if I remember correctly it even said that in the thrift shop intro), whereas the Showcase is just more regular in stock items.  Still, every once in a while an odd custom order will make it to the Showcase, like those hetfield guitar necks awhile back.

I wonder why my Deluxe V P-bass body was so cheap.  It's straight 2-piece alder with no grain abnormalities whatsoever, but it was cheaper than a straight made-to-order.  Perhaps it sat in inventory for a long time, hence the lower price.

Just found this older, related thread: http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=4153.0
 
Yeah I think when stuff sits for a while they lower the price. I got my black korina dinky J body at a big discount, and I still don't know why...
 
though it seemingly defies logic, I still think things in the showcase should be discounted

it's just not the same as paying the money and getting exactly what you want from scratch

sorry if I'm stupid

but I always thought that the prices were the only credit to the showcase

now i find there is simply no difference in price, and it loses most of it's cool factor in my eyes



but i do not in any way intend to insult the company that I consider to be the savior of guitarists and bassists around the world

showcase issues or not- they ARE the best
 
imminentG said:
though it seemingly defies logic, I still think things in the showcase should be discounted
it's just not the same as paying the money and getting exactly what you want from scratch
sorry if I'm stupid
but I always thought that the prices were the only credit to the showcase
now i find there is simply no difference in price, and it loses most of it's cool factor in my eyes
but i do not in any way intend to insult the company that I consider to be the savior of guitarists and bassists around the world
showcase issues or not- they ARE the best

I don't understand what you are bitching about. Showcase pricing runs the gamut from $129 to well over a grand. When you custom order, it is more of a crap shoot, as you don't know what you're getting until the box shows up. If monitor the Showcase, things that do not move DO get marked down sometimes if they sit long enough, or even go to the smoking hot deals page where you often pay little or nothing for the finish applied.

Warmoth cannot keep up with the current level of orders at the current pricing, why would you expect them to further discount items?
 
imminentG said:
it's just not the same as paying the money and getting exactly what you want from scratch
I disagree here, but it is more of a personal thing. The last two basses I bought from Warmoth were from the show case.
Both times I wasn't planning on a showcase body but saw them and they were exactly what I wanted, so I bought them.
The first one had a spalt maple top that I would never have bought "custom" without seeing because I love some spalts and hate some others. This one was marked up from regular cost, but looked so damn nice that I took it.
Then two weeks ago I saw another body that was super cheap, and it was freaking beautiful so I grabbed it up and now am holding on to it until I can afford the rest.
Both times I was very happy, and couldn't have gotten either from scratch, as I would have had to pay full price for the second one which I couldn't afford.
 
I think that there are an incredible amount of people who "moniter the showcase", and the stuff that is discounted goes really fast.  Blink and ya miss it.  Both bodies and both necks I have purchased were showcase items because I am a lot like my kids in one respect....I WANT IT NOW!!!  I'm willing to pay for that.
 
jackthehack said:
Warmoth cannot keep up with the current level of orders at the current pricing, why would you expect them to further discount items?

That's a good point.  I was wondering if Warmoth was unable to keep up with order volume, therefore extending turnaround time.  Fortunately for the consumer, they haven't pulled a Rickenbacker and decided to deal with excess demand and production lags by introducing hefty price increases.  When you're a business in a position like that, you can try to keep up with the flow as best you can, you can increase production capacity to keep up with demand, or you can increase price to slow demand to a more manageable level.

Again, I think that's why the thrift shop morphed into the showcase.  The words "thrift shop" aren't really connotative of what the showcase offers.
 
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