Seduced by a Bargain

Everybody likes a good deal. In the world of musical equipment and instruments, sometimes a bargain price makes it possible to afford a type of item that would otherwise be out of reach. It’s also satisfying to feel like you did well price wise — it seems like you’re beating the system — even if that’s frequently an illusion. But often, in our quest for a good deal, we end up with something that’s only of average quality (or worse), and we soon we wish we hadn’t bought it.

Almost without exception, I’ve never regretted waiting until I could afford a quality product or instrument, Whether it’s guitar, a computer, or an audio interface, there are usually good reasons why an item costs more. Sometimes we try to convince ourselves that it doesn’t matter if the mic preamps and converters on that interface are only of average quality, or that that acoustic guitar has a laminated top instead of a solid one — “they’ll still sound pretty good,” we rationalize. But after we’ve made the purchase, we realize that we were fooling ourselves.

That’s not to say that one shouldn’t look for products that offer both quality and low price, because sometimes you can find them. A case in point are two classic Shure mics, the SM58 and the SM57. These mics have remained industry standards for decades, thanks to solid build quality and great sound, yet both only cost a little over $100. Yes, you can find higher-end mics to use for live vocals instead of a 58, or for miking guitar cabinets and snare drums instead of a 57. But the Shure mics’ ubiquitous use by professionals worldwide is a good indication that you’ll never regret buying them.

The flip side of that — to continue with the mic example — is that if you try to go the bargain route for a vocal condenser microphone, you may very well end up disappointed down the road. When you’re getting only mediocre results, you may realize that if you’d waited, saved more money and eventually gotten a quality mic such as an AKG C-414 or Mojave Audio MA-300 or something equivalent, it would have been the wiser choice.

I realize that the money issue is one that can’t be ignored. If faced with buying something passable that you have an immediate need for, or waiting to save for a better one, sometimes you have to go for the lower-priced item out of necessity. I’m also not encouraging anyone to go into serious debt in order to get a better piece of gear. My point is simply that if you can hold out for quality, you’ll rarely go wrong.

It took me a long time to learn that lesson. I had many occasions in the past where I was seduced by the “bargain” aspect of something and later regretted it. How about you?