Pricing focus grouping - my thoughts and your views needed

dougk said:
Just to be clear though, there's absolutely no way I could ever build a stripped down Arcturus with a Mastery for 1900. The mastery costs ME 350 bucks. That's just not in the realm of possibilities especially when you consider another 400 just in pickups and a case... they add up fast.
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To me ditching the MONO and Wolftones would make it worthwhile. I'd rather have a Mastery with Duncans or even a really good OEM pac rim pickup (such as Reverend's P90s which I freakin' love.) A better case or a pickup switch is something the buyer can handle down the road, but not necessarily a bridge install.

Again, I know you said you can't do it. I'm telling you what I want out of a Kauer and what I'm willing to pay for it. That's what you asked for.
 
I am a working pro, here's my perspective:

- Mono bag is superfluous, I've already got that. Cheaper case/bag is fine, because I'm likely not using it anyway

- Decent pickups are a must. "Duncan designed" would be a deal-breaker for me. I don't need TV Jones or Lollars -- let those set your custom guitars apart from the budget version -- but real-deal Duncan's or DiMarzio's are necessary at that price.
 
I do not have a lot of business smarts, but I would think that there is way more competition moving down in price. Companies with deeper pockets who can produce a lot of guitars in the $900 - $1500 price range easily. They may not be as good as yours would be, but it seems like everyone is in that price range in one way or another, and some do it quite well.

I also agree that cheaper pickups are no the way to go. One of my pet peeves in that price range is the inferior pickups. I do not want to have to buy a nice guitar and then drop another $200.00 on better pickups right away.
 
Kerouac said:
To me ditching the MONO and Wolftones would make it worthwhile. I'd rather have a Mastery with Duncans or even a really good OEM pac rim pickup (such as Reverend's P90s which I freakin' love.) A better case or a pickup switch is something the buyer can handle down the road, but not necessarily a bridge install.

Again, I know you said you can't do it. I'm telling you what I want out of a Kauer and what I'm willing to pay for it. That's what you asked for.
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Duly noted and again, ditching the Mono and Wolfe/Lollar/TV Jones is not enough to get it where you want. The problem is the 350 dollar Mastery. (And no, I DONT get a break on them). I wish I could hit that price but I can't.

Psychotronic said:
I am a working pro, here's my perspective:

- Mono bag is superfluous, I've already got that. Cheaper case/bag is fine, because I'm likely not using it anyway

- Decent pickups are a must. "Duncan designed" would be a deal-breaker for me. I don't need TV Jones or Lollars -- let those set your custom guitars apart from the budget version -- but real-deal Duncan's or DiMarzio's are necessary at that price.
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That's pretty much my thoughts too.
 
dougk said:
Duly noted and again, ditching the Mono and Wolfe/Lollar/TV Jones is not enough to get it where you want. The problem is the 350 dollar Mastery. (And no, I DONT get a break on them). I wish I could hit that price but I can't.
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And that's why if I get a Kauer it will inevitably be a used one. :shrug:
 
IamSeaDevil said:
So basically someone needs to build a less expensive mastery
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I was literally just talking to Dennis Fano an hour ago on the phone about this and there are some options, but they aren't as good. You want a mastery, you pay for a mastery. I don't want to deal with something half as good so that's our only option. Kind of sums up this entire thread really LOL
 
How much would it cost to build something with a slab body, bolt-on neck, thin satin finish, oil finish neck (Birchwood-Casey Tru Oil?), and a bridge that's a hardtail Strat, Strat trem, Tele ashtray, or Tele half-plate?

Oh, as far as Duncans go... Have you ever talked with Evan Skopp? If not, let me know.
 
GilmourD said:
How much would it cost to build something with a slab body, bolt-on neck, thin satin finish, oil finish neck (Birchwood-Casey Tru Oil?), and a bridge that's a hardtail Strat, Strat trem, Tele ashtray, or Tele half-plate?

Oh, as far as Duncans go... Have you ever talked with Evan Skopp? If not, let me know.
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you're basically describing what / if we do / we would build :wink:
 
Sorry Doug, but you've got to ditch the Mastery bridge. I know you want it, but it's not going to get you the results you want.

dougk said:
I was literally just talking to Dennis Fano an hour ago on the phone about this and there are some options, but they aren't as good. You want a mastery, you pay for a mastery. I don't want to deal with something half as good so that's our only option. Kind of sums up this entire thread really LOL
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dougk said:
Just to be clear though, there's absolutely no way I could ever build a stripped down Arcturus with a Mastery for 1900. The mastery costs ME 350 bucks. That's just not in the realm of possibilities especially when you consider another 400 just in pickups and a case... the cost adds up fast.
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I wouldn't mind if you found an alternative JM style bridge/vibrato that I could later upgrade to a Mastery. I love mine but they are expensive. I have no problem buying a guitar with lesser quality hardware or pickups and then upgrading down the road.
 
Directly competing with Gibson and Fender in the $900-1,500 seems like asking for failure. Even if you offer a much better guitar for that price, the average consumer wants Gibson and Fender and little else. Otherwise, you have to offer something they don't...which already covered by the Ibanez, Jackson, etc. crowd...and those companies also price things out to have something at every price level.

Look at the used market. Most used guitar stores refuse to carry more than one used PRS at a time, let alone any other "third brand?" Why...because they sit on the wall for 9+ months while Fenders and Gibsons sell multiples a week.
 
telecaster911 said:
Keep the mastery. Lose the overhead. :thu: go to one CNC and a small shop. Own the building and lease it back to Kauer Guitars.
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Not going to move. Moving cost infinity more than staying.

Even if we could do a JM trem cheap, I don't want to for the budget line. They also require tons more work to setup.
 
End of the day you are looking to grab marketshare in an ever shrinking market owned by 2 or 3 name brands that have their fingers in each price range.
Then you have the vintage guys who will pay for the right name even if the QA is terrible.

I do wonder if trying to go downmarket is worth the effort. Esp if the cost is quality. Sounds like a lose/lose situation.

You make a damn fine guitar. Maybe, for what you are offering, the prices have to go up?
 
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