Beyond Specs: Why Classics Win
Specs don’t crown greatness. Classics endure because mastery and soul outlast convenience: Vespa, iPhone, Fender, and the double bass prove it.
Question of Choices
Comparing objects with pure reason is like measuring a perfume with a ruler. On paper, some things shouldn’t win: they offer fewer features, less apparent “value”… and yet we end up choosing them the moment we hold them. A scooter is practical, but a ride on a Vespa is a dream. I use an iPhone every day and keep choosing it without even checking what the competition offers. I’ve seen gorgeous, feature-packed basses; and still my fingers land on a Fender.
It’s no accident that many great musicians and bassists chose a Fender over something else: that timeless design made history—creating not only a family of instruments, Precision or Jazz, but entire categories of sound that are still used today. Some objects made history, others are destined to make it: think of the Levi’s 501. To withstand time and win challenge after challenge, they carry something indecipherable that doesn’t fit into utility or specs. Their true “function” might be ethereal: the quiet joy of simply having them, more than how we use them.
Why Usefulness Doesn’t Tell the Whole Story
Usefulness reassures; it rarely moves us. A spec sheet can list speed, battery life, gigabytes—it can’t whisper the promise an object makes when we choose it, the company it will keep us over time. The Vespa isn’t just a vehicle, the iPhone isn’t just a phone: they are ways of living.
And among basses, in front of a thousand options, I end up with the oldest question in the room: Precision or Jazz? Not because I ignore the market, but because in those two names I hear how I play—and how I want to feel while I play. The best things aren’t perfect; they’re special. When we flatten everything to the same level, we stop sensing the difference—like cooking a dish poorly to kill a craving and then pretending it equals the real thing. If we don’t honor quality, the world turns flat: everything becomes the same, and nothing shines.
The Classic: the Quiet King
Call it absolute style: it doesn’t shout, it endures. It’s the quiet king you recognize at first glance and first sound. A four-string Fender won’t drown you in options; it gives you a clear voice that carries across eras and genres. And then there’s the ultimate reference: the double bass.
Alongside absolute style stands a supreme king: the timeless classic. That’s why I chose it even over a Fender: for five centuries it kept the same shape and still has so much to say. It was born already perfect; it didn’t adapt to the world—the world adapted to it. Perhaps not conceived as a solo instrument, and yet today many use it that way—myself included. With the double bass you don’t look for shortcuts: you accept real work, hours of technique, difficulty. The classic wins without explanations: it may do less, but it means more.
Katana and Double Bass: the Art of Sacrifice
If you want a picture of mastery, think of the katana. Craftsmen heat the steel, hammer with rhythm and precision, fold, purify, and polish until the grain appears. A ritual of patience: every tiny gesture builds something that lasts.
The double bass asks for the same long road—years just to hold the bow naturally; then intonation, positions, string crossings, the weight of sound. Early results come slower than with other instruments. People still choose it because they truly love it—choosing depth over convenience. An outsider might say, “A simpler tool would get you there faster.” Maybe it would cut, but it wouldn’t tell a story. Mastery isn’t the fast path; it’s the path that gives meaning. That’s why classics—Vespa, iPhone, Fender, and above all the double bass—aren’t “perfect”: they’re full of soul.
Closing
We don’t choose to win a comparison; we choose to belong. Some things endure precisely because they do less and count more. Choose your objects with love and feeling: it won’t be the price tag or the spec sheet that makes them special, but the joy of having them by your side today, tomorrow, every time you need them.
If you enjoyed this piece and felt good in our company, come back for another story, another groove.
JDB
Share the jazz vibe. Every click connects hearts.
A piece of history at your fingertips
View on Amazon USA
Published on: September 27, 2025
This article has been read 357 times.
Comments
Drop your line, feel the groove, and join the rhythm!
Login to leave a comment.