Creative ways to save up for a Mark V?

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Acooljt

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First of all, hello everyone. I'm new here but I've been playing for 18 years. Long ago I was actually one of the first members on the ESP forum.

Anyway, I digress. Has anyone thought of any good ways to save up for a Mesa? The Mark V combo is mainly what I'm looking at which would be almost 3k out the door. I really don't have anything to sell which would be the first obvious thing to do, maybe a couple of pedals but that wouldn't make a dent. I'm sure I'm not the first to be in this situation, what have you guys done?

P.S. I did Google this before posting but it didn't turn up much that was relevant.
 
The best advice I've ever seen for finances is PAY YOURSELF FIRST.

When most people work, they pay the bills and then keep what's left, often nothing. We all have a tendency to spend whatever we have.

My financial life got a LOT better when I put a significant, fixed amount in savings each paycheck. Then when I got to the end of the money, it was a bill that I had trouble paying. That forced me to reconsider what I had been paying for. It made me reduce my cable subscription, find a better deal on my phone plan, cancel online services I liked but didn't NEED, look for less expensive housing, save energy. Cook at home. Buy stuff used/heavily discounted. Keep ratcheting up what you save until you've really squeezed out everything you can live without.

You would be SHOCKED by how much money you can put away.

Also, getting a second job can help. Less time to spend money, plus more income.
 
Excellent idea and the thought had crossed my mind. I've done a lot of those things anyway just because I'm cheap (frugal!) but I'll start setting aside a bit of each paycheck now.

Anyone else got any help? My only item that I suppose I could let go of is my 1967 Mustang which I bought when I was 15 and restored myself so that's not something I really wanna do unless I absolutely have to. All of my organs are mostly **** so I can't really go to the black market either.
 
Some advice I got years ago......"Don't turn your cash into trash."

What's it mean?..... Don't buy; garbage products, trashy jewellery, irrelevant things because you 'want' it, and a host of other things. You'd be surprised how much money goes out the door on 'trash' stuff.

Buying lunch, coffee, tea and drinks is a killer every day. Add the total money spent for a week. $10/day lunch (sometimes more) for a 5 day week = $50. Over 40 working weeks for the year is a whopping $2000. If it's for 52 weeks it's $2080. That's just lunchtime. Now add breakfast and dinner if you go out to eat. Make one/two sandwiches for lunch plus a drink is less than $5... easy. Cook at home... easy. Breakfast... easy.

Drive a car? Shop for best insurance every year - always argue for better price! Keep tyres pumped to proper pressure every week to reduce fuel. Buy fuel at the lowest price cycle (fill up tank to full and top up every couple of days while fuel is cheap). Buy two 20 litre jerry/ fuel cans and fill when fuel is cheap; use this fuel in your car when petrol gets expensive. When petrol is expensive and you car is low on fuel, put a few litres every two days to 'carry you through' until the next lowest price cycle. Don't fill up the tank during this time. You'll go to the petrol station more often during this time when it's expensive but so what? The price will drop 'as you go'. Repeat the above when the price cycle drops to lowest price.

Service your car. New air filters are better than clogged ones. New oil is better than old oil.

Have a mobile phone? Shop for best plans every year. Call and argue for best deal; don't just jump on internet and click "I'll take this"... talk to someone and see what else they can throw in... more data? more free time? You're trying to get best value for your dollar, right?

Maybe ask if you bundle cable, mobile, house phone with one company. Sometimes you can get a better overall deal. If you ahve a partner, see if they can discount further if partner comes on board, too. You never know.

Gas, electricity.... shop every year. Argue for best price/discount. Can you bundle with one company for a better deal?

House insurance... shop every year. Argue for best price/discount. Can you bundle house and car insurance with one company for better deal?

Health insurance.... shop every year. Argue for a better deal/discount.

Buying white goods, electronics, electrical equipment, tools etc? NEVER pay the advertised price. Argue for the best deal. They can't do cheaper? Then see what they can throw in as an extra. Shop online and go to shops and say "Can you beat this?" (most will match or beat price depending on shop policy, delivery charges, etc)

I think you get the picture. ALWAYS argue for the best price / deal. Many people 'feel' embarrassed to do so but guess what, the smart ones are the ones who save money. So be smart.

And getting back to my first line..... cash into trash..... as an example, don't buy crap tools because you will buy again. Buy good / decent tools because they will be for life and cause you less angst and frustration. Cheap tools are just that, cheap garbage. You may not need 'the best tradesman' tools but buy quality where you can. Tools are for life, not just 'for now'. You'll save money and time/running costs not having 'to buy again'.

PAY OFF the highest interest debts you have first. I cannot stress this enough. Don't let VISA bills accumulate. Pay entire VISA bill on time. Pay off all debts as fast as you can. After that, any money saved is a bonus to you. Save money in a high interest account and shop around every year or every few months for the high interest accounts, however, PAY OFF debts first!

You don't need to be 'loyal' to any business or company or bank. You know why? Because they gamble on the fact you won't move because you've been with them for years.... and they will always charge you top dollar where they can. It's a business to them and they're not your 'friend'. They want what's in your wallet, they don't want you because 'you're a really top guy'.

Assess everything every year. You get older.... and when you're 60 and have 'nothing in the bank'..... then what?

And if you have a partner, get them on board, too. It's amazing how two people on the same page can make things happen. If the partner wastes money 'willy-nilly' it's time to sit, talk and actually show numbers on paper. And I mean real numbers on paper so you can see what is going on. When it's written down, it's a real eye opener.

So be smart, savvy and switched on.

By the way, you'd be mad to sell your car. Consider what 'goods' would gain in value over time.

Good luck.
-B
 
Well said my friend. One of the biggest things I need to give up is smoking. I know it's bad for you and it's crazy expensive these days. Unfortunately I have a crazy stressful job and often work 60+ hours a week so that makes it difficult. But I spend $200 a month alone on smokes. I know, I know. Haha
 
As the other guys have said, don't let your car go - You will regret it! I've let bikes go (motorbikes) in the past and regretted it.
As for the smoking really try to knock that on the head. I gave up 4 years ago for a year and life got stressful so i started up again. Quit after 6 months but with the help of an ecig. I still use it but it costs me about £8 a week - A huge saving. And most importantly (for me) my health is much improved.

Elvis hit the nail on the head, look at everything that your money is going on, there will be ways you can save cash.
I got back into guitar in a big way a year or 2 ago, and having sold pretty much all my gear i had to start from scratch.
I'm now running a mini rec, a decent big cab and a Gibson Les Paul. I've worked my way up by buying used gear at a good price and making on it when it's time to move it on.

I would love a mk v, and one day i will but it's gonna take me a while!
 
Not related to saving up money, but it is related to saving money in the long run...

When cash is a roadblock to your purchase, buy it used, don't buy it new. You can save up to nearly 50% that way most of the time on gear purchases.

Now, I'm not advocating never buying a new amp. I'm all in favor of buying new when it makes sense for you, it's a current production model, it's in your budget, you get the full factory warranty, etc. But if money is a challenge and could be the difference in owning or not owning a piece of gear, don't be afraid to buy used. I've sold some amps at considerable discounts that you'd be hard pressed to discern from one just leaving the factory. I've even sold some gear at discounts that were within my return window where I undoubtedly would have gotten more from simply returning it, but decided to pay it forward and offer a "new" amp up for a discounted price since I'm fortunate to have plenty of gear and wanted to give someone an opportunity to own one that may have been out of their reach/budget otherwise. My hope is one day they'll be in a position to do the same.
 
I'm all for used gear, about half of the guitars I've owned were used. My main amp currently is an old Carvin X-100B like Zappa and Vai used to play. But with the Boogie, it's always been a dream of mine since I began playing to go in and buy a new one. For 18 years I've dreamed of it.
 
Don't laugh, recycle : plastic bottles, aluminum cans, glass beer bottles.

I don't go out to collect these items above persa but our household do recycle and have bins in the backyard. Well, it was time to cash-in recycle goods (6 months worth), 6 garbage bags of plastic bottles (crushed, smashed), two garbage cans of beer bottles => $120 and I yet to bring in the aluminum cans.

Now if you put the effort ... of course you will be competing with the homeless dumpster diving, you could make some money.
 
RR said:
Don't laugh, recycle : plastic bottles, aluminum cans, glass beer bottles.

I don't go out to collect these items above persa but our household do recycle and have bins in the backyard. Well, it was time to cash-in recycle goods (6 months worth), 6 garbage bags of plastic bottles (crushed, smashed), two garbage cans of beer bottles => $120 and I yet to bring in the aluminum cans.

Now if you put the effort ... of course you will be competing with the homeless dumpster diving, you could make some money.

Don't forget scrap metals.... car parts, sheet roofing, plumbing pipes.... any and every piece of metal from friends / family that can add to a trailer load over time. Take to scrap yard and get some cash.

Another neat trick: loose change. Throw in a jar every day or once per week. You'd be surprised how it adds up over a year. It's a nice Christmas bonus.

Don't park where you have to pay. Park further and walk for a bit.

Turn house heating down 1 deg and wear an extra jumper / layer of clothing.

Switch electrical items off at the switch.... items on standby consume electricity. Not everything has to be on standby.

Do full load of washing. Washing machine consumes just as much with half load or full load.

Air dry clothes rather than use a clothes dryer. If it's wet outside, air dry inside on a rack (especially if house heater is on; it's 'free' drying). Your clothes may not be 'as soft' but so what... you're a man!

Hot water: Get a thermometer and check the temperature out of the taps. Can you turn down a degree or two? I think 55degC at the tap is about the limit to prevent serious scalding to young kids, however, a minimum temperature in the water tank needs to be maintained to kill bacteria. Check your local authority for the recommended temperatures in the tank and at the tap.

House insulation: Keep heat in in winter, heat out in summer. Roofs are easy to insulate, walls more difficult to insulate if house is older and windows are another killer (blinds? curtains? roller shutters? --> depends on fashion and look you want)

Water saving devices: tap outlets, shower heads. Fix leaky taps / toilets. Replace hoses / hose connections if they leak. Add a mains pressure regulator (or a pressure regulator at the hot water tank) if water pressure is too high. High water pressure can prematurely destroy water tanks and burst pipes / hoses (why replace things earlier than required if you can prevent damage?)

Some things require money / expenses 'up front' but the gains are realised 'down the track'. Usually prevention is not considered 'at the time' until things go wrong. And when they go wrong, you could be ripping plumbing pipes out of walls, as an example. This will cost a lot more than a simple pressure regulator. So consider prevention and maintenance as part of cost saving. Seems odd to 'spend money to save money' but believe me, you don't want a burst water pipe inside the house.

Solar and 12V systems: Buy solar panels and create a 12V system. Can use power storage to power lights in sheds, charge mobile phones and with a good DC to AC inverter connected, charge cordless batteries, run a small fridge (if you have enough batteries), run small power tools, etc. Here's part 1 of this guys portable pack that he built to give you an idea: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=offgcMwuTGw Search google, youtube and gain some knowledge on 'how to'. Here's more for you:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8YcFNGauoY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQiLcotRv6U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lB8q20QX6bA

Plenty to consider and some great ideas by the other members.
 
You smoke? That says it all doesn't it? When a person smokes they tell the world - I f-ing don't give a crap about nothing, especially myself and the immediate space around me. My breath and hands are lethal and the only people who associate with me are other smokers, everyone else is repulsed!!

Here's how I have stumbled upon most of the Mesa amps I've bought, Craigslist every morning. There was a Mark III in new condition with EV speaker for $550. A Mark IV rack mounted, $700 o.b.o. I bought my Mark IV for $650 with EV and road case. Here is a thread I started about the Mesa gear I get for cheap.
http://forum.grailtone.com/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=66583

Cigarettes are $10 + a pack here in CT!!!!$$$$!!!!

New amp and all the air you can breath in in just 3 months! Give up the coffee and you could get the Mark V.
 
Many ways to save, does not mean it is the easiest.

If you own your car and no payments, keep it.... Do not sell your car as that may be an asset you can use when the need is really there....

Credit card dept..... if you have any you may want to consider working on getting out of it. Sure you need credit but that does not mean you have to use it... It took me a while to get completely out of credit card debt. No I no longer use any credit cards and I cannot believe how much extra cash I have. That was not an easy task but worth it. In the short run using credit cards may get you what you want but in the long term it costs you more money to use them.

I have only three bills I pay each month. Mortgage, Cable, and utilities. I finally got to the point where I found better car insurance such that paying for an entire year was a 1/3 the cost of the 6 month premiums. You can save considerably with better car insurance if you shop for it. Generally a year long policy is more cost effective than a 6 month policy. Heck I found the cost savings incredible that I pumped up all of my coverage and still was cheaper than the 6 month policy I was paying...odd enough it is with the same insurance company too.

Cut back on your smoking and other habits that may cost money. Think to yourself do you really need it? Chances are the answer is no.

If you have a family..... that will take some time to formulate a plan for savings on personal item like the Mark V. Who knows, by the time you save up enough for the amp the next model may be out (not saying that there is one in the works). Life is what it is and family always comes first...

If you are that deperate.....one thing you could do if you have a 401k, inquire if you can take out a loan on it. Do not withdraw any money from it as that will end up being heavily taxed. However a loan is not a withdraw as you have to pay it back with interest....guess where the interest goes...to your account so you are paying yourself back with interest... this may or may not be a good idea....
 
If you have a corporate type of job that has direct deposit that allows DD to mulitple accounts: have a certain amount of your paycheck like say 5% or whatever works for you to automatically go into 2ndary checking account. This account would be your pile of dough for a rainy day (or Mark 5 treasure chest). Also useful if you dont have a ATM card for this account so you eliminate convenient access to the money.

-if you eat out stop eating out or drastically reduce the rate at which you eat out
-take part time job on weekends or nights - its not fun but doing this a few months can yield a temp cash injection side bonus you will have less time to spend that money that comes from your primary source of income
-sell off all gear that you don't need (headphones, digital toys etc..)
-buy generic everything at grocery store (you will save lots of grocery bill this way and the quality is nearly identical to original)
-as someone mentioned earlier dont buy junk (ie stuff you dont need)
-if you are responsible with credit cards - get one that gives rewards based on your spending (my wife and i worked out a good system for rewards - hers rewards her for some family purchases which she buys on her CC I pay for other stuff that my CC pays cash back for - it adds up - also save your points for strategic purchases - i currently have $140 in rewards waiting for me im saving for a Kemper these $140 will help)

Saving money is a hard skill to learn if its not something that comes naturally. But once you get into it you will find new ways of saving/cutting costs.

Oh also a big one: when you buy your Mark v - go used. THey seem to be going cheap (1400-1600 in TX anyway)
 
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