Fodera Club Part XIX

[Zentner]

Awesome, thank you.

Now that I get a closer look, can you also explain the clips on the strings, the washer, and the chopsticks? I'm really really intrigued by your instrument!

yeah, it's my avatar pic.

the angled poles at the top of the pic are the p coils in groups of three.

the straight coils at the bottom are the j coil.

you can see the holes for the tabs that used to adjust the height of the emg pickups on the top right and bottom left of the pickup hole. the installation is a little smaller than the footprint of the original installation from 1985. joey et al. have offered to make a surround, but i've opted not to, partially because i'm a jerk and partially because i actually use the routed-out space behind the pickup for playing techniques.



the chicken head knob is for the five-position rotary.

View attachment 331777

 

[steubig]

Awesome, thank you.

Now that I get a closer look, can you also explain the clips on the strings, the washer, and the chopsticks? I'm really really intrigued by your instrument!

hah, well . . .

those tools for "prepared bass" techniques.

the tambourine zil gets amazing gong sounds, which can be different depending on what you hit it with and where you place it in the strings.

alligator/test clips are good for percussive/gamelan/bell sounds, pitch (or lack thereof) can be changed by the size or placement of the clips, or where you attack them. you can play behind them for bell sounds or doing percussive/gamelan stuff by tapping on the fingerboard. hitting them with other objects gets different effects.

the chopsticks are good for hitting those other things, getting koto-like sounds or getting faux bowed tremolando sounds.

i'm a little bit of an outlier . . .

 

[SRFSterling5]

The weight on mine is around 10 pounds. Compared to my fBass BN5 and my Lakland 55-02, not too different. Much lighter than the 6 of another manufacturer that shall remain nameless on this thread for obvious reasons. Hopefully I can get it sold one of these days to fund another Fodera. Yep the GAS bug hit real hard. To semi quote from an SNL routine----I got a fever and the only cure---is another Fodera.

 

[Zentner]

Fantastic. I feel like there are so many players on here who only play scooped Marcus slap tones, or chase Jaco sounds or only worry about their jazz chops. I'm not saying any of that is wrong- but it's really fresh to see someone who's spent a fortune on his instruments, and who will use them however he pleases. The stickers are NOT for me, I can't see myself ever playing bass with chopsticks, and I never thought to put a tambourine zil in my strings, but I am SO SO SO happy that someone does.

I use my '65 Jazz bass for over the top distorted bass tones- It's the best bass for Metal.

hah, well . . .

those tools for "prepared bass" techniques.

the tambourine zil gets amazing gong sounds, which can be different depending on what you hit it with and where you place it in the strings.

alligator/test clips are good for percussive/gamelan/bell sounds, pitch (or lack thereof) can be changed by the size or placement of the clips, or where you attack them. you can play behind them for bell sounds or doing percussive/gamelan stuff by tapping on the fingerboard. hitting them with other objects gets different effects.

the chopsticks are good for hitting those other things, getting koto-like sounds or getting faux bowed tremolando sounds.

i'm a little bit of an outlier . . .

 

[Baird6869]

View attachment 331789View attachment 331790

My first Fodera. Sorry if the pics aren't too good. E5S64. The number is significant for a few reasons and since it was available that was it.

Nice! What are your initial impressions?

We have discussed my love of #65, but I am interested to hear your thoughts on tone, weight, playability, construction, etc.

 

[steubig]

I use my '65 Jazz bass for over the top distorted bass tones- It's the best bass for Metal.

thanks, but distorted bass can be the gateway drug . . . ;-O

 

[Baird6869]

hah, well . . .

those tools for "prepared bass" techniques.

the tambourine zil gets amazing gong sounds, which can be different depending on what you hit it with and where you place it in the strings.

alligator/test clips are good for percussive/gamelan/bell sounds, pitch (or lack thereof) can be changed by the size or placement of the clips, or where you attack them. you can play behind them for bell sounds or doing percussive/gamelan stuff by tapping on the fingerboard. hitting them with other objects gets different effects.

the chopsticks are good for hitting those other things, getting koto-like sounds or getting faux bowed tremolando sounds.

i'm a little bit of an outlier . . .

Methinks that you aren't playing this bass in an '80's cover band.

What kind of music are you actually playing?

 

[steubig]

I can't see myself ever playing bass with chopsticks, and I never thought to put a tambourine zil in my strings, but I am SO SO SO happy that someone does.

p.s. i didn't make this stuff up. there's a fairly large precedent for doing alligator clips thing to guitars probably at least since the 70s. and drummers have putting stuff on their drum heads for years. i have friends who have played guitar with egg whisks. so i just mixed and matched and cam up with my own way of doing this kind of stuff.

it generally comes under the category of extended technique.

 

[Baird6869]

Quick question re: RAMPS.....

I like the idea of ordering a ramp for my Monarch Custom 5er, but I have never used one. I like the look, but unsure if I will like the feel.

Do all of you that have ordered ramps for your Foderas love them and use them all the time? Any of you had to take them off due to being unable to get used to?

Just curious....

 

[steubig]

Methinks that you aren't playing this bass in an '80's cover band.

What kind of music are you actually playing?

nope, not 80s cover bands. though i have played these basses on oldies gigs, but without the paraphernalia ;-)

mostly i sort of hang out in the so-called avant grade scene.

for me, that entails anything from written music with improv sections (i've actually written parts for the prepared bass stuff to go along with a wind trio, etc.) to semi-jazz to noisy drone/groove/rock stuff to improv over beatbox/laptop grooves. i used to do a lot of composed music, but went to 90% improv when playing live in the last four years or so.

whether or not it's "music" might be up to your own discretion ;-)

i started to put together a list of stuff from youtube, but i think it's tmi.

 

[SRFSterling5]

Nice! What are your initial impressions?

We have discussed my love of #65, but I am interested to hear your thoughts on tone, weight, playability, construction, etc.

Let me say that my wife was the one that told me "that thing is smooth like butter." I ran it though my Eden Navigator preamp through a Jamhub to get the direct tone, listening carefully to the nuances of the notes. If this is a Standard model, I can only imagine what the custom stuff is like. The neck is utterly perfect in feel, more flat and wide compared with my FBass BN5. I really like it. Tonewise, very versatile. I tried playing along with some Eric Clapton and Anita Baker stuff just to see how the bass sits in the mix. Very nice, not a sparkly high end, but more of a mellow high end. Not like a Marcus Miller type tone, but a more refined top end. Midrange boost and cut really gives you a lot of tonal options to get it just right for practically anything you throw at it. I even got a pretty convincing P bass tone playing along with some old Linda Ronstadt stuff. The low B is pretty good, not as defined as my Fbass, but it does rattle the walls. I'm gonna experiment with a tapered and open core B to see if I can tighten it up a bit. The Fodera strings that came with it feel and play really nice. Again, I think the B string is really a matter of personal taste and as I said before, I'm gonna mess around with it a bit to get it where I want it. The setup on this thing was utterly perfect and I haven't messed with anything. Just a quick tune and I was off playing. Weight wise, not really an issue (advertised as 10lbs but it doesn't feel any heavier than the other fives that I have. Construction wise, flawless. I was actually looking to see if there were some blemishes or finish flaws but this has got to be the best made bass I own, period. I have to say that the Fodera attention to detail is amazing. I cannot thing of any way there could be improvement to this. Just awesome. The only compromise that I can see was the use of a flat one piece neck vs the multi-laminate and angled headstock as on the custom stuff. This I think was more of an efficiency call rather than a cheapening of the product. Face it, multi-laminate necks take more time to build, and set up. Going for batch manufacturing, this would not make sense IMO.

Bottom line I would have no hesitation in recommending this bass to anyone. Yeah, it is expensive but once you play one, that goes away real fast. Worth every penny. Do I want another Fodera? No question, yes. Just gotta get rid of a few things first. LOL

 

[Lennard III.]

Quick question re: RAMPS.....

I like the idea of ordering a ramp for my Monarch Custom 5er, but I have never used one. I like the look, but unsure if I will like the feel.

Do all of you that have ordered ramps for your Foderas love them and use them all the time? Any of you had to take them off due to being unable to get used to?

Just curious....

I have ordered one on my Imperial 5 in 2007... it was great. But on my Emperor I went to a fine luthier and got one made (radiused of course) to my needs.... the ramps usually are fixed with tape - so you can remove them.... my new Viceroy will not get a ramp because I'm not a ramp guy anymore

But my Emperor which I have brought yesterday to a fine luthier to turn it into a fretless will keep it's ramp along another little ramp between the neck PU and the end of the neck...

 

[DELACIUS]

Quick question re: RAMPS.....

I like the idea of ordering a ramp for my Monarch Custom 5er, but I have never used one. I like the look, but unsure if I will like the feel.

Do all of you that have ordered ramps for your Foderas love them and use them all the time? Any of you had to take them off due to being unable to get used to?

Just curious....

Well you can get the ramp, and then if you don't need it you can remove it, like having a gadget.
Btw. once on ramp you'll never go back, only if you are Lennard

 

[Lennard III.]

Btw. once on ramp you'll never go back, only if you are Lennard

LOL

 

[otto B]

Question; If I change the standard preamp to a custom preamp on a ES5, would the high end spark more

 

[Angus]

Do all of you that have ordered ramps for your Foderas love them and use them all the time? Any of you had to take them off due to being unable to get used to?

I have ramps on my Fodera and a few other basses, then no ramps on a few. I much, much prefer a ramp, and in particular one that is radiused to match the fingerboard (which Fodera did perfectly). It isn't for everyone- some people hate the feeling because it limits their ability to dig in.

If you aren't sure if you want to order one, make a prototype with some layers of cardboard to simulate having a surface underneath the strings. If you like the way it feels, move forward. If not, then now you'll know not to bother having a ramp made.

 

[Vic]

If this is a Standard model, I can only imagine what the custom stuff is like.

Again, the Standard models are still full hand made Foderas. The big difference is in options, not quality or tone.

The low B is pretty good, not as defined as my Fbass, but it does rattle the walls. I'm gonna experiment with a tapered and open core B to see if I can tighten it up a bit. The Fodera strings that came with it feel and play really nice. Again, I think the B string is really a matter of personal taste and as I said before, I'm gonna mess around with it a bit to get it where I want it.

Strings will make a HUGE difference here... definitely try some other brands before you draw any conclusions. I do like the Fodera strings, but they're not my favorites.

 

[SRFSterling5]

Again, the Standard models are still full hand made Foderas. The big difference is in options, not quality or tone.

Strings will make a HUGE difference here... definitely try some other brands before you draw any conclusions. I do like the Fodera strings, but they're not my favorites.

I kind of figured the strings might make a difference. Don't get me wrong, I really like the bass, it's just I'm a little bit of a low B nutcase. The construction really impressed me. What attention to detail.

 

[Baird6869]

If you aren't sure if you want to order one, make a prototype with some layers of cardboard to simulate having a surface underneath the strings. If you like the way it feels, move forward. If not, then now you'll know not to bother having a ramp made.

Great idea. Thx!

If I hate it, you saved me $300.

 

[Baird6869]

Bottom line I would have no hesitation in recommending this bass to anyone. Yeah, it is expensive but once you play one, that goes away real fast. Worth every penny. Do I want another Fodera? No question, yes. Just gotta get rid of a few things first. LOL

I hear you!

I love my E5S and placed the order for my 2nd (Monarch 5 Deluxe) less than a month after receiving it. I had to sell multiple great basses to fund the Monarch, but it is a no brainier for me.

Many say that Standards are "gateway drugs" but I think I will be happy with my E5S and custom Monarch. I really don't see a need to move up from the E5S.