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Fodera Club Part XXVII

#18,381
LuthierDan said:
They are both the same bridge now.

Preamps are different. Last year the change was made to updated versions for both. The standard preamp is straight forward and killer sounding (and to answer another question, standards have A/P switches and a coil split switch. If the pickups arent splittable like EMG or Aguilar, that coil split becomes a kill switch). The new standard preamp is even more articulate and transparent than the previous version.

The new custom has the same level of over all tonal quality increase from the previous iteration but the jumper usage and gain have changed. To make it easier for anyone to consistently set the gain level, the little blue gain pot was swapped for a jumper bank. The jumpers for bass, treble and low mid are the same but the low mid has one of its frequencies shifted for a little more bite but retains the other frequency for that warm sound. The high mid is where the most change happened. Theres about 5 different frequencies to pick from and you can even pick your favorite two and have those accessable by a switch on the top. I have mine set for the highest and the lowest frequency and swapped my low mid for a high mid switch and its great. Each persons needs and taste varies though. The goal was for it to be able to check the boxes for even more players than the previous version already did :) Its my favorite version of the custom preamp. You can get the new custom preamp in all the layouts like before (even the goines) and it can even be done in a 4 band with a stacked mid. If youre comfortable with the standard layout and dont want to change over to a new layout on a custom build, the custom preamp can be done in a 3 or 4 band standard layout as well :)
Click to expand...

Tons of awesome info! Thanks for that!

You said the bridge is the same now; when did that change start? I bought a Monarch Standard and the build date is 12/2/2022. Just wondering which bridge that is. I don't have it yet, but I should have it by EOD tomorrow :D

Edit: I actually emailed [email protected] a few minutes after I posted this, and Sam replied within about 15 minutes. It's the custom bridge and V3 Pope.
 
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#18,382
geburgess2 said:
Tons of awesome info! Thanks for that!

You said the bridge is the same now; when did that change start? I bought a Monarch Standard and the build date is 12/2/2022. Just wondering which bridge that is. I don't have it yet, but I should have it by EOD tomorrow :D

Edit: I actually emailed [email protected] a few minutes after I posted this, and Sam replied within about 15 minutes. It's the custom bridge and V3 Pope.
Click to expand...
Yeah, you're getting a killer instrument. I actually like changing strings and doing setups now. You will want to watch Jason DeSalvo's series of set up videos...I believe they are on the Fodera website as well as YouTube.
 
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#18,383
extreme said:
Yeah, you're getting a killer instrument. I actually like changing strings and doing setups now. You will want to watch Jason DeSalvo's series of set up videos...I believe they are on the Folders website as well as YouTube.
Click to expand...

I'll be sure to post some pictures when I get it :D. Bought it used from an awesome TBer here, and it seems to be in immaculate condition, at least so it appeared in the photos.
 
#18,384
geburgess2 said:
I'll be sure to post some pictures when I get it :D. Bought it used from an awesome TBer here, and it seems to be in immaculate condition, at least so it appeared in the photos.
Click to expand...
Awesome! Mine was used, but as new. I've been doing 3-4 gigs per week with it since I got it. I've been using it for everything except the weekly blues jam because I've been a bit protective about letting other people play it.
 
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#18,385
extreme said:
Awesome! Mine was used, but as new. I've been doing 3-4 gigs per week with it since I got it. I've been using it for everything except the weekly blues jam because I've been a bit protective about letting other people play it.
Click to expand...

Nice! I plan to gig with it too. I have a Spector NS-2 which is my usual gigger, but it's a little aggressive sounding for some of the music I'm playing with one of my bands. For my metal band it's perfect tho :bassist:
 
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#18,386
geburgess2 said:
Nice! I plan to gig with it too. I have a Spector NS-2 which is my usual gigger, but it's a little aggressive sounding for some of the music I'm playing with one of my bands. For my metal band it's perfect tho :bassist:
Click to expand...
The nice thing is that this particular standard combo can be very "Fender-y" if wanted/needed...alder body, maple neck, pao ferro fingerboard. But so much versatility and Fodera construction/careful wood selection/attention to detail.
 
#18,389
1000004249.jpg
1000004250.jpg

Received it today! Sure is pretty!
 
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#18,394
Funkypenguin said:
Absolutely! For a modern prog tone I went for both pickups on with the tone control wide open!

Out of interest Dan, was your Monarch modelled on the older Warwick Thumb NTs?
Click to expand...

My Monarch is a mash up of many different things. When i was an angsty teenager i got super into Mudvayne. Ryans playing and sound just resonated with me in a way no other player had. In highschool shop class, i made my first bass because i wanted a bass that sounded like Ryans. A thumb was just out of reach for me then. That first bass became my resume when i applied to Fodera. After being there for many years, my tastes and ideas of what an ideal bass was, changed. I learned about balance, proportion, wood combinations and how to expand an instruments capabilities from Vinny, Joey and Vadym. Through all of that, i was also exposed to other artists i maybe hadnt heard of or hadnt been exposed to in the right setting yet for it to "land". People like Matt Garrison for example.

When Ryan came over to Fodera, i was already in the proccess of speccing out my dream bass. Getting to work with him one on one was a really crazy full circle experience. The man is sweet as pie and an absolute demon on bass. Being able to work through his customs, totally changed what i wanted for my dream bass but also put it back towards what it always should have been.

The wenge neck, ebony board and bridge side coil of the bridge pickup is all from Ryans bass (the OG Thumb from LD50). The walnut body is a nod to Matt Garrison and Victor Wooten. The Ebony top is from the stash that made the first Monarch prototype. The yellow heart stringers/veneers and turquoise butterfly and side dots are for Vadym. The Monarch body shape is a nod to the model that started it all. The neck through i picked just because that heel is one of my favorite things to shape :)

From there i really blew the doors off electronics wise. It has two Fodera DCs under the cover with a 3 way coil tap so i can access all the sounds that location can give. Its got a full 4 band preamp so i can sculpt any one of those coil combinations and i swapped the low mid switch for a high mid so i can gear it darker or brighter. Ive also done some other off the menu mods, but those are top secret ;)

My time at Fodera essentially started and ended with Ryan from Mudvayne. Its still sureal to me honestly. And for those wondering, i only left for a change of scenery and a quieter life :)

TLDR: Kinda sorta but not really LOL
 
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#18,397
Dan, thanks for all this… I'm learning more about options and what's actually available for my upcoming custom from reading your posts, more than Fodera themselves! Question about your preamp: when you say you got your mid switch for the high mids instead of low mids… in the pics I only see two switches. I assume one is for the coil taps, is the other to change the high mid frequencies? Does this mean you don't have a passive/active switch? Do you think Fodera could provide me with 3 switches? (Coil tap, high mid frequency selector, a passive active)?

LuthierDan said:
My Monarch is a mash up of many different things. When i was an angsty teenager i got super into Mudvayne. Ryans playing and sound just resonated with me in a way no other player had. In highschool shop class, i made my first bass because i wanted a bass that sounded like Ryans. A thumb was just out of reach for me then. That first bass became my resume when i applied to Fodera. After being there for many years, my tastes and ideas of what an ideal bass was, changed. I learned about balance, proportion, wood combinations and how to expand an instruments capabilities from Vinny, Joey and Vadym. Through all of that, i was also exposed to other artists i maybe hadnt heard of or hadnt been exposed to in the right setting yet for it to "land". People like Matt Garrison for example.

When Ryan came over to Fodera, i was already in the proccess of speccing out my dream bass. Getting to work with him one on one was a really crazy full circle experience. The man is sweet as pie and an absolute demon on bass. Being able to work through his customs, totally changed what i wanted for my dream bass but also put it back towards what it always should have been.

The wenge neck, ebony board and bridge side coil of the bridge pickup is all from Ryans bass (the OG Thumb from LD50). The walnut body is a nod to Matt Garrison and Victor Wooten. The Ebony top is from the stash that made the first Monarch prototype. The yellow heart stringers/veneers and turquoise butterfly and side dots are for Vadym. The Monarch body shape is a nod to the model that started it all. The neck through i picked just because that heel is one of my favorite things to shape :)

From there i really blew the doors off electronics wise. It has two Fodera DCs under the cover with a 3 way coil tap so i can access all the sounds that location can give. Its got a full 4 band preamp so i can sculpt any one of those coil combinations and i swapped the low mid switch for a high mid so i can gear it darker or brighter. Ive also done some other off the menu mods, but those are top secret ;)

My time at Fodera essentially started and ended with Ryan from Mudvayne. Its still sureal to me honestly. And for those wondering, i only left for a change of scenery and a quieter life :)

TLDR: Kinda sorta but not really LOL
Click to expand...
 
#18,400
Lajwah said:
Dan, thanks for all this… I'm learning more about options and what's actually available for my upcoming custom from reading your posts, more than Fodera themselves! Question about your preamp: when you say you got your mid switch for the high mids instead of low mids… in the pics I only see two switches. I assume one is for the coil taps, is the other to change the high mid frequencies? Does this mean you don't have a passive/active switch? Do you think Fodera could provide me with 3 switches? (Coil tap, high mid frequency selector, a passive active)?
Click to expand...

Glad i can help :)

You have it right! One 3 way coil tap and a high mid switch. You could have 3 switches if you wanted, 4 has even been done. Its really just a game of arranging everything in the cavity as well as setting the placement in the surface in the most useful way. The high mid shift can be subtle if you want it to be (or for example if you have specific high mid frequencies you like to boost or cut, you can target in pretty well to them) or it can be a bolder shift. Me personally, the highest setting and lowest are my faves (the high is great for dialing in on a bright metal tone or even slap and the low is great for rounding out a warmer sound).

Pretty much everything is customizable so it can be difficult to really express and encompass whats possible. Mike does his best :) you could probably write a novel about all the changes and options that are possible and what they can do
 
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