Fodera really worth the cost?

[LoTone]

Value is in the eyes of the credit card holder...

 

[James Collins]

Am I the only one who finds it ironic the OP is basically claiming Fodera isn't "worth it" while he plays a high-end, NY-made, expensive jazz clone? Maybe it's just me...

Nope. Me too.
I'm sure you can dredge up a lot of posts asking if a Sadowsky is better than a custom shop Fender. But then is a custom shop Fender better than a USA Fender? And while I think about it...is a USA Fender better than a MIM Fender? The jury is still out on that one. Plus a top tier Squier is identical in every important way to a MIM Fender. So the real question is...how much money did the OP waste on these two basses?

 

[Dr. Cheese]

Ok I realize these basses are nice looking well built great sounding instruments... And my whole career as a bass player I have been enticed to own the “Ferrari” of basses .. But now that I own one, I am wondering why the hell they cost so much...? Let me back up and say the bass I own is a standard... But still not cheap by any means... And it does play, look and sound great. It isn’t all that though... Let me also say that I own a Sadowsky that was made for me.. I get it was made for me to my personal tastes but it came in only slightly more costly then the Standard. And of course I love it.. It is a primo instrument and sounds good no matter what gig I use it on. It plays like a dream weighs less due to it having chambers. I get that Fodera does neck throughs with tone blocks and Yadi Yadi yada...I am not trying to do a Fodera vs. Sadowsky post here either. Just asking is it really worth the bread?
Discuss

It does not sound like it is worth it to you; nothing else matters.

 

[neptoon]

I always thought I wanted one...really bad...and I had the opportunity to play a few, and I couldn't justify spending the money...wasn't for me, not even close...the build quality was amazing...before trying them out, I even exchanged emails and talked on the phone with the crew up there, and they're some of the nicest folks in the industry, but holding one in my hands and hearing the tone of the ones that I played was a little bit of a let down...so, not worth it to me

 

[Christcr]

They are certainly not worth the price to me. But that doesn't matter. They are worth what customers are willing to pay for them, just like everything else. I drive a Spark. Love the thing. No way would I ever buy a Corvette or huge diesel monster truck, but again, they are worth it to those who buy them. That's really all that matters.

 

[BigBigGuy44]

Ok I realize these basses are nice looking well built great sounding instruments... ...I am wondering why the hell they cost so much...?

You pretty much answered your own question. They are extremely nice, well built, great sounding instruments! While tone and perceived value are arguable, I don't think I've come come across anyone having anything negative to say about the overall quality of a Fodera. The shop consistently puts out superbly crafted instruments.

 

[hrodbert696]

Value is in the eyes of the credit card holder...

Yup.

Another way to think about the OP's question would be, "Is all that money worth a Fodera?" Because it really isn't so much a question of what the Fodera is worth, as what the money is worth to you. What else would you spend it on if you hadn't bought the bass? Is the Fodera worth a few thousand more dollars in your retirement fund? A third of a new roof on your house? A vacation?

If you have plenty of money for whatever other things you want, and plenty left over, and dagnabbit you really want THIS bass, then I guess it IS worth it... to YOU.

 

[Chrisk-K]

Is a Porsche or Ferrari worth the cost? If I had $$$, I’d love to drive one and have fun.

 

[SirMjac28]

Hey, anybody watching Big Brother tonight?

 

[Turbo Sparky]

I get the whole "you can order it online" thing etc., but with a prestigious builder such as Fodera, I would also consider paying them a visit. Touch, taste, feel, and of course the smell of woodshops etc. However, my current $1,800 EBMM Stingray 4HH does just fine. Whether it's a $300 bass, or a $5,000 bass is almost irrelavant...a "good" bass to the player should make it/them feel like a $1,000,000.
As far as the Corvette-vs-Ferrari... Anyone can drive the straights, but it's more fun to down shift and ride a curve like a rail. Ferrari nino!

 

[Bass Viking]

I think a bass is worth it to you if it does what no other bass does.

 

[namuxtree]

I think when you get to a certain tier of musical instruments, it's really about how much the artistry/name means to you and how much you're willing to pay for it.

In my case, I've personally owned 3 Foderas and felt similarly to you. Great sound, great construction, beautiful to look at, but not enough for me to have so much invested in them. I actually felt the same way about Sadowskys. I've owned about 5 and while they were all amazing instruments, I wasn't in tune (pardon the pun) with them enough IN MY MIND to justify having 3-5K locked up in a jazz bass.

I now own 3 MTD's, a G&L USA P Bass, and a G&L USA Jazz 5 on the way and I feel that ALL of my basses are worth every penny I paid for them. Not because they are inherently "better" than the other basses I've owned, but they are in line with what I value in an instrument/art that I'm at peace with the price tag they each carry. It also helps knowing the builders and having adopted their philosophies on lutherie and having relationships with them.

TL;DR When you reach the upper echelon of bass building, ymmv.

 

[Low Class]

I've owned more Foderas than I can remember and some of them were among the best basses I have ever played. Some of them were also among the worst I have ever played.

 

[jzfunkateer]

I'm in the same situation so I get where you're coming from. I bought a Monarch Standard (as a retirement gift to myself) because I was also curious about the brand. I bought it sight unseen, which is pretty much the only way I'll get to try one around here. As far as worth, there are so many great quality instruments available for less money and Foderas cost what they do in part because of where they are located. For me, I find it's worth it to spend the money if a bass gives me something unique, e.g. the signature tone of a Ken Smith. My Fodera sounds and plays great but there's nothing really identifiable about the tone. I also have a Sadowsky Metro that sounds killer and is much less $$. And don't get me started on my Roscoe!

As far as Sadowsky pricing versus Fodera, I know that Sadowsky outsources the parts whereas Fodera does the woodworking inhouse.

Thanks man.. Sadowsky does all their New York Series work in house.. Just like Fodera. I have been to the shop..

 

[jzfunkateer]

Am I the only one who finds it ironic the OP is basically claiming Fodera isn't "worth it" while he plays a high-end, NY-made, expensive jazz clone? Maybe it's just me...

Yeah it's just you bruh.. Ever play either instrument? Fender doesn't even compare. Maybe the body style is similar to a J bass but that is where it ends..

 

[jzfunkateer]

Not to me. But I do love Tom Kennedy's work, and some of the sounds he gets out of his basses.

Me too..

 

[nilorius]

I get a Fodera sim., from some italian luthier called D'alessandro, they even don't make basses any more, but when i got mine in exhibition. It's 5 and fretless, now, - sounds nice. Though, i had a chance to play a real Fodera once and could say - yes it's wourth thou.

 

[dhagopian]

Yeah it's just you bruh.. Ever play either instrument? Fender doesn't even compare. Maybe the body style is similar to a J bass but that is where it ends..

Played both. Own a Fodera. For the vintage thing I own Moollons.

 

[HolmeBass]

Ok I realize these basses are nice looking well built great sounding instruments... And my whole career as a bass player I have been enticed to own the “Ferrari” of basses .. But now that I own one, I am wondering why the hell they cost so much...? Let me back up and say the bass I own is a standard... But still not cheap by any means... And it does play, look and sound great. It isn’t all that though... Let me also say that I own a Sadowsky that was made for me.. I get it was made for me to my personal tastes but it came in only slightly more costly then the Standard. And of course I love it.. It is a primo instrument and sounds good no matter what gig I use it on. It plays like a dream weighs less due to it having chambers. I get that Fodera does neck throughs with tone blocks and Yadi Yadi yada...I am not trying to do a Fodera vs. Sadowsky post here either. Just asking is it really worth the bread?
Discuss

Ultimately the value of something is a personal subjective judgement based on concrete factors but also on intangible factors, both of which will almost surely differ for different people.

I had a student, very briefly, who owned a Fodera. I got to play it. I could see that while it was really nice, it felt like a slight incremental increase in playability and tone over my Warwick. It really seemed like a very nice jazz bass to me, but nothing more extravagant than that. But there is definitely a law of diminishing returns at play here; it is to be expected that a Ferrari is only going to be "5%" or at most "10%" better than a Corvette. That extra bit might be worth it to one person, and not to another.

BTW that student wanted me to show him some of my "licks". I explained to him that I don't really think in terms of licks, but rather in terms of improvising musical ideas. I do have a vocabulary of things I've learned from learning recorded bass lines, and there are definitely harmonic territory I feel most comfortable in (mixolydian and dorian), but I really don't think of "licks" per se. I asked him to play something, and his playing was ok but his time was really not steady. I suggested working on timing and some musical theory would be the way to go. He declined, he just wanted me to show him my "licks".

 

[Element Zero]

My Yin Yang Standard 5 is worth every penny and I’m a better player for it simply because I have a hard time putting it down.