The NYC Empire basses have a "sideways" Butterfly. Different basses. Made in Japan and discontinued.
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New to me Fodera!
- Thread starter basskillah
- Start date
The NYC Empire basses have a "sideways" Butterfly. Different basses. Made in Japan and discontinued.
Great looking Fodera!
From the pictures it doesn't look like the neck pickup is further forward than normal though the 24 frets certainly make it look that way. I could be wrong but I think it just has single coils set in 70's spacing. Compare yours
to this one (which appears to have 60's spacing meaning the front pickup is in the same position but the bridge pickup is around a half inch further from the bridge than yours):
Link Removed
or even the front coil of the neck pickup on the Monarch Standard:
Either way, enjoy the new bass!
From the pictures it doesn't look like the neck pickup is further forward than normal though the 24 frets certainly make it look that way. I could be wrong but I think it just has single coils set in 70's spacing. Compare yours
to this one (which appears to have 60's spacing meaning the front pickup is in the same position but the bridge pickup is around a half inch further from the bridge than yours):
Link Removed
or even the front coil of the neck pickup on the Monarch Standard:
Either way, enjoy the new bass!
Great looking Fodera!
From the pictures it doesn't look like the neck pickup is further forward than normal though the 24 frets certainly make it look that way. I could be wrong but I think it just has single coils set in 70's spacing. Compare yours
to this one:
Link Removed
or even the front coil of the neck pickup on the Monarch Standard:
Either way, enjoy the new bass!
You're prolly right, I thought about that after I posted it...
Basskillah - great looking bass! I know very little about Fodera basses, only ever played one (monarch) for a few minutes but did manage to fall in love with the look, feel and sound of it. I'm sure yours is a great player, play it proudly!
Great looking Fodera!
From the pictures it doesn't look like the neck pickup is further forward than normal though the 24 frets certainly make it look that way. I could be wrong but I think it just has single coils set in 70's spacing. Compare yours
to this one (which appears to have 60's spacing meaning the front pickup is in the same position but the bridge pickup is around a half inch further from the bridge than yours):
Link Removed
or even the front coil of the neck pickup on the Monarch Standard:
Either way, enjoy the new bass!
The only thing that made me think that is there's barely enough room to get your finger in between the neck and neck pickup when plucking for slap. Those pics look like they both have more room in there than mine, but I'm no Fodera expert.
Also, does anyone know how to date these? I heard you can tell by the last 2 digits of the serial #... My last 2 are 7B?
Just call them, they told me the date of mine pretty quickly(and all the specs), also I'm jealous of the wood on that body, looks better than mine:
I believe the serial number works like this, it will say M at the beginning for Monarch and the numbers that follow are the serial number, which is also the how many basses have been made and the B stands for bolt on. You can call the shop and ask for a date of build, but they don't have all of these in the system. It's definitely one of the "New Standard" Monarchs that they made a while ago. I have one myself and it's hands down the absolute best bass I've ever played. I tried getting mine dated, but he best I got was, "Joey believes that came from one of the early batches in the late 90's."
Personally I absolutely love the ebony headstock veneer. I bought my New Standard and YYS #6 and I sold the Yin Yang. I really liked the more ergonomic heel, the tilted back headstock and 3 piece neck. The preamp that came stock is the same as the NYC series if I remember correctly. I switched mine out for a new Pope Flexcore and it was leaps and bounds better.
Congrats! You got a sweet bass!
Here's a pic of mine.
Michael
Yeah, I'd definitely give the shop a call. I think Jason said he's out of the office most of this week but he'd be able to give you whatever info they have when he returns. I'm just guessing based on the pictures. But the spacing looks like a 70's jazz to me.
Those extra four frets do eat up a lot of the space between the fingerboard and neck pickup.
I've never played a Fodera with Aero singles but I've played a few other basses with them, primarily a Lakland DJ that I bought from Tom Bowlus. I have played a Fodera with the Seymour Duncan single coils and one with Bartolini jazz pickups. The Fodera/Duncan dual coils are pretty amazing and the EMGs have their own thing going but I think as far as single coils go the Aeros would probably be my favorites. I hope you dig the bass, it's a beauty.
Those extra four frets do eat up a lot of the space between the fingerboard and neck pickup.
I've never played a Fodera with Aero singles but I've played a few other basses with them, primarily a Lakland DJ that I bought from Tom Bowlus. I have played a Fodera with the Seymour Duncan single coils and one with Bartolini jazz pickups. The Fodera/Duncan dual coils are pretty amazing and the EMGs have their own thing going but I think as far as single coils go the Aeros would probably be my favorites. I hope you dig the bass, it's a beauty.
The Aeros are really accurate/transparent sounding... Like proof that good neck and body wood are essential elements of tone... Very smooth and articulate. I'm loving the Pope pre too 
Baby Bass
Guest
That is correct! If a serial number is (for example) M41000B = Monarch, 4 string, 1000th instrument created aka sequence number, Bolt On
Thanks MrLenny!
Here's some updated pics.. I still love this bass maybe more than when I got it. If you're considering buying "the" bass, I believe the Fodera is it! It's so comfortable and sounds beautiful in the mix. I will say I played my friends Yin Yang Custom the other day and that thing is on another level! Really made me jealous, lol. The set neck and profile were to die for. I loved how the PJ let me dig in a bit more for slap.
