Fodera Review In BGM

[Pete Academy]

There is a review of a Fodera bass in the new BGM. Seven grand.

So, two Roscoes or Ken Smiths, etc. Or the Fodera?

[Gust0o]

Seven Stingrays, maybe?

Or, one Cutlass, one Reflex - and then three Stingrays.

[MacDaddy]

one Ritter?

[Pete Academy]

Would like to get my hands on one, though.

[bartelby]

A collection of British built basses?

[Fat Rich]

Half of a 1960 Stack Knob Jazz?

[danweb22]

a car?

[Wolverinebass]

That review got me thinking about something reasonably unpleasant. If my buzzard ever got stolen or wrecked what would I get with the almost stupid amounts of insurance cash I'd get for it. It would be absolutely mental what I could replace it with. That Fodera is a fantastic bass I'd bet, but on a certain level, 7 grand is brutal expensive. Would it be any better than a bass that cost 4 grand? I wonder. Us mere mortals I doubt will never get to play something that expensive.....

[MacDaddy]

[quote name='Wolverinebass' timestamp='1345808752' post='1781788']
Would it be any better than a bass that cost 4 grand? I wonder. Us mere mortals I doubt will never get to play something that expensive.....
[/quote]

there were a couple of Fodera's at the last SE Bassbash. Not sure they were the 7 grand ones though.

[Rick's Fine '52]

[quote name='Fat Rich' timestamp='1345808046' post='1781774']
Half of a 1960 Stack Knob Jazz?
[/quote]

This....if you're lucky!

[Gust0o]

Or 70 Bronze series BC Rich Warlocks?

You could assemble them into a small art installation and probably double your money, if the Tate still has the floor space

[XB26354]

Ah, it's marketing, pure and simple. They do make some excellent instruments though, and at the top of the market the noticeable difference gets smaller and smaller. I guess top pros hear something in a Fodera that they cannot get from other basses. I wouldn't mind an AJ presentation but there is no way that, even with the man himself sweating over the setup, that it costs even 20% of the list price in materials and labour. Because there is a very limited supply and far greater demand, to an extent they can charge whatever they want. I've looked online at the shop tour and also Janek's visit to pick up his bass, and they all look very dedicated to the task, and exceptionally skilled. You could, however, say the same about Dingwall, Roscoe, MTD, Ken Smith and Sadowsky, who sell they products in the main at a fraction of the price of a Fodera. People seem happy to pay silly money for other desirable products...

[Rick's Fine '52]

[quote name='XB26354' timestamp='1345811422' post='1781839']
Ah, it's marketing, pure and simple. They do make some excellent instruments though, and at the top of the market the noticeable difference gets smaller and smaller. I guess top pros hear something in a Fodera that they cannot get from other basses. I wouldn't mind an AJ presentation but there is no way that, even with the man himself sweating over the setup, that it costs even 20% of the list price in materials and labour. Because there is a very limited supply and far greater demand, to an extent they can charge whatever they want. I've looked online at the shop tour and also Janek's visit to pick up his bass, and they all look very dedicated to the task, and exceptionally skilled. You could, however, say the same about Dingwall, Roscoe, MTD, Ken Smith and Sadowsky, who sell they products in the main at a fraction of the price of a Fodera. People seem happy to pay silly money for other desirable products...
[/quote]

I think you're right, as someone else alluded to, a £3500 bass, is a very, very good bass, is a Fodera [i]twice[/i] as good?, probably not, i think its very much a supply/demand issue.

Edited August 24, 2012 by Rick's Fine '52

[Dood]

I think in terms of the review, it's nice to know what an Aston Martin feels like to drive but not everyone has an opportunity to do so. I therefore like magazines to do a bit of a 'Top Gear' every now and then, but for most - the gear reviews are better off being stuff within people budget. I *think* BGM get that, but i haven't read recently to substantiate that. I'm sure they do.


Aston Martins are bloomin' lovely to drive. DB9 being a fave right now - but i wanna get my mits on a Vantage V8

[Dood]

As for Fodera as an instrument, no I really don't think it's even twice as good as say, a Shuker for example. Jon's current crop of instruments are breath taking.

[BigRedX]

Custom guitars are never substitutes for each other. If you want what Fodera offer then only a Fodera will do. While other basses may do the job, they won't look feel or sound exactly like a Fodera. Whether all that extra cash is worth it is only something that each of us can answer individually.

Having said that £7k would buy you a Gus with all the toys - which is what I'd be ordering if I had that much spare money.

[thebrig]

£7,000 bass reviews?

The very reason I stopped my subscription, and following lot's of threads on BC regarding this subject, it looks like BGM has learnt nothing!

[lozbass]

'Read the review and used to own a Fodera MG5 (probably 8 or 9k at current prices) - I'm not having a pop at Fodera - absolutely stunning basses with incredible attention to detail, fabulous wood-working and exotic everything (just not really for me). However, I've had other stupidly expensive instruments where it's perhaps a little more clear where some of the £7k (or whatever) went. As with pretty much anything (and any bass brand), some principles of economics and branding at play. In addition, I tend to agree with most of the comments on BGM - not really worth more than 5 minutes in W H Smith on the way to do something else.

[risingson]

[quote name='thebrig' timestamp='1345814015' post='1781885']
£7,000 bass reviews?

The very reason I stopped my subscription, and following lot's of threads on BC regarding this subject, it looks like BGM has learnt nothing!
[/quote]

I don't think there is anything unreasonable about offering a review of a particularly pricey instrument that is largely unobtainable for a lot of us. There's a fantasist in all of us and a lot of players out there will be able to quench that desire to know a bit more about something they'll likely never own.

The problem for me with magazines like BGM are two things. The writing was never any good, it was always riddled with mistakes. Perhaps this has changed, I don't know. And for me personally, my interest in reading about new gear is so minimal that the largest part of the magazine simply doesn't interest me. I know there are variables in gear such as build quality, woods and pickups, electronics and so on but a bass is a bass and is only as good as the person playing it. That said, I understand why you would want to read it if it interests you of course.

[BigRedX]

[quote name='thebrig' timestamp='1345814015' post='1781885']
£7,000 bass reviews?

The very reason I stopped my subscription, and following lot's of threads on BC regarding this subject, it looks like BGM has learnt nothing!
[/quote]

Personally I don't want to read about basses that I find hanging on the wall in my local music shops. I can go and try them out any time I feel like and make up my own mind about them. What I want is reviews of instruments that are less easy to get hold of to see if it's worth making the effort to find one to try for myself.

[kevin_lindsay]

Just as well it wasn't an Anthony Jackson model - $15,000 !!!!!!!!! Aagh!!!!!

[MacDaddy]

I think some posts raise an interesting question - at what price point is a good bass good, rather than being 'good for the money'?

[Rick's Fine '52]

[quote name='lozbass' timestamp='1345815171' post='1781923']
BGM - not really worth more than 5 minutes in W H Smith on the way to do something else.
[/quote]

This. I stopped some time ago, I love all things bass, but BGM has virtually nothing of interest to me. Half the magazine is tuition and music score, which for me anyway is of no interest, another 25% is on new basses, again, no interest, and the other 25% consists of bass player interviews, half of which is of interest. Most of the interviews with yocal band members always lists their gear as Fender precision, and influences as Jaco, Entwistle, Pino and Flea, so even they are getting predictable and boring.
2 minutes in Smiths and I'm done, all my bass player compadre's agree. Whenever I [i]have[/i] bought it, usually at an airport shop to read on a flight, I've finished it before the plane has finished boarding!!

The old 'bassist' format was 1000 times better, far more varied content, with something for everyone, i still read my old ones now, great mag.

[fretmeister]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1345816110' post='1781941']
Personally I don't want to read about basses that I find hanging on the wall in my local music shops. I can go and try them out any time I feel like and make up my own mind about them. What I want is reviews of instruments that are less easy to get hold of to see if it's worth making the effort to find one to try for myself.
[/quote]

Mee too.

I don't buy the mag to remind me of my mundane life, I buy it to be thrilled that something like a Fodera or a Ritter even exists.

[Dingus]

Fodera basses are beautifully made by highly skilled professionals to the highest possible standards;,that much is true. Are they that much better than ( still very expensive ) basses that cost half the price? It depends what other brand you choose- in my experience high -end bass builders all talk a good game when it comes to quality, but in reality there can be some fairly rudimentary flaws in construction and design when you recieve the final product. It can be a fine line between handmade and homemade. Fodera are exceptional in that they really do take a huge amount of care over the basses that they turn out, and it is that time and attention that they give every bass that you are paying for, and skilled mens' time costs money.They go to great lenghths to ensure that the things that make a bass play well i.e fretting, nut height, properly -trued fingerboard ect are done to perfection on every bass they turn out.
There are plenty of other excellent ,honest and skilled builders out there , including a good few in the U.K , who can build instruments that in terms of fit and finish are on a par with Fodera.-Wal , Status and J.D spring to mind - and equally importantly can offer the after sales service to players in the U.K that Fodera offer so obligingly to players in the U.S.A., and therein lies another part of the equation; a big part of the Fodera mystique is in their association with NYC - based professional players with international reputations and significant media profiles. The quality of their product is undeniable, but Fodera have also benefitted from their geographic location and the access it gives them to one of the worlds' most important communities of musicians. A lot of top players in New York choose Fodera because they know that they can stop by the workshop in Brooklyn and get a repair, setup or service at any time and the crew there will be glad to help them. If you buy a Fodera in the U.K this facility is not available to you unless you get your bass to New York somehow.
I am not " for or against " spending a lot of money on a Fodera if you live in the U.K- if you really want one and you can afford it then get one!- but what is special about them is not unique to Fodera. There are plenty of other basses that play well and sound superlative, and a lot of them cost far less than a third of what a Fodera costs.

Edited August 24, 2012 by Dingus