Proprietary Electronics

our proprietary electronics have been designed to get out of the way and let your unique tonal palette shine through...

From internal preamps to pickups, every Fodera comes with the very highest quality, proprietary electronic components available anywhere.  Given that we build our instruments with the very finest, aged tonewoods available, and spend a great deal of time working with each player to make sure that we choose the right woods for their bass, our electronics are intended to be as transparent as current technology allows.

The Fodera Custom Shop Internal Preamp
The Fodera Custom Shop Internal Preamp is made from the finest components available.  It was conceived jointly by Joey Lauricella and many of the great players who are part of the Fodera Family and designed by bassist Mike Pope.  You won't find many other preamp designers that have stood onstage with Mike Stern, Randy Brecker, or Chuck Loeb which is why they cannot offer Mike's unique perspective.  He has helped us to continue our tradition of building instruments born of real world experiences.  The Fodera Custom Shop Internal Preamp is ONLY available from Fodera and only to players owning Fodera Custom Shop instruments.

Completely redesigned and improved in early 2009, our current preamp is made up of two discrete sections, one active and one passive.  They are optimized to work with each other seamlessly.

The Passive Section
The first section is entirely passive and consists of a Master Volume and Master Tone (vintage style high-end roll-off) on a stacked control, and a pickup Blend control.  The Blend control is custom made for Fodera to allow both pickups to operate in a "full on" state when the control is centered.  When the bass is in the active mode, the entire passive section of the circuit is still used.

The Active Section
Putting the bass into the active mode simply inserts the preamp in between the passive section and the output jack.  The active controls are Bass, Midrange, and Treble.  They are all cut and boost style controls with center notches.

Switches
• The power switch for the preamp is activated by inserting a guitar cord into the jack.  Unplugging the cord turns the power off.
• The switch closest to the Treble control is the On/Off or Standby switch.  Up is standby.
• The switch nearest the output jack is the Active/Passive switch.  Down is active.
• Coil Tap:  If the instrument has dual coil humbucking pickups, there is a third switch that acts as a Coil Tap.  Down is humbucking and up is single coil.

Note:  When the bass is in the Passive mode it is ENTIRELY passive. The preamp will, however, continue to draw a small amount of current from the batteries, so it is best to unplug your bass when it is not being played for a period of time.

Note:  Single coil pickups hum. When a humbucker is tapped and used in single coil mode it also hums unless it is blended with another pickup via the blend control.

Batteries:  The preamp is powered by two nine volt batteries to give a total supply voltage of 18VDC.  Current drain is extremely low allowing unusually long battery life.  We have had reports of significantly more than 6 months of battery life if the instrument is not left plugged in when not being played.

•   2009 Preamp Instructions 
•   2010 and Later Preamp Instructions 
•   2012 Fodera Standard Preamp Control Layout

The Fodera Standard Internal Preamp
Available as an upgrade to our Standard line of basses or for use in non-Fodera instruments, the Standard Internal Preamp was designed by for us by Mike Pope to be a flexible, affordable alternative to the Fodera Custom Shop Internal Preamp used in our Custom Instruments.  Offering full three-band (bass, mids and treble) functionality, a flexible control layout and a neutral sonic signature, the Fodera Standard Internal Preamp is built from outstanding materials and offers unmatched value.  This preamp can be used in either active or passive mode.