NGD: Fender Modern Player Marauder. Yes.. A 2nd time.

Discussion of newer designs, copies and reissue offset-waist instruments.
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bugo
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Re: NGD: Fender Modern Player Marauder. Yes.. A 2nd time.

Post by bugo » Wed Feb 17, 2016 2:14 am

Wow, that's stunning. I wouldn't have thought that the Lake Placid Blue body with the black pickguard would look as good as it does but it looks great. My Marauder is bone-stock down to the original springs. It's a 2011 model. When they first came out I didn't really like the whole Modern Player series but I started seeing the Marauder in catalogs and I ended up falling in love with it. I went to a local guitar store and they had one in Lake Placid Blue and I played it several times and decided I wanted it. During this time I went to Guitar Center just to see if they had one and the manager said they weren't going to be getting any because they wouldn't sell. They were wrong. If this guitar had been publicized better it would have been a major hit because it's such a good guitar. I ended up buying the blue Marauder for $336 (it was going for $399 on all of the online stores) and I also bought a case that fits it perfectly. I've only seen one other Marauder in a store and it was a black one priced at $399 in the independent store where I bought my Tele. Everyone I've allowed to play this guitar absolutely loves it. They like it better than any of my other Fenders. It is a low priced guitar that can keep up with guitars hundreds or even thousands of dollars more expensive than it. The neck is nice and shiny but it isn't overly lacquered like the value Squier CV guitars. The Jazzmaster pickup sounds thick and smooth. The triplebucker sounds like a shrill single coil, a normal humbucker, or a muddy, vague triplebucker sound.

Here are some pictures of mine from the day I brought it home. I was able to purchase a case from the mom and pop store I bought the guitar from that fits perfectly (it will NOT fit in a Stratocaster/Telecaster case) and I'm fortunate that I was able to get a good fitting case.

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I love my Marauder, despite being made in China. The Chinese can make excellent quality products when motivated to do so and with enough money invested in the materials. I've played lots of American-made Fenders that don't play any better than my Marauder.

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Re: NGD: Fender Modern Player Marauder. Yes.. A 2nd time.

Post by bugo » Wed Feb 17, 2016 2:41 am

gutter rock wrote:Of course the JM pup sounds great.
Boy, you're not kidding. The neck pickup is the best thing about this guitar. The sound is thick and smooth and warm. It sounds as good or better than any guitar neck pickup that I've played. I don't know what the collectability of this guitar will be like. I imagine that it will take a while before it is appreciated (mostly because of the country it was assembled in) but if it ever does the rarity will definitely be a factor. I wish I knew how many were built. My theory is that the factory in China built a batch or several batches of these guitars and they never built any more. Mine is a 2011 model. Oddly enough, when I sent Fender the serial number, they sent me quite a bit of information about the guitar including the date of manufacture. I wonder if this particular factory keeps better records than other offshore factories or if Fender now requires its suppliers to keep statistics than it did before.

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Re: NGD: Fender Modern Player Marauder. Yes.. A 2nd time.

Post by bugo » Wed Feb 17, 2016 3:15 am

MrLambyLamb wrote:The Marauder has always been on my maybe list. I like it for sure. I wonder why Fender didn't put "Marauder" on the headstock.
This image was taken from a Fender catalog from 2011ish. It shows the "Marauder" name on the headstock. I wonder what the story is. Were they intending to put the name on the headstock but for some reason they didn't? Was there a last minute name change and instead of putting the name on the headstock, they just left it off, creating the "Norauder"? It seems strange that a brand new guitar would have no model identification on the headstock. The answers may never be revealed.

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Re: NGD: Fender Modern Player Marauder. Yes.. A 2nd time.

Post by bugo » Wed Feb 17, 2016 3:23 am

gutter rock wrote:Another point I have noticed. This guitar is tele sized, so not really small, I call it average size. Weird how we get used to the mammoth sized Jag/JM bodies!
I never realized how big the Jazzmaster and Jaguar were. The Tele seems a bit small to me (I'm 6'4" and weigh 250 lbs) but I haven't played enough Jaguars or Jazzmasters to be able to compare the size, unfortunately. I was in the market for a J Mascis Jazzmaster but I couldn't find one so I bought a new candy apple red Telecaster instead.

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Re: NGD: Fender Modern Player Marauder. Yes.. A 2nd time.

Post by bugo » Wed Feb 17, 2016 3:28 am

gutter rock wrote:I also prefer the big model name headstocks. It would have been cool if they had put "marauder" on there in that style. I bet these are gonna cause problems for used guitar shops about 10 years from now. What is this weird Fender confusion would not surprise me.
The Norauder!

This guitar may become sort of an enigma over the years. Low production, only made for a short amount of time, no model name on headstock. I'm sure that some pawnshop owners will assume that the model name was removed and will offer less for the guitar than it is worth.

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Re: NGD: Fender Modern Player Marauder. Yes.. A 2nd time.

Post by BTL » Mon Feb 22, 2016 8:25 pm

gutter rock wrote:Here is a pic next to one of my jags for size comparison. It is quite a bit smaller bodied but not that noticeable unless it is side by side with its older brothers.
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This is the first time I've seen the bodies side by side like that.

It really highlights the difference between the two.

8)
Owner, Lowe Custom Guitars

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Re: NGD: Fender Modern Player Marauder. Yes.. A 2nd time.

Post by audiopablo » Mon Feb 22, 2016 8:32 pm

Sweet! Don't feel bad about the 2 time purchase. I bought and sold a 60s baja tele twice and bought the 60s MIM Jag twice (only sold once, though, I kept it).

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Re: NGD: Fender Modern Player Marauder. Yes.. A 2nd time.

Post by gutter rock » Tue Feb 23, 2016 10:02 pm

Well I should feel bad about the 2 time purchase because I already sold this Marauder as well! Not because I didn't like it, I found a rare Japanese blue Jaguar Special HH that I needed funds to pay for that I wanted more. Yes, I do have a problem.

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Re: NGD: Fender Modern Player Marauder. Yes.. A 2nd time.

Post by theleftfoot » Tue May 05, 2020 3:29 am

Cheerio Folks,

I'm back in business after i finish my tele 72...now i want to build a Marauder!

I've done it once but i lost all my tools

Can someone help me out with the Marauder Body measures? Maybe a Blue Print?

Regards Raffa

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Re: NGD: Fender Modern Player Marauder. Yes.. A 2nd time.

Post by DaGuide » Thu Sep 22, 2022 9:37 pm

gutter rock wrote:
Fri Dec 11, 2015 12:56 am

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This looks amazing, where did you get that black pickguard?

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