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Post subject: Setup info for Prodigy Bass
Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2012 1:12 pm
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I am setting up an oddball bass I bought a few years back. Would anyone have specifications on this. I'm assuming it is a 7.25 radius neck. Is there any other info?

Thanks


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Post subject: Re: Setup info for Prodigy Bass
Posted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 8:33 pm
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Location: Albemarle, NC
The Fender Prodigy Bass is sometimes said to have built on the Precision Bass Plus Deluxe platform featuring a P/J pickup layout, 2-band active circuitry in a Phillip Kubicki 2 pot stacked setup and a "fine-tuner" Schaller Elite bridge assembly.

I personally always considered them more like an evolution of the JP90 wood-wise due the almost identically shaped poplar body with the sharper edges and the similar Jazz neck profile and slimmed down headstock shape that was also present on the JP90.

The JP90, Prodigy & Cowpoke P-Bass Special had sharper body edges and a smaller headstock than Jazz or Precision model basses of the day. While the JP90 had the wacky teardrop pickguard and the Cowpoke had the 51'sh baby-amoeba pickguard, the Prodigy had no pickguard at all. They were though all very similarly shaped.

I'm pretty sure you are correct about the Prodigy Bass neck radius being 7.25" even though it was not on the specifications which I copied for you below. I don't have one here to check but that is what I recall. The spec sheet for these also has an error as it specifies a black pickguard, yet I have never actually seen a Prodigy with a pickguard on it at all. I don't think they exist with a pickguard and that was just a proofreading error.

Many elements of the Prodigy bass including the control setup were incorporated into the MIM Precision Bass Special in 94 which is now commonly referred to as "THE COWPOKE" Bass. If anything the Prodigy is more scarce than the Cowpoke version P-Bass Specials (which exist in both passive and active models) and a Prodigy should bring a much better price since it is stamped Made in USA.

There is a report posted elsewhere on the Internet that the Prodigy bodies and necks were shaped in Enesenada and then trucked to the USA for finishing and assembly, but I find that suspicious as there were no shaping machines at Ensenada in 91/93 that I know about since as far as I know Corona housed the only CNC machines Fender owned at that time. It is possible that the bodies and necks were cut and fretted in the USA, sent to Ensenada for finishing then sent back to Corona for assembly than the other way around. This Corona cutting to Ensenada for finishing to Corona for assembly procedure was first done in 1997 & 98 on the California Series and was also the procedure for the entire Highway One series also.

Setup is the same as any bass. String up, set saddle height, set relief, set intonation, set pickup height, rinse and repeat.
====================

Model Name: U.S. Prodigy Bass (Active Preamp)

Model Number: 014-4200

Series: U.S. Prodigy Series

Body: Poplar

Neck: Maple

Fingerboard: Rosewood

No. of Frets: 20

Scale Length: 34” (864 mm)

Width @ Nut: 1.625” (41 mm)

Hardware: Chrome

Machine Heads: Standard

Bridge: Standard

Pickguard: 3-Ply Black

Pickups: 1 Standard Precision Bass Pickup (Mid), 1 Standard Jazz Bass Pickup (Bridge)

Pickup Switching: Pan Pot

Controls: Master Volume/Pan Pot, Treble Boost/Cut Bass Boost/Cut

Colors: (702) Lake Placid Blue,

(706) Black,

(725) Crimson Red Metallic,

(780) Arctic White (Polyurethane Finish)

Strings: Dynamaxx 1200L

Unique Features: Active Preamp

Source: U.S.

Accessories: Case, Strap, Cable

U.S. MSRP: $599.99 in 1991, $649.99 in 1993

Specs: Prices and Specifications Subject to Change Without Notice

INTRODUCED: 1991

DISCONTINUED: 1993


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