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Fender Marauder

This Fender Marauder is the key representative of the entire model family. You can review, list, or link it to artists. Remember to enrich your contributions with specifics like year, color, etc. in your notes.

$602.31 Price Tier: Standard

4.5 (23)

3 Critic Reviews

8 Reviews

Find out who is using Fender Marauder

5 community setups

13 wishlisted

42 saved

Page last updated Jun 13, 2026

Pricing and availability

We compare 600+ stores and found this item at 1 store. Prices updated June 13, 2026.

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Reviews

Price

5.0 (11)

$602.31 8 available Used

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Average Price: $602

Standard/Professional

$400

$1001+

Price Tier

In the Solid Body Electric Guitars category, Fender Marauder is priced in the Standard/Professional range. This is quality gear at a fair price point, suitable for beginners, hobbyists, and pros alike.

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Description

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Discover the Fender Marauder, a bold fusion of vintage charm and modern innovation that redefines the electric guitar experience for both beginners and seasoned musicians. As part of the Modern Player series, the Marauder revives a legendary name from the 1960s with a fresh twist, featuring a unique body style that sets it apart from the crowd. This guitar isn't just about looks; it's engineered to deliver exceptional sound and playability.

The Marauder sports a volcanic-sounding Fender Triplebucker bridge pickup, offering a wide array of tonal possibilities, from crisp cleans to fiery leads. Paired with the Modern Player Jazzmaster neck pickup, this dynamic duo ensures your sound is always rich and expressive. The koto body provides a resonant tone, while the C-shaped maple neck and rosewood fretboard with 22 jumbo frets guarantee comfort and smooth playability.

With a 5-way pickup switching system and a lower horn blade selector switch, you have versatility at your fingertips, allowing for seamless transitions between tones. The vintage-style synchronized tremolo bridge and tuners add a classic touch, while the Jazz Bass-style control knobs and 4-ply aged white pearloid pickguard complete the aesthetic appeal. Whether you're on stage or in the studio, the Fender Marauder is your ticket to a sonic adventure.

Key Features:

Koto body with unique design
C-shaped maple neck
Rosewood fretboard with 22 jumbo frets
Modern Player Jazzmaster neck pickup
Fender Triplebucker bridge pickup
5-way pickup switching with lower horn blade selector switch
4-ply aged white pearloid pickguard
Jazz Bass-style control knobs
Vintage-style synchronized tremolo bridge
Vintage-style tuners
Nickel/chrome hardware

Product specs

Brand	Fender
Model	Modern Player Marauder
Finish	Black, Lake Placid Blue
Year	2012 - 2013
Made In	China
Categories	Solid Body Electric Guitars
Body Shape	Double Cutaway
Body Type	Solid Body
Bridge/Tailpiece Type	Tremolo Bridge
Color Family	Black, Blue
Finish Style	Gloss
Fretboard Material	Rosewood
Model Family	Fender Marauder
Neck Construction	Bolt-On
Neck Material	Maple
Number of Frets	22
Number of Strings	6-String
Offset Body	Offset Body
Pickup Configuration	HS
Right / Left Handed	Right Handed
Series	Fender Modern Player

FAQs

What type of pickups does the Fender Marauder feature?: The Fender Marauder is equipped with a unique Fender Triplebucker pickup at the bridge and a Modern Player Jazzmaster pickup at the neck, offering a versatile range of tones suitable for various music styles.
Is the Fender Marauder suitable for beginners?: Yes, the Fender Marauder is suitable for beginners due to its comfortable playability and versatile sound, making it a great option for those starting out as well as more experienced players.
What is the neck profile of the Fender Marauder?: The Fender Marauder features a "C" shaped maple neck, providing a comfortable and familiar feel for players, which is ideal for both chord playing and soloing.
Does the Fender Marauder have a tremolo bridge?: Yes, the Fender Marauder comes with a vintage-style synchronized tremolo bridge, allowing for expressive pitch modulation and vibrato effects.
What is the scale length of the Fender Marauder?: The scale length of the Fender Marauder is 25.5 inches, which is standard for many Fender guitars and contributes to its bright tone and snappy response.

Reviews

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Owner Insights

We analyzed real musician discussions from forums and Reddit to find what players love, question, and tweak about Fender Marauder.

Features and functionality

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The triplebucker includes a humbucker and single coil in one housing, offering a versatile sound similar to an HSS Strat with a beefed-up quacky tone.
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The Marauder's triplebucker can produce a mellow tone when paired with light overdrive, ideal for rhythm playing and chords.
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Mods and upgrades

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Gotoh vintage locking tuners and Graph Tech components enhance tuning stability and playability, especially for players who play hard or use heavy strings.
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Installing a Bigsby for tremolo enthusiasts is a popular modification, adding to the Marauder's versatility without compromising its tonal qualities.
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Owners have successfully replaced the original bridge with a Super-Vee Bladerunner for improved tuning stability and precision.
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Setup and maintenance

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Owners recommend setting up the Marauder for drop B with D'Addario light baritone strings (13-62) for technical playing due to its responsive neck.
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The neck is described as a 70's thin C profile with a jumbo headstock, providing a comfortable playing experience.
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Build quality

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The neck is noted for its thinness, similar to a Strat, and the body offers a weight akin to a Strat but with a thinner profile like an SG.
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Some models feature a 'crushed velvet' pickguard, which is a unique aesthetic element appreciated by owners.
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Use cases and applications

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The Marauder excels as a live performance guitar due to its versatility and reliability, often preferred over more expensive Fender offsets for stage use.
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User experience

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Despite initial concerns about being a "cheap, made in China instrument," proper setup reveals the Marauder as a favorite among owners for its playability and sound.
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Despite being a heavier instrument, owners praise the Marauder for its comfortable neck and exceptional playability.
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Critic Reviews

theGUITARaddict: Fender: Marauder (Modern Player series)

theguitaraddict.blogspot.com

While the Fender Marauder from the Modern Player series isn't a faithful revival of the 1960s original, it offers surprising value for its price, sporting a Fender badge for under $550. The unique koto wood body mimics the bright attack of alder, and despite non-traditional pickups, delivers impressive tones. Its neck pickup excels in clean jazz sounds, while the bridge shines under distortion. Playability is a strong point, with its design accommodating various playing styles. However, it falls short of the true single-coil charm, making it more utilitarian than iconic. The Chinese-made guitar may deter purists but appeals to those seeking a well-built, budget-friendly option.

neutral

Full Review

Modern Player Marauder Review: This is one of several guitars I own, the others being... | Fender | Electric Guitars | Reviews @ Ultimate-Guitar.Com

ultimate-guitar.com

The Fender Modern Player Marauder is a mixed bag, visually appealing with its unique shape and decent features but struggles with some key elements. While it offers a variety of sounds, the electronics are subpar, with pots that are essentially on/off switches, and a lackluster "triplebucker" pickup. The Jazzmaster neck pickup, however, is a standout, delivering a rich tone. Build quality is impressive for a Chinese-made guitar, but the component quality leaves much to be desired, especially the bridge, which affects sustain. The Marauder is versatile but doesn't excel in any one area, making it a potential project guitar rather than a standout performer. Overall, a good budget option with room for improvement.

neutral

Full Review

Fender Modern Player Marauder review | MusicRadar

musicradar.com

The Fender Modern Player Marauder impresses with its versatile tonal range and retro appeal, offering a unique alternative to traditional Strat models. Its standout feature, the Triplebucker pickup, while initially seeming like a gimmick, proves to be a clever innovation, delivering a bright, punchy sound ideal for various genres. The guitar's playability is excellent, and its koto wood body adds intriguing tonal qualities comparable to alder. However, some might view the Triplebucker as more of a novelty. Overall, this guitar is a fantastic pick for both Fender newcomers and seasoned players seeking something different.

positive

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4.5 out of 5

Based on 8 Reviews and 23 Ratings

5 star

4 star

3 star

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1 star

walter

3485

over 10 years ago

The workhorse

In the guitar world, it can be very hard to get over the "Made in China" or "Made in Korea" labels on the back of headstocks. This guitar opened my eyes. When Fender released their modern player line, one of these guitars popped up at my local Sam Ash. I picked it up and immediately fell in love with it. And I also fell in love with the price tag. I was gifted this guitar on my 16th birthday. It was shipped to my house and came out of the box perfectly set up. I have not set up the guitar since I purchased it and it is just starting to need to be set up. 4 years later.
The neck profile is very comfortable. This neck is home to me. The slim C profile is perfect for practicing. The guitar features two pickups, A jazzmaster neck pickup and a Triplebucker. OH! Triplebucker?? Whats that? The bridge pickup is three blade single coils wired together. And as an added bonus the guitar features a 5 way pickup selector. This allows me to use the triple bucker as a humbucker, a triple bucker, or a single coil with just a the flip of the switch. You also can combine the single coil from the triplebucker and the Jazzmaster pickup which gives you strange strat like in-between sounds. And of course you can play the neck pickup only on its own. I have obviously modified the guitar like I do a majority of my instruments. I replaced the cheap minipots with full sized CTS pots and have added an orange drop cap and treble bleed mod on the volume pot. This has really opened the guitar up to its true potential. I find that the humbucker sounds like a Firebird mini hum more than a PAF style humbucker. The triplebucker sounds like a fat strat. The single coil on its own sounds like a tele. The only issue with the pickups I have is that as you move more into the middle on the switch I find that there is a clear drop in volume. Other than that, this guitar is probably my most played, may it be practicing or at lessons.

zachariah_connor

231

about 10 years ago

The Main

While it may have been one of the cheapest Fenders at the time of its arrival, this guitar captured my attention with the beautiful tone of the neck jazzmaster pickup. I just remember shopping for a guitar, and picking this one up at a music store and plugging it into a Deluxe Reverb and being blown away by the clarity and warmth of that neck pickup. The fact that it has a humbucker within the triplebucker bridge pickup, was the nail in the coffin. I did some set up to mine, adjusting the trem for minimal friction and best return to pitch, and it is pretty stable. The trem arm is really terrible, as it creaks and flops around. I really wish it was a push-in one, since the threads at the end of the travel are kind of thrashed. With a simple bridge height adjustment, it is incredibly playable. The neck is jaw-dropping, and the vintage tint really brings out the subtle, occasional flame and bird's eye. It is a little on the thin side for me unfortunately. The pickups sound great, but when switching between the humbucker and the neck pickup, the bridge is dark enough that it might disappear from the mix if your sound is geared towards the single coil tones already. That being said, since it has 500k pots, it is a really bright and hot on the single coil sounds, versus a strat or tele. The pots are reasonable, but could use a volume kit. One last quibble, is that in position 2, (neck and bridge single coil), it is not hum canceling. I should just mention, the body. It is extremely comfortable, standing or especially sitting. It looks similar to a Jaguar or Jazzmaster, but it is smaller and sleeker, meaning it fits in normal cases. Win. Aside from some minor hardware eccentricities, which all can be solved cheaply and quickly, this is a fantastic guitar for the money, if you can find one now, and it truly is a great guitar period. Great playing, great sounding, and amazingly comfortable. This is my first, and main axe. I rarely leave home without it, and it's the one I'll never sell.

jimmarchi1

40997

10 years ago about 10 years ago

great review, you really dig the fender offsets, huh?

joseph_melendez

over 8 years ago

Favorite guitar ever

I bought thus guitar iff a friend dirt cheap. I had never looked into these guitars until he offered to sell it to me. It was my first "big brand name" guitar (so something besides epiphone or squier) and the more I played it, the more I have fallen in love with it. It has been my main guitar for gigs and recording since I bought it and it never lets me down. The pickups on this thing are kind of weird. There is the Fender triplebucker in the bridge, which basically is like a mini humbucker with a single coil stacked on top of it. It has a 5 way switch which is really cool for some diverse tones. 1st=regular humbucker 2nd= triplebucker 3rd= top coil of triplebucker 4th= top coil and jazz master pickup and 5th= just the jazz master pickup.

junkmale2000

235

over 9 years ago

Nice offset variant

Although built in Indonesia, this guitar has a quality feel. The shape is close to Jaguar but it isn't the same. The 9.5" neck is close to strat standard. The electrics are killer. A Jazzmaster single coil in the neck and a three (!) blade humbucker in the bridge which can be split and combined in a number of ways by the five way switch. Comes in a lovely nitro blue sparkle or black.

Roles:

Guitarist

pitchy

387

over 12 years ago

Versatile guitar with unique triplebucker and p90 pickup combination

A guitar that has surprised me, this features a triplebucker pickup (three single coils rolled into one) and a p90 in the neck. I use this for gigs and teaching, great value for money!

Roles:

Guitarist Bassist Music Producer

Genres:

Rock Pop Blues

From Gear Setup

jacob_keplinger

517

almost 8 years ago

"Death in the Afternoon"

Most of my electric tones from the first record came out of this... as well as Justin's PRS Custom 22.

pietroschaff

173

almost 11 years ago

All the spectacular features from a Fender with an exclusive body

This is an awesome guitar as this isn't a regular Fender such as the legendary Stratocaster or Telecaster for example. It has a solid body with all the swiftness and quality from a true Fender instrument with an exclusive visual.