Never play a fender the same way again?

[greekdude]

https://shop.fender.com/en-GR/2019-teaser

[AniML]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

I got that too. And all the photography seems to bring you back to the contoured heel and neckplate. The big reveal is tomorrow. Not expecting anything revolutionary

[BriGuy1968]

Never play a fender the same way again?

Intriguing commercial… Makes me very curious to see the reveal.

Can’t help but wonder, though, what they could do that would make me never play one the same way again. I’ve pretty much always played ANY guitar like the bee-otch it is!

[emoji12]


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[BeKindRewind]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

This just in , fender decides to stop making the same guitar they've been making since 1954 and include a couple of the upgrades Ibanez and Jackson have been doing since the early 80's and call it a revolution. 12" fingerboard radius and a slightly scooped heel ! Hell yeah boys let's shred !!!! But don't worry they'll charge $1900 for it.

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[greekdude]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

I dunno, I kinda agree with Fender, I mean, I would agree if they made this move 20 years ago. Gibson, despite all the controversies of the recent years, established itself as a prestige brand, and created solid guitars that heavy players would use (see e.g. Disturbed's guitarist's early records). Fender kept showing ads of the old southern black man playing the blues or the barefoot blond hippie wannabe playing "vintage"-correct tones as they were supposed to sound back "then".
When I brought up those arguments here and elsewhere I was told that Fender already had Charvel and Jackson who fill this gap. Pretty fair. But still, it doesn't make up for the lost prestige that a modern shredder would give. You'll tell me, ok, Jim Root played with fenders, but they were not "normal" off the shelf fenders like e.g. Donegan would do with LPs.
So IMHO this is a good move but a little bit too late. They have been building on the "vintage-correct" mantra for way too long.

[PFDarkside]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

Fender Ultra series, replacement for the Elite series. It includes offsets and it looks like the removed the heel notch for truss today adjustment. Also, D profile from nut to heel instead of the C -> D of the Elite. It might be a new range of noiseless pickups too.

I’m curious about the other changes, I’m actually a pretty big fan of the Elite series, it was a new progression from the Deluxe. I guess since it was the first of the redesigned range this go around, they’ve learned some things and are applying them to the top end American guitars.

https://www.gearnews.com/fender-american-ultra-series-leaked-all-over-the-web/

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

Guitar community: Fender never does anything aside from the same old stuff they've always done.

Fender: We're going to incorporate some of the things other companies who essentially copied our original design have done.

Guitar community: Stupid Fender is just copying other companies!

[GuitarStv]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

I'm excited about the heel joint. It's something that they should have done many years ago . . . sure. But it's still nice to see. I don't spend all my time up there, but my fingers find their way up past the 17th fret regularly enough to really dislike the chunky traditional heel. A jazzmaster body with that heel would be incredibly easy to play on the upper frets.

[sondich]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

The teaser seems to have created some buzz. We'll see what rolls out...

It must be difficult to create interesting modifications to an iconic design.. new & different but too different is blasphemy.

I guess it's the double edge sword of having a popular/revered brand.

[Mincer]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

Well, they look good, and Fender is in a strange position. Innovate too far and they lose their fans. But people looking for modern features are looking for other brands.

[ICTGoober]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

My guess is that Fender is bringing out something djenty…..

By the way, anyone checked out Fender's latest video about growing their business via the internet and Fender Songs? Pretty interesting stuff. They have observed that of the people who buy a Fender for the first time in a year - 90 percent drop out. Fender wants to get that rate to 80 percent, and thereby double their business.

Worth the 8 minutes to watch.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=530&v=FkxOirR0W6A

[PFDarkside]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

They all need to look like a Strat. Then they need to be Standard (Professional), Affordable (Performer), Classic (Vintage) or modern (Elite/Ultra). The Elite was probably a toe in the water and the Ultra refines it based on feedback. None of these things are complicated, it’s just judging if a Strat buyer will choose them or no.

My guess is that Fender is bringing out something djenty…..

By the way, anyone checked out Fender's latest video about growing their business via the internet and Fender Songs? Pretty interesting stuff. They have observed that of the people who buy a Fender for the first time in a year - 90 percent drop out. Fender wants to get that rate to 80 percent, and thereby double their business.

Worth the 8 minutes to watch.....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_c...&v=FkxOirR0W6A

I think Fender is pretty smart. Create a revenue stream of lessons, when people buy their second guitar it’ll probably be a higher priced Fender. Also, having everything from Squier to Custom Shop, kids see Strats, Teles and offsets on stage, then can afford a Squier or MIM version. Back in the classic rock era people just played Fenders and Gibson’s, those were the “premier” instruments for the most part. Now there are tons of great brands, Fender is paying endorsers to keep the brand in the spotlight. It would be really easy for all those people to play Suhrs and Whitfills.

[greekdude]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

Fender is paying endorsers to keep the brand in the spotlight.

New guitar-oriented players, modern players, embrace the new designs like the ones by Strandberg or Kiesel. Any brand will have to start producing entirely new designs if they want a future. The old "stock" (us over 50 yrs) will slowly die out, any solid and reliable company should start looking forward.

[PFDarkside]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

New guitar-oriented players, modern players, embrace the new designs like the ones by Strandberg or Kiesel. Any brand will have to start producing entirely new designs if they want a future. The old "stock" (us over 50 yrs) will slowly die out, any solid and reliable company should start looking forward.

Sure, but for every Tosin Abasi playing amp advanced design, there’s at least a few Mikey Dimas’s playing slightly customized Strats and Teles.

I’m also first to admit I have no idea what players other than me want. I’m happy to be a player not in marketing!

[NegativeEase]

Re: Never play a fender the same way again?

Ultra Jazzmaster looks hot -'aint gonna lie.