Fender Rolls Out New Gear For The Summer

While the Fender Musical Instrument Corporation, per usual, did not make an appearance at this summer’s NAMM convention in Nashville, the Scottsdale, Arizona-based guitar giant has been steadily rolling out new gear this summer, covering a wide range of their product line from electric guitars to bass and acoustic amps.

While many companies specialize in acoustic amplification, Fender still devotes some R&D to the category as well. This week, the company presents the newest version of their age-old Acoustasonic amp. The combo amps, which come in 100-watt ($559.00) and 150-watt ($699.00) options, add a new “voicing” feature to simulate various acoustic body types (such as dreadnought or jumbo). What may give Acoustasonic an edge for some players (though likely not acoustic purists) is the amp’s ability to convert into a Fender electric guitar amp, reproducing Blackface and tweed amp tones.

Back in July, Fender introduced a few new additions to their popular American Vintage series, which recreate models from the company’s ’60s and ’70s heyday. Three Telecaster models – a ’69 Tele Thinline, ’72 Thinline, and a ’73 Telecaster Custom – will hit Fender dealers soon.

In the bass department, Fender debuted the Bronco 40 combo amp ($349.99). The bass amp follows the direction Fender has taken with their G-DEC guitar amp, which successfully married the worlds of analog amp tones, digital modeling, and software recording interface. The 40-watt combo amp has a 10″ speaker as well as 24 presets and uses the same FUSE technology as G-DEC to add backing tracks and connect the amp to your computer and digital audio workstation.

Last up, fans of Gram Parsons will appreciate Fender’s recent homage to Joshua Tree National Park, where Parsons and friends like Keith Richards often visited to take in the magical beauty and stare at the sky looking for UFOs. To commemorate the park’s 75th anniversary, the Fender Custom Shop has built four special Teles, two of which will be available to the public via auction and public drawing.