Fender has unveiled the American Ultra Luxe Vintage series, a fresh batch of Telecaster and Stratocasters that have had ‘50s and ‘60s-style makeovers and a contemporary update to their spec.
These are the for the player who wants the vintage look and the modern playability – and could that be the acme of electric guitar design? That’s worth a debate.
There are all kinds of great arguments for the merits of vintage guitars. There’s something ineffably cool about the O.G. designs, their paint jobs, the tones. And yet, all those decades since the golden age of guitar design have not gone to waste – the modern era has visited all kinds of player-friendly innovations to our instruments.
And the American Ultra Luxe Vintage range has lots of them. There’s the sculpted neck heel to boost upper-fret access, the stainless steel frets for that slinky feel (they’re hard on electric guitar strings but so smooth under the fingers), S-1 switching for more tone options, and 10” to 14” compound radius fingerboards as standard.
As for the vintage side of the equation. Just look at the finishes. This is classic Fender of yesteryear; you get a ‘50s blackguard Telecaster in Butterscotch Blonde, a ‘60s Tele Custom in Lake Placid Blue, a White Blonde ‘50s Strat, a Surf Green ‘60s variant, and rounding out the series there’s an HSS Strat in Fiesta Red. The Heirloom nitro lacquer gives those finishes an aged, lived-in look.
All are equipped with Fender’s Pure Vintage electric guitar pickups, with the HSS Strat featuring a hot (think “powerful articulate crunch”) Haymaker humbucker at the bridge position.
Necks are quartersawn maple, shaped into the Modern D profile you’ll find on the super-playable American Ultra II range, topped with either maple or rosewood ‘boards, depending on the model.
The fingerboards have all got rolled edges, and glow-in-the-dark Luminlay fret markers come as standard, as do Graph Tech TUSQ nuts.
“With the American Ultra Luxe Vintage series, we’ve redefined the balance between heritage and innovation,” said Max Gutnik, chief product officer, Fender. “This collection honours our iconic legacy while pushing the boundaries of modern craftsmanship.
“Every detail is built for exceptional tone, feel, and timeless style. We’re proud to offer players an elevated experience that respects tradition and sets a new standard for performance.”
The American Ultra Luxe Vintage ‘50s Telecaster is priced £2,949/$2,999. It has a pair of Pure Vintage ’51 Tele pickups, and is a guitar that’s indicative of this range.
Fender could have given this a three-saddle bridge like the originals, but has erred on the side of the intonation freaks and given us a “precision-engineered” six-saddle string-through-body bridge with brass block saddles instead. It is also available in White Blonde.
The Strats, meanwhile, similarly borrow from the American Ultra lineup, sharing the same 2-point synchronized tremolo. It is super-smooth.
The ‘60s Strats have Pure Vintage ’61 Strat single-coils, while the ‘50s models have Pure Vintage ’57 pickups.
The American Ultra Luxe Vintage ‘50s Stratocaster is offered in an ash-bodied White Blonde or with an alder body in 3-Color Sunburst, and is priced from £2,899.00 to £2,949/$2,849 to $2,999. The ‘60s version is alder bodied and offered in the aforementioned Surf Green and Ice Blue Metallica. It’s priced £2,899/$2,849.
Finally, the ‘60s Telecaster Custom has an alder body, and is offered in Lake Placid Blue and 3-Color Sunburst, with a set of Pure Vintage ’63 Tele pickups – and we have on good authority that those are “Dream Tele” tones… It’ll set you back £2,949/$2,999.
Not cheap but these are all made in Corona, California, and that price includes a hard-shell guitar case.
The American Ultra Luxe Vintage range is available now. For more details and pics, head over to Fender.
