Fender's newly announced American Ultra II series combines classic Fender ingredients with hyper-modern recipes to showcase the company at its most forward-thinking.
The complement of modernizations include new finishes, body contours, and a modern D-profile neck shape, along with advanced Ultra Noiseless and Haymaker humbucker pickups. The result is a closer relationship between Fender's heritage builds and the high-performance, built-for-speed instruments of its sister firms Charvel, EVH and Jackson.
The series consists of two Stratocasters, a Telecaster, and — for fans of offsets — a Meteora, along with Precision, Jazz and Meteora bass guitars and an all-single-coil Strat for left-handed players.
Updates include D-shape necks made from quartersawn maple and topped with either ebony or maple fingerboards, with Luminlay side dots and ultra-rolled edges. Taking the guitars closer to Charvel and Jackson's territory, the new neck shape is said to allow players to “effortlessly glide along the fretboard” while retaining Fender’s most lusted hallmarks.
Other updates include newly sculpted neck heels and rear body contours for contemporary playability and comfort.
The two Stratocasters pair the new 10–14-inch compound radius necks with alder bodies, medium jumbo frets, and GraphTech TUSQ nuts. The standard version (from $2,199.99) packs a trio of Ultra II Noiseless Vintage Strat single-coil pickups, while the HSS model (from $2,249.99) features a pair of Ultra II Noiseless Hot Strat pickups and a Haymaker humbucker in the bridge.
Other hardware specs found across the two models include a two-point American Ultra Synchronized tremolo with whammy bar, stainless-steel block saddles and deluxe locking tuners. There are also soft-touch knobs and one-ply anodized aluminum pickguards.
The Standard Strat comes in Ultraburst, Solar Flare, Avalanche, Noble Blue, Sinister Red and Texas Tea finishes, with Texas Tea, Avalanche and Ultraburst on tap for lefties. The HSS is available in Ultraburst, Noble Blue, Sinister Red and Solar Flare.
The Ultra II Series Telecaster ($2,199.99) features Ultra II Noiseless Vintage Tele pickups combined with an all-new S-1 switch that engages a series wiring option to widen the guitar's tonal scope.
It's rounded out with a six-saddle string-through-body bridge with chrome brass saddles, deluxe locking tuners, knurled aluminum knobs and a futurist one-ply anodized aluminum pickguard. Finishes include Texas Tea, Sinister Red, Solar Flare, Avalanche and Ultraburst.
The Meteora ($2,249.99) has a pair of Haymaker humbuckers, designed to deliver “modern crunch and searing leads” in equal measure. Like the Ultra II Tele, its pickups are paired to an S-1 switch, and it features a bass-cut knob that sits alongside its master volume control.
The Meteora features a six-saddle string-through-body hardtail, deluxe locking tuners, and the same knurled knob and aluminum pickguard combo found on the Tele. The model is offered in Texas Tea, Avalanche and Ultraburst satin finishes.
For bassists, the Precision ($2,199.99), Jazz (four-string, $2,299.99; five-string, $2,399.99) and Meteora ($2,299.99) models pair alder bodies with ebony or quartersawn maple 10-to-14–inch compound-radius fretboards, medium jumbo frets, GraphTech TESQ nuts and smooth Ultra satin finishes.
The Precision is outfitted with a set of specially designed Ultra II Noiseless Vintage pickups, the Jazz comes with American Ultra II Jazz Bass pickups, and the Meteora wields Haymaker bass humbuckers.
A redesigned preamp gives players unprecedented tone control, while the S-1 switch engages active or passive operation. All models feature a three-band active EQ with switchable midrange frequency.
The basses are complemented by adjustable HiMass top-load or string-through bridges, lightweight tuners with tapered shafts, knurled knobs and aluminum pickguards.
The Precision is available in Ultraburst, Texas Tea, Sinister Red, and Noble Blue finishes. Choose from Sinister Red, Avalanche, and Ultraburst for the four-string Jazz, and Solar Flare, Texas Tea and Ultraburst for the five-string and Meteora.
Head to Fender to learn more.
“Eddie Van Halen had me play his 5150 guitar, and then he asked me to show the solo to him, because he’d forgotten it.” Jennifer Batten recalls re-teaching EVH his "Beat It" solo
“Eddie Van Halen had me play his 5150 guitar, and then he asked me to show the solo to him, because he’d forgotten it.” Jennifer Batten recalls re-teaching EVH his "Beat It" solo
