It’s a new year, and NAMM is just around the corner, so ’tis the season for new models of guitars. Schecter just announced a bevy of them a few days ago, and now Fender’s Custom Shop is returning the favor.
I know some metalheads shy away from single-coil guitars like most Strats, and I admit that I often prefer humbuckers for metal, but don’t rule out our twangy brethren. Fellow Gear Gods writer Trey Xavier extoled the virtues of single coils in one of his first posts (not included in his list is one of my favorite guitarists to sometimes avoid humbuckers, Kevin Huffnagel from Dysrhythmia/Gorguts). Also, a fat Strat or Tele (with a humbucker in the bridge, like the new 1969 Relic Stratocaster) is hands-down one of my favorite metal axes.
Here’s a list of the new editions, which also include a couple sweet new basses. Head over to Fender’s website for more info on their new guitars and basses.
2014 Custom Deluxe Stratocaster®
- Alder body with AAA quilt maple top in Purple Trans, Candy Red Trans, and Cobalt Blue Trans finishes
- AAA birdseye maple neck with a 10/56 large “V” shape
- Rosewood or one-piece maple fingerboard with 22 medium jumbo frets
- Custom Shop Fat ’60s single-coil Strat® pickups (bridge and neck); reverse-wound/reverse polarity Fat ‘60s single-coil Strat pickups (middle) with five-way pickup switch and modern Stratocaster wiring
- Nickel/chrome hardware with pearl button tuners
- Two-point synchronized tremolo with block saddles
2014 Custom Deluxe Telecaster®
- Alder body with AAA quilt maple top in Purple Trans, Candy Red Trans, and Cobalt Blue Trans finishes
- AAA Birdseye Maple neck with a NoCaster® “U” Shape
- Rosewood or Maple fingerboard with 22 medium jumbo frets
- Texas Special™ single-coil Tele® pickups (bridge), Custom Shop Twisted Tele single-coil pickups (neck) with three-way switch and custom Telecaster wiring
- Nickel/chrome hardware with pearl button tuners
- Six-saddle Custom Shop chrome-plated steel Tele bridge plate with plated solid brass saddles
1964 Closet Classic Stratocaster
- Select alder body in Three-Color Sunburst finish
- Nitrocellulose lacquer finish
- Maple neck with early-’60s “C” shape
- Round-lam rosewood fingerboard with 21 vintage-style frets
- Hand-wound single-coil Stratocaster pickups (bridge, middle, neck) with Vintage Stratocaster wiring
- Vintage-style synchronized tremolo bridge
1964 Closet Classic Jazzmaster®
- Select alder body in Sonic Blue finish with a matching headstock
- Nitrocellulose lacquer finish
- Maple neck with an early ‘60s oval “C” shape
- Round-lam rosewood fingerboard with 21 vintage-style frets
- Custom Vintage Jazzmaster pickups (bridge and neck) with vintage Jazzmaster® wiring
- American Vintage adjustable six-saddle bridge with floating tremolo and tremolo lock button
2014 Proto Stratocaster
- Select lightweight ash body with cutaway heel in Faded Three-Color Sunburst, Black, and Arctic White finishes
- AAA Birdseye Maple neck with early ‘60s oval “C” shape
- Round-lam rosewood or one-piece maple fingerboard with 22 medium-jumbo frets
- Custom hand-wound Fat ‘60s Strat (bridge), Texas Special™ single-coil Strat (middle and neck) pickups with five-way switch and custom Stratocaster wiring
- Master volume and master tone controls
- Two-point synchronized tremolo with block saddles
2014 Proto Telecaster
- Select lightweight ash body with cutaway heel in Arctic White, Black, and Faded Three-Color Sunburst finishes
- AAA birdseye maple neck with a 10/56 large “V” shape
- Round-lam rosewood or one-piece maple fingerboard with 22 medium jumbo frets
- Josephina Red Hot pickups (bridge and neck) with three-way switch and Modern Telecaster wiring
- Nickel/chrome hardware with research special design Telecaster bridge
- Master volume and Greasebucket™ tone circuit controls
2014 Proto Precision Bass®
- Lightweight select alder body ash body in Arctic White, Black, and Faded Three-Color Sunburst with nitrocellulose lacquer finish
- One-piece quartersawn maple neck with a “C” shape
- Maple fingerboard with 20 medium jumbo frets
- TV Jones® Thunderblade pickup with Vintage Precision Bass wiring
- Volume and tone controls
1964 Heavy Relic® Precision Bass
- Select alder body with in heavy relic Three-Color Sunburst with nitrocellulose lacquer finish
- Quartersawn maple neck with a “C” shape
- Round-lam rosewood fingerboard with 20 vintage frets
- Vintage split single-coil Precision Bass pickups with Vintage Precision Bass wiring
- “L Series” neck plate
- Nickel/chrome hardware with four-saddle Vintage Precision Bass bridge
- Volume and tone controls
2014 ‘56 Heavy RelicStratocaster
- Alder body in Black finish with Heavy Relic lacquer
- One-piece maple neck with a 10/56 “V” shape
- One-piece maple fingerboard with 21 6105 frets
- Master-designed pickups with reverse-wound/reverse polarity middle pickup with five-way switch and Modern Stratocaster wiring
el_thoth_of_nagthragar / January 7, 2014 3:19 am
These are sweet. It’s a shame that fenders and single coils get such hate from other metal heads. I’ve got a sweet new American Standard strat, I bought hot rails for it,thing that I wouldn’t be able to live with the single coil in the bridge. I’ve been putting it off installing them because the tone is nice and crunchy and clear.
/
Chris Alfano / January 7, 2014 7:21 am
That’s the nice thing about the three pickups in a Strat. You can put a bucker in the bridge position and if you miss the single coil there, the middle one gets you close enough.
/
dump wagon / January 7, 2014 1:15 pm
Another notable single coil user is Kurt Ballou. He doesn’t use them exclusively, but he has recorded and performed with Jazzmasters. Even among single coil guitars, that’s an unusual choice for metal and hardcore.
/
Maximillian M. / January 8, 2014 1:36 am
Jon from Cryptopsy is using a strat as his main guitar, I’m not sure about the pickup config, I know he does have a humbucker in the bridge. When I first saw him with it, I thought it was odd, but his tone is great, so it clearly works well.
/
Veldar / January 9, 2014 5:50 pm
The whole humbucker for metal is so untrue, I single coils sound just as good when dialed in right.
/