First Look: Fender Vintera II Series—'50s Jazzmaster, '60s Stratocaster & '70s Jaguar
PG straps in and takes a spin with three brand new entries from the ace but accessibly priced, Mexico-built Vintera II series.
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster
The Vintera II ‘50s Jazzmaster features an alder body and a maple neck with rosewood fingerboard for classic Fender tone that’s full of punch and clarity. The late-‘50s “C”-shape neck lends a comfortably familiar grip that feels just right in your hand, while the 7.25” radius fingerboard with vintage-tall frets provide vintage comfort with ample room for big bends and expressive vibrato. Under the hood, you’ll find a pair of vintage-style ‘50s single-coil pickups that deliver all the sweet and sparkling, warm and woody tone that made Fender famous. The vintage-style floating tremolo lets you dive and wail with abandon, while vintage-style tuning machines provide classic looks with a finer gear ratio and enhanced tuning stability to complete the package.
Specs
- Alder Body
- Vintage-Style ‘50s Single-Coil Jazzmaster Pickups
- Maple, Late ‘50s “C”-Shape Neck
- Rosewood, 7.25” radius fingerboard
- 6-Saddle Vintage-Style Adjustable bridge with “Floating” Tremolo Tailpiece • Deluxe Gig Bag included
Fender Vintera II '60s Stratocaster
The Vintera II ‘60s Stratocaster features an alder body and a maple neck with rosewood fingerboard for classic Fender tone that’s full of punch and clarity. The slim “C” shape neck is based on a classic ‘60s profile for an intuitive and inviting feel, while the 7.25” radius fingerboard with vintage-tall frets provides vintage comfort with ample room for big bends and expressive vibrato. Under the hood, you’ll find a trio of vintage-style ‘60s pickups that deliver all the sweet and sparkling, warm and woody tone that made Fender famous. The vintage-style synchronized tremolo lets you dive and wail with abandon, while vintage-style tuning machines provide classic looks with a finer gear ratio and enhanced tuning stability to complete the package.
Specs
- Alder Body
- Vintage-Style Mid ‘60s Single Coil Strat Pickups
- ‘60s “C”-Shape Neck
- Maple, 7.25” radius fingerboard
- Vintage-Style Synchronized Tremolo
- Fender Vintage-Style tuners
- Deluxe Gig Bag included
Fender Vintera II '70s Jaguar
The Vintera II ‘70s Jaguar features an alder body and a maple neck for classic Fender tone that’s full of punch and clarity. The late-‘70s “C”-shape neck lends a comfortably familiar grip that feels just right in your hand, while the 7.25” radius fingerboard with vintage-tall frets provide vintage comfort with ample room for big bends and expressive vibrato. Black blocks and binding add a premium feel and look with distinctive ‘70s style. Under the hood, you’ll find a pair of vintage-style early-’70s single-coil pickups that deliver all the sweet and sparkling, warm and woody tone that made Fender famous. The vintage-style floating tremolo lets you dive and wail with abandon, while vintage-style tuning machines provide classic looks with a finer gear ratio and enhanced tuning stability to complete the package.
Specs
- Alder Body
- Vintage-Style Early-‘70s Single-Coil Jaguar® Pickups
- Maple, Late ‘70s “C”-Shape Neck
- Maple, 7.25” radius fingerboard
- 6-Saddle Vintage-Style Adjustable bridge with “Floating” Tremolo Tailpiece • Fender® Vintage “F” Stamped tuners
- Deluxe Gig Bag included
From Robin Trower to Eric Johnson to Tom Morello, Joe Bonamassa, the Edge, Green Day, Eric Clapton, and more—10 S-Styles that’ll give you 6-on-a-side envy!
Here’s PG’s stats on Strats—the top 10 Rig Rundowns featuring Fender Stratocasters and other Strat-style guitars. We’re not giving away who’s number one, but you’re welcome to guess—or simply watch the compelling show-and-tells in this video. You’ll see a slew of signature models close up, with guided tours from Robin Trower and Eric Johnson (who also show off vintage Marshalls), and by Eric Clapton and the Edge’s stalwart techs. Meet the 1958 Fender Strat that John Oates played on virtually all of Hall & Oates’ smash hits. (Can you go for that?) Plus, get the lowdown on Doyle Bramhall II’s hard-played 1964 Stratocaster and the left-of-center pickup configuration employed by Khruangbin’s Mark Speer.
Still want more? How about the super strat rocked by Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong, or a demonstration by Tom Morello of his famed scratching technique—with a slide. (Hint: It’s not a kill switch, and he’s an inventive badass.) And Joe Bonamassa tells you why he bought a guitar that was presented to him as the “best Stratocaster” ever, and makes a compelling case for exactly why it’s that, by a good 5 percent. Spoiler alert: There’s a lot more great gear details you’ll pick up along the way. F’rinstance, does Clapton really never change his strings unless they break? How funky do flatwounds needs to get until they’re perfect? How many Flying V’s does the Edge use during a concert? What pickup settings yielded the sounds you’re heard on classic recordings? How many marmots does it take to fill a VW bug? (Just seeing if you’re playing attention.) Sure, the Stratocaster and its variants have been around since 1954, and we’ve heard them played on countless recordings, but you won’t leave this Top 10 Rig Rundown without learning something new about Leo Fender’s greatest hit!
The 26-year-old roots guitar titan shows off his prime stage axes, including his signature ES-345 and a vintage parts Les Paul, plus he reveals the secrets of his personal MK Ultra.
Since Marcus King’s previous Rig Rundown in 2017, he’s made two albums—produced by the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach—and scored a Grammy nomination. He’s also busted out his own signature Orange amp with an allusive name, and upped his profile, stepping from clubs to big halls. Not bad for a South Carolina kid with blues in his bloodline.
And, really, not entirely unexpected. King hit the scene in his teens as a full-blown virtuoso, playing club gigs at night and going to high school by day. He was initially championed by Warren Haynes, who was so impressed that he released the Marcus King Band’s 2015 debut, Soul Insight, on his Evil Teen Records label. And then the hard-playing young roots genre-blender rode that wind under his wings.
Before his September 29 gig at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, touring behind his recent release Young Blood, he entertained PG’s John Bohlinger—with some help with the details from guitar tech Cody Bates—with a close-up look at his current touring rig. Dig in!
Brought to you by D’Addario DS XS Strings.
Granddad’s Joy
If you’ve seen Marcus King play, you’ve noticed this beautiful all-stock 1962 Gibson ES-345. The model debuted in 1958 and was immediately used by Chuck Berry, Freddie King, and, later, B.B. King (pre-ES-355) and Eric Clapton, among others. This particular guitar was purchased new by King’s grandfather and it’s been Marcus’ No. 1 since the family put it in his hands. The big red rocker and all of King’s electric guitars stay strung with Elixir Optiweb Nickel Plated Steel mediums, .011-.049.
The New Red Rider of the Playful Stage
In order to save wear and tear on his grandfather’s ES-345, King usually leaves that one at home and tours with the No. 1 prototype of his Gibson Marcus King Signature ES- 345 Custom, which was unveiled in early 2021. But since he lives in Nashville now, both attended the Ryman show.
Back in Black
King picked this 1962 Fender Strat up at Nashville’s Carter Vintage Guitars. He describes the neck as “sweet as pie.” After he took it home, he sent it to Matt Hughes at Banker Fine Handcrafted Guitars in Atlanta for some work: a refin and a swap of the original 3-way switch for a 5-way.
Not Quite a Beauty …
But a beautiful instrument. This weathered 1958 Gibson Les Paul Custom is a vintage parts guitar, featuring a ’58 body merged with a 1970s neck and hardware. Dig the tone in the video!
Shady Character
Here’s another beauty—a 1939 Martin D-18 shade top that was a gift from Zac Brown. Body crack repairs in the top display in the photo, as does the wear of many miles over the years. This exceptional vintage working-player’s acoustic stays strung with Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze mediums, gauged .013–.056.
These Three King’s
Unveiled by Orange in 2021, King’s signature heads bear the name MK Ultra—maybe … or maybe not named after a top-secret government experiment with LSD and other substances. (Insert smiley emoji!) It’s a rad amp, with 30 watts output from 6L6s, one volume control, a treble dial marked SING and a bass knob tagged DEEP. Each of his two MK Ultra heads runs into its own Orange slanted 8x10 with Celestion Vintage 30s. In between those citrus commandos sits a 1968 Fender Bandmaster TFL5005D powering up a Fender Bassman cab with two Celestion 15s—the company’s G15B-100 speakers, which hone in on the deep end.
Marcus King's Pedalboard
King runs his guitar’s cable into a Dunlop Volume (X) 8, and then his signal hits a Dunlop Cry Baby wah, an MXR Booster, an Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer, a Tru-Fi Two Face fuzz, MXR Micro Chorus, Dunlop Rotovibe chorus/vibrato, MXR Phase 100, Tru-Fi Ultra Tremolo, Dunlop Echoplex Delay, MXR reverb, and a Radial Shotgun signal splitter and buffer. Juice? That comes from a Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 3 plus.