FENDER AMERICAN ACOUSTASONIC STRATOCASTER

review
FENDER AMERICAN ACOUSTASONIC STRATOCASTER
92
GUITARIST MAY 2020
C
all it shock of the new, but just a year
after Fender launched its American
Acoustasonic Telecaster, doesn’t it
look less radical now and more a part of the
furniture? That familiarity certainly informs
this new 2020 Stratocaster version. With
its natural or coloured inset spruce top, it
initially appears far less modern than its
original sibling, albeit far from our vintage
friends. Whatever your thoughts are on
that, there’s little to dispute the fact that
the Acoustasonic platform suits the once
pioneering Stratocaster style. Even before
you plug in to explore the different acoustic
and electric voices, it has a surprisingly
strong and full voice, and while it obviously
won’t challenge even the smallest of
acoustic steel-strings for volume and depth,
it’s roomy and resonant, an inviting playing
experience. A very good start.
First and foremost it is an acoustic guitar,
albeit with a relatively small soundbox
chamber and that central soundhole
colloquially referred to as the ‘doughnut’,
which is officially called the patented
Stringed Instrument Resonance System
(SIRS). It’s more a soundport than a simple
hole in the top to let the air out and, as
Fender’s Tim Shaw discusses elsewhere in
this feature, it was the key to kicking off this
Stratocaster version.
Shape aside, there is little difference in its
construction from the Telecaster version.
Both mahogany neck and body have quite a
textured feel that will benefit from playing
and probably burnish the seemingly
near bare wood. Like the Tele, it’s a full
Fender-scale bolt-on but with acoustic
strings, including a wound third string,
acoustic-style bridge and compensated
saddle – very much an acoustic/electric
hybrid. And that’s exactly what it is and it
leans almost as heavily as the Telecaster on
those amplified acoustic voices. So, like the
Telecaster, we get a master volume and a
five-position lever Voice Selector switch,
which offers five pairs of voices (A and B)
that can be voiced individually or as a blend
of the two via the Mod control.
FENDER AMERICAN ACOUSTASONIC
STRATOCASTER
£1,749
CONTACT Fender Musical Instruments EMEA PHONE [phone] WEB www.fender.com
What You Need To Know
That Acoustasonic Telecaster got
a lot of stick from the forumites,
didn’t it?
It did, but in the real world Fender
exceeded its expectations in terms of
sales and this Stratocaster is number
two in the Acoustasonic series.
But it’s the same thing, just with
a different shape, isn’t it?
Fair comment, but no. The physics of
the body meant that the innovative
and patented ‘doughnut’ soundhole
had to be redesigned to maximise
its acoustic voice. We have different
sounds onboard, plus there are three
electric settings: clean, a little bit of
hair… and downright hairy.
It’s not vintage. Why should we
be interested?
Well, head over to YouTube and you’ll
find Tyler Bryant showing off the
Acoustasonic Stratocaster head-
to-head with Daniel Donato and his
Acoustasonic Telecaster. Jack White,
too, has his own Fender Custom Shop
version. C’mon, it’s 2020!
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High Flyer
Words Dave Burrluck Photography Olly Curtis
Exactly a year after launching the American Acoustasonic Telecaster,
Fender took the wraps off the Stratocaster version. The same guitar
with a different shape or a new voice? We fi nd out…
Even before you
plug in to explore the
different acoustic and
electric voices, it has a
surprisingly strong and
full voice… It’s roomy
and resonant
VIDEO DEMO http://bit.ly/guitaristextra
GIT458.rev_strat.indd 92 19/03/2020 17:11