The Fender American Deluxe Series was a line of electric guitars and basses introduced by Fender in 1995 and discontinued in 2016. It was upgraded in 2004 and 2010 before being replaced by the American Elite series in 2016.[1]
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American Deluxe Jazz Bass
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Jan 31, 2010 I was looking thru the Fender site on the products and the American Deluxe Stratocaster HSS is no longer shown. I bought one in 2008 and think it's an awsome guitar. Does anyone know what the deal with this model is. Maybe they discontinued the HSS in the American Deluxe because they offer an HSS in the new model they just came out with. The HSS Strat for a New Generation! If you're looking for a Strat with tons of tone that's fun to play, you're looking for an American Deluxe Strat HSS! This gorgeous guitar takes the original Fender design to a whole new level. Now, there's no need to mod your guitar or turn to pricey custom shop options just to get the configuration you want.
The American Deluxe line replaced the Plus Series models of 1987.[2]
Features[edit]
The entire range came with options such as solid tonewood bodies made from alder or ash, chrome or gold-plated hardware, aged plastic parts, Noiseless pickups, abalone shell dot position fingerboard inlays, a dark aluminum 'spaghetti' decal,[3] 22-fret maple necks featuring rosewood, maple or ebony fretboards, quilted or flamed maple tops, rolled fingerboard edges, Fender S-1 switching,[4] highly detailed nut and fret work, a bound top with contoured back on Telecasters, a two-point synchronized tremolo with pop-in arm,[5] LSR roller nut[6] on the HSS model Stratocaster, and staggered locking tuning machines[7] on certain models.
American Deluxe bass guitars (introduced in 1995) came in 4-string, fretless, 5-string and left-handed versions and feature 9V-powered 3-band active electronics (including a new design of humbucker on the Precision Bass models) as well as a strings-through/top-load bridge with stainless brass saddles, Hipshot UltraLite tuning machines, an asymmetrical 5-bolt neck plate with a contoured heel, designed for easier access to the higher registers and a Posiflex graphite-reinforced 22-fret maple neck with rosewood, maple or pao ferro fingerboard. Jazz Basses are made with chrome hardware, a traditional control plate with classic black bakelite knobs, a downsized body shape and a redesigned pickguard with nine holes.
Fender also produced models without a pickguard and control plate featuring flamed or quilted maple tops (FMT/QMT), gold hardware and bound necks with white pearloid rectangular block-shaped position markers from 2003 to 2007.
Models produced prior to 2002 used 4-bolt neck fixing, 5-in-line headstocks, black or white dot markers, Schaller die-cast tuners, 9V power supply and a new design of stacked 'single-pole' Jazz Bass pickups (designed by John Suhr). Vintage Noiseless pickups, a dark aluminum Fender 'spaghetti' logo and abalone inlaid fingerboards were added in 1998; 5-bolt neck fixing, 4+1 tuners, 18V power supply and Schaller Lite Bass tuning machines followed 4 years later (replaced by Hipshot UltraLite tuners as of 2006). As of March 23, 2010, all American Deluxe basses came with an active/passive switch, a Fender High-Mass Vintage (HMV) bridge, Hipshot lightweight vintage tuners, a recessed string retainer bar on the A string, tinted necks with 21-fret compound radiused fretboards and 1970s-era styling.
Some of the design elements found on the American Deluxe instruments (such as the rolled fretboard edges, the HSH pickup routing and the nut and fret work) were adopted on the American Series models of 2001 (which replaced the first-generation American Standard line produced between 1986 and 2000) and the more recent American Standard Series[8] instruments, introduced in 2008.
The American Deluxe was later updated with Samarium Cobalt Noiseless (SCN) pickups by Fender in 2004. As of March 23, 2010, all American Deluxe series guitars came with a tinted maple neck with compound/conical-radius fretboards, N3 noiseless pickups and the S-1 switching system has been reconfigured with a Passing Lane switch[9] on the humbucker-equipped models.
As of January 2016, the American Deluxe series was discontinued and they were replaced with the American Elite series.
References[edit]
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Fender_American_Deluxe_Series&oldid=909663767'
For those of you that aren’t familiar with the Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster it is the top of the production line for the Fender Stratocaster. The American Deluxe Stratocaster is loaded with features that players have been customizing their Strats with for years. Fender has taken the best modifications and put them into production on the American Deluxe Stratocaster.
The Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster underwent some very nice upgrades for the 2010 model year with the two biggest upgrades being the pickups and the neck. For comparison sake you can read our page about the 2004-2009 Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster series. Gone are the Samarium Cobalt Noiseless Pickups and in their place are the new N3 Noiseless pickups. The N3 Noiseless pickups are a return to the classic Alnico magnet which has been used for years on the Fender Stratocaster. They are noiseless until you play a note and then they come to life in the most beautiful way!
Another huge addition to the 2010 American Deluxe Stratocaster is the compound radius freboard. Guitarists have been installing compound radius necks on their Stratocasters for years but it has been an after-market upgrade and you lose the Fender logo and Serial number. Fender has really done well with the compound radius fretboard on the American Deluxe Stratocaster. The neck is extremely smooth playing with easy chording in the lower fret range while being capable of huge, easy bends in the upper fret range. This is a very exciting feature on the American Deluxe Stratocaster. The neck also features the Micro-Tilt neck angle adjustment if you wish to experiment. The compound radius fretboard is found on both the C-neck and V-neck American Deluxe Stratocaster. The neck also features supremely comfortable rolled edges that are perfectly fitted to the edges of the frets. This gives the next a very smooth playing feel similar to a neck that has been played on and worn in over time.
A really big change for the 2010 American Deluxe Stratocaster is the re-wiring of the S1 switch. The S1 switch is a push-button cleverly hidden in the center of the volume knob. With a press of the S1 switch you now have access to 5 new pickup selection settings when using the blade pickup selector. Fender has made major changes to the 2010 American Deluxe Stratocaster S1 wiring. There are big tonal changes and the way the pickups are selected in relation to the blade selector position is different from the 2004-2009 American Deluxe Stratocaster series.
Here is the new wiring scheme for the S1 switch on the 2010 series American Deluxe Stratocaster:
5-Position Blade and 2-Position Push/Push S-1TM:
S-1 Switch Up (Off):
Position 1. Bridge Pickup Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup in Parallel Position 3. Middle Pickup Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup in Parallel Position 5. Neck Pickup
S-1 Switch Down (On):
Position 1. Bridge, Middle and Neck Pickups in Series Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup in Series Position 3. Middle and Neck Pickup in Series Position 4. Bridge and Neck Pickup Out-Of-Phase, and in Series with Special Tone Capacitor Position 5. Bridge and Middle Pickup in Series and Out-Of-Phase, and in Parallel with Neck Pickup
As you can see the selection to have all 3 pickups on simultaneously is now in position 1 on the blade switch with the S-1 switch down. Whereas on the 2004-2009 series that combination was found in position 3 on the blade switch with the S-1 switch down. The tonal differences of the various S1 pickup selections are quite radical compared to the 2004-2009 series American Deluxe Stratocaster. This gives the 2010 series American Deluxe Stratocaster it’s own unique voice compared to other Stratocaster’s.
The last change to the 2010 series American Deluxe Stratocaster is the paint color and pickguard combinations. Fender changes up it’s color offerings every year to keep owner’s coming back for the color of Strat that they’ve been dreaming about. There are different finish and color options available on the American Deluxe Stratocaster, American Deluxe V-Neck Stratocaster, American Deluxe Ash Stratocaster and the American Deluxe HSS Stratocaster.
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Other components on the Stratocaster remain the same such as the 2-point synchronized tremolo, staggered locking tuning machines, synthetic bone nut, pop-in tremolo arm, locking strap buttons and the contoured heel neck joint. I have to say I really like the contoured heel at the neck joint. It makes playing the higher frets extremely comfortable.
The Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster is available in both Alder and Ash body woods. The Fender American Deluxe Ash Stratocaster is available in gorgeous transparent finishes that let you enjoy the beauty of the rich Ash wood grain. The 2010 series American Deluxe Stratocaster also comes with a very nice SKB full-size molded case to protect your instrument. It’s a much nicer and more heavy duty case than the guitar shaped ones that came with the 2004-2009 series. No matter which American Deluxe Strat you choose I think you’re going to be very happy with the 2010 upgrades.
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