Fender CEO hints at cheaper “entry level” Acoustasonic guitars to come
Fender CEO Andy Mooney has spoken about the brand’s desire to expand their Acoustasonic range with potentially cheaper guitars and more innovative shapes to come.
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Speaking to Guitar World, Mooney revealed that the brand “absolutely” has plans to expand the Acoustasonic family and “in more than one way”, he teased.
“I think we’re going to explore both ends of the continuum,” Mooney said of the electric-acoustic hybrid. “We’re also going to look at different body shapes.”
“When we first we even talked about doing Acoustasonic, my viewpoint was, what an artist would use on stage today – which would largely be Taylor or Martin – was a great acoustic guitar, louder. One voice, louder.”
“If you’re a very accomplished touring artist with a road crew, you can afford to have six or seven guitars every night on stage,” he explained. “But if you’re not, having some flexibility in the electronics was really a benefit – as well as being lightweight, easily playable – and so that was part of the brief.”
“That has really struck a chord with people. They really like the tonal flexibility, and the fact that you can use it with effects pedals and get feedback.”
“But the body shapes, as an acoustic guitar, you either love it or you don’t. So I think giving people options with a more traditional shape on an Acoustasonic platform is something that we’re exploring.”
That said, a dreadnought-shaped or parlor-sized Acoustasonic is probably not going to arrive in the Fender catalogue anytime soon.
For now, the brand has set its sights on making the Acoustasonic lineup more accessible to players — starting first with its price tag.
“We want to do what we would naturally do, and have an opening price-point version, with even simpler electronics,” Mooney said. “Some of the things that I thought might be detrimental to the guitar are actually turning out to be positives.”
“The low volume output when played entirely in acoustic mode is turning out to be a plus, because people who are not comfortable [playing] like the fact it’s not as loud, and people who are pretty professional keep their significant others happy when playing it at home.”
He continued: “If we can make it more price-accessible, we think people who have an existing repertoire of guitars will add it into the repertoire as something different: ‘I want to try it, but I don’t want to spend $2,000 to do it. But if I can get it for under $1,000, then I’m gonna give them a shot.’”
“Also for younger players coming in, who can start on an entry level Acoustasonic and move up. We’re very committed to the Acoustasonic platform.”
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Source: www.guitar-bass.net
