| Fender Contemporary Stratocaster Japan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Manufacturer | Fender Japan |
| Period | 1984—1987 |
| Construction | |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Bolt-on |
| Woods | |
| Body | Alder or Basswood |
| Neck | Maple |
| Fretboard | Rosewood or Maple |
| Hardware | |
| Bridge | Fender Schaller System I, System II, System III Tremolo |
| Pickup(s) | Variable, see Models |
| Colors available | |
| Usually metallic colors. Some models are sunburst. | |
Fender Contemporary Stratocaster electric guitars were produced by Fender Japan in the 1980s.
The Fender Contemporary models were the first Fender Japan models to be exported as Fender Stratocasters and Telecasters. The previous Fender Japan models exported from Japan were all Fender Squier models. The Fender Contemporary models were manufactured from 1984 to 1987 by FujiGen Gakki and these Stratocasters were designed to be Superstrats with humbucking pickups and Floyd Rose like tremolos made by Schaller and Kahler. There was a lower priced Fender Contemporary Squier model produced as well. Many of Fender Contemporary Stratocaster and Telecaster models had Fender Japan E serial number prefix at the beginning of their serial numbers but in fact, Fender never produced a line of guitars named the "E series".
When CBS sold Fender to its current owners in 1984, there was a transitional period from 1984 to 1987 with limited Fender USA production resulting in mostly Fender Japan and leftover USA made guitars being sold. There are also Fender Contemporary Telecaster models with HSS or HH pickup configurations and switches for selecting pickup options. The Fender Contemporary Telecaster models used the same tremolo systems as the Fender Contemporary Stratocaster models. Black Francis used a Fender Contemporary Telecaster in the Pixies and Neal Schon played a Contemporary Stratocaster in the music video for Journey's Separate Ways, also the band's first ever video.
There were also USA Contemporary Stratocasters and Telecasters which were totally different than the original Japanese models in terms of features and construction. These short-lived American-made models were made from 1989 to 1991.
The System I bridge string height is set by adjustable pivot post screws and has no individual string height adjustments but has individual string intonation adjustments and is very much like the Gibson Tune-o-matic bridge in terms of intonation and string height adjustments. The System I tremolo system uses a behind the nut string locking mechanism. The System II and System III bridges have individual string height and individual string intonation adjustments. The System II and III tremolo systems use a height adjustable locking nut.
The System II tremolo system was designed by John Page, Chip Todd and Charlie Gressett. The System III tremolo system was designed by John Page, Dan Smith, Charlie Gressett and John Carruthers. The System I, II and III tremolo systems were manufactured in Germany by Schaller. Sometimes parts of the tremolo system are lost and one common modification is to make the bridge function as a hardtail by locking the bridge into a non movable position and installing a string tree for the first and second strings so that the strings don't slip out of the nut slots.
The System 1 bridge can be replaced successfully with a Floyd Rose licensed bridge. The slightly wider pivot screw spacing of the System 1 bridge needs a Floyd Rose licensed bridge design with one pivot screw cutaway that extends to the edge of the bridge allowing the Floyd Rose licensed bridge to mount onto the System 1 pivot screws. This configuration is most common in a "Floyd Rose Gotoh" bridge. Most Floyd Rose bridge designs have two pivot screw cutaways that are limited to the width of the pivot screws, and these will not fit the System 1 pivot screw spacing.
Some models exported to UK were fitted with Kahler Traditional Series tremolos, stamped "Made in the USA", and supplied with the American Precision Metal Works, Inc. set-up instructions and Allen keys.
The pickups used in the Contemporary models were manufactured by Fujigen. All of the pickups used on the Contemporary models have alnico magnets instead of ceramic. The humbucking pickups used in the Contemporary models have a DC resistance which is approximately 7.6 kilohms. The single coil pickups used in the Contemporary models have a DC resistance which is approximately 5.6 kΩ. The Contemporary models that use a TBX tone control use 500 kΩ volume pots and use 0.022 μF tone capacitors.
The early Fender Japan Contemporary series serial numbers from 1984 to 1987 follow the Fender USA serial number format of E = eighties and the first digit of the serial number representing the year.
For example, E6XXXXX = 1986.
Most of the Fender Japan serial numbers do not follow this format. Instead, in 1986 several have serial numbers beginning with A, B, C, E or F followed by six numerals (e.g. AXXXXXX or BXXXXXX), therefore made in 1984, 1985, 1986 or 1987. Fender itself advises to only use serial numbers as a guidance to determine the manufacturing date and gives a more detailed explanation in their knowledge base. [1]
The Fender USA serial format was used on the Fender Japan guitars that were exported to the USA while Fender was undergoing a transitional period.
The Fender Stratocaster, colloquially known as the Strat, is a model of electric guitar designed between 1952 and 1954 by Leo Fender, Bill Carson, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares. The Fender Musical Instruments Corporation has continuously manufactured the Stratocaster since 1954. It is a double-cutaway guitar, with an extended top "horn" shape for balance. "Stratocaster" and "Strat" are trademark terms belonging to Fender. Guitars that duplicate the Stratocaster by other manufacturers are sometimes called S-Type or ST-type guitars. Many prominent rock musicians have been associated with the Stratocaster for use in studio recording and live performances, most notably Eric Clapton, Buddy Holly, David Gilmour, Mark Knopfler, Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Mark Speer and George Harrison.
The Fender Jazzmaster is an electric guitar designed as a more expensive sibling of the Fender Stratocaster. First introduced at the 1958 NAMM Convention, it was initially marketed to jazz guitarists, but found favor among surf rock guitarists in the early 1960s. Its appearance is similar to the Fender Jaguar, though it is tonally and physically different in many technical ways, including pickup design, scale length and controls.
The Fender Showmaster is a discontinued model of electric guitar made by Fender, and is characteristic of a superstrat. Also see the badge change of Stagemaster due to legal reasons.
The Fender Jaguar is an electric guitar by Fender Musical Instruments characterized by an offset-waist body, a relatively unusual switching system with two separate circuits for lead and rhythm, and a short-scale 24" neck. Owing some roots to the Jazzmaster, it was introduced in 1962 as Fender's feature-laden top-of-the-line model, designed to lure players from Gibson. During its initial 13-year production run, the Jaguar did not sell as well as the less expensive Stratocaster and Telecaster, and achieved its most noticeable popularity in the surf music scene. After the Jaguar was taken out of production in 1975, vintage Jaguars became popular first with American punk rock players, and then more so during the alternative rock, shoegazing and indie rock movements of the 1980s and 1990s. Fender began making a version in Japan in the mid-1980s, and then introduced a USA-made reissue in 1999. Since then, Fender has made a variety of Jaguars in America, Mexico, Indonesia and China under both the Fender and Squier labels. Original vintage Jaguars sell for many times their original price.
The Fender Precision Bass is a model of electric bass guitar manufactured by Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. In its standard, post-1957 configuration, the Precision Bass is a solid body, four-stringed instrument usually equipped with a single split-coil humbucking pickup and a one-piece, 20-fret maple neck with rosewood or maple fingerboard.
The Fender Jazz Bass is the second model of electric bass created by Leo Fender. It is distinct from the Precision Bass in that its tone is brighter and richer in the midrange and treble with less emphasis on the fundamental frequency. The body shape is also different from the Precision Bass, in that the Precision Bass has a symmetrical lower bout on the body, designed after the Telecaster and Stratocaster lines of guitars, while the Jazz Bass has an offset lower bout, mimicking the design aesthetic of the Jaguar and Jazzmaster guitars.
The Fender Cyclone denotes a series of electric guitars made by Fender. Introduced in late 1997, the Cyclone body is similarly styled to the Mustang, but it is a quarter of an inch thicker than the body of a Mustang and is made of poplar, whereas contemporary Mustang reissues were made of basswood.
The Fender Bass VI, originally known as the Fender VI, is a six-string electric bass guitar made by Fender.
The Fender Lead Series was produced by the Fender/Rogers/Rhodes Division of CBS Musical Instruments. The series comprised Lead I, Lead II, Lead III and Lead Bass models.
The Squier '51 is an electric guitar made by Squier, a brand of Fender. The '51 is notable for being one of the few original designs made by Squier, which normally sells budget versions of Fender's popular guitars and bass guitars.
The Fender Jaguar Bass is an electric bass guitar currently manufactured in Mexico by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation.
The Fender Katana is an electric guitar built by Fender. It was designed by marketing director Dan Smith in 1985. The Katana was designed to compete with the unconventionally-shaped guitars of the era, such as the Jackson Randy Rhoads, and to satisfy Fender dealers who were suffering from the competition those instruments offered. The Katana did not sell as well as Fender hoped, and it was discontinued in 1986 before being reissued as a Masterbuilt Custom Shop model as part of the Prestige collection three decades later.
The Fender HM Strat was an electric guitar produced by Fender Musical Instruments from 1988 until 1992. A relatively radical departure from Leo Fender's classic Stratocaster design, it was Fender's answer to Superstrats produced by manufacturers such as Jackson Guitars and Ibanez. The HM in the guitars name stands for heavy metal.
The Gibson L6-S is a solid body electric guitar. It was the descendant of the L5S jazz solid-body electric guitar. It was the same shape, very much like a wide Gibson Les Paul, but with a 24-fret neck, the first Gibson guitar to have this.
The Fender Bullet was an electric guitar originally designed by John Page and manufactured and marketed by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. It was first introduced as a line of "student" guitars to replace the outgoing Mustang and Musicmaster models.
Starcaster by Fender is a range of instruments and accessories aimed at students and beginners, marketed by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation from the early 2000s until at least 2011. As of April 2018, no products were being marketed under this brand.
The Jeff Beck Stratocaster is an electric solid body guitar made by Fender Musical Instruments for British guitarist Jeff Beck. This Artist Signature guitar was introduced in 1991 and upgraded ten years later. The Custom Shop version, introduced in 2004, is available in Olympic White and Surf Green finishes.
The Fender Elite Stratocaster is an electric solid body guitar that was manufactured by Fender in 1983 and 1984. The name was revived from 2016 to 2019 with the Fender American Elite Stratocaster Series.
The Yamaha Corporation is a multinational corporation and conglomerate based in Japan with a wide range of products and services, predominantly musical instruments, motorcycles, power sports equipment and electronics.
The Fender Telecaster, colloquially known as the Tele, is an electric guitar produced by Fender. Together with its sister model the Esquire, it was the world's first mass-produced, commercially successful solid-body electric guitar. Its simple yet effective design and revolutionary sound broke ground and set trends in electric guitar manufacturing and popular music. Many prominent rock musicians have been associated with the Telecaster for use in studio recording and live performances, most notably Bruce Springsteen, Luis Alberto Spinetta, Keith Richards and George Harrison.
| Submodels | |
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| Signature models | |
| Famous examples |
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| See also | |
