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The Return of the King





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Way back in the early ’60s, Fender introduced the “King,” a model that would serve as their top-of-the-line acoustic guitar model for the decade. The Fender California Vintage King acoustic-electric guitar is a modern reinterpretation of that instrument, boasting a top-class all-solid-wood design to mirror the elegance of its royal forebearer. This guitar’s big dreadnought body, Performance X-bracing, solid spruce top, and ovangkol back and sides come together to form a wallop of full-bodied acoustic projection. The resulting tone is powerful enough to cover your strumming and single-note flatpicking duties while responsive enough to serve avid fingerstylists. And when you’re ready to hit the stage, the Fender California Vintage King’s Fishman Sonitone Plus captures every detail of your unplugged tone in full detail. More than a half-century after its original coronation, the California Vintage King is poised to reclaim its illustrious throne as one of Fender’s premier acoustic instruments.





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Premium all-solid tonewoods





In the world of acoustic guitars, jumping from a laminate instrument to an all-solid instrument is all but a complete tonal revelation ? they're more responsive, more resonant, and almost always a superior sonic choice. The Fender California Vintage King exemplifies all those lofty qualities, with a solid spruce top supported by solid ovangkol back and sides. Firstly, Sweetwater guitarists find that the California Vintage King's solid spruce top grants you a wonderfully touch-sensitive feel that blooms and resounds with everything from a slight pluck to a heavy-handed flatpick. A set of ovangkol back and sides complete the package, producing a tone somewhere in the middle of the rosewood/mahogany paradigm, with crisp highs, round lows, and a slightly less scooped sound in the mids compared to rosewood.





Full-feeling modern “V” neck profile





From headstock to end pin, the California Vintage King is clearly inspired by the Fender acoustics of yesteryear. Case in point: this guitar’s okoume neck is shaped into a modern “V” profile that perfectly fills your grip with a subtle ridge in the center to place your thumb. However, it’s not a complete vintage callback ? unlike many of the baseball-bat necks found on retro acoustics, the modern V profile seamlessly skates between the vintage and modern worlds with a slightly reduced heft, making it a much more comfortable choice for technically inclined guitarists. Lastly, the neck is finished off with a true bone nut, an ovangkol fingerboard to match the body, and an acoustic-guitar-standard 16-inch radius.





Fishman electronics bring the plugged-in power





Plug in the Fender California Vintage King, and you’ll open the door to plentiful tone-shaping options, given its modern-designed electronics. With a Fishman Sonitone Plus Soundhole pickup system, your orchestra sails tonal waters with tone controls mounted directly under the soundhole. That means vintage aesthetics are preserved while offering you the modern, rich tone of a Fender acoustic. Under the spruce top, a body-sensing pickup blends excellently with the under-saddle pickup for a full range of impeccably captured sonic vibrations.





Fender California Vintage King Features:


A modern tribute to Fender’s early 1960s “King” acoustic guitar


Solid spruce top for an open, resonant response


Solid ovangkol back and sides deliver a punchy projection with robust lows and crisp highs


Big dreadnought body shape fit with performance X-bracing offers a powerful unplugged tone, with plenty of bass


Okoume neck in a modern “V” shape to split the difference between old-school vibe and modern playability


Smooth ovangkol fingerboard in a classic 16-inch radius to offer comfortable fretting up and down the entire neck


Fishman Sonitone Plus pickup system makes it a breeze to record direct or take your tone onstage


Plenty of vintage-inspired aesthetic appointments, including a Fender mustache bridge, 1-ply pickguard, vintage-style white button tuners, and pearloid block inlays


Stylish Strat-style headstock is sure to turn heads