Fender has launched the Noventa series. First announced in January, it sees the Telecaster, Stratocaster and Jazzmaster reimagined with an all-new P-90-style Noventa single-coil pickups for a variety of new tonal possibilities.
Made in Mexico and more affordable than the Vintera series, the Noventa's USP is this new eponymous single-coil, a pickup that offers “midrange bite, crisp highs and smooth lows” and something a little different to what we are used to seeing.
The series offers a single-pickup Telecaster in Vintage Blonde, Fiesta Red and Two Colour Sunburst. The Strat comes in Surf Green, Crimson Red Transparent and Daphne Blue, and has two pickups at the neck and bridge positions. The Jazzmaster, meanwhile is a three-pickup affair, with Surf Green, Walnut and Fiesta Red finish options.
All three share similar builds, with solid alder bodies and bolt-on maple necks. The necks share the very approachable Modern C Fender profile and offer 9.5" radius maple fingerboards, with pau ferro for the Crimson Red Transparent, Two Colour Sunburst and Walnut finishes respectively. Vintage-style tuners and nickel/chrome hardware is used throughout.
The Noventa Telecasters, pictured above, will especially appeal to the minimalists out there, and if you had been considering one of those double-bound Squier Classic Vibe Esquire as your go-to single-pickup Tele shape, well, here's another option to complicate things.
Here we have a cut pickguard exposing most of the guitar's top. Even the bridge has a small footprint, the 3-Saddle Custom "Cut-Off" design featuring a trio of compensated brass saddles.
The Stratocasters are similarly pared down, with just two pickups, a three-way selector, volume and tone controls and a vintage-style strings-through-body hardtail bridge.
No whammy bar action here. But what you lose there you gain in an instrument that looks designed to play hard, making full use of the Noventa pickup's dynamics.
Those looking for more tone options will find them on the Jazzmaster. With its triple-pickup format and 5-way blade selector switch, volume and tone controls, it looks likely to be the most versatile in the series.
You've also got a Jazzmaster vibrato system here, too. Spring reverb, maybe some slapback echo and a lightly overdriven amp and you've got yourself a party with the Noventa Jazzmaster.
Like the others in the series, those pickups should offer something different. Surf rock, jazz, rock, punk... Blues? Why not. Fender has turned the Jazzmaster into a hybrid electro-acoustic with the American Acoustasonic model, and now equipped one with three P-90s. There are no rules.
The Noventa series is available now. The Noventa Telecaster is priced at £759 / $949 / €849, the Noventa Stratocaster at £799 / $1049 / €899, while the Jazzmaster retails for £899, $1149, €999.
See Fender for more details.
