In a surprising collaboration, Fender and Saint Laurent have joined forces to release a Strat, '65 Deluxe Reverb amp and a set of guitar picks.
“Saint Laurent is one of the most celebrated luxury brands in the world and an influential powerhouse in fashion culture," said Fender Executive Vice President Justin Norvell. “We are honored to partner with them to infuse iconic elements from both of our legacy roots in this beautiful Limited Edition Saint Laurent collection."
Stealthy is the vibe we're getting here, and we like it. The $12,000 price? Not so much. Gloss black and ebony with a matching headstock make for a sleek combo. The Saint Laurent moniker under the bridge keeps it fairly low key. But other than the strictly limited number and the brand association, it's hard to see where the money is going here.
Still, there's always well-healed people with enough to buy anything collectible and the fashion world is no doubt full of them. And true to form, at the time of writing they've sold out.
We're liking the lipstick-style pickup covers for the '60s single-coils. Elsewhere the specs are pretty standard; 9.5" radius, 21 medium jumbo frets and an alder body with Oval C-shape maple neck.
The $3,000 Fender Saint Laurent '65 Deluxe Reverb tube amp is a surprisingly affordable option in comparison – even though it's nearly double the price of the standard $1,599.99 version. We're going to stick our necks out and say the Deluxe Reverb is our favourite of all Fender's tube amps and the mono look here is especially attractive.
The set of six celluloid guitar picks in a collector's tin at $32 are more towards our budget.
More info at Saint Laurent, where you can also check out a $375 guitar strap and $990 Nirvana t-shirt.
