What Features do Fender American Professional II Guitars Have?
For the most part, Fender’s American Professional II guitars maintain almost everything that made the original American Pro models so great. Only some minor updates have been executed. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it – right? But ultimately, these small refinements bring these instruments more up-to-scratch for contemporary musicians looking for greater tonal flexibility and added playing comfort.
Fender has also introduced some tasteful new colour options that are exclusive to these guitars and basses. This includes a vibrant Miami Blue, as well as stealthy Dark Night and Mercury colours that are akin to Fender’s Strat Plus finishes from the ’80s and ’90s.
Alder & Roasted Pine Bodies
The majority of guitars and basses from the American Professional II series adhere to the timeless Fender tonewood combination. With balanced Alder bodies bolted to bright-sounding Maple necks, this classic construction design yields the snappy and articulate tones that Fender instruments are so renowned for.
However, selected Fender American Professional II guitars and basses (with natural finishes) boast Roasted Pine bodies instead. This material has essentially replaced the Ash body option previously available in the American Pro series, which has now become more difficult to source. The light weight, punchy tonal qualities and stunning grain pattern of Roasted Pine makes it a more than worthy alternative though!
“Super Natural” Necks
Fender has decided to retain its popular Deep “C” neck shape for its American Professional II electric guitars. The Jazz and Precision Bass models also keep their respective Slim “C” and ’63 neck carves. Comfortable for modern players and vintage aficionados alike, these acclaimed neck profiles have now been enhanced with a new “Super Natural” finish that provides a silky-smooth and friction-free feel.
Other ergonomic updates include rolled fingerboard edges across the whole Fender American Professional II line, as well as sculpted neck heels that allow for unrestricted upper-fret access. These tweaks may be difficult to spot at first glance, but they make a huge difference when it comes to overall playability. Pick one up, and you’ll notice!
V-Mod II Pickups
Guitars and basses from the original American Professional lineup came fitted with Fender’s ‘V-Mod’ pickups. Able to deliver iconic Fender tone but with a wider frequency range and a slightly more modern character; V-Mods found favour with players for their versatility over traditional vintage-voiced pickups.
Now, Fender has revised these with their newly-designed V-Mod II pickups. Wound differently to their older counterparts, Fender describes its V-Mod IIs as “some of the best sounding” pickups it has ever made – promising extra note definition and more mid-range punch. Fender American Professional II HSS Strat and Telecaster Deluxe guitars come equipped with newly-voiced V-Mod II “Double Tap” humbuckers too, which perfectly complement Fender’s V-Mod II single-coils.
“Push/Push” Electronics
Brand new “Push/Push” electronics enable special pickup combinations on Fender American Professional II electric guitars. This functionality expands their tonal palettes, as it extends beyond the customary switching capabilities available on typical Strat, Tele and Jazzmaster models.
For example, the American Professional II Strat’s “Push/Push” knob allows you to add its neck single-coil to switch position 1 – which means that you can somewhat mimic a Telecaster’s pickup configuration. On the humbucker-equipped HSS Strat and Tele Deluxe models, this serves as a coil-split switch instead. The standard Telecaster’s “Push/Push” function enables parallel/series operation for unique sounds, while the Jazzmaster’s taps its bridge humbucker for a vintage-like output level.
Redesigned Hardware
Alongside the new pickups, upgraded hardware appointments breathe new life into Fender’s American Professional II guitars. Although these updates aren’t anything to write home about, they exemplify how Fender tastefully improves upon its formulas over time without doing anything too drastic.
The much-adored 2-point synchronised tremolo remains on the Stratocasters, but these are now fitted with cold-rolled steel blocks that increase sustain, clarity and top-end sparkle. Their Telecaster cousins come installed with completely redesigned “Top Loader/String-Through” bridges, which allow you to thread their strings either through their bodies or from their bridge plates. And Fender’s new “Panorama” tremolo gives their American Professional II Jazzmasters a smoother vibrato arm action, of which can easily be popped in and out on-the-fly.
All guitar and bass models now sport bevelled neck plates too. This is a tiny tweak, but these simply offer an extra layer of finesse by blending beautifully into the shapes of their sculpted neck heels. The electric guitar models also feature newly-designed string trees that are engineered to prevent unwanted tuning slips. Pretty neat!
Fender American Ultra Guitars
Released in late 2019 as the replacement for the short-lived American Elite range, the American Ultra series encompasses what Fender describes as its “most advanced” production guitars to date. Sporting flexible electronics and forward-thinking hardware appointments, as well as a few ergonomic construction tweaks, these innovative instruments are aimed at the most of modern of musicians yearning for ultimate precision and uncompromising tone.
The same core Fender models that form the American Professional II lineup are also what prop up the American Ultra series. Strats, Teles, Jazzmasters, Precision Basses and Jazz Basses can be found, but there is less variation overall – with only HSS Strats and 5-string Jazz Basses available outside of the standard models.