What’s New with Fender Player II?

The Player II series continues Fender's long-standing legacy of putting affordable pro-level electric guitars and basses into the hands of as many players as possible. With so many options available, what is it that makes the Player II such an excellent choice for musicians of any level seeking a workhorse electric guitar or bass that's stage and studio ready?

Dennis Ralph

Dennis Ralph

Since the early ‘90s, the Fender Mexico Ensenada factory has been putting affordably priced, high-quality professional electric guitars and basses into the hands of the many.

For over 15 years, the famed Mexican Standard series was the entry point into Fender’s professional line of instruments. In 2018 the series was relaunched as the Fender Player Series. Upgraded components and electronics made these models Fender’s best value-for-money stage and studio-ready instruments. With the range being revamped in 2024 we ask… What’s New with Fender Player II?

Fender Player vs. Player II – What’s the same?

  • Modern C neck profile
  • Medium Jumbo Frets
  • Synthetic bone nut
  • F-Logo neck plate
  • 9.5” radius fingerboard
  • Gloss poly body finish
  • Satin on the back of the neck, gloss on the front

Whenever taking one of a brand’s most popular ranges back to the drawing board it is important to first reflect on everything that went right with the original. The Fender Modern C neck profile has become one of their most popular and loved neck shapes. A perfect balance of a neck that still has enough wood to make even the most devoted lovers of big vintage-style necks feel at home, yet, still thin enough to feel ergonomic and fast. Partnered with the effortless feeling of satin-finished necks, the original Player Series guitars and basses were an instant hit. The Medium Jumbo frets, 9.5″ fingerboard radius, gloss headstock faces and upgraded Alnico V pickups were another big win for the range.

Fender Player vs. Player II – What’s changed?

  • Return of Rosewood
  • Rolled fingerboard edges
  • Revised Alnico pickups
  • ClassicGear (vintage-styled) tuners
  • New Colours
  • Choice of Alder, Chambered Ash and Chambered Mahogany on some Strat and Tele models
  • Upgraded Mustang saddles on Jazzmaster and Jaguar guitars

The Fender Player II elevates the line to the next level! Taking inspiration from the previous Player Plus models, every Player II guitar and bass now features a rolled fingerboard edge. A premium feature that’s often found on instruments way above this price bracket. The rolled edges provide unrivalled fretting hand comfort with an unparalleled professional feel. Each neck has that wonderful worn-in feel, straight out of the box.

Another exciting feature in the Player II range is the return of Rosewood fingerboards. After a long absence from Fender’s Mexican-made instruments, Fender is pleased to once again offer the classic feel and sound of a Slab Rosewood fingerboard to the range. Found on many of Fender’s most esteemed models, it is known for its harmonically rich warm tone.

For the first time ever Fender has also included chambered Ash and Mahogany bodies as part of the Strat and Tele line. Available only to some finish options, these variant body materials take inspiration from some of Fender’s historic models and offer a slight twist to Fender’s standard tonal pallet.

In addition, the Player II guitars and basses come available in a fresh batch of never-seen colours from the achieves as well as many of the classic Fender colour choices. The electric guitars also come with upgraded ClassicGear vintage-style small button tuners. Providing optimum tuning stability and classic looks these tuners are a noteworthy upgrade.

Fender Player II Stratocaster Guitars

Released in 1954 the Stratocaster is often described as Fender’s most iconic design. Favoured for its unrivalled versatility, most guitarists will own at least one Fender Strat in their lifetimes. The Fender Player II Strat continues Fender’s quest in offering their most budget-friendly, feature-rich workhorse instruments, built for the players. It’ll do everything you want from a Strat and more. From its bell-like glassy neck tones to its quacky in-between positions as well as its cutting bridge pickup chime, these Strats have it covered.

  • Rolled fingerboard edges
  • 22 Medium Jumbo frets
  • Choice of Maple or Rosewood fingerboards
  • 2-point tremolo system with bent steel saddled
  • Modern C neck profile
  • ClassicGear tuners
  • Alder, Chambered Ash or Chambered Mahogany bodies (depending on colour choice)
  • Alnico V Single-Coil Pickups
  • Satin-finished necks with gloss headstock face
  • SSS or SSH (Alnico II Humbucker) pickup configurations

Discover The Fender Player II Stratocaster Range Here

Fender Player II Jazzmaster Guitars

Stand out with one of Fender’s most popular offset designs. Now featuring a duo of Alnico V Single-Coil Jazzmaster pickups, the Fender Player II Jazzmaster has all the harmonically rich, full and jangly Jazzmaster tones that you could hope for. With performance and playability in mind, the Player II Jazzmaster comes equipped with upgraded Mustang bridge saddles for uncompromised stability. And thanks to its simplified ‘tele’ style electrics (3-way switch, 1 volume, 1 tone) dialling your ultimate Jazzmaster sound is easier than ever!

  • Alder body
  • Rosewood fingerboard
  • 22 Medium Jumbo frets
  • Rolled fingerboard edges
  • Alnico V Single-Coil Jazzmaster pickups
  • ClassicGear tuners
  • Jazzmaster Bridge with upgraded Fender Mustang bridge saddles
  • Satin-finished necks with gloss headstock face
  • Modern C neck profile

Discover The Fender Player II Jazzmaster Range Here

Fender Player II Mustang Guitars

A short-scale electric guitar that packs a punch! The perfect choice for players after a full-sized electric that feels a little more compact and ergonomic. The Fender Player II Mustang comes loaded with a duo of bright and punchy Alnico V Single-Coil Mustang pickups as well as a simplified ‘tele’ style circuit and hardtail bridge for effortless stability and control. These offset tone machines are built-ready!

  • Maple or Rosewood fingerboard
  • Alder body
  • Rolled fingerboard edges
  • Alnico V Single-Coil Mustang pickups
  • 22 Medium Jumbo frets
  • Hardtail Strat bridge with bent steel saddles
  • Satin-finished necks with gloss headstock face
  • Modern C neck profile
  • ClassicGear tuners
  • 24″ Scale

Discover The Fender Player II Mustang Range Here

Fender Player II Jazz Basses

With a pair of Alnico V Jazz Bass pickups, the Fender Player II Jazz Bass comes equipped with all the quintessential mid-range growl that Jazz Basses are known for! Balanced perfectly with thunderous lows and musical highs, this low-frequency offset workhorse is a welcome addition to any mix. Like the guitars in the range, the Player II Jazz Bass now features rolled fingerboard edges as well as Rosewood fingerboards.

  • Alder body
  • Open Gear tuners
  • Rosewood or Maple fingerboards
  • Alnico V Single-Coil Jazz Bass pickups
  • Satin-finished necks with gloss headstock face
  • Rolled fingerboard edges
  • Modern C neck profile
  • 20 Medium Jumbo frets
  • 4-Saddle Standard Bridge

Discover The Fender Player II Jazz Bass Range Here

Fender Player II Telecaster Guitars

From soul to chicken-picking madness to hard rock and metal, whatever you want your sound to be, the Fender Player II Telecaster will have it! Featuring either a duo of Alnico V Single-Coil Telecaster pickups or a pair of classic-sounding Alnico II Humbuckers this Tele has all bases covered. With Alder, Chambered Ash and Chambered Mahogany bodies now available the Fender Player II range finally offers a contemporary ‘50s style Tele with an Ash body, Maple neck, Butterscotch Blonde finish and black pickguard!

  • Rolled fingerboard edges
  • 22 Medium Jumbo frets
  • Choice of Maple or Rosewood fingerboards
  • Modern C neck profile
  • ClassicGear tuners
  • Alder, Chambered Ash or Chambered Mahogany bodies (depending on colour choice)
  • Alnico V Single-Coil Pickups
  • Satin-finished necks with gloss headstock face
  • SS (Alnico V) or HH (Alnico II) pickup configurations
  • 6-Saddle String-Through-Body Tele with Block Steel Saddles or Hardtail Strat bridge on HH models

Discover The Fender Player II Telecaster Range Here

Fender Player II Precision Basses

With the perfect balance of low-end thump, sweet-sounding highs and a musical mid-range, the Fender Player II Precision Bass has all the famed versatile P-Bass tones that they are famous for. Comfortably fill any mix with organic-sounding, rich, harmonic bass sounds that’ll fit any genre! With Player II’s rolled fingerboard edges and updated colours, these P-Basses play and sound as good as they look.

  • Alder body
  • Open Gear tuners
  • Rosewood or Maple fingerboards
  • Alnico V Single-Coil Precision Bass pickups
  • Satin-finished necks with gloss headstock face
  • Rolled fingerboard edges
  • Modern C neck profile
  • 20 Medium Jumbo frets
  • 4-Saddle standard bridge

Discover The Fender Player II Precision Bass Range Here

Fender Player II Jaguar Guitars

The Fender Player II Jaguar perfectly captures the vibe and tone of one of Fender’s most beloved offset guitars! Featuring an Alnico II Single-Coil pickup in the neck and an Alnico V in the bridge position it has a sound that’s versatile and cutting. The Player II Jaguar can do it all from surf-rock to shoegaze all the way to thrashy alternative. With their Rosewood fingerboards, upgraded Mustang saddles and an assortment of retro-inspired colours, once you pick one up, you won’t want to put it down.

  • Alder body
  • Rosewood fingerboard
  • 22 Medium Jumbo frets
  • Rolled fingerboard edges
  • Alnico V and Alnico II Single-Coil Jaguar pickups
  • ClassicGear tuners
  • Jaguar bridge upgraded Fender Mustang bridge saddles
  • Satin-finished necks with gloss headstock face
  • Modern C neck profile
  • 24” Scale

Discover The Fender Player II Jaguar Range Here

Fender Player II Mustang Basses

Equipped with both a Precision and a Jazz Bass pickup, the Player II Mustang Bass PJ is perhaps Fender’s most versatile bass option in the Player II range. At the flick of a switch go between the thunderous thump of a P-Bass to the mid-range growls of a Jazz Bass or even a combination of both! Its shorter scale length makes it the perfect option for those requiring a more compact bass, perfect for guitarists seeking a bass they can seamlessly transition between.

  • Alder body
  • Modern C neck profile
  • 19 Medium Jumbo frets
  • Rosewood or Maple fingerboards
  • Rolled fingerboard edges
  • Alnico V Precision and Jazz Bass pickups
  • Satin-finished necks with gloss headstock face
  • 30” Scale length
  • 4-Saddle standard bridge
  • Open gear tuners

Discover The Fender Player II Mustang Bass PJ Range Here

Conclusion

When Fender relaunched the Mexican Standard range to the Fender Player series in 2018, it really felt like things had moved up a gear. The satin necks and Alnico pickups were a huge improvement over the previous series.

The Fender Player II truly is taking the range to the next level! It’s hard to put into words how much of a difference the overall playing experience is with rolled fingerboard edges. The experience feels somehow more seamless and less about the instrument in my hands and more about the music it’s helping to create. The Rosewood fingerboards and ClassicGear tuners are very welcome additions to the range as are the revised Jazzmaster and Jaguar pickups.

Discover The whole Fender Player II Range Here

Want to learn more?

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Dennis Ralph
Dennis Ralph

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