Fender to finally make the Starcaster bass and reissue the Coronado?

[neepheid]

Dunno if this is a windup or not, but if it's real... very interesting. Apologies if this has been covered already, had a quick search first.

http://www.harmonycentral.com/t5/Effects-Pedals-Multi-Effects-and/Fender-teases-a-new-Starcaster-reissue/m-p/35763765

A model that never made it past prototype, and a long lost one. And two Fenders that most certainly would give me GAS, especially the Starcaster. Is anyone else excited by this prospect apart from me?

[Chris P.]

I just saw some stills on a Dutch forum. Cool!

[Dave W]

I liked this comment in the HC thread:

Yeah, sooner or later they'll run out of wacky ideas for new hacked up road worn humbucker equiped thinline jazzocasters and Justin Bieber signature squier hello kitty esquierstangs...

...And they actually start going back to their roots

Not that I'm even vaguely interseted in the starcaster though, but if it'll mean they finally get their priorities straight, I'm all for it

[ilan]

Cool, more choices. It's not like they discontinued J's, P's, Strats etc.

[jumbodbassman]

all comes down to the quality of what they put out.   

[mc2NY]

Obviously.....Fender has run out of ideas and is going the Gibson route of trying anything.

This looks as smart as buying a guitar brand that built better guitars than Fender and stopping production (Hamer) and putting those talented guys onto building Guilds.

Now, wouldn't ya think if you bought THE ONLY GUITAR BRAND that was never sued for building hi-end versions of your main competitor's guitars....ya might see an opportunity to grab market share from Gibson? Maybe by STEPPING UP production of the Hamer TBirds and other close Gibson-esque designs?

I can understand Fender NOT wanting Hame to keep building Fender-esque axes that are as good or better than FCS builds....but WHY would you not use the golden opportunity to stick some needles in teh eye of your big competitor?

Nah!! Instead, close up the brand and build more dopey old designs.

[4stringer77]

Starcaster, what a nice name.
The first Fender guitars were the Broadcaster, Telecaster and Stratocaster and then came the bass.
It would have made sense to call it the basscaster but I think Leo saw the confusion that might cause. Besides the fact it makes the instrument sound like a fishing rod, if you hang a cig at the headstock and you accidentaly burn the B, you'd have an asscaster, and no one wants that. So Precision won.

[dadagoboi]

Obviously.....Fender has run out of ideas and is going the Gibson route of trying anything.

This looks as smart as buying a guitar brand that built better guitars than Fender and stopping production (Hamer) and putting those talented guys onto building Guilds.

Now, wouldn't ya think if you bought THE ONLY GUITAR BRAND that was never sued for building hi-end versions of your main competitor's guitars....ya might see an opportunity to grab market share from Gibson? Maybe by STEPPING UP production of the Hamer TBirds and other close Gibson-esque designs?

I can understand Fender NOT wanting Hame to keep building Fender-esque axes that are as good or better than FCS builds....but WHY would you not use the golden opportunity to stick some needles in teh eye of your big competitor?

Nah!! Instead, close up the brand and build more dopey old designs.

Obviously they think switching their workers to making Guilds will make them more money.  If building Hamers was bringing them enough ROI they'd continue that.

Starcaster, what a nice name.
The first Fender guitars were the Broadcaster, Telecaster and Stratocaster and then came the bass.
It would have made sense to call it the basscaster but I think Leo saw the confusion that might cause. Besides the fact it makes the instrument sound like a fishing rod, if you hang a cig at the headstock and you accidentaly burn the B, you'd have an asscaster, and no one wants that. So Precision won.

Great theory but absolutely wrong.  Precision predated Strat by 5 years and you forgot Esquire.

[Dave W]

Fender didn't buy Kaman in order to revive the Hamer brand, they bought it for the production facilities and skilled staff. Same reason they bought Tacoma a few years earlier.

[4stringer77]

Gibson bought Epiphone which ended up as their import brand. What was left of Epiphone in NYC ended up as Guild and now Fender is doing to Guild what Gibson did to Epiphone.
I was being silly about the Basscaster thing.
On second thought maybe the analogy between Fender and Guild as to Gibson and Epiphone isn't right either. So I guess now I'm the asscaster cause that's where I'm talking from.
How bout that Coronado?

[Psycho Bass Guy]

BTW, "Starcaster" was used for years for bottom-of-the-barrel super low-quality import Strat's sold in big box and department stores. They were priced at the same level at Squier Affinity, but with Walmart First Act quality. Pawn shops are full of them.  

[Dave W]

Gibson bought Epiphone which ended up as their import brand. What was left of Epiphone in NYC ended up as Guild and now Fender is doing to Guild what Gibson did to Epiphone.
I was being silly about the Basscaster thing.
On second thought maybe the analogy between Fender and Guild as to Gibson and Epiphone isn't right either. So I guess now I'm the asscaster cause that's where I'm talking from.
How bout that Coronado?

I don't think the analogy holds. Fender has been committed to producing the high-end Guilds in the US all along. Most of them are acoustic guitars, so we don't hear as much about them.

[Psycho Bass Guy]

My wife has a goldtop Guild Bluesbird, one of the ones they stopped making after Gibson beat PRS in court before the decision was reversed. It's VERY Hamer-like.

[4stringer77]

That bluesbird would look nice next to an M85 bass.
Dave, I realized the analogy was poor and recanted myself in the quote you posted.

[Dave W]

.....
Dave, I realized the analogy was poor and recanted myself in the quote you posted.

The asscaster? Don't give Fender any more new ideas!