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Post subject: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Order
Posted: Tue Mar 18, 2014 4:35 pm
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Exciting news, everyone:

Fender instruments have always been known for their modular designs and their ability to be personalized. We’re proud to take this legacy one step further with our interactive American Design Experience online design tool. It’s never been easier to design and own a Fender guitar or bass that represents your personal and musical identity.

The American Design Experience online instrument “configurator” is an extension of the American Design Experience at our flagship facility in Corona, Calif., where visitors can create and purchase their own instrument based on legendary Fender designs.

You can now design and buy your very own Stratocaster®, Telecaster®, Precision Bass® or Jazz Bass® guitar on your computer. From body material to neck style, pickups to hardware, users can select every component of their instrument as they bring their personal creations to life. You can also browse our inspiration gallery and begin your experience from one of our artist-created designs.

After purchasing your instrument, your design is then turned into a reality by the talented builders at our Corona, Calif., factory, who assemble each instrument by hand to ensure the quality and craftsmanship for which Fender is known.

Fender American Design Experience instruments are guaranteed to ship within 90 days and are backed by the company’s limited lifetime warranty. Each guitar arrives in a premium hardshell case and includes a certificate of authenticity with a dedicated serial number, an official Fender product manual, collectible American Design Experience booklet, strap, polishing cloth, instrument cable and adjustment wrenches.

What are you waiting for? Start your own design experience now.


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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Tue Mar 18, 2014 5:51 pm
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Will such a shop be available for those of us living on the other side of the pond as well?

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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Tue Mar 18, 2014 6:09 pm
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I think this is a great idea.

But before buying something sight unseen over the web, I'd like more details about the features and specs. In the other thread, we found out that all the bodies have poly finishes -- that's fine I guess, but it should say that somewhere when you're choosing the paint color.

"Vintage style Strat bodies" implies they're routed SSS, but there's an option for a HSS pickup set. Does that mean all the vintage style Strat bodies are routed HSS? Or do you get different routing depending on which pickups you order? What if you want a SSS pickup set, but you want the body to be routed HSH or HSS in case you get the urge to change the pickups someday?

Country of origin for components? A vintage style Strat body with a poly finish could be a USA SRV body or similar, but it could also be a Mexican Classic'50s or Mexican Classic'60s.

Lots of little details like that are ignored or glossed over, but to entice people to buy semi-custom instruments over the web they really should know exactly what they're getting.

Then there's accuracy/proofreading of the sparse details that you do provide. In the pics of the '65 Strat necks, period-correct round lam fretboards are shown. But when you mouse over, a text box pops up that says those necks feature slab fretboards.

Full normal warranty, but I assume that if I order one I'm stuck with it even if I'm unhappy with it. That's reasonable for a semi-custom instrument, but virtually all web purchases allow returns/exchanges nowadays. If I buy a Custom Shop guitar from one of the on-line CS dealers and don't like it when it arrives, they'll either exchange it or give me a store credit for something else as long as I pay the shipping. Same for an American Standard or even a Squier from Musician's Friend. As I said, no return/no refund isn't outrageous, but it should be explicitly stated.

Again, I love this idea and I mean this as constructive criticism. I'd like to see this concept succeed.

Of course people are going to chime in with requests for different options. "I'd like more left handed options", "I'd like EJ pickups", "There should be some nitro finish options", etc. I'm sure that if the concept is successful some of those options will be added in the future.

But to start off you need to button all the buttons, dot all the "i"s and cross all the "t"s. The points I raised seem pretty basic and fundamental to me.


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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2014 11:50 pm
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strayedstrater, some really well-founded and helpful comments that you've offered there and it's appreciated that you've offered them back to us in a constructive way. Without responding to each comment in detail I can tell you that at least some of the more specific items you've called out there are already slated to be addressed immediately. In addition, we've been starting to gather a huge list of feedback and suggestions coming in from the thousands of folks using the thing already ... I'll ensure your commentary gets included there.

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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2014 11:51 pm
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Neimenljivi wrote:
Will such a shop be available for those of us living on the other side of the pond as well?


Not currently, unfortunately ... :( But perhaps at some point in the future!

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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2014 12:06 am
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I understand that the choices have to be somewhat limited for this to even be feasible, and that you cannot possibly grant every wish. You run a production pipeline, and the choices have to fit. However, having a wider range of color choices doesn't seem like it would have a big production impact? I could be wrong, but I think a good portion of the people who would use this would use it to get a guitar that doesn't look like the top five choices they can pick up at Guitar Center any day.
(Yes, I want Candy Cola back, but that's not my point this time...)

And for the color choices there are, the colors the configurator shows are pretty... um... inaccurate. Especially Candy Apple Red, Sunset Metallic and Lake Placid Blue seems off by orders of magnitude, and no, it's not just monitor differences. It's plain wrong color. There's no monitor in the world that will present that dull red as CAR.

I'm also confused by the string choice - does that mean that the nut will be cut for the string size you choose, or is it a standard .009 cut nut and just the actual strings being different? I'd love to not have to file a nut to get it to work great with thicker strings...


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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2014 12:26 am
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Hi Brad, cool feature, I just saved my ADE bass guitar to my profile. I'm a simple man, the guitar will gather character from the juke joints and clubs it gets played at but there are some guitar players that will want to customize more, Fender can make it work. :D 8)

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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2014 7:49 am
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Brad,

Is there any way we might be able to see the vintage style basses and guitars get a Nitro finish in the future? While I think this is a really cool idea. The thought of ordering what amounts to a 58 Precision with a poly body isn't all that appetizing. Though saving a couple of hundred bucks will likely take the sting out of that for many.

I'd think for the vintage series instruments possibly exploring the old Fender practice of a 5% upcharge for Custom Colors might be a more novel approach. Imagine how many people would line up and pay that upcharge to get the custom colors that are already offered on the different guitar models on their favorite model? Especially where the Precision bass is concerned.

These finishes are already in use on other production vintage models so we're not talking any major cost or delay in production in a lean environment. Simply schedule runs of exotics on the AVS line to cover the vintage style custom color runs when enough from the ADE order entry fill the minimum order quantity.

I'd think for many AVS fans starting out with a base price American Vintage model where you pay the upcharge for custom production run finishes and pick up options might be more appealing than ordering a body with a downgraded finish. While the cost would be higher overall. You'd be getting a real American Vintage Series instrument, but tailored to your tastes. Plus, the old percentage upcharge would be part of that vintage Fender experience as it would be like ordering a Custom Color instrument in the old days.

Also, I've noticed that for the Strat and the Tele that there are expanded pick up selections to choose from. CS model pick ups. Is there any chance that outside of the 58, 63 and American Standard pick ups we might see the CS 59, and the old 57 and 62 RI Precision bass pick ups become available?

Even these questions and suggestions aside. I think this is a great idea and it's awesome that Fender is exploring ways to make the buying experience between the factory and the customer a more direct, and interactive experience.


Thanks,

KoP

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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2014 9:00 am
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Brad Traweek - Fender wrote:
Neimenljivi wrote:
Will such a shop be available for those of us living on the other side of the pond as well?


Not currently, unfortunately ... :( But perhaps at some point in the future!


Damn :( I realize you have extra costs with shipping and whatnot, but perhaps some sort of a deal with Thomann could be struck, regarding this? In the most extreme cases, I also believe some might be willing to pay the extra costs themselves if it was offered for Europe as well. It is a shame that only the US people can get so many benefits offered by Fender (giveaways, these sorts of shops, etc.)

That being said - I agree with the need to include Nitro finish as an option. I mean, even my Highway One that cost 700€ has the Nitro finish. The Nitro has many advantages over polyurethane one. I also think you should include more info as to what kind of the wood the body is made of, for instance, and that you should give (like someone said) pickup routing options to choose from. Possibly also nut materials to choose from?
Now what I'd love seeing is also the option to choose none of the pickups (and a discount given, in that case, of course), in case you wish to fit pickups that aren't available in this online design.
A few more neck options also wouldn't hurt imho :)
I already have in mind what kind of guitar I'd order once I graduate if the shop was made available in EU :)

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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2014 4:44 pm
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It's important to remember that this is an entirely new approach for Fender. Really for the industry -- all of Carvin's guitars and basses are custom orders, but they're actually custom guitars built when you order one, not mix&match regular production pieces. You can go to a store and try all of the Fender necks, see the colors in person, listen to the various pickups, unlike a true custom where you probably won't ever get a chance to try one until it arrives in the mail (I've never seen a Carvin in-person in my whole life, certainly haven't been able to try their various neck shapes). And Carvin's tiny compared to the potential of this project. If this takes off Fender could sell more "build your own" guitars in a couple of years than Carvin's sold in 40 years.

So this is a pilot program, to gauge the demand for such a concept and to work out the kinks. If it's successful you can expect to see lots more options, and see it offered in more countries.

Besides that, the currently limited offerings are partly because of the fixed pricing. No matter what combination of parts you order, the Strats are $1499.99 so they've offered components that roughly add up to a $1500 guitar. If you want a nitro body you should expect to pay a little more, if you want Tex-Mex pickups or no pickups at all you'd probably want to pay a little less.

As the program evolves, you may see different price points offered with different combinations of parts. Or you may see ala carte pricing.

It's unfair to compare these prices to stock models. If you want a stock model there's no point in ordering a "build your own". But compare one of these partsocasters to building your own partsocaster buying used parts from the Stratosphere on eBay -- that would cost at least as much, usually more, and these come with a warranty and actual Fender provenance.

It's a brilliant idea and I just wish I had $1500.


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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2014 5:01 pm
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strayedstrater wrote:
Besides that, the currently limited offerings are partly because of the fixed pricing. No matter what combination of parts you order, the Strats are $1499.99 so they've offered components that roughly add up to a $1500 guitar.


This is not true. Many of the options cost extra, and I had no problems "designing" one that costs $2274.99


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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2014 6:47 pm
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arth1 wrote:
strayedstrater wrote:
Besides that, the currently limited offerings are partly because of the fixed pricing. No matter what combination of parts you order, the Strats are $1499.99 so they've offered components that roughly add up to a $1500 guitar.


This is not true. Many of the options cost extra, and I had no problems "designing" one that costs $2274.99


Ooops. Most of the combinations I tried stayed at $1499.99 but after playing with it some more I see that you're right.


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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2014 4:19 am
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I think this is a great idea and I've already designed my new Telly. What about shipping to Canada?


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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2014 6:04 am
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OK , i live in europe , but i can dream :lol:

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Post subject: Re: The American Design Experience—Your Design, Built to Ord
Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2014 6:18 am
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rogntudju wrote:
OK , i live in europe , but i can dream :lol:

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That is sharp!

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