Top Tier

The upgraded American Ultra guitars get a subtle makeover, creating what Fender believes is its most advanced series of electric guitars. Vintage buffs, look away...

- Dave Burrluck

What You Need To Know

These don’t look very different from the current Ultra models… This Ultra II series is more of a smart spring clean. The key elements are retained, but the neck-wood switches to quarter-sawn maple and we now have ebony ’boards. In addition to our Strat HSS and Tele here, there’s a Stratocaster with three Noiseless pickups and a new Meteora.

What about pickups and circuits? The Noiseless pickups are upgraded to ‘Version 2’ specs, and the previous Double Tap humbucker on the Strat HSS changes to the new Haymaker ’bucker, which has a coil-split activated by the S1 push-switch within the volume control knob. The Tele retains the series pickup link.

Don’t upgraded Ultras already exist? The Ultra Luxe series comprises four models with stainless-steel frets, compound radius ’boards and augmented D-profile neck shapes. An HSS Strat and dual-humbucking Tele feature alder bodies and Floyd Rose vibratos; the Strat and Tele use ash with the same bridge and vibrato as our review models.

For quite some time now, Fender has rejigged or refreshed its key series pretty much every four or five years.

All good, although it doesn’t seem that long since the American Ultra series replaced the previous American Elite series back in late 2019. So now we have the American Ultra II series, which is the company’s “most advanced series of electric guitars that take the hyper-modern recipe and turn it up to 11”, says Fender. “Built for modern musicians who demand both precision and performance, the Ultra II delivers an unparalleled playing experience, showcasing cutting-edge technology and a refined design that sets a standard in the music world.”