Next year, 2024 marks the 70^th Anniversary of the introduction of Leo Fender’s most iconic and innovative creation: the Fender Stratocaster  guitar. In celebration of 70 years of musical excellence, Fender is releasing a collection of limited edition models and anniversary color options. These exceptional instruments encapsulate the essence of its storied history and relentless commitment to cutting-edge innovation. The 70th Anniversary Stratocaster guitars pay homage to the legacy of the iconic Stratocaster seamlessly blending the timeless essence of history with the spirit of the modern musician.

The 70th Anniversary celebration is planned to extend throughout 2024, with additional news and releases from Fender and the Fender Custom Shop. Stay tuned for ongoing updates and special releases that will continue to mark this significant milestone

Just in time for the holidays, Fender is granting players early access to the celebration and introducing four anniversary models:

• 70th Anniversary Player Stratocaster
• 70th Anniversary American Professional II Stratocaster
• Player Stratocaster NEW COLOR
• American Professional II Stratocaster NEW COLOR

You can find everything you’ll want to now about the new models HERE 

PreSonus has announced Metro, a new, free feature for StudioLive Series III Digital Mixers that will revolutionize the way audio professionals mix remotely. Included in Universal Control 4.2, Metro is the first-to-market solution for live remote mixing over the internet, delivering high-quality low-latency audio, equipping audio professionals with unprecedented flexibility. Whether creating a broadcast mix across the country, producing a livestream remotely, or troubleshooting a system from miles away to anywhere across the globe, this new feature redefines convenience and flexibility in audio production. Whether musicians are tracking vocals in a studio in Los Angeles while their producer is adjusting settings from a studio in New York, or a live sound engineer is fine-tuning a broadcast mix during a concert halfway across the world, Metro ensures a cohesive and streamlined working experience.

Recommended use cases include (but not limited to):

• Broadcast: Remotely create a broadcast mix from your home without stepping foot into a venue.
• Live Stream and Podcast Production: Produce a livestream or podcast from anywhere in the world.
• Troubleshooting: Troubleshoot StudioLive Series III mixers quickly and conveniently from your home or office.
• Remote Recording: Ensure that a remote recording session is properly gain staged.
• Corporate conferences: Remotely mix an all-day conference panel from the comfort of your couch.
• Professional assistance: Dial in a scratch mix remotely for a less experienced onsite FOH or monitor engineer to use as a starting point.

More information is available below:

• Check out PreSonus Metro, the latest innovation for StudioLive Series III mixers, delivering a first-to-market solution for live remote mixing over the Internet with high-quality, low-latency audio streaming, video link HERE.

Highway Series follows in the footsteps of Fender’s Acoustasonic lineup. Released in 2019, Acoustasonic blurs the lines between acoustic and electric guitar design, feel and function.

After spending a few minutes with Highway Series, it clearly borrows from Acoustasonic’s design, but it’s also clearly less of an attempt to be an acoustic/electric guitar hybrid. These are unashamedly acoustic guitars, and the only thing that could make you think otherwise is their thinness and the location of the tone and volume knobs. Otherwise, the playing experience feels like an acoustic, it resonates like an acoustic, and when plugged in, sounds like an acoustic.

However, it’s still smaller than a ‘real’ acoustic guitar. According to Fender, this design decision was to make Highway Series more attractive to guitarists who spend a lot of time on stage, desiring a more comfortable and ergonomic instrument without sacrificing acoustic tone in a live situation.

ZERO DREAD

Fender sent AT a Highway Series Dreadnought acoustic guitar. Dreadnought is one of the larger acoustic guitar shapes, but don’t let that fool you into thinking the Highway Series guitars are large. Upon arrival I couldn’t help but notice that, although the shape of the top is indeed dreadnought, the thin profile makes the guitar beautifully ergonomic. The contoured back makes the instrument sit neatly against the body much like a Stratocaster.

Manufactured in Fender’s facility in Ensenada, Mexico, Highway Series is a beautifully designed guitar. The body is a 5.7cm-thick hollowed out piece of mahogany with its wavy woodgrain pattern glistening under the matte finish. A mahogany neck is overlaid with an Indian rosewood fingerboard with micro-tilt adjustment and a Strat-style headstock and tuners. An understated railroad binding on the solid Sitka spruce top gives it a vintage vibe. The bridge and knobs are a matching ebony-coloured wood.

Both the Dreadnought and Parlor models that form the Highway Series do not have cutaways. Whether that’s a dealbreaker or not is a personal choice, but I imagine a cutaway would slightly compromise the resonance you might get out of the small body – and resonance is a key priority for Fender when designing these guitars.

Fender has announced a new product that is jam-packed with uniquely-Fender features. The Fender Riff Bluetooth Speaker will upgrade your listening experience wherever you bring it. The genuine maple interface allows you to adjust the RIFF’s volume and EQ by simply sliding your fingers like you’re shredding on a real fretboard. 

Featuring up to 30 hours of battery-powered playback, Bluetooth 5.2 connectivity, and 60 watts for pristine clarity and velvety bass, the RIFF punches way above its weight class. Musicians can plug in any electric instrument into the 1/4-inch ‘Play Along Port’ and jam to their favourite tunes. More is more when you connect multiple Riff Speakers via the RIFF mobile app for surround-sound musical immersion.

Features:

• 60 watts of power delivered through 6 custom-tuned drivers
• Swipe Control – Swipe across the wood touch panel to adjust volume and EQ
• Practice Amp Mode – Plug in your guitar or bass via the 1/4-inch Play Along Port at the back to jam along to your tunes
• Party Mode – Connect up to 100 RIFF speakers wireless through Party Mode
• Auto-EQ Room Tuning via the free downloadable Fender RIFF app
• IP54 rated, making it dust and splash proof
• USB-C Charging Port and 30 hours of cord-free playback

Includes: Bluetooth Speaker, 3.5mm Auxiliary Cable, USB-C Charging Cable, Carry Strap
The Fender Riff is priced at RRP US$469.99, and is shipping now.

With more people learning and playing guitar than ever before, Fender has crafted epic deals for Black Friday and Cyber Monday, with products suitable for players at all levels across various price points and products.

Punters can expect to get 40% off a range of guitars and basses with the single day Doorbuster Black Friday sale, while the Extended Black Friday sale takes 20% off selected instruments, amps, straps, and leads.
Simply enter the coupon code ‘FENDER’ at the cart to receive these Black Friday discounts.

Customers can also get set up with a 3-month subscription to Fender Play, alongside a loan-er guitar to get shredding sooner.

Head here for more Black Friday Sale info, and keep an eye out for the release of further Cyber Monday Sale deals as they go live on the Fender front page in the coming days.