128 PREMIER GUITAR MAY 2011
REVIEWS > FENDER
Texas Special
neck pickup
Enforcer
humbucker
humbucker’s coil gives you a distinctly less
girthy tone and lower output but remains
quite cutting, with an almost Tele-like kick
and a brightness that probably gets an assist
from the maple fretboard.
The ’ 51’s neck pickup is a Fender Texas
Special, which is a beautiful match for the
guitar’s architecture. It’s both a little rounder and hotter than what you’d typically hear
in a Stratocaster, with exceptional definition
and a sweet responsiveness to pick attack
that, again, makes even the simplest blues
bends sing and beckons you to slow down
and let each note linger a bit.
The ’ 51’s substantial-yet-slinky feel
didn’t make me want to speed up my playing, either. It has medium-jumbo frets, and
the C-shaped neck profile is neither too
wide nor too flat, inviting languid bends
and slow, wobbling finger vibrato. In all,
the ’ 51 is a beautifully simple, comfortable, intuitive, and inviting guitar that can
gnash, purr, and sing. If you’re accustomed
to really working your Tone knob, the lack
of one here may get under your skin, but if
you’re comfortable finding tonal nuances in
your fingertips or tend to play on the more
aggressive end of the tone spectrum anyway,
you may never miss it. There are plenty of
sounds in this guitar to go around.
Push/pull
knob for
volume and
coil splitting
3-position
pickup
selector
Rating:
Buy If...
blues and hard-rocking tones
—peppered with some ’50s snap—
are your flavors of choice.
Skip If...
your bread and butter is working the
Tone knob.
Fender
Street $799
fender.com
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