AO Series Discontinued

Discussion of newer designs, copies and reissue offset-waist instruments.
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Powdered Toast Man
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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by Powdered Toast Man » Mon Nov 15, 2021 11:17 am

Wucan wrote:
Mon Nov 15, 2021 8:23 am
I see a local store selling a B-Stock AO Jaguar for 1.9K CAD, or around 1.5K USD. Worth checking it out?
That's a really good deal on an AO Jag in this market! I've got one and it's a superb instrument!

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by cestlamort » Mon Nov 15, 2021 2:23 pm

Not sure this plays into the four-year cycle, but haven't the AO Jazzmasters and Jaguars been on backorder for ____ months?

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by Powdered Toast Man » Mon Nov 15, 2021 2:42 pm

cestlamort wrote:
Mon Nov 15, 2021 2:23 pm
Not sure this plays into the four-year cycle, but haven't the AO Jazzmasters and Jaguars been on backorder for ____ months?
Shop I just bought my AO JM from said that they just got it in and they had ordered it last January.

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by bessieboporbach » Mon Nov 15, 2021 2:49 pm

Powdered Toast Man wrote:
Mon Nov 15, 2021 2:42 pm
cestlamort wrote:
Mon Nov 15, 2021 2:23 pm
Not sure this plays into the four-year cycle, but haven't the AO Jazzmasters and Jaguars been on backorder for ____ months?
Shop I just bought my AO JM from said that they just got it in and they had ordered it last January.
I don't know how much any kind of conventional wisdom about backorder dates counts for anything during the era of COVID-19. I ordered a completely bog-standard Mexican-made Charvel last November and it took a full 11 months (to the day) to arrive. Luckily it's a fantastic guitar.

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by Wucan » Wed Nov 17, 2021 12:50 pm

Powdered Toast Man wrote:
Mon Nov 15, 2021 11:17 am
Wucan wrote:
Mon Nov 15, 2021 8:23 am
I see a local store selling a B-Stock AO Jaguar for 1.9K CAD, or around 1.5K USD. Worth checking it out?
That's a really good deal on an AO Jag in this market! I've got one and it's a superb instrument!
ha, they took the Jag off the list within 24 hours of posting on Craigslist. I have too many guitars to lose weekday time over it, but shame I couldn't at least check it out.

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by fuzzking » Wed Nov 17, 2021 1:43 pm

Nobody exists on purpose.

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by y335 » Mon Nov 22, 2021 3:56 am

mastermorya wrote:
Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:28 am
*prays so hard that the next vintage reissue jazzmasters actually have vintage frets instead bullshit "vintage tall" frets* If Fender somehow can escape its current mania for "vintage tall" and "narrow tall" frets, a great and mighty peace shall descend upon this earth.
Why do you not like the vintage tall and narrow tall frets? Difference between these and vintage frets?

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by mastermorya » Mon Nov 22, 2021 10:28 am

y335 wrote:
Mon Nov 22, 2021 3:56 am
mastermorya wrote:
Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:28 am
*prays so hard that the next vintage reissue jazzmasters actually have vintage frets instead bullshit "vintage tall" frets* If Fender somehow can escape its current mania for "vintage tall" and "narrow tall" frets, a great and mighty peace shall descend upon this earth.
Why do you not like the vintage tall and narrow tall frets? Difference between these and vintage frets?
I don't like skinny tall frets. I don't do a ton of bending, I like to fret a note and not have the intonation vary quite significantly by how much pressure I put on the fret. I really prefer vintage-spec frets, and I'm increasingly annoyed that Fender is barely selling any offsets (or any guitars really) that don't have these narrow-tall frets (which are the same as "vintage tall" as far as I can tell). Nearly every single production model now has these narrow-tall frets, they are unescapable. For example, if you go to their Mod Shop and try to build a Jazzmaster, every single option has "narrow-tall" or "vintage-tall" frets, and every one of the supposedly vintage spec guitars they are selling seems to have these "vintage-tall" frets. I wish they would make a guitar or two with "vintage-vintage" frets, especially on their next run of vintage-spec guitars, because I really hate those tall frets and there are pretty much no non-tall options in Fender's current offerings, which is annoying. Some people may disagree, that's fine, it's just my opinion. Would like a diversity of guitars that include a few with actual vintage frets on them!

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by Zeus » Mon Nov 22, 2021 11:27 am

I feel like I've been the only one banging this drum, so it's a relief to find out someone else feels the same way.

I sold my AO60s Jaguar (and Tele!) because of those awful frets, no other reason.

They've taken over almost the entire USA-made Fender line (including the Custom Shop), and even now the Roadworn MIMs too.

It's like Fender bought a gigantic truckload of those frets and need to use them on everything.

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by JSett » Mon Nov 22, 2021 12:07 pm

Zeus wrote:
Mon Nov 22, 2021 11:27 am
It's like Fender bought a gigantic truckload of those frets and need to use them on everything.
That's the most traditionally Fender thing to do
Silly Rabbit, don't you know scooped mids are for kids?

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by Powdered Toast Man » Tue Nov 23, 2021 11:09 am

Zeus wrote:
Mon Nov 22, 2021 11:27 am
I feel like I've been the only one banging this drum, so it's a relief to find out someone else feels the same way.

I sold my AO60s Jaguar (and Tele!) because of those awful frets, no other reason.

They've taken over almost the entire USA-made Fender line (including the Custom Shop), and even now the Roadworn MIMs too.

It's like Fender bought a gigantic truckload of those frets and need to use them on everything.
See, and the AO frets are an absolute selling feature for me. These are the best necks/frets I've ever played. Period.

To me they're the happy medium between vintage small and 6105 medium jumbo.

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by Powdered Toast Man » Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:35 pm

Here's how much I love the AO series:

Image

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by DavidG » Sat Nov 27, 2021 12:59 am

Powdered Toast Man wrote:
Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:35 pm
Here's how much I love the AO series:

Image
What a great collection. I've currently got the aztec gold AO strat, which is easily the best strat I have owned.

I had the surf green Jag, which is also the best Jag I've ever owned. I owned a Johnny Marr Jag at the same time, and the AO Jag just felt nicer all around. Wish it had the matching headstock though.

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by Downsman » Thu Dec 02, 2021 3:09 am

The one guitar still on my wish list, is a vintage correct 65 Jaguar in Candy Apple Red with matching headstock. Vintage ones turn up now and then, but usually at least £4.5k, often a lot more. Outside my price range. And what I don't understand is why it seems that only Fender Japan has ever done a reissue of one. I've been put off those ones by mixed reviews of the quality of the pickups/wiring etc. And the used prices are aren't too far off used AV or AO models. And they're poly and I'd love a nitro one in the hope that it might age nicely over time.

I wonder what the chances are Fender might bring in matching headstocks for whatever they replace the AO with? I always assumed everyone would feel the same way about that CAR finish with matching headstock but maybe it's a more niche taste than I thought?

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Re: AO Series Discontinued

Post by Mondaysoutar » Thu Dec 02, 2021 3:19 am

Downsman wrote:
Thu Dec 02, 2021 3:09 am
The one guitar still on my wish list, is a vintage correct 65 Jaguar in Candy Apple Red with matching headstock. Vintage ones turn up now and then, but usually at least £4.5k, often a lot more. Outside my price range. And what I don't understand is why it seems that only Fender Japan has ever done a reissue of one. I've been put off those ones by mixed reviews of the quality of the pickups/wiring etc. And the used prices are aren't too far off used AV or AO models. And they're poly and I'd love a nitro one in the hope that it might age nicely over time.

I wonder what the chances are Fender might bring in matching headstocks for whatever they replace the AO with? I always assumed everyone would feel the same way about that CAR finish with matching headstock but maybe it's a more niche taste than I thought?
If you could live with the 9.5 fretboard radius, you could get an AO Jag in candy apple red then have the headstock refinished man.

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