Is the punchline that they can buy an Ibanez and put a Fender decal on it?
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I LOOOOVE my Dimension V to death that I won in a Fender Sweepstakes....but you can see now why they gave me a Dimension for free over a Precision. Poor line didn't even last through one decade.
The Ovation guitar company specialized in flat top steel string acoustic/electric guitars. They were arguably the first to mass produce acoustic guitars with a built in stage ready pickup and preamp. Others had attempted it, but Ovation seemed to develop it to a point so that for many years they led the way in that type of guitar. Their guitars all featured a bowl shaped body that was made of some type of plastic (carbon fiber maybe). They were the preferred stage acoustic of Nancy Wilson, Glen Campbell and Brian May. McCartney played one on “Wings Over America.” Lennon is reported to have used one on “Double Fantasy.” One was even used briefly by bluegrass legend Tony Rice.
During their peak years, more traditional acoustic guitar such as Martins, fell out of favor. But over the years, companies that made fully solid wood guitars such as Taylor and Takamine introduced acoustic/electrics of their own. Aftermarket pickups and preamps for acoustics also emerged for traditional acoustic guitar. Traditional companies including Martin finally jumped in the acoustic/electric market. Eventually Ovation succumbed to the competition and disappeared. Since they were by then owned by the same parent company as Takamine, I think it may be a similar story to all the competitors acquired by Fender, only to be later killed by Fender.
Every now and again I read stories about a comeback of the Ovation name. Maybe at some point it will, just as Trace Elliot is making a bit of a comeback.
The point here is there was a time when a traditional brand like Martin appeared to be at risk of losing market share to the point of disappearing due in part to the public embrace of Ovation’s innovations. That didn’t happen. The Martin D18 and D28 remain industry standards just as the Precision and Jazz basses are. Both companies produce other products that show some acknowledgment of more modern designs and manufacturing techniques. But the core of their business is built on their traditional products. Hard to argue with success.
As long as there are still Fenders for sale who cares what the others guys are making. The market place is big enough for all of them.
The bright side of Fender’s stuck-in-the-mud business model is that there are so many past and present models to choose from at every quality and price point. I own three: vintage, a Limited Edition and a Custom Shop. The quality is there.
I don’t care about new designs or constant innovations from Fender. There are tons of options from other manufacturers. NYC Sadowsky and US Spector basses top the list for me.
I don’t care about new designs or constant innovations from Fender. There are tons of options from other manufacturers. NYC Sadowsky and US Spector basses top the list for me.
Stuck in the mud or rock solid position atop the mountain? I think they see at as the later.
I love my 2 Fender J5ers, so I'm no Fender basher, but.....the Dimensions were OK basses, but they had the same needlessly large (heavy ) headstock, very uncomfortably (for me, YMMV) sharp fingerboard edges, and weighed a ton. I had a USA Dlxe.....loved the sound, but the bass had too many disappointing aspects to be a keeper for me. I believe Fender's mistake with non-traditional designs is not sticking with them and letting them evolve over time, improving them over time, but I totally get that it has never been where their product rubber meets the financial road. I'm fine with them cranking out what's tried and true, as there are sooooo many other options out there at all price points.
Isn't it funny that everything that isn't Fender or Fenderishly shaped is considered modern?
You are pretty close. But Fender shut down ovation because ovation wasn’t selling anymore. Notice Takamine is still around.
I was unaware Fender had any direct connection to Ovation. For years Ovation was owned by Kaman music which also included Hamer and Takamine, Takamine being the sole survivor.
I wouldn't say wanting to see Fender do something non vintange looking again is bashing them.
Didn't they do the same with SWR shortly after acquiring them, or was SWR on their way out before the acquisitition?
Right, a complicated story. Fender bought Kaman in 2010 or 2011, Takamine decided to leave Fender in 2015 and go indie (I just found this out tonight...I thought Takamine was still at Fender and had no idea about their KMC connection), and around the same time, FMIC sold Kaman to JAM in Canada, and nww Takamine is distributed by Kaman, who has resurrected both Hamer and Ovation, Hamer being another brand that quit selling major and FMIC shut down.
Fender gave SWR every chance to succeed for 10 years.
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I didn’t know any of this stuff about Ovation. But I had a UKII back in the day that was an absolutely great guitar. Must have been around 1981 or so.
What I’ve found fascinating over the years tho’ is that those old Fender tones still move the modern music needle. Production in-studio does some of it but it’s mostly just a player’s approach and individual style(s) keep making it work.
