The Fender American Ultra Telecaster is a true Tele, exuding the same iconic look and vibe as its ancestors. But play a few notes and you’ll quickly realize that this isn’t your father’s Telecaster — it’s a modern axe through and through. Built for high performance, the American Ultra Tele’s contoured alder body hugs your belly, while a compound-radius fingerboard and tapered neck heel turbocharge your playing. Plug into anything — tube, solid-state, or modeling — and you’ll enjoy classic Tele tones with zero hum, thanks to Ultra Noiseless Vintage Tele single-coil pickups. You also get an S-1 switch for expanded sonic options. Comparing the American Ultra to a typical Tele is like comparing your family sedan to a Maserati. This solid body electric guitar is fully loaded, boasting sealed locking tuners, a 6-saddle bridge with chromed brass saddles, a bone nut, and strap locks. The American Ultra Telecaster was built for Tele aficionados who demand the ultimate in precision, performance, and tone.

On this guitar we noticed a fine finish crack on the right horn (see last pictures). This does not affect playability.

Classic design with high-performance features

The American Ultra Telecaster retains the look and vibe of a classic Tele, yet boasts the full gamut of modern, high-performance features. Its bound alder body exhibits a balanced blend of lows, mids, and highs. But unlike its vintage counterparts, the American Ultra Tele includes comfort contours on its top, back, and heel. Its compound-radius fingerboard with rolled edges is tailor-made for modern playing techniques. Noiseless pickups accommodate old-school tube combos, high-gain stacks, and everything in between with a negligible self-noise. Sealed locking tuners enhance stability and enable effortless string changes, while a 6-saddle bridge with chromed brass saddles facilitates ultra-precise intonation. Attractive chrome hardware and a bone nut complete the package.

State-of-the-art performance, vintage-inspired tone

Onboard the American Ultra Telecaster is a duo of Fender's Ultra Noiseless Vintage Tele single-coil pickups. These pups deliver the punch and twang that define the Telecaster. That said, Fender’s revolutionary Noiseless circuitry eliminates the signal noise and hum that are inherent in vintage single-coil designs. You can plug the American Ultra Tele into anything — old-school tube combos, digital modeling software, high-gain stacks — anything, and you’ll experience vintage-inspired tone with the level of performance you’d expect from a modern pickup. What’s more, this Telecaster includes an S-1 switch embedded in its volume knob that places the pickups in series for raging humbucker-esque tones. If you enjoy classic tones but demand state-of-the-art performance, the American Ultra Tele delivers the goods.

Easy-playing compound-radius fingerboard

The American Ultra Telecaster's performance-driven features extend to the neck in a big way. While its all-maple construction and eye-catching embossed Fender headstock logo look standard enough, run up the fingerboard and you'll know there's a lot more going on. This Tele’s fingerboard boasts an easy-playing 10”–14” compound-radius with 22 medium-jumbo frets. Rolled fingerboard edges supply endless hours of playing comfort. A Modern “D” profile gives you plenty to wrap your hand around, while never interfering with your playing. And the neck’s super-slick Ultra Satin finish encourages deft hand maneuvering. One of our favorite elements of the American Ultra Telecaster is its tapered neck heel. Play this Tele and you’ll understand — this perfectly sculpted heel gives you easy access to the guitar’s entire fretboard. The American Ultra Telecaster is a player’s dream come true.

Fender American Ultra Telecaster Features:

• Bound alder body exhibits a balanced blend of lows, mids, and highs
• Belly and arm contours ensure a comfortable playing experience during long performances
• Modern “D” profile with rolled fingerboard edges supplies endless hours of playing comfort
• Super-slick Ultra Satin finish encourages deft hand maneuvering
• 10”–14” compound-radius fingerboard is tailor-made for modern playing techniques
• Tapered neck heel enables easy access to the entire fretboard
• Ultra-Noiseless Vintage Tele single-coil pickups deliver classic Tele punch and twang without the hum
• S-1 switch places the pickups in series for raging humbucker-esque tones
• Sealed locking tuners enhance stability and enable effortless string changes
• 6-saddle bridge with chromed brass saddles facilitates ultra-precise intonation
• Attractive chrome hardware with knurled flat-top control knobs
• Bone nut enhances tone and sustain
• Strap locks prevent unfortunate guitar-dropping incidents
• Eye-catching embossed Fender headstock logo
• Includes a premium molded Hardshell case