Fender Acoustasonic Unboxing

[guitaniac]

Originally Posted by Petty1818

With all that said, what Fishman is doing with Fender and Godin really should be applied to an aftermarket pickup. Instead of having to buy a Martin with aura images already loaded for that particular guitar, users should be able to buy a system where the built in images are more generic but the tone/blend wheel can act as a way to balance between an OM to a dread for example. I know there's the spectrum DI but in all honesty, I have never used an image that matches any of my guitars. I just simply turn until I find the best sounding image.

At this point I doubt that they could come up with an aftermarket system which does what the AAT's image casting does. They need a specific model of guitar to experiment with, and that model needs to be very modeling-friendly. The attributes of such a modeling-friendly guitar were alluded to in the "Mixing And Matching" section which I quoted in my last post. (Its quoted from the original Aura Sound Imaging Blender User's Guide. That guide was very extensive and attempted to explain the geeky stuff.)

If the AAT turns out to be a good seller, there will undoubtedly be additional and cheaper modeling guitars on the way for those of us who just want a comfy stage guitar which can convincingly model a variety of acoustics and resist feedback well in the process. In the meantime, the Godin Duet Ambiance Multiac which has been referred to in these threads might be a good candidate for some do-it-yourself modeling experiments with an Aura Spectrum DI. One could set the on-guitar controls for 100% pickup and experiment with every sound image in the Spectrum. You might be able to find some decently compatible sound images in every body size category. (I'm specifying the Duet Ambiance Multiac because its equipped with the Fishman Matrix pickup. That factor gives it a higher likelihood of being Aura sound image compatible.)

[jonfields45]

Has anyone tried a recent Variax for its acoustic models? It has the disadvantage of being a solid body guitar and the advantage of having a separate model (IR, impulse response) for each string.

[dcopper]

Aero- Congrats on the new guitar and thank you for braving the comments as well. I have been a forum member here for many years, like most of you. I stopped reading a few years ago when certain posters became so hostile in their comments. I came back and luckily saw it had stopped with a few exceptions.

I don’t think anyone intends as much to be negative as they do to simply voice their often strong opinions. The Acoustasonic Tele, much like when the T5 arrived in 2005, is new and maybe not a new concept but more of a new concept for mainstream Fender. It is just one of those things that brings out strong opinions. I find it is always good to read my posts before I push “submit”. It has kept me from sounding harsh when I never intended that at all. Everyone here volunteers their time and experience and it is a rare place where players from all over the world who just love to play guitar, can communicate. Even now entering my 5th decade of guitar, I still love it as much as when I first picked it up. It matters not whether you are new or experienced. The AGF is a great place to share experiences and often get help. No criticism of anyone here at all - just six string enthusiasts with often some more enthusiastic than others in voicing an opinion.

So thanks Aero for the unboxing. I want to play one and see what it could do for me. I know the green may be ugly to some, but i like the look!
Davidc

[Groberts]

Originally Posted by dcopper

Aero- Congrats on the new guitar and thank you for braving the comments as well. I have been a forum member here for many years, like most of you. I stopped reading a few years ago when certain posters became so hostile in their comments. I came back and luckily saw it had stopped with a few exceptions.

I don’t think anyone intends as much to be negative as they do to simply voice their often strong opinions. The Acoustasonic Tele, much like when the T5 arrived in 2005, is new and maybe not a new concept but more of a new concept for mainstream Fender. It is just one of those things that brings out strong opinions. I find it is always good to read my posts before I push “submit”. It has kept me from sounding harsh when I never intended that at all. Everyone here volunteers their time and experience and it is a rare place where players from all over the world who just love to play guitar, can communicate. Even now entering my 5th decade of guitar, I still love it as much as when I first picked it up. It matters not whether you are new or experienced. The AGF is a great place to share experiences and often get help. No criticism of anyone here at all - just six string enthusiasts with often some more enthusiastic than others in voicing an opinion.

So thanks Aero for the unboxing. I want to play one and see what it could do for me. I know the green may be ugly to some, but i like the look!
Davidc

Fabulous Post! Your voice of reason is refreshing. I also applaud all those who are passionate about acoustic music, guitars and any of the tools we use in our craft. I am always grateful when seasoned professionals share 'their insight/thoughts and opinions.' Whether I agree or not, I am grateful for insight I would not have otherwise. It is so easy to be an armchair quarterback and critique from afar.

I am quite surprised how natural and musical the Acoustasonic based on what I've seen and heard so far. I think we want an instrument like this to be more than it is. With all the versatility come 'trade-offs'. But with all complexity comes versatility. I think its a cool tool. The Godin is a cool tool. The Taylor T5 as well.

Which tool is best or right for me is all that remains to be seen. I don't typically find 'one-size-fits-all' to be the last word. But there is a lot of value here.

[Petty1818]

Originally Posted by dcopper

Aero- Congrats on the new guitar and thank you for braving the comments as well. I have been a forum member here for many years, like most of you. I stopped reading a few years ago when certain posters became so hostile in their comments. I came back and luckily saw it had stopped with a few exceptions.

I don’t think anyone intends as much to be negative as they do to simply voice their often strong opinions. The Acoustasonic Tele, much like when the T5 arrived in 2005, is new and maybe not a new concept but more of a new concept for mainstream Fender. It is just one of those things that brings out strong opinions. I find it is always good to read my posts before I push “submit”. It has kept me from sounding harsh when I never intended that at all. Everyone here volunteers their time and experience and it is a rare place where players from all over the world who just love to play guitar, can communicate. Even now entering my 5th decade of guitar, I still love it as much as when I first picked it up. It matters not whether you are new or experienced. The AGF is a great place to share experiences and often get help. No criticism of anyone here at all - just six string enthusiasts with often some more enthusiastic than others in voicing an opinion.

So thanks Aero for the unboxing. I want to play one and see what it could do for me. I know the green may be ugly to some, but i like the look!
Davidc

Good post! With that said, if you find this thread harsh then try going over to thegearpage.net. It gets downright nasty over there! I will say again though, if my comments came off as negative to some, I do apologize.

To add, I personally haven't seen that much negativity in this thread until a few people started pointing out that it was an issue. A few people, including myself, mentioned the fact that this is probably a niche product that's a bit overpriced. I mean I can see how this is negative if we are expected to just say "congrats" but I thought the point of a thread was to discuss the gear being mentioned? I am not personally attacking Aaron, I hope he loves the guitar and his videos are great. Again, I apologize but let's not get too overblown here with a fairly innocent thread.

[dcopper]

I could not agree with you all more. There is always a honeymoon period with some new gear. I find that the opinions here, good and bad on any product has helped me in the long run.

Great community spirit and pretty amazing that you can talk shop with someone just about anywhere in the world.

[Steadfastly]

Originally Posted by dcopper

Aero- Congrats on the new guitar and thank you for braving the comments as well. I have been a forum member here for many years, like most of you. I stopped reading a few years ago when certain posters became so hostile in their comments. I came back and luckily saw it had stopped with a few exceptions.

I don’t think anyone intends as much to be negative as they do to simply voice their often strong opinions. The Acoustasonic Tele, much like when the T5 arrived in 2005, is new and maybe not a new concept but more of a new concept for mainstream Fender. It is just one of those things that brings out strong opinions. I find it is always good to read my posts before I push “submit”. It has kept me from sounding harsh when I never intended that at all. Everyone here volunteers their time and experience and it is a rare place where players from all over the world who just love to play guitar, can communicate. Even now entering my 5th decade of guitar, I still love it as much as when I first picked it up. It matters not whether you are new or experienced. The AGF is a great place to share experiences and often get help. No criticism of anyone here at all - just six string enthusiasts with often some more enthusiastic than others in voicing an opinion.

So thanks Aero for the unboxing. I want to play one and see what it could do for me. I know the green may be ugly to some, but i like the look!
Davidc

Nice post, David but c'mon, green on a guitar is ugly! IMSHO (In my strong humble opinion)

[guitaniac]

Green, red, purple or whatever, the really impressive things about the AAT are the very convincing direct-to-recorder sounds of various acoustic guitar types and the here-to-fore unheard of capability of morphing between types and choosing any blend of two types that is desired.

It may well be that the Fender folks have come up with such a good modeling platform in the AAT that the guitar itself deserves as much credit for the outstanding results as the Fishman electronics deserve. Whatever the case, the same expertise will eventually be applied to more affordable comfy-sized modeling guitars. The way I see it, the arrival of the AAT bodes well for a great many players, whether or not we end up purchasing this particular guitar.

[guitaniac]

At this point, my biggest concern regarding this guitar is whether or not there will be feedback issues when dialing in a big guitar sound or a lot of the SBT in loud settings. I'm looking forward to Aero's report on gigging with this guitar, and I'm grateful that he's planning to do such a report.

[FrankHudson]

Originally Posted by jonfields45

Has anyone tried a recent Variax for its acoustic models? It has the disadvantage of being a solid body guitar and the advantage of having a separate model (IR, impulse response) for each string.

I have a Variax JTV, though I haven't needed to use the acoustic models recently, I've used it more for the instant open tunings at the twist of a knob. My impression of the acoustic models was that it's more "real" sounding than just a piezo bridge, but not overly convincing. In theory the software could eventually improve that. The demos of the Fender Acoustasonic sound more convincing than my memory of the recent Variax.

A point in the Variax JTV's favor: it's a perfectly good electric guitar, that feels, acts and sounds like one.

IMHO, as with the Acoustasonic, the real USP for either model is if you need to play a song in real time/live which moves from acoustic to electric or vice versa.

[DavidE]

Originally Posted by bufflehead

$2,000 for a guitar in a gig bag. Yikes.

The PRS Silver Sky is the same.

[chevymopar]

Originally Posted by DavidE

The PRS Silver Sky is the same.

Seems to me it is silly to get hung up on a gig bag either I like a guitar or not the case isn’t the driving factor.the gig

My pRS is came w gig bag as well

[dcopper]

I have to say that the Fender gig bag looked pretty cool to me, but keep in mind, I like the green color!

[varmonter]

Originally Posted by dcopper

I have to say that the Fender gig bag looked pretty cool to me, but keep in mind, I like the green color!

Surf Green. How cool is that.. +1

[Earthworm]

As a looper, I love hybrid guitars and have owned the following: Taylor T5, Godin Multiac, Variax acoustic 700, and several Crowdsters. My main guitar for gigging is a Crowdster 2+. I perform mostly acoustic folk rock and so the acoustic sound had to be convincing. The Taylor T5 had a lovely neck, but the acoustic side left me wanting more. The Godin Multiac is a great value, but I didn't like the neck. The Variax 700 acoustic had a couple of models that sounded fantastic plugged through the PA. Of course, it was a subpar guitar in almost every way. I never liked the sound of the altered tunings. The Crowdster is my favorite hybrid and not merely because I own one. The acoustic side of the instrument is very convincing and the instrument is a pleasure to play. Tom Anderson builds some nice guitars. One thing I don't like about the Crowdster is not having any percussive abilities.

As long as I have my Crowdster, the Fender is redundant. However, I'm impressed by Fender's new product and my mind is wide open. Count me as another gigging guitarist who doesn't like bringing more than one guitar to a gig. Often, I don't have enough space at the gig to make it worthwhile.

Thanks to the OP for the video.