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61-617: The Mustang Bass utilizes the same body as the Fender Mustang , its guitar counterpart. The body design has also been used on the Musicmaster guitar and basses, Duo-Sonic guitar, Fender Bronco guitar, and Squier Bronco basses. Based off of the earlier Musicmaster body, the Mustang body has a more notable offset. The Mustang Bass has a 30" scale length, with a shorter neck that typically has 19 frets. Relatively unique elements of

122-435: A chambered ash body, custom pickups, modified hardtail bridge, and simplified controls. The Mustang has two angled single-coil pickups, each with an adjacent on-off-on switch, and a master tone and volume control. Many Mustangs have neither a pickup selector nor a circuit selector switch, instead just using the two pickup switches to allow the pickups to be used either singly or in parallel. The second on position reverses

183-522: A custom Fender Mustang Bass he performed with from 2011. It was finished in large flake silver sparkle, based on the Duo-Sonic finish, had a black competition stripe, a black painted headstock, and a single humbucking pickup. In 2019, Squier began offering the Classic Vibe '60s Mustang Bass. Finished in olympic white or surf green with an indian laurel fingerboard, the '60s Mustang Bass is based on

244-456: A given pitch, making string bending easier. Its short scale, combined with a relatively low cost and extremely direct vibrato arm , made the Mustang a cult guitar in the 1990s. Before that, its low cost and marketing as a student guitar made it an obvious candidate for aftermarket upgrades, particularly pickup changes and also amateur finishes. Its wiring with the original pickups also lent itself to custom modifications. In 1966, Fender issued

305-494: A laurel fingerboard. Fender Mustang The Fender Mustang is a solid body electric guitar produced by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation . It was introduced in 1964 as the basis of a major redesign of Fender's student models, the Musicmaster and Duo-Sonic . It was produced until 1982 and reissued in 1990. In the 1990s, the Mustang attained cult status largely as

366-590: A more conventional Adjusto-matic bridge and a fixed tailpiece. In 2016, Fender released two versions of the Mustang: the Mustang (with two single coil pickups in Olympic White, Black and Olive) and the Mustang 90 (with two MP90 pickups in Olympic White, Torino Red and Silver), both in a 24" scale. They have a string-through-body hardtail 'Strat' bridge (no vibrato system as was found on previous Mustangs), with vintage-like bent-steel saddles. These guitars, and

427-626: A musician into the field of producing and engineering, something he had always had interest in. His first forays were exclusively co-productions, but beginning in 2009, he began to move forward as a full-fledged producer/co-writer/collaborator. This is seen most clearly with his production and writing on the acclaimed 2011 M83 album, Hurry Up, We're Dreaming . Today, Meldal-Johnsen spends most of his time producing and writing, working largely from his studio in Glendale, California . In 2013, he produced Paramore 's self-titled fourth album , and Young

488-606: A new Mustang in the Vintage Modified series, with similar specifications to those of the original version, but using more modern materials. There was also a double-humbucker version introduced as a Bullet model. In 2013, Fender released the Modern Player Mustang, a newer take on the old student model. It featured two Fender MP-90 pickups, which are similar to the P-90 . It has a modern 9.5" neck radius, and

549-625: A normal Mustang single coil in the neck. It also had an angled Fender adjusto-matic bridge instead of the standard Mustang bridge. Originally, finish colors included Fiesta Red, Sonic Blue and Dark Lake Placid Blue with Competition Stripe, however, by 2015, the Kurt Cobain Mustang was produced only in Sonic Blue. It is the first Mustang model to be sold in Europe in both right-handed and left-handed versions. In 2012, Squier released

610-470: A plastic covering with no exposed pole pieces. Mustang basses originally came with the standard "Pull-bar" on the treble side of the strings of the early Fender era, though later models may not include them, or may include the bar installed as a thumb rest on the bass side of the strings. Introduced in 1966 as a companion to Fender's shorter-scaled, two-pickup Fender Mustang guitars, the Mustang Bass

671-890: A producer, Meldal-Johnsen has worked with M83 , Paramore , Metric , Tegan and Sara , Deafheaven , Poppy , Jimmy Eat World , The Naked and Famous , School of Seven Bells , Neon Trees , Young the Giant , Ken Andrews , Division Day and more. Meldal-Johnsen grew up in Los Angeles, obsessively listening to his parents' records and taking up bass guitar at age of twelve. Like most budding musicians, he spent his time playing along to his favorite bands' records and jamming in garages. His interests were wide, but centered on American post-punk ( Hüsker Dü , Fugazi , The Minutemen , Sonic Youth ) and UK post-punk, goth, and dream pop ( Wire , Cocteau Twins , Gang of Four , Love and Rockets , Bauhaus , New Order , Joy Division ). After high school at

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732-553: A purple burst around the guitar's outline. As observed on some vintage examples, this is due to heavier build up on the body and headstock edges of clear coat and the subsequent yellowing of this clear finish coat over many decades. This differential yellow over blue effect presents as a purple hue over these areas of the body and headstock. When new, these guitars simply did not exhibit this "faux" sunburst effect. Competition Red (essentially Candy Apple Red) with white stripes, and; Competition Orange with red-orange stripes. These were

793-515: A re-introduced Duo-Sonic range, form the 'Offset Series' and are made in Mexico. The bodies are alder while the necks are maple, with maple or rosewood fretboards. The rosewood fretboards were replaced by pau ferro in 2017, in response to new CITES restrictions on the trading of rosewood. Two colors were also introduced: Shell Pink for the Mustang and 2-Color Sunburst for the Mustang 90. In 2018, Fender introduced an American Performer variant of

854-438: A result of its use by a number of alternative rock bands, in particular grunge bands, most notably played by Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain . The Mustang features two single-coil pickups , an unusual pickup switching configuration, and a unique vibrato system . It was originally available in two short scale lengths : 24 inches (609.6 mm) and 22.5 inches (571.5 mm). The Mustang has an offset waist, reminiscent of

915-553: A signature model of the Mustang Bass for Justin Meldal-Johnsen , based on his 1966 daphne blue Mustang Bass. The reliced finish is also offered in black. It has lollipop hipshot tuning machines. Fender announced the American Performer Mustang Bass in 2018, releasing in 2019 with a Mustang split coil pickup and an added Jazz pickup at the bridge, both by Yosemite. This configuration is similar to

976-996: A wide variety of color schemes, many with matching headstocks or in variations never seen in the US. These include competition Mustangs in Vintage White (with dark blue stripe), Capri Orange (with Fiesta Red stripe), and Ocean Turquoise Metallic (with light blue stripe), and non-stripe matching headstock Mustangs in Dakota Red, Fiesta Red and Old Lake Placid Blue. The 2012 Fender Mustang (Kurt Cobain Artist Edition) comes in Fiesta Red, Sonic Blue and Dark Lake Placid Blue with competition stripes. The 2016 Offset Series instruments come in Black, Olive, Olympic White, Torino Red and Silver, with Shell Pink and 2-Color Sunburst being released

1037-535: Is made in Japan and available in only the 24-inch scale. While the original Mustangs used mostly poplar wood for the body (with some rarely documented cases of mahogany ), MG-72 Mustang reissues are made of the similar basswood , and the newer MG-65 reissues revert to the original poplar. The natural-finished MG-77 reissue is made of ash . In 2011, Fender released a new Mustang model in the Pawn Shop series, called

1098-618: Is more similar to the Musicmaster Bass and the Fender Bronco guitar, with a single six-pole Stratocaster pickup under a solid plastic cover. The pickup is placed in the middle Mustang position, rather than in the bridge position of the Bronco guitars. The pickguard is a single piece, and the bridge is a string through style, rather than the Mustang's through body design. The bridge also has two saddles, each one supporting half of

1159-584: The Fender Dynamic Vibrato tailpiece , which together with a floating bridge forms the Mustang vibrato system. The floating bridge concept is common to the Fender floating vibrato developed for the Jazzmaster , but on the Mustang the saddles have only a single string slot, while on other Fender guitars there are multiple slots to allow limited adjustment of the string spacing. The tailpiece

1220-549: The Fender Mustang Bass . A new bass body was designed with a offset body style similar to that of the Mustang guitar, and a short (30-inch) scale was used. In 1969, Fender released the "Competition" Mustang with a "racing stripe" paint job and painted headstocks . Body contours were also added at this time. The Competition Mustangs came in Competition Red, Competition Blue (known as Competition Burgundy in

1281-604: The Jazzmaster , but its overall styling closely followed the existing student models the Musicmaster and Duo-Sonic , the slight waist offset being the main change. After the release of the Mustang, the Musicmaster and Duo-Sonic were redesigned using the Mustang body. The new versions were branded the Musicmaster II and Duo-Sonic II, but the decals were not consistently applied. All three Mustang-bodied models (Mustang, Musicmaster II and Duo-Sonic II) were offered with

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1342-449: The "competition burgundy" itself. Fender currently sells Vintera II Competition Mustangs with the competition burgundy finish as a blue finish with light blue racing stripes. The burgundy has been attributed to misprints, a short-lived burgundy sunburst around the edges of the finish, or discoloration of the competition burgundy from a blue to a burgundy. Fender Japan reissued the Mustang Bass in 1998. During 2013 and 2014, Fender produced

1403-744: The Fender Pawn Shop Mustang Bass, a series with the tagline of "guitars that never were, but should have been". They were made in Mexico, and based on the original "competition" Mustangs of the early 1970s. Available in Candy Apple Red with white stripes, Olympic White with blue stripes, and three color sunburst, their features included an alder body, C-shaped maple neck, 9.5-inch radius rosewood fingerboard with 19 medium jumbo frets, four-ply white pearloid pick-guard, two Jazz Bass control knobs (volume and tone) and string-through-body bridges with four adjustable saddles. Similar to

1464-533: The Fender catalog) and Competition Orange. This paint scheme was heavily influenced by the Shelby Mustang cars of the late 1960s. In 1982, Fender discontinued both the Mustang and the Musicmaster II. These were the last of the offset student models to be made. Fender replaced the Mustang line with the short-lived Fender Bullet line of guitars and basses before relegating production of their student guitars to their Squier division. In 1990, Fender reissued

1525-546: The JMJ Road Worn Mustang Bass. In 2021 he returned to performing in a new role as bassist, musical director, and synth player with St. Vincent , starting off with a performance on Saturday Night Live and the subsequent world tour. In the summer of 2023, he reunited with Beck and several other original band members for a North American tour. Beginning in about 2005, Meldal-Johnsen thought that he may be able to parlay his extensive studio experience as

1586-433: The Mustang Bass and Mustang Guitar were issued with notable competition finishes. These finishes included "racing" stripes over the base coat, with one thick central stripe, and two thin stripes bordering it. Three competition finishes were originally offered, being competition orange (with red stripes), competition red (with white stripes), and competition "burgundy" (actually blue, with lighter blue stripes). In 1970, sunburst

1647-453: The Mustang Bass part of the lineup. The Squier Vintage Modified Mustang Bass was released in July 2011, offered in black, or three-tone sunburst with a maple fretboard, a black pickguard and Stratocaster style volume and tone knobs. This model has since been discontinued. From 2012 to 2015, Squier produced a signature model of the Mustang Bass for Mikey Way of My Chemical Romance , based on

1708-606: The Mustang Special. The model features an offset Mustang body shape and a 24-inch scale neck, but with humbucking pickups and a hard-tail Stratocaster bridge. In 2012, Fender announced a Kurt Cobain Signature Mustang. This model is based on Cobain's modified Mustangs that he played during the In Utero Tour. Instead of having two single-coil pickups, it had a Seymour Duncan JB humbucker in the bridge and

1769-556: The Mustang bass are the string-through body design, and the 7-bolt bridge. The pickguard and control plate are two separate pieces, with the control plate made of metal, similar to the Fender Jazz Bass . The control plate features a tone knob, a volume knob, and an output jack facing out of the guitar. The pickups on the Mustang bass have a split coil design similar to the Precision style pickup, but appear smaller, and have

1830-552: The Mustang with an updated version of the original style vibrato system, Tim Shaw designed Yosemite pickups, and a three way selector switch instead of the original’s on-off and phase switches above the pickups. In 2021, Fender announced the Ben Gibbard Mustang as part of their Artist Signature series, designed to Death Cab for Cutie frontman Gibbard's specifications and inspired by the 1970s Mustangs he uses on tour. The guitar features several unique features including

1891-415: The Mustang, largely as a result of the vintage movement prevalent at the time. Among grunge and punk rock guitarists, Fender's discontinued models (budget models such as the Duo-Sonic and high-end models such as the Jazzmaster and Jaguar ) had become extremely popular. Such models had Fender quality, but were less expensive secondhand than vintage Stratocasters and Telecasters . The reissued Mustang

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1952-669: The PJ models, but features the Mustang pickup and placement rather than the Precision pickup and placement. It was released in four finishes; 3-color sunburst, aubergine, satin surf green, and arctic white. Each finish has a rosewood fingerboard. By 2020, the Fender Player Mustang Bass PJ was being offered, with a similar configuration to the previous Offset series model. It came in sienna sunburst, aged natural, and firemist gold finishes. In 2023, Fender began offering

2013-554: The Sky (2008), and NIN|JA / Wave Goodbye (2009) tours. In 2010, Beck asked Meldal-Johnsen back into the studio to contribute to a large body of work to be divided amongst multiple eventual releases. During the 2010s he also toured with Beck, but mainly focused on producing. In 2017, he was honored by the Fender Musical Instrument Corporation with the worldwide release his own signature instrument,

2074-682: The Squier Mikey Way Mustang Bass, the Pawn Shop Mustang basses featured a single humbucking pickup. The Fender Offset Mustang Bass PJ was released at Summer NAMM, 2016. Unlike the typical Mustang Bass, the Mustang pickup is replaced by a Precision pickup, and a typical Jazz pickup was added in the bridge position. Initially available in olympic white, sonic blue, and torino red. A capri orange finish would be introduced in 2017. As of 2018, they were available with pau ferro fingerboards. In 2017, Fender began offering

2135-689: The Vintera II '70s Competition Mustang Bass, based on the competition orange and competition burgundy (blue) finishes. They feature a Mustang split coil pickup. Set to release for August 2024, the Fender Player II Mustang Bass PJ is in a similar configuration to the Player PJ, but most notably features rosewood instead of pau ferro, and a reshaped neck. It is available in aquatone blue, coral red, hialeah yellow, 3-color sunburst, and polar white. In 2011, Squier reintroduced

2196-525: The age of seventeen, he worked the night shift as a janitor at Cherokee Recording Studios in Hollywood, looking in on late-night sessions, and occasionally invited to witness the proceedings. In 1987 he met Beck , and the two would form a lasting friendship and shared musical interests that would eventually culminate in Justin joining Beck's touring band many years later. From 1988 to 1993, Meldal-Johnsen

2257-456: The custom design which became the Jag-Stang . No previous Fender student guitar had a vibrato system at all, and the subsequent Fender Bronco used a completely different mechanism, without a floating bridge. The Mustang was the last of the Fender floating bridge models to be withdrawn, and the first to be reissued. Mustangs have maintained a popular following in Japan. The Fender Mustang

2318-407: The earlier Fender Mustang basses, and has Mustang pickups and Mustang style volume and tone knobs. The Musicmaster Bass variant was also introduced in 1971, and was originally marketed as a student model. Rather than the split-coil design of the Mustang Bass, it featured a single-coil pickup, which was actually a six-pole Stratocaster guitar pickup under a solid plastic cover. Production ceased around

2379-474: The early Fender Duo-Sonic models. However this usually requires modification of the pickguard and routing of the body. Installing an alternative pickup selector switch on the Mustang, like seen on early Duo-Sonics, can thus free up the two, eight-terminal, pickup switches for other uses. Some players choose and prefer this option. As with many student guitars, aftermarket pickup additions and changes are commonly found in many vintage examples. The Mustang introduced

2440-449: The first three original competition finishes offered. As stated, each were also fitted with a set of “racing stripes” across the arm contour. Competition Mustangs are the only original Fender guitars to be produced with these "racing stripes" which make them very collectible. The competition Mustangs produced from 1969 to mid 1970 came with a matching headstock; from then until the retirement of competition color schemes, an unpainted headstock

2501-497: The following year. Justin Meldal-Johnsen Justin Meldal-Johnsen (born March 26, 1970) is an American musician, record producer, songwriter and musical director . He is best known for his work with artists such as Beck , Nine Inch Nails , M83 , Air , and St. Vincent . Meldal-Johnsen served as the touring bassist, guitarist, and keyboardist for Nine Inch Nails in 2008 and 2009, and

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2562-578: The headstock. It continued to be offered in black or Torino Red. In 2023, Squier replaced the Bullet series with the Sonic series. The Torino Red finish was replaced by Tahitian Coral, and Olympic White was also released. Ultraviolet was released shortly after as an online Fender exclusive with a black pickguard and pickup cover. Guitar Center offered an exclusive California Blue finish, with a black pickguard and pickup cover. Clover shaped tuning machines replaced

2623-420: The manufacture of the Mustang. Body and arm contours were added, and the guitars were now offered in several "Competition Colors” for the first time. These were as follows; Competition Burgundy with light blue stripes. The main body color is similar to Lake Placid Blue, and it remains a mystery as to why Fender called this color Burgundy. Some erroneously claim that guitars finished in this color scheme came with

2684-500: The musical director and assembling the touring band. He was involved in just two performances before re-joining with Beck: The Coachella Festival and a secret show at The Roxy in Hollywood . In 2008, Meldal-Johnsen met with Trent Reznor and was invited to join the Nine Inch Nails touring band as bassist, guitarist, and keyboard player. Meldal-Johnsen spent the majority of 2008 to 2009 in Nine Inch Nails on their Lights in

2745-417: The only available left-handed model finish. White, black, and natural remained, while the walnut finish was replaced by antigua and wine finishes. The Mustang Bass was not listed by Fender in 1982, and stopped production from their Fullerton plant in 1983. Discoloration in older runs of the Mustang Bass have led to "rare" alternate colors such as the "surf green", actually a yellowed competition burgundy, and

2806-678: The option of two necks: a 21 fret, 22.5-inch (or 3/4 scale ) neck, or a 22 fret, 24-inch neck. The 24-inch version was overwhelmingly more popular, and the 22.5-inch scale examples are rare. A 24-inch scale is still relatively short, used in the Fender Jaguar but a full inch and a half shorter than the Stratocaster and three-quarters of an inch shorter than the Gibson Les Paul . The short scale may make playing easier for people with small hands, and also lowers string tension for

2867-458: The phase of the selected pickup, allowing the pickups to be either in or out of phase when in parallel. This phasing option was also unusual for 1964. It also meant that, as both pickups were floating with respect to ground, it was possible to modify the wiring to put the pickups into series either in or out of phase without excessive noise. The unusual switching could also be replaced with a conventional 3 way pickup selector switch, such as found on

2928-469: The previous Y-shaped tuning machines, and a four saddle bridge replaced the earlier two saddle bridge. The black finish also received an Indian Laurel fingerboard with pearloid inlays while the Tahitian Coral and Olympic White finishes retained the maple fingerboard with black dots. In 2024, Fender began offering lime green as a second online exclusive finish. The black finish is the only version with

2989-555: The recording of their 2001 album 10 000 Hz Legend . In 2002, he helped to form the band Ima Robot , and On September 6, 2003, Ima Robot released their first full-length album, the self-titled Ima Robot . The album featured the singles "Dynomite" and "Song #1" (released in the UK only), and the band supported their album by touring worldwide with artists such as Hot Hot Heat , The Von Bondies , Jane's Addiction , The Sounds , and others. In 2006, he briefly joined Gnarls Barkley , acting as

3050-459: The same time as the Mustang Bass in 1981, with the release of the similar Fender Bullet Bass . Squier reissued the Musicmaster Bass briefly during 1997, with a four-pole bass guitar pickup, only to be discontinued after one year of production. In 2003, the Bronco was released under the Affinity line. The Bronco Bass uses the Mustang body, and has a maple neck and fretboard. The rest of the bass

3111-419: The strings. The Affinity Bronco basses were originally offered in black or Torino Red, both of which had white pickguards. In 2006, Squier and Sanrio released a black Affinity Bronco featuring a Bad Badtz-Maru -shaped pickguard, a black pickup cover, and no control plate. The Bronco Bass was moved into Squier's Bullet series at some point with the most notable change being the removal of the Affinity name from

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3172-410: The time of the Mustang's initial release, and thus the Mustang was not eligible to receive these finishes according to Fender. Speculation continues that these paint colors may have very well been the same exact custom paint formulations offered on other eligible Fender guitars, but it is not known with 100% certainty, although it is certainly probable. In 1969, Fender made several significant changes to

3233-535: Was Beck's bassist and musical director from 1996 until mid-2016. In 2021, he began work as a bassist, keyboardist and musical director for St. Vincent, and in 2023 resumed occasional touring with Beck. Other artists Meldal-Johnsen has worked with include Garbage , The Mars Volta , Frank Ocean , Dixie Chicks , Tori Amos , Charlotte Martin , Dido , Charlotte Gainsbourg , Goldfrapp , Blood Orange , Pete Yorn , Turin Brakes , Marianne Faithfull and Ladytron . As

3294-628: Was a member of from 1996 until leaving in May 2016, an announcement which was made during Beck 's set at the Beale Street Music Festival during band introductions in a poignant send-off. He recorded with Beck on albums such as Odelay , Mutations , Midnite Vultures , Sea Change , Guero , The Information , Morning Phase , as well as a great quantity of hitherto unreleased material. In 1998, he joined up with French band Air for their Moon Safari tour, followed by

3355-401: Was added. In 1972, blue, red, and competition orange were no longer offered. By 1974, competition red and burgundy were also no longer offered, replaced by black and walnut. White was replaced by or renamed to olympic white. In 1977, the mustang Bass was offered in blond, natural, and walnut, as well as sunburst, black, and white (no longer olympic). In 1981, the sunburst was tobacco sunburst, and

3416-656: Was in LA alternative rock bands Last Carousel and This Great Religion, with Tony Hoffer . In 1994, he joined the band Pet, which featured singer Lisa Papineau and guitarist Tyler Bates. Also in 1994, Meldal-Johnsen joined Los Angeles alt-noise band Medicine with Brad Laner , and recorded and toured with them until their eventual break-up in 1996. Laner and Meldal-Johnsen would continue to record and work together on projects such as Electric Company as well as Laner's various solo albums in years to come. In early 1996, Beck asked Meldal-Johnsen to join his touring and recording band, which he

3477-679: Was offered in Daphne Blue and Honeyburst. In 2013, Fender introduced the American Special Mustang, the first production Mustang made in the United States since the original run was discontinued. The American Special Mustang is significantly different from vintage models, and eliminated many unconventional features of the original Mustang. It retains the traditional Mustang shape and scale length, but has two Fender Atomic Humbuckers with conventional three-way wiring,

3538-612: Was originally produced in what Fender simply referred to as Blue, White, and Red from 1964–1968. Some now erroneously label these colors as Daphne Blue, Olympic White, and Dakota/Fiesta Red (actually two distinct custom red colors available from Fender) due to their similarity with these custom colors. However, Fender further notes in sales literature of the time that custom colors were not available on Mustangs or other student models of guitar. As such, Daphne Blue, Olympic White, and Dakota or Fiesta Red were never officially offered as Mustang colors. These would have been custom order only colors at

3599-413: Was standard. The matching headstock models seem to be more desirable with collectors than the non matching models. Mid-to-late 1970s US Mustangs were produced in sunburst and natural finishes as well as blonde, walnut, and black (with a standard black pickguard, updated from the earlier white pearloid or tortoise shell) and the unique Antigua burst scheme. Later Japanese reissues have been made available in

3660-415: Was the last original bass designed by Leo Fender before his departure from the company in 1965. Like the early Precision and Jazz basses, the Mustang Bass was originally fitted with string mutes, which were often removed by players. The standard finishes were red, white, and blue. Fender guitars were finished in nitrocellulose lacquer up until 1968, with later fineshes done in a thick polyester. In 1969,

3721-469: Was unique when introduced and remains the most unusual feature of the Mustang; Only the Jag-Stang and Fender Custom (Maverick) share this particular mechanism. While not nearly as popular as the Stratocaster synchronized tremolo , some guitarists prefer it over all other vibrato mechanisms. However, some guitarists also claim that the vibrato is too sensitive. Most notably, Fender incorporated it in

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