NAMM 2025: Fender truly returned to NAMM with a bang this year.
In one of its biggest launches in years, the company unveiled the $599 Standard Series lineup, an Indonesian-built line that aims to bring the concept of an affordable Fender back to the table, and marks a real sea change for the company.
On the complete opposite end of the spectrum, though, were the two lines of electric guitars from the company's always-impressive Custom Shop that made their debut at the show.
One of these was the booze-inspired Cocktail Collection, and the other is the equally awe-inspiring 2025 Prestige Collection.
There are 11 Prestige Collection models in total – half-a-dozen Strats, a pair of Teles, a Meteora, a rare Performer model, and, most notably, a baritone Jazzmaster, the last of which has proven to be a very hot commodity in recent years.
Let's start with that Jazzmaster, then. Built by Custom Shop Masterbuilder Andy Hicks, the Prestige Sub-Sonic Jazzmaster boasts a Black Limba body with a quarter-sawn roasted maple large “C” Sub-Sonic neck with a 9.5” radius fingerboard and an extended 27" scale length.
A Thin Black Burst lacquer finish, period black inlays, and a black headstock with a chrome Fender decal give the guitar its look, while a trio of mini-humbuckers lead the sonic charge.
Another eyebrow-raiser in the collection is the Prestige Carved Top Meteora, built by Custom Shop Masterbuilder Kyle McMillin.
This quirky offset is built with a select mahogany body topped with a bound and carved 5A quilted maple top, and features a 3A flame maple neck with a slab ebony fingerboard. A pair of Sonic Pickups humbuckers and a recessed Floyd Rose Locking Tremolo also come aboard.
The attention of collectors will be piqued by the Prestige Performer, which brings the cult, short-lived, mid-80s Fender model of the same name back to life.
The 21st century version is a painstaking recreation of the original, but for a few modern-minded points – a contoured neck heel, 9.5” to 12” compound fingerboard radius, and Custom Classic Hardtail Strat bridge.
The collection's Telecasters are no less impressive.
The Prestige Custom Tele, built by Custom Shop Masterbuilder Austin MacNutt, features a gorgeous custom Feldthouse Family Woodworks top, and the combination of a Custom Shop Josefina Campos Hand-Wound ’55/’56 Tele bridge pickup with a Curtis Novak mini-humbucker in the neck.
Built by Senior Masterbuilder Dennis Galuska, the Paisley Telecaster XII boasts a custom paisley finish, a quartersawn maple neck with a “Gumby” 12-string headstock, and a Custom Shop Josefina Campos hand-wound ‘67 Tele bridge pickup paired with a Curtis Novak Electric XII neck pickup.
Highlights of the Prestige collection's six Strats include the Prestige '66 Stratocaster, which is powered by a trio of Custom Shop Josefina Campos Hand-Wound ’66 Strat pickups and boasts a stunning Aged Cherry Sunburst finish, and the Contura Stratocaster, which is built with 27 feet of gold wire and 25 diamonds along with various cuts of hand-selected maple.
For those unaware, these one-of-a-kind Fender Custom Shop builds are more for most of us to look at and admire than buy. The Prestige collection guitars range in price from $10,200, for the Prestige '66 Strat, to $50,000, for the aforementioned Contura Strat.
“The Prestige Collection showcases bespoke masterpieces, each one a testament to the individual creativity and technical brilliance of its builder,” a statement from Fender reads.
“With intricate finishes, exotic tonewoods, and immaculate details, these instruments exemplify Fender’s commitment to pushing the limits of guitar innovation.”
For more info, visit the Fender Custom Shop.
