Fender FA-125CE Dreadnought Review
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Fender FA-125CE Dreadnought
Our Rating:
If you’re into guitars, you’ve heard of Fender. It is only one of the two holiest brands in the industry named after Leo Fender – the man credited with the invention of the modern solid-body guitar. After all, everyone and their mother knows about the Strat and Telecaster. However, what about Fender’s acoustic series of guitars? Are they as good as their much more popular electric cousins? Let’s find out by taking a closer look at one of the best entry-level models on the market – the Fender FA-125CE Dreadnought.
Fender FA-125CE Dreadnought Review
Design
Acoustic guitars come in a variety of shapes and forms. However, there isn’t a body style more popular these days than the famous Dreadnought. Ever since Martin Guitars came up with this body style back at the turn of the century, it has taken over from the more hourglass-shaped body styles that were standard until then.
What makes Dreadnoughts so good? A few things, but its ability to combine volume with great sound quality is the most notable. By expanding the waist and almost negating the drastic difference between the lower and upper bout, Martin has managed to squeeze more volume and better projection from smaller guitars.
Fender’s FA-125CE brings those same properties and more. Features a slightly modified Dreadnought body in a sense that it comes with a cutaway.
Aside from the body, you’re also getting that traditional Fender C shaped neck. These are known for their comfortable contour that isn’t too fast, but it allows you to play the guitar effortlessly for longer periods without experiencing fatigue.
This particular model comes in a nice Sunburst finish, although other options are available. You can choose a black, mahogany or natural finish as well.
Materials
Half of any acoustic guitar’s tone can be attributed to the tonewood used to build it. Fender has seemingly dropped the ball here a little. They went with laminate spruce top paired with basswood back and sides.
While the use of laminated wood isn’t exactly unheard of in this price range, the general rule of thumb is that you should at least get a solid top if nothing else. Laminate tonewood aside, some might also wonder just how well does basswood perform in this case? After all, basswood is often used to build cheaper solid body electrics. Surprisingly, the overall sound is quite interesting but more on that later.
As we move towards the neck, we see a nato piece with a walnut fingerboard. Generally speaking, it’s a solid neck that brings that standard 25.3” scale.
Hardware
By now you have probably figured out that this is an acoustic-electric guitar. Whether it was the preamp unit itself or the CE designation in its name that gave it away, this guitar packs a decent punch. Fender went with a Fishman unit that is minimalist in nature but gets the job done just fine.
As far as its features and controls go, you are looking at a dual-band EQ with bass and treble controls, volume control and a built-in tuner setup. What does this mean in case you want to do guitar-side sound tuning? It means that you won’t have control over that mid-range where this guitar has a lot to offer. Again, this is not a deal-breaker by any means, rather a consideration.
The rest of the hardware share a similar cost-effective nature across the board. The nut and saddle are both made of some sort of plastic compound that isn’t exactly Tusq, but it isn’t the cheapest polymer either. Bridge, just like the rest of the wood on this guitar, is a laminate piece.
Lastly, we reach the tuners. Fender went with a set of sealed die-cast machines they use on many of their guitars. Expectedly, these are nowhere near their famous F tuners, but they hold their own and more importantly hold that key fairly well.
Sound
At the end of the day, all of the hardware and design compromises don’t mean much unless this guitar sounds as good as it should sound at this price. The first thing we’ve noticed is the projection. FA-125CE does a good job at rendering your notes clearly over distance. This is also where the first bad boy surprised us the most. Laminate woods, especially ones as soft as basswood, don’t have a reputation of sounding too sharp. As it turns out, that’s not quite the case with this Fender. Sure, you will still hear that softer, rounded off tone of softwood and laminates, but nowhere nearly enough for you to give it a second thought. The guitar simply performs.
As far as the preamp goes, things are decent. The pickup and preamp combo do this guitar justice in terms of rendering its acoustics on a PA or a guitar amp. You may not have plenty of options in terms of forming the sound on the preamp itself, but that is nothing a mixer or whatever you’re plugging the guitar into can’t solve.
The thing we found to be most important about this Fender’s performance is the bang for the buck value it brings to the table. There are better guitars in this segment at a similar price point, but this one is more than decent. You are definitely getting your money’s worth if you decide to invest in a FA-125CE.
Is Fender FA-125CE Dreadnought Good?
Who is this guitar for? This is still very much a beginner guitar through and through. It is priced just right where you’re getting a decent sound and advanced features like the built-in preamp. However, if you are an intermediate player, you might find this Fender to contain too many compromises. It will still be a solid workhorse, but you will notice its shortcomings of which there are only a few.
Is it worth getting? Absolutely. If you’re looking for a good beginner model that comes with a few interesting accessories to get you started, FA-125CE is actually one of the better deals on the market right now.
Fender FA-125CE Dreadnought
I think this guitar can match almost any player, as long as the action is properly set up and choose the right strings. In my case, I like my 125CE with low action and I chose Elixir 0.010 for strings. The result is awesome. The sound is crisp and it´s very comfortable to play.
The article is very good. Keep up the good work.