Squier is a second-line brand of the Fender Musical Instruments Company, as Epiphone is to Gibson. It produces models mostly derived from the Fender line of products but at lower prices. Squier guitars are now also commonly sold in stores that do not specialise in musical instruments. In recent years Squier guitars are considered by many experienced players to have improved and many models being of exceptional quality for their price.
Brief Brand History
Fender (actually CBS Musical Instruments at the time) acquired the name Squier in the 1960s when it bought a USA based string making firm. The name lay dormant for many years.
In the early 1980s several events were pushing Fender to need a second-line brand. Firstly CBS had sold out to new management however the factories in California were not included meaning there would be a drop in production as the new manufacturing plants came on stream. Secondly there was a demand for a lower priced range that couldn't be manufactured in the USA at a low enough cost and thirdly copyist companies like Tokai Guitars were producing excellent lower cost instruments that were eroding the Fender brands share esp. in Europe.
The Squier name was therefore resurected in the early 1980s to distinquish a series of classic reproductions see #Initial Squier JV series. These were slavish reproduction of 1950s and 1960s version of the classic Fender models. Soon a second series (SQ - so called because of the prefix to the serial number) followed and these were generally reproductions of 1970s models the main difference being the move to all Japanese parts where as the original JV series used USA manufactured pickups.
Over time the brand became the entry level/budget brand and the attention to reproduction of classic designs or yesteryear was dropped. Production has moved around the Far East. Some #Original Models have found their way into the Squier brand along with defunct Fender models like the Esprit and previously old Guild models have also been available under the Squier brand.
Initial Squier JV series
When initially launched in Europe in the early 1980s the Squier range offered classic reproductions of Fender's most popular models. Stratocaster ('57 and '62 models), Precision Bass ('57 and '62), Telecaster ('52) and Jazz Bass ('62). These were made in the Fujigen factory in Japan (same as Ibanez at the time) using the original US factory blueprints. These early Squiers are often refered to as JV Squiers due to those two letters being the prefix on the serial number stamped on the neck plate. They stand for Japanese Vintage. Initial shipments to Europe had Fender in large script on the headstock with a small decal indicting Squier Series but quickly this gave way to a large Squier logo with a small by Fender decal. These early JVs are highly regarded as extremely accurate reproductions of the classic models and good examples, now the same age as the models they were copying in the early 80s, are highly sought by collectors especially in Europe.
Original Models
There have been a few Squier models that have been distinct enough in specification from standard Fender models to be notable, such as the Super-Sonic, the Squier '51 (a design that hybridizes elements of the Stratocaster, Telecaster, and 1951 Fender Precision Bass), and the Jagmaster (partially derived from the Fender Jazzmaster).
There have however been a number of packaging and finish options offered by Squier that might not fit the original brand image of Fender, for example, the Hello Kitty Stratocaster with pink finish and fingerboard inlays and the Hello Kitty logo, featured in Newsweek magazine.
Current models
As of 2005, Fender seems to be positioning Squier as both a budget brand (with the Bullet, Affinity and Standard series of guitars and basses) and an alternate moniker, with higher quality, more distinct, and more expensive models in the Squier lineup that have no parallels on the Fender side of the company.
Original models- Squier Bullet (original, early-mid '80s--not the more recent Strat-based budget guitar nor the oddball Fender-branded guitar)
- Squier '51
- Super-Sonic
- Jagmaster
- Venus
- Venus XII
- M-80
- P BassŪ Special V
Electric Guitars
Affinity Series- Fat Strat (Stratocaster with a Humbucker in the bridge position)
- Hello Kitty Stratocaster
- Squier Strat (Rosewood/maple)
- Squier Tele
- Squier Mini
Deluxe Series- Satin Trans Fat Straocaster HH/HSS
- Satin Trans Telecaster
Obey Graphics Series- OBEY Graphic Stratocaster HSS Collage/Dissent
- OBEY Graphic Telecaster HSS Collage/Dissent
Standard Series- Standard Stratocaster
- Standard Telecaster
- Deluxe Stratocaster FMT
California Series- California Series Stratocaster
- California Series Telecaster
- California Series Fat Strat
External linksOriginally published on Wikipedia
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