Designed to look like miniature version of the classic amplifiers that have made the company legendary among electric guitarists and bassists for over 50 years, the different models each appeal to a different niche, with the larger Monterey designed for those who are looking to fill a large room with sound, and the Newport offering an easily portable solution for those who want to take their tunes anywhere.
The new audio devices look just like miniature guitar amps, right down to the Fender logo on each speaker grille. Other amp-inspired tidbits include volume, treble, and bass adjustment nobs on the top, as well as cool blue LED lights to let you know when they are on. Even the power switches look like they belong on a vintage tube amp.
The smaller Newport gets two woofers and a tweeter with a combined 30-watts of power, and features a 3.5mm input and USB port to charge devices — Fender claims it should be able to play back your tunes for up to 12 hours on a single charge.
The Fender Monterey offers a robust 120 watts of sound through its two-woofer, two-tweeter design, and offers both a 3.5mm input and RCA input for those who wish to connect a turntable directly. It also features a shape adjustment switch, which allows listeners to tailor the overall bass response of the device.
Though they are most known for their products on the music-making side of things, a leap into the home audio world isn’t surprising for the company, and though we haven’t yet heard either of the company’s new Bluetooth speakers, we have a feeling they’ll sound pretty good; guitar amplifier competitor Marshall has had a good amount of success in the home audio space. We loved the time we spent with the Marshall Mid headphones, and also liked the amp-inspired Marshall Stanmore Bluetooth speaker. Given Fender’s lengthy history making excellent products — Fender made us an awesome custom bass just last year — we have no reason to believe their home audio devices won’t also be great.
The Fender Newport runs $200, and the Fender Monterey runs $350. Both speakers can be purchased from Fender’s website.
