Fender Toronado

This is One hell of an Axe. I knew Right away when I touched it, that it was mine, and it was meant for me (I named it Jessie). It speaks, sings, and rocks to me. And I'm glad that I bought it. It's A 2001 Mexican Deluxe Edition With Double Humbuckers. (Fender Atomics)-Passive. It has A black finish with a tortise shell Pickguard,(I wish to change to pearl white). It looks liuke a jaguar but it has a ve different unique body style. The tuners that are placed on it are custom lock ins. I don't know how they got there. The neck is fine, Can't complain, I wish it was smoother, however. It has standard dot inlays.

THe sound is amazing and very thick and bluesy. bluesiest and clearest guitar I've ever played. However It does not scream well for metal. I would never replace the pickups, i would Just get a Second Axe. The sound is too thick to play Metal, But some metal sounds can creep through, and still sounds good with distortion. However, I do get heavy feedback when close to the amp because of how large the guitar is, and however the elecronics are made. Overall The guitar has a good vaiety of Sound Though.

When I bought it, The guitar needed serious work on the action. It took me $100 Bucks to get everything adjusted. For whatever reason, my guitar will stay perfectly in tune for literally weeks on end. Its sick! As far as looks, I love this thing, I'm never selling it. There's a ding on the side of it, But I guess It is what it is.

THe Guitar is a tank. Its really Heavy and made with a ****-load of wood. I've never had any ploblems with it electronicalls. It's built to last. It's reliable as Hell.

???

I'm Going to be 18, and I've been Playing for 3 Years now. I'm actually a drummer, playing for 8 Years now. I'd rather play this than any other fender guitar. It deffinately sounds like a fender, and its one of the only ones with Humbuckers. If it were stolen I would have to get a new one. Its my best Friend.

I managed to score myself this Toronado GT HH for an absolute steal thanks to someone listing it wrong on Ebay ("Fender Guitar: Don't know what it is!"). It's Korean built with an alder body, maple bolt on neck and a rosewood fretboard (24.75" scale length). The real guts of the guitar are the Seymour Duncan humbuckers (a '59 at the neck and Pearly Gates at the bridge) which are independently controlled by 2 tone and 2 volumne knobs as well as a three way selector switch. In terms of the other harware, it has an Adjust-o-Matic bridge with an anchored tailpiece, a plastic nut and tuners which I'm affraid I don't know the providence of. The main point for me was the finish with the two racing stripes on blue with matching headstock. This won't be to everyone's tastes but to me it just screamed 'EGO GUITAR!' and I mean that in a good way. This thing should have carburetors rather than pick-ups. All in all, there's plenty to be getting on with this guitar and it covers all the bases I need well.

My first impression of this guitar was that it sounds MASSIVE. I play in a band that do Dillinger Four/NOFX type punk and to be honest, it just sounds too big for that sort of think and the trebble response could use a bit more omph. However, I also like to dabble in some Fu Manchu-esque Stoner Rock and in this line of work, it truely excels. The Duncans provide a red-blooded, gutsy sound ideally suited to some full-fat drop-D riffs. I still need to work on my amp settings (I play it through a Laney Linebacker 100R) to get the bass right, but it shows promise on the Stoner front. As for the punk rock end of things, I'll stick with my P90 Gordon Smith.

Can't comment on factory set-up and finish because I got it second hand and I get the impression that it was somewhat unloved by it's previous owner. Upon getting it, I had it properly set up and the action is pretty good. There's still a little buzz on the A strig at second fret, but that's something I can work out in time. Personally, I prefer a lower profile neck but I've played guitars that cost way more than this that don't feel as nice and I think that overall it's a solid effort.

It's a nice chunky slab of guitar that feels substantial without being overly heavy. The finish is still retina-burn bright and the tuners are great for at keeping it, well, in tune. The strap buttons are nice and big, but I still stick Grolsh bottle seals on them just to be on the safe side. At the moment, I'm not gigging with it, but if I did, I would be confident that it wouldn't give out on me.

No experience in this department.

I guess my favourite thing about this guitar is the way its looks match with its sound. Visually, this axe is a drag racer...masses of power, masses of vanity and a god given mandate to kick ass. The Duncans certainly make it come good on the promise of these expectations, providing a ton of horse power and throaty fury. Is it the most versatile guitar? No. If you want something that you can use in a bunch of different bands then I'd say go for something more generic. Is it the most refined guitar? Certainly not. My other axe is a Gordon Smith and I much prefer the feel of that. However, there's not much to complain about either as the overal feel of it comes across as solid and trustworthy. Would I buy this guitar if I didn't like racing stripes and stoner rock? Probably not. It's not bad but it's not stella and you could probably find something a little more refined for your money. However, if you into balls-out, does-what-it-says-on-the-tin road monster thats heading west at Mach 3, then this is a great guitar. Some people will say that it looks naff and that it's just too brash, but if your not affraid of ten tons of awesome then it's well worth a go.

I have an early 1998 Sunburst Model with a very dark tortoiseshell pickguard. Of course the classic Gibson 24 3/4" scale length that in all honesty is alot closer to 24.5". Body is standard Alder, while controls are decidedly Gibson-like (if you don't count a deluxe telecaster), upper bout 3 way switch with individual volume and tone controls with telecaster style knurled knobs. The maple neck with rosewood fretboard is one of the meatiest necks I've felt on a Fender. It fills the hand more like a Les Paul then the often thinner Fender necks. Some may not like it but to me it fits the more rock vibe of the Toronado.

Overall an 8 because the pickups could've been coiltapped, but this guitar doesn't really need it, for it is versatile enough without it.

I play mostly blues rock, and this thing is a beauty for my style. The Fender Atomic II humbuckers are not super high gain pickups, but instead are very dynamic and musical at low and midrange gain levels. I'm currently using a Line 6 Spider II 75 watt because I could only take one amp to college with me and I decided on versatility, but through my Peavey Classic 30 at home it sounds glorious. With the Spider, the guitar needs some EQ adjusting to get really dialed in but once you have it there you can forget about it. The two humbuckers have very distinct voices: the neck pickup is very flutey and rich sounding while the bridge pickup can twang with the best if you let it. Really, for being limited to 3 pickup combinations this guitar can play anything from ballsy country twang to hard rock and even a little bit of metal.

A+ job Fender on the Atomic II humbuckers. While not a typical Fender tone, they are unique enough to stand out while still delivering classic tones.

I got this baby at a Pawn shop nearly 8 years after it was made and it was honestly in mint condition. Besides some minor intonation issues, the thing was playable right off the wall. My only gripe is that the knobs are a tab bit scratchy, but I'm planning on swapping these out for some CTS pots in the future, so I have no beef with them. Action is low with a little buzz played unplugged but none through an amp. In my mind, as long as the audience can't hear the buzz it might as well not be there.

For a pawnshop guitar, this thing had a great setup and was very playable right off the wall

This axe is very gig worthy and it honestly has required almost no maintenance. Besides a light cleaning with pot cleaner and the standard rubdown of lemon oil on the fingerboard there have been no issues at all. The tuning is solid and all the hardware shows almost no signs of aging. The finish on this guitar is fairly thick, so I'm not so sure it couldn't survive some pretty insane guitar torture. I could gig this thing without a backup for sure.

This thing is rock solid. 10s

I emailed Fender my serial # to get some more info on the guitar and I literally had the info within 3 hours. Very informative records. Other than that I haven't had to deal with Fender.

I've been playing casually for about 8 years now, and have been getting fairly serious while in college. I only had the space to take with me the Toronado and an awesome Airline acoustic I scored at a garage sale. The Fender sounds great and definitely pisses off the neighbors, but they all think it sounds awesome. I wish I could replace it by just buying another one but it's getting tougher to find the older models without the stupid stripes. I would definitely want another of the original models if I had to replace it.

If you are looking for a classic humbucker sound from a Fender feeling guitar, I think the Toronado is a great choice. The guitar isn't made for any super high gain metal, but for general rock it sounds great.

Great guitar Fender!

98 Black with a red tortoise shell pickguard..Found it in a pawnshop miracle. It still had the sticker on the neck plate..Not a scratch on the beauty.

I play rock, blues, grunge..just about everything. I feel as if the toronado was made for me. I've always wanted a fender with humbuckers. The sound great to btw.

The finish is flawless and it's a decade. Everything is perfect with it.

I would def trust this guitar without a backup.

I've been playing for 2 years. If someone stole this guitar I would hunt them down!!! lol

THe price tag said 750, but ended up just trading the guy lots of stuff, including a mexi strat.

mine is an H/H with three way toggle and independent volume and tone. pickups are actually cool, Fender humbuckers. the height adjustment screws also have a tilt screw so you can have one side higher than the other. rosewood neck. kluson tuners- hated them at first, now that i know how to use them they are amazing, i can take strings off and put them back on with no kinks. three way switch is cool, nothing special anout this one, its just awesome to turn off one pickup, play a chord and flicker between the pickups. awesome effect.

i play a mix of blues, funk, ska, goth, dream pop, classic rock, and worship songs and this thing works pretty good most of the time. my current favorite guitar. i put push/pull coil taps for more tones. humbuckers have good tone NOT HIGH GAIN, which is better in my opinion, and when split sounds like early zeppelin when jimmy used that psychodelic tele. i removed the tone knobs for brighter humbucker tone. sometimes im irritated with one tone or the other, but thats just my tastes changing.

i bought mine for 125 at a pawn shop so it was beat-up to perfection. actions fine i lowered it, took like two minutes. the neck's straight.
some stuff is bent and tweeked. better than new in my opinion. banana yellow with paint coming off due to playing with a drumstick. looks great!

pretty reliable sound-wise. i hope the finnish will wear off, i dont want a guitar that is to pretty to use. this things a workhorse. if it breaks i'll love it more, adds character and authentic-ness.

ive been playing six years, i own fifteen guitars- american tele, squire tele, bc rich, strats lots of them, ibanez talman, two acustics- this ones my favorite right now. i wish they still made them cause my pick guard is warped or something, buts it gets the job done. its wired almost like jimmy pages les paul, but i like it better cause im not affraid to leave it in my car on a hot/cold day. it sounds great and is much more punk rock, not show-ee. people say they really like. cute guitar center girl likes it!

This is a Toronado HH, made in Korea.
Kind of looks like Starsky and Hutch's Gran Torino....slight metallic finish,beautiful red with white go faster stripe set.

I bought it used, but you can't tell it's anything but brand new....finish is pristine, and gorgeous. It looks about three feet deep. Jaguar body style, no tremolo, dual HB Seymour Duncans all the way around, '59s on the neck, Pearly Gates on the bridge, solid body, with really strong strap locks, and beautiful satin neck. 6 on one head, with inline keys, and 2 string trusses...

I'm a good rhythm player, but I had a neighbour kid come over to let me know what he thought...He was doing Steve Vai leads, AC/DC, blues, jazz, and letting me know as he was changing the sounds...this sounds like a Tele, this sounds like my strat.....I almost had to beat him up to get it back.....it sounded amazing.....

LIKES: looks, satin neck plays really well, smooth and fast, large frets give you lots of room for bending.....

DISLIKES: hard to say, haven't really found anything I don't like yet....

Action was a little high, and the '59 SDs were really low....intonation was off on 4 strings....and the output jack nut was loose, but I did buy it used....and it only took a few minutes to get everything just right again. Now I like it (dare I say) better than the USA strat my neighbour has.....I still love my LP better, but this is a sweet axe, with a thousand voices.....

This thing is rock solid....tune stays forever....I only check it for posterity...the hardware is strong, and well seated. everything feels solid, and I've heard even when these things drop, they hold up very well...sorry, but I'm not ready to test THAT theory.

the strap buttons feel like you could swing from them......not going to try that one, either, though.....

Haven't needed any, but their web page has a lot of neat stuff, like guitar and bass lessons, as well as interactive info on a lot of their products.

I've been seriously playing guitar for 9 years, and I've played everything from vintage hollow bodies to Les Paul to this toronado. I think that this guitar is better than the USA strats and teles, because of the pickups and the jaguar body style, this is far more versatile....

I still like my Les Paul better, but this is the second favourite in my arsenal.

I kind of like Floyd Rose, I might like it with one, but I can certainly live with it exactly as it is.

If you get a chance to play one, take it....you will be really happy you did.

I'll start with saying that this is all subjective. The guitar itself is beautiful... I have the dark metallic blue 2006 model (the final year it was made), the blue is so dark that it passes for black when most people see it. It feels like a Fender while sounding like a Gretsch, mainly due to the "Duncan-designed" humbucking pickups (which are open-coil, no chrome covers).

Thin Rosewood fretboard (easy to grip, great feel), amazing tuning machines (solid, never goes out of tune). Mine has two tone pods and two volume knobs (neck and bridge).

If you like a plain, yet solid and clean looking guitar with a classic body design, then this is your axe... good luck finding one! As of January 2007, all Toronado variants had been discontinued by Fender.

I'm using an all-tube amp... AS ANYONE SHOULD!

I'm using a "Pevey Classic 50 2/12 combo" (great amp by the way). The clean tone is amazing, it is very warm. You will NOT get your normal Fender twang out of these pickups, so if that's what you want stick to the Strat models.

The dirty tone is out of this world, again this is subjective and very dependent upon your amp. I'd say that you can probably achieve just about any dirty tone you want with the right amp and patience.

Here is where I would give this guitar its only negative rating... I paid nearly $700 for my guitar and was considering this a higher-end model due to the fact it was part of the "Deluxe Series". When my guitar arrived it was like it was halfway put together... The toggle switch run horizontally, instead of vertical and it was loose and would stick. The knobs weren't tightened at all. The bridge was high and had never been adjusted for intonation... this meant the guitar had terrible action. They did an all around piss-poor job of assembling this "Deluxe Series" guitar.

Expect to spend around $100 for a professional setup and intonation after you get this guitar...

This guitar will play like butter once you've had it setup professionally to your personal liking, as most guitars will. You should always plan on having your guitar maintained properly anyways.

If you played my Toronado you'd probably fall in love with it because of the care I have put into it personally... If you played one right out of the box, well then you'd probably send it back.

This guitar was made to be used in a live atmosphere. I use strap-locks so I've never dropped mine, but I've ran into things many times (ie:the bass player, the drum symbols, mic stands, etc..).

As previously stated, you want to have setup and intonation done by a professional, they'll tighten up all your pods, toggles, adjust your neck, action, bridge etc... It amazing how solid your guitar will feel and sound.

I believe the body is made from "Alder", which is a pretty dense hard wood. The neck is your typical maple neck with a rosewood fretboard. It's tougher than a strat, based on materials.

I've never really had to exercise one of my warranties before, so I'm not familiar enough with the experience. As far as dealing with the company, it's Fender, one of the largest guitar manufacturers in the world.

Overall the rating is an 8. I would have given it a 10 had it been setup better in the factory, but it wasn't... My guitar is a great guitar mainly because of the maintenance I've put into it myself.

The knobs on this guitar stink. I could never completely turn it off. The tone stinks too.

I'm not a snob but I have a sweet les paul, 80s american strat and a american deluxe tele. I thought this guitar would complement the collection. Nope. The tone is so flat. It offers me nothing. I truly love fenders but this was a flop. Next guitar will be the squier with P90s

The finish and color on the body was awesome. Gorgeous orange. The action was really nothing great. I expected more from fender.

I sent mine back. Heh, actually returned a guitar. Isn't that crazy? It was that bad.

No idea but I imagine its outsourced to India

I've played off and on for about 25 yrs. I'm not that awesome but I enjoy it. I really thought this would be worth the price. Nope. Buy a strat. If you have a strat, buy a tele or les paul. Then the other. Check out the squiers. I have the fretless J bass and it is awesome. Feels like a fender . . . unlike the toronado.

It has the features I expect it to have. I have the mex made version. Orange with a pearl pickgaurd. Atomic Pickups. Great finish on everything.

Here's the big deal, and I've read a couple of other reviews about this problem as well. It's not really a big problem, but when I buy a guitar I want it to sound good. At low volumes it was great, when the volume is cranked with distortion it gave out a microphonic pitch. I read one review where someonw had placed double sided mounting tape in between the pickups and the pickup case and that stopped thier problem. I tried that and it didn't work. So I just ended up removing the pickup casings all together, and it revield two zebra humbuckers. It looks cooler without the casings on them in my openion and it got rid of the unwanted pitch. After that it's great. It has a suprisingly dark tone for the guitar it is. I love it now that the problem has been taken care of. I play for a alternative pop band, and I do studio, garage projects as well, this guitar will fit with all of those. I got it mainly for stage work, but I'll use it in the studio when the time comes.

I get my guitars set up by the same cat that I've used for years. I never go with factory settings. The finish is great, not a flaw. I've read some people have had tuning problems, but I have not. Stays intune like a champ, even if I bang it around a little.

This is my main guitar live. It's built to be on the stage which is why I got it in the first place. The hardware seems like it will last, but I take good care of my gear. I always replace my strap buttons with a strap lock system regaurdless of the guitar. I have gigged with it, and I do have a back up. I haven't needed it so far, but I was in the boyscouts so I follow the "always be prepared" bit.

Never delt with them.

I've been playing for 14 years. This is my seventh guitar. I know what I like, and I know what to look for. I got this used at a pawn shop, and it's exactly what I was looking for. Other than the microphonic issue, I've been very pleased with it. Very comfortable, plays great, and there's a dark sound that's in this mellow looking guitar that I love. Everything else was perfect on it. My current stage set up is the Toronado, line 6 pod xt live-tube screamer, to peavey classic 50 4x10 combo. I get a variety of sounds out of it which is what I require out of all of my gear. I picked this up because I needed a solid stage guitar, and it looks pretty killer as well, you could get laid just standing next to it.

Toronado GT HH (red w/ white stripe) made in Korea. Seymour Duncan pickups, '59 in the neck & pearly gates plus in the bridge. Mahogony body, maple neck, rosewood fretboard. 3-way switch, 2vol, 2tone knobs. How do you rate features? Its got what its intended to have. I'll give it a 10 because there's nothing missing?!?!

Its been hard to put this guitar down. It just plays great, granted the shop where I bought it does a pro setup to your specs on every guitar sold, so it was already setup to my satisfaction. The pickups sound marvelous. I have had zero tuning issues with mine. The only problem I've had are scratchy tone pots(both of 'em), but I haven't bothered to open it up to try and clean them or replace them. I've run this guitar into a Vox ad50vt hybrid modeler, a 10watt Vox practice amp, and straight from a Korg ToneWorks multi-pedal into a PA, and it has been a pleasure in every instance. I love my tone with this guitar.

No flaws on this guitar. Everything was sound from day one.

This guitar just feels substantial. I don't mean heavy, don't get me wrong. It just feels like you could drop it a few times and it would still be just as strong(although I haven't dropped it...yet). A solidly built guitar.

The shop where I bought it (Morrison Brothers in Jackson, MS) handles all warranty repair work in-house, and they are excellent. I will probably never have to deal directly with Fender on this.

I've been playing for about 15 years, but only got sucked into the world of electric guitar about 3 years ago. I am meticulous about trying out gear and comparing locally before I buy. I have a regular weekly gig and am too poor to allow for my gear to fail on me(although I do have back-ups), so I make sure that what I buy will last. This guitar is exactly that, a piece of gear that will last. It doesn't get much better at this price.

I just wanted to add that after comparing it to my band mate's les paul, the sound is actually quite different. The Les Paul has a thick, rich, warm tone, while the Toronado has a bright, punchy, mid-cutting tone. Both guitars have equally interesting sounds, it just depends on what you go for.

Also this guitar has remained faithful to me for quite some time. I beat the s*** out of it (and i mean beat the s*** out of it...i'm glad i didn't crack the neck in two) the other night doing a wild solo and the thing had some tuning issues for a little bit but it straightened right out. I thought I had ruined it but it turned out that we were just being stupid and couldn't tune it by ear since our ears were bleeding that night anyways.

2005 Fender Toronado GT HH, made in Korea. 22 frets, 24.75" scale, solid top, 2 volume/2 tone knobs. Double Seymour Duncan humbuckers. Mahogany body, polyurethane finish, bronze color with black racing stripe. Hardtail Gibson-style bridge, generic no-name tuners. No accessories.

Sound was great, for the first ten minutes, until it went out of tune and would not take a re-tune. Several sets of strings broken trying to get them to re-tune properly.

If it had stayed in tune, I'd give the sound a 10. Fat, crunchy, awesome sound even without distortion.

Action and set-up sucked. For some reason the bridge was not aligned well with the body, the tuners wouldn't hold a tune, the pick-up selector switch cover came broken (this was a brand-new guitar) and the finish at the truss rod adjustment was already peeling.

Pickups were about the only decent thing.

Finish was decent, strap buttons were solid, I would not use this without a backup due to the tuning issues and breaking strings.

Sent it back immediately to Samash.com under their 45-day return policy. We'll see if they credit me in full or if they deduct for the one broken string that would NOT go into tune despite using three different sets of strings to try to make it work.

What a piece of crap. Makes my Mexican Standard Fat Strat look like a vintage '60s collectible worth thousands. I was really excited for this guitar and when I got it, so much about it was wrong. I'm frustrated by it, it's my second guitar but I was going to make it my primary. Now I'm thinking maybe of just quitting guitar entirely, it has me so mad.

Mine is one of the new GT HH range, with the go faster 'Starsky & Hutch' black stripe across the front. Pretty garish really, especially as it's green, but immaculately finished.

Made in Korea to a very high standard, with real twin Seymour Duncan humbuckers, Gibson style tune-o-matic bridge and heavy high chromed tail stop. It's a mahogany body, bolted maple neck & rosewood fingerboard with 22 medium frets. Tuners are Fender's own - same as on my classic 60s strat.

Bought new at a very heavily discounted price (the reason I bought it if honest) with no extras/gig bag etc. Played fine out of the shop, but I paid #40 for a pro set up - which was worth every penny.

Simply put, the guitar is amazing. Plays like dream due to the effortless modern Strat C section neck and has a thick creamy sound reminiscent of a Les Paul, but still with a Fender edge. The Seymour Duncans are pretty poky, I don't know what model, but I'm guessing they're ceramic rather than alnico. I can easily overlook it's dodgy hot rod looks when it's plugged into my Fender Blues Jnr Amp and a basic overdrive pedal. Amazingly it also has a nice snappy clean sound, which I would never have expected from ceramic p/ups.

It was the best bargain ever for me. Along with my Strat, I have every conceivable blues/classic rock sound covered. Hell, the Torrie will even do metal if needed.

Buy one even if you don't need it - these are superb guitars. Their non American build heritage ceases to be a factor the moment you play the first note

Suits my modified blues stylings just fine..

Used mainly with Fender BJ amp & Digitech/Boss overdrives.

Not at all noisy on any setting.

Acoustically plyed the gtr is mellow and very middly. Plugged in, the sound is huge & very woody. Plenty of treble available, but it's hard to make it sound shrill in any way.

Clean construction, superbly finished. Hardware was immaculate, just a small missing length of braid around the LHS of the neck p/up. The set up was good basic rather than exceptional - intonation fine, p/ups well balanced, but a few rough fret edges on the unbound neck. Frets themselves well fitted and polished.

Don't expect any problems in this are after playing a few gigs. Whilst it's not especially heavy, it has a mass and solidity that inspire confidence. No guitar is bomb proof, but this feels close to it - makes my strats feel almost insubstantial though of course they're not..

Never had to deal with Fender and don't expect to.

Played guitar for 36 years, but only moved seriously to electric in the last two. Played a lot of elec guitars though.

I'd happily replace it with another guitar from the Fender GT Toronado HH range.

Fender MIM Toronado. Mine is from 1998. Cream color, tortoiseshell pickguard, rosewood fretboard, two humbuckers and a selector switch.


Not too few, not too many. Enough features to get the job done. Looks beautiful, plays flawlessly. Gets a 10.

Sounds like a Les Paul but with a Fender feel. If you like the sound of thick, buttery, hot humbuckers but love the feel of a genuine fender, this guitar is for you. No doubt.

If you compared the two side by side, the Les Paul MIGHT sound just a tad bit warmer or richer, but honestly there's not that much difference. The tonal characteristics and variety from each pickup setting is breathtaking. The neck pickup is bluesy (won't get you a 335 tone, but it has its own sound), and the bridge pickup bites and snarles like you wouldn't believe. Halfway in between lies a setting that sounds remarkably like a fat strat.

Excellent sound, excellent features.

Excellent feel, and solid to boot. It's probably not the nicest guitar I've ever played in my life, but then again the nicer guitars have been at least a few hundred and/or thousand dollars more. For the price I got it at (roughly $400) this guitar is a knockout.

Satin-smooth neck and a gliding rosewood fretboard. Tuners are vintage deluxe tuners and they are SOLID. The instrument is very toneful and has a bit of a resonant quality to it. I can't really say anything negative about this instrument! The G string has a tough time once in awhile, but that's a rare occasion and something I can live with.

Tough as nails. Been to practices, gigs, and back. Still holds up like the day I brought her home!

Excellent guitar. I have not played the new ones but I am guessing they are somewhat similar. If you can get your hands on an older model, DO IT!!! They are excellent guitars for the money, especially the prices they go for used.

Beautiful, chiming, rich sound and a feel that goes on for days. Terrific axe! Recommended!

Pretty well covered. Mine is a Mexican one from a few years back. Black with the tortoise shell. H/H with separate vol & tone for each pick-up, pretty much a les paul set-up with the toggle. Atomic Humbuckers. Fixed bridge. I give it a ten because of the fixed bridge and the separate controls for the pick-ups. I don't really know what else you would want.

Toronado=> Wah =>DS-1 Keeley =>TS9dx=>'75 Bassman 10 silverface 4x10 combo

The sound of this thing is great. It is pretty unique. The guy at the music store told me it was a "Fender Les Paul" and I've heard it described that way before. I have to say it sounds very different than a LP. LPs are obviously great, but if you want that sound, save your duckets and get one. As I said before the sound of this guitar is pretty unique. The pick-ups seem to be very hot, especially the bridge. I think the pickups are great. The neck pick-up, surprisingly, has an almost single coil sound to it. They can squeal a bit with a lot of distortion when you're not playing. I actually kind of like this because I play in grunge cover band and I use a lot of noise. I'd probably say that this guitar is not for all styles of music or for every guitar player. It's aggressive and unique. Again, this is not a LP or a strat, it has a sound all it's own which I really like.

This guitar plays really well. I really like the neck on it. It is more substantial than any other Fender I've played.

NA

I've been playing for 15 years or so. I traded a Fender CycloneII (s/s/s)for this because I wanted something with dual humbuckers. I have several favorite things about this guitar. It is very comfortable to play, as stated above the neck is very substantial but well balanced. It's not too heavy (much lighter than my Paul). I think it looks cool. But most of all, I like the sound. It's different. So many dudes play Strats and Pauls through Marshall or boogies or twins etc. Don't get me wrong, those are great sounds, but this one has a different sound that I find to be great. One final thing. A lot of these reviews on this site have unfair comparisons in them. I'll read things like "This mexican strat terrible compared to my dad's 70's strat he's had in the closet for 30 years..." No shit. You gotta remember that this is a lower end guitar. I got mine for 3 bills. I can't expect it sound like a $3000 guitar because it's not. I play out and this guitar is awesome because if got busted or ganked, I could easily get another and I would.

Just to complete my previous review. The buzz until you touch any metallic part of the guitar (string, screws, the metallic jack of the cable connected...) is a REAL thing in nearly all the Mexican Toronado guitar (at least). It would be nice to get a solution written here. Not sure if fixing the pick-ups screws or having the amp ground-connected...

Mine is a Mexican H-H black polyester finished with 2 atomic humbuckers. Very heavy but nice jaguar-shape with gigbag included.

Sound good, a lot of sustain because of the weight. Sometimes the humbuckers get a bit noisy but usually ok.

Confortable.
The finish is not perfect anyway and in edges with neck and pickups you see the paint is not perfectly fixed. It has a tiny scratch under the bridge so i got a little discount. I don't know how fender send things like this, after paying such a lot for them. Pick-ups are not 100% perfectly adjusted but sounds ok. (first string not in hte middle of the magnet)

Hard and heavy. Finish is not so good and i will be careful with scratches.

I bought in a german shop (guitar24.de), directly sended from Fender Netherlands. They should have it in stock cos it was a bit dirty and the protection foils where removed. I got a discount but i would have changed it for having perfectly-brand new

It's ok, but not the perfect guitar i dream to own. Seems that if you want it, you have to pay an american one.

2004 H/H passive pickups, offset waist, crappy standard Fender Mexican tuners.

Action set randomly at the factory. Intonation was not even close. Pickups seem a tad weak. The finish on the body was good, but within weeks the clearcoat finish on the headstock started peeling, and Fender refused to cover it under their "5-year warranty" because, as they told the Fender authorized repair guy, it happened after I bought the guitar. As if I made the finish peel on the headstock underneath the strings.

Finish is cheap and horrible.

Customer support is worse than non-existant. If they had never even called back, it would have been better than the blanket refusal to honor their own warranty. Gotta love giant, faceless corporations.

Never buy anything from Fender ever. At least nothing new, because that warranty is worth jack.

Made in Mexico sometime during October of 2000...body is unique..Jaguar meets Strat meets Ernie Ball?? Really Plain string thru bridge. Jazzmaster looking headstock. 24 3/4 neck scale, which is odd since Gibson normally uses that scale.

Sounds very interesting. Stratlike in some ways but the humbuckers give it more warmth with less bell like features. Has good harmonic balance. Full sounds. I would love to put a coil tap on the bridge humbucker....

Good fitting neck. Nice fretwork...few buzzes here and there but nothing terrible. Make sure the saddle screws are all adjusted evenly or you will get strange buzzes...

It survived the last five years, and I think it will keep on keepin on..

Absolutely a unique find...interesting and useful sounds..could definately do a wide variety of tones...

Deluxe MIM Toronado, if you don't know the specs by now, my repeating them won't help :)

The Atomic Humbuckers are good, but lacking a bit of 'snap' so I had the rear 'bucker coil tapped with a push/pull knob on the tone, so I can make it a single coil. This has greatly increased the already good tonal range. I currently play thru a Vox Pathfinder 15, with a MXR DynaComp, a Wasabi distortion, and Danelectro reverb pedal.

bought it used, so couldn't say how the factory set-up was.
the only issue I noticed is that intonation is difficult as the bridge appears to be about 2mm too close to the neck to get the low E properly intonated.

Seems durable. Heavy, shiny paint, hard to ding, no cracking. Strap buttons stay tight, no crackling or snapping in the pots.

n/a

I've been playing for about 8 months after a LONG (15yr) hiatus. If lost or ripped-off I'd gladly buy again. I REALLY want to get a custom made one of these, with a 3 color 'burst and a pair of SD Phat-Cats.
Love the neck on this guitar, big fat custom shop style neck (1.6875 @ nut) with a mexican price.

My toronado was made in Mexico, approx 2 years ago, it has the standard Fender atomic humbucker pups, which I have to say are great, It's black with a purple scratch plate, All the other features have been covered by other reveiws !

The sound I can acheive through my Line6 212 150w combo with this guitar is awesome, I play mostly britpop oasis, etc. The sound is a full bodied, all out kick in the teeth with distortion, yet played clean it also has a lovely tone, to cover almost all genres

The action, and finish on my axe is spot on, the only negative I could say is that, after a while the tone pots get a little crackly, and require a bit of spray on them to bring them back to life !

This is a fender, so it is built to last forever, I gig with this as my sole guitar, and so far I have no complaints at all. If this guitar was ever lost or stolen, I would rush out and buy another, these guitar are really underated, I would never go back to a strat or LP.

No conatct, no need to !

I have been playing for more years than I care to remember, and I have always been a die hard Les Paul fan, I stumbled across the toronado by accident, and boy am I glad I did, this guitar ticks all the boxes for me, it is a universal guitar, but more than that it is just that little bit unusual without being weird (if you know what I mean !) ive the toronado a try, it's the best move you'll ever make !

My guitar was made in Mexico, about 2 years ago, and it's black, and turtle pick guard. The specs are the one already refered so it's useless to point them out. I love the aesthetics of this guitar, and i felt in love by its beauty...

This guitar suits my style of music perfectly. I play Alternative Rock, and Metal, yet, i'm going to upgrade my guitar with Seymour duncan jazz model in the neck, and seymour distortion in the bridge.
The atomic humbuckers are not bad, yet, I need a more versatile thing, more distortion, and a sweet jazzy sound in the neck pick up, and I think this guitar deserves a better sound!!!

Absolutely no complaints here. Everything was ok and ready to go.

I hope this guitar to last, honestly. This is one piece of gear i'll never sell. My intentions are to upgrade the guitar slowly, first the pick ups, then the hardware. It will be my costumized Toronado.

Never had to deal with them , therefore I don't know!

I love my guitar, and as I've said, I hope to stay with her until i perish. I give an 8 to this guitar because I always expect the best from what I purchase, and the pick ups were a let down for me, as I was to expectant about them... Beautiful guitar, nice to play, upgrade the pick ups and you'll have a diamond in your hands!!!

2003 fender toronado, made in mexico. (black with t-shell pic-guard)

24.75 scale, solid, deluxe modle, shouldn't have to say much more.

this guitar is made nearly perfect. great fender feeling neck, awsome gibson sounding pick-ups, les paul style controlls, body feels like a bloated jag, or a melted strat les paul mix.

the hardtail bridge is fa-goddamn-nominal... It's like a mix between a vintage bridge, and a modern hard-tail start bridge. It feels awsome, and is very nice to strings.

the tuners though I hate. I think vintage tunes are just made poorly. They don't like heavy strings, they bend easily when yer guitar gets thrown or you drop it, or you slightly bump into your amp, or if you spit on them. I had to replace two of them not a month after getting my first toronado... I just hate replacing things on new instruments.

Also this thing comes with a gig bag, which is pointless if you tour, so I say get rid of the nut sack it comes with a buy a case (the guitar is worth it).

flawless.... very les paul like, a bit more clanky. I play sort of manic depressive music... pretty, full clean (with a nice amount of bite) and harsh crunchy distortion (warm and full). Think.... signal to trust, proundentall, ten-grand, or "...trail of dead"... that type of stuff.

I am not a lead guitarist by any means... As far as I know this thing might blow for that stuff.

awsome.... flawless... I have thrown this thing and fallen on it more that a few times, and the paint has such a high gloss on it the paint is cracked, but the wood is fine. AMAZING!

I just said this.... AMAZING.... other than the shitty tuners. If I have gotoh tuners or something like that I won't be able to say anything bad about this guitar (and i am rough as hell on it).

good, I got my fender dealer to fix my tuners for like 5 bucks when i clearly did the breaking myself. Waranties are great.

Same standard features as any other regular stcok Toronado.

I play a wide variety of rock, indie rock, post rock, blues, experimental etc. I ordered this guitar from Musicians friend because I fell in love with the body and I thought that the humbuckers were going to give me a very rich warm clean and thick overdriven sound; according to other reviews. Unfortunately I was wrong. My first impression was that this guitar is designed for harder modern/punk rock. I absolutely could not get any clean sound from it. I have a Fender 2x12 deville and a Roland JC-120 and both sound below par with this guitar. When I buy a guitar my biggest concern is overall tone control, being that their are four pots you'd think it would have some if any, but no. I have to do an incredible amount of tweaking with compression and other secondary products to achieve what I want. The most important factor when reading reviews is the musical style the reviewer plays and listens to. So here is a list of a few bands that I listen to, Radiohead, Tortoise, Starflyer59, Elliot Smith, Echo and the Bunnymen, Fugazi, Godspeed!, T-rex, The Cure, Zepplin, Pink Floyd and of couse The Beatles. As you can see my musical taste don't accomadate this guitar well. Although I couldn't get any clean vintage tone from it I found that this guitar pushed me to play more like Danzig or Black Sabbath because of the red hot Atomic Humbuckers, which isn't a bad thing, but not what I wanted.

The neck came slightly warped so I have to have my neck maintenanced every month. It is my understanding that the guitars that Fender sends to Musicians Friend are all B- Stock wood quality. Don't get me started on integrity in modern society. It doesn't exist in Corporate America. Anyways....I replaced the tuners with sperzel locking tuners which I highly reccomend. I am researching the schematics right now to see if I can install some PAF classic style humbuckers but I think the pick guard prohibits it because the lack of holes. Other than that I was quite pleased with the pots and jacks, very sturdy.

Dependability should really never be an issue with Fender. In my opinion they are all usually reliable. In this case that wasn't the issue

Never dealt with Fender, but I probobly should.

Overall I love the look, I hate the natural tone. Unfortunately it was somewhat of a present so I plan to do a complete upgrade. one Dimarzio PAF humbucker and a TV Jones Filtertron Classic, Bigsby Tremolo, resoldering and maybe a new neck. I guess you get what you pay for.

Mexican made Fender Toronado "Deluxe Series" in dark red. This thing has a cool shaped body style similar to the Jaguar or the Jazzmaster. Seems to be Fender's answer to the Les Paul. 22 frets. Poplar body with 24" scale maple neck (rosewood fingerboard). Jumbo frets. Two passive Fender "Atomic" Humbuckers at the neck and bridge position, although I have already replaced the bridge with a Di Marzio Evolution. The Atomics sounded really good, but I needed more definition for my style of playing. String-thru body bridge style. Tuners are non-locking, and pretty chinsy. I'll have to get them replaced at some point.

It's a good guitar for loud rock, punk, or metal, which is what I play. The Atomic Humbuckers that it came with sound big and rich. The 24" scale neck is great for pulling bends. I'm keeping the bridge pickup that I pulled out of it to possibly throw into another guitar at some point. It wasn't exactly what I wanted, but it sounded good.

When I got it, the strings were almost 1/4 inch off the fretboard (I bought it used, so I can't say how well the set them up at the factory). I took her into the shop immediately for adjustment. As I had said before, I want to replace the tuning pegs at some point. I'll eventually also want to replace the pots. The body and neck are solid. Well crafted pieces of wood. I was expecting less considering the stigma floating around about Mexican made guitars. I am pleased with it, and I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Mexi Fender.

The body and neck are going to last for years of playing, but the mechanical and electronic parts are going to need to be replaced at some point (sooner then later). They definately cut some corners on parts to increase their bottom line. It seems typical of most guitar manufacturers today. Once I replace everything I mentioned, and add some strap locks I will consider it solid as a tank on stage.

Never delt with Fender directly.

Inexpensive guitar if you're happy with it off of the shelf, but if you want to gig out with it regularly, expect to shell out another couple hundred bucks to make her more reliable. It feels good, sounds good, and it's fun to play so I'd say it's worth it.

My Toronado is the American made DE-9000.
* 22 Frets
* Alder Body with the Red Chrimson finish (Really nice you can see the wood grain)
* Maple "C" shaped neck with Rosewood fret board
*DE-9000 Single Dove single coil pickups.
* 3 position switch, similar to a Les Paul
* 2 Volumn and 2 Tone, again similar to the Les Paul
* Comes with 9-42 strings
*Schaller Delux Cast, sealed Tuning heads - Very nice
* 4 ply pick guard
* Jazzmaster head stock - looks really good
* Black painted head stock, I really like the looks
* Side mounted Jack??

It's almost like they wanted it too look like "Fenderish", but with some "Gibson" design stuff

All in all this is a well built guitar, no corners cut. Good equipment. For my self, I replaced the strings with 10-46.

This is where this guitar really shines. A PEavy "starter" guitar can look good, but how does it play?

The DE-9000 Toronado is in a class by it self. Don't be confused into thinking it's a "Fender LEs Paul Jr." copy. It isn't. I own a 1997 american made G&L ASAT (Fender Tele), and a Strat, and have ownd3 a LEs Paul. I wanted a unique sound for some light rock, T&B, JAZZ and Blues. But I didn't want to copy the sound of my Tele, you know what I mean?

I was afraid it would be "Les Paul Jr." Copy, but it isn't. How can I describe it??? It has a sound all it's own. I'd say it's the perfect Blues and Jazz tones. It's Rich and full. It doesn't have the Toanl range of a strat, but then that's not what I wanted. It's the perfect partner for a tele, and would fit nicely into any band.

If Fender was trying to copy the "Jr", they failed- thankfully. The DE-9000 Tornonado is a "voice" unto it's self. It isn't going to be for everyone, but then what guitar is. With the 10-46 strings, she's really awsome.

Noise?? Well it has single coil pickups, so what do you think.

Great Fender Action Everything was fine, but of cousre when you change strings to heavier, you must make adjustments. No flaws, nothing. She isn't flashy, but she's well made with a uniques style. Play her with a good amp and you'll be sold. Do I like her better than my American made G&L ASAT (Leo's last tele), no, I was afarain they would be similar. But they are like two race horses. Each great, but they run their own race

Personally, I think it will run like a throughbred. Last a life time. There was a time I didn't like Fenders. I went to G&L, because they were made by Leo Fender, they way he wanted them made. Pure. Recently, Fender seems to have found teir way back to Leo's original ideas of quality. This guitar is a classic example of that. She isn't flashy, she's a well made work horse, witha voice so unique and sweet you gotta love her. I don't know how the mexican, or the Highway 1 versions are, but if you can afford it, go for the American. For about $400.00 more it's well worth it. Like the original Jazzmaster, The American made Toronado series will be a classic.

Would I use it at a gig with out a back up... sure, Fender built a great guitar here. But I take my G&L ASAT(tele) with me everywhere.

My only dealings with Fender thus far was when I was trying to find out about this guitar. Their Customer Service people don't seem to have an idea how this baby sounds. MAybe they need to get people who actually play, and let them play the different models so they know what's what

The perfect guitar. Classic, stylish, and well built. It isn't a tele, a strat, a Gibson LEs Paul Jr, or even a jazz master. It's new voice, rare among the many imitations, that most of us will enjoy

The Toronado I purchased was made 2001-2002 in Mexico, 22 frets,rosewood fretboard on maple neck, poplar body,2 humbuckers,string thru,I could go on but most of this has already been covered.

The sound is excellent, sonically in between gibsons and traditional fender (strats and tele's), which I think is a great idea! Its unique tone can cover both spectrums ( not to say it sounds like a Les Paul or Stratocaster)but what I mean is this... Try playing a Gibson type song such as Sweet Emotion or maybe Sweet Child-O-Mine (for the older crowd how about Sunshine of your Love) on a Strat... just doesn't sound right. and conversely try playing a Strat tune such as Pink Floyd's Time,Another Brick in the Wall, or SRV and Robert Cray (or any other Strat Blues musicians music) on a Gibby and well...just not quite the same vibe. Now take the Toronado (as I said before, It won't put out the same tones.) Those same songs still sounds good.
My theory on this is the humbuckers give the guitar girth, while the bolt-on thin neck with poplar body balances it out to give it a bit of snap (or twang if you will) The fact that it is a unique sounding instrument is what sold me.

When I bought this guitar it was sitting for probably a year or two.
It had really light strings which I had to replace, the neck had a convex bow instead of concave, not itonated properly, etc. So I took care of that right away. other than that, when I played it at the store, the volume and tone knobs had a bit of scratchy pot noise, but since I've had it home, I haven't noticed this. I am guessing there may have been some dust or dirt that worked off as I used them more.
No real major flaws, no dents, dings, or runs in the finish.

The only concern I have is the saddles look like they won't last, I think they are stamped (for cost savings I am assuming). Other than that, this guitar seems fairly durable and should withstand live playing. I am basing this on my MIM Strat that I have owned for 7-8 years and is still going strong,since the Toro was made in Mexico as well I am assuming the relia/dura is the same.But in all fairness, since I have only owned this guitar just over a week, I can't give a rating at this point.

Too soon to tell, however, I have never had to deal with Mfgs in the 20+ years I have been playing so I hope I don't have to start now.

As I mentioned before I have played for around 20 years. This is probably one of the sweetest axes I have played and probably the best that I have owned thus far. I hope Fender keeps producing this line so if I would ever have to replace it I can. I will not be selling or trading this one, it is a keeper. The only thing I wished this guitar came with was a coil tap, I have a feeling someday I will mod my guitar in this way to get some single coil sounds.

Everyone has covered the basics so I won't re-hash too much. Made in Mexico 2002. 22 frets, heavy solid wood body (poplar I believe?). Mine is Bright Yellow with the stock Fender Atomic Humbuckers. Stock hard-tail string-thru bridge. 3-way selector. 2 volume, 2 tone.

It doesn't have any "special" features but it gets a 10 because it has everything you'd need.

The neck is wide. Small hands, beware. The guitar is also heavy. I consider this a positive. It projects tremendous volume and sound, even when it's not plugged in.

The outrageous colors (yellow, orange, etc) are in keeping with the punk/grunge/distortion friendly nature of this guitar. I think that's what Fender was going for, anyway.

This guitar was not intended to be played clean. The clean sound is acceptable, although quite muddy even with the tone controls set as bright as possible. I am not entirely happy with the clean sound but with the selector in the middle position (both pickups) it is acceptable. This may be a problem with my crappy amp (line 6 Flextone Plus 60) which tends to be muddy.

Distorted, this guitar is wonderful. I'm not talking about a little bit of overdrive, I'm talking loads of distortion. I play through an Interfax Harmonic Percolator and this thing will provide all the punk, grind, and distortion from power chords and solos that you will ever need.

Overall I may install new pickups to add some brightness to the guitar's sound but through the Percolator, this is the best and most versatile guitar for distorted playing in this price range. By far.

I bought the guitar used and, amazingly, have had no problems whatsoever.

If there were any problems from the factory, the original owner must have fixed them.

Ideal for gigging and home defense. Massive hunk of wood.

Never used.

Overall, this guitar does what I want it to do......produce a lot of distortion for fast power chord playing and Shellac-type noise rock.

Sound quality and tone are the most important aspects of my playing, moreso than fancy technique, and the Toronado gives me the hard distortion that I look for.

The clean sound leaves something to be desired, too muddy and not enough high-end clarity, but pickup changes may help.

THIS IS THE 2002 MODEL, ITS ORANGE FINISH IS BEAUTIFUL , IT CAUGHT MY EYE THE MINUTE I ENTERED THE STORE BEING UP ON THE DISPLAY WALL AT THE TOP LAID ON ITS SIDE .
THEYRE ALL MADE IN THE SAME PLACE MEXICO, THEY ALL HAVE 22 FRETS SOME PEOPLE NEED TO ACUTUALLY COUNT THE FRETS.. 2 VOLUME 2 TONE CONTROLS, 3 WAY SELECTOR, PASSIVE ELECTRONICS, THEY ALL HAVE THE SAME WOOD, SAME POLY FINISH. THERES A SMALL GAP ON ONE SIDE OF THE NECK AS WITH ALL THE ONES I VIEWED. IM A STRAT PLAYER WHO PLAYS 5 TO SEVEN DAYS A WEEK OUT PROFESSIONALLY.

THE GUITAR HAS A GREAT SOUND, DEFINETLY A ROCK GUITAR. WE DO VARIOUS STYLES FROM FIFTIES TO ROCK, BLUES AND COUNTRY,ALSO SOME BIG BAND. THIS GUITAR COVERS ALL STYLES WELL, BUT COUNTRY LICKS,ON THE LOWER STRINGS,, THE GUITARS GETS BURIED IN THE MIX, ALL THE TWANG IS THERE BUT AGAIN IF YOU DONT ROLL BACK THE VOLUME IT GETS BURIED,,IT HAS TO MUCH COMPRESSION SOUND , AND I ALSO USE A COMPRESSOR. ITS JUST NOT A STRAT. IF I HAD TO SAY ONE THING POSITIVE,, I LOVE THIS GUITAR.

DISLIKES ARE THESE,,, THE NOISE IN THING, BUZZING ,CHAINSAW SOUND,, I THOUGHT AT FIRST DIFFERENT BUILDINGS GROUND PROBLEMS, NO ITS THE GUITAR, THESE GUYS IN MEXICO CAN PAINT NO DOUBT,, I PAINTED FOR 22 YEARS AND I WAS GOOD ,THEYRE GREAT, BUT THEY CANT WIRE ANYTHING, THE WORKMANSHIP IN THE POT AREA STINKS, LOUSY SOLDERING AND PROBABLY CHEAP POTS BUT THE GUITAR IS WORTH THE HASSLE , THE PICKUP ARE WONDERFUL.

I HAVE THE SAME COMPLAINT ON THE SWITCH, ITS REALLY NOISY ,, HELLO LOUD CLUNKING WHEN YOU SWITCH IT MIDSTREAM ALA SRV,,CLUNK BANG RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF YOUR SOLO,, ON COUNTRY SOUNDS LIKE SOMEBODY IS WORKING CONSTRUCTION ON STAGE WITH YOU CLUNK , BANG.

ALSO THE SWITCH CAN BE EASILY BUMPED, I SWEAR THEY THOUGHT OUT THE GUITAR IN BODY DESIGN BUT WHEN IT COME TO BEING FUCTIONAL THEY THREW THE PLANS OUT AND JUST COPIED GIBSON. MOVE THAT STUPID SWITCH, AND PUT A BLADE IN THERE NOT THE CRAPPY POLE THING, OBVIOUSLY LES PAUL WAS A GUITAR PLAYER AND NOT A DESIGNER, AND OBVIOUSLY LEO WAS A DESIGNER AND NOT A GUITAR PLAYER.

ID HAVE TO GIVE IT A TEN DESPITE MY COMPLAINTS, SHORT SCALE,NEW PICKUPS AND NEW BODY DESIGN ALONE WARRANT THE RATING.
BUT IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, EVERYTHING COPIES A FENDER OR A GIBSON, EVEN THE COMPAINES GET IN A BOX AND COPY THEYRE OWN DESIGN TOO MUCH, THIS TIME THEY CAME UP WITH SOMETHING UNIQE AND IT CANT BE CALLED A COPY , THEYFORE WHEN YOU THIS MEX GUITAR YOU BOUGHT AND ORIGINAL.
THE OBVIOUS THING TO ME IS THAT THE QUAILTY CONTROL DEPT HEAD NEEDS FIRED BADLY, BECAUSE HES SLEEPING ON THE JOB, THE HUM PROBLEM IS OBNOXIOUS, AND THE CASE THING THEY DONT MAKE ONE , WHY DID THEY INCLUDE THE GIG BAG ? YOU CANT FIND A CASE.
BUT HAVING AND EXTENSIVE COLLECTION OF CASES I HAVE A ANSWER FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE SUFFERING. TAKE YOUR FENDER HARDSHELL CASE LAY THE GUITAR IN IT AND YOU WILL FIND THE UPPER BOUT IS THE MAIN PROBLEM.
TO CORRECT THIS TRACE ON THE CARPET , THEN TAKE A SINGLE BLADE CUT THE LINING ON THE BOTTOM OF THE CASE , CAREFULLY PULL IT LOSE ROLLING IT UPWARD , THEN TRIM THE STYRYFOAM TO FIT THE GUITAR, REGLUE THE CARPET WHICH THEYRE WILLBE PLENTY, AT THE HEADSTOCK TRIM CUT THE CARPET AND TRIM THE FOAM ONCE AGAIN ABOUT A INCH, ALSO AT THE NECK JOINT SAME PROCEDURE ABOUT ONE INCH REGLUE ALL SEAMS AND YOU HAVE A CASE. NOW YOU HAVE A CASE FOR MIMIAL EFFORT AND WHEN THESE FOOLS AT FENDER TRY LATER THIS YEAR TO OVERCHARGE YOU FOR THE NEW CASE THEY MAKE, THEYLL HAVE A TON OF THESE THINGS SITTING ON THE SHELF.

IVE BEEN USING IT NITELY AND HAVING PICKED UP MY AMERICAN STRAT SINCE, I DO THIS TO GIVE IT A REAL SHOT AT GETTING FRIENDLY WITH IT. I LOVE IT. DESPITE ITS COMPRESSED SOUND WHICH I REALLY EXPECTED, ITS WONDERFUL.
NOW FOR SOMEONE LIKE ME, IM OVERWEIGHT, AND THIS THING WRAPS AROUND MY BELLY PERFECTLY, THE OFFSET WAIST THING IS GREAT TOO, AND THE WEIGHT OF THE GUITAR IS PERFECT NITE AFTER NITE.
LAST BUT NOT LEAST, 22 YEARS OF BODY AND PAINT WORK HAS GIVEN MY FINGERS ARTHRITIS AND SHORT SCALE TENSION ON THE GUITAR HAS WORKED WONDERS FOR MY FINGERS.
IT SUFFERS A LITTLE FOR BRITENESS ON COUNTRY, BUT IF YOU GET TO FEELING DOWN, HIT THE OVERDRIVE AND DIG INTO STEVIE RAY OR SANTANA OPEN THEM POTS ALL THE WAY AND HANG ON, BROTHER THAT SOUND ALONE IS WORTH IT.
DONT LEAVE HOME WITHOUT A BACKUP,, IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH GUITAR, IF YOU PLAY 300 NITES A YEAR AND BOOK YEARLY CONTRACTS LIKE WE DO BELIEVE ME YOUR CROWDS ARE NOT INTERESTED IN WATCHING YOU , OPEN CASES AND SWITCHING CORDS WHILE SOMEONE APOLOGIZES FOR YOUR MISTAKES.

I HAVE ALOT TO SAY HERE BUT ILL TRY TO CONDENSE THIS. THE TERM CUSTOMER SUPPORT IS A LAUGH,, I DONT CARE IF ITS A GUITAR OR A BLENDER, OR A CAR, IF YOU DONT MIND HEARING PUSH NO 4 THEN PUSH NO 1 AND FINALLY YOU END UP LEAVING A VOICE MAIL, AFTER TALKING TO SOME STUPID COMPUTER , ONLY TO FIND OUT THEY WILL CALL YOU BACK, AND OF COURSE YOU WONT BE HOME, BECAUSE YOU WORK THE SAME HOURS THEY DO, THEN YOU TRAVEL 30 MILES TO THE STORE TO FIND OUT , YOUR TECH HAS THE DAY OFF OR HE DOESNT GET IN UNTIL 1:00 WE ALL KNOW THE STORE DOESNT OPEN UNTIL 11:OO IN FLORIDA, THEN OF COURSE YOU HAVE TO LEAVE IT,
GUYS ITS A BLOCK OF WOOD, WITH SOME ELECTRONICS LEARN TO FIX IT YOURSELF, BECAUSE WHEN YOU GO TO LOOK FOR THE RECEIPT YOU WONT FIND IT ANYWAY, AND THE GUITAR GOD AT THE STORE,DOESNT KNOW ANY MORE THAN YOU EXCEPT HE HAS A PICTURE BOOK AND A SOLDERING IRON, BESIDES THIS FOOL CAN GET UP AT 10 AND STILL MAKE IT TO WORK , PUT YOU OFF UNTIL GOD KNOWS WHEN , OVERCHARGE YOU FOR SOMETHING YOU COULD DO YOURSELF, AND LOOK AT IT THIS WAY, WHO WILL PAY YOU TO LEARN SOMETHING?
FIX IT YOURSELF, SAVE THE MONEY AND MAYBE YOUR WIFE WONT COMPLAIN SO MUCH WHEN YOU BUY YOUR NEXT GUITAR.

I OWN AMERICAN STRAT, POWERHOUSE STRAT, LOTS OF OTHER EQUIPMENT PA , RECORDING CRAP , COMPUTERS GALORE

This is a 2003made in mexico Bright Orange toronado with atomic HUmbuckers and a string thru bridge. It has a 2 volume and 2 tone controls and a shorter scale lenght than a normal fender (like a jaguar) Rosewood fingerboard and a pretty highly flamed maple neck vintage tuners. the one thing that i really like about this guitar is the bridge its the only guitar in the fender line with a bridge like it

This guitar sounds so much different than other fenders thanks to the humbuckers. I play blues and light rock stuff like the Stones or Tom Petty and this gutar does it good. I play a this and also a strat with texas specials through a Fender "evil" twin with no effects or distortion just a hint of reverb and it sound pretty fucking good. not bright just warm and smooth. I give it a nine because it doesnt sound like any other fender out there

Orange color fits well with the guitar. it was not my first choice but it was the only one they had and it was on sale. set up was not too bad but need a little fixing. i cant find any flaws on it and it plays better than my strat does(the flater fingerboard radius makes bending a sinch)

Solid heavy ass guitar

i have been playing 6 years and am now 18. i cant find a problem with this guitar other than the color. if lost or stolen i probably wouldnt get another id get a G&L or a more up-scale guitar, but for now this suits me just fine.

Really nice heavy piece of alder with a maple neck and wide rosewood fingerboard. Mine is a 2002 Mexican deluxe model and is black (like all of my guitars, I guess it's a Johnny Cash thing)with tortoise shell pickguard. I won't describe what it looks like since you are more than likely either playing one already or currently thinking about playing one and have at least seen it. The guitar also has dual humbuckers and a bolt on neck. I don't know what the scale is since that involves math and I play for fun and math is not fun. Chrome hardware and String-thru-body Hard-tail Bridge.

The instrument sounds a lot different than other Fenders that I own ('62 Jaguar reissue MIJ and a '72 Custom Telecaster reissue MIM). My first impression is that the guitar is best suited for music that requires distortion. Whether it is crunchy riffs or loud leads, the bolt on neck and dual humbucker configuration compliment both. Since I write and play a variety of different types of rock, I can incorporate it into my music rather easily. The guitar appears to be designed for punk rock (or whatever it's being called these days) from a sound standpoint (However I could swear I saw a girl playing one on CMT the other night). Playing it through a clean channel does not produce a real full sound and this is pretty common for a bolt on solid body with dual humbuckers. The biggest thing I noticed about the sound was that the quality was completely different depending on which amp I played through (Really????). The point is that it sounds a lot better through my Fender M-80 than it does through my Carvin SX200. This is relatively common knowledge that Fender designs things this way and should be considered when purchasing this instrument.

Nothing to complain about

This guitar will last in all environments (studio\live). The instrument appears to be durable and dependable. I don't play too many gig's anymore, I'm into home recording. Regardless of that, I would never play a gig without a backup regardless of what guitar\amp I was using on stage.

N\A

I've been playing for about 15 years. I have about 10 guitars of various makes and models, a few bases, a few amps and some recording equipment. I played in bands for about 4 years but hate learning other bands' music so I dropped out of the cover band scene (back in the grunge era) and started writing and recording on my own. My music is based on simple rock, 60's psychadelic blues, merseybeat, punk roots (mod), types of music. I didn't compare the guitar to any others because upside some guitars, it is lacking. Upside other guitars it performs well. I rated it based upon what it really is, a cheaper alternative to high priced instruments and a higher quality alternative to cheaper instrument. It's just a tool for whatever you are trying to get accomplished. If you are going to play in a 10 piece Jazz ensemble, pass this up, wrong tool. If you consistently play and are looking to upgrade from your $150 strat copy that you got for xmas 2 years ago and learned on, this is a far more better purchase than a $2000 Les Paul

Features include 2 nickle or chrome covered humbuckers, a 3 way switch and a poplar body with a sunburst maple top. If you like sunbursts, this is one of the best I've seen and I was happy to pay the extra $40 for it. Otherwise, a simple guitar made in Mexico and with the exception of some sloppy knobs and a cheap jack, a pretty solid piece. Kind of heavy but no worse then some ash Teles I own.

When I tried this guitar out in the stores at low level, I really fell in love with the bridge pickup's clean sound. Very snappy and three dimensional. Almost like a Tele but with more girth. When turned up, it yields typical humbucking squawk but with a neat high end to it. I would definitly consider this pickup for modding a Strat or Tele in the bridge position. In my opinion the name "Atomic" is a misnomer in that this does not come off like some super distortion pickup. The neck pickup is equally articulate and offers fat bell-like sounds that morph into rich overdrive when pushed. The combined pickup setting is not a sound I use much so I'm not really going to say much about it. Having not tried out alot of the boutique humbuckers I'm not going to hand out any 10s here...I'm sure there are alot pickups out there that sound different and better to some ears. Humbuckers are not something I'm well versed in but if you are a single coil player looking for something a little fatter but still with some zing to them, this guitar is one you should look into. Plus, they look neat and are reasonably priced.

Finish: Gorgeous
Action: OK
Fit:?
Quality: needs some minor adjustments and wiring tweaks. My knobs were loose and the plug-in jack cuts in and out...simple stuff but annoying. I can fix it myself...no big deal in a $500 guitar. One thing that does bother me is the Gibson scale. I did not think this would bother me but I do find myself over bending. If you are used to Gibsons, this is no big deal.

I guess I should have left my quibbles for this section...wiring, loose knobs etc. Otherwise, typical Fender slab of wood that sounds real good.

I've not spoken to anyone about the guitar so I would not know how Fender is to deal with.

Good! I love the way it looks and sounds and with a little attention and tweaking, it would be just fine. If you have to have feather weight guitars, this may not be for you. While I prefer light guitars, some of my heavier ones sound real good, just different. Overall, a good guitar that allows a Fender player to wander into Humbuckerville without too much culture shock.

I bought my Toronado 8 months ago, it's grey pewter & i love the body shape, chrome everything, strings thru body (great thing if your used to your Floyde rose going horribly out of tune when you snap strings)nice neck & the tuners on mine seem to be ok,& damn these pickups are fantastic on this axe!!

This guitar sounds great considering the price, i wa looking for a humbucker equipped guitar & this thing has everything i need sound wise. I play mostly Rock, Blues, jazz & it does it great.

Heres where i was worried waiting for my guitar to come in (it was on order) But upon picking it up, i quickly pulled it out of the gig bag supplied and gave it a good looking over & was suprised to see everything was fine, action & setup was good & no marks or dents anywhere.

Been using it as one of my main two guitars whilst gigging & it has never let me down.

Fender have always returned my emails even when im asking pretty pointless questions so that goes for something.

i have a '99 mexican toronado. 22 frets, 2 humbuckers, 2 tone 2 volume controls. i dont know what kind of bridge, but it is alright. The neck is very wide, i like this but if you have small hands i would watch out for this. i would compare it maybe to a gibson firebird neck on the subject of wideness.

p.s. THIS GUITAR IS VERY HEAVY, LIKE A LES PAUL.

I play rock-blues-classic rock. I am using a Carvin 100watt solid state and a little vox 15 watt. The sound from the humbuckers are very fat. If you want something like sabbath this is a good guitar. it sounds alright when it is clean but is better for crunch.

this is kind of a problem for me. First, two of the tone knobs came off and i tried to use a little bit of glue on the screw but it came off again! next the switcher for pickups had a little washer/screw thing that fell off that i had to replace. lastly, the low E tuner has been bent and turns really weir. None of these affect the tone of the guitar but when you buy this guitar remember, it was built in mexico.

I have been playing for over 3 years and this guitar has been good. I prefer my '70 SG over it but it is a good guitar to play around with. Its got a good tone, especially with heavier strings - i prefer GHS boomers .11's these work very well

Mine's a stock 1998, Candy Apple Red, Mexican-made model which is so ultra-cool I decided to give it a self-indulgent "10" rating in this category.

I would like to take this opportunity to retract a remark I made in a previous review.

At one point I made a comment stating that the Toronado "wouldn't be well suited for anything considered clean" but have since discovered this not to be the case while using my Toronado in a dual purpose role lately...

Of course the bridge pickup is predictably fantastic for an all-out rocking tone and for this it continues to perform exceptionally well. The only problem was that I also needed a usable clean sound. I turned to the neck pickup for this and discovered that it also worked great for phenomenally clean rhythm playing!

Backing off the volume on the neck pickup sweetens it up remarkably well... and I'm not just talkin "good enough" here, but rather that it has impressed me as being "excellent"! Rhythm playing is a delight and chords ring out with pleasantly smooth texture.

Sure, you can always crank the volume back up for that fat powerful tone, but if you need a tone that will allow you to play with a little more "finesse", then I can vouch for the Toronado's ability to get that too!

I would like to point out one problem I've had with the Toronado: It's size!

The Toronado does not fit in any standard Fender hardshell case (it's much wider than most other Fender guitars), but hopefully this will soon change with the all new "American Special" Toronado. I suspect that they will have a case available to fit that guitar.

In the meantime I have discovered an good alternative...

Musician's Friend (www.musiciansfriend.com) sells a hardshell case that works pretty good. It's not perfect, but with a little padding it works out well with the Toronado.(much better than a gig bag anyway)!

As I briefly noted in my first review...

I must reiterate that a high quality amp is a must for getting the best results. I mainly use this guitar with two of my amps: a Mesa/Boogie Rect-O-Verb and a Carvin X-60A. For all out rocking the ROV works great, but for my "dual purpose" role I prefer the Carvin.

I also own several other guitars. You can see a pict of them at: http://members.aol.com/danzprod/MyGuitars.jpg

As you can see I have several guitars to choose from, so I can pick and choose what I want to play at any given time. Still, when I need a good all-around player I know I can count on my Toronado to fit the bill.

Anyway, I can truly say that I have nothing but good things to say about my Toronado and I still love it!

It is a brand new (not sure of the year, and Fender's website doesn't have a serial number lookup that I can find) Fender Toronado, made in Mexico. In my opinion, the extra money you would pay to get any Fender product made in the US is a waste, they sound practically the same. All the features can be found on Fender's site, so just go there if you want anything more specific that what I type. It has dual Atomic Humbuckers, a volume and tone control for each, and a 3-way pickup selector. I believe the body is Poplar, and the fretboard is Rosewood. It has a solid black finish, and a red speckled 3-ply pickguard. It has the same style body as a Jazzmaster and a Jaguar with a string thru body, non-tremolo bridge. It has Fender vintage tuners (stays is tune quite well) and came with a Deluxe gig bag. It has all the exact features I was looking for in a guitar (dual humbuckers, dual vol. and tone controls, 3-way selector, and non-tremolo bridge). The only thing that would have been cool are pickup taps, but I really don't need those at all.

My style ranges from classic rock, to metal, and to punk. The Toronado works great for all of those. I've used it through my Fender Princeton 65, my friend's Peavy 2x8, and my friend's Marshall valvestate half-stack. I only use 1 effect, distotion, and my amp and the Marshall have footswitches, so I use those when playing through them. When I'm on the Peavy, I use a DOD grunge distortion pedal (also my friend's). Personally I just like the built in distortion better. It is not noisy at all, on any setting, and I have trouble getting feedback from it. It has a very rich and full sound when on the neck pickup or both. The bridge pickup sounds okay when the tone is not all the way up, somewhere are 3 or 4 sounds good (hard to tell what it's at with tele knobs), but the bridge pickup sounds not very good when you play stuff on lower strings... don't use the bridge pickup for power chords, it'll just sound like crap. The neck pickup sounds great, no matter where you're playing on the neck. I usually play with both pickups selected to get a fuller sound. I absolutely love the sound of this guitar.

I think the place where I bought the guitar adjusts the action, setup, and pickups, but it's all done excelently, no fret buzz, and the strings are quite close to the neck. No flaws in the wood. The frets could have been cut shorter, but they feel better than other Fenders I've played

The thing's built like a tank. I can't think of anything that would fail, the finish looks solid, and the pickup selector doesn't feel or look like it would break. The strap button are very solid. I don't have another electric so I kinda have to gig w/o a backup, but I have to qualms about that.

never dealt with them, but I heard they're good. It comes with a lifetime warranty.

I've been playing for about 4 years, and own a Martin DM with an under the bridge pickup, and a Fender Princeton 65 amp. If it were stolen, I'd hunt down and rip the theif apart piece by piece with my bare hands, and then dump him/her in the Ohio river, but that's just because they had stolen something expensive from me. I'd definitely get aother one though, it's a great deal for a guitar that sounds so great. The only think I don't like is the sound of the bridge pickup when playing power chords, or anything low... it sounds like a muffled strat (and I hate strats). I love having a tone and volume control for each pickup. It sounds pretty good compared to other guitars with dual humuckers, dual vol & tone controls, and a non-tremolo bridge. Other guitars like that that I can think of are SG's and Les Paul's. The Les Paul is too heavy, so the Toronado wins by default. The Toronado doesn't sound as good as the SG in my opinion, but it is a few hundred dollars cheaper, and a few hundred dollars is a lot for a 17 year old.

Well, this is either an early 2002 or one of the last 2001's sold. I think it's probably a 2001, I got it around the turn of the year. So yeah, not that it makes a huge difference. 22 frets. It has a decently wide neck, (which is a good thing) it's wide enough to easily be able to be sure you're where you wanna be without interfering with the other strings and still thin enough that you don't murder your wrist hitting some weird chord that requires your fingers to be in four very different spots at once (ya gotta love those :) ) There are two pickups describes as "atomic" pickups, i'm not really sure what that's supposed to mean. I'm not even which fender-owned company makes these beasts, especially since there really isn't anything else like it used in the fender guitars that I'm familiar with. (They're both covered humbuckers) The knobs are set up like a les paul's, two tone/two volume, but the knobs are solid metal, not the weird plastic ones they use in les pauls or the crappy strat ones. That's definitely a plus. (I keep reffering to les pauls because the Tornado seems to be fenders attempt to blend the strat and les paul into one superguitar) There's no numbers, but you don't really need those anyway. It's got an interesting bridge design. It's a string thru-body, but it's shaped a little different. The strings load pretty much like a lot of schecter guitars I've seen. It's really easy to mess with your configuration on this bridge, which helps. The tuners are good, I've seen better. They aren't very accurate tuning, so it might take a while to get it perfect (as in it's hard to get it in just the right spot) but once it's in tune it holds it really well. Those really aren't a problem. The body is one of the main reasons I got this guitar. My ideal guitar would be a Jazzmaster with good humbuckers replacing the fat single coils that it comes with, and this guitar is the next best thing (for 1/4 of the cost) It's shape is very similar, yet the Tornado is different enough to be it's own guitar and a refreshingly different guitar that stands out from the overly made and copied "big two."

I'm running this through a crate gfx212. The amps clean tone is pretty nice, so I use that and leave the distortion channels alone. (the distortion on that amp is pretty much like a mediocre emulation of a hot rodded head, it's not that impressive at all) So I got a Marshall Jackhammer (great pedal, by the way) and that gets my distortion sounds. This guitar is great! I've noticed the neck pickups tends to be a bit strong on the bass end, but that's mostly my amp's fault (the clean channel is naturally a little bass heavy, but that's nothing that a little eq won't fix) The wide variety of tones available with this guitar are stunning. If you put all the knobs to ten and put on your bridge pickup you can get anything from a harsh heavy metal to a sweet crunch and even some more smooth or mellow "alternative" rock sounds. (Those usually would be better off in the center position) The neck pickup alone gets a really dark sound to it and amazingly smooth buttery sounding leads. Turn down the tone on the neck and leave it on by itself and you get this awesome ringing out sustain. (If you've ever heard the Pearl Jam song "Immortality," this can do that perfectly) Feedback is usually minimum (except when you want it...hehe...I've had some fun with that) and pretty easily controlled. Clean it can get that twangy funk sound (especially with wah) all the way to the opposite end of the spectrum with mellow bass heavy sounds. Great range, I've found it very difficult the make this guitars tone bad. Beautiful.

Factory setup pretty much sucked. But hey, what can you expect? I had to lower the action and restring it. I put on some Ernie Ball power slinkys on it recently and those got a great tone, but they're a bit heavy to do much with em, so I'd suggest something lighter. I usually use Hybrid Slinky's on my Les Paul, so I'm gonna try those next. I'm guessing I'm finally gonna settle on something in between. With this guitar, I'd pretty much suggest getting as heavy strings as you can without cramping your style. (I use altered tunings alot, so heavy strings make it difficult to tune up, plus heavy strings are easy to break doing lead if they get too much pressure) The intonation was a tad off too, so I had to fix that. If you get one of these (or any non-american made guitar, really) you should expect to have to do the set up yourself, but when you get it just right, you'll find it's well worth the effort. I've got mine playing like a dream now, and it only took an hour, maybe 2, to get it the way I like it. I've got a few minor problems with the finish. (Mines arctic white, by the way, I don't think I mentioned that) It came with a few flaws on the back, but not on the front. There's a couple little spots where it looks like the paint was scratched off or maybe was never even there. These are only small and thin spot/marks/lines and they're on the back, though, so it wasn't a major problem. I ordered mine from the factory through guitar center, so I didn't have much choice anyway. But really, everywhere else the finish is really great. With a white finish you've gotta be careful to keep it clean, but that's a given with any white guitar. I'll give it an 8, because it can be a ten with proper maintenance work, but it comes as about a 6.5 or 7 from the store.

This guitar seems really solidly built. Like I mentioned earlier, the knobs are made of a good quality metal instead of cheap plastic. The pickups don't move at all, even if you press on em a bit, they're in snug. It's a nice weight, pretty heavy and solid yet not so much so that it's uncomfortable and would do great damage to itself if dropped. It's around the weight of some of the higher line PRS guitars that I've played. I don't know how the strap buttons were, because I replaced them with strap lacks before I even set up my intonation/action/etc. Note to everyone: If a guitar is worth having, then it's worth the twelve bucks for a strap lock set. Get one. I have used this without a backup, but it's not a good idea in any case. Accidents happen and no guitar is invincible. So i'd bring a backup, but it would probably not be necessary even with a large gig schedule. The neck's maintained it's color really well, if not even better (with good oils/cleaners, I've found that pine sol does the trick just fine, just don't get it on the rest of the guitar)

Never had to contact them yet. Most minor repairs I can do myself, and I probably wouldn't bother going to fender for anything else, cuz then you'd probably have to mail it to them or some other crap like that's probably not really worth the time it takes.

If this guitar were stolen, I would cry. My band would cry. It would be a sad day in the history of man kind. I'd probably get a new one about as soon as I could. It's got a very wide range of sounds, and is really pretty much like a fender/gibson blend. It's not even really that. It's distinclty fender, which is why I use it alongside my les paul as my main guitars, yet different (and better in my opinion) than any other fender I've played save the 63 Jazzmaster that I played once (and drooled for several hours :) ) This is like the fender guitar for non-fender players (I never really like them before this guitar)

Orange. Pretty. Made in Mexico. Inclueds a crappy gig bag in which the zipper will surely grab the fabric and rip to shit-I have three other great gig bags like this. The guitar-Nice I guess. I dont want to judge the guitar truly till I can get it set up correctly-it seems that the people at fender really know a whole lot about setup-not. I bought this guitar to get kinda a sharper rock sound(foo fighters, weezer, american hi-fi) but still a fender feel-it seems to do this well-the pickups sound ok-the jury is out on weather they will be replaced. The knobs look alright, the tuners seem fine to me-dunno why everyone dislikes them. The neck is real thin, plays real nice, but the rosewood looks awfully light-but this is how my mexico strat looked 5 years ago, and if you play it alot and oil the neck, it will darken and sound better by the years-thats my intetion for this gutiar.

Im using this through a fender de ville 2x12, dunlop wah, and tech 21 snansamp. It sounds pretty good, but again, it needs a setup. The treble pickup seems a bit to bright, but that might just be me. Truthfully, all 3 of them I played in the store played differently-and I dont think thats a good thing-they all sounded very different, and this one sounded the best. Besides, who in the hell wants a canary yellow guitar? But it does sound pretty good distorted so far(havnt played it to much yet), and it WAILS for leads-I was blown away by this.

Hah, set up at the factory, thats hiliaroius. It came with 9's. Honestly, dont expect much out of any guitar outside of a metal machine (jacksons, esp, etc.) if your going to throw 9's on it-wimpy strings, wimpy tone. The action therefore sucks, the neck is all goofy-it needs work. Honestly, I realize Im bitching about this alot, but honest to god fender, how do you expect to sell a guitar if the dam thing dosnt hit full notes in the store? Honestly, if you want to get one of these, try, if it all possible to play a couple of them-they seem to vary alot from guitar to guitar in tone. Finish is dam good, very even. Neck joint has a gap on the top sde thats about big enough to fit a thin pick into. I guess those ruler in the mexico shop dont go down to 16ths.

Eh. It feels solid enough, but not bullet proof. Fenders are usually built well, and honestly, you have to be pretty stupid to break a guitar-scratches happen, but I dont you will be playing one day and the neck will just explode to shreds-on that note, the thin neck does make me a tad nervous, but it feels pretty solid.

The salesguy was a dam moron. He told me that the yellow one and orange one were more expensive because they had differnt pickups then the silver one. Yes you jackass, thats why they are all the same price in muscians friend. I havnt dealt with fender, but Id love to call them and listen to thier answering machine sometime.

Ive been playing for 6 years now. Ive had strats, mustangs, jaguars, cyclones, and generally alot of crap that wasted my money. When I buy stuff now, I buy it to keep it. Im sure this guitar is good enough for alot of people out there, but im might put new pickups in it becasue I am indeed that anal retentive. In all honesty, I dont want to judge this guitar to deeply until its gets a pro setup and strings that dont cost 2 cents to make. Bottom line-a great guitar, funky vibe, but try it before you buy it-they seem really inconsistent. This looks like a keeper, which is saying a lot for me-ill post another review several months down the line

made in mexico
adler dody
decent black paint
offset waist
string through body bridge
nice neck
big frets

I play a mix of metal, country, blues, and punk... all mixed together
she fits that style perfetly.
it has the richest fullest sound on anything shory of a 2400$ paul.
the frets are huge, so i can bend strings and chords to infinity.
she is rude but refined; relaxed but angry.
perfect for a combo of blues and punk.
i solo up and down the neck with love.
she is perfect; i can connect fully withn her; love her; talk to her; caress her.
she rewards me with a perfect solo.
the pickups scream but moan also.
they cut through distortion perfectly.

everything was perfect but the action
i fixed it myself

everything but the tuners shall hold up well

never talked to them
never will have to

i connected with it too well
u should definatly check it out
i touched her once and fell in love

The toro is 2001, made in Mexico and part of the Fender Deluxe range. It has 22 frets, made of poplar, but, as mine is sunburst it has an alder veneer on the back and front. mIts got a LP-like 3 way switch, and a volume and tone control for each of the two "atomic" humbuckers. The neck is maple with a skunk stripe, and the fingerboard in rosewood. Body is a very nice poly gloss and the neck an equally nice stain finish. Of course, it has the Jaguar/jazzmaster body shape...i forget the correct name. makes it very comfortable anyway (however, it doesnt fit in any cases so i had to buy a bass case)..
String thru hardtail bride with kluson style deluxe tuners. i suppose they are med jumbo frets. Came with 2 hex keys and a gigbag.
I would give it a 10 if it had a coil tap for the bridge P/U, but i have a strat for that sort of thing anyway.

I play rock, alternative...anything really, and so i can appriaciated the clean and distorted tone. Im using a small, cheap amp at the moment, but that doesnt stop the toro getting a wide vareity of tones from it. I have a marshall chorus pedal and a Boss DS-1 distortion pedal, both work very well, although the chorus is thin..but thats the pedals fault. My amps grounding is non-existant, so it sometimes buzzes horribly, however, touching the strings rectifies the problem. The guitar is the neck P/U is full and very loud. When i first used it, the difference in the depth and strength of the sound, compared to my strat is amazing (the two cater for different purposes however). Generally, it can give a smooth, bluesy clean sound, a very wiry, aggressive distorted "Nirvana" sound, and can do all sound in between. The only bad point really is that it is impossible to get a treblly sound without increasing the volume to near full...

The action, fit and finish were generally very good. The action is very low, but there is no bizzing unless you pluck and a near vertical angle. The pickups were quite even in their output, and are balanced across the sonic spectrum. Very nice and shiny with no marks or things like that. The fingerboard has a small scuffing like mark on the side of two of the higher frets..these disapeared with the application of 600 grit sandpaper and some lemon oil.

Not played live in a proper sense yet, but i would use a backup for two reasons...
one, i hate the fintage tuners, as the slot rather than hole in which to thread the string is at odds with by lack of tuning ability....at the moment i am re-tuning often..this is due to my lack of skill however.
Two, the pots crackle...there is a dry joint, possibly in the pits. The aplication of some electrosound cleaning spray every month sorts this problem out, but it sometimes rears its ugly head and cuts the sound from the bridge P/U altogether...

The guitar is built solid (and is very heavy compaed to the strat) and i wouldnt expect it to break at any point in the forseable future.

only dealt with UK distributor - very helpful

I own a Taylor 810, plywood acoustic, Fender MIM strat and, as i mentioned a small amp. Only been playing a year. I would have asked if i could have got some replacement tuners thrown in..but my fault.
I would buy again if stolen...although i may go with a fat strat (for ease of gaining parts, etc) in the unlikely event that it gets taken. I love the rich distorted sound and the wiry ness of the bridge pickup. Its also built very well.
Brought singht unseen, so no sound comparison..but i chose the features and design of this over other fender guitars, suitable for more distorted sounds. A coil tap and a pre fitted case are the only things i retrospectivly would like to have been included.

1998 toronado MIM candy apple red you know the rest

I was simply blown over when I first saw the toronado I thought finally a guitar by fender that has a good design and idea I liked that whole gibsonesque thing. I also like the fact that its a sort of hybrid design; jaguar body, jazzmaster/gibson scale neck, gibson electical layout and tele string thru body and jack socket

straight away it sounded great the pickups are hot!! they are very dynamic you can go from blues to full on filth easily it is also very unique without sounding c**p! I really love the sound it is my favourite guitar right now.

if you're an effects freak you will love this guitar it seems to go with any effect perfectly...well better then other guitars anyway

surprisingly for a mexi this was pretty well set up I just changed the action a bit which is understandable considerin' it traveled half way round the world. The finish is beautiful its a silver under coated candy apple red this is a really cool colour.

the guitar seems rock solid it will definatly be used on stage. My only concern is the chrome...

I have only been playing for a year but I know a lot about guitars and this is great even thru a practice amp it even better on my princeton 65 amp. compared to strats and teles I prefered this enough said.

Mexican made, 22 frets, Atomic HBs... ya' know. I like the body shape. I have the black with the almost nice tortoise pickguard. I did replace the tuners with Sperzels. Standards were ok, but I think changing strings with the Sperzels is so much easier.

People get it right when they say great for OD/Distortion, ok clean. Basically a bright HB sound. Like a Strat on steroids. Really, the bridge sounds ok clean, but is missing a little something. Neck is good clean and both together sound very good. But, flip on the OD and this piece rocks. Good definition and string clarity and the neck feels nice in your hand. I use this guitar a backup for my Peavey EVH because it is a rock tone monster.

Fender factory setup? Are you kidding? This ain't no PRS or even a Peavey EVH. You better bring your tool kit or take it to someone who knows what to do or you won't be a happy camper. Setup was just pittyful! Stamped saddles with way too high set screws, String ferules falling out on string change. Pickups need tweeking for height. And the neck felt like it was shifting in the pocket on demand! After a few hours of work, nice playing piece. Paint was very good. Frets a bit sharp on the ends, but not too bad. On the good side, the guitar was easy to tweak to my liking.

Tuning machines aside, the guitar seems well made. Strap buttons are normal, so be aware. I would gig without a backup, but that would be stupid, wouldn't it?

Next!!

I have been playing for almost 20 years. I have a lot of higher end gear, but I am always on the prowl for a diamond in the rough. This be it... Perfect rehearsal and bar gig guitar. For your $$ you get a well thought out rock machine. It can do blues very well too. Anything else will take a some big tweaking. OK for jazz, but I roll down the neck tone. Guy before me didn't have the guitar set up at all. Probably why he sold it. I would buy it again in a minute. A bit higher quality on the hardware and this guitar smokes anything in its price range. As is, a very good affordable guitar.

This is a brand new Fender Toronado shipped to me directly from Fender's Mexico shop I believe in Baja. I bought a black one with the nice red and black pick guard. I like the features for the most part on this guitar. Separate volume and tone pots for each of the two atomic humbucker pickups as well as a toggle switch between the three positions which are bridge, bridge-neck, and neck pickup. The finish was nice on the guitar. Great looking but funky piece. The tuners are terrible in fact worse than a standard tele or strat. The gig bag that came with mine had a ripped zipper and came off.

I know I'm going to cause some contention here with the rest of my review among Toronado fans, but in honesty, I was not at all in impressed. However, stupidly (and never again) I bought it online without having played it. I was not happy with this guitar when I first unpacked it and plugged it in. I could tell right away that neither of the pickups had been grounded at all with the enormous hum I got with this thing. I could tell it was the ground because it went away when I pressed on the pickups. Even despite the noise, the pickups were lifeless, muddy, and definitely not balanced. I guess I read the other reviews on the Toronado and assumed I had found a cheap sleeper. Nope, just cheap. I switched the cheap strings to Diadario 10's without a whole lot of improvement. By the way, I'm playing through a fender vibroking with effects in front (comp,wah,od,distortion,flange,delay). I have to admit, however, that it was just a touch above the Hamer Korean models that I had played just recently.

Suprisingly, the action was not at all bad. The neck needed some adjustment but everything else seemed ok. The neck was not aligned horizontally (more space towards the high E down the neck). The pickup adjustment was ok but needed to be raised a bit. Oh ya, the jack plate came off straight away as wood screws were too small to keep it on. Easily fixable. I took a peek in the pot cavity in the back of the guitar ... rats nest city. I could also tell that there wasn't even an attempt at providing a ground wire to either pickups.

I'm sure this guitar would survive a long time with cheap parts and features and all. The finish was nice. I would only possibly consider this as a backup.

Fender is hard to get a hold of. How about an email address or something?

I have been playing for 14 years and am currently in a band. I own a Fender Tele standard with Harmonic Designs pickups (very nice) and a strat. The first thing I would tell someone looking to buy this is do not buy it without first playing it. This was my first mistake. Secondly, if you are looking for a professional instrument, I would look elsewhere unless you are planning to spend a little extra money to upgrade pickups, do some setup, and change out the tuners. My luthier was disappointed that I sent this back but he did quote me $500 which isn't bad except to say that I wasn't excited about this guitar. My tele outshines this in every possible way. I may look into spending a little more on a Gretch.

Bought new in '99. Mexican "Deluxe Series". 2 Fender 'Atomic' humbuckers with 3-way switch and 2 volume and 2 tone controls as per Les Paul/SG set up. Maple neck with rosewood fingerboard (or rosewood effect?). Black with red shell effect scratchplate. Came with gig bag & allen keys for adjustments.

This guitar rocks. I play mostly indie rock, power pop and punk but also country, blues and even thrash metal (when on my own!).It never lacked anyhting soundwise in any of these styles. I was using it with a Peavey Bandit and a Zoom 505 pedal and from clean straight through to death metal sounds it just kept giving and giving. The neck pickup is warm and full and the bridge pickup is great for shredding.

Factory set-up sucked. The action was very poor and the strings weren't sitting right on the saddles. I have read in other reviews here that people did surgery on theirs, i.e. cutting screws etc. but I got mine into good shape after a couple hours of adjustments (bridge and saddle heights etc.)The 3-way toggle switch was loose and needed tightening, and the socket wasn't holding the jackplug snugly, in fact the lead was practically falling out of the guitar at every available oppurtunity. All of this was very shoddy in my opinion, but admittedly easy enough to correct. I'd recommend checking all these things before leaving the store and getting the dealer to sort them for you.The body finish was fine. The bridge is simple and unspectacular, a tremelo/bridge similar to a jazzmaster would have made this guitar special. This is a very light guitar (poplar body)and both it's weight and the neck/fingerboard(doesn't seem like real rosewood) are typically Mexican Fender.

This guitar is pretty solid and benefits from a fairly simple, straightforward setup. I've had no problems from normal wear and tear. I could maybe foresee the toggle switch packing up if you are gigging constantly with it and I'm not sure the tuning machines would last long either if you play this guitar hard (which it screams out for you to do!)

N/A

I've been plaing for 15 years and have played many guitars that feel better but few that sound better(if that makes any sense).The Toronado feels and plays like a typical Mexican Fender, but what sets it apart is the sweet sweet sound you can get from those humbuckers. I recently traded up to a Gibson SG standard and soundwise there's nothing between them (how about that, a $450 Fender sounding as good as a $1400 Gibson). It seems to be the perfect answer for people who prefer the Fender neck/body but want to sound like they are playing an LP or SG. The jaguar/jazzmaster-type looks are pretty cool too. Overall, very good value for money.

2001 model
made in mexico
22 frets
everything everyone else says

THESE PICKUPS WERE DESIGNED BY GOD!!!!!!!!
the rating was an average of the sound
12 with distortion
8 when clean
the sound is powerful enough to turn your brain to liquid and let it flow out of your ears!!!!!!
you can get an infinite number of tones from it

the action stunk from the factory
i fixed the action myself without knowing what i was doing with a allen wrench.
fit and finish were areat

everything but the tuners were great.
Buddy rogers refuses to sell the guitar because of the tuners!!
I'll replace them in a month or 2

lifetime warrenty on guitar
1 year on electronics and tuners(kinda tells you how good the tuners are)

been playing for 8 months.
if'in ya'll are looking at it online you should play it
if it is right fou you it will just click and you'll say "i gotsta get this"
some guys hate it
I love it!(is it legal to marry a Fender)
The whole package just fits together well!
except the tuners

Mexican made which like other things isn't so bad in this case. For some reason a couple of people have said it has 24 frets, well go back to school cause it has 22, count em!! Rosewood neck which feels so much better than maple to me, ,gig bag from fender, al that good stuff.

Its perfect, humbuckers sound great. I play a strat and this so i can get any tone possible. Love the pickups, sounds like a telecaster when on the bridge pickup and neck sounds like a les paul without the feel of a les paul (which is bad)

A beautiful guitar, couldn't ask for a prettier one. Love the tortoise shell pick guard and black finish. Awesome.

that's a dumb question.

I've heard stuff about fender quality and support going down hill and i think it's a bunch of crap. of course the quality is bad, if you buy a cheap guitar like a squier jagmaster. come on if you want a good guitar, you have to pay good money. Don't complain.

Just a great guitar. It's no paul reed but i like it this way. Not too elegant but not a grunge death guitar like a bc rich or something. It's got style and sounds like a dream. Been playing for almost 4 years and that's enough to know whats' good. Toronado=good, epiphone les paul=gibson squiers!!

Mine is a 1998 Candy Apple Red model; poplar body, maple neck and what seems to be a rosewood fingerboard (although mine *looks* more like pao ferro...)

I'll forgo listing all the features (since they are well documented in other posts), instead I decided to mention a couple things of interest I've discovered about about the little ol' Toronado:

Of course everybody knows that the Toronado comes with a pair of infamous "Atomic" humbuckers, but in typical fashion Fender doesn't care to divulge anymore info about their pickups than that. Anyway, I had to take the pickguard off to do some minor repairs (more on this later) and noticed something interesting about these pickups...

First, I need to mention that I recently bought a set of DeArmond "GoldTone" pickups (in case you didn't already know, Fender happens to own Guild, which in turn owns DeArmond).

Anyway, the design of these two pickup is remarkably similar when compared side by side. Of course there are notable differences; For one thing, the Atomic HB has a wider string spacing than the GoldTones (besides having totally different cover designs). They also use a slightly different colored wiring scheme. Both have wax all over them, so I can only assume that they've been wax potted.

No doubt they are quite different tone-wise. I haven't mounted the DeArmond PUs on anything yet but I'm sure the Atomic HBs are most likely considerably hotter. My guess is that Fender uses their DeArmond division to perhaps manufacture some of the pickups on a select few Fender guitars. This is fine with me since DeArmond has been making excellent replacement pickups for many years (long before Seymour Duncan was a glimmer in his daddy's eye anyway...)

The reason I looked under there in the first place was due to a slightly "microphonic" pickup cover on my Toronado's bridge pickup - it would squeal when I cranked the distortion on my amp. *This was definitely a loose pickup *cover* BTW - not to be confused with loose wires in the coil.

To fix the problem I had to remove the cover and in doing so I discovered another interesting little tidbit: The pickup coils are "zebra" colored (one black and one white), just like the ones used on the Toronado's cousin, the "Cyclone", which utilizes the open coil version of the Atomic HB. Not sure if the neck pickup is the same (I didn't remove its cover).

Another useless bit of trivia about the Toronado is the headstock. In case you didn't notice, it is bigger than the classic Fender Strat style, but not quite as large as the big 70's style. It's somewhere in-between. The Cyclone blurb at www.fender.com claims it has the original JazzMaster headstock, so me-thinks the Toronado has the same thing.

Besides the initial microphonic pickup cover problem (see more on my solution below), in my opinion the sound of this guitar is nothing short of awesome!

The first thing that comes to mind when I think of the Toronado is "sustain". There's definitely no lack of smooth, flowing sustain surging out of this guitar. I should also mention that I play though a Mesa/Boogie Rect-O-Verb, which is a sustain monster! But, I've also tried it through my little solid state Vox Pathfinder and it still displayed remarkable sustain characteristics, which is a true testament to the excellent design of this guitar... (of course results may vary).

The next thing that comes to mind is "harmonics". There is a superb balance of harmonics and sustain on this axe. It is very lively and responsive. The neck pickup is fat and smooth, while the bridge pickup really roars when you drive it hard! Hot, but not sterile or cold sounding. The tone is actually pretty warm even at full throttle(it's not easy to get high output and warm tone in the same package).

Also, back the volume off and the bridge pickup cleans up rather nicely. Don't get me wrong, this is no doubt a total rock guitar and wouldn't be well suited for anything considered "clean" (I'd say blues is as clean as it gets), but it can remain fairly articulate even with the distortion cranked (depending on your technique and the quality of your amp of course).

Power chords sound rich and "brownish" through my Rect-O-Verb, very smooth with a wonderful sheen to it. I dare say that an "early Eddie Van Halen tone" comes to mind when I use my Toronado/Rect-O-Verb combo.

Solos are the funnest part for me though; I can just sit around playing minor pentatonic rock scales and Santana riffs all day long and never grow tired of it. The neck pickup in particular gets me that Santana-like sustain everyone always talks about. Sure I'd like to get a PRS someday but, until then, I'd say the Toronado can handle the job well enough (and, at a fraction of the cost)!

Just keep in mind that a high quality amp is required to get most desireable results (I don't think a second-hand Squier Champ will do the "trick")... just food for thought...

A couple problems...

First, I'd like to point out that my Toronado was the display model at a Guitar Center in Las Vegas (I got it while on vacation)... so give it a little leeway will ya?

The first problem (which I already mentioned) was the pickup cover squealing thingy...

This was easily fixed; All I had to do was break the solder loose (which secured the cover to the base), then I took a piece of double sided mounting tape (the stuff that's about 1/16" thick) and postioned it between the bottom of the cover and the top of the coils for a tight seal. All that remained was resoldering the cover down and voila!... problem solved. Now I can literally have the pickup sitting two inches from my cranked amp with no fear of a squawk or squeal or anything! excellent...

The next problem I had was the 3-way toggle switch: It would never stay on the up (neck) position, popping back to the middle all the time. This was also easily fixed; After taking the pickguard off, all I had to do was pry one of the connectors back in place.

Lastly, there was a chip taken out of the finish, probably by some inconsiderate klutz at Guitar Center. On the upside, I got the guitar for only $200 bucks! The chip was near the top strap button, (towards the back of the body) and since no one can see it anyway, I didn't really care. I found some matching touch-up paint and dabbed a little in there. Otherwise the finish is actually very hard and durable and the rest of it is absolutely beautiful (I highly recommend the Candy Apple Red finish BTW).

The setup wasn't great but, like I said, this was the display model and was sold "as is". After getting a complete setup by my own very talented guitar tech, it now plays like a dream!

Points were docked for the first couple problems, and, even though they weren't that big a deal, I still had to take the time to render them harmless...

Since I got it back in tip-top shape, I feel confident that it can endure the usual abuse (especially considering it survived being the display model at Guitar Center)!

I bought this thing in May of 2000, so I've had it a little over a year now. In that time I've run it through its paces and can say it impresses me as being a very serious guitar...

When the Toronado was first released I thought it was the best design that Fender has put out in years (and they've put out some real stinkers in the past).

Although it obviously takes its styling cues from the Jaguar/Jazzmaster models, it is just different enough that you don't automatically make that distinction right away. Compared to its cousin, the Cyclone, it looks handsome and balanced (frankly, to me the Cyclone looks like it was made from spare parts just lying around).

I WAS considering getting a Toronado when they first came out, but didn't think it was worth the $500 asking price. Now that I have one I can truly say that it's worth every penny! I know that's easy for me to say now, since I only paid $200 for mine (and I'm fairly sure I would have never gotten one at the full retail price), but if you need a true honest-to-goodness rock machine, the Toronado definitely does the job!

I also own several other quality guitars, including a Les Paul Studio, a Fender Tele, a Carvin DC200, a Fender 50's reissue Strat, an Epiphone Casino, a Danelectro Mod 6, a Fender lead-I and a Fender acoustic DG22CE. My amps include the Mesa/Boogie ROV, a cool little Carvin X-60 tube combo, a vintage Ampeg SB-12 Portaflex (circa 1965) and the Vox Pathfinder (also a cool little amp).

I love all my guitars, so I can't really say whether I'd only own a Toronado as my "main" guitar, but if you mostly play heavy rock I'd say it makes a very good choice. It can also do the blues, but doesn't really "look" like a blues guitar (if you know what I mean...)

I recommend this guitar for anybody looking for something a little different (ie: other than the "big three"... Strat, Tele, Les Paul styles), while still remaining conventional and affordable.

My final thought is this: "I LOVE MY TORONADO"!

Good Luck!

1999, Mexico. 22 frets.
2 tone/ 2 volume knobs. 3-way selector.
Humbucker/Humbucker setup.
Fender "Atomic" humbuckers.
The body is a light and cheap poplar; the neck is sort of a maple and walnut mix.
Transparent top with a sunburst finish.
String through body.
the tuners are nice and thick.
Medium jumbo frets--great for bending: jazz, BLUES.
The gig bag didn't show up, so I got a hardshell for $15.

Sound upon sound!!!
It sounds like a cross between a Gibson flying V and a Telecaster.
Bright sound...but only to a certain extent. Without a single coil in the mix, there is a mild lack in bight. The thud is very heavy though. It has sounds ranging from an antique bass to modern $1000+ humbucker-based guitars.
Much love for the off-set waist. Makes all 22 frets useful to the end. The only bad thing is the neck--it keeps saying "replace me with an actual rosewood fingerboard". But the frets do kick much ass.

Good setup for the price. String/bridge changes were needed, along with a dramatic change in the truss rod's bend. The pickups are set perfectly. It's just the damn 3-way switch. Sometimes it needs an extra jiggle...almost like the wire is barely clinging to electricity. I think Fender knew about that one but let it slide. Excellent over-sized tuners!
The body's wood is light, but it's good to have a light body in the arsenal with the strat(with an ash body), or Les Paul.

Live playing=yes.
The hardware will last but will need to be upgraded probably every 5 years or so--wire connections, etc.
The finish is good and strong. That's surprising because the body is so light.
Solid strap buttons. I've depended on the Toronado for 2 years and haven't been let down yet.
It is a great guitar, but I would never go gigging without a backup.

Fender is good. Reliable with their guarantees. Information about their products are abundant.
NEVER BUY A FENDER WITHOUT PLAYING IT FIRST.
Having said that, feel comfortable paying 4-500 for a Toronado.
Warranty...what's a warranty?

I've only been playing five years, but I've played many types/brands on the market, both popular and nearly unheard of. I reccommend that buyers ask about a warranty before buying just to be sure.
If it was stolen I'd buy a used model for no more than $2-250; yeah, I'd buy another.
I love the off-set waist, it makes thudding lows and screeching highs possible. I dislike the fingerboard's wood--it feels like it doesn't have a finishing coat or something.
I like the body shape. It seems to cross a Jaguar with a Telecaster with a Strat: completely impossible until now.
I wish the 3-way switch was more reliable and the body was ash, but if that were true it would probably be another one of Fender's $1000 whoop-dee-doo's.

Buy it if you like strats, les pauls, or want something new. It's worth the money but no more than $600 tops(retail value).

This guitar was made at Fender's Plant in Baja Mexico
22 frets (med Jumbos), Solid Top poplar, 2 volume, 2 tone, dual humbuckers(Fender Atomics SWEET!!). Maple Neck with rosewood fingerboard.

The Body is an offset waist.
The features for This price range are what I expected.

no surprises there.

AMAZING Sound... one hears that alot but think about the meaning
of that superlative while I say it again...Listen! here it comes
A FUKIN MAZING fat sweet tone, Squawky harmonics in overdrive.

The front humbucker would make muddy or BB cry like a baby.

I am simply thrilled. To get this sound out of any other fender
you will have to find a Robben Ford sig from the custom shop for
3500.00 smaks...

I play through a 1977 fender tube princeton reverb II
Sweet.

The setup was done by folks at guitarstop.com

They do an excellent Job, but I had read these reviews on it before
I bought, so I was prepared to destroy their setup and intonation.

I cut the 9's that came on it off with pruning shears, replaced the
saddles with some highly polished ones from the custom shop.

Removed the light vintage machines and replaced them with
Sperzel locking ones, threw on some tens and reintonated it.

Has not given me any problems at all...

I am only giving it a six here though now with my hardware setup it
is a 10. But to be fair at 499.00 I was expecting to tweak and replace anyway.

I am only using this guitar on stage now..
I never use a backup.
Strap buttons are fine.
If you pull a lot of stunts while strapped though you will
want locking ones.

Very durable guitar...

Never Dealt with fender directly,

Never had to as Jeanne at www.guitarstop.com
Provides fantastic service... Their selection on hand
is limited but They probably could get you anything you
wanted.

I have owned about 17 guitars,

I have a couple of very expensive, so called "classics"
That blow chunks compared to this hunk of poplar.
Now I am a big fan of cheap guitars...

Fuck all those boutique handmade snobs...
Overbuilt, overpriced and anemic sounding crap..

I give the Toronado a 9 only because of the hardware
I had to replace, and the setup I had to do.

Bought this guitar new in 1999. Vintage white with a brown pick guard. kinda looks like a jazz master. very cool looking. Atomic humbucker pickups. it's like what other reviewers are saying a cross between a les paul and a strat. would suit players that favor playing fenders but would like a fatter tone than a single coil strat has to offer. rose wood finger board, threeway pickup selector (like a les paul) two volume and two tone controls. came with a gig bag. I give this a ten because it had everything that sparked my interest to buy it in the first place.

simply put......this guitar sounds beautiful. I love playing fenders and gigged with my strat quite often and thought this would be a cool second guitar to bring along as well. when i plugged in and started playing it i ended up gigging with this one more than my strat! this guitar feels real light and balanced when strapped on. It's lighter than my 79 strat. I play chicago blues, delta blues, and west coast jump styles. When i first got this i was playing through a fender hot rod deluxe i picked up doing a stint with a blues rock band. thought this guitar sounded great through this amp. then i bought a victoria 4-10 bassman and plugged in.........THIS GUITAR'S TONE BLEW ME AWAY! I've been playing for over 20 years now and have not been moved by a guitar's tone like this in a long time. I'm not exaggerating. this guitar sounded so fat, clean and smooth that you'd swear it was an old jazz fatbox guitar! when cranked up the natural overdrive tone of the guitar and my vic is undescribeable. i was so blown away i called a friend of mine and played it over the phone and he too could not believe it! When playing through my victoria i get so many little subtle tones that it's like strapping on a strap, les paul, and my silvertone 50's fatbox all at the same time.

now........the down side. I put 11's on it when i got it and proceeded to set the intonation. much to my dismay i had to remove a couple springs to get the saddles where they needed to be and on two other strings had to remove the actual saddle adjusting screws and cut them down to get the intonation set on THOSE strings! i tried to set the action on how fender recommends the string heights and there was know way possible. i like my action a little higher so all in all i got the intonation set and the guitar plays nicely. i've had a problem with the pickup selector. I've had it happen on a few instances when i go from the neck pickup to the bridge pickup it grounds out somehow and there is no sound! this is unnerving when playing live in a club. I've taken it apart and made sure the switch is getting a good connection when in either pickup position. i also sprayed some contact cleaner in it and so far it has functioned o.k. went to restring it the other day.........my D string tuning head out of the blue started to get real tight than suddenly acted as if it stripped out not allowing me to string it!!!!!! i took this apart which was damn near impossible and after thinking i ruined it(no big deal considering it wasn't going to serve it's purpose in the condition it was in anyway)i got this to work again as well.

I do LOVE THE SOUND of this guitar but due to the problems i've encountered could not possibly bring myself to using this one at a gig without a backup. I feel you get what you pay for and now realize why you pay the big bucks for the american made fenders! I bought my 1979 strat used 18yrs. ago and never had a problem with it yet! I own eight other guitars so hadn't played this one in a while. thought about selling it until i plugged it into my victoria and decided ain't no way i'm selling this one!

bought it through a mail order catalog so i chose to handle the things that went wrong myself. these little problems didn't occur all at once and happened after i owned it awhile.

Like i say i love the tone of this thing. after working on it and getting it to how i like it it plays very nice. i feel despite what i encountered it was worth the money.

this is a new baby, yr 2000. its black
scale is 24 3/4
comes with a gig bag

this guitar was exactly what i wanted. for some reason i can only play fender necks, i can't explain why. i also love humbucker guitars, single coils suck.
here's my summary:
-initial setup was ok, but don't expect great setups from fender on any guitars, this is where fender really lacks
-the tone and volume pots, and output jack were loose, typical for fender
-the pickups were really nice and hot. they still had that somewhat strat sound, but really hot. i like the pickups, but not as good as PRS or gibson 490's humbuuckers.
-the nut on the guitar was a disapointment, not much craftmanship there
-the stupid string stoppers on the back of the body were loose and feel off when the strings were removed. Fender, your quality has really gone down hill. HOW HARD IS IT, to DRILL to THE CORRECT SIZE, HUH ??!!!! pull your F head out fender, your starting to make guitars like gibson. i ended up glueing them in.
- the paint job was top notch
-the 3 way switch on mine was quiet. but, very sensitive to touch, thus could go to center position if breathed on.
-the neck felt good. i had some slight buzzing when i went to 10's. i really don't know if the 10's fit the nut very well. i might take it in and have a bearing nut installed.
-tuners seem to work fine. i like the vintage tuner look also.
-nice bridge
-stupid volume/tone knobs are huge. you'll lose about 5 lbs in your guitar if you remove them.
overall, i don't think you could ask for a better guitar for the price. its really what i like, fender neck with bad ass humbuckers to get that thick overdrive sound for rock blues.

factory setup sucked. fender does this even on they're expensive guitars. i've bought PRS also, and they're setup doesn't impress me. carvin is the only one who knows how to set up guitars. gibson quality is the shits also. i really like carvin guitars.

pickups adjust fine, except the stupid screws aren't long enough and can come out very easily. its tough trying to get it back in the hole without taking the pickguard off.

after a while you'll start to break strings due to the saddles. this is the case with all fenders, parkers and PRS's. i had one hell of time with PRS bridges. i was breaking strings after 1/2 hr of playen. PRS your way over rated !!. i installed graphite saddles onto the toronado. they work great
the nut on this guitar was poor. it was meant for 9's.

the guitar seems pretty stout. what i really hated about this guitar was the volume and tone knobs. i would say each knob weighs about a pound and about 1" in diameter. i took the stupid things off. i'll buy some little ones from carvin.

don't know
i hope they read this review and fix their quality problem

been playen for 8 yrs ...
i've owned every dam guitar out there.
i'm getting sick of buying and selling
i think i'll stick with this guitar for a while. it does almost everything i want. i wish the humbuckers could split into singles.
i might put some new pickups in that allow the split to single.
i like this guitar for the reason of the fender neck and the humbuckers and the fixed bridge.
if it got stolen i would buy another. i'm thinken of buying another anyway, another color.

overall, i like the guitar. the setup and other problems i mentioned don't shock me, since i've owned many new fenders.
if i could get used to carvin necks, i would only buy carvin.
maybe i should sell all my fender stuff and just have carvin, that would force me to play and get familar with their 24 fret thin neck.

hmmmmmmmmmmm, here i come carvin !!!!

maybe PRS, GIBSON, and fender could take some lessons in quality from carvin.

anyway, the toronado is a cool guitar, with some minor setup problems.
the nut is the only thing that really bothered me, besides the huge volume knobs.

A 1999 Mexican made fender Toronado, 21 frets, I think, solid top sunburst finish. 2 volume and tone knobs with 3 way switch, two humbuckers like gibson. Poplar body, maple neck, rosewood fretboard. Cool offset boady, hard tail thru body bridge thingy. The tuners on it are stupid, fender should use through the post ones. 24.75" scale neck, came with a gig bag.

I play punk/emo/ska and the humbuckers work nicely for that. I don't really use any effects, my amp now is a Crate GX-15 I'll be getting a Stage 160 soon though. It sounds alot better than my Epiphone G-400, and a very nice guitar for the price I paid.

The guitar was set up well, Although I didn't like the 9s it came with, so I put 10s on it and raised a saddle and now and it is mucho good. No finish flaws, the guitar is a freaking rock.

It'll withstand live playing all right. It's quite solid. Finish is really good, i've bumped it constantly since I got it and it seems ok still. The strap buttons were ok, but I put strap locks on anyway. I can depend on this for just about anything. I'd gig without a backup with this guitar, its rock frickin solid.

I dunno, never used.

A very good guitar, quite versatile and well built. would recommend it to anyone, if stolen I'd get another one, in an instant. Very very good guitar. and for under $500 who can resist?

Mine is a 1999 Toronado, Black with tortoise pickguard, dual "Atomic" humbuckers, dual volume and tone controls, three way toggle switch, rosewood fingerboard, strat style neck, hard tail bridge with strings going through the body, vintage tuners. I give the features a 7 only because I ended up replacing the tuners and the saddles (see Action, Fit, Finish for details). I also glued the string anchors on the back of the guitar.

Awesome!! I demo-ed the Toronado through a Fender Twin, a Fender Prosonic and a Mesa Single Rectifier. Each amp, obviously, changed the sound drastically, but the guitar sounded fantastic through each one. I use overdriven sounds associated with punk, rock and metal, and clean tones for country and funk. This guitar does them all excellently. Coupled with my Prosonic, I can get truly wonderful clean, bright country sounds in all pick-up settings. As a lead guitar, this thing gushes overtones in all directions, which I love. The pickups are hot, but not biting and "too much" like some Les Paul humbuckers I've dealt with. All sounds, from quiet to full volume, are usable. The neck pickup is set back enough to rid it of the overmuddy effect of other 22-fret guitars. Lastly, the tone knobs actually work and do not kill the sound of the pickup when turned down. They sweep gradually across the frequencies, offering up tons of usable tones.

The factory set-up stunk. I gave the features a 7, only becuase I ended up replacing the vintage tuners with Spirzle locking tuners and replaced the retro-styled string brass saddles with All Parts graphite ones. The vintage tuners were flimsy and light weight; the Spirzles are rock solid and heavy (they change how the guitar feels on the body and in the hand). The sadles were uncomfortable when I rested my hand on the bridge becuase the adjusting screws had to stick out too far (tech-y note: screws stuck out due to neck angle, so a neck seat shim might have changed that). The All Parts graphites are great, providing a smooth surface, but I had to file down the sides of them to get them to fit side-by-side. All in all, I now have a perfectly intonated, more solid feeling and comfortable guitar. Also, it looks cool. The Spirzles are grey and match the Fender logo on the headstock, and the saddles are black, looking a bit modern. It's not as vintage looking this way. With about $80 and 5 hours of work, this guitar is fantastic. I also put a dab of superglue on the string anchors in the back of the guitar...an easy fix to them falling out.

Those tuners weren't enough for my heavy handed style (or for heavy strings). The rest of the guitar seems ready for the road.

Standard Fender warranty, but I usually do my own work, so I don't know about the CS.

I give the guitar a 10 because it does everything a Paul Reed Smith can do at about a 5th of the price (literally). I like having a great guitar that can sit out in a bar without me worrying about it. This guitar also looks fantastic, though I am interested in retro-fitted pickguards, just for fun. My other electric guitar is a custom shop Tele Jr., and my amp is a Prosonic. With these three items, I can get just about any sound I want, with the exception of those really Stratty sounds which only a strat can do. I'm close enough to a Les Paul through a Marshall to keep me happy. I'm also close enough to a Tele through a Twin to keep me happy. I compared the Toronado with the Paul Reed Smiths, the Ernie Ball Musicmans and the Fender Big Apple Strat. PRS is great, but so pricey. The Ernie Balls are great, too, but not classic looking. The Big Apple...well is it a Strat or not? The Toronado was cheap, classy looking and has it's own identity. It just needs a little work to finish it off.

Standard Toronado features, already described by other reviewers. Just like to mention that mine is in candy apple red. Beautiful. The neck is smooth and plays very well. One complaint is the large wood-chunk like thing where the neck is bolted onto the body; it making reaching the high frets difficult... but not impossible.
It came with a really nice gig bag too. When i ordered from musician's friend, they also "gave" me a guitar stand, tuner, cable and strap.

The toronado has great sound if you are looking for a rock guitar. The distortion i get out of this thing is amazing, and it's easy to get. However, it's clean sounds are more limited and it takes a lot more tweaking and time to find a good one.

Petty complaints aside - Bottom line: this guitar rocks.

The finish is beautiful. I love the shape and contours of the body. It's thin and lightweight, yet looks sturdy and solid. Everything was set up pretty well; nicely cut nut, smooth frets; good action etc. Came with a set of shitty 9's, which probably need replacing, but again, petty complaints aside, it's great, especially for a guitar priced in the middle range.

Some reviewers complained about the tone and volume knobs falling off, but i don't foresee any of these problems (just watch em fall off tomorrow). Looks solid as a rock; i would definitely feel secure without a backup.

Not sure, never dealt with them.

I've been playing for almost 3 years now; my first guitar was a shitty ibanez rg270. Some people rave about that guitar, but i'd be complimenting it to call it a piece of shit. That aside, i play through a Vox Cambridge and use boss effects and a POD. This guitar will definitely show up on my band's recordings and at rehearsals (if we finally get a gig, i will use this guitar without a second thought). Like i said already, the clean sounds are lacking a little, but this is more than compensated by the kick ass distortion you can get. Coupled with a nice price and beautiful yet unique look, it's just a great rock guitar for the player on a budget. Simple.

2000 Fender Toronado, Atomic Humbuckers, Sunburst Finish. "Classic" Tuners. Rosewood neck.

Tone is great. I usually play a Tele or Rick, so this added a new dimention to my playing. Seperate volume and tone controls allow infinate tonal possibilities.

I originally bought one that would not stay in tune. The intonation
at the 12th fret was way off. I tried everything to get it close, but ran out of adjustment possibilities. I returned the guitar and exchanged it for an other one. This one has great action and adjusts
fine. Would be nice to have American Standard hardware. The "deluxe"
hardware sucks. The wood finish/neck and electronics are great.

Great guitar for any situation. Very solid construction.

Don't know.

Good solid guitar with great tone. Excellent playability.

Bought new for $399 in late 1999, dual atomic humbuckers. This baby gets loud. Had problems restringing. Ive lost several of the small metal bolts that go in the back to hold the string implace. Plays like a strat, similar rosewood neck and fretboard. easy to play. Mine is black with a red pickguard, slick body design, looks as good as it plays.

I play a lot of bluesy rock, and harder rock, like led zeplin. Distorts exceptionally well, loud and obnoctious humbuckers give plenty of quack. have had feedback problems that i hadent had with other fenders, pickup switch provides a good range of quality sounds, from smooth murky rythm to high end cretching treble more sutable for soloing. Great for live performance, and for recording lead guitar parts.

This guitar plays like a dream. Quick fretboard, havent had to adjust a thing, (except minor bridge adjustments). Tuners don't turn exceptoinally well, and it would be nice if fende grew up and used loop through tuners like on gibsons. The finish looks great, but its prety hard to screw up black.

I donot nurture my guitars, and this one has taken a beating. Ive lost the metal cups that hold the ends of the strings. if you break a string live they just fall off. Humbucker fell into the guitar twice, requiring an hour or so to repair. I would always use a backup. but then again if i treated it a little better, it would probably hold togther a little better.

havent talked to fender

Overal good guitar, fun and easy to play. Excelent sound quality, and good versetility. However i downgrade it due to its lack of drability, wich i found surprising considering the fact that it is a fender.

I bought this guitar a few months ago, but I think it is a 99' or early 2000. I know it is made in Mexico. The neck and headstock are exactly like a Strat which is fine by me. Vintage tuners. Mine is black with an awesome red pickguard with black flakes in it. Looks like a 1973 ashtray. :) The guitar comes with two chrome covered humbuckers. The pickups look like something you would see in a Les Paul. I put Dimarzio strap locks on it because I like to move around a lot, but I think the stock ones are really sturdy. Nice big body. I really like the way this guitar looks. Looks so different than a lot of things out there.

I play a wide variety of music, and this is where the guitar shines. It really is a Strat crossed with a Les Paul. It is like they threw the two guitars into a pot, stirred it up, and this came out. The whole feel of the neck is Fender Strat. The body is thin like a strat also. The pickups, pickup selector and girth of the guitar all scream Les Paul. As far as the pickup sounds go, they really are amazing. Nice heavy chunky sound out of the bridge and more of a vintage sound out of the neck. You can get a good Pearl Jam solo sound out of the neck pickup. Like I said, so Fender strat. This guitar has a real full sound. Not harsh at all. Warm. I was using a Johnson Marquis 60 with this guitar and it sounded great. I bought a Mesa Dual Rectifier yesterday and now the guitar really sings. I love the sound so much I want to buy another one.

Guitar just feels really solid. At first I didn't like the vintage tuners because the strings didn't seem to sit tight in there. Now that I have changed strings, I love them. Easy to change strings, etc. The only thing I noticed (and it might be on all of them) is the area where the strings go through the guitar. The strings go through the back of the guitar and then are pulled through the bridge, etc. Well in the back, where the strings go through there are these little metal pieces that hold the strings. When you take your strings off, these things just come off with them. I wish they were glued, etc. to the actual guitar.

I defintely think this guitar can hold up. It feels really solid. Feels like a guitar costing twice as much. I have played shows with it and had no probs. I broke a D string at practice one day, but I think I had a bad string. It broke in a really weird spot. I have not had one snap again. Guitar stays in tune really good with 10's!

I have not tried to deal with Fender really, but I don't really care for their website because it locks up my computer when I go there. They have something wrong with their site. Fender is so big of a company that I probably would not try to contact them. It would probably be a pain.

Give this guitar a whirl. It is really inovative and is a refreshing change from all of the regular shapes out there. If you like Fender guitars then definitely need to try this one out! I would buy another without delay. Oh, also a really sturdy gig bag comes with it. It is a really padded, nice one. I think my favorite feature about this guitar is the way it looks. For it to sound this nice is an extra bonus.

The features on this guitar are great. Mine is a 1998 in black with a brown shell pickguard. 2 vol. and 2 tone knobs. 3-way selector. Stationary bridge. I was at first hesistant to try the guitar because I'm not a fan of poplar bodies; however, the guitar had a nice feel to it. I now praise the poplar body--it keeps the fairly large guitar light weight--awesome for playing live. The vintage tuners were a welcome change because I find it easier and neater to re-string my guitar. The tuners don't lock, but I've not had any intonation problems. The neck is fairly think, especially for my small hands, but it has a nice silky feel and is considerably stronger than most necks. The 22 med.-jumbo frets are finished nicely on the rosewood fretboar. The pick-ups are nice (humbuckers in neck and bridge), but I'm lightly considering ptting in a Duncan '59 in the neck and Duncan Pearly Gates in the bridge.

The sound didn't appeal to me at first--this was my bias against poplar wood shining through. The guitar has a comfortable weight and resonance to it, both due to the wood selection. I use the guitar into a either a Fender Deluxe or Princeton chorus. I play in two bands (one jazz/blues oriented, and the other hard rock oriented) and this guitar provides for both nicely. Playing live with this guitar is so nice, especially with the light weight. I play only rhythm guitar and this guitar does nice for me. The pick-up selector makes noise sometimes when switching. I don't, however, switch in the middle of a sing so this doesn't bother me much.

The action was nice with the factory 9's. When I switched to 10's I did have to raise the action a little, but it really was no trouble. The pick-up height was fine. I've had to do some truss-rod adjustment, but that to was not much of a hassle. The body finish is especially adept at taking abuse. There were no scratches, and after two years still none--even with using it to gig. There was a minor flaw on the fretboard, perhaps a tiny speck of glue, but I simply picked it off, and it left almost no trace. The rosewood fretboard seems drier than most rosewood fretboards I've used, thus, I oil the board more than I would deem necessary with the "standard" guitar.

This guitar has withstood two years of heavy use. The hardware will definately last through whatever you put it through. It is perfectly dependable and I can gig with out any backup. The strap buttons were ok, but I replaced them with a clip-lock strap. 100% durable.

I used to call Fender on a regular basis posing as a Fender dealer, and I received all sorts of wonderful information. Finding out the actual dealer prices were the greatest. I have not called Fender in a number of years, but friends have mentioned the support has been lacking recently.

I am in love with this guitar. There definately was a period where I wish I had bought a strat; however, over time the guitar grows on you. I have been able to easily overlook any limitaions it has because it plays so nice.

this is my favorite guitar i have ever played. it is a 2000 candy apple red fender toronado, 24 fret, 2 atomic pick-ups, ect, ect. the neck feels great in my hands, it is great for playing rythem and solos.

i am in one hardcore heavy metal band, and one jazz blues band, and this guitar does great with both. i use a boss-me30 multi efects proscesor, and the guitar does wonders with it.

guitars are just like girls, i look for the best action i can find. the toronado was just that.

it is built very, very nicely.

n/a

i love this guitar, the action is great, and it sounds beautiful.

This is a late 90s Fender Toronado. It has 2 Atomic Humbucker pickups, 2 volume knobs, two tone knobs, and a 3 way selector switch. It has a body similar to a Fender Jaguar. The bridge is a string thru. It has a neck just like a strat, and it has a great feel to it.

The Atomic Humbuckers are definitely atomic. They have a great sound that makes you think you're playing a Les Paul. The neck pickup sounds so full and deep and it has tone that you would die for. The bridge pickup rarely sounds nasily. I play through an old Seymour Duncan Tube amp and when cranked it sounds so great. I have two Danelectro distortion pedals and a Vox wah, and the guitar sounds good w/ all of them, especially the wah. My band plays everything from modern rock to punk to funk and this guitar works for all those styles.

The action and pickup adjustment are perfect. I would've given it a 10 in this category but the pickup selector is very noisy and needs to be replaced and both tone knobs are loose.

I've played this guitar live 3 or 4 times, and haven't broken a string during a performance yet, and the hardware seems very durable, as does the finish.

Haven't has to deal with them yet.

The Toronado is said to be the guitar that has the feel of a Fender with the sound of a Gibson. That is exactly what it is. I have been playing for two and a half years, my other guitar is a Squier Strat, so this was a big step up. When I was buying it, it was between this and an Epiphone Les Paul, this beat the Epi in everything. I love this guitar, and if anyone ever stole it, I would cry, and then hunt them down like the dog that they are.

2000, Mexican made, Poplar body with Candy-Apple finish, 24 frets, contoured offset body, 2 volume. 2 tone knobs, twin Atomic Humbuckers (they are not kidding when they say Atomic!), rosewood fingerboard with jumbo frets, satin finished skunk stripe neck (silk!), hard-tail string through body, vintage tuners (will change to Sperzel Locking).

I play mostly blues and classic rock. The humbuckers are HUGE and with the 2 volume/2 tone configuration knobs, there are endless tonal capabilities, absolutely phenomonal! Name your tone.......betcha I can get it! I use a Yamaha DG-100 2x12 and it mates with this guitar wonderfully. Switched from Matchless All Tube (all weight, all problems) to solid state Yamaha modelling amp and am extremely pleased. This amp actually comes on when you turn on the switch! Imagine that tube-heads.

This guitar and the Fender plant in Mexico are; at least for now; the best kept secret around. The Candy-Apple red finish is breath-taking. When was the last time anyone saw a Candy-Apple red Fender anything new? Pick-up height adjusted from factory and left.

Will use this as a primary guitar without back-up because it is what it should be....durable. Everything about this axe is built to last and will take a beating on the club circuit. This ain't yo' mamma's Oldsmobile, Toto!

It's a Fender..................never have, nor will I ever, need this service...........as I said, It's a Fender!

As I said before, this is the best kept secret around. The Toronado takes Fender down a different path, and boy are they running! Something this good will invariably saturate the market soon enough, but for now, we are safe. If someone were to steel this guitar; may God have mercy on your sould should we cross paths. I would beat you with the replacement.

I love this guitar--it's features have been extensively detailed by other reviewers so I won't bore you with that. Mine came with a really nice gig bag--so nice that I haven't invested in a hard case yet.

The sound is beautiful--full of rich bass. I'd have to agree that the pickups are a bit noisy when your hand is not in contact with the metal parts of the guitar, but if you are playing, that's not a problem. I play Clapton, blues, rock, etc. and this really fits the bill.

The first one I ordered was vintage white--mucho ugly--I returned it and got a candy apple red one--beautiful. More info on why I returned the first guitar is in the next section.

O.K. this is why I bothered to submit a review when there was already so many out there. I bought my Toronado from Musicians Friend and when I pulled it out of the box there was a huge chip on the bottom of the guitar--all the way to the wood. I have no idea how much force it took to make that chip because I couldn't believe how thick the finish was! They must have taken a sledgehammer to it! Needless to say I shipped it right back and they replaced it ASAP. Despite the bad apple I got the first time--kudos to Fender for putting such a nice, thick finish on this guitar.

n/a

If it was stolen, I'd cry for days and then overextend my credit limit to buy another.

I have a 1998, Mexican made, 22 fret, black Toronado. It has 2 volume and 2 tone knobs. It has dual humbuckers, an ugly pickguard called shell, and a finish from hell (compliment). This thing could take a brick wall down and have minor scratches. Much tougher than my Gibson. It has an offset body style that kind of resembles a jazzmaster or jaguar. Mine came with vintage style strat tuners, the thing is that the G strings tuner had a broken gear part so tuning wasn't possible without a screwdriver, but replacing wasn't had or expensive. It came with a gig bag, blah, blah, blah

I play everything from The Beatles to Dave Matthews Band to Meshuggah to Metallica (you get it) and this guitar really throws a crunch on distortion. It sounds especially great with any kind of BOSS metal distortion and chorus. It has a minor buzzing (which is easily ignored or eliminated with a noise suppresor). You can play anything with this guitar. I really don't have a complaint about the sound.

The action settings were fine as was everything else from the factory except the tuners which I mentioned earlier. The pickups were fine, very good actually. Really other than the tuner the guitar was perfect.

This guitar was withstood live playing, sweat, beatings you name it. Everything feels like it was built to last. The finish is perfect. This thing has hit the sharp edges of my bed many times and finally after months of doing this it got one minor dent in the bottom. The strap buttons have needed work so I replaced them with locking ones. This is one hell of a dependable guitar. The only thing that would ever give out would be the strings.

never dealt with them

It's well worth the money and maybe some more. This was the guitar that made me realize how badly some of my others sounded. I love this guitar, if it was stolen I would replace it but still hunt down the person who took and beat them. I got it because Fender was a big name, and this was string through and dual humbuckers, unlike most other Fender so I took a chance and love it.

This guitar..a black with red tortoise shell pickguard..is beautiful..solid hardtail string thru the back type thing...the tuners are fab..no problems with it going out of tune. the neck is thin..vrey comfortable..actually the whole body is contoured "off-set waist" so it really grabs your body when you cradle it. Medium jumbo frets..very cool..nothing gets in the way of your playing. Two Fender Atomic Humbuckers...decent pickups..but i think probably im gonna slap an EMG on it..since i favor that screamy dreamy tone of Zakk wylde...which is strange becuase i play more mellow rock/blues. It comes in a cool gig bag...the factory settings were ok...the factory strings blew chunks..they were like 9's..just rubber bands almost.

Becuase my influences are so broad...(tool, radiohead, led zep, clapton, kiss, g'n'r ,pink floyd..etc.) I HAVE to have versatility in sound..becuase i cant just swap guitars all night at a gig. So the toronado fits me perfect..do a little tweak with the tone knobs...and the sound just varies..its really a big difference...i love it. form a strat-like to tele-like to a warm, fat fender tone. Its a fender tone mind you, even with humbuckers.

factory settings were ok..but i did some adjustments of my own..since i had to take the factory 9's off..and slap some 12's on..my own demonicly favorite gauge. no flaws at all..every met my exacting standards..except the factory settings blew ass...bottom line..so definitely plan to learn to screw with truss rods and pickups. okie?

One of my tone knobs fell off..but a screwdriver and a little muscle...and the damn thing will be on there for years..but those knobs arent plasticky pieces of crap but heavy metal chunks..so its quality stuff! Im confident this guitar will keep on rockin after taking a few beatings.

never used it..but its got a fender lifetime warranty..so thats kind of reassuring.

this thing is a work of art...for the price its a steal...this should be like a 700 dollar guitar easily...one of my japanese friends..says that the toronados are getting popular in Japan..normally guitars are expensive there..and the toronado surprisngly can fetch a price as high as vintage strats..i can see why..these guitars have nice tone...built solid..look great...and are definitely unique...this guitar is for that unique guitarist...lookin for the unique sound.

MIM, medium-jumbo frets, dual humbuckers, hard-tail.

Play mostly R&B. I use it through a Hughes & Kettner Club Reverb. The bridge pickup in this combination sounds a lot like surf-style. The sound combinations are wide due to the individual volume controls.

I returned the first one due to a wiring problem in the bridge pickup. The replacement was nearly flawless with the exception of a loose string retainer. Finish is superb. Candy-apple red is beautiful with the back/red pickguard.

Seems solid as a rock.

No dealings with Fender, but Musician's Friend was very good at swapping the defective one. They sent UPS to my office to pick up the defective one.

This is rapidly becoming my favorite guitar. I have seven, including a Strat with Custom Shop '50s installed. It is my 'orphan' guitar when I go to select one, but each time I pick it up to play, I wonder why I don't do it more often. This is one fine guitar.

My toronado is a '98, made in mexico. It has 22 frets, is set up in the electronics department like most other dual humbucker guitars: with a three way selector switch and individual tone and volume controls. Mine is black with a red tortoise shell pickgard and chrome bridge, knobs, tuners, and humbucker covers. The shape of a Toronado is basically like a plump jazzmaster. The bridge is a 'hardtail', string through body design. The tuners seem to be really nice 'vintage style' non-locking tuners. I have had no problems at all keeping this guitar in tune (and I bend a lot). The scale length is 24.75", and it came with little whimpy strings that sounded like little faries trying to yell at you. The toronado is a beautiful looking guitar. If there is more you need to know, then there are other submissions. Oh, it came with a really nice gig bag. I hate gig bags, but every time I go somewhere with it everyone says "nice bag"... so I guess that is a good thing... if you like gig bags.

I like to play (or try to play) delta style blues, but most of what I play is indy rock type sound- you know; from melancholy slowness, to aggressive distortion, and then back again. I think this guitar works great for meeting my needs in the sound department. What I love about this guitar is that it is so versatile, I can adjust the tone to be bright and full like a nice jazz guitar, or i can make it muddy and dead like a blues guitar, or I can go for that fender 'thin' sound. When I'm trying to learn a new song, I can adjust my sound to be that of the guitar in the song I'm trying to learn... it's deadly versatile. The selector switch makes a little clicking when I switch it, and the humbuckers kind of (ironically) hum. The humming only starts when I'm not touching any of the metal contacts: like the strings or the bridge. I want to drop some new humbuckers in, but there are so many to choose from that I have been holding off until I have a chance to play with a whole bunch of other ones. I play through a little fender frontman 25r... not a bad practice amp. I have played it through twin reverbs, and ampegs... it still sounds like the same guitar, just amplified better. I think the sound is great in the versatility department, but I wish the pickups could go that extra mile, they tend to get a bit bassy when I have an open 6th string. Now, for the money, I think this guitar is great, but i want to change out the selector switch and the humbuckers (oh, what the hell. I'll put in shielded wiring and new pots too).

The action was fine from the factory. But the first thing I did was get rid of those wussy little strings and go for some blues strings with a wound third string, and that screwed up everything. I had to adjust the truss rod and reset the intonation... a bit of a pain, but worth it. Everything looks great on this guitar: the bridge, the neck joint, the neck is perfect, I went over this guitar a million times, and it is made wonderfully. I did notice that this guitar used to be red though. When I took off the back plate to see about the humming, I noticed that it was painted red inside...

this guitar is a beast. the paint is like 6 feet thick, and all the parts are made to last, the chrome should keep it from rust, and the thing weighs like 40 pounds. I have no doubts that this guitar will be around for the rest of my life. We get a ten here!

I took my guitar to a fender repair shop about the humming and it turned out that my amp was plugged into an outlet that wasn't grounded. The humming is much, much quieter now, but is still there, and the fender site has gotten much better with the fender discussion page... customer support is good, but I haven't really had any problems... I think the warranty is for a year, but I can't really remeber. The guy at the shop suggested that I get some duncans, and I will, but they make about 300 different pickups... they were nice though.

I think this guitar is a great design and I think for the money it rules. I mean I can spend under 500 and get a good guitar that can be made great, with just new humbuckers and maybe some graph tech saddles and whatever else you may desire... what I like is that this is my guitar. Everbody plays a strat, and they sound good, but this guitar has a unique sound and when I get through it will have MY sound. I would buy another one of these in a second, if I wasn't a bum who never has a job... but they have been dropping in price and I think I may score one if fender discontinues (please please). Don't buy one, 'cause I want fender to sell them off cheap so I can have a fleet of them. I've been playing about 2 years, but before that I noodled around on bass. I have a hummingbird, and my little fender frontman 25r, and a couple of basses, and another speaker cabinet... and a pair of pants.

The features have been described better by others here and I will only add that the Toronado is the only Non-Custom Fender that I am aware of where the volume and tone controls are mounted from the rear through the body, not a pick guard or switch plate (ala Gibson) which I felt made it unique. This guitar is a hard tail. While I am not a big user of a tremolo bar, it would have been nice to offer it with the Toronado. Fender has offered "humbucking" equipt units before butI feel none as successful as this. This is alot of guitar for the money.

I play country/rock and the Toronado offers up some interesting sounds that lends itself to a broad versatility. I play mine straight through a 59 Fender Vibrosonic and can tweek this combo to produce some classic Fender sounds that you swear were from a Tele or a Strat. The Toronado also has a zone of it's own by switching to both pick-ups setting and adjusting the neck pick-up just low enough to let the bridge pick-up take over slightly giving a unique growl unlike any Fender but unmistakenly Fender just the same. What a surprise find. If you think you're gonna get Les Paul sounds from this guitar because it's got Humbuckers forget it. This is a Fender! The Toronado will invite lots of experimentation with alot of tonal combinations. I certainly am not willing to trade my Strat just yet but glad I added the Toronadoto my arsenal.

This is my second Toronado. I returned te first because it was untunable. I called Fender who told me to bring it to an authorized dealer which I did. He could not tune it either. I returned it and opted to order another one. This one had some intonationation problems out of the box but was fixed in the set-up by my dealer. Tuning is still a bit finicky. A loose volume knob was annoying as is the G string popping from the nut when I bend it. The Factory set action was terrible. My Dealer tech took care of all the problems and I am quite satisfied with the outcome despite the piddly problems. Finish is excelent. Neck to body joint is fine. Control layout is good.

Well built despite the early problems as discussed. Don't make a big deal out of them. This guitar will last like any Fender

Fender was responsive and seemed genuinely interested in solving my early problems. I was somewhat annoyed with the first guitar when they sent me to a Gold dealer 60 miles away when they could have sent me to a silver dealer near my house. The difference, I found out later, was that the gold has a paint shop. The silver dealer was quite capable of solving the problems on the second guitar.

I have been playing for several years and have owned Les Pauls, several strats. teles etc. While not the greatest musician I feel somewhat capable of making an educated choice. If lost I would replace it. I love the fact that I can get more variation on a distinctly Fender sound. Tones that can not be replicated on a strat or a tele yet it can do a credible job of mimicking both. Good quality at very affordable price.

The Toronado is my first Fender. It is made in Mexico with a poplar body, maple neck, and rosewood fretboard. It has two of the new Atomic humbuckers. The set up is much like a Les Paul with the three way selector switch and two volumes and tones. It has a hard tail vintage bridge and vintage turners. The frets are pretty big. The body style ,if you have no idea what I'm talking about, is like the front of a Jazzmaster/Jaugar and the rear of a Strat or Tele. It came with a nice deluxe gig bag.

I have found it to suit my stlye very well. I play a lot of BUSH, Nirvana, and some lighter stuff for variety. The Atomic humbuckers are great. I play mostly rythm but this thing can scream out some leads as well. It also gives a great range of sounds, every setting gives a different, distinct, sound. My only complaint is that I have some kind of excess noise in the guitar. When the volume is up on my amp, there is a buzz that you can hear until I touch some of the hardware like the bridge or knobs. I'm sure that can be fixed with something simple I just haven't gotten around to it yet. Other than that this guitar has an excellent sound.

I like really low strings, the lowest I can possible get without a buzz, so I had to lower the strings and change the truss rod some, very easy stuff. Pickups were setup just fine, but I raised them just a hair, I guess just so I could feel like I did something. I found no flaws on the finish, however the "vintage white" was a little more like a light yellow. Honestly at first I didn't like it but it really grows on you and it is a nice contrast to the tortoise shell pickguard.

I haven't had it very long but this guitar looks and feels like one TOUGH S.O.B.

Haven't had any experience wiht it.

I've been playing this guitar for a little over a month. I also have a Peavey Raptor, my first electric. I usually play through my trusty Peavy Bandit. I would have liked to have seen the candy apple red model before I bought the other just to see which I liked better. I love the pickups and the overall style of the guitar. It has a look that demands questions and sparks curiosity because it is severly unique. I don't like the idea of buying something not American made, but hell there's no affordable quality U.S. made equipment except for Peavey, which is a great company. If someone stole it I would hunt them down and torture them, making sure not to kill them but to permenantly cripple them. I don't mean to seem brutal but come on I'm a collage student and don't have money just laying around and this is my first guitar from on of the big names like Fender, Gibson, Ibanez, etc. Overall a great guitar and I will be glad to answer any emails.

Made in Mexico, poplar body, maple(skunk stripe) neck w/ rosewood fretboard, 22 frets, 2 Fender 'Atomic' chrome covered humbuckers, separate volume and tone controls, 3 position toggle switch, hard tail 6-saddle/strings thru the body bridge and vintage tuning machines. Mine came in Candy Apple Red with brown, tortoise shell scratch-plate. This is an entirely new offering from Fender for 1998. The body design is offset and includes contouring at the waist and and bout. The guitar 'hugs' your body and is incredibly comfortable to play.

While I mostly play Telecasters, I had a need for a humbucker equipped axe. This guitar is absolutely marvelous sounding. The neck pickup can go from a warm-clean rythmn to a woody jazz tone with just a little tweaking of the tone control. The bridge pickup is is fat and clean and can even produce some Tele twang. Where this guitar really gets cool is using both pickups together. Now you have total control of your sound by how much volume and tone you apply from each pickup. I've only had the guitar for a week, so I'm still finding new tones. The ONLY thing I'll need to change on the guitar is strings! The electronics are dead quiet, the pots are smooth and the setup was perfect for me as it came from the factory. I'm a big fan of the vintage tuning machines because they have nearly-zero backlash which makes tuning and tuning stability easy. With a hard-tail bridge and these tuners it stays right where you tune it once the strings are broke in. This axe is built as solid as they come. With a little care it should last a lifetime.

Like I said above, the action was perfect for me right off the rack. It doesn't 'fret-out' or buzz. Barre chords are a breeze, even past the 12th fret. The neck is satin finished to perfection(I love satin necks), isn't too thick or too thin. The rosewood fretboard is very smooth. The frets are smooth with no sharp edges extending past the neck. Tight neck pocket fit and a great flaw-free paint job. I've looked this baby over real good and I can't find anything to complain about. Exemplary workmanship!

Like I said, with a little care this axe should last a lifetime. Besides, it's a Fender! That about says it all. In all honesty though, the guitars coming out of Fender's Mexican manufacturing facility are high-quality, low-priced instruments. I can't say enough about how nice it is to be able to buy a quality instrument at such an affordable price point.

I've never had a bit of trouble with any Fender product. They've always responded to my e-mail questions in a quick and friendly manner.

What can I say that I haven't said already? It's a great guitar at a great price. Kudos to Fender for making such a great axe that just about anybody can afford. Would I buy it again if it were lost, destroyed or stolen? You bet, without hesitation.

The Fender Toronado has the clean sounding "atomic humbuckers" which are also found on the cyclone series. Other than that, it resembles the jazzmaster in shape and feel. The pickguard covers the entire top half, which is a nice feature, and the body is poplar, with four, volume\tone controls, and three way switching. The frets are huge, but they don't seem to get in the way. The neck has a satin finish which feels like a Yamaha pacifica.

I love this guitar on every sonic level. From dirty blues, to crisp wails, I really haven't found an area that it lacks in as far as sound is concerned. The four volume/tone controls work together well, especially when looking for a 'fat' tone. Excellent vintage sound.

Great action, I think it came with Fender 9's, which suits the guitar well. One of my knobs fell off after three days, but I think it can be fixed with a screwdriver.

This guitar is incredibly solid. It has a good heft to it, and the finish seems thick. It's very durable.

I might have to talk to Fender about the tone knob, and the strap on the gig bag broke the first day. But until I talk to them, I guess I can't really say.

I'm in love with a fender. I looked at strats, teles, and gibson SG's before I found this guitar. For price, sound, and feel, I think I made the best choice in a new guitar under 500$.

god, i couldnt be more bias towards the fender toronado. i love this guitar and i think i would cry if i didnt have it. its got 22 medium-jumbo frets. great for whatever music you play. perosnally, i play a lot of punk like blink and mxpx, garage band stuff like weezer, and the classics like led zepelin and jimi. its got two of the most awesome pickups you could ever want. its not only the best sounded guitar with the 2 fender atomic-humbuckers but it looks great. even it the guitar didnt sound that great, its looks would make up for it. its got a contoured poplar body with an offset waist design. one piece maple neck with rose wood finderboard. its black with a tortis shell pickgaurd, with 2 tone 2 volume contols, 3 wayt toggle switch. it also comes with a fender delux gig bag.

this guirtar can go from being a heavey, hard rock plaiyng machine to a toned clean b.b. king playing guitar. the 2 fender atomic pickups are versatile with any thing you want to play. when set with distortion on an amp, it doesnt give to a crap load of feedback either. i like this guitar all around and in and out. its not only my style of playing, but any style you want.

i was amazed about how cheap i got this guitar for. i got it for 375.00 used. i dont know how fender pulled it off by getting this good of a guitar into the stores without charging as much as a strat or a tele. all i can say to fender is thank you. the thing that attracted me to this guitar most was, not only the looks but the pickups. 2 humbuckers with a chrome cap finish.

ive only had it for about two weeks because its brand new, made in 98, so i haveny had any problems with it and i dont think i will. i got it used and it came with a five year warrenty.i could bang this guitar around at gigs and not even need to worry about having a backup. everything on this guitar is built to last, period. thats all i really have to say about that.

havent had any problems with fender. they're great.

ive been playing for about 3 years now and ive had a fender squier strat, which sucked, no offense, a yamaha SE series, and a no name guitar. this guitar fits my needs in and out. i couldnt want any more form a guitar. if it got stolen or lost i would die. i dont know if you can even buy them in stores yet but they are great.i love the humbucking pickups the most. they are the clean, grungdy and warm at the same time. i love this guitar.

I really like this guitar because of the dual humbuckin' action this Bitch got! I love jammin on this thing 24-7!! It was made in 1998 and has med. Jumbo frets and I am not sure what the top coat has but I know it's good! Basswood body with a one peice maple neck and dot inlays. Humbuckers are Fender's new thing, there are 2 automatic humbuckers!! It has a 3-way toggle for the pickups a psycadelic offset body, 2 volume 2 tone controls. The bridge is what i like about this mean guitar is the way it NEVER gets out of tune because of the string-through-body " hard tail ". I am very surprised i got it with a gig-bag!!! It has a killer black finish with a red and black tortise shell pickgaurd and chrome hardware that covers the humbuckers!! As I said this is a mean geetar!!

The 2 fender auto-matic humbuckers really suit the musick i play that is metal, punk, blues and most of all suits the lead that i take in my band! It has a very rich sound that can take on blues to ska and keep going through metal, this is my dream guitar! It can get really noisy on the treble setting with the humbucker through my fender fronline amp. with reverb. I use many modulaters and pedals with this baby and it screams with all of them!!!!

When I ordered this guitar from musicians' friend ( cause they didn't have it! ) They finally called and when I saw it at the store in it's case I fell in love because i hate black guitars but this one was a major exeption! Both the humbuckers were in place, bridge was fine, the guitar was perfect and the action was too!!!!

I feel that I could leave this thing in the streets of philly all night and come back the next morning and i could still go to a live concert with out a backup! The straps a rock solid and I feel that the finish could with stand a beatin' with a bat with nails in it and it would still look good! the hardware is better than my Fender Strat. with a shiny finish and beatiful hardware!

My Strat had a F ' ed up wire in it and i called them and they were a big help!! It has a 90 day warranty with a lifetime free service from fender, so like if a wire was broke they would fix it free!!! Any way it is Fender isn't it?

At first i was looking at all of the fender off set bodies and came to this cause of the low price and the dual humbuckers it got loaded on it!!!!!I truly think that Fender are the dumbest company because of all the high quality they put into this guitar and for the low price it has, the must not make a big profit but, that is what we expect from fender. I will always and only play Fender guitars as my instrument because of all the high quality they have!!! I have a Fender Blackstained Flamed topped Strat with a mirror pickgaurd I bought a little after i bought the guitar. If it were stolen I would literly cry cause I am only 13 and I don't have the money to get another one , I mean come on I sold my Tele for it!! I love the dual humbuckers it has and the offset body is the only one that I know is extremely comfortable!! I have to say that Teles, Strats, Les-Pauls and even Toronado's family like, Jaguar, Cyclone, Jazzmaster, Mustang and the new Jag-Stang are good guitars BUT.....The Fender Toronado is the most inexpenisive, high quality, best lookin' guitar you could get with humbuckers and an extrremly bitchin' sound!!!!