Guitar World Verdict
The new Vintera III range brings with it another fine 60s-style P-Bass, offering excellent old-school tone and playability. Choose your finish carefully for the right amount of retro charm - but beyond that, it's difficult to go too far wrong here.
Pros
- +
Lovely neck profile.
- +
Comfortable weight and excellent build quality.
- +
A warm, classic-sounding P-Bass tone.
Cons
- -
Only some of the finishes make it truly stand out as a ‘60s-inspired model.
- -
Fender decal has rough edges from application.
- -
Vintage-correct it may be, but the truss rod access is a pain.
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What is it?
A few years ago, Fender upended its range hierarchy and discontinued its long-serving Mexican-built Classic range of electric guitars and basses, replacing it with the Vintera line.
The new name carries a similar ethos – vintage-inspired specs, without American reissue prices. To its credit, Fender didn't simply stop there.
The subsequent Vintera II refresh saw numerous spec upgrades, plus new models and finishes. Now, in 2026, we're starting to see the introduction of the Vintera III range, with yet further updates.
I use the word ‘updates’ somewhat loosely, though, as these are still vintage-inspired instruments; the old-school specs and finishes are really the point. But, of course, Fender's long history provides a seemingly never-ending stream of models and era-specific features, ripe for reissue.
Here, then, is the Vintera III Late ‘60s Precision Bass, and its name states a clear goal - to capture the vibe of Fender's early ‘CBS’ period, after that giant American broadcasting corporation bought the company in 1965.
Many changes were made to Fender's range, not all of them for the better, but the distinctive style of the era is now highly sought-after.
Specs
- Launch price: $1,249 | £1,099 | €1,229currency retail prices
- Made: Mexico
- Type: Four-string electric bass
- Body: Alder
- Neck: Maple, ‘Late ‘60s C’ shape
- Fingerboard material/radius: Round-laminated rosewood, 7.25”
- Scale length: 34”/864mm
- Nut/width: Bone, 41.3mm
- Frets: 20, vintage tall
- Hardware: Vintage style ‘Lollipop’ tuners, vintage style 4-saddle bridge with threaded steel saddles
- String spacing at bridge: 19mm
- Electrics: 1x Late 60s split-coil pickup, volume, tone
- Weight: 7.9lb/3.6kg
- Left-handed options: N/A
- Finishes: Black with matching headstock and rosewood fretboard (as reviewed), Firemist Gold with rosewood fretboard, Lake Placid Blue with maple fretboard, 3-Color Sunburst with maple fretboard
- Case: Fender Deluxe gig bag, included
- Contact: Fender
Build quality
Build quality rating: ★★★★½
Fender hasn't put a specific year on it, as it always has on the upmarket American Vintage lines; presumably, such year-specific features are hard to achieve at this significantly lower price point.
It's arguable that, because the ‘60s Precision aesthetic is so enduringly popular, that this latest take looks like many of Fender's other P-Bass models - especially if you unscrew the plastic tug bar on the scratchplate.
Luckily, this black example benefits from a matching headstock - a rare and desirable custom feature on original ‘60s Fenders, and undoubtedly one that does some heavy lifting aesthetically.
A downside, on our review sample, is that the Fender logo has noticeable rough edges from application - not something you'd be especially pleased about on a £300 instrument, leave alone one retailing for £1,099.
Other than this cosmetic issue, however, the build quality is excellent – the neck pocket is tight and the whole instrument resonates strongly.
The maple neck is finished in a vintage-looking amber tint, and crowned with a lovely, super-dark, round-laminated rosewood fretboard. The radius is an old-school 7.25”, with narrow and tall frets.
Playability
Playability rating: ★★★★☆
Just as well the truss rod didn't need adjusting – it's one of the old-school style with a screw head located at the neck heel, meaning the whole neck might need to come off
The alder body is a comfortable weight, and the neck's ‘Late ‘60s C’ shape is superb, the usual P-Bass nut width creating enough substance, but the profile slim enough to be comfortable for those with smaller hands. The steep fretboard radius and the slightly sticky-feeling gloss finish might not appeal to all, however.
Out of the box, the action is fairly high; I choose to drop the bridge saddles for an easier playing experience. Just as well the truss rod doesn't need adjusting – it's one of the old-school style with a screw head located at the neck heel, meaning the whole neck might need to come off.
Once the saddles are lowered a little, the playability improves; much easier to enjoy the comfortable neck profile, and the familiar feel of a classic P-Bass.
Sounds
Sounds rating: ★★★★☆
I plug into my usual Line 6 HX Stomp test rig, and dial up a couple of favourite presets for vintage-style bass tones – an Ampeg B-15, an Acoustic 360 and a gritty Ampeg SVT for some higher-gain exploration.
The beauty of an old-school Precision Bass is that there's basically no learning curve. You can plug it straight in, with both controls on full, and it immediately sounds like… an old-school Precision Bass.
The high frequencies are a little more subdued than you'll find in some other P-Basses
There's that thick low-midrange boom, and the growl of the upper mids (emphasised here by the fairly new strings). Fender's Late ‘60s split-coil pickup provides a full-bodied bass and low-mid response that would undoubtedly work a treat with some flat-wound strings.
Conversely, the high frequencies are a little more subdued than you'll find in some other P-Basses; it's far from woolly, but it's certainly a little more polite than my own go-to Precision-style bass.
If you're routinely playing more modern rock styles, then, you might consider a hotter or brighter pickup but, for the era-specific sound that Fender is invoking here, it's ideal.
Verdict
The Vintera III Late ‘60s Precision Bass, then, does what it says on the tin. It's a fine-playing and good-sounding P-Bass with a subtle vintage vibe.
It's a fine-playing and good-sounding P-Bass with a subtle vintage vibe
To play more to its strengths as a retro instrument, you might consider a different finish (there's a gorgeous, and very ‘60s, Firemist Gold available, for example); even with the matching headstock, this black example just blends a little too readily into the sizeable crowd of other black P-Basses.
That's a bit of a shame, as the whole point of a vintage reissue is to evoke a specific era; a brief that this bass otherwise confidently hits.
Guitar World verdict: The new Vintera III range brings with it another fine 60s-style P-Bass, offering excellent old-school tone and playability. Choose your finish carefully for the right amount of retro charm - but beyond that, it's difficult to go too far wrong here.
Test | Results | Score |
|---|---|---|
Build quality | A really solid build, let down by that noticeably poorly-applied headstock logo. | ★★★★½ |
Playability | A great neck profile, although not everyone will warm to the vintage 7.25” radius. | ★★★★☆ |
Sounds | It certainly does the ‘60s Precision Bass thing, although it's a little subdued for harder-edged tones. | ★★★★☆ |
Overall | If it's a ‘60s style P-Bass you're seeking, this does it by the book. | ★★★★☆ |
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