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Squier Electric Guitars

 

History of Squier Guitars

In the late 1970's Fender had a problem. They needed to expand their coverage into the lower- and mid-range of the quickly expanding guitar marketplace and prevent the deluge of cheap "Strat" copies from other manufacturers from undermining their market share and reputation. American production costs made this unviable and they were loathe to risk the Fender brand reputation on out-sourced production. In this context it is interesting that the example of Gibson's acquisition of Epiphone in 1958 is mirrored by Fender's acquisition of a Michigan-based string manufacturer halfway through the 1960's. That string making company was called V.C. Squier.

In the early 1980's it was the Squier logo (with its little "by Fender" addendum) that would appear on the headstock of lower- to mid-range versions of Fender guitars. The history of Squier guitars from that point has been inextricably linked to production costs and as a result the country of origin has moved a few times over the years.

Production of Squier guitars began in Japan. Fender had opened up "Fender Japan" to produce full-blown Fender guitars for the Japanese market. These production facilities were used to create Squier guitars for export. In 1985 production facilities were opened in Korea and this was bolstered by Mexican product from 1990. Now, inevitably, the Chinese are trying their hand at Squier entry-level guitar production.

The wheel turns full circle with the introduction of the Korean-made Master series, evidently produced to compete directly with Epiphone's "by Gibson" guitars.

Inconsistencies in quality have been overcome and Squier has consolidated a reputation for desirable and affordable guitars for those that aspire to Fender looks and sound without the Fender price-tag.  

 

Reviews of Squier Guitars 

Squier Affinity Stratocaster	Squier Esprit	Squier Telecaster Custom	Squier Thinline Telecaster
Squier Standard Jagmaster	Squier 51	Squier Obey Telecaster	Squier Chambered Telecaster
Squier Hello Kitty Stratocaster

   

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Search iMuso for Squier products

Squier Stratocaster - The best known guitar style.

Squier Telecaster - Rock 'n' Roll workhorse.

Squier Precision Bass - Bass player's standard choice.

Squier Master Series - Something old, something new.

 

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Web Resources for Squier Guitars

Squier Guitars - The main home of all things Squier on the web.

Squier Guitars - What does Wikipedia have to say about Squier?

Squier Guitars at Harmony Central - Read real player's opinions about Squier guitars.

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