With a surprise move, Fender Musical Instruments Corporation (FMIC) announced it has signed a definitive agreement of merger with PreSonus, the company behind the brilliant Studio One DAW, solid audio interfaces (see our PreSonus Studio 26c review and our PreSonus Studio 1810c review) and many other interesting music technology tools.
A Few Quotes
“After more than 25 years PreSonus feels it has found the right partner to support us as we continue our growth,” said Jim Odom, Founder/CSO PreSonus. “We look forward to showing our current and future music community what this opportunity means for them.”
“PreSonus and Fender’s combined vision, the way we see the future of music creation, and the fundamental alignment of goals has made this an exciting idea since the first conversation,” said Jim Boitnott, CEO PreSonus.
For more than 75 years, Fender has been committed to creating tools supporting artists. With each technological advancement, the way that people create and record music is constantly evolving. While most guitar and bass players still plug into amplifiers, many also plug their instruments into interfaces, using virtual amps and effects to create their sounds. Players of all levels are spending more time online than ever before and using a variety of products and technologies to learn, practice, jam and perform, record and share. This modern workflow has expanded the traditional signal chain to include capturing and distributing creative content to the world. Fender envisions an ecosystem that seamlessly integrates hardware and software to create an effortless end-to-end experience for customers at all levels in their creative journey, and joining forces with PreSonus makes that possible.
So, What Happens Now?
It’s still too early to say what is going to happen to PreSonus. Apparently, the company will remain a separate brand within the big Fender family, and it’s highly likely that Fender will make use of this acquisition to offer their users a complete set of music recording and production tools.
After all, one of the side effects of the pandemic has been the big demand for electric (and acoustic) guitars. As Radiohead put it, ‘Anyone can play guitar’, and Fender probably assumes that these players will also need some kind of software and hardware to record and produce their masterpieces.
Let’s just hope this acquisition doesn’t mean the end of PreSonus as we know it. I like their work and their catalog, and it would be a shame if Fender brings it down.
