Fernandes

Fernandes is now a used-market brand with a particularly recognizable technical legacy: the Fernandes Sustainer. The company began in Japan in 1969, expanded into electric guitars and the Burny family, opened Fernandes USA in Los Angeles in 1992, and ultimately closed in 2024. Today, model family and Sustainer configuration are the keys to understanding what is in front of you.

MODEL SEARCH

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OVERVIEW

What to know quickly

ORIGIN Fernandes traces its beginning to Japan in 1969, initially with flamenco guitars before expanding into electrics.

SUSTAINER The powered magnetic Sustainer system became the brand’s defining technology.

STATUS Fernandes’ current archival site states that the company closed in 2024 and no longer builds new Sustainers or kits.

A Sustainer-equipped Fernandes is a system, not just a pickup combination. Battery condition, driver adjustment, switching and the rest of the electronics should be tested before valuing the guitar.

IDENTIFY YOUR GUITAR

Which Fernandes do you have?

Fernandes catalogs contain Vertigo, Revolver, Native, Monterey, Ravelle, Retrorocket, Vortex, Nomad and many artist or Japanese-market variants. Read the complete model name, including Elite, Deluxe, JP, X, FR or Tremolo suffixes.

Find the complete designation. Vertigo X, Vertigo Elite, Revolver Elite JP and Revolver Classic are not interchangeable.
Check for a factory Sustainer. Look for the neck-position driver, mode/intensity controls, battery access and associated switching.
Identify Burny separately. Burny is associated with Fernandes but has its own model families and market.
Photograph country and serial markings. Japanese and export models can differ substantially.
Inspect modified electronics carefully. Fernandes also sold retrofit Sustainer kits, so a Sustainer-equipped guitar is not automatically a factory Sustainer model.

HISTORICAL MODEL GUIDE

The line is discontinued—family and equipment now drive the market

Vertigo Vertigo X, Deluxe, Elite and Sustainer variants Often $300–$1,800+ used Offset / alternative solidbody family

Revolver Standard, Classic, Elite, FR and JP variants Often $400–$1,500+ used Performance / superstrat family

Native / Retrorocket / Monterey / Ravelle Multiple standard and Sustainer versions Model-specific Discontinued electric families

Burny / artist / Japan Burny models and Japanese-market signatures Wide range; often premium Separate collector and import context

Fernandes closed in 2024. These are current used-market observations rather than new retail ranges.

USED VALUE GUIDE

Sustainer, origin and exact family do most of the pricing work

Guitar Center showed 37 used Fernandes guitars in late September 2026. A standard Revolver could be around $400, while Sustainer-equipped Vertigo Elite and Japanese or artist models could climb above $1,000; Burny examples can occupy their own market.

COMMON NON-SUSTAINER Often roughly $300–$600 used.

SUSTAINER / DELUXE Frequently around $600–$1,200+.

JAPAN / ARTIST / BURNY Can move well beyond $1,000 depending on model and provenance.

Test the Sustainer in every mode and with a fresh battery.
Check whether the system is factory-installed or a later Fernandes kit.
Verify bridge and tremolo condition on FR/Floyd-equipped models.
Separate Burny and Japanese-market models from ordinary export Fernandes comparables.
Because the company is closed, consider future access to proprietary electronics and parts before buying a project guitar.

CURRENT USED MARKET

See what the market is doing now

Fernandes is now entirely a used-market research problem. Search the full model name plus Sustainer, JP, Elite, Burny or other relevant suffixes.

Search Fernandes on Reverb Current used Fernandes, Burny and Sustainer-equipped instruments ↗ Used Fernandes at Guitar Center Current used inventory and condition grades ↗

COMPARE

What else lives in this neighborhood?

Fernandes belongs beside other Japanese and performance-guitar brands of the same period, but its Sustainer technology makes direct equivalents less common.

COMPARE WITH Ibanez / Jackson · performance-guitar comparisons for Revolver-era instruments

COMPARE WITH ESP / Burny / Tokai · Japanese-market and vintage-style context

COMPARE WITH Sustainiac-equipped guitars · functional comparison for active sustain systems

WHAT TO WATCH FOR

Before you buy—or price—one

Company closure. There is no current factory production to fall back on for ordinary replacement or support.
Sustainer condition. A dead battery is simple; a damaged board or driver can be a different repair problem.
Burny confusion. Burny is related to Fernandes but should not be priced as a generic Fernandes electric.
Model suffixes. JP, Elite, Deluxe, FR and X can change construction and hardware.
Retrofit systems. Fernandes sold Sustainer kits, so the system alone does not authenticate a factory model.

HISTORY & COMMENTARY

A guitar company remembered as much for a circuit as for a body shape

Fernandes began in Japan in 1969, moved from flamenco guitars into electrics and later established a U.S. operation in Los Angeles in 1992. Its Burny connection and wide electric catalog gave it a strong 1980s-through-2000s presence.

The Sustainer became the strongest technical identifier. Instead of merely sensing string vibration, the powered driver feeds magnetic energy back into the strings to keep them moving. A surviving Fernandes can therefore be both a discontinued guitar and a piece of an electronics system no longer in production.

WHAT PLAYERS LIKE

Why a Fernandes can be worth picking up

Sustainer capability. Long controlled notes and harmonic feedback remain the feature most strongly associated with the brand.
Distinct families. Vertigo, Revolver, Native and Ravelle do not all feel like one generic import line.
Japanese-market depth. JP and Burny instruments add a richer collector and player market.
Used availability. Dozens of guitars still circulate through ordinary U.S. dealers.
Era character. Fernandes captures a very specific late-20th / early-21st-century performance-guitar moment.

CURRENT RETAIL & REFERENCE

Fernandes · Sustainer Archive Official archival explanation and factory-equipped model list ↗ Fernandes · Electric Guitar Archive Historical model families and specifications ↗ Fernandes · FAQ 1969 origin, Burny relationship and U.S. history ↗ Used Fernandes at Guitar Center Current U.S. used-market examples ↗

Fernandes closed in 2024; all price observations on this page refer to the used market as checked September 29, 2026.