Comments on: My Quest For The Perfect Strat

By: fretfreak76

fretfreak76 — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 06:54:27 +0000

HI CARY,please check out my question about the ”CLASSIC PLAYER 60′S STRAT” that i bought on ebay.It is under the name r.hanks. Anyone else who cares to comment please do,as i appreciate any feedback i can get!!

By: otis

otis — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 05:09:11 +0000

Def. Try the American Deluxe…as nice as the new american standards are the Deluxes are to me that much finer while also being quite different too, still just body and neck wise guitar for guitar the dlx’s are usually a little nicer…mine is an ’05 three tone sunburst with lightly tinted maple neck/board (satin finish)…it has a 2 piece perfectly matched alder body…i have never weighed it but guess it to be around 8 lbs, perhaps a tad under…the SCN’s are not for all extreme vintage freaks (although i think that a lot of them just get fooled by their lack of hum, lol!), however i think they ring out the classic Strat glassy bell chimes very well without ANY hum…also they handle overdrive very well and are a tad bit hotter and thicker esp. with the S-1 on…
Ahh the S-1…personally i love it…when playing in my heavy band i have it engaged almost always…for rhythm playing it gives the strat player a whole new playing ground…you can actually play a thick rhythm in the 1st position with S-1 enaged!…and in the 5th / neck pos. with it enaged, forget about it!…it’s fat city!!…pos. 3 / middle makes use of all 3 pickups at once and is very crunchy and heavy…switch the S-1 back off and your back in classic single coil Strat land…N.B.! the S-1 does not give you instant humbuckers though! although it does put the single coils in series ala a long distance humbucker, it is not the same sound…personally i like it…it most like a mini humbucker in tone…all in all the S-S-S Am Dlx. Strat is a super versatile highly crafted Strat!…the only other new Strat i could imagine myself wanting in the future is perhaps the ’08 Am Standard H-S-S as a companion….but still the Am Dlx S-S-S Strat covers humbucker tones quite convincingly and classic Fender tones outstandingly (without the hum!)….def, check one out!…
p.s. almost forgot, the Schaller locking tuners are a godsend…super quick stringchanges and mine never seems to go out of tune even with heavy trem use…also the slightly thicker pop in trem arm with adjustable tension is wonderful…as is the slightly contoured heel (previously only found on the jeff beck sig and custom shop models).

By: ehran

ehran — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 01:37:35 +0000

Please check out/review the Fender American Vintage Hot Rod ’57 Strat, I think its one of the best Fender has to offer(aside from custom shop an all that expencive sht)! again please review it …..it might just end your search! Good luck..

By: lucas

lucas — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 11:42:11 +0000

Thanks for publishing all of these reviews! It is a great educational help for people trying to find their way through the jungle of strats that are out there. What I wanted to ask you is what about other strat “copies” such as the G&L s-500 or Legacy ( which is apparently a further development of the strat developed by Leo Fender himself )? Or the Tokai copies from the 80′s or the ibanez copies? I know the list is almost endless but your quest is for “the perfect Strat” and not the perfect Fender Srat, is it not?

By: Kent

Kent — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 10:52:24 +0000

You should check out the Eric Clapton Signature Stratocaster. Probably the most versatile Strat ever made. I know that you don’t like V-necks (which this has) but it is a damn fine guitar. It does everything from Strat to Les Paul (due to the mid-boost knob) and the TBX tone control is very handy as well.

I’ve modified mine a bit: Buzz Feiten tuning system, Trem-Setter and un-blocked the trem & stainless steel frets. I’ve got the early model with Gold Lace Sensors on it and the guitar sounds great.

By: hexden

hexden — Mon, 14 May 2007 22:05:40 +0000

For me it has to be the American deluxe, supberb sound, it is well balanced and just feels good in your hands. It has amazing sustain and is a dream to play.

By: Ken

Ken — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 10:47:57 +0000

Just picked up a Classic 50s model in Fiesta Red. These deserve a good look by any serious strat player. Really nice edition to my collection. The neck is absolutely beautiful, what a nice tint, and fits like a glove. The paint job is actually amazingly nice too. The pickups are really pretty quiet too. Played through my tweed Peavey Classic 30 and 112E I’m takin’ back many, many years.

Did I read somewhere you were checking out a Classic 60s? Also a very nice and affordable alternative to the vintage series. The Lake Placid Blue model seems to look particularly the part. I think they are a pretty hot buy too, again . . . affordable.

While you are searching for the perfect strat, I’m simply searching for my next strat, or maybe tele. The two instruments on my list that WILL be had are the American Deluxe in white with rosewood fretboard and tortouise pickguard, and a natural or butterscotch tele, probably the American Vintage ’52. Then again, I am so absolutely knocked out by the quality of things coming out of the Ensenada factory I make look for a higher end Mexican model.

I have the sunburst Hwy 1 strat and teles too. You really can’t go wrong with a Hwy 1 strat. Very, very high quality for the $. Both of mine are late 2005/early 2006 models. Personally I hate the bigger 70s style headstocks and don’t buy that more mass there increases sustain. Just hate the look. So, check out a pre-big headstock Hwy 1 strat.

Have you had your hands on regular American Strat, not a deluxe? I haven’t, but would be interested in your thoughts.

Update us man!

Ken

By: Dan

Dan — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 20:39:01 +0000

I’m personally looking at eventually getting a Highway One. Talking to one of the guys at my local shop and looking at the Highway One convinced me.

By: Cary

Cary — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 19:01:29 +0000

Hehe… I’m working on my review of the Classic ’60s Strat as we speak : )

Unfortunately, I don’t get to play guitars full time!

By: Dan Shubin

Dan Shubin — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 18:57:19 +0000

C’mon Cary–go shopping! We’re waiting. Try those American Deluxes.
Dan

By: Jipes

Jipes — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 10:41:47 +0000

I own myself a very nice 57 reissue strat which really fulfill my dreams I can’t wait to read what your quest will promote !

Nice reviews just want to congratule you for the quality of your articles

By: Dan Shubin

Dan Shubin — Sun, 18 Feb 2007 19:42:11 +0000

My luthier and I talked Strats last time I was in with mine ( a 93 Japan Short Strat, 24″ scale, two knob).
The shop all agreed that the Samarium Cobalt Nickel (SCN) pickups were the best They’d ever heard as they gave off all the tone+++ of a traditional pup without the noise. We did not discuss the pot mod everyone mentions in Harmony-Centrals user review. I wonder if Fender fixed it.
I have a PRS to compare trems with and I have always thought that Strat trems are way too stiff–and they’ve had 60 years to work on making them more accomodating.
Last gripe: a 25.5″ scale is really unneccesary. It puts too much tension on the strings for comfortable winding and too much space between frets. Fender really should make 24.75″ a regular option. My 24″ Shortie with Texas pups sounds exactly like Hendrix and SRV so it’s not the scale length.
If I were going to buy a Strat, I would build one thru Warmoth to get the neck length (plus get a 10-16″ compound radius) and a hollow body. And some 18:1 PlanetWaves tuners.
The Strat is an iconic design that is fabulous until you get into the details. I feel it’s an insult that it took Fender 60 years to introduce “rolled edged necks”. So what–in 2070 they’ll put on a smooth action trem like a PRS???
Dan

By: Cary

Cary — Sun, 18 Feb 2007 15:22:20 +0000

Wow… thanks for all the great suggestions folks. Ken, to be honest I never really thought of the buzz angle… I just figured I’d document my search… but I’m more than happy to create one! ;)

So far I’ve played the Classic Player ’60s model, the upgraded 2006 Highway One, and the American Vintage. I’ll have to give the Classic ’50s a try, along with the straight Mexican ’60s & ’50s, and of course a few modern Americans as well.

Someone mentioned Nash above, and if I can get my hands one one (perhaps I’ll head over to San Francisco,) I’ll give that a try as well.

Should be fun!

By: Ken

Ken — Sun, 18 Feb 2007 13:31:39 +0000

Cary – you’re gonna have some fun! In the past year I too embarked on the strat quest, and am now a fully devoted strat fan. I now own 6, and love each one. Have my eye on a killer american model in vintage white as well.

Along the way, I also discovered the Ibanez SZ520QM. Worth mentioning in any circle. Even a now confirmed strat player wants to let loose once in awhile, and man, this guitar achieves what one can only hope a Les Paul can. And that, from one that has been devoted to Gold Tops for 30 years. Simply put, creamy smooth to skin burning shred, and the fastest neck I’ve seen in years. But, back to Strats . . . . .

The EJ model is a wonderful strat to be sure. For other new models the Classic 50s mex model is absolutely the best made $630 (street price) strat out there. Tinted fretboard, and an amazing job with color and finish. Vintage noise too. My current fav for new models is the american model in vintage or antique white, w/tortoise pickguard, rosewood board. List is about $1770 I think. Seems like this run is as very good one. I can afford vintage, but paying today’s vintage prices for an instrument just because someone else will is too often more than a little assinine. Maybe you’ll find that killer guitar and appropriate deal.

As I assume you are partially trying to create some buzz here, good job, and thx for doing it. At 53, I’m totally jazzed about guitars again, thx to strats, which I never really gave much thought to in the past, tending to use Pauls, 335s and Teles. Think of the time I wasted over 38 years of playing, or maybe the time I spent preparing to embrace this wonderful instrument.

Good luck.

Ken

By: JP Stratoblogster

JP Stratoblogster — Sat, 17 Feb 2007 18:46:48 +0000

Cary,

I agree with Rick on the EJ Strat being a real hi-lite of Fender’s current production line. They are light! I also wanna get my hands on a custom build using Warmoth’s chambered Strat body. Check out the Rothstein Strat in my Strat for Friday series.

Also check out Scott Henderson demoing his Suhr at the Prosound Communications site.

I’ll let my readers know about your Strat quest! Have fun!