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View Full Version : Trying to decide between three Strats, buying in a month



Danzego
January 7th, 2008, 02:17 PM
Oh, and btw, howdy all. I've been away for quite a while, just trying to survive and get them good grades in college while retaining something resembling a life (though not a social one; if I can just sit down for a couple of hours every night after homework to play some guitar or games, I'm happy).

Anyway, sorry this is a long post but it DOES involve 3 guitars. The three Strats I'm looking at are: A Strat Standard MIM SSS, a Deluxe Players Strat, and a Lonestar Strat. The one I'll get would be a Sunburst with Rosewood fretboard.

I initially wanted the Deluxe Players, but I haven't been hearing the nicest things about the Vintage Noiseless pickups- it's said that they can be on the harsh/shrill side and they don't have that "true Strat sound". When I played one versus a Standard, I did notice that the sound seem a bit thinner next to the Standard. Also, I hear they're actually humbuckers (I'm getting a Strat in the first place because I want a single coil pup guitar) and I've even seen someone mention something about them being gated (this surprises me). I've also seen complaints about the Standards and that the pickups there aren't great, but perhaps closer to that whole "Strat sound".

The Lonestar represents the middle ground to me. Yes, it has a humbucker, but it's a Pearly Gates and unlike its Roadhouse Strat brother, you can get it with a rosewood fretboard. I'm worried about the Texas Specials, though, because I do want to be able to get a nice clean sound out of it, too. However, I'm mainly a low volume player, so maybe the extra push might help me when I finally plunk down the money for a Fender Blues Jr. and want to get some overdrive. I just don't know if the Texas Specials are the most versatile of pickups and while I'd love something like a Stevie Ray sound, I don't want it to be the only thing I have.


The only other considerations I have is I like the 12" radius neck on the Deluxe Players over the 9.5" of the Standard and Lonestar, as I don't have huge hands and it feels comfortable to me (but that could also be because I'm used to my Epi Les Paul, which also have 12" radius necks) and for some reason, the $400 tag on the Standard has me wondering where they're cutting corners in build quality.

Input? :)

sunvalleylaw
January 7th, 2008, 02:19 PM
I'd go roadhouse, but if you want the rosewood instead, I guess lonestar. I get nice cleans out of my Tex Mex pups. Listen to StingX's clean clips on this forum. The Peavey Classic 30 threads have some. I think those pups give a great sound.

duhvoodooman
January 7th, 2008, 02:36 PM
I have Texas Specials at the neck and middle positions in my Strat, and have no problem getting good clean tones. Roll down your volume or the amp gain, and it will sound nice and clean, and unmistakably Strat-ish. You can also adjust the pickup heights to control how hotly they behave. So I wouldn't be scared off the Lonestar by the pickups....

Danzego
January 7th, 2008, 03:58 PM
Yeah, SVL, I was looking at the Roadhouse, but I just have this thing about rosewood fretboards, so I'm willing to go with a Lonestar w/humbucker in the bridge to get that (it doesn't hurt that it's a Pearly Gates, which I hear are very nice; correct me if I'm wrong or want to add what kind of sound I'm looking at in one of those). Also, I'll be spending a lot of time on the neck and mid pups, so it's good to hear the TS's will still get a nice Strat sound, per VoodooMan. :)

The reason I even brought the MIM Strat into the equation is because I figured at $400 or so bucks, I could throw the extra $200 in and get whatever pups I like, perhaps a set of vintage-type pickups (and a black pickguard, which I'll probably add to ANY of the three I end up getting).

However, and this brings me back to the $400 build quality, what's up with the MIM's and these other two? Can anyone with experience (first or second hand) speak on how the Roadhouses and Deluxe Player's are built in comparison to the Standard MIM's or in general? Are the other two actually better or just the same basic guitars with that extra cost sunk into a thicker pickguard and upgraded pickups and schmancy names? *scratches head*

sunvalleylaw
January 7th, 2008, 04:07 PM
I don't have direct or indirect experience with those two models. I will say my 60th MIM did seem to be a step above the standard MIM's I tried. And that was true with a few different 60th MIM units in different stores that I tried as compared to the std. MIMs. I would go check out the Lonestar/Roadhouses vs. the other MIMs and see. Robert could comment on the Deluxe Player's. I think his review here and on Dolphinstreet would help you there.

Danzego
January 8th, 2008, 02:44 AM
Yeah, that's one thing I love about this place. I originally found it when I was looking into amplifiers, a Vox ADXXVT in particular, and Google pulled it up. It was perfect- so many people to ask about that amp.

Now, I've been looking into Strats and was set on a Standard, but then saw the Deluxe Players online and got hearts in my eyes. I've been researching the two and happened to come here after an extended hiatus to see what's up and boom- Robert recently bought that very guitar. Crazy, man. Hopefully he'll find time to address the Deluxe Players questions I posted since they were posted with him in mind (no need to hurry, Robert; I know you're a busy dude :) ).



Here, just for kicks in the meantime: if I got the Standard MIM and did a pickup upgrade, what's everyone's favorite Strat pickups and why? What do they do for your sound that you like? :)

Danzego
January 16th, 2008, 02:31 AM
Ooook....didn't get much in the way of replies. Kind of surprising for such a "Stratty forum", especially considering I see that people do own some of these models I mentioned. :confused:

Anyway, I went to the store tonight and was trying them out again. I didn't care much for the Lonestar. Something about the feel threw me. I really liked the Deluxe every time it hit my hands and liked the sounds that came out of it for the most part, though they did have a bit of a sterile tone to them.

In the end, the Standard MIM just did me a little bit better as the whole package goes. After playing for a while, my hands came to terms with the feel of a 9.5" radius board (I've always been a Gibson feel sort of guy) and it started feeling right. So, I laid down the $400, I saved a bit of bread on the Standard and I can throw in whatever pickups I'd like down the road. :)

sunvalleylaw
January 16th, 2008, 09:13 AM
Sounds like a good route. For me, the tex mex pups are the right ones. These are different than the texas specials.

Like these:

http://www.aampselectricguitarstore.com/fender_pickups/fender_tex_mex_strat.html

I tend to camp out on the neck pup right now. YMMV.

mrmudcat
January 16th, 2008, 10:05 AM
69 set(fender c.s.) is sweet also! No reverse wound.I love them over my other custom shop sets.Noise and all!

Danzego
January 16th, 2008, 12:42 PM
Oh, I should mention, I ended up getting an HSS MIM. So for sets like, say, the two you guys listed, can you buy just the neck and middle pickups, instead of all three, or did I back myself into a corner here having to buy all three and leave the bridge unused?

mrmudcat
January 16th, 2008, 12:58 PM
I think the pearly gates(make sure you get the fender spaced version) and texmex or texas specials middle/neck combo is awesome and raunchy!!!:D :beer:

sunvalleylaw
January 16th, 2008, 03:00 PM
Mudcat sounds like he has come up with a good option. I don't know about getting the tex mex ones separately, but they do give you some heat, and clean up really nicely in my opinion.

mrmudcat
January 16th, 2008, 03:57 PM
To add ive not tried the tex mex set.They are cheaper than the other sets.(not sure if ya can get seperate except used) The texas specials to me are right on for raunchy blues and I love pearly gates,have and used them both !!!:D

sunvalleylaw
January 16th, 2008, 04:13 PM
The tex mex ones are the ones in my guitar and any of the recent clips I posted were with those pups on the neck. The Bm collab shows them pretty clean, the Santana collab has them dirtied up with the fuzz pedal. For a better player showing what they do, look for StingX's clips. The Peavey C-30 appreciation thread has some good ones I think. Nothing against the texas specials at all, just what works for me.

player
January 16th, 2008, 08:08 PM
I'm kinda shocked no one brought up Seymour Duncan, Lace Sensors and Hot Stack Single coil pups,not that there is anything wrong with the tex mex
there's not,just suprised the others were not brought up.consider all options before a final choice is made or decided on.nothing written in stone that says you have to get three single coils either.I have an hSS pup config myself and love it although MIJ it rocks however my pre CBS semi acoustic thinline Coronado Fender does too

mrmudcat
January 16th, 2008, 09:14 PM
Player, Pearly Gates is a Seymour Duncan and Danzego does have a H/S/S/ setup going.(Fender has a Seymour Pearly Gates model spaced for fender bridges and 4 wire for coil splitting)I think the DANZ has budget in mind.That is why I havent suggested any hand wound options.(Kinman,Lollars,Bare Knuckles, Stan Hinesley)
Personally I never liked Lace but they are a good choice as I know others do like them(the red,blue,gold combo) :bravo:

For cheaper alternatives Guitar Fetish has some great sounding pups.:rockon:

the1percent
January 16th, 2008, 09:39 PM
I have Texas Specials in my strat and surprising to me I can get a pretty good Skynyrd sound out of the guitar. I mean, it isn't dead on, but darn close. The tone is in the fingers and I'm just not THAT good. Sometimes it sucks to have so many choices, doesn't it? :)

Danzego
January 16th, 2008, 10:19 PM
A Pearly Gates is one of the 'buckers I had in mind when I'm going to change the Standards out. In fact, the Lonestar (one of the guitars I was looking at) already has one of those and two Texas Specials in it, but I was a bit weary about it due to Robert's experience (as seen in his review). I did give it a go yesterday, but it just didn't feel right for some reason. Power of suggestion, perhaps? I don't know. ;)

I'm definitely on a budget, as mudcat correctly assumed. I mean, I wouldn't have been looking in the $400-$600 range if money wasn't a consideration; I would have just picked up a US made one and that would have been that. Someday, when I'm out of college and get a teaching position, I'll be ready to start thinking about putting a grand or so into a new axe. But this is just my first Fender for now.

Anyway, so many choices. Thanks for the suggestions so far, gents. I'm going to keep all these in mind and start looking into them when I have a chance. :)

player
January 16th, 2008, 10:52 PM
Sorry about the miscue Mr. Mud,just that Seymour Duncan has so many different ones out there including several hand wound you mentioned.(perhaps not those named)but wound nonetheless.
Danz: stay within your means for now as you put it.as things get better in the future one day you will see your way clear to upgrade.by then you should have a fair to midland idea of what's what and how they sound

mrmudcat
January 16th, 2008, 11:03 PM
No miscue brother:beer: I'm here to learn as well as share!:dude:

Plank_Spanker
January 17th, 2008, 09:26 AM
The Lonestar represents the middle ground to me. Yes, it has a humbucker, but it's a Pearly Gates and unlike its Roadhouse Strat brother, you can get it with a rosewood fretboard. I'm worried about the Texas Specials, though, because I do want to be able to get a nice clean sound out of it, too. However, I'm mainly a low volume player, so maybe the extra push might help me when I finally plunk down the money for a Fender Blues Jr. and want to get some overdrive. I just don't know if the Texas Specials are the most versatile of pickups and while I'd love something like a Stevie Ray sound, I don't want it to be the only thing I have.

If that PG is the same one Fender put into their Double Fat Strats, I think you'll love it. You can crank it up to a sweet bite and howl for leads, and it cleans up nicely. It's a very well balanced, well behaved pickup. I have Texas Specials in another Strat and I love 'em. They have a good bite and punch when you need it, and they're smooth and pretty when you roll back the volume a bit. They're my favorite singles for Strats.

With the PG / Texas Special combo, you can cover a lot of ground. That would be a very versatile Strat.

mrmudcat
January 17th, 2008, 10:16 AM
Plank not sure weve been introduced but im with ya 100% in your assesment.I love my texas specials,and pearly gates plus.I just built a guitar with a set of p.g.'s :master:
Danz here is the one you want and specs ,peace!

http://www.fender.com/products/search.php?partno=0992135000


The fender(model) as stated is slightly hotter 8.5 vs. 8.3

Also has alnico5 mags compared to the alnico 2:rockon: (I do love alnico 2 mags admittedly though.Smoother mellower.I have lots of pups with 5's though and they do rip!!!:rockon:

Plank_Spanker
January 17th, 2008, 05:30 PM
Pleased to meet you, mrmudcat. :beer:

mrmudcat
January 18th, 2008, 08:04 AM
Back at ya brother!:beer:

player
January 18th, 2008, 10:57 AM
Those look real nice. too bad I am stuck with soapbars on this:
http://s124.photobucket.com/albums/p9/market_03/th_fender.jpg
if it was not a 66 Fender I'd consider a mod job but as is she sounds sweet.
but do have a Starcaster to mod if I want.:D

Axis
February 16th, 2008, 07:47 PM
Danzego,

You may not like my opinion, but here it is-
Spend the extra cash and go for the AMERICAN STANDARD STRAT. Here's why:
1) It's American, with better build quality and electronics.
2) Has better resale value.
3) A Profesional instrument allowing you to build your tone from the
ground up. I consider a lot of the non-american strats to be toys
at best.
4) If you decide to upgrade the pups, you'd probably change 1 not
all 3.
5) Look at the pros playing Strats- All American Standards last I
checked.

I'm not trying to be a jerk here, it's just that I've been the cheaper route and wasted good money.You know the saying,"Casting pearls before swine". Anyway I hope you make the best decision.

player
February 16th, 2008, 08:14 PM
That picture of a Fender I own Axis is a 100% American made guitar.like anyone else in the immediate guitar world I would love to have another guitar.GAS ya Know and yes probably an Amer. Strat

Danzego
February 17th, 2008, 01:25 AM
I wouldn't call the non-American Strats "toys" by any means. I've played quite a few nice non-American Strats, and, well....you may want to take a look around here a bit before you start saying such things. You're liable to catch a wee bit of flak for such statements. Also, it isn't so much the guitar as it's the player, so who really cares what all the "pros" play. Some of those so called "pros" don't show themselves to be very good players to begin with.

With that said, I did end up getting the American Standard. I'm just waiting on a replacement right now as there was a problem with it.

birv2
February 17th, 2008, 10:53 AM
I wouldn't call my Jimmie Vaughan Strat (MIM) a toy. I played some american made ones at GC and my jv sounded and played way better. Of course, it's a small sampling, and I'm sure most of the MIA ones are good to great quality. But there are some bargains and good axes to be had that aren't MIA.

Bob

ZMAN
February 28th, 2008, 11:27 AM
I am a new member and I have been on the various Fender sites for several years. I have a good cross section of Strats and I do own MIM, Deluxe Player and a MIA 50th Ann. Deluxe. So I can give you my opinion Of the three you mentioned the Deluxe Player is abolutley the best. It has the extra pickup switch that is just a different way of presenting the S1. The vintage noiseless are really nice pickups and they can sound anywhere from muddy to crystal clear. Mine is 3 color burst with a maple board. I love the 12 inch radius because I have several Gibsons and it make switching much easier. The gold hardware is almost 3 years old and hasn't faded a bit. I can compare it favourably to the MIA 50th. which I paid twice as much for.
I also have one of the 60th Ann. MIM Strats in Blizzard Pearl. It is basically a Jimmy Vaughan with a rounded neck. I think it is a little above the standard MIM because of the Tex Mex plck ups. The Standard MIM is a nice guitar but not even close to the Deluxe Player IMHO. So for sure my vote would be for the Deluxe Player. I think it fits all the criterea you have set up. I had a spare Vintage tweed case and she looks real sweet in there. I used the gig bag for one of my Squiers.

Tone2TheBone
February 28th, 2008, 01:06 PM
What! Non American Strats are toys?! This is an outrage! This is a scandal!:flamemad: :tongue:

Oh in a late answer to one of your questions I've got Dimarzio Class of 55s in my 60s Strat. Great low output vintage belltone. Noisy too but hey they gotta be noisy to be "authentic"...American or otherwise. ;) My MIM Classic 50s Strat has the stock vintage wound pickups and they also provide sweet low output vintage bell tones. I'd like to buy me a set of those just to have around for future project guitar.

Iago
February 28th, 2008, 06:47 PM
Just put some good pickups in any decente guitar (don't have to be made in USA for that) and there you go.

I would just tell someone to do the blind test. blindfold your eyes and let someone bring to you 10 guitars, a mix of americans, mexicans and if you can japaneses too, I'm really sure everyone that has this misconception will be surprised... and I'm not even talking about the bang for the buck factor.

player
February 28th, 2008, 07:00 PM
Just put some good pickups in any decente guitar (don't have to be made in USA for that) and there you go.

I would just tell someone to do the blind test. blindfold your eyes and let someone bring to you 10 guitars, a mix of americans, mexicans and if you can japaneses too, I'm really sure everyone that has this misconception will be surprised... and I'm not even talking about the bang for the buck factor.

true enough agreed however how many places are going to honor a request like that.reality: you would be hard pressed to find one IMHO

tremoloman
March 5th, 2008, 07:17 PM
So did you order your Strat? I would go with the MIM and then spend the spare $$$ on whatever mods you wish to make. The MIMs that are out now are really super guitars.

Of course, if you had the $$$ I'd say get an American Deluxe. :)

Danzego
March 10th, 2008, 01:09 AM
I picked up an American Standard, trem. It's great, with the exception of an issue I'm having above the nut where the B and G strings sound when playing them open (they make a tinking sound, the same pitch as when you pluck strings at the headstock).

I'm returning it and getting a new one, but I have to wait until late next week when school is out for the quarter. I've just had way too much work (and plenty more to do) to get around to returning it and having a new one sent my way. The salesdude already said it's cool if I go over the 30 day return policy, so I told him late next week and it's fine. That's when I'll be ordering the next one. :)

player
March 10th, 2008, 09:59 AM
Thought?? - String trees on Nut.E B anyway.roundwound G? things to think on.this way it may not have to be returned at all unless that is a done deal made already

hubberjub
March 10th, 2008, 10:37 AM
That's not a major problem. Mine does that too since I took off the string trees. If the nut to tuner angle is fine without the trees you can put a rubber band or hair tie around the headstock between the nut and tuners. That will get rid of the sympathetic vibrations.

coachj
April 5th, 2008, 09:25 AM
Did you buy it yet?

TS808
April 5th, 2008, 06:18 PM
Just my opinion, but I don't think you can go wrong with any of the options, whether the strat is made in Mexico or the USA. I've owned many strats over the years, and have settled with my 2002 and 2003 American Series strats. I've owned MIM standard strats and hot-rodded them with better pickups and bridge saddles, and they turned out to be awesome guitars both in terms of playability and tone. The quality of the MIM Fenders is as good (if not better) than some guitars sold at much higher prices.

I've been playing now for 38 years, and bought my first strat in 1983..I've never had a bad experience with a Fender product, whether it was a guitar or amp. It just depends on how much you want to spend. You can always upgrade them to better pickups and saddles.

Danzego
April 13th, 2008, 08:45 PM
Update: I ended up getting the one I returned back. It's just become WAY too much of a hassle with the clowns at Guitar Center.

Basically, the dude offered to have the repair guy fix it, I said "nah, I didn't pay 900 just to put it in repair" and did the return. He said they were in stock at Fender and should be in relatively quickly. After three weeks, I called and asked what was up. Yet again (as happened with the Lonestar), the guy was all "I don't know. Now it says out of stock, blahblahblah. I can't even say when it will come in."

He said that he still had the one I returned and if I wanted it fixed, so I finally caved after making sure that they weren't going to just toss some crappy All Parts brand plastic nut on there. He agreed to have a graphite nut put on there and, long story short, I have it back.

HOWEVER, it was a big time hassle getting that done. The guitar wasn't done when I got there even though they said it would be done earlier in the week (had to ding around the area for several hours, wasting the whole day) and I had to start raising my voice in the store for them to sell the guitar back to me for what I originally paid for it. Seems Guitar Center recently went to fixed prices and they claimed they couldn't adjust the price down to 900. Problem is I was trapped there and couldn't get the money back since they had the credit on my account and it was paid largely by gifts cards in the first place. Finally, the sales manager came over and was able to push the sale through at the original price. :whatever:

Now that I have my guitar, I think I'm about done with that place. :AOK: