Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

As a person who's a great fan of Strats and who currently has 5 Standard Stratocasters in his arsenal, I thought it was time I wrote a review on these fine instruments. Before I begin, let me say that not only have I been playing for over 30 years now (both on stage and in the studio), I've also done my own setups and repairs for MANY of those years, I've built my own "Partscasters" and I've even cut a body or two in my day. Further, out of my collection of nearly 30 guitars (electrics and acoustics) 12 of those are Strats (of various breed, vintage and model) and they have been my primary electric weapon of choice for the past 18+ years. . In other words, I do know a little something about guitars and particularly Strats. I would also like to briefly add that this review is aimed towards younger and/or less experienced players or simply those new to the world of Fender Strats. If you're like me and have been playing for more than a few years, chances are you already know what a "Strat" actually is and and you already KNOW whether or not this is the right guitar for you. I simply wish to convey a few details here for those who may be considering their first Strat. Also, while I am reviewing a Black Strat w/ maple fretboard as seen in the picture here, please know that my comments apply to virtually all of the Standard Strats in this production line. Alrighty, as the catalog says, "this is where the tradition begins...". From rock to blues and country to punk, the Strat has been there through it all....the Fender Stratocaster can be found in virtually ever genre of contemporary music. While it's my understanding that many of the Standard Strats sold in Europe and other parts of the world are actually made in Japan (some outstanding instruments from what I've heard), I'm going to address those sold here in the US which are made in Mexico (commonly referred to as "MIM's). In general, the fit, feel and finish of these instruments is quite excellent right out of the box (although I will comment on this a bit further in this review)...these are very professional instruments to say the least. You can read the specs regarding these instruments, however a great deal of that tends to come down to personal taste and preference. The "C" shaped neck for example feels excellent in my hands...for a big guy (I'm 6'2" 230 lbs) I actually have rather small hands and with the exception of some Rickenbacker necks, the Fender C shape is my long time favorite. A person with large hands however may actually prefer a different model that has the large "U" or "V" shapes or one of the oval necks such as the famed '62 profile. Same goes for maple vs. rosewood fretboards. Personally I prefer maple...aside from aesthetic considerations (let's face it...a well worn maple fretboard just looks cool! LOL!), a good maple fretboard has a smoother, better feel to my fingers than rosewood does...your results may vary. Likewise, from the factory these come with .009 gauge Fender strings. While these are typically nice for someone just getting started, a lot of more seasoned players prefer a heavier gauge string (don't forget to have your setup adjusted accordingly!) or, like myself, you may simply prefer a different brand (I've probably used every brand of strings on the market and while Fender strings are good, I always come back to GHS Boomers...010's in case you're wondering). The hardware that comes on these instruments is top notch...in fact these instruments use the same tuners and such as their American made counterparts (the tuners for example are made by Schaller, regardless of where the guitar itself may have been made). Compared with the American made instruments, these do have the more traditional 6 point trems (tremolo or "whammy bar"), although with a metric spacing compared with their vintage counterparts. Personally I find this to be a taste thing...I actually prefer the 6 point trems as apposed to the 2 point trems of the American instruments. Many (including myself) have argued that the 6 point provides better sustain (more contact points with the body suggests more string vibration is transmitted to the body) and personally, I believe the 6 point trems have a better feel...more solid. I also prefer the slightly smaller metric spacing as well...call it my smaller hands again, but I find the wider, more traditional American spacing to be a tad more tedious. That said however, many do prefer the 2 point trems with a looser feel as can be seen by other designs such as the Floyd Rose locking 2 points, etc.. As with many aspects regarding musical instruments, it's best to try both and see where your own tastes lie. The fit and finish of these instruments is about what one would expect from a "mass produced instrument". To elaborate, if you are expecting the "feel" of a $4000 Custom Shop instrument, you won't find that type of detail work here. That said however, if you actually KNOW what that feels like, chances are you're not looking at this ad/review anyways. These are production models, so you may find the occasional sharp fret edge or that the setup isn't quite tweaked to perfection like they would be on a more expensive instrument. Further, if you're ordering this from Amazon (or any other mail order company) then understand: these instruments have been shipped and reshipped and stored in warehouse after warehouse LONG before they arrived at your door. Chances are a given instrument has been exposed to various weather conditions and various humidity and it's been bumped, banged and tossed around quite a bit on it's journey to your home. In other words, even if that instrument had a perfect setup when it left the factory, it could very well use some tweaking right out of the box. Even in situations where you may be purchasing an instrument from a local brick and mortar store, these ideas still apply. In the "old days" when guitars came into the show room, typically someone would go over them really well and make sure everything was up to snuff. Today however, most places (particularly large chains such as Guitar Center, Sam Ash, etc) will take a new guitar out of the box and put it right on the floor where it will often get thumped and banged on by every yahoo who thinks they're a rock star. I strongly encourage ANYONE buying a new or used instrument to have the instrument checked out by a setup pro the moment they receive it. With most electrics and particularly Strats, the setup is what typically determines how well the instrument plays...even a $4000 Custom Shop instrument will play like crap with a poor setup. A few more words about setup. Ok, at the risk of beating a dead horse here, I really have to stress this; regardless of whether you play a really expensive US made instrument or a $200 import, when it comes to electric guitars and particularly Strats, a good setup is everything. I wanted to address this because it is perhaps the single greatest things that gets neglected by novice players and particularly something that gets over-looked with used instruments (and perhaps the single greatest reason inexpensive guitars get such bad reps). It never ceases to amaze me just how many people I've ran into who think there's something "wrong" with their instrument...it played nice when they bought it, but a few years later it just didn't feel or sound right any more. Yea, they MAY have changed the strings once or twice...maybe...but since they aren't "pros" they never give the instrument any other thought. Yet many of these same people will simply blow these issues off because the guitar was "cheap". Guitars are, first and foremost, typically made of wood and that wood can warp a bit with time, age humidity, etc...'tis the nature of the beast. Living here in Ohio where my instruments are subjected to rather extreme weather changes, yea...even the best instruments in my collection will go a bit wonkey every spring and fall. And those winter gigs? Talk about a tuning nightmare! LOL! The guitar goes from a 65 degree basement to a 20 degree car (which may or may not warm up on the way to the gig), then into a bar that can be 70 degrees or more....yes, the tuning can be all over the place until the guitar acclimates. As this pertains to a Strat, in the smallest nutshell, everything effects everything else. A truss rod adjustment for example typically mandates a bridge adjustment as well. Change to a heavier (or lighter) gauge string and the whole guitar goes out of whack because you've changed the tension on the neck and bridge! Let me be clear here - this is NOT a reflection on the quality of the instrument, regardless of cost. For an electric guitar to play well, just like your car which requires the oil changed and the occasional tuneup, an electric guitar DOES require periodic maintenance. Ok...back to the instruments. Again I personally own 5 of these specific models (of various vintage) and all of them have served me VERY well over the years. The guitar that I currently gig with is a '95 Standard that's been rigged to use with my Roland Guitar Synth (and I carry my '99 Fat Strat as a backup) and my long time favorite studio guitar is a '96 Standard that's nearly identical to the '95 (although the '96 has been pretty heavily modified - Duncan pickups, Callham trem block, LSR roller nut, roller T, etc). I also have an '07 (also fitted with Duncans) and an '03 Lefty Standard (refit for playing righty) that I've used at many gigs, as well as a '93 that's my little "Rat Strat" (great instrument for just banging around on). If I have any niggle about these instruments, it's the pickups and the trem blocks. First the those trem blocks... As mentioned previously, these instruments come with the vintage style, 6 point trem. While the bridge plate, saddles and even the trem arms are really great quality, the trem blocks themselves leave something to be desired. In recent years, Fender has started using a larger trem block on these instruments, however these blocks are still a zinc alloy and not steel (and if you're buying used, the older Standards came with a half-sized zinc trem block). For a newer or younger player, this isn't really THAT big of a deal, however the truth is that these zinc blocks may be preventing your instrument from getting decent sustain (i.e. the notes die out rather quickly)...zinc and/or "pot metal" can really kill the string vibrations. Whether you're buying new or used, I typically recommend that you budget an extra $20 for a steel GFS trem block, if not $70 for a Callaham (not sure what the folks at Callaham do differently but those those trem blocks are sensational!). Pickups...alright...I have to admit that I'm a bit biased here. Be it Mexican, Japanese, China or even American, I've just never cared for stock Fender pickups. In the world of electric guitars, pickups are perhaps the single greatest influencing factor on how your instrument sounds (beyond your own fingers and technique that is). Like the choice of the instrument itself, experience has taught me that pickups are a very personal choice, subject to the musician's own taste, often based on the style of music. For example, a person who plays mostly Rock-a-billy or Jazz may prefer those older Filtertron type pickups. A metal monger on the other will often prefer a good, fat humbucker (ala DiMazio fame). Personally I play mostly classic rock and blues...a lot of stuff like Clapton, SRV, Pink Floyd/David Gilmore, The Who, Buddy Guy and so on. For a person who plays mostly country, those stock Fender pickups might be perfectly acceptable, if not ideal, but to me, they usually tend to sound rather "thin" if not a bit tinny to my ears. To my ear and to my preference of music, the best sounding Strats I've ever heard/played have always had either EMG's or Seymour Duncans. That said however, to me this is also one of the lovely things about Strats...changing pickups is actually pretty easy. With minimal effort...and an hour or so with a soldering iron...your Strat can go from "Twang" to "Death Metal" or anything in between simply by swapping out the pickups. It's perhaps the easiest way to truly personalize your own sound. As far as the finish goes (the actual finish, as in color, paint, etc), again these instruments are top notch. For some time now, Fender has used a Poly finish on their Standard Strats that is...well...damn near indestructible. To be perfectly frank, when the suns all die and the universe comes to an end, I suspect we'll find the cockroaches hiding under a Fender Standard body...those finishes really are THAT tough, LOL! Yes, my older Strats have indeed taken their bumps and bruises over the years, including one that I purchased used last year that looks like it had been used as a chew toy for a young pit bull or rottweiler, but for normal use, these new paints they use are really pretty amazing. Even my older instruments show no sign of alderization or any deformations in the surface. For that matter, even the '08 Squier Standard I own (Cherry burst) which uses the same finishing materials still looks like new. With a bit of care and regular cleaning, the finish of these instruments should look stunning for the life of the instrument. Likewise the "satin finish" on the necks has a very smooth feel and even on my oldest Strats, the finish has held up to the wear and tear of being working instruments. Except for the occasional chip or ding from being knocked off a stand, or the yellowing that typically occurs with age (particularly in my case where I'm also a heavy smoker), the finished necks on all of my Standards look and feel as good as they day they were new (or at the very least, new to me). Since I've seen a good deal of mis-information about this, I would also like to take a moment and talk about body wood. According to Fender.com, current Standard Strats come with Alder, however if you are buying a used instrument, depending on vintage and model, your guitar may have poplar, ash or even basswood or agathis. I wanted to address this as some of these other tone woods often get a bad rap. Because back in the 50's Strats were originally made with Alder (or sometimes Ash depending on finish), some "purists" will tell folks that poplar, basswood and agathis, etc., are somehow inferior tone woods. What they often overlook however is that back in the day, Leo Fender didn't choose alder for it's superior tonal qualities, he used it because it was easy to machine (again mass production), it was fairly lightweight and because it was plentiful and inexpensive! In later eras like the 90's for example, when alder started becoming scarce and more expensive, Fender switched to poplar and other tone woods for the exact same reasons. And while it's true that many inexpensive guitars do use basswood, just as many expensive guitars ($1000+) use it too! The truth is this; while the tone wood will have SOME effect on the sound of a given instrument, when it comes to an electric guitar, your playing and your choice of pickups and amp are going to have a FAR greater effect on your tone than any wood used in the body. While this applies to Strats in the broadest general terms, I also have to add that unlike many guitars, Strats are rather easy to personalize as there's a virtual plethora of "after market options" available...and the Standard Strat really stands above the crowd here. Sure some folks are perfectly happy with that "off the rack" instrument and many folks will never do anything to their guitar other than play it and change the strings (and I've known a few who don't even do that, LOL!). For the rest of us however, the number of ways there are to personalize a Strat are impressive to say the least and most larger guitar shops (not to mention internet resources) carry a very wide array of parts for Standard Strats. From pickups to custom pickguards to gold hardware to graphite saddles and brass nuts.....a Standard Strat is arguably the easiest electric guitar to personalize to your own tastes and preferences! Over-all, in my not so humble opinion the Fender Standard Stratocaster is the ideal guitar. Comfortable to play, great sound for a wide range of uses and the perfect platform for those who like to customize their instruments and sound. For the cost of a new Standard Strat, along with a couple of upgrades, you can have an instrument that sounds and plays like instruments costing hundreds, if not thousands more. Seen in countless venues across the globe, this -IS- the working musician's guitar! Finally I would like to say that regardless of whether you buy from here on Amazon or elsewhere and regardless of whether you buy a Mexican Standard, an American Standard or even a "Crafted in China" Squier or even some other brand/model, remember this; the #1 thing that effects how well your guitar sounds is -you-. As I've said a great many times over the years, Eric Clapton sounds like Eric Clapton because he IS Eric Clapton. He will sound like Clapton regardless of whether he's playing a $4000 Custom Shop instrument, a $20,000 vintage relic or a $200 Squier. Respectively, you could be playing his famed "Blackie" (which I would remind folks was a humble partscaster!) and you are STILL going to sound like you! Beyond the guitar, pickups, pedals and amps, the single greatest aspect that effects your sound and tone are your fingers, your technique, your imagination and your own heart. Rock on!