Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum

At The Back => Time Out => Topic started by: Twinfan on October 16, 2008, 11:40:24 AM

Title: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on October 16, 2008, 11:40:24 AM
All this recent Telecaster hatred has been quite amusing  :lol:

I like Teles.  I think they're cool, workman-like, everyday sling-it-round-your-neck-and-play simple.  Classic tones, great for rhythm work and they sit really well in a mix.  A bit of relic'ing, and they're even better  ;)

Now Strats.....

I always find they're the more feminine of Leo Fender's designs - all those curves and contours etc.  You just can't look 'manly' with one.  I just don't see what all the fuss is about with them.  I've never GAS'ed for one in my life, surely they're just for poseurs?  Stupid cr@ppy (wrongly named) tremolo, annoying middle pickup that gets in the way etc.  They're like a bright pink Cadillac - highly embarassing to own and use.  I mean, who wants to look like Hank Marvin?

Truly awful.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Roobubba on October 16, 2008, 11:45:05 AM
I do agree about the pointless middle pickup (but would also add the neck pickup to this, personally).

However, my beef is nothign to do with whether a guitar looks masculine or feminine - I don't see this argument at all. The curves on strats are, in a similar way to teles, a bit cr@p, just far, far less so than the ugly telecaster.

I am so, so glad that the tele in your avatar is essentially invisible with the case lining :)

Heh, you all love it, really :)

Roo
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: _tom_ on October 16, 2008, 11:45:42 AM
I used to really like them but totally gone off them now. They're just so bloody boring to look at. And they sound a bit limp :o
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Transcend on October 16, 2008, 12:01:57 PM
I used to really like them but totally gone off them now. They're just so bloody boring to look at. And they sound a bit limp :o

Yep strats have to be the most boring guitar to look at ever.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 16, 2008, 12:17:28 PM
Now Strats.....

I always find they're the more feminine of Leo Fender's designs - all those curves and contours etc.  You just can't look 'manly' with one.  I just don't see what all the fuss is about with them.  I've never GAS'ed for one in my life, surely they're just for poseurs?  Stupid cr@ppy (wrongly named) tremolo, annoying middle pickup that gets in the way etc.  They're like a bright pink Cadillac - highly embarassing to own and use.  I mean, who wants to look like Hank Marvin?

Truly awful.

Aw Dave, please don't turn into Roo!  :( 

This whole thread is a wind-up I hope, since every comment so far is total bollocks.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Jonny on October 16, 2008, 12:21:38 PM
I don't like Strats for their curves (unlike women) I prefer a flat quilt top, with a nice dye. Natural binding, solid colour on the back. Not the usual red, blue, light blue, yellow, green, etc. etc. It's sort of their trademark but I wasn't alive in those days to go WOW a RED GUITAR or anything, no offense to those who were alive. :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: _tom_ on October 16, 2008, 12:40:39 PM
This whole thread is a wind-up I hope, since every comment so far is total bollocks.

I'm deadly serious. They look ok theres just nothing amazing or exciting about them. I've never been able to get the sound to work for me either, its just so weak compared to humbuckers or p90s.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on October 16, 2008, 12:48:37 PM
It's slightly tongue in cheek, but I honestly do not like Strats.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: JDC on October 16, 2008, 12:49:20 PM
I haven't played many strats, but when I have I didn't get on with them either, but that's probably more to do with being used to flying Vs, last time I tried one it felt big and I wasn't muting the strings very well so there was lots of noise

and roo there is nothing wrong with the neck pickup!!! it's great for nice smooth leads and cleans, although I ain't got a clue what middle pickups are good for, but then I don't have one so I've never played around with one
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Brow on October 16, 2008, 12:49:47 PM
I used to really like them but totally gone off them now. They're just so bloody boring to look at. And they sound a bit limp :o

Your former Ash Strat with a Cold Sweat in the bridge isn't 'limp' in the slightest  8)

I'm deadly serious. They look ok theres just nothing amazing or exciting about them. I've never been able to get the sound to work for me either, its just so weak compared to humbuckers or p90s.

To be honest, I felt this way about them too up until about 6 or 7 years ago. Strats are 1 of those guitars that I can't seem to play 'naturally' if you know what I mean? I've really had to work hard to get on with them, but I'm now very glad I have :)

Teles are the new guitar that I like but am not really gelling with atm. Which is a shame, as my homemade 52 style clone with 55 staggered pups spends most of it's time sat in it's case when I should be playing it more  :( :shock:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Matt77 on October 16, 2008, 12:51:32 PM
I know they are good enough guitars and can sound and play great.
However....... I hate strats.
I hated them before I even played guitar.
I have no justification for this and can't explain why.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: badgermark on October 16, 2008, 01:02:21 PM
I don't like them either, which is a shame. I WANT to like them, and have tried in the past. Much prefer a solid tele or les paul if i'm honest.

It's a shame it's so popular though, means Fender churn out loads of the buggers with slight variations, whereas the cooler models like the mustang, jaguar and jazzmaster are often neglected.

And that middle pickup pisses me off no end. It's a middle ground, where the strat neck and bridge do a much better job. I'd much rather use one of them than the middle. Don't get me started on 'tremolos', i hate the things! the strat's has to be the worst i've tried.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: jibidy on October 16, 2008, 01:08:31 PM
All you want for a strat "style" is a ibanez rg!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: kellar on October 16, 2008, 01:20:11 PM
Not much of a Strat fan either, though they're hard to criticize because I have never really given them a fair try as far as playing.
I do like what they offer tone-wise though. Anyway, it is hard to imagine Jimmy, SRV, or David Gilmour jamming out on anything other than a Strat. (When they did it just didn't look quite right!) :D
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 16, 2008, 01:22:46 PM
OK, the Strat may not be the perfect guitar for everybody (it isn't for me either, although I like them very much), but do we really need a thread slagging it off?

OK, a standard Strat is no good for playing "teh br00talz", but you've got to put it in some kind of historical context - there was no br00talz in 1954.  You can't play metal on a Gretsch or Rickenbacker either.

The Strat was of its time but also incredibly futuristic - it's an AWESOME design.  The Jag, Mustang and Jazzmaster were just wonky Strats with design faults the strat never had - and they're only "cool" because they weren't actually good enough to be popular. 

None of your superstrats (hmm, where did that term come from?) would exist without the Strat, the Jem/RG that everybody loves so much is nothing more than a Strat copy (but with all the proportions out of whack).

Without the "pointless" middle pickup you wouldn't have those great sounds in positions 2 and 4.  The tremolo may not stay in tune as well as a Floyd, but it doesn't suck out all the tone like that tinny-sounding, fiddly, over-engineered sledgehammer-to-crack-a-walnut.

Dave's other comments may have been tongue in cheek, but where are the embarrassing-looking, un-manly poseurs in this list? :

Jimi Hendrix
Rory Gallagher
Stevie Ray Vaughan
Ritchie Blackmore
Robin Trower
Eric Clapton
Tommy Bolin
Buddy Guy
Otis Rush
John Frusciante
Eric Johnson
David Gilmour
Jeff Beck

etc
etc

Have you got all day?

******

Come on, somebody help me out here!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Kilby on October 16, 2008, 01:28:06 PM
I must be a really sad person

Some strats (teles, LPs SGs or whatever) Sound, look or feel great and some don't.

Some AAAAA PRS attact me, some make me feel nothing and some I dislike.

The only guitars I tend to write off are the super pointy things that should have some sort of protective devices fitted (but then again some of the older BC rich models I still like)

Am I in a minority of two (Hi Phil)  in starting to feel this has all got a bit childish
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: badgermark on October 16, 2008, 01:43:17 PM
Philly i didn't necessarily slag it, just that it's not right for ME. All those artists love the strat, and good, but i don't and i actually gave reasons, unlike roo and his unreasonable dislike of teles.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: indysmith on October 16, 2008, 01:44:28 PM
Strats are awesome. All naysayers are just poorly educated.
They look like sex, they play like sex, and they sound like sex.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: kellar on October 16, 2008, 01:53:54 PM
I agree with you PhillyQ and feel like this thread is somewhat unnecessary. I am not a Strat player but certainly don't have many negative things to say about them. Anyway, there are more than a few Strat players that I greatly admire on that list you came up with. My only problem with Strats is that I have never tried one. :D

I am sure if you came up with an LP thread, there would be more than a few people offering their opinion as well. It is all strictly opinion. :D
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: MDV on October 16, 2008, 01:59:35 PM
Strats are a mixed bag for me.

On the one hand, I think they look cool, they have my favourite scale length and are very comfortable standing and sitting, and, vitally, lounging about in whatever position on the couch my laziness has contorted me into.

But

I dont like the trems, the fretboard radius, the ubiquity of the single coils on them or the neck join. I'm quite ambivelent about the neck profile - I like round and fat-ish for chords and getting my teeth into bluesy pentatonic stuff, but like something thinner for faster playing, and can get on with thinner just fine for everything else too.

I have very limited use of 3sc too. I like bridge HBs.

Overall I'll give your classic archetypal strat design, but fat strat, a 6.5 out of 10.

Fixed bridge 2HB Superstrats are the perfection of the guitar, as far as I'm concerned.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: dave_mc on October 16, 2008, 02:09:30 PM
i like strats. i'm not 100% convinced by the bridge pickup, but if that's switched out (for, e.g., a bucker), then position 4 doesn't sound as nice (and i really like position 4). i guess, as long as i can have more than one guitar, i give strats the thumbs-up.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Elliot on October 16, 2008, 02:15:59 PM
I'm not going to even descend into the argument - strats rule and this series of posts is like putting a mirror up to your own inadequacies  8)  BTW the middle pickup is the best pickup of the whole set up and if you can't get it to work, that's also a reflection on you.

Yours, with the usual courtesy.

Elliot
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: MDV on October 16, 2008, 02:18:24 PM
I'm not going to even descend into the argument - strats rule and this series of posts is like putting a mirror up to your own inadequacies  8)  BTW the middle pickup is the best pickup of the whole set up and if you can't get it to work, that's also a reflection on you.

Yours, with the usual courtesy.

Elliot

Middle pickup?

Bite your toungue, heretic!

The neck pickup is the best. The middle pickup is a jack of all trades, master of none.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: MrBump on October 16, 2008, 02:19:25 PM
Strats are awesome. All naysayers are just poorly educated.
They look like sex, they play like sex, and they sound like sex.

+1 Strats are cool.  Anyone who plays one looks cool.

(waits for floods of images posted to prove me wrong...)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: dave_mc on October 16, 2008, 02:19:47 PM
i like position 4 the best, i think. but i pretty much like all the pickups, bar the bridge (which is a little bright and thin).
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: dave_mc on October 16, 2008, 02:20:09 PM

+1 Strats are cool.  Anyone who plays one looks cool.

(waits for floods of images posted to prove me wrong...)

doesn't tony blair play a strat?

o_O
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: badgermark on October 16, 2008, 02:26:41 PM
Strats are awesome. All naysayers are just poorly educated.
They look like sex, they play like sex, and they sound like sex.

+1 Strats are cool.  Anyone who plays one looks cool.

(waits for floods of images posted to prove me wrong...)

couldn't resist!

(http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o82/markdemanbey/GuitarBuild/DSCF1745.jpg)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: _tom_ on October 16, 2008, 02:28:23 PM
Your former Ash Strat with a Cold Sweat in the bridge isn't 'limp' in the slightest  8)

Yeah I just meant stock ones really. I have no use for the sounds I get from a strat which is probably why I dont like them. I bet it'd sound better with a pig 90 in it though :)

The only strat I really like the look of at the minute is the Tom Delonge one in seafoam green (or whatever its meant to be)

(http://www.fender.jp/php/photo/tom_delonge_stratocaster.jpg)

Shame itd just feel weird and cheap compared to a good les paul :P
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 16, 2008, 02:32:24 PM
The middle pickup is a jack of all trades, master of none.

It was good enough for Robin Trower to use as his main rhythm pickup.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Matt77 on October 16, 2008, 03:03:07 PM

+1 Strats are cool.  Anyone who plays one looks cool.

(waits for floods of images posted to prove me wrong...)

doesn't tony blair play a strat?

o_O

he does and Richard Madeley does as well
Ritchie Blackmore can't be cool anymore as last time I saw him he had green tights and was playing a lute
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Adam.M on October 16, 2008, 03:31:57 PM
I blame Argos guitars for my dislike of most strats.

I've liked strats i've had in the past, but not for very long... i often felt it was too reserved, refined, dunno...

Though lately, i'm starting to really like Tele's. ugh! :(
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Sifu Ben on October 16, 2008, 03:46:27 PM
In the past I've not really liked strats, but lately they've been growing on me. It's true, there are some great sounds to be had from strats.
 I don't seem to get on well with their radius though.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Jonny on October 16, 2008, 03:48:37 PM
OK, a standard Strat is no good for playing "teh br00talz", but you've got to put it in some kind of historical context - there was no br00talz in 1954.  You can't play metal on a Gretsch or Rickenbacker either.
Someone needs to experiment that theory. GRETSCH FOR TEH BROOTALZ!!!

Also br00talz in 1954 - LOL, just reading that made me laugh so much.

I never had a Fender Stratocaster, just an Encore one.. from Argos.. Maybe that's where my distaste comes from as well.

Also I shouldn't be ashamed! I love the Tele!

As well:
(http://www.warmoth.com/guitar/options/images/DropTopClearMaskedBinding.jpg)
(http://www.warmoth.com/guitar/options/images/DropTopClearMaskedBinding2.jpg)

Equals nice Strat :) (maybe not the finish but the quilt and natural binding - Oooooooooooooooooo)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: hamfist on October 16, 2008, 04:32:16 PM
TF, maybe you've been drinking early in the day (reminds me of threads I start "under the influence").

Personally, I also dislike strats because of the ubiquitous shape - just too common (especially in the learner zone)

Having said that, for anyone using lower gain tones, the variety of available tones from a strat are unrivalled.  I play a strat copy (HSS) at church and it is just perfect (tonally) for that (I'd rather it looked and felt like an LP, but can't have everything).
   However, I still dislike the shape and the general "wimpiness" of the strat's image these days. It's not logical, but it does exist.
  Cummon - even christian bands these days use LP's or tele's (and yes I'm among them at times).

Unfortunately, for many, strats = shredding. And shredding used to equal manliness in the 80's but these days, definately NOT.

PS. Don't want to offend anyone. This is just a joke thread really isn't it !
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Stevepage on October 16, 2008, 04:39:12 PM
I love Strats but I can see why some wouldn't like it. But different strokes for different folks.

Personally, the only thing I DON'T like about Strats is the smaller radius on the vintage re-issues. I prefer a flatter radius because notes don't choke when you bend high. I've managed with the smaller radius on my 68 Reissue Strat for years but do get annoyed with it some times.

But for guitars I don't like, SG's. Neck heavy as hell.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: WezV on October 16, 2008, 04:45:48 PM
strats and tele's are good blank canvases that can be taken anywhere.. for almost any style.  I agree that i prefer them with humbuckers though

not suitable for  'TEH BROOTALZ'.... they are with a few changes.... or a lot of changes

(http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/WezV/wv26.jpg)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: ToneMonkey on October 16, 2008, 05:01:54 PM
I think that my only problem with strats is probably over saturation.  I think I've just seen way too many of them and they have no impact on me anymore.  There's still the odd one that I look at and think "Yeah man, that's nice", but on the whole I look at them with complete unbotheredness.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Roobubba on October 16, 2008, 05:17:27 PM
Philly i didn't necessarily slag it, just that it's not right for ME. All those artists love the strat, and good, but i don't and i actually gave reasons, unlike roo and his unreasonable dislike of teles.

Hey I DO give reasons for my dislike of teles!

For what it's worth, I'd also like to point out that I'm not AT ALL a fan of pointy METHULLZZ guitars. I like my guitars to look more understated and mean, rather than pointy and uncomfortable.

Really, I am far more accepting of guitar shapes than people give me credit for, although admittedly that's because of my rather vocal dislike of the telecaster, which is in fact therefore of my own doing, but hey I just wanted to reset the balance a bit here :)

Roo
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: _tom_ on October 16, 2008, 05:22:19 PM
I think that my only problem with strats is probably over saturation.  I think I've just seen way too many of them and they have no impact on me anymore.  There's still the odd one that I look at and think "Yeah man, that's nice", but on the whole I look at them with complete unbotheredness.

Thats exactly why I dont like them much either. They also feel cheap/not quality compared to Gibsons etc. Couldnt pay loads of money for one otherwise Id' feel like it was a waste, even high end american ones still feel a bit cheap to me. Must be the unfinished, unbound neck I guess. I'm sort of interested in getting a Squier Tom Delonge to mod if I can find one anywhere, strats should be cheap and cheerful :)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Will on October 16, 2008, 05:25:01 PM
Strats only seem to look right when they have a humbucker, two reverse slanted singles and a hardtail to me.
I hated strats until I really watched how Jake E Lee uses it, and how it sounds
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on October 16, 2008, 05:28:25 PM
TF, maybe you've been drinking early in the day (reminds me of threads I start "under the influence").

Not at all.  I was just provoked into thought by yet another thread that descended into Roo's dislike of Telecasters.  It's a discussion forum isn't it?  I'm discussing  :)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Johnny Mac on October 16, 2008, 05:53:56 PM
I'm with Philly and Elliot on this, I like Strats, I've had one for years and I'd buy another one just so I could put Apaches in it. Strats are not easy to play but if you persevere you will find playing guitars with fast necks and a compund radius a breeze. As for the middle pickup, on a 5 way switch you can get those funky tones that Curtis Mayfield, Nile Rogers get so they do have their uses.
I'm still in disbelief at this thread to be honest, this place isn't what it was!  :?
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Will on October 16, 2008, 06:02:22 PM
Oh its worth adding that Andy with his Irish Tours has actually got me interested. I see a vibe, just don't like playing them still.

I don't see why its bad to not like strats Philly / Johnny. It is opinion after all.
Would you prefer
OMGZ WOW any ova getar thah in't a Ibanez is da shites ROFL BBQ
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: WezV on October 16, 2008, 06:04:06 PM
tbh i dont think this is any sign the forum is going down hill... if this was that sort of forum it would have turned to juvenile insults and attacks when all we really have is some gentle ribbing between friends

cant wait for Roo to buy a new guitar so we can all compare it to the humble telecaster in a 'which one is gayer?' contest ;) :P
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Johnny Mac on October 16, 2008, 06:04:21 PM
^ 2 Your digging your own hole dude!  :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Afghan Dave on October 16, 2008, 06:05:54 PM
Strats to me are the blank perfect canvas.

If you can't cut it on a strat.. YOU CAN'T CUT IT.. period.  :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Johnny Mac on October 16, 2008, 06:12:08 PM
Strats to me are the blank perfect canvas.

If you can't cut it on a strat.. YOU CAN'T CUT IT.. period.  :lol:

I couldn't have put it better myself Dave!

My Charvel is a piece of piss to play but my strat isnt. One doesn't do the TONES  of the other so you have to try harder. It is all about sound to the listener.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: WezV on October 16, 2008, 06:16:53 PM
thats what i just said ;)

strats and tele's are good blank canvases that can be taken anywhere
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Afghan Dave on October 16, 2008, 06:25:52 PM
thats what i just said ;)

strats and tele's are good blank canvases that can be taken anywhere

I don't read this board... This board reads me!

(sorry missed your post)  :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: hamfist on October 16, 2008, 06:26:40 PM
tbh i dont think this is any sign the forum is going down hill... if this was that sort of forum it would have turned to juvenile insults and attacks when all we really have is some gentle ribbing between friends

Lets all remember this !!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Roobubba on October 16, 2008, 06:30:56 PM

cant wait for Roo to buy a new guitar so we can all compare it to the humble telecaster in a 'which one is gayer?' contest ;) :P

LOL wez, I think I might make a Tee-shirt from this... :)

tbh i dont think this is any sign the forum is going down hill... if this was that sort of forum it would have turned to juvenile insults and attacks when all we really have is some gentle ribbing between friends

Lets all remember this !!

+1 !

Roo
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Elliot on October 16, 2008, 06:31:04 PM
'tbh i dont think this is any sign the forum is going down hill... if this was that sort of forum it would have turned to juvenile insults and attacks when all we really have is some gentle ribbing between friends'

We'll see      - when we move onto the teenager's favourite - the Les Paul  :D
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Afghan Dave on October 16, 2008, 06:37:26 PM
'tbh i dont think this is any sign the forum is going down hill... if this was that sort of forum it would have turned to juvenile insults and attacks when all we really have is some gentle ribbing between friends'

We'll see      - when we move onto the teenager's favourite - the Les Paul  :D

You Strat haters are all a bunch of Joey's and Gaylords...

And your views are well spasticated....

 :lol: :lol:

(prizes to anyone who remembers where the term "Joey" originated)  :lol: :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Sifu Ben on October 16, 2008, 06:43:29 PM
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joey_Deacon
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Kilby on October 16, 2008, 06:45:38 PM
Yes Dave I do remember Blue Peter
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Johnny Mac on October 16, 2008, 06:47:58 PM
'tbh i dont think this is any sign the forum is going down hill... if this was that sort of forum it would have turned to juvenile insults and attacks when all we really have is some gentle ribbing between friends'

We'll see      - when we move onto the teenager's favourite - the Les Paul  :D

You Strat haters are all a bunch of Joey's and Gaylords...

And your views are well spasticated....

 :lol: :lol:

(prizes to anyone who remembers where the term "Joey" originated)  :lol: :lol:

Oh yes I remember him and where he made a name for himself, in fact the program is current news!  :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Woogie on October 16, 2008, 06:52:15 PM
I used to really like them but totally gone off them now. They're just so bloody boring to look at. And they sound a bit limp :o

Cmon! A holydiver doesn't sound as limp as a mule  :P
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Woogie on October 16, 2008, 06:54:34 PM
Nevermind, I read page 2 and saw you said stock ones with sc's
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: 38thBeatle on October 16, 2008, 06:58:22 PM
I really love Strats- I have two and I'd gladly buy another when I retire my old Strat. I am in a minority, I am pleased to say, in that I do use the middle pickup but that was only after the pickups were replaced with BKPs. I love the shape and the feel and think that they are the icon they are because they are classic in every regard. I don't expect everyone to like what I like and really do not care if others don't like them. There are guitars that I cannot stand and I know that some will disagree. The good thing with these threads though is that they generate some amusing stuff-which is possibly why Dave started it off-at least I'd like to think so. I'll have to start one of these threads methinks......well maybe not.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Afghan Dave on October 16, 2008, 07:18:02 PM
'tbh i dont think this is any sign the forum is going down hill... if this was that sort of forum it would have turned to juvenile insults and attacks when all we really have is some gentle ribbing between friends'

We'll see      - when we move onto the teenager's favourite - the Les Paul  :D

You Strat haters are all a bunch of Joey's and Gaylords...

And your views are well spasticated....

 :lol: :lol:

(prizes to anyone who remembers where the term "Joey" originated)  :lol: :lol:

Oh yes I remember him and where he made a name for himself, in fact the program is current news!  :lol:


Who would have guessed back in the playground that we could one day out fox the youth with such a conversation...

Wicked...
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Elliot on October 16, 2008, 07:20:07 PM
38th Beatle wrote

'I really love Strats- I have two and I'd gladly buy another when I retire my old Strat. I am in a minority, I am pleased to say, in that I do use the middle pickup but that was only after the pickups were replaced with BKPs. I love the shape and the feel and think that they are the icon they are because they are classic in every regard. I don't expect everyone to like what I like and really do not care if others don't like them. There are guitars that I cannot stand and I know that some will disagree. The good thing with these threads though is that they generate some amusing stuff-which is possibly why Dave started it off-at least I'd like to think so. I'll have to start one of these threads methinks......well maybe not.'

Just as the thread was beginning to get really childish, you went and saved it...... :harp:


Oddly I heard some 10 year olds calling each other Joey the other day, so the word has become a general insult a generation on.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on October 16, 2008, 07:25:42 PM
The good thing with these threads though is that they generate some amusing stuff-which is possibly why Dave started it off-at least I'd like to think so.

You know me too well Mr 38th!  :lol:

As I said earlier, I really don't care much for Strats but I'm certainly not Roo-ish about them.  I just seem to prefer two pickup guitars  ;)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: broken cord on October 16, 2008, 07:29:44 PM
I learned how to play on a Stratocaster, and where I don't pick them up too much as of late I still have two. A Strat is the kind of guitar that you can just make it work. Force it, pummel it, beat it up some too, it can take it like a work horse. However, when you caress one just right....Sweet music! I'll always have a Stat in my collection, and most likely two.

<"http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c128/JSalch/roryguitar2.jpg" border="0" alt="Rory Gallaghers Stratocaster"
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Sifu Ben on October 16, 2008, 07:55:04 PM
What's truly tragic is I actually know these two :(
http://judascow.no-ip.com/vegas.html
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Johnny Mac on October 16, 2008, 07:59:34 PM
What's truly tragic is I actually know these two :(
http://judascow.no-ip.com/vegas.html

 :lol: A lot..!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Elliot on October 16, 2008, 08:02:06 PM
Is it an honour for the late Joey Deacon?  I mean no one remembers his mate Ernie do they.  Is it better to be remembered as an insult or not remembered at all.

Discuss with particular reference to Stratocasters.

Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Afghan Dave on October 16, 2008, 08:08:14 PM
What's truly tragic is I actually know these two :(
http://judascow.no-ip.com/vegas.html

For F**K's sake... I've pissed myself...

I love you guys  PDT_004 PDT_004 PDT_004 PDT_004 PDT_003
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: TwilightOdyssey on October 16, 2008, 08:22:03 PM
"I thought I knew what ridiculous was, until this day."

-- Strongbad
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: AndyR on October 16, 2008, 09:02:56 PM
To the original question: Not me, I loves them :D

Back in the 80s I had years of this with my drummer - he was convinced that the Les Paul was the guitar. But he didn't have too much choice because his front man wanted to play a strat.

Later we were in another band where I had another guitarist. The strat just didn't work in that band (the other guitarist only had a strat, and two were a bit piercing!), so I happily played a tele, an SG, and then finally I got an LP.

When I got it home, the drummer fell about laughing. He loved the sound etc, but when he finally saw me with a LP on, he had to admit that I looked better with a strat.

And by the way, for those who haven't figured out how to use one of these fine, fine instruments:

The middle pickup on a strat is THE main pickup. If the middle pickup don't sound right when you plugs in then you've set yer amp up wrong!!

You only go to the neck when you want extra plummy/fruity, and to the bridge when you want to tear people's teeth out. If you play either all the time you'll sound as boring as a Les Paul player after the second song. :wink:

EDIT: I love this forum - like several have said, if this was most other places, this thread would have turned into a bloodbath, half the regulars would have left, and our fine moderator would be tearing his hair out :D
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ben_W on October 16, 2008, 09:49:31 PM
I don't like strats. Superstrats, yes, Strats, not really.

I just don't like the necks on 'em. They can sound nice and all, just IMO they pretty much always sound a bit tinny. The only exception I can think of is Jimi. Rory Gallagher could too, but apart from that, a bit thin for me personally. Still, not half as bad as an explorer. Now THOSE things are ugly. :)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: broken cord on October 16, 2008, 09:59:52 PM
I learned how to play on a Stratocaster, and where I don't pick them up too much as of late I still have two. A Strat is the kind of guitar that you can just make it work. Force it, pummel it, beat it up some too, it can take it like a work horse. However, when you caress one just right....Sweet music! I'll always have a Stat in my collection, and most likely two.

"http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c128/JSalch/roryguitar2.jpg" "Rory Gallaghers Stratocaster"
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ted 'N' Leo on October 16, 2008, 10:00:30 PM
Although I don't own a fender (Squier strat for me) i have to say its one of my favourite designs. After playing an LP, then going to a strat, everything feels so much more comfortable, and it can certainly give you a sound of your own. Although the tremolo can be tempermental at times, it wasn't really designed for over the top EVH style abuse.

I'm not big on the middle pickup, but i can see where it has its uses, i definatly wouldn't get rid of it!

I'm planning on doing a Warmoth strat pretty soonish (should be putting a thread up about it when i get time), and i honestly can't wait to have a strat thats a bit better quality than the squier.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: FELINEGUITARS on October 16, 2008, 10:09:22 PM
I have a mixed relationship with strats

As a player:
So many cheap nasty copies are strats and many are horrid
Sometimes you get hold of a strat that is so good nothing comes close for what the start can do

As a repairman:
 I sometimes hate them because of quirks that just make everything difficult
There is fretbuzz on some strats that you just dont get on other guitars
Truss rod adjusters buried at the heel end of the neck so you have to take the whole guitar apart to adjust
The scratchplate mounted elecs that means you have to take the whole guitar apart to fix a solder joint or suchlike
Can drive you crazy

As a music fan:
They are so boring
I hate it when a band that used to use flash pointy or exotic guitars martures and suddenly just play old strats

I was weaned on 1970s BC Rich's and the like and have a soft spot for pointy guitars
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Bird on October 16, 2008, 10:35:00 PM
Quote
"I thought I knew what ridiculous was, until this day."
+1  :)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 16, 2008, 11:59:15 PM
You Strat haters are all a bunch of Joey's and Gaylords...

And your views are well spasticated....

 :lol: :lol:

(prizes to anyone who remembers where the term "Joey" originated)  :lol: :lol:

Joey A-con
Joey B-con
Joey C-con
Joey Deacon!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 17, 2008, 12:08:27 AM
I hate it when a band that used to use flash pointy or exotic guitars martures and suddenly just play old strats

I feel the exact opposite - although I have no objection to "proper" Strats which have been modified with humbuckers, or bigger frets, or even a Floyd.

But then I never hankered after pointy guitars at all, even at their peak in the '80s, maybe because they look really silly on small people (as any old picture of C.C. DeVille will demonstrate).
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Afghan Dave on October 17, 2008, 12:39:39 AM
You Strat haters are all a bunch of Joey's and Gaylords...

And your views are well spasticated....

 :lol: :lol:

(prizes to anyone who remembers where the term "Joey" originated)  :lol: :lol:

Joey A-con
Joey B-con
Joey C-con
Joey Deacon!

Dave loves you and you know it...  :lol: :lol: :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: FELINEGUITARS on October 17, 2008, 10:10:37 AM
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joey_Deacon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joey_Deacon)

 I remember him being on children's show Blue Peter

It did become a kid's playground  thing calling someone else Joey Deacon to say they were a bit of a spaz or retard
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Roobubba on October 17, 2008, 11:39:37 AM
I think the ten year olds today probably use Joey to mean the Friends character. Arguably, this is not too dissimilar to the original use of the term ;)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 17, 2008, 11:51:39 AM
I think the ten year olds today probably use Joey to mean the Friends character. Arguably, this is not too dissimilar to the original use of the term ;)

 :lol: :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on October 17, 2008, 12:10:56 PM
where i stand on the whole fender range:

cyclone - great guitar!
jazzmaster - looks teh sex (sorry for slang)
mustang/jaguar - also looks teh sex, however, unsure of 24" scale length
duosonic/bronco/musicman - not sure about neck pickup only in the music man case. and what of the saddle design - how is intonation? scale length again?
toronado/jagstang - look misproportioned and a bit wrong
telecaster - don't like the look at all - however very keen on the sound though since trying phil's tele selection

strat HSS - looks weird, though adrian smith and fast eddie do sound good with them
strat HSH - looks greedy
strat H(H) - like the look and the 80s overtones, but not really a strat
strat SSS - possibly weedy bridge pup :( however with some sort of potent bridge, fast eddie, blackmore and roth are bringing me round to the ideas and advantages of a strat, it really brings out the unique qualities of a player, just as people say

bad quality strats ruin it for everyone indeed... also i find that the strat body is something i like - but i'm sorry - everyone plays one - if you want to look unique, its not the guitar to choose - likewise les paul, but less so. this is why i'd never play a strat live.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ratrod on October 17, 2008, 12:13:10 PM
There's only one thing I like about Strats and that's the sound.

They are ugly.
The trem is horrible.
The control knobs get in the way.
They feel wrong to me.

Most people who play them want to be like Hendrix, Clapton or SRV. They usually sound like cartoon versions of their idols and can't play anything else.

I wouldn't call it a poseur's axe. A Les Paul or PRS would fit better in that catagory.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 17, 2008, 12:15:31 PM
but i'm sorry - everyone plays one - if you want to look unique, its not the guitar to choose - likewise les paul, but less so. this is why i'd never play a strat live.

But isn't playing unique more important than looking unique?
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on October 17, 2008, 12:23:43 PM
but i'm sorry - everyone plays one - if you want to look unique, its not the guitar to choose - likewise les paul, but less so. this is why i'd never play a strat live.

But isn't playing unique more important than looking unique?

sorry, i don't agree. would you watch a live band blindfolded? the instrument you play is part of your image. look is important. even if you play a beat up tele - your saying, i don't care about the look - which is a sort of image/look itself. you have to play an instrument you're 100% comfortable with. you wouldn't wear clothes you didn't like for example.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 17, 2008, 12:47:03 PM
you have to play an instrument you're 100% comfortable with. you wouldn't wear clothes you didn't like for example.

But comfort and looks aren't quite the same thing, are they?  To achieve that "unique look" you might have to choose something that isn't 100% comfortable.  To use your clothing analogy, "fashion" is generally about looking good, even if it means enduring a bit of discomfort from funny shaped shoes, overly tight trousers or a space helmet (I'm sure I saw one of those at London Fashion Week, although I try to avoid all coverage of the thing).

Maybe I misunderstood, but your original post sounded like "even if I liked Strats better than anything else, I wouldn't play one because everyone else does".  Which seems like cutting off your nose to spite your face to me.

I agree that the look of an instrument isn't unimportant.  But if you play a Strat or Les Paul, because they are so common, your audience doesn't necessarily know what to expect.  Whereas if you come out with a BC Rich Warbeast it's entirely predictable... and boring.

Sorry gwEm. I'm not trying to wind you up or anything.

Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Will on October 17, 2008, 12:52:01 PM
Strats have been devalued as the shape is a starter shape. I am thinking thats what gwEm is kind of getting at. Everyone that wants to have an attempt at the guitar starts on one.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: MDV on October 17, 2008, 02:36:09 PM
I don't like strats. Superstrats, yes, Strats, not really.

I just don't like the necks on 'em. They can sound nice and all, just IMO they pretty much always sound a bit tinny. The only exception I can think of is Jimi. Rory Gallagher could too, but apart from that, a bit thin for me personally. Still, not half as bad as an explorer. Now THOSE things are ugly. :)

Wash your mouth out!

Explorers look awsome!

Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ben_W on October 17, 2008, 03:47:31 PM
Explorers are pretty much Vs which have been sorta half flipped, but gone slightly wrong... :)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on October 17, 2008, 05:07:10 PM
Strats have been devalued as the shape is a starter shape. I am thinking thats what gwEm is kind of getting at. Everyone that wants to have an attempt at the guitar starts on one.

thats not quite what i was getting at, though i do agree
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on October 17, 2008, 05:10:03 PM
you have to play an instrument you're 100% comfortable with. you wouldn't wear clothes you didn't like for example.

But comfort and looks aren't quite the same thing, are they?  To achieve that "unique look" you might have to choose something that isn't 100% comfortable.  To use your clothing analogy, "fashion" is generally about looking good, even if it means enduring a bit of discomfort from funny shaped shoes, overly tight trousers or a space helmet (I'm sure I saw one of those at London Fashion Week, although I try to avoid all coverage of the thing).

Maybe I misunderstood, but your original post sounded like "even if I liked Strats better than anything else, I wouldn't play one because everyone else does".  Which seems like cutting off your nose to spite your face to me.

I agree that the look of an instrument isn't unimportant.  But if you play a Strat or Les Paul, because they are so common, your audience doesn't necessarily know what to expect.  Whereas if you come out with a BC Rich Warbeast it's entirely predictable... and boring.

Sorry gwEm. I'm not trying to wind you up or anything.

you have some points there philly. i don't think that something cool and unique necessarily has to be uncomfortable.

anyway, maybe you're right about one thing - since i really like the feel of my highway one strat neck, but don't really want a strat, since i feel they are so common. this is why i will try it on a jazzmaster body. if it doesn't work as planned, i suppose i will have to use a strat body.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: dave_mc on October 17, 2008, 05:44:56 PM
But then I never hankered after pointy guitars at all, even at their peak in the '80s, maybe because they look really silly on small people (as any old picture of C.C. DeVille will demonstrate).

to be fair, have you ever seen a pic of C.C. where he didn't look silly, regardless of guitar? :lol:

Strats have been devalued as the shape is a starter shape. I am thinking thats what gwEm is kind of getting at. Everyone that wants to have an attempt at the guitar starts on one.

good point. the amount of people (not necessarily on this forum, on others i mean) who think strats suck because their £50 beginner P.O.S. was strat-shaped and suck is verging on astronomical...
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: mikeluke on October 17, 2008, 07:50:34 PM
At the risk of being serious..... horses for courses - some tunes just don't sound 'right' on anything other than a Strat - others need humbuckers - even Mark Knopfler uses a LP on some songs. Also - I know which I would rather have slung round my neck for 3 hours - my LP weighs a ton!

Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Mark66 on October 17, 2008, 08:55:38 PM
Don't like the trem(ok, wrongly named), which is why mine is screwed hard down to the body.
Not keen on the bridge pickup, but use it all the time...... I guarantee within 5min of playing, I've knocked the switch into
pos 5, is this just me?
Other than that, love strat tones.
Anyway, no time for loose talk, I'm off to buy a new set of 13s & a tube of superglue!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: ilÿti on October 17, 2008, 09:28:47 PM
Oh wow, 7 pages of this. :lol: I love you guys.

I used to like strats. Then I turned 14. I especially dislike the sound. I just can't get into the edgyness that you can't avoid even on the neck pickup (I suppose that's what stratfans call twang) and the bridge pickup just sounds brittle. Slab on a pair of humbuckers and you're cured for the most part. Then there's the smaller peeves I have about strats. Pickguard is too big, fretboard too curved, neck too thin, bridge too wobbly, middle pickup gets in the way, neckjoint is bulky, it's a long scale that doesn't have 24 frets... Yeah, I don't understand strats at all.

That said, there are some good players that played strats and even got good tones out of it. But chances are they'd sound better playing something else.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: MDV on October 18, 2008, 02:30:41 AM
Explorers are pretty much Vs which have been sorta half flipped, but gone slightly wrong... :)

Huh? No they arent. They're a beast unto themselves. And beasts they are!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Bird on October 18, 2008, 02:46:42 AM
Explorers are pretty much Vs which have been sorta half flipped, but gone slightly wrong... :)

Huh? No they arent. They're a beast unto themselves. And beasts they are!
They're Les Pauls with pointy bits

Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: hunter on October 18, 2008, 06:39:07 AM

Strats. Are. Cool.

For three simple reasons:


Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: MrBump on October 18, 2008, 08:37:12 AM
Strats are awesome. All naysayers are just poorly educated.
They look like sex, they play like sex, and they sound like sex.

+1 Strats are cool.  Anyone who plays one looks cool.

(waits for floods of images posted to prove me wrong...)

couldn't resist!

(http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o82/markdemanbey/GuitarBuild/DSCF1745.jpg)

You bugger!

That picture WOULD be cool if it wasn't for the double chin...
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: WezV on October 18, 2008, 08:53:04 AM
I keep getting major GAS for a billy corgan strat... not sure why though!  I know i could build better, i know i could get warmoth to do me one better, i know i would probably change the pickups sooner or later and knowing me will have changed every single part on it within 10 years... but part of me still thinks i should and still wants to own a strat made by fender... and that being a hardtail model with large headstock really makes me want it.

hmmmm
(http://themusic.fm/images/200806/Billy-Corgan-Stratocaster-Fender.gif)

anyone want to buy it me for xmas? ;)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on October 18, 2008, 09:51:27 AM
Strats. Are. Cool.

For three simple reasons:

I'll let you off Hendrix, as it's cool becuase it's upside down and the guy was a genious.  Not convinced by the other two!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: kellar on October 18, 2008, 09:57:11 AM
Not convinced by Mr. Gilmour?
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on October 18, 2008, 10:01:18 AM
Nope.  Sorry  :(

I respect his playing, but it's not really my cup of tea.  I'd rather listen to Chuck Berry  :D
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: kellar on October 18, 2008, 10:17:28 AM
To each his own. :D

Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Johnny Mac on October 18, 2008, 11:15:35 AM
Who cares?
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 19, 2008, 06:05:53 PM
I used to like strats. Then I turned 14.

Are you saying anyone who uses a Strat is childish?  That's just silly, even if you are just being a WUM.

Or did you just go through some kind of not-really-Strat-related personal epiphany at 14 that we needn't concern ourselves with?

Nope.  Sorry  :(

I respect his playing, but it's not really my cup of tea.  I'd rather listen to Chuck Berry  :D

In a thread with more than its fair share of surprising comments, that's... one of the more surprising.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Bird on October 19, 2008, 10:27:18 PM
Who cares?
+1
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: PhilKing on October 19, 2008, 10:35:01 PM
As you can see from the picture I hate strats.  In fact I hate them so much that since taking this I have bought 2 more!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on October 19, 2008, 11:14:59 PM
Nope.  Sorry  :(

I respect his playing, but it's not really my cup of tea.  I'd rather listen to Chuck Berry  :D

In a thread with more than its fair share of surprising comments, that's... one of the more surprising.

Is it???  Am I the only non-fan of Gilmour on the board then?  :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 19, 2008, 11:29:33 PM
Is it???  Am I the only non-fan of Gilmour on the board then?  :lol:

It wasn't really the Gilmour bit, it was the Chuck Berry bit. 

I mean, I know Chuck was influential an' all, but (no offence intended to anyone) I can't imagine actually listening to him.  I just don't find his music entertaining at all.  I'm not sure why - I think maybe it sounds more dated than other music from the same time.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Gooby on October 20, 2008, 04:08:13 AM
I think all the original designed guitars have both good and bad points. It seems to me that there original design spec are all but set in stone for fear of upsetting the 'traditionalists'.

Strats have good and bad points in my opinion and so do Telecasters. Don't get me wrong I think Telecasters are cool, but those bridges they fit on most of them that are impossible to intonate is just not on for me personally. There is no reason why for donkeys years each string couldn't have had its own saddle.

Oh no harks the 'traditionalist' it wouldn't be a propper tele without duff saddles.

Someone pass me a gun :)

Martin
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Elliot on October 20, 2008, 08:48:44 AM
Fender have made telecasters with individual saddles for years, they are just not proper telecasters without three brass saddles  :D
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: AndyR on October 20, 2008, 09:15:25 AM
Fender have made telecasters with individual saddles for years, they are just not proper telecasters without three brass saddles  :D
+1

I've had six saddle versions in the past.

It's only since getting the three saddle type that I've nailed that "tele" sound. Now, that might be my imagination, but...

Also, it helps that I've had no intonation problems with the barrels :D
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: AndyR on October 20, 2008, 09:22:50 AM
As you can see from the picture I hate strats.  In fact I hate them so much that since taking this I have bought 2 more!

Now that's what I'm talking about...

Your Les Pauls the other day were very nice, and I'd happily take them off your hands, but for pure guitar porn, this is where it's at for me :lol:

Actually, having used the word "porn", I realised all this "like"/"don't like" of various guitars is much like a chap's taste in boobs - I do not like big boobs, for example, I find them a real turn off.

I'm happy to admit/discuss this sort of thing in public, but I realise others aren't, so I shall refrain from starting a poll, but I suspect that there might be a correlation between taste in breast size/shape and taste in guitars... I do feel the scientific community might benefit from such research though...
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Roobubba on October 20, 2008, 09:39:30 AM
As you can see from the picture I hate strats.  In fact I hate them so much that since taking this I have bought 2 more!

Now that's what I'm talking about...

Your Les Pauls the other day were very nice, and I'd happily take them off your hands, but for pure guitar porn, this is where it's at for me :lol:

Actually, having used the word "porn", I realised all this "like"/"don't like" of various guitars is much like a chap's taste in boobs - I do not like big boobs, for example, I find them a real turn off.

I'm happy to admit/discuss this sort of thing in public, but I realise others aren't, so I shall refrain from starting a poll, but I suspect that there might be a correlation between taste in breast size/shape and taste in guitars... I do feel the scientific community might benefit from such research though...

I think you may be wrong there, because, while we share a favoured mammary size, I think you and I have somewhat different tastes in guitar, Andy! :)

Roo
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Kilby on October 20, 2008, 09:44:30 AM
Personally I'm very fond of strats and love the shape of them.

However I think familiarity breeds contempt, which isn't helped by all the strat copies whether budget versions or high end

Around 1980 every starter guitar was a LP copy and even on TV it was LP style (or Yamaha SG family) and strats where definately more exotic than they are now.

I have decided that for the most part I'm a single coil person (who detours into humbuckers)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: AndyR on October 20, 2008, 11:20:58 AM
As you can see from the picture I hate strats.  In fact I hate them so much that since taking this I have bought 2 more!

Now that's what I'm talking about...

Your Les Pauls the other day were very nice, and I'd happily take them off your hands, but for pure guitar porn, this is where it's at for me :lol:

Actually, having used the word "porn", I realised all this "like"/"don't like" of various guitars is much like a chap's taste in boobs - I do not like big boobs, for example, I find them a real turn off.

I'm happy to admit/discuss this sort of thing in public, but I realise others aren't, so I shall refrain from starting a poll, but I suspect that there might be a correlation between taste in breast size/shape and taste in guitars... I do feel the scientific community might benefit from such research though...

I think you may be wrong there, because, while we share a favoured mammary size, I think you and I have somewhat different tastes in guitar, Andy! :)

Roo

:lol:
The minute I posted I thought - "I bet Roo's gonna blow this theory by having the same tastes in ladies chests as I do..."

But either one of us could be a deviation from the norm maybe? Perhaps the research still needs to be done?

Where would we get a grant for spending a few months looking at boobs/guitars?? I'm sure, in the interest of science, we could keep our own prejudices out of it. :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 20, 2008, 11:25:04 AM
Where would we get a grant for spending a few months looking at boobs/guitars?? I'm sure, in the interest of science, we could keep our own prejudices out of it. :lol:

Never mind the grant, just start the thread.  You know you want to....   :wink:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Johnny Mac on October 20, 2008, 12:09:13 PM
As you can see from the picture I hate strats.  In fact I hate them so much that since taking this I have bought 2 more!

I like that white one on the right, looks very cool.  :D
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on October 20, 2008, 12:15:02 PM
Is it???  Am I the only non-fan of Gilmour on the board then?  :lol:

It wasn't really the Gilmour bit, it was the Chuck Berry bit. 

I mean, I know Chuck was influential an' all, but (no offence intended to anyone) I can't imagine actually listening to him.  I just don't find his music entertaining at all.  I'm not sure why - I think maybe it sounds more dated than other music from the same time.

Each to their own I guess!  I love old skool rock n roll...
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on October 20, 2008, 12:20:50 PM
As you can see from the picture I hate strats.  In fact I hate them so much that since taking this I have bought 2 more!

I like that white one on the right, looks very cool.  :D

yeah, that is a nice one isn't it? was thinking the same.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: AndyR on October 20, 2008, 12:25:37 PM
I must admit, if I was offered Chuck Berry and Dave Gilmour in an either-or "Desert Island Discs" type of situation, personally I'd have to pick the Chuck Berry as well. More for the songs than the guitar playing I guess, but it would still be Chuck.

BTW it was Malcolm Young, in an interview back in the early 80s, who forced me to actually buy some Chuck Berry to check out what the fuss was about. Apparently he went to the "old guys" on Keef's recommendation, and same as me couldn't see hear it at first. MY's recommendation in the interview was listen real hard, it's where everything came from... and he was right!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: AndyR on October 20, 2008, 12:29:57 PM
As you can see from the picture I hate strats.  In fact I hate them so much that since taking this I have bought 2 more!

I like that white one on the right, looks very cool.  :D

yeah, that is a nice one isn't it? was thinking the same.

My favourites are the two rosewood boards next to it. The brilliant white one is nice - the maple neck looks really nice - but I personally prefer the look of rosewoods and the three-ply scratch plate.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on October 20, 2008, 12:51:08 PM
I must admit, if I was offered Chuck Berry and Dave Gilmour in an either-or "Desert Island Discs" type of situation, personally I'd have to pick the Chuck Berry as well. More for the songs than the guitar playing I guess, but it would still be Chuck.

BTW it was Malcolm Young, in an interview back in the early 80s, who forced me to actually buy some Chuck Berry to check out what the fuss was about. Apparently he went to the "old guys" on Keef's recommendation, and same as me couldn't see hear it at first. MY's recommendation in the interview was listen real hard, it's where everything came from... and he was right!

If you speed up Chuck's playing, you get Angus.  Like you say Andy, it's all there!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 20, 2008, 01:15:18 PM
Is it???  Am I the only non-fan of Gilmour on the board then?  :lol:

It wasn't really the Gilmour bit, it was the Chuck Berry bit. 

I mean, I know Chuck was influential an' all, but (no offence intended to anyone) I can't imagine actually listening to him.  I just don't find his music entertaining at all.  I'm not sure why - I think maybe it sounds more dated than other music from the same time.

Each to their own I guess!  I love old skool rock n roll...

I suppose I think of it as stuff you hear on the radio and think "oh, I quite like this", rather than something I'd buy and really listen to.   I like Gene Vincent, Eddie Cochran, but the only really old rock'n'roll I actually own is some Link Wray.

I did know Angus and Malcolm had the Chuck influence, but I'll leave em 'to it.  Each to their own, as you say.   :wink:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Roobubba on October 20, 2008, 01:38:44 PM
FAO Andy:


http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/health/bra-research-must-go-on%2c-vows-scientist-20071210588/

:)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: ToneMonkey on October 20, 2008, 02:59:00 PM
In that article, the other researchers that it refers to was one of my old lecturers.  His office was always a joy to sit in as it had pictures of tits everywhere.

Think I went into the worng industry  :(
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ratrod on October 20, 2008, 04:45:16 PM
I'm no Gilmour fan either. He's a great player but I don't like Pink Floyd. It's the antithesis of rock n' roll. But I'm no Hendrix fan either. I don't care how innovative he was. It was noisy and sloppy. I could stick my harmonica up my @ss, start farting and amplify it throuh a Jamaican sound machine. That would be innovative, loud and noisy too.

Man, this Strat heckling (and their players) is fun!

But don't take my words too seriously, OK.

I love Telecasters, though. And yes, three brass saddles is the way to go. They might be impossible to intonate but this hasn't hurt players of the fifties much. You can get compensated saddles these days.

I hope there will be more threads like this. It's like stand-up comedy for guitarists.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: AndyR on October 20, 2008, 06:38:35 PM
FAO Andy:


http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/health/bra-research-must-go-on%2c-vows-scientist-20071210588/

:)
:lol:
Finally got a chance to read it - funnily enough your the 2nd person to send me a link to their site today, first one was the "Timemachine Would've Been Cheaper"

In that article, the other researchers that it refers to was one of my old lecturers.  His office was always a joy to sit in as it had pictures of tits everywhere.

Our hallway has tits everywhere as well :D.

Before I got back into music, I spent a couple of years painting/drawing. We forget they're there, but it's fascinating watching people's reaction the first time they come round - the missus then goes "the more explicit ones are in here" and leads them into what we call the "porn room" (really it's her office, but it was my art room before we met).
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: PhilKing on October 20, 2008, 09:08:11 PM
Actually, having used the word "porn", I realised all this "like"/"don't like" of various guitars is much like a chap's taste in boobs - I do not like big boobs, for example, I find them a real turn off.
Strange that - I myself am a great believer in the adgage that anything more than a handful is a waste and probably of all the different guitars I have, Strats are my favourites.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: PhilKing on October 20, 2008, 09:27:40 PM
I like that white one on the right, looks very cool.  :D

yeah, that is a nice one isn't it? was thinking the same.

Quote from: AndyR
My favourites are the two rosewood boards next to it. The brilliant white one is nice - the maple neck looks really nice - but I personally prefer the look of rosewoods and the three-ply scratch plate.

The white with the maple neck is a real 1957 Strat that I got off ebay a long time ago and it was missing most of the original parts other than the bridge and woodwork.  It had been resprayed white without a topcoat so long ago that the finish is cracking.  The scratchplate, knobs and pickups are aged BK products - it is an Apache set.  I had some original tuners (though I had to put in the Stewmac 'hole stuffer' ferrules [think what you want - looking at the rest of the thread I know you will!]), and I got an original neck plate.  The headstock has been relacquered over the replacement decal - but is crazed like mad!  It is the hardest V shape at the end tapering to more of a C shape by the 12th fret.  There is no lacquer on the fingerboard or the back of the neck - just ingrained sweat and dirt!  It sound phenominal and is great to play.

The white rosewood is a 61 slab board - pretty much all original other than a BK rewind on one pickup which had died, and a BK replacement for a custom SD antiquity (the original guitar came with an HSS set up, so one pickup was missing).  The new BK is an Apache with AV magnets.

The burgandy mist is a 63 and is all original other than the finish.  I bought it from Vintage & Rare when they operated out of a flat in 1982 for £500 or so.  The finish is so good of a respray that it fooled the dealers in NY in 1991, when I sold it to a friend.  Matt Unminov's valued it at $8,000 then!  When my friend passed away about 18 months ago, he had told his family to let me have it back for what he paid me for it ($1,900).  By now the finish has cracked totally and is chipping off in a few spots, the guitar needs a refret too.  Now I have it back I won't be selling it again.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: AndyR on October 21, 2008, 09:22:11 AM
Lovely, lovely guitars - my leaning is towards the 63, especially with your description of its history. I do like the description of that 57 neck though - my new second hand Japanese 52 RI tele has a very similar profile, hard V at the nut end of the neck, tapering to a C. Compared to my Baja it is a very hard V, but I've played a harder V in Vintage and Rare recently (I think it was a McGuire).
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Crazy_Joe on October 21, 2008, 01:15:17 PM
I want a strat :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: tomjackson on October 21, 2008, 02:32:49 PM

I like all guitars except RED ones :D
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: mikeluke on October 21, 2008, 02:36:15 PM
My 54-Reissue Jap Strat has what they called a 'soft V' profile neck (maple board) - must say that I find it quite chunky as I have quite small hands - on the other hand I have a 62 E Series Jap Squier which has a much slimmer C profile neck (rosewood board) which I find much easier - I'd recommend an E Series if you are on a budget and you can live with 21 vintage frets and a vintage trem - got mine from Evil Bay - 1986 in mint condition - £175 inc postage!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: ilÿti on October 23, 2008, 06:36:50 PM
Are you saying anyone who uses a Strat is childish?  That's just silly, even if you are just being a WUM.

Or did you just go through some kind of not-really-Strat-related personal epiphany at 14 that we needn't concern ourselves with?
No. I just meant to say that the reason I don't like strats isn't that I never gave them a chance, like some people will say. I just came to the conclusion that they sound really weak and lame compared to Les Pauls, explorers and whathaveya and the only reason I liked them was that I saw many of my favorite players with them, which was indeed an immature reason. So if you like the thin spongy fender sound, go ahead, play strats, but "Hendrix played them, so they must be awesome" isn't a reason. At least in my book. (and yes the same thing counts for every piece of gear that any person ever played)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Plexi Ken on October 23, 2008, 07:07:23 PM
Let's see...
1/ I love strats, I have 3,
2/ I think Chuck Berry is one of the all time greats,
3/ Gilmour is over-rated,
4/ Soft-V is the best neck profile.

Guest that puts me in a minority  :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: horsehead on October 23, 2008, 08:39:21 PM
I love strats, what can I say. They sound amazing, show how blues music can sound as delicate as a petal & how aggresive as a pitbull when they want too.

I love '62's

----------------
Now playing: John Mayer - Bold as Love (http://www.foxytunes.com/artist/john+mayer/track/bold+as+love)
via FoxyTunes (http://www.foxytunes.com/signatunes/)

Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: matteo on October 23, 2008, 10:55:14 PM
different stoke for different folk! if we all liked the same guitars, cars clothes etc it would be a pretty plain boring world! it would all look and sound the same! its whatever works for you really!

personally i dont 'hate' strats, i just 'prefer' something with humbuckers that sounds a bit 'fuller'.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Elliot on October 24, 2008, 11:20:39 AM
It sure is horses for courses - I have never really got on with humbuckers - just too thick sounding.  Its that thin Fender sound I like: the sound at the start of Sweet Home Alabama. 
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ian Price on October 24, 2008, 06:49:26 PM
It sure is horses for courses - I have never really got on with humbuckers - just too thick sounding.  Its that thin Fender sound I like: the sound at the start of Sweet Home Alabama. 

Same for me - I have had a few hb equipped guitars but never got on with them for some reason. They weren't duds either so I reckon it's just that I love the strat and tele sounds so much!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 24, 2008, 07:11:23 PM
It sure is horses for courses - I have never really got on with humbuckers - just too thick sounding.  Its that thin Fender sound I like: the sound at the start of Sweet Home Alabama. 

Same for me - I have had a few hb equipped guitars but never got on with them for some reason. They weren't duds either so I reckon it's just that I love the strat and tele sounds so much!

I'm a humbucker/mahogany/set-neck man at heart, but I've always loved Strats and Teles too, especially for their clean sounds.  And many - maybe even most - of my favourite players are Strat or Tele guys.

For many years I would go through "Fender" and "Gibson" alternating phases - totally into Strats for a few months, then dig out an SG and it would seem exciting again, and so on....  Then the phases got longer and I've been mainly into Gibson-types for the last 5 years or more, but this year I've suddenly started rediscovering Fenders again.

They're all good.  :)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Nadz1lla on October 26, 2008, 11:13:53 AM
I don't usually like Strats or Tele's. For me it's mostly an aesthetic thing, just think they look boring. However, yesterday I went to the Mansons guitar show here in Exeter and they had a Fender rep showcasing some custom shop models, 2 strats and a tele and their tone is amazing! One of the models showcased was the Gilmour black strat and it sounded awesome!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on October 26, 2008, 11:54:47 AM
The Custom Shop stuff is something else, especially the mid-price upwards range (special runs, limited editions etc).  The bottom of the range '51 NoCasters, CS Classics etc just don't seem to have that extra mojo or attention laid on them.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on October 30, 2008, 10:52:51 AM
thanks to this thread i have GAS for an all white maple board SSS Highway 1 strat with pokey BKP pickups of some sort.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 30, 2008, 11:12:04 AM
thanks to this thread i have GAS for an all white maple board SSS Highway 1 strat with pokey BKP pickups of some sort.

You could always make your Fender/Warmoth Jazzmaster SSS.  I've forgotten, what pickups are you planning for it anyway?

Just last night I bought another Highway One neck for my second Warmoth Strat body.  A bit more expensive with current exchange rates.  :(
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on October 30, 2008, 11:18:56 AM
thanks to this thread i have GAS for an all white maple board SSS Highway 1 strat with pokey BKP pickups of some sort.

You could always make your Fender/Warmoth Jazzmaster SSS.  I've forgotten, what pickups are you planning for it anyway?

Just last night I bought another Highway One neck for my second Warmoth Strat body.  A bit more expensive with current exchange rates.  :(

i've a bridge VH2 planned for the jazzmaster.

the jazzmaster body is routed for HH, so SS would be possible - like a Jaguar, which could be quite cool, i fancy a decent vintage trem too.

i really like that highway 1 neck :) i have really problems with 21 fret necks, even if i don't use the 22nd fret too often, it feels odd to look at it. so the 22 frets they have is great and the cbs headstock is great too, and the jumbo frets, and the 'modern c' (or whatever it is) profile is very user friendly, yet it still feels fendery!

edit: not to mentioned the rolled fretboard edges... yes indeed - that was a fine tip you have me with those necks!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on October 30, 2008, 11:32:33 AM
Yeah, I like the H1 necks too - they're very slim compared with most of my guitars, but still a nice round shape which I think is most important to me.  I don't get on with V necks or, at the other extreme, flat-backed D shapes. 

I nearly got a Warmoth neck for my natural-finish Strat, but I really wanted both Strats to feel similar, even though they'll have different hardware and one will be maple/HSS and the other will be rosewood/SSS. 

I still have a bit of GAS for a third one with a hardtail....
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on October 30, 2008, 12:31:49 PM
finding this really tempting, but i can resist:

http://www.guitar-village.co.uk/product-detail.asp?id=4153&catid=70&manid=33&quantity=1&product=Fender+Stratocaster+(USA)+Highway+1+(Upgraded)%2C+Honey+Blonde+%2F+Maple%2C+New%2C+Inc.+Gigbag

i'd like also to get a classic vibe duo-sonic and whack on a highway 1 neck and a pair of sinners. apparently the classic vibe will accept a 25.5" neck. again, i can resist
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: badgermark on November 02, 2008, 05:43:02 PM

Indeed it will Gwem, that squier has a 25.5 conversion neck on it to bring it down to 24". Not tried one yet, but the gold guard and pickup placement is a huge turn off.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 02, 2008, 06:00:49 PM
Indeed it will Gwem, that squier has a 25.5 conversion neck on it to bring it down to 24". Not tried one yet, but the gold guard and pickup placement is a huge turn off.

Interesting about the conversion neck!  :)

I really like the look of the Duo-sonic too - and I love gold anodised scratchplates, just wish I had a guitar which would suit one.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ian Price on November 02, 2008, 09:49:54 PM
The Custom Shop stuff is something else, especially the mid-price upwards range (special runs, limited editions etc).  The bottom of the range '51 NoCasters, CS Classics etc just don't seem to have that extra mojo or attention laid on them.

What would you define as mid-price upwards? I'm looking at some custom shops on the V&R website at this very moment.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on November 03, 2008, 12:43:39 AM

Indeed it will Gwem, that squier has a 25.5 conversion neck on it to bring it down to 24". Not tried one yet, but the gold guard and pickup placement is a huge turn off.

for you, maybe ;) i think the gold guard and the pickup placement are quite cool! shows the differences we all have in taste
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on November 03, 2008, 08:10:03 AM
The Custom Shop stuff is something else, especially the mid-price upwards range (special runs, limited editions etc).  The bottom of the range '51 NoCasters, CS Classics etc just don't seem to have that extra mojo or attention laid on them.
What would you define as mid-price upwards? I'm looking at some custom shops on the V&R website at this very moment.

I would say a non-Masterbuilt (don't pay for a name) that isn't a stock Time Machine series NOS/Closet Classic/Relic or Custom Classic.  Head for the limited run guitars....
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ian Price on November 03, 2008, 10:12:52 AM
I would say a non-Masterbuilt (don't pay for a name) that isn't a stock Time Machine series NOS/Closet Classic/Relic or Custom Classic.  Head for the limited run guitars....

Agree - some of those masterbuilts are stupidly expensive, the ones in the new guitarist calendar are ridiculous. I have seen a red sparkle strat in V&R that I really like the look of. I assume that your Avatar is a red sparkle tele.

Only problem is that to get a red sparkle strat I would need to trade my tele (currently not getting on with it - again) and gretsch (don't like it).
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on November 03, 2008, 10:26:57 AM
I assume that your Avatar is a red sparkle tele.

Yep, my Tele is '58 Reissue 'Heavy Relic' Limited Release in Red Sparkle  :D
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ian Price on November 03, 2008, 10:40:04 AM
I assume that your Avatar is a red sparkle tele.

Yep, my Tele is '58 Reissue 'Heavy Relic' Limited Release in Red Sparkle  :D

As this is your thread are you saying you wouldn't like a strat even if it matched your tele?!?!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on November 03, 2008, 01:11:37 PM
Correct!  I just don't bond with them.  I find them awkward.  Horses for courses!

I keep meaning to try out a really nice Strat to see if that can win me over, but I'm guessing it won't!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 03, 2008, 01:18:57 PM
I keep meaning to try out a really nice Strat to see if that can win me over, but I'm guessing it won't!

I can see you trying a Custom Shop one and it'll be signed sealed delivered...  :wink:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ian Price on November 03, 2008, 01:25:41 PM
I've just spoekn to V&R about the Custom Red Sparkle Strat. I may well be paying a visit to them shortly - interestingly the price was lower than the Red Sparkle Tele. Not sure why.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on November 03, 2008, 02:30:05 PM
I believe the Strat is a special run colour, but based on the regular production model spec of a '60 Time Machine Relic.

The '58 Teles have a non-standard spec such as soft V neck shape, Dunlop 6105 frets, 9.5" fingerboard radius, 'heavy' relic finish etc.  This will account for the price difference.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ian Price on November 03, 2008, 02:38:30 PM
I believe the Strat is a special run colour, but based on the regular production model spec of a '60 Time Machine Relic.

The '58 Teles have a non-standard spec such as soft V neck shape, Dunlop 6105 frets, 9.5" fingerboard radius, 'heavy' relic finish etc.  This will account for the price difference.

Aaaah - it all becomes clear. Thanks for that. I now like the spec of the tele, the V neck shape is the one I find most comfortable.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on November 03, 2008, 03:37:17 PM
The Strat is 'Vintage Correct' in spec, whereas the Tele is more 'Modern' if you will.

If you want modern frets and radius, you'll need to hunt down one of these:

http://www.fender.com/customshop/instruments/search.php?partno=9270008802

Like these:

http://www.peachideas.com/acatalog/copy_of_Fender_Custom_shop_1962_Heavy_Relic_Strat__2099.html

http://www.peachideas.com/acatalog/copy_of_Fender_Ltd_Run_1962_Daphne_Blue_Heavy_Relic.html

Or these slightly older models with different pickups:

http://www.peachideas.com/acatalog/copy_of_Fender_Custom_Shop_1960_Heavy_Relic_Vintage_white.html

http://www.peachideas.com/acatalog/copy_of_Fender_Custom_shop_1960_Heavy_Relic_Strat_Sunburst.html

http://www.peachideas.com/acatalog/copy_of_Fender_Custom_shop_Strat_Sonic_blue_over_S_B__2299.html

None of them have the V neck though, unfortunately.  They only come the maple 'board guitars, such as the '57 Heavy Relic below:

http://www.fender.com/customshop/instruments/search.php?partno=9270007803

Which Peach also have in stock:

http://www.peachideas.com/acatalog/copy_of_copy_of_copy_of_Fender_Custom_Shop_57_Heavy_Relic_strat__2099.html

As an aside, I've just noticed that V&R have got three Teles the same as mine now!  And they're already sold mine and one other -  they must have had most of the global stock!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 03, 2008, 03:59:05 PM
Or these slightly older models with different pickups:

http://www.peachideas.com/acatalog/copy_of_Fender_Custom_Shop_1960_Heavy_Relic_Vintage_white.html

Oh blimey, that'd do nicely!  :o
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on November 03, 2008, 04:13:37 PM
I can see why that's your thing Phil - suits you, sir  ;)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ian Price on November 03, 2008, 05:00:30 PM
Or these slightly older models with different pickups:

http://www.peachideas.com/acatalog/copy_of_Fender_Custom_Shop_1960_Heavy_Relic_Vintage_white.html

Oh blimey, that'd do nicely!  :o

Me too! I really am tempted now but don't really want to sell my tele (although it feels bad compared to my '57 reissue)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 03, 2008, 10:05:39 PM
I can see why that's your thing Phil - suits you, sir  ;)

I'd be severely GASing for that if I wasn't already putting together my Fender/Warmoth project which will actually look pretty similar (but with a natural finish and no relicing).
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: HTH AMPS on November 04, 2008, 10:29:47 AM
Or these slightly older models with different pickups:

http://www.peachideas.com/acatalog/copy_of_Fender_Custom_Shop_1960_Heavy_Relic_Vintage_white.html

Oh blimey, that'd do nicely!  :o

Thats what my old Strat looked like at first - off white with the tortoiseshell scratchplate, a classic look.  Unfortunately, Strats look wierd on me and I can't get the tones I want out of them when gigging.  If I had a bit more disposable income then I'd defo have one, but as it stands they're just not 'must have' guitars for me.  Gimme a Tele any day.

Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Buddha on November 04, 2008, 08:47:38 PM
Some of those custom shop strats were very nice indeed -
I never thought myself of a strat guy, but now i love them,
the reason? My japanese fender re - issue, an amazing guitar
for the money, and now awaiting apaches (hopefully here in a week or so  :D)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Crazy_Joe on November 05, 2008, 04:14:24 PM
What's the best strat i can buy for a price of up to £500?

I have looked around and seen the Highway One strat for £499, also some secondhand US strats at £499.
I also like the look of the Lite Ash strat, though i hear the quality control is a bit so-so on those models?

Looking for a thin style neck, don't get on well with fat necks nowadays.

I'm mainly wanting it for some Pink Floyd stuff (we are playing the entire Dark Side of the Moon album for our final college gig!), though i also enjoy a bit of Jimi, Red Hot Chilis, Eric Johnson etc.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on November 05, 2008, 04:16:15 PM
Depends what spec you're after, but a Japanese reissue woudl get my money.

If I liked Strats  ;)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Crazy_Joe on November 05, 2008, 04:34:54 PM
Well that's the thing, i don't really know much about strats at all so i'm asking for your help. I don't know what specs are good or not, i'll probably go down to Coda sometime and try some out. All i know is i want a thin, all maple neck. I don't know much about strat pickups and what achieves what sounds. Enlighten me!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 05, 2008, 05:09:37 PM
If you're just looking at the Fender range, then in a nutshell:

Vintage reissues, including American Vintage, most MIJ Strats and the MIM Classic series, have skinny vintage frets and a 7.25" fretboard radius.  Neck shapes vary depending on the period (V for '50s, C for '60s, etc).

Almost every other Strat in the current range, including American Standards, Mexican Standards, Highway Ones, MIK Lite Ash etc will have a fairly thin "Modern C" shaped neck with a 9.5" radius and medium/jumbo frets.

(There are exceptions to both those statements, but they're pretty much true)


After that, take your pick of hardware, pickups, colours etc.  I don't think there's anything with a really thin neck (Ibanez Wizard style), but you should be OK with the modern C shape.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Stevepage on November 05, 2008, 05:12:00 PM
Japan Re-issue Strat for sure. Some of them are better than the American models.

Mexican reissues are also really nice guitars, especially the 60's reissue. I was quite surprised by them as compared to the mexican standards, they're miles ahead in quality.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on November 05, 2008, 05:30:33 PM
I don't know much about strat pickups and what achieves what sounds. Enlighten me!

the strat sound isn't the easiest to get in to if you've always played dual-humbucker gibson style guitars.

played clean in any position, the fender advantages are clear... and when dirty, most people like the neck. i've always found the other positions need more tweaking to get a satisfying dirty sound, and are more of an aquired taste. the strat bridge can be very weedy, if you aren't careful - but theres things you can do about that. its usually possible to get flowing single note leads from strat. meaty rhythm tones are harder... clearly when we listen to blackmore, they are possible - and tim can help with overwound/baseplated bridges. you can sometimes fit a tele bridge pickup, and i personally like that idea.

i like the look of a blond/maple SSS highway 1 myself - though this is more about the look. i'm sure the other types are worth investigating.

fender single coils and necks have really affected my playing in a positive way, even coming back to gibson style. or it might also be the effect of the fender playing guitarists i've been listening to lately.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: 38thBeatle on November 05, 2008, 07:31:02 PM
Joe, I would suggest trying out a Classic Player 1960's strat-they are actually very nice to play and are within budget and if you want to upgrade the electrics, you might have some cash out of £500.00 to do so. I have tried a couple and was impressed-the ones I tried were very well put together and played well. Check out Far East guitars too but the disadvantage is that you can't try them(unless you go visit-he is in Essex).
The thing is with a Strat is that there is nowhere to hide inasmuch as it helps if you know how to get the tone out of them. It is fair to say that they can sound a bit thin but once you get it how you like it, they are great.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 06, 2008, 12:23:15 AM
Joe, I would suggest trying out a Classic Player 1960's strat-they are actually very nice to play and are within budget and if you want to upgrade the electrics, you might have some cash out of £500.00 to do so. 

They're very good if you decide you don't mind a rosewood board.  If you're set on an all-maple neck try the '50s Classic Player too - although it has a V-shaped neck which may feel odd at first. 

I owned a 1950s Classic Player - very briefly - and must admit I didn't get on with it, but it's a well-designed guitar which has a few updated features but keeps the vintage look.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: 38thBeatle on November 06, 2008, 08:46:36 PM
Good point Philly. I have only played a couple of 1960's versions.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Crazy_Joe on November 07, 2008, 01:47:31 PM
Cheers for the advice, though i might sound a bit noobish here, whats the different between V and C shaped necks?
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: FernandoDuarte on November 07, 2008, 01:50:00 PM
C shape:
(http://www.warmoth.com/guitar/images/necks/contours/standardthin.jpg)

V shape (the blue line):
(http://www.warmoth.com/guitar/images/necks/contours/clapton.jpg)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Crazy_Joe on November 07, 2008, 05:52:42 PM
Looks like i want a C shape, V looks weird, i'll try one out though when i go to try some strats out.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: _tom_ on November 07, 2008, 06:01:19 PM
V is actually really comfy, which I found weird.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Crazy_Joe on November 07, 2008, 06:16:23 PM
Strange, will have to try it.

What's the opinions on the Lite Ash strat?
It has awesome specs and is a good price, comes in a great colour scheme (all black with all maple neck). Though i heard the quality was a bit hit and miss.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 07, 2008, 06:49:05 PM
V is actually really comfy, which I found weird.

It's very much a personal thing though - I find a V really uncomfortable, unless it's a very "soft" V like the Baja Tele (which is really more like a U shape, IMO).

As usual, try before you buy.

The Lite Ash is great for the price, and the build quality seems pretty consistent from the few I've seen - Korean QC is usually good, isn't it?  Good pickups too (oops, I said something positive about Seymour Duncan, I'll get struck by lightning... ).  I'm just not keen on some of the cosmetic details - the abalone inlays and just a "Fender" logo on the headstock (no "Stratocaster").
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: _tom_ on November 07, 2008, 06:51:53 PM
I have no idea what kind of v the neck I bought off phil king had. It was a MIM '57 style I think. Would've been a great neck if I could get on with the 7.25" radius :(
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: FernandoDuarte on November 07, 2008, 06:57:27 PM
Looks like i want a C shape, V looks weird, i'll try one out though when i go to try some strats out.

I only know the Fender Eric Clapton signature has V neck, but I'm sure that has more guitars with it...
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 07, 2008, 07:19:48 PM
Yeah, the '50s reissues and the '50s Classic Player have a "harder" (less rounded, more pointed) V shape than the Baja Tele.  I had a Jimmie Vaughan Signature which was also quite a hard V.  I've never tried a Clapton Strat but I believe it's a slightly softer, less bulky V and a bit shallower at the nut (a lot of V necks are pretty much the same depth for the whole length of the neck). 

It's not so much the V shape of the back that bothers me, it's the shape of the "shoulder" where the neck meets the fingerboard.  I prefer a more rounded shape like a Gibson '59.  The Fender C is a bit too slim, but still OK for me.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Crazy_Joe on November 07, 2008, 07:25:40 PM
The 50's Classic Player will be perfect for me as long as i get on with the neck. The specs look promising and it has the all maple neck.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: tomjackson on November 07, 2008, 09:43:17 PM
I really like the way Strats - anyone else not like them? has turned into a finer discussion on the relative advantages of various Stratocaster neck profiles :)

Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 07, 2008, 10:11:16 PM
I really like the way Strats - anyone else not like them? has turned into a finer discussion on the relative advantages of various Stratocaster neck profiles :)

Yeah, we've bored the haters into submission...

Hopefully.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: PhilKing on November 07, 2008, 10:53:40 PM
My 57 has the hardest V neck I ever played (John Elliott at Bravewood also said it was the sharpest V he had seen).  However it is really comfortable but a bit thin at the nut.  The story on V-Necks is that the original guy who had been making necks was suddenly taken ill or something and they put a new guy on the job and he didn't really know what he was doing.  By the time anyone noticed, he has made a lot of them and so they decided to keep the shape!  If this is true, mine might have been one of the first he made!!

However, I have a 1917 Washburn Acoustic which has a V-Neck and my Martin 000-28 also has a V shape, so V-necks have been around a long time.  The reissue V is softer than the originals, and the Warmoth Clapton shape is very comfy (I have that shape on one of my tele necks).
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: FernandoDuarte on November 07, 2008, 11:54:25 PM
The story on V-Necks is that the original guy who had been making necks was suddenly taken ill or something and they put a new guy on the job and he didn't really know what he was doing.  By the time anyone noticed, he has made a lot of them and so they decided to keep the shape!  If this is true, mine might have been one of the first he made!!

:lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: WezV on November 07, 2008, 11:55:27 PM
i think V might just be one of those shapes you would easily slip into if you were carving necks by hand all day... as a job, rather than a guitar player or luthier. i know V-shapes work, but i wouldnt ever have dreamt of doing one before trying one as guitar necks should clearly be a bit rounder!!! (not sure why, but thats what i was told to think at some point)  Its one of those things that has to occur because some guy in a factory wants to take his break a bit sooner ;)

they do feel great and phil's 57 V neck was particularly nice but it had that great worn in feel that really helps.. i would have liked to play it attached to a body to see how i got on with it.. but i did take measurements so may just try one at some point!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ted 'N' Leo on November 08, 2008, 03:23:14 PM
I have a 1917 Washburn Acoustic which has a V-Neck...

God damn you.

Good story on the V neck by the way. I generally think that the best things in life tend to happen by accident.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: AndyG on November 11, 2008, 03:52:09 PM
I've probably owned, briefly, a dozen or so of the things and just can't get on with them at all; I hate the trem, the volume control gets in the way and I can't get them to sound anything other than weedy and thin. Teles, on the other hand-especially the Highway 1-I like a lot.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Doctor X on November 11, 2008, 05:10:34 PM
what does the volume control get in the way of?
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: DeanS on November 13, 2008, 01:46:40 PM
I've probably owned, briefly, a dozen or so of the things and just can't get on with them at all; I hate the trem, the volume control gets in the way and I can't get them to sound anything other than weedy and thin. Teles, on the other hand-especially the Highway 1-I like a lot.

You're not the first person to mention that strats produce 'weedy and thin' tones. All I would say is try stringing them with 11's and tune down half a step if necessary. The difference between 9's and 11's on a strat is like night and day-they really come alive!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Crazy_Joe on November 13, 2008, 03:49:08 PM
Anyone played the Fender Deluxe Roadhouse Strat?

Looks pretty damn good to me, Harmony Central give it some good reviews too. Says it's a lot better than the Mexican Standards.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 13, 2008, 04:12:19 PM
Anyone played the Fender Deluxe Roadhouse Strat?

Haven't tried one, but they look good.   The Deluxe and Classic MIM ranges are definitely a step up from the Standard.

I was pleased to see they've resurrected the Roadhouse and Lone Star Strats, they fit well in the Mexican range, with slightly more vintage specs than the old US versions.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: d1dsj on November 13, 2008, 09:38:00 PM
Hey guys, I'm in on this one just a little late. I really don't get on with Fender Strats... had a mint '79 (not a bad one at all actually... just would not intonate properly), an early Jeff Beck model and a 2005 USA Deluxe. It's hard to put my finger on why it didn't work out.... but I decided one day to give them another go. Yes..... I found 1 (well 3 actually!), and my mate begged 1 off me and recently I've had to sell a few guitars so another had to go. Oh... I forgot to mention, the 3 I brought and loved were G&L Legacy's... all were better suited to me... still don't know why. What I do know is that the quality, fit, finish and playability were all MUCH better than Fenders? 
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: noodleplugerine on November 13, 2008, 11:41:17 PM
Standard strats? Hell no. Ugly, tinny, boring.

With a few modifications? Hell yes.

(Insert umpteenth plug! :D )

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v204/noodleplugerine/IMG_0933.jpg)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: _tom_ on November 14, 2008, 10:30:20 PM
Who was it who had one of those cheap necks off ebay (those that are about £30-40)? Considering getting one for my old strat body as I have almost everything else, would be cool to turn it into a cheap no frills rock beast (probably look better with a new pickguard instead of covering up the holes):

(http://i35.tinypic.com/2d8rp05.jpg)

So long as the profile etc feels ok, with a proper fret dress and setup I'd probably quite like strats actually. Only with humbuckers or p90s though, none of those limp fender-style singlecoils :P
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: badgermark on November 15, 2008, 10:00:34 AM
I have a strat neck if you want it tom, a no name eastern copy with a rosewood neck. A very nice neck though, never been used on a guitar. Let me know if you're interested!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: _tom_ on November 15, 2008, 11:48:59 AM
Definitely interested, how much do you want for it? Also could you measure the distance between the holes and the neck heel width? I think this bodys pocket is a bit wider than normal fender, not sure if the distance between the holes is the same though.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: badgermark on November 15, 2008, 03:43:44 PM
It's a 57mm heel, about a mm bigger than usual i think. Screw holes line up with all the neckplates i've tried, mostly from squiers. Probably looking for about £35 with postage if that's cool.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: juansolo on November 19, 2008, 09:13:05 AM
Ok my take on the discussions formed from this: I only started playing a couple of years ago after years of never getting around to it. My idol was Ace Frehley so naturally I gravitated towards Les Pauls. Which i just found hard work. I remember trying a Strat and I just found it so much more playable and have stuck with strat-esque style guitars since. I love the things and have finally got around to buying a 'proper' one. Yes the bridge pup was pants, but that's why BKP are here.

Despite seeing Gilmour at the Royal Albert Hall and being floored his playage. I find both him and Floyd to be like musical vallium. I think it's his voice, it's just dull and droning. However I could listen to the dude noodle forever and the solo on Comfortably Numb makes putting up with the first half of the song worthwhile. In fact, I would go as far as to say the Division Bell is the only track they've done that I really like all the way through and not just for the instrumental bits. The rest I wish he'd just STFU and play.

Boobs, I like big ones. Women should be curvy.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Roobubba on November 20, 2008, 07:30:27 PM

Boobs, I like big ones. Women should be curvy.

Variety is the spice of life, plus we need people like you to reduce the competition for the real hotties ;)

Of course, I am a married man, so am no longer in any kind of competition whatsoever (I hope!). :)

Roo
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: FernandoDuarte on November 20, 2008, 07:46:21 PM
I like thinny girls... as I'm fat and have a big tendency to put on weight, my attention go for thinny girls, this seems to be the reverse for very skinny guys (liking girls not that thinny)

but I like curves (well, I'm from f******* brazil :lol:)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on November 20, 2008, 08:04:06 PM
I like thinny girls... as I'm fat and have a big tendency to put on weight, my attention go for thinny girls, this seems to be the reverse for very skinny guys (liking girls not that thinny)
mmm, this might be true actually
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ted 'N' Leo on November 20, 2008, 09:43:46 PM

Boobs, I like big ones. Women should be curvy.

Personally, i live by this "When it comes to boobs, its like coke and pepsi, we'll take whatevers on top. As long as it isn't flat"
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 20, 2008, 10:23:11 PM
I like thinny girls... as I'm fat and have a big tendency to put on weight, my attention go for thinny girls, this seems to be the reverse for very skinny guys (liking girls not that thinny)

I like small but curvy girls with big bottoms.  Which is the same body type as myself.  Well, sort of.

Anyway, beggars can't be choosers....
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: FELINEGUITARS on November 20, 2008, 10:46:08 PM
I like thinny girls... as I'm fat and have a big tendency to put on weight, my attention go for thinny girls, this seems to be the reverse for very skinny guys (liking girls not that thinny)

I like small but curvy girls with big bottoms.  Which is the same body type as myself.  Well, sort of.

Anyway, beggars can't be choosers....

I tend to favour busty girls too!

(http://www.imagepost.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/82.jpg)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on November 20, 2008, 10:52:23 PM
Is that a Feline ukelele?  Hard to tell, it's in the shade...
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ian Price on November 29, 2008, 02:02:31 PM
Is that a Feline ukelele?  Hard to tell, it's in the shade...

 :lol:

Back on subject - tried a custom shop strat out yesterday and was so impressed that I very nearly bought it. I really should wait until I have some more cash but it felt like 'the one'. Anyone else ever have those feelings?

I'm caught in two minds at the moment - sell my '57 US reissue (how much would this roughly go for with BKPs? - a few marks and dents but nothing major) or wait until I have enough cash to buy the cs strat. I am assuming that the CS strat is not a limited edition (although can't find any others in this colour).

Link of the strat I tried (not sure what has happened with the outlining of the pics though!):

http://guitarvillage.co.uk/product-detail.asp?id=7218&catid=70&manid=33&quantity=1&product=Fender+Stratocaster+%28USA%29+60+Relic+%2C+2+Tone+Sunburst+%2F+Rosewood%2C+New%2C+Inc%2E+Tolex+Case
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on November 29, 2008, 02:24:52 PM
That's not a limited run matey, regular 60 reissue Time machine by the look of it:

http://www.fender.com/customshop/instruments/search.php?partno=0150900805
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Ian Price on November 29, 2008, 06:05:09 PM
Cheers Dave! I can always rely on you although I guess I should have looked at the Fender website first!

Still undecided.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Twinfan on November 30, 2008, 08:15:08 AM
Can't be the one then, otherwise you'd HAVE to have it!  :lol:
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: PPPMAT on December 05, 2008, 02:57:36 PM
Strats Hmmm - never got on with them myself either I think they sound great clean though  :P
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: telemonster on January 12, 2009, 10:58:33 AM
I'm not that keen, to be honest. i find that knob near the bridge REALLY gets in the way! i just find the whole playing experience really 'awkward'!

and I'll happily admit some of the most amazing music has been played/recorded on strats-they're just not for me....
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: gwEm on January 12, 2009, 11:05:59 AM
since pimping my MIM strat i've been becoming more and more keen as time went on.

i still go with my original point that cheap strat copies give strats a bad name. i'm totally convinced now that a well setup, high quality strat is a beautiful thing. i still have problems with the start look - they look good, but everyones playing them!
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Frank666 on January 12, 2009, 02:36:06 PM
Not a fan of the volume knob position, keeps getting in the way
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: badgermark on January 12, 2009, 06:19:48 PM
I just got a new strat- a vintage modfied squier. Its nice... I take back whatever i said about strats, this isn't brittle or piercing at all, a very balanced sound over all pickups.
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: hendrixfan on January 12, 2009, 06:57:17 PM
i use a strat for my 2nd guitar,their cool,hendrix,played 1 thats good enough endorsement for me :)
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Matt77 on January 12, 2009, 08:22:56 PM
After years of hating them and being vocal about my dislike, I played one I liked recently. Now I want one with a baseball bat neck like the Jeff Beck models.
I have been made to eat my own words
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: WezV on January 12, 2009, 09:49:27 PM
phils bravewood strat made me really want one
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: Philly Q on January 12, 2009, 10:32:14 PM
I've been very much into Fenders recently.  I just swapped around the necks on all my Teles as an experiment - you can't do that with Gibsons! (although I did put them all back where they came from a few days later  :roll: ).

I was going to sell my US Std hardtail Strat, but now I've decided to keep it and get a maple neck instead of the rosewood-board one.  And I'll make it HSS.  Strats are so easy to modify!  :D
Title: Re: Strats - anyone else not like them?
Post by: carlaz on January 13, 2009, 02:10:23 PM
I've never really felt comfortable with Strats -- though admittedly I haven't played many, and it's been a long time since I played one.  I've liked Teles better, though. :) I've always kind of wanted to get a Telecaster ....