Any fender strat preferences?

kennier

Hi all. New to the boards & I hope this question hasn't been asked recently..

I've finally saved a bit of cash and am hoping to get me a USA fender but am having a problem with which one to go for....

I like the idea of a 'vintage' one but haven't got the $$$$$ required...reading through the various forums, fender got it's act together in the 1980s wrt quality control - prices from then don't seem to bad either....

chris guitars has a 1983 elite - I like the idea of active pickups to cut down on the noise seeing as I get grief for anything louder than a minor twang these days! They seem to have had bad reviews from the press when they were released but any owners I've contacted seem in love with them...

I haven't been able to get my hands on anything but the new types (which I think are nice), but, like I said, I have a hankering for an older piece.

Anyhoo, any of you have opinions on maple vs alder, elite vs 'regular', new vs 1970 vs 1980 vs 1990? Any dogs to avoid?

Hoping to buy in the US as prices seem a bit more realistic than here - downside is that I can't try before I buy....

Cheers!

Ancient1

What's your budget?

kennier

up to about €900

Doctor J

That 83 Strat would fall under the umbrella of being a Smith strat... which is as good a thing as you could ask for (apart from pre-CBS), according to legend.

Ancient1

I wouldn't like active pickups in my Strat.......

Anyways, kennier, the Strats that are being built now belong to the finest series Fender have ever put out. Since a vintage 64 is beyond anyone's reach here (unless you're looking at a re-issue, be prepare to pay a few grand in any case), you should consider a new one.
I do understand the attraction with older guitars, but if you're looking for fantastic build quality, great playability and fine attention to detail (rolled edges etc), consider getting a new one.
There was a guy on the boards a few weeks ago, and he couldnt part with an 04 AmSe for 950.

kennier

Supposedly the quality got a whole lot better around then (compared to the 70s ones anyway). I remember reading something about them shutting the plant down for 12 months to retrain the workers...

How would a 1980s elite or standard stack up against a new one? People say the queality now is not as good but is that rose coloured glasses? Surely modern techniques would be better or is it a case of reduce quality to get it out cheaper?

kennier

Oops! Thanks Ancient1 - a bit quick on the reply there seeing as you've answered my question on the quality aspect

Doctor J

In my own case I bought a 2000 AmSe which felt and played beautifully, really amazing. After 9 months or so the finish on the back of the neck started to crack, some cracks as much as 4 inches long, all over the back of the neck. The neck itself was fine, just the finish was cracking. The neck was replaced under warranty but the new (2002) neck didn't feel anywhere near as nice as the old one, nor was the fret finishing as good as the original neck. So my experience with modern Fender is both good and bad. That being said, my Japanese Fender Jazz bass is truly excellent and built like a tank.

cornbb

I have a friend with an 84 American strat, its nice and they're fairly reasonable priced. Don't know much about the individual models but as far as I know you should steer clear of anything from the 70's. Have a '94 Mexican model myself which is also very nice. The quality has been top notch in the last few decades afaik.

Ancient1

Well, with all due respect, since you're asking these questions i don't imagine that you're a 50 year old geezer who's been playing strats all his life

By that I mean to say that you probably wouldn't notice the tonal difference between a vintage and a new one. What you would notice is the better build quality of the new one - improvements have been made all around, you're right. The alder or ash bodies are "slightly" larger and heavier and are more resonant, the necks and frets are immaculate, and so is the hardware.

There are CBS 70s strats out there that are quite bad (compared to Fender's best of course). You can always go on the hunt for old bargains, but i'd get a new one first if i were you.

Yours is going to be vintage too, one day, and it will surpass the ones that have been built to date.

Ancient1

Doctor J wrote:

After 9 months or so the finish on the back of the neck started to crack, some cracks as much as 4 inches long, all over the back of the neck. The neck itself was fine, just the finish was cracking.

How did you get a case of checking that bad?

LundiMardi

I've had my AmStrat for 6 months now, but i've taken care of it. Unlike my other cheaper guitars. When it's not being played it's in it's case. I've had no problems with it and it does sound great, i can't wait to hear it through a really good amp!! oh yeah baby.

The only slight down side is the noisy pickups but they're only noisy if you're not playin it, and why would you not play it?

Ancient1

The only slight down side is the noisy pickups but they're only noisy if you're not playin it

That's because the guitar is not sufficiently shielded (or not at all) and because single coils are naturally noisy. By shielding the pups and all components inside the guitar properly you'll be able to reduce the hum to a minimum level, but you'll never get rid of it completely (unless you go for Noiseless or Lace). It's a fairly straightforward procedure, but if it's something you have no experience with then you should take it to a pro. The guys in Sound Gear will do it for about 35 Euros, whereas the other shops will quote you about a 100.

There's some good info on shielding on www.guitarnuts.com

Doctor J

Ancient1 wrote:

How did you get a case of checking that bad?

No idea, though it was more than checking, the finish was cracking as if it was trying to get away from the wood, big long cracks and sort of peeling away from the neck. The guy in the shop suggested the wood hadn't been allowed to dry properly, though that is merely specualation. I didn't get any info back, just a new neck bolted onto the guitar. Shame, the original neck was probably the nicest I've ever known.

Ancient1

That's very strange and a major bummer too...

Never heard of a problem like that (knock on wood etc etc)...

the finish was cracking as if it was trying to get away from the wood

Probably got tired of being molested by you on a daily basis.

Doctor J

Well then you should have just given me the Thinline to avoid all this unpleasantness

Ancient1

Is that right? Hm.


Kennier, here is the strat that was on sale recently. If the dude is still selling it, it's within your budget - although i seriously doubt that that's a deluxe.

Doctor J

It's an American Deluxe Ash Stratocaster, basically an AmSe with noiseless pickups and the S1 switch. Still, For €900 it's not a bad deal.

Ancient1

Oh. I didnt notice the S-1 - the specs are almost the same as the 50th.

No, not a bad deal at all!

kennier

Does amse stand for american special edition? I take it that the 50th edition ones are the ones to check out then?

Doctor J

It's American Series. The 50th Anniversary ones are an AmSe with a couple of bells and whistles but the AmSe is the current benchmark Strat. Generally you can quite happily live with the stuff an AmSe does not have.

Ancient1

AmSe stands for American Series - the US Strats. They used to be called Standard Series in the early to mid nineties, but the Standard Series today are the Mexican ones.

I think that most strats made in 04 came with a 50th Anniversary backplate, not 100% sure though. The 50th Ann AmSe models are sweet, and the Deluxe ones have a few more gadgets added.

I think you should first look into the type of neck that suits you best - that will probably determine the model you end up with.


Edit: that some fast posting Doc

kennier

Thanks a lot guys. More research/trial runs to be carried out!

Ancient1

Have a read through the Fender Forums - they're all strat lunatics there and you're bound to find a wealth of info.

Johnny Storm

I would think twice about the fact that that 1983 Elite strat has been on Chris's site for so long - may be a bit of a vote of no confidence, just IMHO.

I also really like that green strat that was for sales on boardsie and mentioned earlier in the thread.

Have you considered this 1993 Frost Blue strat - bequtiful and unusual coloured strat -only $750 plus a small finders fee to me.... :cool:

Ravelleman

It's actually a 96. Serial # is n6.

Ravelleman

This looks like a nice deal. Ebay strat
USPS shipping would be about $120

Doctor J

Oooh ooh we have a late contender. $750 for Leo's evolution of the strat from Chris

Ravelleman

Doctor J wrote:

Oooh ooh we have a late contender. $750 for Leo's evolution of the strat from Chris

Mmm G&L. They are very very nice guitars. They've only just started using CNC machine, which mean that the guitars made pre 2005ish are pretty much entirely hand made

david

I love G&L guitars but why why why do they have those hideous headstocks

Ravelleman

I wouldn't call them hideous - they're just generic IMO.

kennier

On the Elite - yep, I did spot this a while back then noticed it was still for sale so I was thinking that, mmmm, this might be for a reason!

On Chris' site in general - he seems' to be a mite busy as he hasn't responded to my enquiries. He does have some nice stuff but that's no good to me if I can't contact the chap

On G&L - I have to admit that my immediate reaction is that I don't really like that headstock which is a shame as the rest looks cracking, but maybe it'll grow on me. Never touched one before but reviews seem to place them as high if not higher than Fender (although not for value retention - but that doesn't overly bother me). Has anyone tried one out? Anywhere in Dublin sell them?

Finally (phew!), $630 + $120 for that ebay strat seems pretty good value - bit of a risk buying from a private seller online?

Having a few hundred € in your a*se pocket to blow on a new guitar is great!

LundiMardi

Absolute bargain.

http://www.gigsmartireland.com/forum2004/forum_posts.asp?TID=11036&PN=1

Get in there quick.

kennier

Seems a great price all right....his phone is switched off - must be in bed still!

Johnny Storm

kennier wrote:

....
On Chris' site in general - he seems' to be a mite busy as he hasn't responded to my enquiries. He does have some nice stuff but that's no good to me if I can't contact the chap
.....Having a few hundred € in your a*se pocket to blow on a new guitar is great!

In my experience you have to phone him.....

Ravelleman

kennier wrote:

Finally (phew!), $630 + $120 for that ebay strat seems pretty good value - bit of a risk buying from a private seller online?

This seller seems to have a decent feedback score so it shouldn't be risky at all. Just make sure you ask him lots of question about the guitar. Also, make sure you get a proper shipping quote from him. Ebay is great for bargains like this.

kennier

Well I'm still a-huntin for a strat! I'm not exactly a spontaneous buyer. I wanted to ask if anyone has ever played a CS 60's NOS strat? I'm hoping, nay praying, that I can get one for a *reasonable* price. I test drove a 50th deluxe the other day and it was pretty amazing but the custom ones are supposed to be the next level. Could this be the one that I have till I am old(er) and grey(er)?

Doctor J

This is $799 on chrisguitars


Definitely worth it IMO

Ravelleman

That price is actually fairly high for a 2nd hand G&L. They can be grabbed for about $150 less on Fleabay. Good choice though. Very good choice!