All user reviews for the Fender American Stratocaster HSS [2003-2007]

If you have seen one Fender Stratocaster you have seen them all pretty much. If you have heard a Fender Stratocaster you have heard them all. American made or Mexican made their tones are only hairs between he the two. Fender Stratocaster guitars have that classic look to them that countless guitar builders and makers have copied time and time again. These guitars stand out just like anything else in rock n roll history.


This guitar has a great sound and feel with the added humbucker and deep rosewood finished fretboard. The tone is darker as well much like any guitar that would have a humbucker in the bridge. These guitars do have a brighter tone so the the mix with the darker fretboard is a nice touch. It is not overly dramatic is tonal change but really subtle.

UTILIZATION

Body
Body Material: Alder
Body Shape: Stratocaster
Neck
Neck Shape: Modern "C" Shape
Number of Frets: 22
Fret Size: Jumbo Frets
Position Inlays: White Dot Position Inlays
Fingerboard Radius: 9.5" (24.1 cm)
Fretboard: Rosewood
Neck Material: Maple
Neck Finish: Satin Urethane
Nut Width: 1.6875" (43 mm)
Scale Length: 25.5" (64.8 cm)
Headstock: Large '70s Style
Neck Plate: Standard 4 Bolt
Truss Rod Nut: 1/8" American Series Nut
Electronics
Pickup Configuration: H/S/S
Bridge Pickup: Atomic Humbucking Pickup
Middle Pickup: Texas Special Single-Coil Middle Pickup
Neck Pickup: Texas Special Single-Coil Neck Pickup
Pickup Switching: 5-Position Blade: Position 1. Bridge Pickup, Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup, Position 3. Middle Pickup, Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup, Position 5. Neck Pickup
Special Electronics: Greasebucket Tone Circuit (rolls off high without adding bass)
Controls: Master Volume, Tone 1. (Neck Pickup) Greasebucket Tone Circuit, (Rolls Off Highs without Adding Bass) Tone 2. (Bridge Pickup), Greasebucket Tone Circuit
Hardware
Hardware Finish: Chrome
Bridge: Vintage Style Synchronized Tremolo
Tuning Machines: Standard Cast/Sealed Tuning Machines
String Nut: Synthetic Bone
Switch Tips: Black Switch Tip
Tremolo Arm Handle: Vintage Style Tremolo Arm

SOUNDS

Every Fender Stratocaster I have ever played needed the pickups replaced. So for every Fender Strat out there you are going to have to replace the pickups. It amazes me that someone like Fender who have build some of the world best guitars and amps completely and utterly fail at making pickups. Its not only Fender but Gibson pickups suck as well. Their pickups have to be the most horrible garbage sounding pickups in the world. I'm sure that someone out there has topped them but their pickups are just trash. The dark pick guard and the gray paint job give the impression that this is a badass guitar. So your attitude towards this guitar could aid it how you play it. I know this is far fetch but some guitars that have that cosmetic attitude lend themselves to making the user attack the guitar differently. I know I play a Tele different than I do a Gibson Les Paul.

OVERALL OPINION

If you look around you can find these new for right at around 999, that is a fantastic price for this very workable and versatile work. I believe that these pickups are not that great so I would swap them out for some Seymour Duncans real quick. This is a player's guitar and a very good gigging guitar. Not a showroom piece and not something for the collector.

American-made guitar, 22 frets, one humbucker and 2 single coil (diamondback and Tex-Mex), s-1 switch, wilkinson bridge and rosewood handle ... what a gem??

UTILIZATION

Handle very pleasant and still quick, easy access to roughly all tones, guitar slightly heavier than another model but requires good hardwood lollll,
of its rating, no complaints so it sounds ...

SOUNDS

It's perfect for rock blues and even for the metal.Moi I used the v-amp pro behringer and rings. I can get all kinds of sound a little searching in the v-amp.

OVERALL OPINION

I acquired there ca 5 months and I am fascinated spoke beauty of this guitar ... I paid $ 1180 CAD and I do not regret pas.il is certain that I would do this choice because I can m ACORD a lower tone with this guitar tremolo saw the Wilki ...
I already Start a floyd rose up before I pay $ 1700 USD but that's not the same kind of guitar in my opinion ....

So therefore I speak of my American Series Start HSS S1 which dates from 2005.
This is a U.S..
the neck is maple with a rosewood 22 frets key, a C and a radius of 9.5 ". It is screwed with a neck tilt adjustment.
The body is Alder on May 1 selector positions plus the swicth S1.
Normal vibrato bridges with large squares not in the current vintage.
it is a priori equipped with 2 single pickups Fender custom staggered Tex-Mex ™ + 1 Fender Diamondback ™ humbucking micro

UTILIZATION

The handle some big departure from my previous guitars, very nice with a little practice. In terms of access to acute bin is a strata, you know if this is enough or not.
Having bought used I do not know if these are the factory settings but in any case it is set correctly (I think they are the factory settings so it's pretty bowl)

The ergonomics are perfect, the balanced guitar is not too heavy and falls well in hand.
To get a good sound is easy just plug in a good amp and know how to play.

Otherwise bin advantage of this guitar is obviously the config microphone, which is the model of versatility, the ultimate model of guitar Balloch. The double bringing in a big fat potato disto. Advantage for my taste it was more a tone control on the bridge pickup, unlike a strat SSS.
For cons, the volume knob is not equipped with a capacity of bright, the sounds of shots tends to deafen herself down when the volume is not what I prefer.

Aurtre small regret the S1 switch does not allow to split the double to single, it's a shame. And like all strata to change a mic or edit a detail of electronics, is shipping.

SOUNDS

Sounds a lot like me is really a pure strat juice is very good very clean, see a little too much. In fact when I play punk I use a little more gladly scratch copy of the brand of vintage les paul junior double cutaway with a p90 in a violin bridge and mahogany that is more nervous and goes in (a very good little VR100CR machine at odds with the strat therefore a perfect complement).

I play a lot of classic amps 50, FT50 carlton, homemade amp, peavey, marshall, fender transo. It works no problem.

Simple Tex-Mex that have bad reputations are far from being bad microphones, they are even very good, they lack distortion just a bit of definition in relation to CS 69 that I tried, but nothing dramatic. The advantage is that the output level is relatively high, which avoids an imbalance in volume with the humbucker.
Recess for the metal is not ideal as you might expect.
The double sends the sauce well and achieves distos with much more body, though it does not sound like a LP micro, AC left fender shine even when what. But it is effective for roughly peter solo.

The switch S1 in its clear I have not found the interest in on the other hand disto it helps to have a little more sauce and gain definition. Anyway I use it a lot It remains anecdotal.

My favorite sound the neck pickup with a little crunch, it's really divine, I hate the sound, well no.
Anyway it's hard to criticize the tone of this guitar because it just makes a reference.

OVERALL OPINION

I've had six months, I wanted to buy a strat worthy of this name for quite some time, and searching the listings on the net I came across this one secondhand at 700 euros.
I bought a rather new mexico, because I wanted to know what gives a strat U.S., the single microphone in the bridge position I'm not super fan, and then to 700 euros a U.S. if ultimately the I did not shovel, I might not lose masses of dough for resale.

I absolutely regret it not a great guitar, plus I think I had the bowl, the copy I have to very good sound quality at the violin, the wood of the shovel resonates very deeply with empty.

Well if I was the fly is what I bought one? Well, it depends mostly ads, but at 700 euros so loud and clear, to 1609 euros, not