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Hatsubai « John Mayer's sig model »
Published on 04/25/11 at 15:38The Fender John Mayer signature Black1 strat is a special edition strat that Fender released for John. It features pretty much most of the same specs as his normal signature guitar. It has your standard alder body, maple neck with rosewood fretboard, 21 frets, SSS configuration, vintage tremolo and so on. The biggest difference with this guitar would probably be its gold hardware and gig bag.
UTILIZATION
I might as well start off in saying that I'm not a huge fan of John Mayer. That said, his signature guitar is quite nice. The black with gold hardware is a nice touch in that it looks elegant without being too gaudy like so many other guitars tend to be once they try to get fancy. The guitar has a thick C shaped neck, so if you're a fan of thinner necks, this probably won't be for you. The fretwork was pretty much standard fair when compared to other signature models out there. The radius is a 9.5'' radius, so I'm not a huge fan, but it works for most people. I really wish it has 22 frets, though.
SOUNDS
The pickups on this guitar sound very, very nice. They have this almost SRV quality to them, and considering that SRV was an influence on Mayer, it's not too surprising. They have that great vowely quality that many good single coils have. Clean and mid gain tones seem to work nicely, and they quack just like you'd expect from a quality single coil.
OVERALL OPINION
If you're a John Mayer fanboy, you'll probably look into buying one of these. It's a very nice stratocaster, but I can't help but think the Eric Johnson guitar is a better guitar. I prefer the radius and pickups on the Eric Johnson strat to this guitar, but that's all personal preference. The guitar isn't bad at all, but like all Fenders, you should really try before you buy.
UTILIZATION
I might as well start off in saying that I'm not a huge fan of John Mayer. That said, his signature guitar is quite nice. The black with gold hardware is a nice touch in that it looks elegant without being too gaudy like so many other guitars tend to be once they try to get fancy. The guitar has a thick C shaped neck, so if you're a fan of thinner necks, this probably won't be for you. The fretwork was pretty much standard fair when compared to other signature models out there. The radius is a 9.5'' radius, so I'm not a huge fan, but it works for most people. I really wish it has 22 frets, though.
SOUNDS
The pickups on this guitar sound very, very nice. They have this almost SRV quality to them, and considering that SRV was an influence on Mayer, it's not too surprising. They have that great vowely quality that many good single coils have. Clean and mid gain tones seem to work nicely, and they quack just like you'd expect from a quality single coil.
OVERALL OPINION
If you're a John Mayer fanboy, you'll probably look into buying one of these. It's a very nice stratocaster, but I can't help but think the Eric Johnson guitar is a better guitar. I prefer the radius and pickups on the Eric Johnson strat to this guitar, but that's all personal preference. The guitar isn't bad at all, but like all Fenders, you should really try before you buy.