All user reviews of 4/5 for the Fender Standard Stratocaster [1990-2005]

Mexico.
21 frets.
2tone, 1 volume.
handle end strat type.

7 parske it manqhe a 22 th fret ki maiderais good !!!
and microphones are pa asser powerful for my styl musik !!!!

USE

The neck is super nice and fast, jador, I pourtan sui rather stylish sleeve gro like the Fulani, may the exeption c a, c super !!!
c o Acute access easy, fast, PA blem has what nivo!
guitar with a very decent weight.
yes we obtien a exelente quality sound with a good amp!

SONORITS

It is suitable to my pa styl musik ki is asser HARD, the microphones are not asser of fishing, c fender fo pa tro summon in May this sound microphone dexelen matter clean (vraimen great) and blue or crunch, c perfect.
I play with a Line6 Spider II 212 150 W, a true powerhouse.
jador its clean sound, c impressive !!
ke not jnaime c kelle nest pa asser puisstante, May good I wanted meter 2 dual coils it may be fair in a line against lestetik !!!

NOTICE GLOBAL

I lai since February 2005, very good gratt.
exelentissime price quality ratio for gratt exelente quality of legend.
with lexperience, I sai pa vraimen because I do not mamuse Telmen with that scraped it fo ke I change the pickups !!!!!

So I've waited 14 years to give my opinion that's how I am someone who "refines" his views lol
This is a 1996 black Strat Mex with a rosewood fingerboard and 21 frets: y'en like that of thousands. At the time the body was made of poplar and quality manufacturing have been rather disappointing in those years, they say ...

I decided to write this review for those who wonder how an average strat deemed crossed time ...

Observation: it is entirely original. The frets of the time was described as medium jumbos. Unless they are finer than any medium jumbos that I've seen since ...

UTILIZATION

It is a good strat. Same body shape, even round (access to acute, radius ...) as much. A standard profile neck rather thin and very playable: The comfort of a standard Strat.

The only thing I find unfortunate about the Strat is the radius too rounded for my taste. It makes the game faster in the high (from 15) more tedious.

I paid for the guitar strings very close to the button (without bzz) and dropped the microphone, the sound came out warmer, rounder.

SOUNDS

I bought it at the time because I really wanted a Strat in reference to my guitar heroes (Hendrix, Clapton, Hendrix, and Hendrix lol).

At the time I did not care a lot for it to come from Mexico or Timbuktu ...
New, it rang with a high enough level out, slamming cold and Pluto. The magnets are ceramic pickups, this is very different from American Standard Alnico of the time (and today for that matter). The sound has more presence, more cold, more powerful but also in saturation.
Today, I can not say that it was enhanced (it means nothing), they changed the sound seems warmer and more compressed, but the output level always seems more important than standard Alnico. Saturation is relatively powerful for a single. These are microphones correct.

I play a Fender superfield at home, but I try just about anything from other people and it provides perfectly its role of strat. This is typed.
Already empty it resonates very well, which surprises her world.
People tell me I'm lucky to have fallen "on a good number" but I do not believe it. In my opinion they are all alike ...
I like the three microphones, although the acute could yell louder. The latter on a tube amp and distortion to big win is not garish. Cons by a transistor amp (I had a Marshall 8240), it lacks bass. It's clean.

OVERALL OPINION

I play for 14 years, almost every day. She made the road and even aircraft. She has lived (this is not the strat sleeping in his box hidden under the bed). Brief. The following opinion is not that of a collector but for one player.

The maple neck is now yellow / orange / pink (it's my eyes that say so), and became shiny satin varnish to keep playing. It is always right, I had to edit by changing its curvature of pulling strings ... normal.

The varnish of the body is big guy, I do not get to come to the end despite my neglect, it holds well. It is striped across, does not shine everywhere, it chips more or less deep, but it STILL stuck (!) Timber.
The frets, worn, were replaced by real medium jumbos.
Electronics are always original, the switch is fully operational despite my determination, and its potos.
The pickguard is scratched, it has not turned yellow or greenish, it's just ... dirty.
Hardware is oxidized, the MECAS take the shock and the vibrato (which I added springs) ...
The only stuff I had to catch up on this guitar is the nut (bone) that exceeded the "bottom" of the handle, I just sanded for arraser, and two bridges that I sanded because they hurt me farted finished my string (low E and D).

Important to note: the poplar is very correct in sound, BUT it is not in time for the hardware. This wood is no longer possible to screw anything in the same place after a while, which is annoying for fastening straps, but not irremediable. The wood is too soft.

This is a very good guitar, with small defects. The sound is perfectly typed Strat, crystalline and slamming. It's just different from his other strats. I played a few U.S.: vacuum it sounds like, what changes is the little details in the finishing, the original pickups, plus a box on the handle, the "briefcase" and the logo of the handle ... this is for everyone to see if the price difference is justified. (Note: the buttons Rosewood U.S. are often more "beautiful"-darker and more united with less veining. I have not heard any noise difference flagrant vacuum, ear on the upper body, it seems rather aesthetic ...).

I purchased my Stratocaster at New York Music in Boardman, Ohio for $329 + tax. It was a good deal considering it was a sunburst finish and those usually go for around $350 and since I'm a poor man with no income I decided to go for something I could afford.

This guitar has great action on the neck, which by the way is smaller than Gibson's neck and would work better for small hands, and it also has some great sound.
This Mexican Made Strat can also take a beating. I've had place people wouldn't even dream of putting something over $20 dollars in, most of the time it wasn't supposed to be there, but nevertheless it was and it came out without a scratch.

I have a few complaints a few cautions as to getting this guitar. First, I would like to say this is a great guitar and all complaints are probably because I don't take the time to diagnose the problem.

(1) The washer around my hookup keeps coming lose, but that can be fixed by getting some washer sealant and tightening it up.

(2) The high E string doesn't come out all that great, I'm guessing it was to do with the amount of space between the pickups and string wich I need to adjust.

(Caution For all of you players that like to use alternative tunings, you must keep the tremelo in place to do so. The floating bridge on the Fender just pulls in futher if you tune down your strings. Although it does go into dropped D nicely without the tremelo.

This guitar was very nicely constructed and is realativly thin all the way around, meaning the body and neck are thin, but firm.
It can take a beating and is a very nice work horse on stage and the standard pickups work nicely also.

For anyone looking to first break into the mid-range guitar this is your guitar. Although some aspects of the guitar seem to make it look not as good, don't let it fool you because this is one nice axe. It's a great work horse and player and it's never let me down for 3 years.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I bought the strat at Guitar Center. I pain $439 for it new. I really like the feel of it. The neck feels fast and easy to play. I traded in an Ibanez which I had bought there also.

This guitar is very easy to play. I set it up myself, so everything is how I like it. I have large hands, and the strings are far enough apart to make me sound better.

My only problem is I prefer the Les Paul sound. Which is why I play that a lot more than the Strat. I play Rock and metal mostly. I new that when I bought it. But, I just ordered a fat strat pickguard and pickups. So hopefully I can play the strat a little more.

The construction is great. I compared mine with an American Strat. And I just couldn't convince myself the minor differnces were worth the cost. It feels solid.

I love the way this guitar feels, and hopefully the sound will be better real soon. Either way it was money well spent. I want to learn some SRV any way. And you gotta have a Strat to play that.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I purchased the "Mexican Standard Stratocaster Maple Neck - Brown Sunburst Finish", w/gig bag and free shipping for $384 from 8thstreet.com.

I play in a 1950's rock band. We do several of Buddy Holly's songs and will do more in the future. This guitar is nearly identical to the last one he played at Clear Lake, IA. I had the privilege of seeing his guitar at the Buddy Holly Museum in Lubbock, TX.

It adds some realism to our performances.


I like the looks of the guitar. It has the classic strat appearance. The sound is exactly what I desired. Since I played rock in the 50's, I had a definite sound in mind. This guitar, in combo with a Fender amp, fits the bill nicely.

Maybe I haven't played it long enough, but I haven't found any negatives at this time. Hopefully, I simply got a great guitar for an even greater price.


It is an extremely solidly built guitar. The finish is very durable, also. The neck, in my opinion, is superior to the American strats that I played.

I wanted a guitar that would be durable and have the sound for 50's rock. I got everything that I wanted and more.

I have always been told to buy the best guitar you can afford. The idea is, this will get you a guitar that will play easier and sound better.

Well, this guitar does both. It will be good for the beginner and for the gigging musician.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

This is the first guitar I ever bought and I purchased it four and a half years ago at Steve's Music Store in Montreal for $399 Canadian or about $275 US at the time.

The playability when I bought the guitar was poor but after I had it tuned up the playability has been excellent. The action is low and there is little to no fret-buzz. The durability has been surprinsingly good for a Mexican made guitar, so far nothing has broken.

Although nothing has broken, there were some defects in the manufaturing process, such as the neck was slighly crooked when it was put on. I had a store fix this. The pickups do not line up with the strings. The fretwire on the neck sticks out on the bottom a tiny bit, so when you run your hand down the side of the neck you feel the fretwire. The whammy bar or trem bar had to be put flush against the body otherwise the guitar constantly comes out of tune (I have abandoned the bar completely). Lastly the pickups are horrid. They sound very empty, tinny and cold, a far cry from the noiseless or Tex-Mex which have a really warm feel. I have replaced two of the pickups with Seymour Duncan little '59er pickups and I am going to get a Tex Mex single coil.

As mentioned above there were some problems in the construction of the guitar but the durability of the instrument has been solid overall.

I have since played many American Strats, Epiphones, and Gibsons. The Mexican Strat is better made than the comparable Epiphones (Les Paul Standard). Two of my friends own Epiphone Les Pauls and have encoutered many parts breaking on them, which I haven't with the Fender. My strat has superior playability to the Epis as well. However, the guitar does not compete at all with American Strats. They now are listed at more than $500 US (compared with $427 when I purchased mine) so the value has decreased. Overall the guitar was a good purchase and represents pretty good value for what I paid. So relative to the value I am rating it 4 out of 5. If you have the money go american, cause there is a world of difference.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

Schmitt Music of Omaha, NE for aprox $440.
It came down to an issue of what guitar could I buy for $400ish. I choose this guitar over the others because of it's extreme playablitiy, enjoyable tone, and the Fender name.

My favorite trait of the strat has to be it's insane playablity. Having about a year of guitar playing (all acoustic) under my belt at the time of purchase this guitar wasgreat. The neck is smooth and you feel as if you can play anything with style and vibe.
Strats are very comfortable to play and hold onto in general.
The sounds you can get out of this guitar are great. It's a strat, isn't it? It definitely sounds like one. Whether you like to play rock, blues, jazz, this guitar will let you do what you need.
The sunburst is beautiful and the guitar is very solid and sharp looking all over.

The fact that it's single coils may turn of some because of the hum, but that is to all single-coils, not the strat specificially, and if it's a big deal then you can simply get noiseless pickups or humbucklers.
I don't like the tremolo a whole lot. I prefer the Ibanez ones to the strat's. The strat feels to "false" almost, kinda like it's not really meant even to be used.

Very solid construction. It may be made in good old Mexico, but it's very high quality worksmanship and I would not be ashamed of putting out a product of this standard.

If you want a guitar to start learning the electric on, go with the strat. Maby feel around first, and see if the hum is going to be an issue, but frankly you're not going to get a better guitar in the $350-$450 range in my humble opinion.
**thumbs up**

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

Where: Guitar Center, Rt. 22, Springfield, NJ
How much: $349


I have been in the market for a Strat for about a year. Every so often I would go to a store and play 3 or 4, everything from Squiers to the Artist and Custom series. It was all about the feel and the sound, and I have to say that I have been consistently impressed with Mexican Strats with maple necks, even though I am a rosewood fingerboard fan. Yesterday I saw a beautiful burgundy wine w/maple neck Strat and picked it up and wow -- what a feel! And sure enough, it was a Mexi. The American Strats are $500 more (minimum!) and the necks don't seem to have as good a feel. The Americans have slightly better quality pickups but I plan to replace the bridge pickup anyway with a stacked humbucker w/coil tap. And here's the bonus: the tremolo system, which is the standard floating brige type (no locking, no microtuners, no fancy saddles, nothing!) actually stays in tune, even with serious dive bombs. I had given up on standard Strat tremolos about 20 years ago but short of shaking the axe by the tremolo arm alone I cannot get it to go out of tune.


Excellent. Beautiful burgundy wine color, no blemishes. Neck is true and smooth. Tuning hardware is precise and smooth.

Focus on the feel and the sound and you will be pleasantly surprised with the Mexican Strat.


This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

Well I paid for my 10 years old Fender strat 300 bucks. I just wanna know, that even it is quite a nice guitar for me, may I change the original pickups, because the bridgepic. is a bit noisy, and there is too much bass in the neck one.

Well it has a warm sound, Stevie R.V. type, you know. It is very light, I mean the weight. Sound cool, but sometimes I feel, maybe with better pickups, would be more satisfying.

The sound is a bit noisy, and it is hard to get the same overdriven echo coming back from the amp, like with my Gibson, which is easy to make a long gain sustain with. Is it the light wood or the pickup?

Luckily briliant constuction, and good quality.

Can I get longer sustain with spec. pickups, or it won't change, because it is a matter of the body's wood material

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

$349 Musicians Friend

Thick body, not too heavy not too light, round neck,feel.

Stock pickups a little weak.

Sturdy construction, not bad quality.

I wanted a fender strat and didn't have the money for an american. So I bought a mexican. People have told me there's not much difference between the too, so I took their word for it. Well, I've had it for about 5 months now, and it is my foremost guitar. When I got it, i put a pearloid pickguard on it, just for looks, and I added a seymour duncan hot rail at the bridge for a heavier sound. Now I can play ANYTHING on my strat and make it work. I can have a chunky, palm-muted, chug with the hot rail, and use the single coils to get a clean sound as well as a great blues and classic rock sound. Now about American Strats being that much better, I don't think so. I played a Clapton signiture strat at guitar center and I prefered mine. Some people have said though, that no strat sounds the same. The stock pickups are a little weak, but replacement pickups aren't that expensive. All in all, I love my MEXICAN strat, and I wouldn't trade it for an american any day.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I was given this guitar for Christmas in '98, It was just meant to be a begginer guitar until I knew I was serious about playing. I think I was about $700 Canadian, I guess a pretty good deal. Well, five years later I am still playing it and I think it's great.

I like the strat mostly for it's playabiltiy, the neck is a bit thinner than the new american strats which makes for easier playing if you are doing precision playing. The contoured body is nice because it sits comfortably and is not so heavy that I will destroy your back like a Les Paul will. I enjoy the bright tone of the single coil pickups, they're nice for playing clean and crisp. When using alot of distortion, my solos just scream.

The only thing I really want is the deep thunk of the Les Paul or the PRS guitars. The body style of the Strat just doesn't give that deep chunk of the Gibson or PRS even if you do have humbuckers in it. Also, I don't use the tremolo bridge at all for bending, I think I'd prefer a stop tail instead.

The quality of the guitar is pretty good. I haven't had any problems with the neck at all and the harware is pretty solid. However, lately I have been having some problems with the elecronics. There has been popping and crackling when I am playing more "chunky" stuff. I'm not sure why it does that though, or if it is a trend with these guitars.

Well, overall it is a pretty decent guitar. It is made well and is fairly versatile when it comes to playing different types of music. One thing you have to realize is that this is not the greatest "rock" guitar. It won't give you the thick crunch of a Gibson Les Paul or a PRS, but it will produce a better clean crisp sound than a Les Paul will. So, if you are a serious rock player I would not recommend a Mexican, American, or any other Strat. However, It you like the high crisp clean sound, the Strat is for you.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I got this guitar for 50 bucks off a co-worker. It's probably the 10th electric giutar I've acquired in my 6 years of playing. When i got it i fell in love with the feel , LIKE A GLOVE..

I can go anywhere with the fretboard , kind of like this old peavey bass I used to have. Since I got this particular instrument I have been studying music with a lot more love. I would like to say it's because of the sound but it's not , it's the time we have together.

If i have to say something bad about her , she's a little dirty. However mentioning that i think I'll clean her up tonight.

It's in great condition although the spings connecting the wamie and the bridge are a little tight.

I can't say it's the best unit I've played but god damn I've written the best songs on it. I sure would like to get a bass to accompany her but then again recording time would be nice to.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

The Standard MIM Stratocaster is a classic design. This model features either a natural maple or rosewood fretboard on a one piece maple neck with 21 frets. I opted for the maple. The guitar’s body is made of alder and has a vintage styled tremolo. Three single-coil pickups are wired to a five way electronic switch and there is a master volume and two tone knobs. The guitar has Fender branded dicast tuners and comes in several pickup configurations, but mine is the standard three singles.

UTILIZATION

There is probably no guitar that can cover as many bases as a Strat can. The guitar has several tones available via the selector switch and tone knobs, I call it my Swiss Army guitar because it can do a little bit of everything well. It’s very easy to get a nice sound out of this guitar and it’s probably the easiest playing guitar I’ve ever owned. Something about it just fits my hands well, and the upper fret access is great.

SOUNDS

I can use this guitar with my Marshall and get those great Jimi Hendrix tones, or through a Fender styled amp and get Stevie Ray Vaughn at the flip of a switch. It really does cover a lot of territory. This guitar has been used through the years by most of the greats and all those tones found on their recordings are in there if you match it with the right amp. I’m more of a Les Paul guy, but there is nothing that can get the quack or woody tone of a strat. It can be slightly noisy when used with a lot of gain or around electrical fields, but that’s just the nature of a single coiled pickup. It can be cancelled out in switch positions two and four. I wouldn’t try doing metal with a Strat, (though it’s been done) but most other genes of music are usually just layered with a Strat somewhere along the way. This guitar is fairly quiet electronically and I can get just about any tone I’d want out of it, but it is generally thinner sounding than a humbucker equipped guitar, but that’s just common sense.

OVERALL OPINION

This is a classic guitar for a lot of reasons. I’m glad Fender is able to keep the made in Mexico versions around 500 dollars US, because picking one up used is affordable for most people. They are a standard guitar and I would go ahead and pick one of these up before I spent money on a cheaper knock off version, because you can get upgraded parts to fit the MIM strat and make it a really sweet guitar if the stock version leaves a little to be desired. I like the pickups, but I’d like them to be a little bit hotter. The wiring on my example is very nice and the neck and body seem to hold up nicely. I don’t use my tremolo so I can’t tell you how that effects the guitar, but I never have any issues with tuning. This guitar seems reliable and a decent bargain if picked up used, a classic for sure.

I can not believe the above

UTILIZATION

Enjoyable round, round, must love Fender ...
I think Most recent internship pniblement accsibles box, but only my opinion, I may be asked too.
is a stratum, a myth, even if Mexico is not shit, do not get into the CRNE that Mexico = shit!

SOUNDS

This is my 1st guitar, the era (2001) I played a bit of everything, I head dsormais srement to mtal, and has stuck somewhat

trs cleans sounds are good for a rock distortion, trs is good for the big potato, has stuck mchant (I prcise my stratum is 100% original)

OVERALL OPINION

If c'tait again, and the era, I would have done better to buy a Les Paul or SG (few prs epiphone the same price) because I bn FICI of humbuckers. But I am of the same satisfied with this guitar, I would have jou with for 3 years, now I want to spend anything ...

A strato Mejicana. Well, for everything else a look on it and it's not too much bother to tell the life and the measurements of a skyscraper.

UTILIZATION

What I apprci the era o I acquired this guitar is the comfort, this is an ergonomic tool that fits the user, not the other way! The design ensures that the fat is accde trs aisment anywhere on the guitar with the same ease we "walk". When the sound, well, a violin is not the luxury, so even when it is better to have the right stuff the hardware chain. Tip: Use with Elixir strings, the sound s'amliore, touch is softer, the strings last longer.

SOUNDS

I rock and the atmosphere (we do not laugh), in both cases I get more and more o less the o I want to go with this instrument, so versatility. I do not play with amps for a while, now I use the effects processor "Behringer V-Amp Pro" and sometimes when taking direct pc, plug-in Amplitube. For a fat distortion I position the "latch" (I remember the name) to 3 / 4 starting from the worst, with the zero-treble. For sounds clear two major opportunities: the latch on more acute with the treble 8 / 10 for an aggressive sound (blues-rock type). The latch at the grave with the treble up for a more smooth (type jazz). The severe down-mdium fat (500Hz-800Hz FHZ) is very well felt in the design, in terms mdium up (from low prs 4000 6000 Hz) and I have more acute rticences while cell becomes distorted and confusion.

OVERALL OPINION

I have my titin six years. Ergonomics is the highlight of this guitar: robust lgre, enjoyable play. Weakness: the sound especially in the treble. I hsit MODELS three guitars (including Gibson piphone) before the bias of the functionality. At quality prices, not because his back rgulirement cte (hi-hi). I am not of my choice when I bought all the zicos swore by Gibson. The appriori the Squier, I think. Fender fulfilled its contract manufacturer of guitars for any musician.