All user reviews for the Fender Standard Stratocaster [1990-2005]

I bought the Strat my second electric. I had an okay experience with Fenders in the past but this ruined it. I paid around $350, not being able to afford the American.

There isn't a lot to like. The neck is probably the only decent part. The body weight is okay.

For starters, the TREM SUCKS. That is really my biggest, and only complaint. After adding 2 more trem springs it still goes out of tune every 3 miuntes. I retune and retune but there is no point. For about $200, I bought a Schecter 006 Elite. One of the best guitar I have ever played. Get a cheap Schecter instead!

It was overall, constructed okay.

NEEDs A TREM. If you get rid of the crappy trem and replace it, or add a fixed bridge it will be a lot better.

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

I bought this at a local MARS Music for $300.00 on sale.
I am a beginner, but wanted an electric that was easy to play and had good quality. I wasimpressed with recent reviews of this type guitar (always high reviews).

The guitar is a beauty! it's got a rosewood fretboard and is extremely easy to play. I find myself growing fonder of my purchase every day I play. I have been able to speed up some of my playing due to this model's ease of play.
The finish is a honey burst finish and is simply beautiful for a guitar. There's a good finish shine on it also.
The strings also seem to stay in tune for a longer time period than on previous guitars I have played.
The electronics (including the output jack) appear to be quality constructed.


The one small drawback is the slight hum from the single coil pick ups. But that's what i wxpected and will probably change the pickups later.

The overall quality is excellent. Paint detail is great. There are no glue marks or scratches.
The output jack is sturdy unlike other cheaper guitars.
The guitar has a rosewood fretboard on a maple neck.

Bottom line: This Strat is the best buy for the money. It sounds great, plays easy and I could not tell the difference between this unit and the American version sound wise.

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

I got my first good quality electric guitar for christmas at guitar center, and i paid for it around 350$ after some deal.

I like everything about this guitar. I always dream of having a fender stratocaster. I luv the sounds, the quality, the fret, everything about it. This guitar is strong and as almost as good as the american stratocasters. Sometimes you can't really see the difference. I don't even need a technical support for this guitar since it's good quality.

Nada, zip, everything about this guitar is good, very high quality and yet still cheap, i recommend at everyone, this guitar is for everyone, beginners, experts, everyone, it can play all musics from jazz to metal, you just got to buy some equipments like pedals for some type of music.

This guitar is heavy duty, the wood looks good, the painting is sweet, the finish is great, although its kinda heavy but thats ok cuz all electric guitars r heavy, other than that its good, superb

The best guitar in the world. Fenders and Gibson are the greatest, theyre like the gods of the guitar, but im rooting more on fender, i don't know why, you should all buy one to believe it

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

Purchased at Sam Ash, Long Island, NY for $390 U.S. I stopped in to Sam Ash looking for a 2nd inexpensive electric since my '64 Fender Mustang is getting a little long in the tooth, and needs some work. I needed a good reliable axe for some upcoming gigs with my new band. I was interested in some of the Fat Strats and Texas Special type models after reading review on all the Fender models. After playing several models (50's, 60's, 70's, 48th Street Special (fat strat), Powerhouse, etc. I choose the basic Standard Strat in Sunburst with a Maple Neck.



This guitar is really sweet. The neck is smooth and fast with some nice subtle graining, and the sunburst finish is beautifully done with an unusual 3D grain pattern showing through. I was really expecting to settle for a Mexican-made over an American Strat, but I was suitably impressed with the workmanship of this guitar. The salesperson at Sam Ash stronglt recommended the sunburst finish over the color versions since the wood for this is better, and he said that the Mexican sunbursts are better looking than the American versions. The sound is vintage strat, and outperformed all the other "enhanced" models that were offered.

The electronics has some noise on some of the pickup selections, but that's the only knock I can think of, and I consider it a minor issue.

For $390 I can't believe how well this guitar looks, feels, plays, and sounds. I think it is a steal at this price.

I love this guitar. My bandmates couldn't believe this was the cheapest Fender model made after my first rehearsal with this. For gigging, I think this a no-brainer. Get one.

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

I got this guitar from an ebay auction. This was my first Stratocaster (having owned a `62 Jaguar). I payed $260-$275 for it(can't remember exact).

What i like most about this guitar is the way it feels when I hold it. The body is pretty light-weight and the finish is an awesome
metallic crimson which i hear is now discontinued. I've never liked the color red, but this is very nice. Rosewood fret board is very clean. It has a different sound unlike most Strats I've heard.

Well, what I don't like about this guitar is mainly the condition which i shouldn't use against it. When I received it, the saddles were rusty, also some of the screws. The saddles also don't seem too durable because
one of them has torn threads so it sort of just sits there, hangs on. Also the bridge is pretty funky. It doesn't work very well. Using the tremolo I can get the lows fine, but the highs are a different story.

The action isn't as low as I'd like it. But I've been playing it so much that low action starts to feel strange after awhile. But it's not too fun when my fingers get stuck under the strings because of it.

The neck is pretty chunky, and being a girl with smaller hands, it really doesn't help any, but i've gotten used to it. The frets(metal) have already dented from string wear. My '62 Jag has stronger frets!!

On looks, the only things i don't
like are the small headstock, and the machine heads. But that's what you have to expect from a standard model, smaller headstock and thick machine heads.

The finish looks pretty detailed.
I can see the three layer from the screw holes in the back plate. Black, silver and red coating. But it also hides the question of whether the body is ply-wood or solid.
I'm sure it's solid 8^)

They did a good job on the neck(putting my personal probs. to the side) Again, the hardware is a little so-so because of the problems i've had with the brige even after adjusting the screws. One of the strap buttons get loose pretty often.

They also did a sloppy job putting the pick guard on. There's sort of a raised part near a screw that won't go down no matter how tight the screw is. But with out looking at the small problems, the guitar looks as good as the next.

I guess this would be one of those guitars Hendrix would set on fire or smash an amp with. But it's good enough to be a frequent user. A few years from now there will be a nice wear spot on the body and it will be a '98 relic!!

Hmmm, Okay. The guitar is basically an ugly duckling. People would prefer a USA to a Mexican (like this). Even though the quality isn't quite perfect, it's a guitar that you don't have to feel nervous about playing because it's cheap "yet" a fun player. I personally think that where it comes from shouldn't be your main priority because I'm sure a few people wouldn't be able to tell the difference in sound alone. Yeah they'll "sound" diferent, but which sounds "better" is the question.....muahahahaha

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

All right. I'm just starting out playing guitar, and had had enouhg of trying to figure out Offspring songs on my $100 acoustic. So I went down to Matt Umanov guitars and started to fool around with some of the Fenders, Squires, and Epiphones.

I don't know why, but I fell in love with one particular guitar. Plain, wine-red finish (not the sunbursts that i had messed with, and $50 less)... and I just refused to let it go until I walked out of the store with it. I paid a measley $390 with tax for an excellent guitar.

The neck and fretboard are in perfect shape and have an easy feel to them. I love the feel to the guitar, even without an amp, and I wish I had three more like it =). This is a very sweet axe and is perfect for beginning guitarists... as long as you find the right one. I don't know why, but I like the feel of the rosewood (darker) necks better than the maple... I guess it's the music i play (pop-punk mostly). Its finish is excellent, and I walked out paying under 400 bucks for a damn sweet guitar.

This thing inspired me to play things harder, faster than I could on an acoustic; I find myself pushing my limits every time I pick it up because the guitar almost demands it of me. It's an odd source for inspiration, but if that's where it comes from, i ain't complaining =D.

Nada. Zilch. Well, the single-coil pickups aren't the best... but they'll do, for a first guitar.

Construction... Hmm. Maple neck with rosewood fretboard (Fender does not, to my knowledge, make an all-rosewood necked guitar), bolted-on to the body of the guitar (what Strat neck isnt?). Overall, well-constructed (though this was the pick of the litter... don't ask me why, but this one and i just sort of found each other). Paint is fine... still havent scratched the damn stuff... but that's cause its my axe, and I take good care of it =D

If you're looking for a good, cheap guitar, Mexican Strat, all the way. I liked it better than some of the $1000+ Americans out there.

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

It was a dull, rainy day. The wife was out of town for the weekend and I was getting a little restless. I'd been secretly been bidding on electric guitars on e-bay but just could not seem to get the items I bid on. So I piled 2 of the boys in the car saying we were going on an adventure to the local music stores to "Look". As we rode the rain got harder and the streets were flooding, it was truly becoming an adventure I used to play an acoustic some years back, but now I needed something easier to finger. The second store (Sam Ash) was a beautiful store and lively with activity. I explained that I wanted to "see" a Fender Strat and the young salesman asked what kind of music I was interested in. I said jazz, country and rock. He plugged in the strat and demonstrated jazz, country, rock, blues, classical, and disco.The price was right , about $240.



While it's true that the sound is a combination anp and guitar, I feel the more versitial the instrument, the more options and tones you can use to create with. I like the blue solid body and maple neckm and the suprising thing is the Fender bullet strings. they keep there tone and pitch for a long time (3-4 mos. It's just a pleasure to play.



The only disadvantage, and it's the same for all electrics, is the weight. Other than that - no complaints.



I went with the Fender name for quality of sound and as a bonus got quality of workmanship. The finish is smooth and even throughout and all the parts and pieces fit. Aa a amature I could not tell much difference between the Mexican and American models, other than price and finishes. Maybe the pickups are less quality but they satisfy my needs.



Now that I know more and have had a chance to experience other guitars, I am very satisfied with my Strat.



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.

That the enormity Previous review!
I feel compelled to intervene, especially since I possde one.

UTILIZATION

I just read that the handle of prcedemment silent amricaines less enjoyable than the Mexican.
A huge well sr bullshit because the sleeves are exactly the same.
However there are MODELS 50 'whose handle is round and trs 60' whose handle is flat plutt be it for amricaines as in Mexico.
APRS is a matter of tastes.

SOUNDS

The problem again is the one must look at since there are a lot of Mexican strato diffrent, made with wood DIFFERENT:
- Poplar: mdiocres CHARACTERISTICS
- Alder and frne: there are some Mexican MODELS made with these woods and it's more the same thing because in this case, the violin is the same as the amricaines.
For résumé, poplar banish!
Then the microphones, those of the 4000 Mexican standard frs not worth a shot of syrup, it will change, lack of PCHE, unclear and rather noisy (bzzzzz). But there are other models completely diffrent mexico quips with vintage pickups that sound really.
So again, we must look at and try.

OVERALL OPINION

The pros: versatility, clean sounds
the -: lack of banana
I possde mine for 10 years, even if the microphones are weaklings, they possdent all of the same grain Fender (especially neck pickup), so it's not so bad, however a lacks a bit of PCHE.
The report quality price is not too bad, and trs good if you buy a MODEL in frne with microphones that take the road (1000 francs more expensive and in this case no diffrence with the MODEL US twice as much, but we have no flight case).
It's a good guitar, great for beginners but do not MRIT 10/10 everywhere!!

Mexican Manufacturing + qu'honnte all levels (set up, finishing)
Channel type "c" trs enjoyable, satin finish. 21 frets
Standard rack (mounting screws 6, 3 springs). Although a rgl works, I assure you!
Pickups: 3 single coils (also Chicano), through a slecteur five positions, one volume and 2 tone gnral (middle and neck pickups)

UTILIZATION

As mentioned above + the handle is enjoyable and Access in acute is both facilitated by the double notches typical stratos, and also hindered by the thickness of the heel the fund. If a problem has c'tait really long time since we would not sell more right?
The dcoupes in the box make the game enjoyable trs sitting or standing, over a sissy for complaining about their Les Paul returned to them when they play in ctes sitting (I accept all the Les Paul they will want to dbarasser gratos)
Ct sound is perfectible:
* The pickups are trs Chicano subculture prone position on 50hz 1.3 and 5 (bridge / middle / end) especially in overdrive. To be remdier you change for single coil size humbuckers, or you visit http://www.guitarnuts.com where everything is explained to shield your scratches.
* On my copy, the alignment of the microphones at the DSIR left neck pickup, so the strings and half from the royal ct peoples Attributes to them, one o lgre volume loss on these two strings. At length, hearing that the diffrence in volume, I will switch to the rails, which guarantee a uniform uptake of vibration of the strings. If you have a problem m ^ me the choice is wide: Seymour Duncan vintage / hot / cool rails, Di Marzio Fast / Pro track, Bill Lawrence, Kent Armstrong Cool Rail, EMG Select SES and I forget for sure.

SOUNDS

I play rock pattern on a sturdy Marshall Valvestate VS100 and this skyscraper is the perfect complment my other accomplice, more pchue (Cort M600).
The clean sounds are OK, sounds not just a crunch and do not rely on the original pickups for large potatoes.

OVERALL OPINION

I use this scratching since January 2003 and, frankly, is that to which I go by instinct when a crisis takes hold of me guitar.
With some minor procedures (shield, possibly replacing one or more microphones) is a great value qualitprix.
For those that have INTERESTED, I added a spring to vibrato, Manir it returns "flat" on the table of the guitar. A little bit of ultra fine sandpaper in the slots of the nut head, a little Vaseline on the "string trees" (can someone bring me a?) And of the dsaccordage vibrato is just a bad memory.
In addition, for fans soldering iron, the web is full of crack cabling alternative for the Start, which lends itself without complaining all kinds of customization lctroniques (including that on the hood and can get to work: the foot, right?).

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 ...

I love strats and simply reading the wood used for the body comes into account is wrong. Indeed, Leo Fender gnial itself has said it did not matter. The sole purpose of their wood is Aesthetics. The pickups are not fixs in the wood and are based on plastic. This is not a Gibson with a handle of PAF is al!

I possde a standard amricaine (USD) since 1989 is a MODEL of 1987 sunburst with original pickups and standard tremolo + TBX a home. The handle is one pice Saddle.

You should know that the so-called Mexican guitar are the same as USD. We do not know too much or are manufactured guitars. Indeed Cort is the largest manufacturer of guitars in the world. Cort also makes for Ibanez, Parker and some other brands, so the fish is noy: o (

Only the Custom Shop are fabiques states to me as a fender possde high-tech factory in New Mexico and everything just to make Mexican?? I do not put everyone is free to believe everything he hears.

UTILIZATION

There is no MODEL stratum like the other. Take A model of a SERIES that sounds great and take in the same SERIES MODEL NUMBER IS SERIES following: it will not sound the same!

The microphones may lack a strat EHJV but is not for a!! (Everything is relative, of course!) The sound that comes out should not be audible even when. All dpend of what is meant by PCHE (power, biting, attack ...)

SOUNDS

Stratum can be used just prs in all styles, to recess the Trash and Mtal is a bit lightweight: o) although MALMSTEEN ... Anyway to play on Start, you must love strata

Just know rgler your guitar to jazz, so yes it is possible, blues, funk, rock, soul, reggae, etc ... Guitar is one of the most versatile on the market very utiliss by many guitar-HROS notament in hard rock and 70's and 80's and still actuellement.HENDRIX, BLACKMORE, GILMOUR, MALMSTEEN and many more The list is too long and impressive!

OVERALL OPINION

I use this guitar for 15 years now and I've never lass. This is the guitar the most copies in the world and we know why: o))! But it's like women, it often does not fall on the rare and unique person. What guitar worthy of the name has not possd at least one stratum for its pure, crystalline sound? Its crunchy sounds and slamming inimitalbles?

This is the guitar of choice to do dplaise worshipers Gibson if only by its shape.

For me the most Fidler hsitation without companions or regret!