The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

[Diego]

This one's been covered a few times, but I think we should compile all the knowledge we've got and Vault it if it turns out OK.

I should start by mentioning that Blueman does have a point I fully, completely agree with: A Strat in the wrong hands is painful.

When you're at a gig and you see some guy who's not a very good player plugging his Strat into the same amp some guy with a 335 was playing and doesn't fiddle with the knobs at all, you know what's coming 9 times out of 10: Harsh tone and ringing ears.

So it's easier to get a fat, balanced tone with humbucker-equipped guitars. But good ol' SSS Strats are around for a reason.

Strats are rewarding. If you can tame them, they deliver a sweet, clear and dynamic tone that other guitars just can't do.
But it's not just plugging in and hoping it works out.

I've got a few recipes for making a Strat sound fat.
Keep in mind I'm leaving humbuckers and overdrive/EQ pedals out of it.
I'm only mentioning stuff regarding the instrument itself and the technique/setup, but all tricks are welcome:

String height, high!
Strats like a high string action. String gauge is a factor too, but I've found that the string height has a stronger effect somehow.
Too low and the guitar starts to sound too percussive and plinky. Set it higher, and the mids start to bloom, the sustain gets better and it all sounds a bit more violinesque.
This is also due to the increased distance between the pickups and the strings, but there's a noticeable change in resonance and the amplified sound changes too.

Relax that picking hand.
I, as a Deep Purple fan, have this image of Ritchie Blackmore bashing the crap out of the strings, and sounding badass. But he actually plays with a very soft attack, and for good reason: IMO, it just sounds better. Attack a Strat hard and it will bark with a harsh attack. But with a smoother right hand it will sound mellower and fatter. You might need to adjust your amp to compensate, but it's worth it.

Five springs, pivot screws down: Block the trem.
This one's obvious. It sustains longer, and sounds a bit thicker too. If you can live without the bar, do it.

A master tone pot.
Or at least connecting the bridge pickup to a tone pot: This one's a must.
Leo really got it wrong here: The bridge pickup in a Strat NEEDS a tone pot. Period. There's no other way around it.

Of course, 250k pots...
And not the stupid 500k pots my Strat had when I bought it. Dunno what the previous owner was thinking.

I haven't tried pure nickel strings in my Strat, but logic dictates it should sound warmer.
Do coated, pure nickel strings for electric even exist?

I won't speculate about stuff I haven't tried personally, so here's as far as I'll go.

Waiting for your suggestions and ideas!

[dr. ad]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

> re-seat the neck joint, headstock end first (any bolt-on will love you for this)

> make sure your set-up is good; neck relief, action and intonation. strats are particularly unforgiving when not set up properly.

> the worst pickups i've ever heard were stock singles in a cheap strat. be realistic about what you can expect from the parts that make up your strat.

> pickup height is often underestimated; it's critical on strats, in my opinion.

> consider your string gauge. i'm not saying 12s are advisible, but the stock 9-42s may not be condusive to a big sound.

[LReese]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

I'll bite...

4 pole switch - That way you can have a tone control on all 3 pickups when used singly and disable in the combo positions. Or use a different value cap in the combo positions.

I agree with the softer attack - I'm consciously migrating to that approach (and more upstrokes). But I'm a "Floater" when it comes to Strats. Blocked down sounds more solid to me.

FWIW - the bridge needs a good Steel block. I got my Suhr back a couple of weeks back. Went from a 1055 Steel Block (Sintered) to a 510 2 post milled block (Both from Gotoh). Aside from the more massive posts, this thing turned from a nice guitar to something special. I'm talking unplugged tone - Suhr also swapped the pickups so its not fair to compare there.

Gotoh makes a good vintage type trem - Fenders are also good - some mention improvement if the paint is removed from the block. Brass I recall is a bit more middy than Steel but some might like it.

Slightly hotter bridge pickup too - nice, but not a total necessity.

[Aceman]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

Thread ending answer right here:

Trade it in on a Les Paul.

[rjudo]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

Thread ending answer right here:

Trade it in on a Les Paul.

Yup.

[Gearjoneser]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

10's minimum. 11's even better. 9's don't belong on a strat IMO.

Perfect setup, where it reacts perfectly to your touch.

Bone or Tusq nut.

Quality pickups.

Lightweight alder/rosewood neck. That's just my preference, not a rule.

A big fat sounding all tube amplifier. Mandatory.

Heavy pick.

Man hands. Not munchkin hands! LOL

[IanBallard]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

Thread ending answer right here:

Trade it in on a Les Paul.

Two words for you: Eric. Clapton.

That said, blocking the trem is lame (sorry Eric). I mean, one of the strong suits and points of playing a Strat, aside from the fact it's designed to fit the human body unlike Les Paul guitars, is the fact it has the best designed non-locking tremolo in history. If the setup is decent and everything is tight and lubed up, notes can go DOWN as well as up. I know that's a crazy idea for you Gibson fans, but yeah, you actually bend a note DOWN. Wild stuff!

Get a big, fat block for the trem. A good quality bell brass trem will give you more mids and will get rid of the ice pick problem with some Strats. Also, get some "Raw Vintage" springs. Whether you block the trem or not, they will fatten the tone.

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Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

^ block the trem and bend by pushing the neck.

works a treat on an LP, too. just ask slash and adam day. hehehe

[Jeff_H]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

I just switched pups in my strat, and set it up a bit different. Replaced the SSL-3 in the bridge with an SSL-1, with APS's in the neck and mid. I have all Callaham vintage hardware on this thing, and for the past 3 years I have had the bridge tightened all the way down with 5 springs...no floating. I set it up to float with just a hair over 1/8" clearance from the bottom edge of the trem to the body of the guitar, so I can pull up about 1/2 semi-tone....even though I don't ever do it. I have heard some beautiful playing recently from Wahwah and others using the trem on their strats and it sounds beautiful, so I wanted to try it.

I use a hybrid set of strings 9-46. I like the lighter top 3 strings for bending but I like the heavier bottom strings for fatness and feel. It's set up perfectly so it still sounds nice and fat, but with some top end shimmer.

My opinion, FWIW, of things you need on a strat.

1. Pickups that match the tone of your guitar's natural sound. This may take some trial and error, but it makes a huge difference. Not every strat sounds good with an SSL-1 set or an APS set. Many times it takes a combination of 2 or more types of pups and magnets to really hit the sweet spot....and the bridge is the hardest spot IMO.

2. Quality hardware. None of the pot metal, cast bridges, saddles, baseplates or tremblocks. I have always used Callaham, especially for their bridges, saddles and blocks. Gotoh and others make some good hardware as well, but put the good stuff on, especially the trem block, base plate for bridge and saddles.

3. Like GJ said, bone or Tusq nut. If your guitar is bright a graphtech nut can help tame it, but I like the high strings to ring more on a strat.

4. Pickup height is really important. Every guitar has it's own balance point for pups, but you have to mess with the height until it sounds perfect. Lower the middle pup for bigger quack in the notch positions....the lower it is, the more it quacks.

5. Real nickel strings...not nickel wound steel or anything else. REAL NICKEL. I use Snake Oil Strings, vintage nickel set exclusively on my strat and they make a HUGE difference. Also, they last forever and do not corrode like the other hybrid metal strings. They make that big of a difference in warmth and big, fat tone.

6. Quality pots and caps. I'm not saying you have to buy the top of the line RS pots and caps, but upgrade from the standard import or cheap pots to good CTS, get a good switch and spend $5-10 on a good .223 or similar cap. They do sound better than the ceramic dots IMO.

[ericmeyer4]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

Add a fuzz pedal. Worked for Jimi.

[Chickenwings]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

the string height thing and the relaxed picking style apply to all guitars whether the yare nylon string of shedder axes are regular strats. The rest of the the stuff is relevant tho,,,and id like to add my 2c worth....non rwrp pickup sets also sound cool and positions 2 ans 45 are thicker than rwrp sets.
Also id like to show some love for the american standard bridge that has been around since the mid 80s. Its not very fashionable right now, but the big saddles and the block add a lot of mass to the sound of a strat.

[IanBallard]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

^ block the trem and bend by pushing the neck.

works a treat on an LP, too. just ask slash and adam day. hehehe

You can't get the downward range you can with the trem and you risk damaging the truss rod. I'll pass. Slash and Day can't do divebombs like Beck, EVH and others who play Strats and use advanced vibrato techniques.

Actually, the best way to get FAT out of a Strat, is the put a humbucker in there and call it a day.

I have to concur with the TUSQXL nut recommendation. It's brighter than plastic/nylon and a little tamer than bone, yet gives nice thick midrange tones. You also never have to worry about the strings binding in the nut. Graph-Tech also makes Tusq saddles if you want to warm up your Strat even more.

Stick with Alder if possible. It's the best blank canvas wood to shape tone. Ash can be ice-picky with most typical Strat pickups. Fat Strats or Super Strats with humbuckers are a different story though.

[ErikH]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

This is how I make mine sound fat.

1 - A FAT neck. I'm talkin' Warmoth Boatneck contour fat - 1" thick from nut to heel.

2 - A GOOD piece of wood for the body, be it alder, ash or whatever else you like.

3 - A solid sounding humbucker in the bridge - Think Duncan Custom, Custom Custom, DiMarzio Norton, DiMarzio Air Zone, Gibson '57 Classic Plus.

4 - Trem with a GOOD sustain block or a hardtail.

5 - 9-46 strings or 10-46. I bend a lot so prefer 9-46.

6 - Good pick attack.

7 - Ability to squeeze whatever you want out of the thing.

[some_dude]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

I've never had any problems getting a fat sound out of a Strat with a humbucker in the bridge.

That said, one of the real advantages to those single coils is how they behave with various mid boosts and fuzz boxes. Feeding a Strat into a Fuzz Face is an absolutely killer sound that you can't achieve with humbuckers.

[oilpit]

Re: The official "How to make Strats sound fat" SDUGF guide/thread.

Tuning a half step down (if your situation/band allow for it) does wonders on thickening up a Strat, especially because with the lower tension, you can go up a gauge in string.

With good pups, a good tube amp and 11's tuned to Eb you would have a very difficult time making a Strat sound thin.

Also, if you don't want to block off the trem, 5 springs is still a good idea. You can't do any crazy dive bombs, or set it up to float (Fender trems weren't designed to do that anyway) but you can still use the trem quite a bit, and the extra springs will give you some beef.