Jeff Beck Strat?

nedcronin

New member
Well I am in the. Market for a strat. Any of you guys tried or have a Jeff Beck strat? I'm thinking the dual coil pups might sound really nice & fat. I also love the locking tuners. Any feedback appreciated.
 
Jeff Beck Strat?

I've played one several times. Probably one of my top 3 favorite Strats that Fender makes. IMO, there's no going wrong with one of those. And I'm not saying that because it's Jeff Beck's model. It truly is a great instrument.
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

When Ned mentions the dual coil - I'm thinking he means the '90s version with the Lace Sensors.

IIRC, the real early ones have a huge neck and around '96 it was slightly scaled down.
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

I like both versions of the JB Strat but don't love the pickup set up in either of them and there are bridges I like better as well.

All in all it's a good Strat but depending on your needs there might be Strats you'd like better.

What do you want/need from a Strat?
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

The CS one I have, there is no need to change anything.
Neither hardware nor pickups...besides the CS one does not share hardware nor pickups with the normal one, the normal JB is essentially a US Standard with a different heel.
It only shares the name with the CS one, worlds apart.
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

The CS one I have, there is no need to change anything.
Neither hardware nor pickups...besides the CS one does not share hardware nor pickups with the normal one, the normal JB is essentially a US Standard with a different heel.
It only shares the name with the CS one, worlds apart.

The specs form Fenders web site on the JB Sig Strat and the specs from the CS Fender site form the CS JB Strat list the same pickups (dual coil ceramic Noiseless) and the same bridge (American 2-Point Synchronized Tremolo with Stainless Steel Saddles) so it looks like more than just the contoured heel and name from here.

Both are fine guitars but I never really loved the Noiseless pickups and prefer a 6 hole vibrato personally. The oldest JB Strats had Lace Sensors and those aren't my fav either but these things area always changeable!
 
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Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

Well I am in the. Market for a strat. Any of you guys tried or have a Jeff Beck strat? I'm thinking the dual coil pups might sound really nice & fat. I also love the locking tuners. Any feedback appreciated.

What do you want/need from a Strat?

TGWIF hit the nail on the head. You say you are in the market for a strat, but then you start talking about fat dual coil pickups. Now I love a good superstrat with a hum bucker in the bridge as much as the next guy, but that's not really what a "strat" is. Which begs the question...

What do you want/need from a strat?
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

No I'm not talking about the older ones with the lace sensors, one of the new ones. Those are dual coil pups too, they must just be stacked. In terms of what I am looking for, I want a pretty traditional strat but with slightly fatter & hotter pups. I also really like locking tuners and necks on the fatter side for strats. I've had quite a few strats over the years but I don't have one now and I want to pick one up. I am trying to find one I can try out around me, if I can't find one I may just order from zzounds as I love buying from them and the return policy is great. I could also probably be ok with an American standard and some Dimarzio's, but I'd prefer to find something I like out of the box. Regular strat pups usually are a little bright & spanky for me.
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

The specs form Fenders web site on the JB Sig Strat and the specs from the CS Fender site form the CS JB Strat list the same pickups (dual coil ceramic Noiseless) and the same bridge (American 2-Point Synchronized Tremolo with Stainless Steel Saddles) so it looks like more than just the contoured heel and name from here.
They are not the same.......not even alittle bit.....The hardware is on another level on the CS, the pickups are not the same either.....It is of a very different grade, wood, finish, you name it....it is not the same!
Anyways back to the question, yeah it is stratty, but it is also something slightly else, it has alot of different tones in it(well the CS one, the other is more down to earth normal strat)....I have had a gazillion strats, modded them tortured them, hacked them and so on!
The CS Beck is the first guitar I ever simply left alone, there was no need to do anything, if I had any problems, well then it was not the guitar that was at fault;)
I like Becks playing and sounds, but that was not why I got this one, it had all the stuff I have missed in normal strats, I like vintage stuff and such, but this one had what I really wanted.

It may not have the hottest pickups, and all that, but they can do quite a few things, I have had for more than a year now, and I'm still amazed by it,
my first guitar in three decades that will never bore me, and all I did to it, was changing strings.
Got a few other guitars, but they do not get played as much as this one!

The neck alone is awesome, total connection, nice functioning roller nut, will go out of whack if you go beserk on it, but under fairly normal circumstances it simply stays in tune, the bridge is smooth and made out of really hard steel, has that same feel as an old 80's Floyd...meaning it has not worn out yet, and I use it alot!!!
Pickups are great, mix of old and new, have a great sound, play around with the height some, it is a simple and well made guitar, the first guitar I ever had this kind of connection going on!

I would save up for the CS one, and try a few of them...but my guess is that they are fairly consistant as it is!
But it is always good to try one first!
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

They are not the same.......not even alittle bit.....The hardware is on another level on the CS, the pickups are not the same either.....It is of a very different grade, wood, finish, you name it....it is not the same!

NO QUESTION this is 100% true. Paramount to the superb quality and tone of a Custom Shop Strat quality is the choice select woods used , and close second is the quality of finish added to custom shop pickups. Add to that the craftsmanship is finshed and perfected by some of the greatest master luthiers in the world , the final product is a guitar of unparallaled tone and playability.
Custom Shop Fenders are very special Instruments. Its partly why I try to assemble Warmoth Strats..to get similar quality and feel at a budget price, plus with specs I prefer, but at the end of the day, the build quality of a custom shop Strat like the JB cannot be duplicated by a parts assembly guitar, unless maybe put together by a master luthier from selected choice and expensive premium parts..
 
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Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

Yeah same thing functionwise, dual studded vib and noiseless pickups. But the steel on the one I have is the hard stuff, and the pickups I have you cannot even buy as a sparepart.
They may look alike and are called the same, that is about it.
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

When trawling the Fender catalogue, always check the specs for the terms Premium or Select before the body tonewood(s). These are the serious instruments. The prices tend to be serious to match.

Regarding the two-point fulcrum vibrato bridge, it is important to note that Beck has his set up like a vintage six screw type. (Leading edge down against the body. Baseplate tilted up at the rear by roughly 3/16 of an inch.)

Regarding the pickups, the Fender Hot Noiseless pickups are a little more powerful than vintage style units but most of the gain that Beck uses comes from overdrive and/or distortion pedals.
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

Yeah same thing functionwise, dual studded vib and noiseless pickups. But the steel on the one I have is the hard stuff, and the pickups I have you cannot even buy as a sparepart.
They may look alike and are called the same, that is about it.

If they look the same and have the same name one has to wonder why...

I'm not saying you are right or wrong, I am however saying I have never heard this until this thread.
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

It's is also not worthy that Jeff doesn't even use the pickups that Fender ships in ANY JB Strat and hasn't in years...the pickups in his main 2 Strats were custom wound by John Suhr years ago while John was working at Fender.
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

I read somewhere online (so it must be true..) that the pups made by suhr became the prototype for the vintage noiseless. Fwiw I had a 97 that was acoustically loud as hell. Harmonics jumped out of it. Wouldn't stay in tune. I changed the tuners, nut, bridge- with a fender and wilkinson, still wouldn't stay in tune. Loved the sound. Traded it.
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

Yeah he uses the two protos alot, but he do use a few new ones as well, saw that live.
As for the hardware......I have the cs, neither pickups or vib is made from the same materials as the standard.
Even the Spertzels are different from any Spertzels I have seen before, the standard does not have those either, it uses the old ones they had on the 90's versions.
 
Re: Jeff Beck Strat?

I can't find a JB or an EJ strat to try hands on so I am thinking I may just play a bunch of American standards and pick the best one. I have a hard time buying off the web for something like this. Maybe I'm superstitious.
 
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