Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

[loudriver23]

Hello all,
I am really gassing a high quality Strat to add to my arsenal. I do have some questions and you guys have always been helpful with your reviews and advice in the past. (Grain of salt ready)
Should I look into a G&L Legacy, or S-500. Or do you think an American Made Strat would be the way to go.
Or would building a Warmoth strat make the most sense.
I play a wide range of music from Jazz to Punk. Lately my head is into the harder stuff, but I always come back to Floyd, and Dire Straits.
I love the tones of Gilmour, Knopfler, Beck, SRV...
I also am not too fond of tremelo's and the G&L Saddle Lock Hardtail looks very attractive.
How are the stock pickups in each of these guitars. USA Strat, G&L Legacy/S-500.
I would love to be able to keep the stock PUP's in for a while before I but some Ant II Surfers in.
Opinions please!!!!
Any and all advice would be great.

 

[Marinblues]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

You could check out Suhr and Tom Anderson as well. G&L is a reallly good brand. The new Fender Deluxe models look real good as well.

 

[Curly]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

I'm a little partial to the G & Ls ... I like the stock necks, frets, and general level of workmanship a little better than the AS strats, but the fact is, you need to play several of each before you buy

the G & Ls have a 12" radius with large frets, so they feel a little different than the 9.5" radius necks with medium jumbo frets on AS strats

strats all feel different to me, so after you've looked at some, you develop a good sense when you pick one up that's just right

I don' know the G & L dealers up your way, but down here, a good dealer is:
Buffalo Brothers

 

[loudriver23]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

Curly, how are the PUP's on the G&L's,
Also I see a lot of used ones with the Dual Fulcrum tremelo. As I said, I've never really liked tremelo's, that said, how is this one?

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

I can NOT say enough good things about my new Jimmy Vaughan Strat. Everybody on the forum knows I looked for a long time and this thing is amazing! IMO you do not NEED to change anything...I am gonna put new pickups in mine, but the stock pups are killer...so good infact that I am going to save them!

 

[Curly]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

Curly, how are the PUP's on the G&L's,
Also I see a lot of used ones with the Dual Fulcrum tremelo. As I said, I've never really liked tremelo's, that said, how is this one?

well, my '94 has Duncans stock, and G & L went to their own after that, so I can't say ... I think Gearjoneser is going to change out the ones in his Legacy Deluxe though

the trem is excellent, though - smooth and stable

 

[Sprinter]

G&L, S-500

G&L, S-500

In my opinion, there isn't a finer strat on the market than the G&L, S-500. The pickups are hot, and too me they have great tone. Ash bodied S-500's tend to be a bit bright, and alder has a nice middle of the road tone. If you can find one with a mahogany body, they sound the best. The mahogany bodied ones tend to have a big strat tone to them.


Sprinter

 

[Jonny R]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

well, my '94 has Duncans stock, and G & L went to their own after that, so I can't say ... I think Gearjoneser is going to change out the ones in his Legacy Deluxe though

the trem is excellent, though - smooth and stable

HUH?

Curly, did Legacys have Duncans prior to a certain year? My Legacy is a 1991 3-bolt, and the PUPs sound really good (changed the bridge to a JBjnr), but I thought they were just G&L standard PUPs....

 

[rspst14]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

I prefer Warmoth to any Strat or Strat-style guitar out there.

Ryan

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

I think if you really want the definitive strat tone, you should buy an alder bodied American Series strat....and Duncan Antiquity Surfers make it sound unbeatable.

On the other hand, after owning/buying/selling about 100 guitars, the G&L Legacy Deluxe I just got simply blows me away. The design of it is just perfectly suited to me. It's got the neck of a killer strat, the string height off the body is like a Tele, so you can dig in, especially fingerstyle. The humbucker gives a very articulate Jackson/PRS heavy tone.
It's got a nice substantial birdseye chunky C neck, and a unique wood combination that has stunned me....high quality Basswood with a maple cap. I now realize why some top boutique guitar makers like Suhr, Anderson, and Melancon have begun using this combo. Basswood by itself isn't usually great, but with a maple cap, it's very toneful and punchy. This guitar comes with a Duncan JB, which I swapped with a C-5. The G&L singles are horridly thin, so I put Fat 50's in, and voila!
This guitar, now perfectly setup, is possibly in the top 5 of the best guitars I've ever had. I wouldn't trade it for any other guitar of it's style.

 

[Curly]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

did Legacys have Duncans prior to a certain year? My Legacy is a 1991 3-bolt

AFAIK, yes, they used Duncan SSL-2s until some time in '94

haha ... this was the original question that brought me to the forum - how do I tell whether or not I have Duncans in my Legacy? I don't know if I ever got a really good answer, other than, "you have to look at them", or something like that

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

I've found G&L's to be hard to predict, since they throw a lot of different neck styles out there, and most of their stock pickups are magnificent. I mean, don't forget, Leo Fender designed them, after he had a lifetime to think about his Fender products.
They usually use Duncans, G&L's, or a mix of the two. Unfortunately, the cloth covered vintage A-5 neck and middle in my new guitar are almost an insult to the great model they're put in. I've found Fat 50's to be my favorite pickups for HSS guitars. I think that's why Fender mates them with Duncans in their top Showmaster guitars.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

A Music Man Albert Lee or Silhouette Special. Some of the best necks around are on those guitars.

 

[loudriver23]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

From the sound of things, I can't really go wrong with either a G&L or USA Fender Strat. I guess it's now just about sitting down and playing as many of them as possible.
Thanks to everyone for making my decision a little tougher, but with a whole lot more to think about. It is going to be a fun next couple of months test driving G&L's and Strat searching.
You guys all rock!!!!!

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

I can NOT say enough good things about my new Jimmy Vaughan Strat. Everybody on the forum knows I looked for a long time and this thing is amazing! IMO you do not NEED to change anything...I am gonna put new pickups in mine, but the stock pups are killer...so good infact that I am going to save them!

100,000% agreement! :dance:

 

[Stratcat]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

Check out one of these Fender Strats before you make a decision.
http://www.fender.com/products/show.php?partno=0101200

 

[Gamera]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

I've played a few G&L's and while they were great guitars and they were Strat-like in their tones, none of them sounded to my ears like a real Strat.

For my money the American Deluxe Strats was the way to go. You mention you're also getting into heavier stuff, maybe an HSS Strat would suit you. The new AM DLX's have the S-1 switch that provides 10 usable tones from a standard 5-way switch.

 

[Kelsey]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

Although the craftmanship of the G&L's is topnotch, the neck profiles are highly variable -- at least on the ASAT models with which I'm more familiar. Unless you are very adaptable to different neck profiles, trying before buying is the best advice with G&L. And finding a replacement neck seems impossible, unlike Fender. 'Tis a pity.

 

[Seraphial]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

Also have a look at the discontinued Texas Spec Strats. They go for around $600 in good nick on ebay. Rolled edges, nice neck profile and good hardware. Also, a 2nd on the JV.

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Looking for a new Strat!! G&L or Fender

For the traditional strat sound, you're better off with an SSS alder or ash strat with a pickguard. If you split your duties between vintage stratty tones and heavy rock tones, I'd suggest HSS without the pickguard, since humbuckers tend to sound punchier without the guard and swimmingpool route. For that, the Fender Am Deluxe, Fender CS Showmaster, and G&L Legacy Deluxe are the ticket.