strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

[BluesNRock87]

im gassing for a strat, really bad.

id probly get a ssl-1 set or some other duncans for it of course

i dont really care about cost, cause this would almsot be a long term investment. so should i get a mexi, a highway1, a usa, or something else? i think in the real long run id prbly get a flip headstock neck and a reverse trem/bridge, srv style. id try to keep it around 800, but the lower the better

 

[Frantic_Rock]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

I got a highway 1. Very happy with it. I've upgraded every possible thing that you can upgrade by now... Have antiquities in it - luv it.

If you wanna have a 2 post trem rather than the 6 screw vintage, go for an american standard. If you are investing I think there is no point in a mexi - they don't measure up to the Necks and playability of the US.

 

[big_black]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

If you are in it as an investment, get the USA. Me personally, I would never buy a Fender strat that was not a USA. The MIM strats feel like toys to me, and I don't really like the body of the Highway 1. Even within the MIAs, there are crap guitars, so play a bunch. Try them amplified and unamplified. When you find the right one, it will be the sweetest thing ever! I love my Strat.

 

[HolyDirt]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

if you can, get a USA series strat, my friend was lucky and got one new for 350$ because the sells person didnt know anything about guitars and the strat was mislabeled as a mexi...

 

[BluesNRock87]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

frantic rock

whats the difference between 2 and 6 pt trem? and what have u upgraded besides pups?

 

[rspst14]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

Have you considered going the Warmoth route? I'd like to have a nice Strat someday, but the idea of custom building it appeals to me much more than buying one off the rack at Guitar Center. If you're buying it as an investment, go with a Fender. But if you want something built to your exact specs, look into a Warmoth Strat.

Ryan

 

[sgstrat]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

I.M.O. the "biggest bang for the buck" Strat is the m.i.m. Jimmie Vaughan Tex-Mex model:
- wiring with tone control for bridge pickup
- great neck: 9.5" radius, medium jumbo frets and comfy V neck shape
- good traditional style hardware

The standard Tex-Mex pickups are good, but when you're ready a good set of S.D. single coils will make it even better.

 

[Frantic_Rock]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

frantic rock

whats the difference between 2 and 6 pt trem? and what have u upgraded besides pups?

A 2 point modern trem is better for diving. You can dive bomb and stay in tune if you have locking tuners. I found it very difficult to keep the 6-point in tune when diving. I think the screws need to be adjusted. My 3 treble string always go sharp after a dive bomb. A 6-point is good if you want to pursue the vintage strat vibe, but the 2 point is a smoother diver and provides better tuning stability. I heard that the 6-point, however, has a better resonance because it transfers the string vibration better to the body of the guitar.

Into my Red Hwy1 i put in Sperzel 12:1 locking tuners, 2 Ants Texas Hots, Hotrail Bridge, Series switch for the 2 single coils, Lindy Fralin Linear Blender pot for the bridge pickup (these 2 controls give me 9-way switching), I also did a 50s mod on the tone control making the rolloff retain the highs a tad better. I have shielded the guitar using allparts.com copper tape and foil. I have ordered a set of graphtec stringsaver saddles, a bone nut, and a pair of shaller strap locks to finish it off They should be here soon

Here are the pics.
Pics

One last point about the HWy 1 is you have to be a person who doesn't mind chips to the bare wood. I had 1 the first day I bought it. If you hit the guitar hard enough with the pick, a whole segment of the paint will chip off to the bare wood I don't freak every time this happens. Mine will be really reliced in a year or so...

 

[garublador]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

i dont really care about cost, cause this would almsot be a long term investment.

What do you mean by "long term investment?" If you're talking about resale value, then the USA Strats are the only way to go. If you're talking about a guitar you want to keep for a really long time, make sure to check out G&L guitars too. They're similar to the USA Strats and some people prefer them over Fender. That being said, they are a little different than Fenders so you'll want to make sure you're able to get your hands on both.

 

[Maggot]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

I disagree about Mexican Strats. I have a Mexican Standard Strat that I love. I don't feel that the quality control for Mexican instruments is different from the American ones. As a matter of fact, my standard Strat is far superior to the American Standard Tele I used to own, as well as my old 79 Tele, but not better than my Japanese Tele.

The components are better on the American ones, but since the tuners are fine and the nuts are the same, the main thing you'll notice is the pickups, which you'll swap out anyway.

The main thing is go on feel - just because a guitar is Mexican-Made doesn't mean there's anything wrong with it. Also you might like the Mexican 50s and 60s reissues. I don't understand using relatively inexpensive guitars as investments - there are millions of Strats, and as soon as you start swapping out pickups you're cutting into the value of the thing. For a player, I'd just choose the one you like the best and ignore the country of origin entirely.

I got some new pickups for my MIM Strat and I'm getting some graph tech saddles. I initially felt weird about putting the money into such an inexpensive guitar, and then I realized that even if I spent an extra $600 on the guitar, it still wouldn't come with Graph Tech saddles and Fender Custom Shop pickups.

 

[hacker]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

Some of the best strats ever come from Japan.

 

[martinsixstringcustoms]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

I've got a MIM Strat which I really like. To be honest, I play my Pauls much more frequently, but I'm never disappointed with the Mexi Strat. I've upgraded the pups to Duncans and also have american locking tuners and string tree.

I agree with whoever said that you should try a bunch of guitars. Quality seems to deviate on both sides of the boarder. Case in point was my American Deluxe Strat. $1,100.00 guitar and it didn't hold a candle to my mexi strat...

My 2 cents for whatever its worth :laugh2:

 

[Hot _Grits]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

The best advice I can give is go to as many dealers as you can and try as many strats as you can. Buy with your hands and ears, not by place of manufacture.

I have a MIJ strat that I picked up for next to nothing that is better than the two MIA strats that preceded (62ri, see avatar, and SRV) it. Strats are like that.

 

[strat_master]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

If its an investment man go with an American stratocaster hands down. They will hold thier value much better MIM and hihwway 1 strats wont do much. Im ot toally sure about highway 1 but i know MIM strats are worht pennies for resale. Obviously MIA strats are top of the line in what your looking at. I own a MIM srrata nd love it but i know there are better strats out there than what i have

 

[Jonny R]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

I'd definitely check out G&L too. I ended up getting a Legacy when I was looking at buying a Strat. They do some really nice guitars - I ended up getting a much better instrument than the Strats that I had tried out at the same time.

 

[strat_master]

Re: strats: mexi vs highway1 vs. usa vs. other

Ive herad nothing but good things about G&L guitars. I heard somehwre they are even good to match the quality of fender's custom shop. I ave yet t play one bu that is alwya somehting to consider one might say that G&L is to fender as prs is to gibson...all four are great brands of axes but the names stand out more with fender and gibson.