Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

[Yngwiestein]

A customer wants to trade one of these

http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/reviews?base_pid=511165&page=4&sc=date&so=desc

I played one when they first came out about 2 or 3 years ago. They sounded more subdued than an alder or ash strat, but it was fantastic nevertheless. Fantastic midrange and low end. I'm not sure if it will cut through like an alder HSS strat.

I also hate Fender S1 switching. I would gut all that and wire up a standard. Then the bridge is one of those 2 point trems. Not sure if those trems can achieve the kind of sound a vintage trem can.

I wasn't impressed with the Fender Tex Mex or DH1 but they are decent pickups nonethless. The thing I'm afraid will happen is I'll play it and then plug in my Les Paul and feel like mahogany belongs on a Les Paul! LOL!

Your thoughts here bros & pickup suggestions?

 

[supernosher]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

What would it cost to purchase, and can I send you a check for $1.2 mill over the amount? Then when you come to "see" my wife in Gonzwana you will bring to me the change.

OK seriously I wanna play it. I have a distaste for alder, and I want a nice strat. I think it would probably be out of my price range tho... Unless of course I save it until Christannukah.

 

[Empty Pockets]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

i like 'em. somewhere between a strat and an SG.

i mean it's a guitar so it's probably awesome.

 

[ganzosrevenge]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

if you mean the mahogany one, it's more like 2 parts strat, 1 part SG. In spite of the Humbucker, it really only begins to "fatten" up a good deal with the S-1 switch engaged. I'm not sure if this is because of it's inherent strat tendencies (long scale, maple neck), or because Fender Humbuckers just tend to sound like overgrown Fender Single-Coils. As a player, it's insanely versatile and it does provide a bit more "oomph" to whatever pickups are in it (ie: a little more low-end) due to the mahogany body, however I will say Fender needs to desperately stop trying to make humbuckers, and just use something simple, yet effective, such as the SD TB-1 (the Trem '59).

On the positive side, I will be the first to admit that it has every single ingredient for being insanely versatile (LSR nut, locking tuners, mahogany body, contoured heel) and it's really only necessary to do an overhaul of the pickups (and maybe, albeit this is subjective, upgrade the bridge blocks and saddles) in order to make this guitar able to hold its own with anything. I myself am giving my strat "the Lone Star configuration" in terms of wiring and switching (double super 5-way, neck and mid tone 1, bridge tone 2) with 2 SSL-1s and a Brobucker wound to 11k.

Here are my suggestions: Get it and make it a "project guitar". Get over the fact that you have what amounts to an american deluxe stratocaster with a mahogany body and the old american series wiring setup, and put into it a set of SD's, SSL-1 / SSL-1 / '59 or something with a straight PAF in the bridge ('59, PG, SH-55, Bro) is what will provide a lot more of that "gibby throatiness", while keeping a relatively vintage neck and mid to balance things out (SSL-1 or 2, antiquity, SD CS strat pups) will give a good amount of traditional strat sound.

They're also not a terribly common strat, it's not like you'll see 500 of the same ones on ebay, so you'l have something of a "mild collecting item". DO IT!

 

[Robert S.]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

If you buy it and don't like it, let me know.

I could be all about a mahogany Strat.

 

[Yngwiestein]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

if you mean the mahogany one, it's more like 2 parts strat, 1 part SG. In spite of the Humbucker, it really only begins to "fatten" up a good deal with the S-1 switch engaged. I'm not sure if this is because of it's inherent strat tendencies (long scale, maple neck), or because Fender Humbuckers just tend to sound like overgrown Fender Single-Coils. As a player, it's insanely versatile and it does provide a bit more "oomph" to whatever pickups are in it (ie: a little more low-end) due to the mahogany body, however I will say Fender needs to desperately stop trying to make humbuckers, and just use something simple, yet effective, such as the SD TB-1 (the Trem '59).

On the positive side, I will be the first to admit that it has every single ingredient for being insanely versatile (LSR nut, locking tuners, mahogany body, contoured heel) and it's really only necessary to do an overhaul of the pickups (and maybe, albeit this is subjective, upgrade the bridge blocks and saddles) in order to make this guitar able to hold its own with anything. I myself am giving my strat "the Lone Star configuration" in terms of wiring and switching (double super 5-way, neck and mid tone 1, bridge tone 2) with 2 SSL-1s and a Brobucker wound to 11k.

Here are my suggestions: Get it and make it a "project guitar". Get over the fact that you have what amounts to an american deluxe stratocaster with a mahogany body and the old american series wiring setup, and put into it a set of SD's, SSL-1 / SSL-1 / '59 or something with a straight PAF in the bridge ('59, PG, SH-55, Bro) is what will provide a lot more of that "gibby throatiness", while keeping a relatively vintage neck and mid to balance things out (SSL-1 or 2, antiquity, SD CS strat pups) will give a good amount of traditional strat sound.

They're also not a terribly common strat, it's not like you'll see 500 of the same ones on ebay, so you'l have something of a "mild collecting item". DO IT!

I agree, it seems to have all the ingredients. I'm a Gibson guy so you know I like the idea of a mahogany strat with a trem

If you buy it and don't like it, let me know.

I could be all about a mahogany Strat.

Ok if I don't like it I'll trade you for a custom amp

 

[Gooch]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

I have one and love it. I had a USA Dean Caddy for 2 years, sold it and bought this and never looked back.

I'm more a Fender guy, though, but was going to do a Warmoth project with a fender mahogany body. I just saved myself a few hundred. BTW, when I got the guitar, it was $999...They increased the price recently b/c these are selling and production was limited...Or so I heard on the Fender forum.

It's a warm, fatter sounding version of my Swamp ash Lone Star Strat, which I fuggin love!!! I hate the S-1, but it does fatten up the sound even more. The Tex Mex sux compared by my SD C5 and Van Zant Blues in the neck and mid, which are tremendous ups, btw.

Gooch luck.

 

[Yngwiestein]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

I have one and love it. I had a USA Dean Caddy for 2 years, sold it and bought this and never looked back.

I'm more a Fender guy, though, but was going to do a Warmoth project with a fender mahogany body. I just saved myself a few hundred. BTW, when I got the guitar, it was $999...They increased the price recently b/c these are selling and production was limited...Or so I heard on the Fender forum.

It's a warm, fatter sounding version of my Swamp ash Lone Star Strat, which I fuggin love!!! I hate the S-1, but it does fatten up the sound even more. The Tex Mex sux compared by my SD C5 and Van Zant Blues in the neck and mid, which are tremendous ups, btw.

Gooch luck.

So you put a C5 and Van Zandts in yours?

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

Ok if I don't like it I'll trade you for a custom amp

Wrong admin

 

[jimijames]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

I don't know a lot about the guitar, but I bet it would sound killer with A 59 or jazz tb in the bridge, and ssl-1's in the neck and middle. Or, get the forum pickup and cop a les paul junior vibe (p-90 + mahogany)

 

[Yngwiestein]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

It arrived this afternoon, new & complete with stickers and pickguard film. Very beautiful guitar. I played it all day. It was a lot of fun

 

[ganzosrevenge]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

enjoy it yngwiestein. Just realize that when you take the pickguard off, you're going to see wires in colors that haven't been seen in a guitar before (candy-cane stripings!). The jury's still out whether S-1 switching is really a good thing or a bad thing.

 

[arbiter]

Re: Thoughts On Fender American Special Strat?

wow, now that's a beauty. but i'd stick an invader in it, no second thoughts.