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Post subject: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Tue Nov 17, 2015 1:08 pm
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Roadie
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Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2012 4:29 pm
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Location: London, UK
Hi!

First things first, my primary instrument is not the electric guitar. I've had this guitar for ages (it was a present) and I need more specific info about it.

I remember it was bought in the early 2000s possible around 2002-2004.

On the headstock I can see the affinity emblem, and I now that it is a HSS and thats about it. I need more info on it.

I do not know the colours name but it is some sort of transparent wine or bordeaux it looks more red in the photos. But in reality the colours something close to THIS

I am also planning to do some modifications on it, and looking forward to a gilmourish tone, any advice also appreciated.

Thanks!

Here are the pics:

Image
hızlı resim yükle

Image
resim yuklemek

Image
gif upload

Image
resim

Image
resim gönder

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Post subject: Re: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 1:09 am
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Rock Star
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Joined: Tue Jul 17, 2007 1:53 am
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That CY04 serial tells it was made by Yako factory in China (Taiwan) in 2004.
The HSS pickup configuration would make it an Affinity Fat Strat - it was available both alone and as a part of a pack.
The color doesn't seem to fit anything on the Squier menu those days; based on the pics I'd guess it's Midnight Wine (#75) or Crimson Red (#38), AFAIK neither was a 2004 Squier color. (There was the Burgundy Mist (#66) available, but it's a lot more purple. And anyways, computer screens lie so much that it could just be the "normal" Metallic Red...)
And: it may be that the body/pickups have gone through some mods already; I'm trying to blow up your pic#2 to see if the humbucker hole is factory made or a mod, but the resolution is just too small.

You might get more info if you do the autopsy (neck and pickguard off, check markings & other inside) - for instance, the Fat Strat product code would start 031-0700 (then the color code).
On general specs, it's quite a normal Affinity Strat of that time except for the electronics.

On the modding side, all in my very humble opinion:
First: Gilmour sounds like himself on any guitar, but nobody else sounds like Gilmour, even if he'd loan his black Strat...
But on the quest for a "gilmourish" tone, the best option is to use a preloaded pickguard, and on that sector the price of the good ones is way over the guitar's value. You'll have to evaluate for yourself if the body/neck/hardware are worthy of that size an upgrade.

On all mods: check that the parts you use fit the guitar; the Affinity body is thin, the string spacing etc. don't match with all parts available.


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Post subject: Re: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 1:58 am
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Roadie
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Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2012 4:29 pm
Posts: 238
Location: London, UK
jmattis wrote:
That CY04 serial tells it was made by Yako factory in China (Taiwan) in 2004.
The HSS pickup configuration would make it an Affinity Fat Strat - it was available both alone and as a part of a pack.
The color doesn't seem to fit anything on the Squier menu those days; based on the pics I'd guess it's Midnight Wine (#75) or Crimson Red (#38), AFAIK neither was a 2004 Squier color. (There was the Burgundy Mist (#66) available, but it's a lot more purple. And anyways, computer screens lie so much that it could just be the "normal" Metallic Red...)
And: it may be that the body/pickups have gone through some mods already; I'm trying to blow up your pic#2 to see if the humbucker hole is factory made or a mod, but the resolution is just too small.

You might get more info if you do the autopsy (neck and pickguard off, check markings & other inside) - for instance, the Fat Strat product code would start 031-0700 (then the color code).
On general specs, it's quite a normal Affinity Strat of that time except for the electronics.

On the modding side, all in my very humble opinion:
First: Gilmour sounds like himself on any guitar, but nobody else sounds like Gilmour, even if he'd loan his black Strat...
But on the quest for a "gilmourish" tone, the best option is to use a preloaded pickguard, and on that sector the price of the good ones is way over the guitar's value. You'll have to evaluate for yourself if the body/neck/hardware are worthy of that size an upgrade.

On all mods: check that the parts you use fit the guitar; the Affinity body is thin, the string spacing etc. don't match with all parts available.


Hi, their were no mods done to the guitar, it was bought new.

I did an autopsy as you suggested here are the finds:

On the neck the date is: "2004 05 22"

Image
resim yüke

On the body (neck socket) it says:

71100

SGF 8906

(I might be reading wrong as some numbers are somewhat unreadable.

Image
gif upload

Inside the body it writes 26:

Image
resim gönder

As for the colour here is another picture:

Image
jpg upload

I checked the colours you gave and the closest match is Crimson Red but you also said that it doesn't fit in 2004 catalogue :roll:

I hope the numbers will give us a hint.

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Post subject: Re: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 2:08 am
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Roadie
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Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2012 4:29 pm
Posts: 238
Location: London, UK
jmattis wrote:

On the modding side, all in my very humble opinion:
First: Gilmour sounds like himself on any guitar, but nobody else sounds like Gilmour, even if he'd loan his black Strat...
But on the quest for a "gilmourish" tone, the best option is to use a preloaded pickguard, and on that sector the price of the good ones is way over the guitar's value. You'll have to evaluate for yourself if the body/neck/hardware are worthy of that size an upgrade.

On all mods: check that the parts you use fit the guitar; the Affinity body is thin, the string spacing etc. don't match with all parts available.


I agree his tone are in his hands.

What guitar would be the perfect base for a preloaded pick up for a gilmourish tone?

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Post subject: Re: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 4:23 am
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Rock Star
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Joined: Tue Jul 17, 2007 1:53 am
Posts: 4240
How much money are you willing to invest? CS Gilmour Strat :wink:

Actually - and this is again my personal opinion - any Stratocaster that is a good (read: plays & feels real good) instrument (when it's been set up properly) would be a good base for modding. MIMs, MIJs, good Squiers are often in use. Nothing fundamentally wrong with that Affinity either - you should be able to evaluate its properties yourself, judging by the instrument list on your signature.
A maple neck with a small headstock for the feel and looks and a red or black body.
Then build the electronics (plenty of info & options available, google...) or get a preloaded pickguard.


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Post subject: Re: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 10:10 am
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Roadie
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Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2012 4:29 pm
Posts: 238
Location: London, UK
jmattis wrote:
How much money are you willing to invest? CS Gilmour Strat :wink:

Actually - and this is again my personal opinion - any Stratocaster that is a good (read: plays & feels real good) instrument (when it's been set up properly) would be a good base for modding. MIMs, MIJs, good Squiers are often in use. Nothing fundamentally wrong with that Affinity either - you should be able to evaluate its properties yourself, judging by the instrument list on your signature.
A maple neck with a small headstock for the feel and looks and a red or black body.
Then build the electronics (plenty of info & options available, google...) or get a preloaded pickguard.


Thanks!

I've been looking into the Classic Player 50s Strat lately. Do have any specific model recommendations?

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Post subject: Re: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 1:36 pm
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Rock Star
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Nope, my preferences probably aren't exactly what you want.
I have absolutely nothing against that Classic Player 50's (wow what a beauty that Shoreline Gold is...), but one option is the Classic Series 50's - comes with nitro lacquer, is available in CAR and (only?) a hundred $ more.
I wrote "one option", because good preowned MIM's, MIJ's, Squiers (and of course also MIA's) are easy to find on ebay & such.


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Post subject: Re: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 2:08 pm
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Roadie
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Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2012 4:29 pm
Posts: 238
Location: London, UK
jmattis wrote:
Nope, my preferences probably aren't exactly what you want.
I have absolutely nothing against that Classic Player 50's (wow what a beauty that Shoreline Gold is...), but one option is the Classic Series 50's - comes with nitro lacquer, is available in CAR and (only?) a hundred $ more.
I wrote "one option", because good preowned MIM's, MIJ's, Squiers (and of course also MIA's) are easy to find on ebay & such.


I don't have much a chance on second hand as I am not in the U.S.

Thanks I'll also look into Classic Series 50s.

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Post subject: Re: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Thu Nov 19, 2015 1:24 am
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Aha - I trusted the London UK in your profile but that seems to have changed.
Google found this one: http://www.gittigidiyor.com (64 options on "Stratocaster" at the moment).

(This new/old thing may also be a age or personality issue - my son prefers new guitars, I buy only second hand...) :wink:


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Post subject: Re: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Thu Nov 19, 2015 3:20 am
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Roadie
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Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2012 4:29 pm
Posts: 238
Location: London, UK
jmattis wrote:
Aha - I trusted the London UK in your profile but that seems to have changed.
Google found this one: http://www.gittigidiyor.com (64 options on "Stratocaster" at the moment).

(This new/old thing may also be a age or personality issue - my son prefers new guitars, I buy only second hand...) :wink:


I am not closed to second hand, the problem is they charge high prices, so it's really more logical to get a new one at that point.

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Post subject: Re: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2015 5:29 am
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I know the thread is over a month old, but I'm just gonna toss my $.02 worth in here for the sake of posterity...

Personally, I have to agree with pretty much everything jmartis said there...the guitar there looks like a pretty run of the mill Affinity Fat Strat (give or take the color...FSR perhaps?), however personally I think it would be a great modding platform. One of the lovely things about "a Strat", regardless of it's lineage, is that they're so easy to upgrade. In this case, if the OP is having issues with access to better used instruments, if it were me, I'd just upgrade the Affinity and should a better instrument come along, you can always transplant the upgraded parts later.

Now in this case, I would start with the trem...or more specifically, the trem block. Most Squiers (newer models at least) and many MIM's come with those half sized zinc alloy blocks and while I usually try to avoid using subjective terms, the simple truth is those blocks are just terrible. You can have a guitar body with the nicest chunk of wood on the planet and one of those half sized blocks will just suck the sustain and tone right out of it. If you check Guitar Fetish, you should find they sell some rather decent upgrade trem blocks for around $22 (give or take shipping) and I suspect that you'll be really amazed at just how much a difference this alone can make. Now from there, we have a few other issues to cover.....

As far as creating a Gilmour'ish sound, as already stated, sooooooo much of that comes down to his playing. While this is true of ANY guitar player, I really can't over-emphasis this - check it out...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTN3R5owt3I

You'll notice that the guitar he uses on the lead is NOT a Strat...it's a Gretsch! While many people try to attribute a specific guitar player's sound and tone to a specific guitar (or pickups or pedals or amps), as we can see here VERY clearly, that's really not the case at all. In short, the man sounds like David Gilmour because wow...he -IS- David Gilmour! It really is THAT simple.

My advice would be to FIRST, study the man's style...even before doing an upgrade to the instrument (give or take the trem block issue mentioned above...I'd replace that in ANY case). Once you have his style down, add some effects...Brother Dave was often rather heavy handed with the effects, so once you have his playing style down, you could very well find that your sound is close just by adding a bit of delay, some flange, the right distortion, etc.. If you're still not happy with the sound/tone, THEN I would look at upgrading the pickups (either the Affinity of whatever else you end up with).

David Gilmore is rather notable for his use of Duncan pickups, however he's also used EMG's from time to time...at least in regards to the infamous "black Strat". From my understanding, the significance of this for Brother Dave was never so much about tone specifically as much as trying to deal with "noise" in how he uses the guitar on stage. Pink Floyd was long known for their rather impressive stage shows, including lights, lasers, explosions and various other paraphernalia, all of which can wreak havoc with even the best guitar pickups. I really don't remember what he used in the early days on the recordings, but most of his contemporary work...stuff like that amazing sound he got on the Pulse tour for example, as far as I know, most of the time he was using humbuckers and NOT your average Strat single coils...if you're trying to go for that Gilmour tone (beyond playing style), that's something well worth keeping in mind. On that note, the best combination I've found for coming close to his sound/tone is my '96 MIM...she's got the Duncan Rails and yea...with the proper playing technique and the right effects, she's pretty damn close. If you're on a budget, you may even wish to look at the Duncan "Scorcher Rails"...they're great pickups and will save you a few bucks over the premium models. Even if you drop them in the Affinity, remember, you can always pluck them back out and drop them in something else later.

As far as an upgrade guitar goes, while I'm more than a little bias here, I really love the MIM Standards and the older MIJ's...both usually provide exceptional value for the money (as far as my Strats go, I currently have 6 MIM's and 1 MIJ...not to mention a CIC and one partscaster). The MIJ's can be a little hit or miss...most were really exceptional instruments, however I have heard/read that there were a couple of early klunkers. The MIM's are great instruments as a whole, but usually require the same upgrades as many Squiers...trem block, pickups, a proper setup, etc.. As already stated, any halfway decent Strat...Fender or Squier...should serve you well, but if I were upgrading from an Affinity, an MIM Fender Standard would likely be my first choice.

I also have to second jmartis regarding used. If you don't have much local, don't forget - we have this lovely thing today called the internet, LOL! Aside from the likes Ebay, many of your larger music chains such as Guitar Center, do have websites where you can find and purchase used instruments. Granted, you can't usually play them first, but money-wise, it's an option WELL worth considering. As long as you deal with a reputable, well established company, any "risk" should be fairly minimal...and many companies such as Guitar Center and such, even offer some form of satisfaction guarantee...if you do find a problem, they'll usually give you a full refund, no questions asked.

Alrighty...again I know I'm a bit late getting in here and these are again, just my own opinions, however I hope someone finds them useful.


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Post subject: Re: Need information regarding my Squier Strat and mod tips.
Posted: Sun Mar 06, 2016 7:14 am
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I had a Infinity last year where I installed a MIM Fender Strat Bridge Tremolo block. I paid around $21.00 for it on E-Bay ( U.S.) . That made a huge difference in the tone and sound of the guitar . As far as getting Gilmour's tone, why not concentrate on developing your own ? Much more fun IMO.


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