'Kind of sniffing at an American Deluxe Statocaster with SSS Samarium Cobalt Noiseless and S-1 switching, of late.

Anyone have stories or tales or ups or downs or sideways thoughts thereon?

Thank you, fellow pickers.

as with everything else on this forum..to each his or her own. I own a wonderful American Delux 2-tone burst with the V-neck. At first I was not thrilled with the 2-tone. Dont get me wrong, its beautiful, but not what I was looking for. I kept playing other guitars and kept going back to that one delux. Now I think it looks cool and vintage. I try to invoke Buddy Holly.

I have had it for two years and the more I play it, the more I want to play it. For an off-the rack guitar it is amazing, as close to custom shop as it gets. I love the sound of the SCN, but they are not for everyone. Some people dont think they are vintage enough, but they make good music to my ears. The one thing that I dont use as much as I though is the S-1 swtich. Pushed down, the sound gets too muddled. Maybe I am doing something wrong. If I am, let me know.I love the locking tuners.

I also own a MIA Ash Deluxe in cherryburst finish and have to say it's one of my favorite guitars. Well worth the money but I did buy mine before the price hike! I still would! It has a neck that I love!
It takes a while to figure out all of the different tones you can get out of the S-1 system but fool around enough and you'll find what you want and more!

I bought an American Deluxe Fat Strat in 1999, and although the pickups are different and there is no S-1 switch, it has treated me amazingly well. Plays and sounds so great!! I recently decided to change out the trem block and saddles, and that made a great guitar even better. Other than that, this guitar is amazing, and I have no desire for another unless I get rich and can afford a CS master built. She will last me the rest of my life!

I own an '07 AmDlx and I love it! Such a great feeling, great sounding guitar. It's hard to put down...

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::Jim::
www.jimstigall.com
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2004 Fender Squire Strat Aged White
2007 Fender Deluxe Ash Stratocaster Cherry Burst
2009 Fender Telecaster Surf Green
2006 Fender Hot Rod Blues Jr.

I bought my 50th anniversary deluxe used, purely for collectibility. Now i cant put it down. Its taken a little work to put right mainly due to the previous owners tech but now its sorted its great.



The S1 is great i think its the best thing to happen to the strat this century. The scn's do lack a tiny bit of the traditional singlecoil high end, its nothing that cant be eq'd in by all but the most rudimentary of amps. The trem is a delight to use but i did find it needs a good bit of attention on setup. More than a 6point or floyd. The tuners are great and sturdy and smooth. Dont be fooled by the marketing hype of next to no turn on the string. I found the 3/4 to a full wrap around the post works best with them.

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No no and no

She sure is nice to look at Niki! I also use a 1/2 to 3/4 turn on the locking tuners! Cool brother!

I bought mine two years ago and I am enjoying it more today than ever. I rarely use the s-1 . I also feel that it "muddles" the sound. I recently bought a YM Signature Model Strat and after playing that I became more aware of how the tone and volume pots on the Deluxe are very insensitive compared to the YM. I am thinking about upgrading those if i can. I do love the sound and feel of the Deluxe.

I have an Am Dlx strat sss. Its the business, if only i could learn to play it!

It sounds great, and the s1 switching gives you very humbucker like sounds if you wish, one of my fav positions is the bridge and middle pickup (2nd position) with s1 switched on.

Locking tuners are awesome, thing never loses tune. Only thing il say against it is im having a hard time getting as low an action on it as on my Squier Classic vibe Telecaster.

The action is in no way high, its 1.95mm at the 17th fret, but id like to get it lower without buzz, so im still trying to arrange taking it to a technician to have it properly setup. hopefully get that sorted in the next few weeks.

Let me stress though its still really easy to play and the action isnt high. id just like to get it the same as on my squier.

The neck is beautiful on it, the finish is gorgeous and its an awesome guitar.
I would stress though that unless you really find the S1 is necessary, i wouldnt spend the extra 500 or so quid that this guitar costs over a standard.
Thats just my opinion on the matter.

Here are a few pics of my beauty...







Play one, through a similar amp to the one you own, and then play an Am Std. See if the difference is worth it for you..

I purchased an American Deluxe in 3-color sunburst with rosewood fretboard in March, three days before the 2009 price increase was put in effect at GC. I actually had my heart set on an Am. Std. Olympic White with maple fretboard but I just kept coming back to the sunburst model. It had everything I was looking for except color. Now that I'm used to it I love it!

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Custom Shop '59 Stratocaster
AV Hot Rod '52 Telecaster
AV '56 Stratocaster
'65 Deluxe Reverb Reissue

I agree the SCN's lack a little vintage sparkle and dont expect a PAF sound with the S1, but otherwise a very nice and versatile instrument. Mines a 2006 in Candy Tangerine

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I was having a bit of trouble get the action as low as I wanted it at fist two. After a bit of research and examination I noticed that I had some room to lower the two screws for the two-point bridge a bit - which ended up working out perfectly. You want to make sure not to put them down far enough that the bridge rubs the body when using the tremelo, of course -but there is some room to play there. Hope this helps...

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::Jim::
www.jimstigall.com
~~~
2004 Fender Squire Strat Aged White
2007 Fender Deluxe Ash Stratocaster Cherry Burst
2009 Fender Telecaster Surf Green
2006 Fender Hot Rod Blues Jr.

Thank you all for the comments and perceptions.

3-colour burst with rosewood board is the chosen combo, if it comes to be.

My Am DX is a beauty.I like the Am DX for the extra punch/depth it gives & a pretty good variety of tones it has.It doesn't have the bright sparkle of the Lace Sensor though.Each strat model has an unique tone & if only we can have it all on one guitar it would be cool! I would like to get a few cheap squires or mex fenders & swap pups on it with the wide variety of Am pups fender offers.
The neck of my DX is pretty different from other Am strats.The neck is v straight & the strings/action is quite low.Yet the strings feel a bit tight for bends.I did have some buzz beyond the 12th fret so I raised tha action a bit.Tthe one advantage in this type of neck is that it has a v smooth feel,the frets are rolled so v neat.SO flying around the neck is a breeze! I dont know why some necks are great for bends.I might take mine to the luthier some day.But right for the price I would suggest buying a VG.I dont own one & not sure why it's being discontinued,but I think for the price its a great bargain.

I have an american deluxe from 06 and its great. It is the best playing guitar that I have ever played. S1 switch is great and the scns sound good. I say you should get it. When i was buying this it was either an 08 american std in sienna sunburst or this 06 ddeluxe used. The deluxe was my choice because the scns really did it for me plus the s1 is so versatile. The pop in tremolo arm is great also!