It doesnt say anything about letting the body breathe. Thinner finish undercoat is the fullerplast or whatever they use now that sits underneath the colour coat. Notice it doesnt say anything about the colour coat being thinner. As an owner of a thinskin, a urethane and a mexico polyester beast, theres no difference between them. Except the hue of the candy apple red nitro compared to its urethane counterpart.

Model Name American Standard Stratocaster®
Model Number 011-0400-(Color #) and 011-0402-(Color #)
Series American Standard Series
Colors (700)* 3-Color Sunburst, *add $90.00,
(705) Olympic White,
(706) Black,
(712) Candy Cola,
(747)** Sienna Sunburst, (Ash Body),**add $190.00 for Special Wood Requirements,
(755) Blizzard Pearl,
(769) Charcoal Frost Metallic,
(Urethane Finish)
Body Alder on:
(700) 3-Color Sunburst,
(705) Olympic White,
(706) Black,
(712) Candy Cola,
(755) Blizzard Pearl,
(769) Charcoal Frost Metallic,
Ash on:
(747)** Sienna Sunburst, **add $100.00 for Special Wood Requirements,
Neck Maple, Modern “C” Shape,
(Gloss Headstock Face with Satin Urethane Finish on Back of Neck)
Fingerboard Rosewood (p/n 011-0400) or Maple (p/n 011-0402), 9.5” Radius (241 mm)
No. of Frets 22 Medium Jumbo Frets
Pickups 3 American Strat® Single-Coil Pickups
Controls Master Volume,
Tone 1. (Neck Pickup),
Tone 2. Delta Tone™
(“Delta Tone” system includes high output bridge pickup and special No-Load tone control for Middle and Bridge Pickups)
Pickup Switching 5-Position Blade:
Position 1. Bridge Pickup
Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup
Position 3. Middle Pickup
Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup
Position 5. Neck Pickup
Bridge 2-Point Synchronized Tremolo with New American Standard Bent Steel Saddles
Machine Heads Fender® Deluxe Staggered Cast/Sealed Tuning Machines
Hardware Chrome
Pickguard 3-Ply Parchment
Scale Length 25.5” (648 mm)
Width at Nut 1.685” (42.8 mm)
Unique Features New Bent Steel Saddles with Elongated String Slots,
Copper Infused High Mass 100% Metal Bridge Block,
Thinner Undercoat Finish for Improved Body Resonance,
Tinted Neck,
Maple Fingerboard Neck: Satin Finish on Back, Gloss Finish on Front;
Rosewood Fingerboard Neck: Satin Finish on Back, Gloss Finish on Headstock Front with Buffed Fingerboard,
4-Bolt Neck Attachment with Micro-Tilt™ Adjustment,
Bi-Flex Truss Rod System,
Parchment Knobs and Pickup Covers,
Rolled Fretboard Edges,
Staggered Tuning Keys,
H/S/H Pickup Routing,
New Molded Fender/SKB Case with TSA Locks, Glass Reinforced Nylon Trigger Latches, and Form Fitted Plush Interior
Strings Fender® Standard Tension™ Bullet ST3250L, Nickel Plated Steel, (.009 to .042), p/n 073-3250-203
Accessories Fender/SKB® Case, Cable, Strap, Polishing Cloth
Case High-Tech, Molded Rectangular SKB® Case
Introduced 1/2008
Notice Product Prices, Features, Specifications and Availability Are Subject To Change Without Notice
:: Close Window

_________________
No no and no

It's all hype to increase sales period. It's a solid slab sometimes pieced together wood. It does not breathe. It's dead wood.

The breathing thing I took it from musiciansfriend.com in their specs for american std strats.

See, sales pitch. Even fender in their desire to sell guitars wont try and tell you that dead wood breathes. Its the shops that lie for a sale.

_________________
No no and no

Precisely right. It kills me when I get into a discussion with a guitar player about which wood "sounds" which way or which fingerboard material (Bog help us) sounds "better," and they quote something from Fender or Warmoth or Paul Reed Smith that seems to corroborate the concept.

But I am of the considit's just easier tell them what they want to hear than trying to explain why it's wrong.

I read an interview (and no, I can't find it online, I've tried) where Paul Reed Smith said something to this effect when asked about the effect of fingerboard wood on tone:

"Look, you've got a slab of wood about 1/4" thick, and you cut 24 slots about halfway through it and jam chunks of metal in the slots... how much of the wood's resonant property do you really think is left?"

But the MUsicians Friend catalog will repeat all the myth about what that same PRS guitar is made of, because it's just easier to sell it that way. These tone myths are part of the fantasy, and fantasy sells guitars.

After watching the "Jeff Beck Live at Ronnie Scott's" DVD last night, I'm of the opinion that the effect of paint and fretboard type on tone is extremely small in comparison to the effect of a guitarist's style of playing. It looked like Jeff had plenty of paint on his Strat, as did Clapton... Playing style plus choice of pickups, amp (and amp settings) seem to be the factors to focus on in regard to tone... Eric Johnson might disagree with me but what does he know about tone anyway?.. ( )

Be careful. Most bottles labeled "Snake Oil" are really just mineral oil with a little snake thrown in for scent.

Prof. Bonfiglio's 100% Pure Snake Oil is the only one I know of that guarantees you're getting everything you paid for, and the full serpentine tone you're going for.

I just checked the Dupont website -- they no longer publish frequency response specs for their automotive paint... what's up with that? I've heard that warmer colors should be used for humbucker type tones... bright colors help produce a more vintage Strat sound...

I will say this for the 100th time and then stop. Yes, wood DOES affect the tone of a solid body electric guitar. I know, because I've swapped bodies on Strats and heard the subtle differences, or at least felt a subtle difference in repsonse. But it does not affect tone in a predictable way based on species, and not in a way that overrides the massive tonal effect of;

* the way you play,
* the pickups you use,
* the amp you play through.

As far as what The Custom Shop says, well, no offense to Mike, but the Custom Shop is in the business of selling radically overpriced guitars to people who have more money than chops. Nobody has done more to perpetuate the fantasies of Mr. Middle-aged Bedroom Rockstar than the Fender CS. Those customers are vintage store hang-outers, guitar show denizens, magazine subscribers, the kind of guys who will swap speed shop BS about guitars at every opportunity. They like to believe Tone Myths, and the CS is happy to serve 'em up, ice cold.

And I don't need to have managed the Custom Shop to have formed this opinion. I've been on stages and in studios with a guitar in my hands for just over 40 years, have played my first gigs with a 1950s Gibson J-50 when I was 12 years old. My opinion is not based on what I read, what I heard, or on any false respect for someone else's authority... it's based on having dripped sweat on hundreds of guitars.

And it is this.... I believe you should shut up about what your guitar is made of and learn to play the damn thing, because THAT is where the sound comes from. Until then, your opinions about about wood, electronics, amps, curly cords, or anything does not affect me. Truth is, after 40 years, I'm still trying to get my hands to do it right... it doesn't look like I'll live long enough to get so good at playing that I can start worrying about how fingerboard wood is affecting my "tone."

It's funny, but I find that the tone knobs on my guitar have the most immediate and pronounced impact on the sounds I'm producing...

Try using that pickup selector switch to see what it does to your tones.

The amp has a lot of knobs to twist as well!

_________________
Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.