MIM = Made in Mexico
HSS = Humbucker/Single Coil/Single Coil (the pickup configuration)

History of Hendrix Strats
www.yorku.ca/bliek/voodoo%20strats.pdf

The real one a 1968 (CBS era) right handed white stratocaster (restrung lefty)

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In a similar vein, one of us just advised that he swapped the pickups out of a new '57Hotrod for CS 54's, because he was looking for the kind of thing the OP is seeking, and found it.

Doc

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"Another day in paradise!"

: [/quote]

There's been some discussion on that recently, and I can't remember what thread we got into it on. The legend is that he spied this mutt of a guitar in a pawnshop, played it and it 'spoke to him.' It was thought to have been a '59 but presently there's been some discussion about the body and the neck dates being different. The pickups are proported to be overwound, i.e.of the era when one could not be exactly sure of the number of windings and hence why some guitars are said to be more magical or have a different personality than others from ostensibly the same litter. This kind of looks back on your observations about the American Standard what with cad/cam technology and coil winders of the same ilk, quality has evened out, but gave rise to the belief that part of his tone was a result of these hotter pickups of which the Fender Texas Specials, in the Artist Series Signature Strat, may have been an attempt to capture. I don't recall what they fitted the Tribute guitar with. Alain has one. Maybe he'll read this and respond.

One of our superb archivists without a short memory will likely come up with a link to that previously cited post.

Doc

_________________
"Another day in paradise!"

MIM=Made in Mexico
HSS=Humbucker/Single Coil/Single Coil

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-Kirk

GUITARS
'12 Sonoran Acoustic - black (dated 10/31/12)
'13 Standard Strat
AMP
Vox ac4c1-bl
PEDALS
Compressor
Big Muff
Vox Stomplab 1G
Carbon Copy Delay

Brian May holds a Ph.D. in Astrophysics, a pursuit which he set aside in his 'yute' in order to pursue his work with Queen. A couple of years ago he finally completed that task. I wouldn't be surprised if some of his knowledge base wasn't applied to the development of that guitar which, I believe he and his father built.

In a related anecdote, an English colleague of mine told as to how, some twenty years back, she had the occasion to attend a party in England during which the pleasant conversation with someone got around to career pursuits, and college and the lot. Seems that this chap had been knocking around with a group of musicians trying to make a go of it. He ultimately succumbed to his mother's insistence that he wasn't getting anywhere and ought to concentrate on his studies, which he did.

That band he left became 'Queen.'

Doc

_________________
"Another day in paradise!"

You're right on that count; there aren't many but there are one or two that come to mind, chiefly the Vibro King. REALLY expensive but worth every penny.

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Just think of how awesome a guitar player you could have been by now if you had only spent the last 10 years practicing instead of obsessing over pickups and roasted maple necks.

I think that the Mexican vs. American basically comes down to preference on where it's made. Two strats that are identical other than their country of production will sound the and play the same as long as they are both set up correctly.

MIM = Made in Mexico
HSS = Humbucker/Single Coil/Single Coil (pickup configuration)

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"Hope is the thing with feathers, that perches in the soul..."

-Emily Dickinson

The problem is the MIM and the MIA aren't identical they are different.

Is this what you mean? This is my 67 Jimi/Voodoo/Hendrix/Monterey/Reverse/Whatever strat.



It isn't a blues guitar in as much as I can get far better blues tones from my MIJ 60's reissue Strat with its Lindy Fralin pickups.

Gary moore does a decent job of the blues on his Gib but for me his best ever solo for tone was Redhouse on a strat. You have GOT to check this out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXYjEMTQRm0

Thank You All

Wait out of curiosity was there MIM/MIJ strats back in the Hendrix day and if so did he play them? Just Wondering