What's up guys?

First post here, I wanted to sign up because it seems like there's a pretty solid knowledge base and some wise cats hanging out on this board.

Anyway I'll get right into it, I'm looking for a new guitar, a strat (duh!). My current setup right now is an HSS mexican strat with a vintage noiseless pickup in the neck, and I'm running it through a Hot Rod Deluxe amp. It sounds good enough, but I'm starting to play/gig a lot more and I want to improve my tone significantly, and since I'm very happy with my amp I think the biggest step I can take in improving my tone right now is a new guitar as opposed to buying pedals or what have you.

I've had my eye on a few different guitars, including the SRV and John Mayer sig strats. I really like Mayer's tone with the big dippers, but I feel like the SRV might give me a more driving blues tone which is important for me. To give you an idea of the tone I'm looking for, I mostly play blues/classic rock/pop rock stuff, but I'm also going to be starting to play in a church band this summer and I want to have crystal-clear cleans there.

Can anyone recommend a specific strat or style of pickups for what I want? I realize that I (intentionally) gave a pretty broad description of the tone I'm looking for and there's probably a bunch of different guitars that can achieve it, but I know almost nothing about the differences between American strats other than their prices. I've heard good things about the Vintage '57 stratocaster as well.

Any and all advice is appreciated, thanks for taking the time to read this

thanks for your response jeffo - I will look into the vintage series.

As far as price goes, I forgot to mention: I would like to keep it ideally around $1500-$2000, but I would be willing to adjust that if I find an axe I'm really in love with. I'm a pretty poor college kid so I'm gonna be saving up for a while for this, but I don't mind...I got my current strat when I was a freshman in high school for $300, so I understand that I need to spend at least a grand for the type of tone improvement I'm looking for.

Another question - what do you guys think about ordering a guitar online vs buying one in a store? I've heard some people say that you never know what you are getting when you order one online and it's best to feel the guitar in your hands before you buy it, but on the other side of the coin I'm not sure if I really want to buy a guitar that every little kid with greasy fingers has played at Guitar Center. I'm thinking about taking the middle road - playing a few different strat models in store to get a feel for the tone, and then ordering that specific one from musiciansfriend or somewhere similar.

Two problems about buying on-line...1 you hit on - you won't know what you are getting, and 2 - the typical prices on-line suck.

I have seen more then 1 brand new guitar with issues 'out of the box' I wouldn't be willing to pay for, including cosmetic and tone/playing quality. Nice to be able to notice such a thing in the store, or be able to easily return it if you didn't. And it is really comforting to hear and feel the one you will actually own - and not just 'hope you get a good one'!

I understand about buying 'floor models' - your best bet is to 1) find a another store besides GC (price-wise). But at least find an axe you like in a decent local store, at a good price, and hope they have one just like it still in the box in the back (this is a great feeling!). Or hope you find one that just hasn't been messed with too much/often. You'll know, and it does happen often enough. And anyway, how do you REALLY know where MF or GC got the one they end up shipping you?


And nothing like having someone you know you can go to for service, when you want to trade up, when you need other gear etc.

I agree with jmg, specially if u wanted to return the guitar, lot easier to do it if it's a local store so u don't deal with shipping... not all guitars on the floor are going to be played and abused by kids, I just got lucky and found my guitar at a local GC, they must've just gotten it or just put it on the floor, u could tell from the original strings, still brand new! Who knows, u could get lucky as well...

Exactly! Make buying a $1500 guitar fun! Take your time, look it over really well, check for matching COAs and serial numbers, goodies in the case?, how about the box?, etc. Play it, A/B it, but be...respectful. And try not to get TOO excited...be ready to say no, and don't settle - on anything - color, slight flaw, etc. unless you are sure it is worth it (meaning you can live with it)!

I just bought a new Am Standard Ash Sienna Sunburst last Tursday. I wasn't looking for anything specific like you are, but it is...on "my list". I tried a couple Gibsons, a Jaguar, even a Gretsch, and then I noticed hanging right in front of me the VERY clean Am Standard. The guy said they just put it out, and I believed him (they seem to have more stuff in the back then on display!) - not even any finger prints! It sounded so sweet even vs the humbuckers I just love & the P90 LP I had almost decided on... It was at that time the perfect combination of cost (beat GC by $250) and quality - and tone. I love it!

THAT is what you want your purchase to be like!

Now compare that to a brand new 2010 ES-335 Satin I traded towards last month - what a GREAT guitar - but it took me 2 days to notice a build/grain flaw on the back - I agonized returning it cause they didn't have anymore, but it was the best thing I could have done because 1)they had no problem treating me right, and 2)I got even better pricing on the 336 I finally ended up with, and 3) that flaw would have bugged me forever! I would have TOTALLY stressed if I had to ship it, and wait for another in return.

speaking of goodies... my new Deluxe came with everything it's supposed to come with, til I got home, turned out they put the wrong whammy bar! Easy fix, drive back to the store and get the right one. Had I ordered it online I would have to wait for it to be shipped...

Another thing to mention, is guitar setup, if ur not the kind of person that does his/her own setup, it's a lot easier to have the local store setup ur guitar before u take it home, specially if u plan to run heavier strings.

Exactly (again!) Most stores will give a free set-up on that axe.

Hey Cedar - great stories (minus the aggravation! . I ended up with 2 whammy bars...we just didn't notice the 'real'one in the accesory kit, so the guy went looking for one - and he wasn't going to try the one he grabbed because of the factory silver tape over the hole, but I had him do so - and it turned out the one he grabbed 1st was the wrong one!

One Gibson I picked out in that 335 saga had the wrong COA - the case was in the factory box, which was serial numbered to the guitar, but the COA was off by 2 digits!!

Like we said, you gotta take your time and check everything!

agree, u have to check everything! I didnt bother checking anything, I was too excited to get home and play my new Strat! The most important thing is that I was able to see/feel/hear the guitar before buying it, u can't beat that! Not all guitars are gonna sound and feel the same... the other stuff can be dealt with.

Congrats on the 336! I haven't tried one out yet, I have a 335 and it's my favorite guitar!

If you are looking at the vintage series, I would highly recommend the 59 thinskin strat from Wildwood guitars.I just bought one .They are a special edition American Vintage with slightly different specs.These have a 9.5 " radius neck rather than the vintage 7.25 which is quite curved.They also have the Custom Shop 50s pickups rather than the 57/62s.Personally , I like the sound of the 50s better.Not quite as thin sounding IMO.It also comes with the Dunlop 6105 frets which are easier for bending .These guitars are only offered at Daves Guitar shop and Wildwood.I bought mine online and they have a great return policy.You see a picture of the actual guitar on their website.Their guitar people will play one and pick the best one of the bunch out for you .They will also set it up for you before they ship it.These are a limited run of guitars and cost the same as a regular AVRI.

Trying not to steal the thread, but...

Cedar - the 335s are indeed sweet - what tone!! When looking to swap the flawed one, I just didn't really see one I wanted at 1st (realized they did have 1 with a great top I just missed). So then I tried the 339...wrong COA, and by now the owner was cutting the cost so much I went right for the throat and got the 336. Other then some set-up details, I am thrilled, though not quite the same as the 335, still sounds great!

Along the same lines as the 335, last week I saw and played a spanking new 2010 es-137 Custom - one of the most beautiful guitars ever - Lightburst w/gold hardware & 57s - incredible! I do wonder that it might sound too similiar to the 336.

Anyway, I tell myself I bought the $900 Fender to save myself from spending $2000 on the 137!

I would recommend that you go to Guitar Center and try out a bunch of different Strats with different pickup combinations, since only you can determine which ones sound good to you. Once you have decided which pickups you like best, go ahead and rewire your present Mexican Strat, and save yourself the expense of replacing it with another guitar. I think that would be you best bet.

thanks to everyone who has responded so far.



interesting point, but i think i'm ready to invest in an american strat...i was under the impression that there is a big enough difference in tone to make it worth the money, not just due to the pickups but other factors, namely the quality of the wood/other parts. is this not correct?

also, can anyone explain the differences in sound between the texas special pickups in the SRV strat and the big dipper pickups in the JM strat? thanks again.

The big dipper has scooped mids and the texas specials have increased mids.

Best thing i can recommend for you from my experience is that you buy some Bare Knuckle MothersMilk Pup's. they WILL do anything to want them to do

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A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence. ~Leopold Stokowski~

I have two thoughts on this:
1. If you like the SRV Tone then get some Texas Specials for your Strat. I have a set and I love them w/ a rosewood Fret board.

2. I also own a Clapton Strat. This is bar none the most versatile guitar I own. I get very clean Strat tones w/ little or no hum (Good for church. I know this because I was in a church band. Hum sucks). I also can get very nice darker tones for blues or rock. This guitar screams when you need it to.

3. Okay, so 3 thoughts. I also own a Hwy 1 and I really dig this guitar. It's not a standard sounding strat, but it is nice for Rock. I usually turn down the tone knobs a bit to get more of Clapton tone out of it.

The bottom line: Don't sell your current guitar. You will regret it. While you are saving you pennies play every guitar you can get your hands on. Play them to no end. You will find what you're looking for when you least expect it. You'll play a guitar and say, "This is it. I want THIS one."

Good luck!

Paris