Just picked up a 2000 MIM strat, but I noticed that the bridge tone control has no effect on the bridge pick up. All other combos work, only the "bridge only" position has no effect. What should I look for as far as possible causes (wire, solder joint, faulty switch)?

The bridge pickup on a standard Strat usually isn't wired to a tone control. To make that happen you'll need to modify the wiring by disconnecting one of the pots (usually the one connected to the middle pickup) and using it for the bridge pickup.

HTH

Arjay

_________________
"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

Ah I see, so Standard MIM's have no tone control on the bridge. I guess I'm used to the other two set ups I have (57/62 and Am deluxe S1 N3).

Thanks for the explanation.

Strats historically didn't have a tone control for the bridge.
Thats why if you buy a new 50s/60s/70s reissue it won't have control for that pickup either.

Interesting. What was the thinking on that (why not)?

In 1954 -- when the Strat's design was finalized and approved for production -- the tweed Fender amps of the era did not have the treble response that we take for granted today with more modern rigs. Thus, a Strat during that time plugged into a 5C5 Bandmaster or a 5C3 Deluxe didn't sound near as trebly as the same guitar plugged into say, a blackface or silverface Fender. It's only been recently that players have begun to mod the Strat's wiring circuit and FMIC itself began to offer switching options to give the instrument more sonic versatility.

HTH

Arjay

_________________
"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

Exactly.

Through a cranked tweed type amp you really need all the treble frequency you can get to be able to cut through the mix. A cranked tweed can get muddy fairly quickly

Learned something new. Thanks guys!