Im a newbie here and i have a question; can i ask you a question about my gear? The thing is that I bought a Fender Strato (mexican one) and a mustang 2 as an amp. When i put trash or hard presets (some Metallica or harder ones) there's such a big noise and bad distortion that i can't even recognice the chords.... in other presets i hear a lot of back noise coming from the amp.... Why is that? is my strato or my mustang 2 broken or maybe is just that with this guitar and this pickups there are some sounds it can't reach?? With other ones like the ACDC preset, there's no problem, it's very clear. But some of then.... too much noise, as if the pickups werent answering properly. Thank you guys.

Try turning the volume on the guitar down alittle, twist the guitar knobs a bit if you wanna open up the gain. And no I don't have a mom or a mustang but this just makes sense to me... Jmo

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— did that sound like something?

Thought after review of my post, I DO have a mom, I do not have a mim. Stupid ipod...lol

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— did that sound like something?

The thing is that the volume is not that loud..... Simply some presets (the hard ones....mostly) sound bad, very noisy (popping or i don't know how to say it... not clear.... And the guitar is new, as is the amp......

Thank youStringjunkie and the people of fender community. Iid appreciate more opinions.

Using too much gain?
Sitting next to the computer monitor, interfacing with the amp?

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No no and no

the guitar is new and so is the amp; it has guarantee for two years from now; but they told me that this guitar was tested by a Luthier of the same shop.. so i dont know...

I don't move the gain because in a preset the only thing u are supposed to move is the "master", am i wrong? I sit next to the amp, yeah, but i mean.... next is 1 meter... that's normal, isn't it?

Some people told me in other forum about doing a guitar shielding....... but the guitar is new and, in fact, im a newbie here in this world of electric guitars.... I dont have an idea about doing this and if i had i would be afraid of breaking the guitar... being in guarantee, which is the case....

Im a bit confussed. Thank you guys.

Hi JLocke,

It sounds like your Strat is OK, no problem. Some of your presets on the amp will not sound great with every guitar. You will have to adjust your settings to get the sound that you like. Like nikininja suggested, turn down the gain, and maybe change the effects settings too. Turn the knobs as much as you want to dial in your desired sound. The amp is very adjustable, play around and have fun, you won't hurt anything. There is no wrong way to adjust the knobs, it's up to you.

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---> "The amp should be SWITCHED OFF AND UNPLUGGED before you do this!" <---

Por favor, disculpe mi español, no se llega a la práctica con mucha frecuencia.

thank you very much, i'll play with the knobs until i get the best sound for my strato. Other people in some other forums have told me that I should turn or down the pickups until i get my desired "sound", what do you think about this??? And what about the guitar shielding? Thank you, i really appreciate your opinions since I'm just beginning in this fascinating world of the electric guitar. Keep on rocking.

Part of the beauty of a Strat is that it is able to be customized very easily for each individual taste. One thing that can be adjusted is the height of the pickups, and again, there is no right or wrong way to set them. Usually, you can find a height that is just right for you by experimenting. If the pickups are too low, the volume will be low from the Strat. If the pickups are too high you will lose sustain.

This is from the Fender site (link below), and is just a suggestion, it isn't the only way to do it. You may find that you like the sound with them set higher or lower than this, so set them where you like. If you have too much bass, lower the bass side of the pickup. Too much highs, lower the treble side of the pickup. The pickups don't have to be level. Click the link, then scroll down to "Pickups". Most anything that you want to know about the Strat setup will be here also. I would at least wait to think about shielding your Strat until your first string change, and then peek under the pick guard to see what kind of shielding that you already have. Use position 2 and 4 on the 5 way pickup selector switch for noise canceling.

http://www.fender.com/support/stratocaster_setup_guide.php

Here is an example of how I have one of mine setup, it is different than the setup guide, but it works for me on this particular Strat. Notice that I have each pickup adjusted a little differently, as each responds differently. We would like to see picture of yours also.

_________________
---> "The amp should be SWITCHED OFF AND UNPLUGGED before you do this!" <---

Por favor, disculpe mi español, no se llega a la práctica con mucha frecuencia.

Move away from the computer screen. Dont be directly infront or behind it when playing the guitar. Be off to the side a way, 1meter/ 1.2meter sould be fine, aslong as you aren't directly facing the screen.
The guitar will pick up a lot of noise from a computer screen. Putting a lot of amplifier gain on that noise will only make it worse. Best to move away from the screen and not have the noise in the first place.

All the best with it, turn those control dials too. That amp was made to be adjusted.

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No no and no

shimmilou: thank you, i'll adjust my pickups one of these days and then i will take a photo for you guys. I will also read the setup guide. I think you are right, the first thing to do is customizing the guitar; if then it sounds wrong, we can think about other options, but not know. In fact in some presets it sounds good. BTW, your strato is fuckin beautiful! yeah =) what kind of strato is it? Im just an ignorant.. hehe

Nikininja: Ok, i'll do it. Not exposition directly to the screen, Ok. I'll play with the knobs so i can find the best sounds. I appreciate your advice.

I've got a lot of work to do but tomorrow i'll start doing this little changes, We'll see. Thank you guys.

But before i think i should upload some pics of my strato, so you can see how are my pickups currently. I must say that i bought it one week ago and i took off the plastic that was glued to the whiter area of the guitar and also behind, in both the white and metallic area. Also i've been playing without the trem (whammy bar) but i don't think that have to interfere with the sound... well. Thank you again.

http://s1177.photobucket.com/albums/x355/JLocke85/?action=view&current=IMG_2754.jpg

http://s1177.photobucket.com/albums/x355/JLocke85/?action=view&current=IMG_2753.jpg

Doesn't look like their set too close to the strings to cause a problem to me.
It's always worth turning a screw or two to see if you find a bit of improvement for yourself though.

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No no and no

Thanks JLocke,

That is my '08 Am Std in Blizzard Pearl. It is stock except for a Callaham bridge block. That's quite a beauty that you have yourself, the sunburst with rosewood fretboard is an awesome look! If you want to show your pics in your post, copy the "img code" from PhotoBucket and paste in your post. I agree with nikininja, the pickups aren't too high, they look like they're set pretty well as they are. Keep us posted.

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---> "The amp should be SWITCHED OFF AND UNPLUGGED before you do this!" <---

Por favor, disculpe mi español, no se llega a la práctica con mucha frecuencia.

As others have already mentioned, there is nothing wrong with your Strat or amp. Remember high gain settings will always create more noise (hum and hiss) especially with a stock strat with single coils. We Strat players have been dealing with the noise since 1954.

Simplest and cheapest solution: Turn the volume knob on your guitar down between songs!!! And no offense intended, but since you are newbie, it could very well be that you need to work on your fretting and strumming technique. Playing high gain without unwanted finger noise and pick noise requires a different finesse. Keep working on it. Rock on

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Obligatory gear list: Fender, Rickenbacker, Gibson, Gretsch, Vox, Martin, and more Fender.