At this point I'm leaning towards the all black (pups, pickguard and knobs etc.). I'd order the Dimarzio Area set in white and then the black fender accessory which includes pup covers. This way I can have a few options. Like it or not as much as I'd like to make the changes right now, I have about 1 month to wait. The pups and accessory kit are on backorder until May!

Thanks Brian_Strat! Very useful tool. Allows me to do a truer side by side comparison. I tried to capture the true purpley-blue depth of the midnight blue but I just can't capture the exact way the color shifts according to the lighting. But if you move your head up and down while looking at the screen, you get an idea. That said, I think this does a pretty good job overall of what I'm thinking I want it to look like:

Here's the current look:



And here's the proposed mod:


Fontana....no worries!

Fender's standard pickup covers will not fit the DiMarzio Area-series pickups. The DM's are a stacked humbucker design and they're significantly taller than a Fender single-coil pickup. As well, some guitar bodies may require a deeper pickup rout to accommodate the DiMarzios.

HTH

Arjay

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"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

Thanks Arjay. The pickup covers not fitting won't be a big deal...I'd just get the black pickups instead. The routing to accomodate the extra depth of the pickups does seem like a bit of a hassle though....all the more reason to hire a pro to do the installation.

Any idea of a 1999 MIM strat would need said routing?

True ! You will need PU covers made for the Dimarzios. It should be Dimarzio Part #DM 2001.
When I replaced my stock pickups with the Dimarzios, there was no need to do any routing. Google dimarzio dm2001 and see what you can find. Here is a link from the Dimarzio site.

http://www.dimarzio.com/media/content/pdfs/hardware.pdf

Best of luck

_________________
"I like the way he puts Yngwie J. Malmsteen on his album covers. You know,....so you don't confuse him with all the other Yngwie Malmsteens in the business"


2008 Fender MIM Stratocaster
2010 Epiphone Masterbilt
2009 Fender Super Champ XD

Thanks for that. Was just on the DM site when your response came in!
Well now things are getting even more complicated! I spent some time listening to the sound clips of the various hum cancelling pups and now I'm no longer sold on the Areas for ALL 3 positions. I think I might mix it up a bit (not entirely my idea...the DiMarzio Pickup Picker tool is amazing).

I'm a huge Gilmour/Pink Floyd fan so the Area 58 sounds like it gives Dark Side, Animals era as well as The Wall. Would likely put that in the neck position. So I like that option.

Was going to put an Area 67 and 61 in the middle and bridge positions but I like some of their other models too. Overall, I play classic rock but our band does covers ranging from the Beatles, to Pearl Jam, Santana, Zep, Bon Jovi, and Billy Idol....a real mix.

After the Area '58 in the neck, I'm thinking of the Virtual Vintage Heavy Blues 2 in the middle position and the Chopper in the bridge. I like the variety more in this mix vs all Area pickups.

I know this is straying off point but I'm open to pickup suggestions too!

I like the aged white with the blue...the black is too dark with the blue, not enough contrast IMHO. I like the black with the natural ash, or a light color like white. Again I think it is the contrast of colors that sets it off to me at least.

As for pickups I would recommend Fender Texas Specials, I do like those pickups...great tone, and a little extra omph to 'em.

FWIW

T2

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What time is it? It's Fender Time.

Thanks for your input. I go back and forth on the color....maybe I'll just flip a coin.

As for the pup question (which is a bigger one) - I think I'm going to start another thread on that topic.

What about this combo....HOT or NOT?
I can't tell if it's hideous or it's sharp and unique.


Uploaded with ImageShack.us

The skirted amp knobs make this axe sexy.

Reminds me of a Jay Turser......



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

YIKES!! THAT TACKY IS IT?

You see THIS is why I need help.

It's only my opinion -- weight it accordingly.

"One man's trash is another man's treasure."



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

Well G'day GarretNYC, since you're asking for opinions, I have a Custom Classic with Maple in a similar blue, so I'm going to say - white pickguard - aged white pickups and knobs. A subtle timeless look that you won't get tired of, sort of Strat-like, you know.



.....Mark.

Very nice indeed! Aged white with the white pickguard is a nice look. The problem I have now: One of the pickups I'm considering doesn't come in aged white (DiMarzio Chopper)! Hmmmm.