Hey all, i've been playing about four years on an Epiphone Les Paul standard. I've decided I want to get a Fender strat but I need some help choosing one as I know very little about strats. I am thinking about the roadhouse strat but I have heard mixed opinions on the Texas Special Pickups. Key information:

-I am a huge SRV fan
-I play mostly blues and a bit of rock
-I dont want an HSS type strat
-£650 is my budget (could maybe go 700)
-Any colour except black or white
-I haven't tried a soft V neck so I would rather be safe and go with a C style
-I only like maple necks if they are vintage tinted
-Due to where I live I CANT try out guitars

If you need to know anything else just ask

I believe the MIM '60s Classic fulfills all of your criteria.

There are some improvements which can be made but these are for the most part easily-addressable at a later moment.

Good luck with the hunt.

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

With 650 pound you can get a lot of guitar. I would suggest looking in the used market. It will give you a pro-grade instrument.

Thanks for the replies, I have heard nothing but good about the 60's classic series so they are a possibility. I have never really bought second hand instruments before, would the best way be through ebay?

Well, my personal opinion is that an instrument should be played before bought. Ebay won't give you that. I would look at local sites with adds. So you can go to the seller and try before you buy.

Strats can vary quite a bit even between same models. I'd suggest trying before
buying, but agree with starting with a MIM '60s Classic.

Good luck!

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!

Problem is guys, is that I live on a remote island in the UK with comparitivley few people living on it. So I really can't try out many guitars. I'm thinking about taking a trip to the mainland sometime to visit a guitar store but I'm not really a patient guy.

You might want to take a look at the MIM Roadhouse Strat... Texas Special pickups... and I believe the neck is tinted, though not sure how close to vintage...

My advice would be to make yourself be patient and take that trip to the mainland as soon as you can. I think you'll find it worth the wait because you'll very likely have more variety in what you buy and you can actually play it before you buy it. Living where you do, I would think that you want whatever Strat you end up with to be a "keeper," and playing a prospective instrument is the best way to find out if it's the right one for you.

Personally, I would never buy a guitar on Ebay, because you really don't know what you're getting until it arrives at your door. By it's nature, it's a sort of "blind" deal.

Many music shops have a selection of used instrument available and don't overlook the pawn shops. I have found, over the years, several very good guitars in them, at good prices. I bought my Epi Les Paul Custom in a pawn shop four years ago and it's been a very sweet-playing and sounding axe. And it didn't cost me my life savings.

I agree that a MIM Strat might be your best bet, but keep your mind open to other possibilities also. You might find an American Strat, used, that you can afford.

In any case, good luck!!

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"It's about sound and sound alone. Looks are irrelevant. You can have the best-looking guitar on earth, but if the sound isn't there it is nothing more than a beautiful piece of trash. The sound it makes is the soul of any guitar."

What do you guys think of this? The £150 is for the amp but he offered me the guitar if I bought them amp along with it.

http://www.shetlink.com/classifieds/she ... d_id=40612

I think the Soft-V necks are fantastic for blues. You might be able to find a 50's Player or 60's Player for around that much. They are great MIM Strats.

That's like $1300 a roadhouse cost about $600 (300 pounds) if you really want that SRV tone go ahead and get a roadhouse, I prefer my regular MIM with '69 Custom Shop Pickups,

BTW - Don't buy a guitar for what you've heard buy one for how you feel. If you can't find a place to play, look it up on youtube, are there like no Guitar Center's where you live?

I really wish I could test out fender guitars My local music store has very limited guitars but I could go and try out guitars there that have the same neck dimensions and stuff as the strat I decide to look into. Eg: I look up the neck width of a classic 60, find a guitar with the same neck width in the shop and see if I like the feel. It's a bad way of doing things but I can't go to a big guitar store for a long while.

I've heard good things about that amp. One person said they can't be beat for a modeling amp. I'm American, so I don't know what UK Pounds (or Euros) translate to in USD, but if you think it's a good price, then jump on it, if he's going to throw the guitar in for free!! Even if you don't like the axe, you can always trade it later, but you'll always have a good amp.

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"It's about sound and sound alone. Looks are irrelevant. You can have the best-looking guitar on earth, but if the sound isn't there it is nothing more than a beautiful piece of trash. The sound it makes is the soul of any guitar."

I think the American Special HSS would fit the bill, but you do not want a humbucker. You could switch it out for a Texas Special bridge SC but at this point you would need a new Pickgard as well.

I have played the Roadhouse Deluxe, I liked it when I played it, but was more impressed with my American Special SSS. I think that it is the one that is most like what you want as is.

Another option for you would be a Rosewood neck Highway 1 SSS. Try out the Alnico III's on it for a few months. Worst case scenero would be that you purchace Tex-Mex pick-ups for it.

Good luck with your hunt, not being able to play before you pay is never fun. Hard to tell if it is right for you. No one Fender is just like another in the way it plays and feels.

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RK

2007 Fender Highway 1
2012 American Deluxe
2015 MIM Dave Murray HHH
2010 Fender Blacktop
1987 Fender Avalon Acoustic
2012 Marshall DSL 15 watt head