guyz i am in between of those 57 hot rod and eric jhonson and actually i am living in a place that i cant try these both i only have the youtube and online support and i want to ask to you about these guitars actually i am sure that i will like the both guitars' sound but i wonder about the neck as i know (please correct me if i am wrong ) the 57 hot rod has the 9.5'' radius and the ej strat has 12'' radius i know it varries according to tastes but i want to learn about which neck shape is comfortable i dont know anything about fender guitars becasue this will be my first strat so i wonder the smaller radius means more comfort or the larger radius is more comfort please give me some info about the neck profiles of these guitars

with my good wishes

It's not going to be the radius as much as the shape of the neck. The radius is just how flat the fingerboard is. In terms of shape, the EJ has a much deeper (or "fatter" if you prefer) neck than the HR 57. In fact, the HR 57 has a slightly slimmer neck than a regular AV '57 (which in turn is not as fat at the EJ).

V-necks are hard to describe if you haven't played a guitar with one before. I know you can't try them out first, but maybe you could get one from somewhere with a good return policy so you can try one out at home for at least a few day to see what you like.

You just gotta play at least one of those two guitars before making up your mind!

I haven't played the HR 57 but I do have an EJ and I can tell you that the neck on that one is a nice handful. A "V" near the nut and a soft "C" near the body but the EJ is also speced very differently from other Strats and the differences really add up. The flat 12" radius fingerboard is great for me and I love the medium Jumbo frets. (Wish I had em on all my fenders.) The neck cavity is unpainted, as is the area under the bridge, no string trees, staggered machines, 1/4 sawen neck. and the list goes on.

Probably more than on any Fender I've played, the EJ is a complete package that sounds different than everything else. A lot of that is due to the EJ pickups which in my mind set the standards for all strat pickups and they only come in an EJ.

IMO, if you're going to buy an expensive Strat without having an opportunity to try several different models out, read some reviews and then buy the EJ!

actually thanks for the tips guyz i think i am gonna find the chance to try the 57 hot rod and decide it but even trying the 1 will not be sufficient i guess.. but still inside me i am fan of ej strat so at the end ill get an ej i think but i still in between cause some of the forms is especially saying the 9.5 '' radius necks and also 7.5 s but they are more expensive anyway i think i have to try ej also if you have still an exprience about these necks inform still this subject please

Both necks are bliss. Though you can't go wrong, I personally like the HR'57. Just something about a signature model bothers me

Also to consider is whether you'd like a binding or not.

E.Johnson, everytime. I've had probably a couple dozen in my hands at one point of another, and besides a bad solder joint on a pot, they've all been flawless, and IMO extremely well thoughtout and excecuted.

Not to knock the 57HR, they're all nice as well. I just think the E.J's have more personality to them.

Yeah, the difference between a 9 1/2" and a 12" is almost unnoticeable. Even if you do, you'll be used to it in a couple days. Then EJ neck is thicker feeling though. I never actually thought to take actual measurments. It could be thicker, it could just feel thicker due to the different and thicker feeling finish.

I's take the maple, but the RW neck'd ones are really nice too, great color selection. Seems to be more consistancy in the EJ's than regular American Vint, Stds, Dlxs, etc.

Really you exprienced a bad solder joint on the pots ??? actually the classic impression and sound keeps me still on eric jhonson. i wonder how the neck differs for example if i can try a deluxe strats neck it will be close to eric jhonson or 57 hot rod ?

you should be able to get a EJ from one of the mail order companies with a 45 day money back guarantee.
Give it a good try and make up your mind.
I am looking to get a high end guitar soon and the EJ is on the short list along with another Melancon and maybe a Suhr.

Of course i live an hour from Melancon guitars so getting personal work from the guy who made it is pretty easy.

Don't spend that kinda money with out trying it out first, my advice.

You can always call Fender and talk to their guys if they know they have a sale either way they will help you out.

I have dealt with them a couple of times and had excellent service.
Used to talk to a guy named Gil, been a few years don't know if he's still there.

Mike

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1985 Fender Squier Bullet
1987 Kramer Striker
1983 Fender Strat Elite
1995 Fender Strat Plus
2001 Carvin DC127
1999 G&L Legacy
2002 Melancon Classic Artist
2009 Paul Reed Smith SE Singlecut
2010 Fender Deluxe American Strat
2006 Fender MIM Fat Strat

The EJ Strat needs to be updated to reflect the recent changes Eric made to his own instruments.

Personally, I have a hr 57 strat and have played a EJ ,
If it wasn't for a trade, I would have bought the EJ
It's an awesome strat

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"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present."

oogway, kungfu panda 2008

seems like he really missed tremolo on fender like me except deluxe models i think its meaningless for me to use vintage tremolo still .... they can change it with some wilkinsons etc... they dont want to change that vintage vision and sound but i dont think that the sound will change that much cause u know the wood that used is good the neck wood is good pickups are well so some of the high priced strats deserve some tremolo ej noticed and modified it i think fender doing it for pricing guitars less

The '57VHR has a neck profile unique to itself as does the Clapton. The EJ shares with the rest of the line, the standard 10/56 'soft V' but with a flatter radius. It's 'chunkier' than the aforementioned two. Of these three v-necks, the Clapton is the slimmest.

As for the new bridge pictured, I doubt that Fender would go to that in the standard production version.

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"Another day in paradise!"