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Post subject: Fender american special versus Fender Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Posted: Mon Nov 24, 2014 10:09 am
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Hello,

i'm new on this forum.
I'd like to play on a Fender Stratocaster. I've got an average budget of 1200 dollars (1000 euros, as i live in France).
I've tried different kind of strats ans really liked two different guitars : the American Special, and the Kenny Wayne Shepherd strat (the two in sunburst). I didn't have the opportunity to try them one after another but in two different places, in two different times.
In your opinion, which one is the best to play the blues and blues/rock ?

François


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Post subject: Re: Fender american special versus Fender Kenny Wayne Shephe
Posted: Mon Nov 24, 2014 4:35 pm
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Location: Rossendale, UK
Which one do you like best?
That's the one to go for :wink:

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Post subject: Re: Fender american special versus Fender Kenny Wayne Shephe
Posted: Tue Nov 25, 2014 12:09 am
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Stratmangler2 wrote:
Which one do you like best?
That's the one to go for :wink:


the problem is that i played the two guitars in 2 different occasion : the kenny wayne shepherd stratocaster in a little shop in the south of France last summer ; i was alone in the shp and it was the first time that i ever played a stratocaster. When i put my left hand on the neck it pefectly fitted the size of my hand, and i really loved the flexibility, the different tones ; i saw Kenny Wayne Shepherd live in Paris ten days ago and really enjouyed his way of playing the blues, what i would like to be able to one day...
I played the american special in a crowdy shop in Paris one month ago. I was focused on a rosewood neck, but i said "why not trying a maple one ?". I really enjoyed the sound of position one, which immediatly recalled me the sound of Dire Straits, a band I really love ; but in the american special, i don't really like the 70's head.
I wonder if a top mexican strat is better than an american like the american special ?
Can anyone telle me the differences of microphones between the two models ? and what about the wood used : the body is of alder, the neck of maple on the two guitars, but do the american and mexican plants use the same woods ?
And what about the graph tec saddles ? they are on the KWS strat and everything I read said that it helped a lot for sustain, which is one of the biggest qualities of the KWS strat.
I also tried stratocaster like the classic player 60'S, Road worn, but found they were quite "flat" compared to the american special and the KWS strat... is it due to the microphones ?


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Post subject: Re: Fender american special versus Fender Kenny Wayne Shephe
Posted: Tue Nov 25, 2014 1:09 am
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Location: Rossendale, UK
The 60s Classic player has Custom 69 pickups, which have a lower output compared to the Custom Texas pickups of the American Special.
The KWS has pickups specially made just for that guitar.

Use the search facilities at the top of the page and you can see the specifications of all the guitars currently in the range.

As for which is best - they're all good!
Buying a guitar because of a recommendation on a forum is not the way to do it either.
I've played on and like the Classic Player 60s, and I happen to like the pickups on the model too.
The decision is down to you and your pocket and preference.

Now you did say that you liked the KWS model .....

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Post subject: Re: Fender american special versus Fender Kenny Wayne Shephe
Posted: Wed Nov 26, 2014 5:27 am
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[quote="fdaunay"
I've tried different kind of strats ans really liked two different guitars : the American Special, and the Kenny Wayne Shepherd strat
François[/quote]

Life is full of difficult decisions :D It sounds like you are leaning towards the KWS. My advice would be that expect that you'll never know a guitar until you get it home, tweak it to the way you like it, and play it for awhile. Only then will you know if it was the right choice. And then expect that you might tire of it, or find something about it you don't like and want to move on to something else. It's happened to all of us.


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Post subject: Re: Fender american special versus Fender Kenny Wayne Shephe
Posted: Wed Nov 26, 2014 5:25 pm
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fdaunay wrote:
...I wonder if a top mexican strat is better than an american like the american special ?...


Not necessarily "better", but many of the MIM guitars can compare favorably with some of the MIA guitars. There are many MIM guitars that are of equal or better quality than the American Special (AS).

The AS is the bottom of the line American instruments, while the KWS is one of the better Mexican instruments. It all comes down to which you like best.

Between these two guitars, I would choose the KWS. 8)

MIM=Made in Mexico, MIA=Made in America.

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Post subject: Re: Fender american special versus Fender Kenny Wayne Shephe
Posted: Thu Nov 27, 2014 7:07 am
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You are halfway home as you have gone out and played a couple of Strats and found two you like and now want advice on which to choose. First off they both will easily handle the style of music you are looking to play Blues/Rock (After all that is Kenny Waynes style of music lol) but you have to decide which one felt and sounded best to you. It seems like you clicked with the KWS sigs specs and tone, but are hesitant over one being US built and the KWS sig being MIM. The Fender Mexican factory has been making guitars for 25 years now and build top notch instruments. I have been playing 41 years and through that time period have amassed a pretty large number of guitars (30) of which 28 are US built instruments, I started on a Tele and till this day it is still my favorite guitar design. The funny thing is that my #1 Tele is an 85 MIJ 62 re-issue that I had bought new and has been pretty heavily modded through the last 30 years. All my other Tele's are high end US made builds but if I need a Tele I automatically reach for that one and there was a period where it was the only guitar I played for 15 years straight. So don't get hung up on the guitar having to be a US build as great guitar can be built anywhere. I wouldn't be surprised if Kenny Waynes own sig Fender he plays is MIM. I say that because for years I wanted a Ritchie Kotzen Tele and they only made them in Japan and they were not cheap $1,800! Now I know Fender Japan has always turned out some incredible instruments (my other non US built guitar is an early 90's MIJ 72 Tele Thinline reissue that smokes) but with shipping I didn't want to spend 2K on a MIJ model 5 years ago and they were also hard to find here used. So I was curious about where Kotzens guitars he played personally were built and asked Mike Eldred (who ran the Fender CS, is a Master Builder as well as a killer player and great guy= I can't believe he left this year) if they built Kotzens personal Tele's here or in the Fender Japan CS and he told me -Japan. Personally if I were you I wouldn't hesitate and go with the KWS model and I am certain you will not regret it!


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