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I just can't get into stratocasters


Willyguitar

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In just about every comparison I do and for nearly every application' date=' I so much prefer telecasters (especially if the bridge pickup is a bit overwound). Thought I would just share that with you all for no particular reason. [/quote']

 

I hear ya, I have the same problem with Telecasters, and I build them how I like them, but still can't get on with them

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I have about 4 strats and a bunch of builds with strat necks. I only have one with the standard three single coil configuration at this point.

I've converted most of them to other pickup combinations like an H-S-H or H-S-S.

 

The last one I just recently converted to using three mini Humbuckers. I added some push pill pots so I can still run singles. The minis turned it into a rock monster, but I still have to do some more work. Two of the Mini's I put in there were hotter wound Artec Pickups and the third was a firebird style. They all have too much gain and I'm unable to clean it up as much as I'd like.

 

I'm planning on buying two vintage wind mini's for a Tele build of mine and I'll move those two over to the strat.

 

I used to play strats allot more for like a 10 year stretch. I guess I got bored with the sound. The volume knob placement is an issue for palm muting too which I use allot playing chords. I play my tele and tele builds much more then strats lately. The necks are faster on most of them and I don't have to deal with the Whammy bars either.

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I am a strat man and I have the opposite problem. I tried, I bought a Tele. It felt two things: Incomplete and Uncomfortable.

I think it is that your formative years stick, like left hand drive v right hand drive, speaking English or Japanese. Whatever the "other" thing is it is never going to feel quite as fluid as what you started out on

 

It isn't some kind of 'war' over whether one or the other is better, it is just the natural outcome of historic a dice roll what you started off on :)

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The first time I tried a strat I didn't like it and the first strat I owned seemed anemic compared to the SG I had before - but I persevered. I was enamoured by what Hendrix did with strats and I eventually started to get a handle on how to use them.

 

I've had ten strats over the years and still have #7 and #10. I also play Gibson guitars (LP and various ES models) and I find the telecaster sits nicely between the stratocaster and the Gibsons.

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In just about every comparison I do and for nearly every application' date=' I so much prefer telecasters (especially if the bridge pickup is a bit overwound). Thought I would just share that with you all for no particular reason. [/quote']

There must be some reason?

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Most of you know my first electric was a Fernandes Strat copy and I never bonded with it. I hated having a trem, I could never get the intonation right on the low E, and the controls (V T T) didn't make any sense. OTOH, I've seen few Teles that weren't butt ugly. I've since come to the conclusion that I'm simply not a Fender guy.

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I luvs me strats. I'm just a guitar whore though, so I love most guitars, except I can't get on with most shredder style guitars, because I don't play hi-gain stuff very often at all, and some of those guitars just sound like total sh!te unless you're cranking the gain, then you're like, "oh, okay, now I understand your "special purpose".

 

But I've got a few strats and probably more Teles, but I'm the "desert island guy" who would want the strat to be the tool. I don't even know why I like Teles, Strats just seem like they have more tonal options.

 

But I thought I'd mention this one point that might be worthwhile - one of my faves has been my Godin Session (an HSS). While maybe not technically a "Strat" it's built on the same concept, but it's got a bit of a deeper, thicker, darker tone, and I was very impressed that its humbucker sounds very good in combination with the middle pickup in both its split AND full HB modes. I've got an American Std Strat HSS that doesn't blend as well as that Godin. It's like its a Strat that's got a bit of Les Paul DNA in it.

 

But I find it interesting the variations in tones I get from other strats too. I have an EJ Strat which is a darker tone, a bunch in between, and then on the other end of the spectrum, I've got my JV Strat and an ash bodied Bad Boy Blue Deluxe that are both rather bright cutting tones. Point being, it's more like a shape than a specific tone - so how you no likey? smiley-wink

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I've seen few Teles that weren't butt ugly. I've since come to the conclusion that I'm simply not a Fender guy.

 

I feel the same way as the above statement. I tried to get into the whole Strat thing, but, I abhor the necks, can't stand the twang, and Hate! the volume knob placement (I always manage to turn my volume down/off) Not to mention everybody and their brother has one. The Telecaster is just about the ugliest Guitar made today, though I do like one of the Rob Chappers signature models, can't remember the brand right now. I am comfortable saying I'm just not a Fender guy. I much prefer beveled over rounded, flat over contoured, humbuckers over singles, 24 frets, thin neck over 'U' or whatever baseball bat size Fender neck, and Floyd's over the Wilkinson style Strat trem.

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I have many of my boxes set for Humbuckers and when I switch over to single coils all those settings sound awful. In wind up having to do allot of tweaking to get all my effects settings to sound good. I know how to do it of course bit it can be problematic playing live.

 

For some reason switching from an HB guitar to a Tele isn't as bad. The higher Bridge PU is probably the reason. I still have to tweak tone but I can keep similar gain settings. My one strat has TX specials which are great pups but to get the best tones you got to zero in on them quite a bit.

 

I do have a Digitec Multi effects pedal I can use when switching between HB's and Singles. The RP150 has a setting for HB and Single pups which does a nice job. I have it set up for 20 Humbucker Bucker patches and 20 Single pup patches which are nearly identical.

 

This way I can switch between guitars and not have to be tweaking the settings to get different pickups to sound good.

 

I have at least a dozen builds with various strat necks, mostly rosewood Fingerboards. I bought a bunch of Squire necks for $10 each when Mars was closing. Many of the guitars have bodies other then strat style. All of them have a fair amount of strat tone because of the necks. All the neck contour's are different too.

 

I think many who play one strat and get a bad impression could be influenced by a bad neck fit for the hand. Same with Tele's. I'm sure tone and body feel have something to so with that too, but when you play standing up, the body really doesn't factor in as much.

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In just about every comparison I do and for nearly every application' date=' I so much prefer telecasters (especially if the bridge pickup is a bit overwound). Thought I would just share that with you all for no particular reason. [/quote']

 

Says the man with the Strat in his avatar. Just sayin' :)

 

 

I think I like Strats and Telecasters about equally. I wouldn't want to have to play either one exclusively though. YMMV

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Haha - fair comment. I'm lazy. That guitar I bought for its unusual colour. It's a Squier and probably the best strat I ever played because it didn't really matter at all that it was a bit crap. The only time I ever brought myself to use it live was when we were asked to do some 'Take That' songs. It suited that boy band music rather well. I then gave it to my nephew as a Christmas present. It has Fender standard strat pickups in it.

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I think it is the guts you get in the telecaster bridge pickup. It has more presence somehow, more character, takes overdrive much much better, and you get a less compressed more 'string separated' sound out of it on chord work if that makes sense. You get that sort of crisp, boxy sound too that is beautifully characteristic. The in-between sound on telecasters is also to die for. Most telecaster neck sounds can be a bit weaker though... but the American Special (one of my current teles) has a great neck pickup - punchy and quite loud.

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thin neck over 'U' or whatever baseball bat size Fender neck,.

lol, I find fender necks pencil thin, seriously. A standard MIA strat is around .810 to .830 at the 1st fret and .840 to .860 at the 12th, which is not a baseball bat. Baseball bat is an inch all the way, never played a stock strat with those dimensions (or even remotely close).

 

Wizards are .750 to .820, which isn't that far off a MIA strat, when compared to a baseball bat neck.

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lol, I find fender necks pencil thin, seriously. A standard MIA strat is around .810 to .830 at the 1st fret and .840 to .860 at the 12th, which is not a baseball bat. Baseball bat is an inch all the way, never played a stock strat with those dimensions (or even remotely close).

 

Wizards are .750 to .820, which isn't that far off a MIA strat, when compared to a baseball bat neck.

 

I believe the Jeff Beck models had huge necks

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