DREAM STRAT

[Old Music Guy]

I find myself with a brand new Strat body with no future. Black, HSH route, no neck. Vintage 6 point vintage trem.
If you were to load it up with pickups, and a neck for YOUR dream Strat, what would you choose?
The only constraint is that they be passive.

 

[Papanate]

I’d choose a White Falcon - and sell the Stratocaster body.

 

[PorterhouseMusic]

You do you - but I'd probably go with a Fender modern "C" neck profile with rosewood fingerboard. I like that feel.

As far as the HSH PU config..... that'll require a little more consideration. Definitely a coil splitting option on the neck humbucker, though.

 

[Sky Blue Lou]

PAFs from Fralin or another boutique shop. One of them Texas Specials in the middle. Refin in white. Maple neck.

 

[Old Music Guy]

You do you - but I'd probably go with a Fender modern "C" neck profile with rosewood fingerboard. I like that feel.

I really love the modern C neck. That's on all my Fenders. I don't dislike rosewood, but I'm much more at ease with maple. All my Epis are "rosewood" of some species, but I just like the feel of the maple.
I will consider it though,

 

[Old Music Guy]

PAFs from Fralin or another boutique shop. One of them Texas Specials in the middle. Refin in white. Maple neck.

That's a large ticket item.
I have a Epi LP with a pair of SD Phat Cat P90s, and they are really spectacular. Sings like a bird. I also have PAFs in a 335 clone, and they are really nice.
I'm not so sure how a Texas Special will sound with PAFs? Interesting thought though.
I already have a white Strat with a maple neck. I want a black one to match. The last black one I built is a little weak.

 

[Old Music Guy]

As far as the HSH PU config..... that'll require a little more consideration. Definitely a coil splitting option on the neck humbucker, though.

This configuration, unfortunately, will send us directly back to the "RWRP" post that gave us all fits.
Good idea though.

 

[PorterhouseMusic]

Good grief.... I just looked at the Sweetwater price for the neck I described above - yikes! I haven't looked at that sort of thing in a while - but man oh man are some of these things ridiculously over priced. Highly recommend some quality off name brand (Warmoth?) or something of the sort. jfc

 

[Old Music Guy]

Good grief.... I just looked at the Sweetwater price for the neck I described above - yikes!

If you knew how much I've spent on this new build, you would have me committed. I could buy a brand new Strat for less than what I paid for parts.
That said, I knew what I had in mind when I started off on the build. I have the body I want, the neck I want, and the pups I want. Notwithstanding the cost, I will have the absolute pleasure of knowing I put a one of a kind Strat together with my own hands.
I tried a Mighty Mite neck, and was really disappointed. It was a piece of wood. Not finished, no hardware. Frets needed work, no rolled edge, meh. Not worth my time. If yo want it, you can have it.
BTW: If you want to see inflated prices, go to StewMac. Like going to the pool hall and asking for a loan.
FYI: Do you know the difference between a USA neck and a MIM neck? 15 miles and 100% markup.

 

[DrewPeterson7]

I find myself with a brand new Strat body with no future. Black, HSH route, no neck. Vintage 6 point vintage trem.
If you were to load it up with pickups, and a neck for YOUR dream Strat, what would you choose?
The only constraint is that they be passive.

It's not really a smaller ticket option, I'm afraid, haha... but I REALLY like Suhr singlecoils. I've got a set of ML Standards (now, V63+) in one guitar, and a V60LP set in my other Strat, and if I had to do just one I'd definitely keep the V63+ bridge (best Strat bridge sound I've ever heard, it's actually usable as a singing lead voice), but a 60LP neck and a tossup, either way, for the middle.

They're only a little more spendy than Fender pickups though, or at least were last I looked.

 

[DrewPeterson7]

FYI: Do you know the difference between a USA neck and a MIM neck? 15 miles and 100% markup.

Used to be 21 vs 22 frets as well, but that's no longer the case, right? I guess the Player II guitars are Mexican now, and those are all 22 fret and 2-point trems, and those two specs were the main reason I never gave mexican Strats serious consideration.

Besides, the Ensenada area is awesome - I've been down to Valle de Guadalupe twice now and never put it together that the small city just down the valley on the coast was where Fender's factory is.

 

[Old Music Guy]

Used to be 21 vs 22 frets as well, but that's no longer the case, right?

True. All my MIM necks are 22 fret. And I agree about the two point trem. All my Strats are vintage 6. Which I always block

 

[DrewPeterson7]

True. All my MIM necks are 22 fret. And I agree about the two point trem. All my Strats are vintage 6. Which I always block

I fully believe a 6-point can be set up to work very WELL... but 2-points are easier to live with, I prefer the look, have fewer points of potential friction, and a lot of the 2-points also have other features I like (the Gotoh 510 on both of my Strats has a built in tension-adjustable bushing to control how much play is in the trem arm and if it'll stay in position or not) and for a whole bunch of little reasons I prefer two point trems to six.

I've got mine both set to float these days, not with a ton of pull-up range but enough for good vibrato, though over the years they've been anywhere from full floating to dive only, depending on where my head is in a given couple years.

But, for a LONG time there, the only reason I wouldn't have bought a Mexican strat had nothing to do with country of origin and everything to do with specs.

Again, though, if you ARE looking to go SSS or SSH, I can't stress enough how awesome Suhr's singlecoils are, and for not a ton more than a Fender set.

 

[Old Music Guy]

Thanks for the tips. @DrewPeterson7 . the only guitar that I have with a trem is my PRS. I only bring out the trem arm to impress my friends, I really am not a fan of tremolo.
I built a Strat a long while ago that had a Floyd Rose. I asked my guy, Rick, to set it up after I realized I was in over my head. He laughed and said "NO!". On my own, I worked on it for longer than I was married to my first wife. That guitar drove me out of my freakin mind!! The moment I got that things set up and in tune, I took it to my local store and sold it.
All my Strats are hardtails, or blocked trems. I really dislike tremolo. I really do. I don't know why no more than I know why I don't like to play in Db/C#. I DO like a good Bigsby vibrato, but that is a contradiction in terms.
I appreciate the recommendations on the Suhr (is that pronounced "Sire?) pups, though.
As of today, I have all the parts I need to put the new guy together.
We'll see how that goes. If I (wrongly) decide to build another Strat, I will keep the Suhr pups in mind.

 

[DrewPeterson7]

I appreciate the recommendations on the Suhr (is that pronounced "Sire?) pups, though.

I think it's pronounced like "sir" but with a little bit of a drawl to it - maybe "sir" with more of a vowel sound from "sure"? Or, "Sure" without the "h" that for some reason we pronounce it with?

Forgot if I've posted these around here, but I think they're spectacular sounding pickups - the Fenders I've played sound sort of "filtered" by comparison.




These are also kind of a good look at how and why I use a trem - I don't do a ton of big Jimi-like divebombing or swoops or anything, but i DO like having it there to throw some light vibrato on a chord or sustained note, I've played them long enough that I'm pretty good at supporting the body of the trem with my palm while doing compound bends, and setting a bridge up to float DOES get easier with time. But. it's also pretty straightforwrd to set one up flat with the bdy and run it dive only, and while it's tough to do subtle chord vibrato that way, it's possible if you're careful with your spring tension.

 

[RFR]

I think it's pronounced like "sir" but with a little bit of a drawl to it - maybe "sir" with more of a vowel sound from "sure"? Or, "Sure" without the "h" that for some reason we pronounce it with?

Forgot if I've posted these around here, but I think they're spectacular sounding pickups - the Fenders I've played sound sort of "filtered" by comparison.




These are also kind of a good look at how and why I use a trem - I don't do a ton of big Jimi-like divebombing or swoops or anything, but i DO like having it there to throw some light vibrato on a chord or sustained note, I've played them long enough that I'm pretty good at supporting the body of the trem with my palm while doing compound bends, and setting a bridge up to float DOES get easier with time. But. it's also pretty straightforwrd to set one up flat with the bdy and run it dive only, and while it's tough to do subtle chord vibrato that way, it's possible if you're careful with your spring tension.

Nice playing, btw.

 

[Old Music Guy]

Forgot if I've posted these around here, but I think they're spectacular sounding pickups - the Fenders I've played sound sort of "filtered" by comparison.

Of all the things I've heard on this board, that is by far the best!!!
Absolutely awesome.
Thank you for that
EDIT: First, that is gorgeous Strat! Second, what stuck me was the subtle drum background. Perfect! I'm a drummer and who ever is playing them (please tell me it isn't AI) is very tasty!
2nd EDIT: How the hell do you get those pinch harmonics???
3rd EDIT: Nice playing,

 

[DrewPeterson7]

Thanks @RFR!

Of all the things I've heard on this board, that is by far the best!!!
Absolutely awesome.
Thank you for that
EDIT: First, that is gorgeous Strat! Second, what stuck me was the subtle drum background. Perfect! I'm a drummer and who ever is playing them (please tell me it isn't AI) is very tasty!
2nd EDIT: How the hell do you get those pinch harmonics???
3rd EDIT: Nice playing,

Dude, thank you!

The drums - definitely not AI. But, also, not a real drummer. This was Superior 3 and (for now, once I finish recording the guitar parts I'll mix them from scratch from the raw samples) their Ninety-One preset (presumably "Nevermind," and Cobain was the reason I picked up the guitar), but this is MIDI, sequenced by hand. My process is to start by creating a drum loop, modify that into a couple different drum loops for the various sections, and then do things like start to vary the intensity in various verses, add some accens to the intensity of the ride or hi hat etc etc etc... and then start to program fills. It's all done by hand, but I've spent some time behind a kit (I'm awful, but it's fun) so I have a rough idea what's possible and what isn't, and try to write parts that a drummer could actually play. For the clean toned thing, I think some of the parts in the intro need to get a bit "bigger," and maybe a little more Little Wing, but when the song itself kicks in I spent a lot of time closely listening to "Lenny" to get ideas.

The pinch harmonics... like, right at the start of the second video, in the opening of the solo? Um, I guess I've always found myself doing a lot of semi-harmonic overtone or straight-up pinch harmonics while playing, so it's just sort of a matter or usual pinch harmonic technique and knowing where on the string you need to hit to bring out some overtones. There wasn't a TON of gain here, but it's a fairly bright guitar and you can pull them out... I know this isn't a super helpful answer, lol, it's just tough because it's one of those things that's such a part of the way I play (ironically it probably come out of more of my bluesier influences than my rock and shred ones, somehow) that not nly is it hard to articulate, sometimes it's hard to NOT do and I'm adding them in where probably I shouldn't.

But, anyway. Suhr pickups (I think) sound awesome. And a floating Strat-style bridge is great for bar vibrato.

 

[Old Music Guy]

The drums - definitely not AI.

However you did it, it was so tasty! It was perfect for the track. Good job.
I know pinch harmonics are more touchy feely than anything else. I can do it once in a while, but I love the sound.
I thought both clips were really really good!

 

[Sky Blue Lou]

Mad chops, Drew. Very nice.