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A recent post got me gassing for a Stratocaster (I think it was the Gibson thunk conversation). I'm doing a little shopping & would enjoy some input.
My initial thoughts are:
single coils (mainly because all my other guitars are humbuckers & I'd enjoy a little variety)
12" radius neck preferred over 9"?
neck truss rod adjustment preferred over "vintage"
I don't care about whammy bar at all. I'll most likely defeat the floating bridge, or a hard tail would be fine for me.
I'd probably string with round wound 12's . . .
I haven't played a strat for quite a few years, but a strat copy (martin stinger ssx) was my first guitar in 1987, so this is somewhat of a nostalgia trip for me. full circle, as it were?
I test drove a couple this afternoon & they sounded good & felt good too.
Way too many choices!!!! Anyway, what should I buy?
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07-27-2015 06:33 PM
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The best strat for jazz is a tele.
Ok, I'm joking.
Sort of.
I dunno. All strats sound springy to me. I'd just go play a bunch and then get fhe one with the neck i liked best.
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I think Jeff is spot on. The feel of the guitar is the most important thing to me. If I pick it up and it doesn't feel right, then it doesn't even get plugged in.
Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
After a great feeling neck (to you), then ago with the neck pickup, thick pick and an amp with a tone that meets your needs.
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I own a pair of strats, a 2003 AM Deluxe and a 2007 Am Standard. They're both great guitars, but if I wanted to use one in a jazz context, I'd use the Deluxe with the SCN's. It's got a "thicker" tone -- not just due to the pickups, but also the tremolo block. I prefer the Standard for most uses though. I use Tele's for jazz
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Are you looking at vintage? (Probably not, but I ask because it brings up an important point--B-neck vs C-neck guitars) In the vintage market, all of the necks will be 7.25" radius (flatter if they have had multiple refrets). A B-neck (narrow nut width), 7.25" radius neck is _not_ the best proposition for playing articulated jazzy stuff down around the first five frets. I out to know; my first Stratocaster was a '65 with a B-neck. (kind of cramped). In the vintage market make sure you are looking at a C-neck.
In the modern market, necks will tend all to be C-necks and the radius will tend to be 9.5", to things will be more comfortable for playing jazz.
One _strong_ recommendation: get a rosewood board. I have owned both maple necks and rosewood necks. The rosewood necks aren't as bright sounding. This is good--for jazz. Everything will sound richer, if you get a rosewood board. If, on the other hand, you are going to be playing primarily funk--get a maple neck.
I think single-coil pickups are fine on the Stratocaster for playing jazz. I have a preference for Lollar over Fender pickups (in the modern market). In the vintage market--Fender, all the way.
On the neck pickup the Stratocaster gets a rich, resonant sound. You will be well served, IMO.
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I am a "Strat for Jazz" guy, and in fact my #1 and my #2 jazz guitars are both strats. As to single coils, there are so many out there that will do the job, but there will be tweaking involved. My #1 has flatwound 11's and Kent Armstrong Lip Stick pickups...very low output vintage-y. But if you remember, the early Strats came with flatwound 12's, low output pickups, and a 3 way switch. The trem is set with 4 springs and is used like a Bigsby, just for some shimmer. I use this for about 50% of my playing, and splits time on the neck or the middle pickups. I do sometimes use the Gain Channel set about 2 or 3 just to give it a little oomph.
My #2 strat, currently, is set up with 2 humbuckers with coil tapping to give versatile sounds, but will be replaced soon with a hardtail that I will be building in a few weeks after my surgery. It will be a HSS set up with a Pearly Gates in the bridge, and higher output neck and middle than the lipsticks, but not too hot.
A Les Paul rounds out the 3 guitars I take for our jazz gigs, and I have the sounds that I need covered. I do have other guitars being played with that might enter the rotation, but the #1 will be a Strat of some configuration.
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Robert Cray strats are hard tail. With some thick strings it should do well. Some might find the neck too narrow or radiused. You can replace it with a deluxe stray neck from eBay or warmoth
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If you like the tone in the clip I posted, that's an '89 Am Standard, completely stock. It's a 9" radius, which feels flat enough to me. I definitely prefer the modern style truss rod, frets, tuners and string trees to the vintage style. Ditto for the 2 point whammy mount. Originally Posted by Longways to Go
JohnLast edited by John A.; 07-27-2015 at 10:43 PM.
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I use an American Hot Rod 62 Reissue Strat for jazz and it sounds and feels great....
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I can imagine a Stratocaster with a CC pickup in the neck sounding pretty good for jazz. I remember someone on here posting a photo of a custom made Strat that had a single CC pickup. It looked great.
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Hardtail. The rest can be completely traditional, with neck specs up to your personal taste (ergonomics have nothing to do with the choice of music you play).
Check out the Strat "jazz tone" video on my YouTube channel, main site in my sig below. It's a Warmoth alder body, one piece maple neck, vintage style pups (Fralin) and hardware. Strung with roundwound 11s. Only thing unique is the hardtail bridge.
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John A. Originally Posted by John A.
definitely inspired by your post! Nice sounds
thanks all for the good advise.
I have a decent tele, so already there with that. Strats have something else going on.
I'll let you all know what happens.
I may do a GC trade in/trade up deal, or see if anybody local wants to do a CL swap . . .
one nice thing is there's plenty of strats out there in the world . . . just trying to find one I really like.Last edited by Longways to Go; 07-27-2015 at 11:04 PM.
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I have a vintage Strat (with a five position switch the tremolo locked to make it a hard tail) and more recent American Standard Tele. I like 'em both, but I usually grab the tele. With the Strat, I find all the pickup and tone control possibilities to be a distraction. Also, for finger picking I keep hitting that middle pickup. If I played nothing but the Strat I'm sure I'd adapt to it, but the Tele seems easier to adapt to after playing archtops.
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Modern radius, rosewood board and alder body. That is the best suggestions I can give. The Strat is the most tunable guitar on the planet! You can "move" the sound in any direction you want! There has not been a quality Strat that I have not liked! Just buy one that feels good and you will be able to eek your sound out of it, I have no doubts!!!
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+1 for the Am Dlx. Compound radius neck and noiseless single coils are very nice. But I'd suggest a maple neck not rosewood. Maple has good note separation and the extra brightness, compared to rosewood, is easy enough to dial out. I love playing my strat and whilst it isn't the "best" guitar for jazz, it is the guitar that brings the biggest smile to my face. It encourages me to play.
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I don't think there's a difference in tone between maple and rosewood boards, but they definitely feel different. I say go for the one that feels better to you. (I prefer rosewood). As far as body wood goes, I think it's best not to make assumptions (both woods can sound good, or not). Try a bunch without asking what kind of wood it is (or even which model). Then see which you prefer.
John
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This one. Alder body, curly rock maple neck, bound ebony board, 12" radius. Current pups are active EMGs. They sound fine to me, but can easily be changed out. This is not a parts caster. It was completely hand made for me some 15 years ago. It was made for me by Ronaldo Orlandoni. His custom guitars can be seen played by Julio Fernandez, long time guitarist with Spyro Gyra. Ronaldo has made all of the tele and Strat type guitars that Julio tours and records with. The body is made from alder, that was 15 years (or more) at the time it was made. The maple used for the neck was equally as old. It does have a whammy. But, that can easily be blocked. It's available for sale. I'm playing only my arch tops these days.
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I have a two humbucker 5 way switch blacktop strat with 5 springs on the whammy block and the screws tightened up a bunch so it dosn't move at all. With flatwounds it sounds great for jazz with wound rounds it sounds great for a lot of genres the 2 & 4 positions give the thin quack perfect for funk and r&ab. At some point I will upgrade all the electronics but the neck is nice and it is a very usable giggable low cost axe.
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This plus a loaded pickguard with pickups of your choice and a neck from the same Ebay store or from Warmoth and you are in business.
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if you don't need it to sound like a strat, in that traditional way, bear in mind that you can now pop in mini humbuckers, gold foils or filtertrons as you see fit.
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Roger,
Your Warmoth sounds _really_ good. I've never owned a hardtail, but your video makes a pretty compelling case, I've got to say.
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One of the things I REALLY like about strats is you can have different pickguards loaded with entirely different pickup setups. Just have a quick connect on the jack. If you want, any time you change strings, you can load a standard set, dual humbuckers... single neck humbucker... I mean... you could really take it places. You could even have a Charlie Christian loaded into one!
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Thank you! It's a subtle thing, but the hardtail removes all traces of the "airy" or "pingy" quality that Strat trem bridges convey (and which is greatly appreciated in other contexts). It cleans up the note envelope to make it have crisper attack and more fundamental in the sustain. I do have a Fender Strat Plus also with alder body and maple neck, and the difference in feel is notable. Originally Posted by Greentone
I dialed the tone back to about 8 on that video just as a matter of taste, but even that wasn't strictly necessary.
My Warmoth Strat is one of those humble guitars that could do it all if I somehow lost everything - it's worth very little on the market, and I even finished it myself with Tru-Oil and slightly aged/weathered the hardware.
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To me, a Strat without a tremolo is not a Strat. YMMV.
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Or buy a neck you want. I bought a compound radius for my strat and I love it. It plays so good now. Bolt it on and play! Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
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