A Review of the Fender American Stratocaster "Strat" Electric Guitar by Catfish

Fender American Standard Stratocaster Electric
Guitars For Sale - 45 Day Best Price Guarantee

Hello. My name is Catfish. Thank you for visiting my page about the Fender American Standard Stratocaster guitar. During my 7 years of selling guitars I always sold more Stratocasters than any other guitar. And of all the variations of Strats that are available, my personal favorite has always been the American Standard Stratocaster. Which is why in 2000 I bought one for myself.

The thing that makes the Stratocaster such a unique guitar, aside from being the prefered instrument of Jimi Hendrix, the best rock guitarist ever, is the unique, intimate sound that comes from the three single coil pickup configuration. Unlike a Les Paul, a stat, especially in the out of phase position, picks up every little nuance with great articulation. And while they are a little noisy sometimes and take a while to learn to control at high volumes in live situations, they have an edge that's taylor made for rock n roll. Anyone who has ever heard Hendrix, Jeff Beck, SRV, Yngwie Malmsteen, or Iron Maiden knows that to be true. And of coarse there are countless others. And as the stratocaster has evolved into many different configurations from the advanced electronics of the deluxe to the 2 humbucker pickups in the double fat strat, it has become a versatile instrument that appeals to many different musicians across a wide variety of styles.

At the end of the day though, they are all molded from the all time classic American Standard Stratocaster guitar. American standards have Alder bodies which is what gives them their signature tone (although some strats do come in other woods and sound fantastic in their own right, but different). The American Standard is available in 3-color sunburst which is usually $50.00 more expensive, olympic white, black, chrome red, butterscotch blonde and chrome blue. Of coarse all the American Standard Strats have 22 frets (some strats have 21 or 24) and they have Fender / Schaller tuning machines as well as maple necks. Of coarse you can select either a maple or rosewood fretboard. Some people believe that a maple neck has a brighter tone and plays a little faster while rosewood is generally known for producing a warmer tone. They both sound great although I opted for the rosewood.

I also opted for the typical three coil pickup configuration in my strat because I wanted something completely different than my Les Paul. But some people who want to use the strat as their primary guitar will prefer a humbucker as opposed to a single coil pickup (at least one if not two). So the American Standard Stratocaster does come in two other pickup configurations. One with a single humbucker and two single coils called the American Fat Strat (HSS) or Stratocaster and the other with two humbucking pickups (HH) and no single coils, called a double fat strat. The difference in tone between the three stratocasters is substancial. As I alluded to before, the single coil pickup is more noisy but more sensitive to the touch. The humbucker gives you more of a warm sound with a lot more low end which is great for chucnky rythms but watery crystal like sound of the strat ala Little Wing by Hendrix is next to impossible to achieve with the Les Paul. It will still sound good, but not the same. Some people like the American Fat Strat because it gives them the best of both words while others perfer the deep sound of two humbuckers but enjoy the comfortable playability of the Stratocaster body shape which has made it so popular. It's really a choice based on personal prefence and stylistic necessity...lol. Whichever you choose, if you get either an American Standard Stratocaster, the American Fat Strat or the American Double Fat Strat, you will be getting a quality instrument that will sound great through a decent amp and absolutely fantastic through a good one (as long as you've been practicing, the old myth about how they practically play themselves is really only a myth...lol).

If you want to buy an American Standard Stratocaster, Fat Strat or Double Fat Strat online, my first recommendation would be Musiciansfriend.com. They offer a 45 Day Satisfaction Guarantee and 45 Day Low Price Guarantee. And when you purchase a Fender American Stratocaster guitar from any of the links on this page, you support Dive Bomber and our upcoming CD release. Thanks for visiting and good luck buying your next Fender guitar.

Fender American Stratocaster Electric Guitars For Sale From Musiciansfriend.com
Fender American Standard Stratocaster Electric Guitars for Sale from Musiciansfriend

Click Here to Go Back to Our
Fender Stratocaster Guitars Page
Fender Guitars Page
Fender Amps Page
Fender Telecaster Guitars Page