Need help piecing together my ultimate strat.

[hannaugh]

Since you're not going for a replica Strat, I'd say that if you get a Strat body, trem bridge, top routed with a 3 single coil configuration, and you get an all maple neck or a maple and rosewood neck (or a combo that sounds similar to either one of those), then you will be in the ball park of having the Strat tone.  If you were building a Strat that you wanted to be exactly like a classic Strat, then build it exactly like a classic Strat.  It sounds like you're not too picky about it sounding exact, just similar.  All this business of "it won't sound like a Strat unless you get a such and such finish" is ridiculous in my opinion.  It'll sound like a Strat to 99% of people, it just might not sound exactly like a vintage style Strat. 

 

[NLD09]

I honestly think if people A/B'd a real vintage strat, and some of the custom ones we've made here in a recording the results would fall around 50/50.

 

[drewfx]

I mostly agree with what everyone else is saying here about not having to keep everything "vintage" to get a classic strat sound, but I'll add, that at some point, the more you move away from "classic" strat wood/finishes/construction/etc. it ceases to be a "strat" and becomes an exotic wood strat-shaped guitar (not that there's anything wrong with that).

But I'm talking more about emotion/perception here than sound. You don't need a strat shaped body to sound like a strat. The question is, do you want a guitar to get classic strat tones, or do you want a "classic strat"?

FWIW, I'm currently building a strat that was originally conceived to be "classic" but deviated somewhat:

chambered swamp ash showcase body with quilted maple top/fireburst finish
birdseye maple/pau ferro showcase neck - Wolfgang contour
"modern" standard Fender trem
stainless steel frets, LSR roller nut, locking tuners
DiMarzio Area '58 (N), Area '61 (M), Virtual Vintage '54 Pro (B) pickups
Volume,Tone,Tone, standard 5-way switch, plus 3 way mini switch to add N+B, N+M+B and N->B in serial options.

Not done (I don't have the neck yet), so I can't tell you how "classic" it sounds.

drewfx

 

[tfarny]

You're gonna love those pickups - spend time playing with the pup height, you can get them much closer without funky tones compared to a normal strat setup.

 

[AprioriMark]

I honestly think if people A/B'd a real vintage strat, and some of the custom ones we've made here in a recording the results would fall around 50/50.

I agree, but I also think that some vintage strats don't sound like the vintage strat we're comparing everything to.  There's a lot to be said for specific pieces of wood.

-Mark

 

[arjepsen]

But I'm talking more about emotion/perception here than sound. You don't need a strat shaped body to sound like a strat. The question is, do you want a guitar to get classic strat tones, or do you want a "classic strat"?

drewfx

Again, it's more about the sound, than the perception.

From reading up so far, both in this thread and around the whole board, my current idea is:

Canary/ebony neck. Seems to be a very popular choice, sounding very close to maple/rosewood. I did look at kingswood for some time, but I couldn't find that many reviews on it.

Not quite sure about the body yet. Either Alder w. flame maple top, full swamp ash, or black korina. (those black korina tobaco bursts in the showcase......:binkybaby:  )

Still quite a bit in the dark about pickups. Seems to be so many choices, and I have no experience with any of them  :sad1:
Any recomendations?
I wouldn't mind some noise cancellation, if it doesn't subtract from the tone.
If I HAD to be specific about sound, I guess I would like it to sound a bit like Eric Johnson.
But I still want it to be able to cover a broad ground, since I'm going to use it on a lot of different amps, while playing a lot of different styles.

:help:

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

A truly "vintage" Strat that has been consistently played probably does not have the original pickups.  They may be from that era, but Fender's, being handwound by hourly employees with a high turnover rate, were notoriously inconsistent.  One Strat might have a great neck pickup, but horrible middle or bridge.  Even Clapton's "Blackie," he had to buy several and part them out just to get one that was playable and sounded good.  Remember, the goal of the early Fenders were to be mass produced cheaply by relatively unskilled labor.  Also, the Strat pictured has a hardtail.  Although originally offered with a hardtail option in 1954, not the traditionally recognized Strat tone IMO.  I love the classic body shapes of the classic Strat and Tele but think hardware and pickups have only gotten better, IMO.

 

[imminentG]

Anybody who doesn't think body wood has anything to do with tone might as well go play the little plastic guitar-hero controller.  :icon_thumright:

 

[koshersteel]

sounds like your finding your own way pretty well. Body wood does have an effect on tone but it's probably 3-5 spaces down the list (after pickups, scale length, neck and fingerboard wood, fret material, possibly the bridge/saddles, and of course the player). Korina would be the custom choice, it's kind of like mahogany but richer in a certain way. The ebony fretboard you're planning on will brighten up things nicely (and feel great) if you decide to go that route. I'd probably still choose Swamp Ash (sepecially since it sounds like you're not doing the finish yourself, Swamp ash is a pain to pore fill) unless you are also planning on building a Tele down the road. Then I'd do the Tele in Swamp Ash and the Strat in Alder.

Like I said before, there are lots of great pickups out there and they almost all sound better than stock Fender pickups. Fralin's and Lollar's are generally regerded as botique options that deliver great classic sound. I find Fralin's to have a great tone that is open while still maintaining focus and Lollar's to have a gritty funkier ("dirt keeps the funk" -James Jamerson) character in the best possible way. If your looking for the most variety possible a great setup is to use a trio of Duncan humbucking dual blade single coils (Vintage @ neck, Cool @mid and hot @ bridge), that would also give you the advantages of being noiseless and not having any dead spots between the magnets when you bend strings.

Now would also be a good time to begin thinking about the rest of your electronics. A popular option is to replace the bridge tone control with a blend pot so you can dial in the bridge pickup with other selector positions. Some of my other favorite mods are adding a series switch, wiring the volume pot so it doesn't roll off the highs when you dial it back, and adding a low impedance preamp to the passive pickups.

isn't this all so much fun?

 

[Rouse]

I wouldn't mind some noise cancellation, if it doesn't subtract from the tone.

If I HAD to be specific about sound, I guess I would like it to sound a bit like Eric Johnson.
:help:

Noiseless will change the tone, it takes away some of that strat sound, gives it a little less sparkle and chime. But since your looking for EJ tone, it won't be that big of deal; I think EJ used/uses DiMarzio, look into those.

 

[Phrygian]

Why do so many here think Canary sounds similar to maple?  It should be a bit warmer.  I will agree though that my Strat still sounds like a classic Strat, only better.  Where it departs from standard fare is it's Canary Pro neck, maple top, and Lace Sensors.  The only thing I'm not really happy with on it is the American Standard Tremolo.  Consider a Callaham tremolo block if you go with a tremolo.

 

[Rouse]

Why do so many here think Canary sounds similar to maple?  It should be a bit warmer.  I will agree though that my Strat still sounds like a classic Strat, only better.  Where it departs from standard fare is it's Canary Pro neck, maple top, and Lace Sensors.  The only thing I'm not really happy with on it is the American Standard Tremolo.  Consider a Callaham tremolo block if you go with a tremolo.

It is warmer, thats why you use an ebony fretboard  :icon_thumright: