strat and strat-type guitar prices

G&L STRAT MODELS
$500 Limited Edition Tribute Legacy, WHITE,
$500 Tribute Legacy
$550 Tribute S500
$1,000 Fullerton Standard Legacy
$1,400 Fullerton Deluxe Legacy
$1,400 Legacy
$1,500 Fullerton Deluxe Legacy Caribbean Rosewood Fingerboard
$1,600 Fullerton Deluxe S-500
$1,660 Legacy Special
$1,800 S-500 Deluxe

Nash
? S-68HX
? S67
$1,500-$2,100: S63,S-63,

$1,900-$2,200: S57, S-57

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FENDER Strat Models Compared
A SHORT HISTORY
1953
single-coil alnico 3 pickups with staggered-height pole pieces that effectively addressed the varying output of the heavy string gauges in use at the time
sunburst finish
bridge vibrato system
the initial design for the Strat’s vibrato bridge was a pronounced failure.
second vibrato system was so effectively “over designed” that it proved capable of far more than its designer intended or imagined.
1965
Bob Dylan’s appearance playing a Strat
booing forced him from the stage
Jimi Hendrix, late 1960s, Strat finally achieved top-tier status
mid 1970s
Machine Head (Deep Purple, 1972),
Dark Side of the Moon (Pink Floyd, 1973),
’74 (Rory Gallagher, 1974),
Bridge of Sighs (Robin Trower, 1974),
Blow by Blow (Jeff Beck, 1975)

WHO PLAYS STRATS

Buddy Holly
Jimi Hendrix
Eric Clapton
Buddy Guy
Pete Townshend
Jeff Beck
David Gilmour
Rory Gallagher
Ritchie Blackmore
Robin Trower (Procul Harum)
Alex Lifeson (Rush)
Mark Knopfler (Dire Straits)
Eric Johnson
Stevie Ray Vaughan
Bonnie Raitt
Billy Corgan (Smashing Pumpkins)
Kenny Wayne Shepherd
John Mayer

Alder - Most contemporary Strats are alder
Not especially dense,
Lightweight,
Has a resonant, balanced tone
Brighter than other hardwoods,
More emphasis in the upper midrange.
Excellent sustain
Sharp attack.

Ash - Deluxe range are ash bodies.
Swamp ash guitars differ from one another tonally.
Articulation and presence
Great balance between brightness and warmth

STRAT NECKS
each of the seven Strat models compared here differ from one another
most are 25.5" scale
with a 9.5" fingerboard radius,
22 frets and
some variation on a "C"-shaped neck.
Each neck may have different thicknesses from the front of the neck to the back, resulting in terms such as “thick C shape” and “deep U shape,” etc.

Modern "C" necks - thinner than the
classic "C" neck
Mid-'60s "C" on the Classic Series '60s Strat
the American Vintage '65 Strat respectively.
American Professional Strat
Modern "Deep C" neck, - thicker than a Modern "C".
American Elite Strat

Compound-radius neck
a Modern "C"-to-"D" neck - the neck is thinner at the nut and gets thicker towards the body joint.
9.5"-to-14" compound-radius neck
Necks
Pau Ferro Wood: (aka: Bolivian Rosewood, Santos Rosewood, Morado) from Brazil and Bolivia. Color can be highly varied, ranging from reddish/orange to a dark violet/brown, usually with contrasting darker black streaks. Grain is typically straight. very durable.

Series

Price	Name	Coating	Radius	Shape	Frets	Fretboard
$200 $230 $200 $200 $230 $230 $250 $250	Standard Series Standard Series Classic Player 50’s Classic Series 50’s Classic Player 60's Classic Series 60's Classic Series 50’s Deluxe Series	Lacquer	12"	Soft V Soft V C Soft V	21 Med Jumbo 21 Med Jumbo 21 Vintage 21 Med Jumbo 21 Vintage 22 Jumbo	Maple Pau Ferro Maple Maple Pau Ferro Pau Ferro Maple Pau Ferro

Non-Series Necks

Price	Name	Coating	Radius	Shape	Frets	Neck Wood	Fret board
$280 $300 $300 $300 $300 $430 $480 $500 $500 $550 $570 $600 $600 $600 $620 $620	Classic 60's Roasted Maple Roasted Maple Roasted Maple Roasted Maple AMERICAN SPECIAL AMERICAN SPECIAL AMERICANSTANDARD AMERICAN ELITE AMERICANSTANDARD AMERICAN DELUXE AM ORIGINAL '60S AMERICAN ELITE AM ORIGINAL '50S AMERICAN DELUXE AMERICAN CHANNEL-BOUND- the fingerboard is directly inlaid into the neck	Lacquer urethane urethane urethane urethane urethane urethane urethane urethane urethane urethane nclacquer urethane nclacquer urethane poly-urethane	7.25” 12.00” 12.00” 9.50" 9.50" 9.50" 9.50" 9.50" 9.50" 9.5-14" 9.50" 9.5-14" 9.50" 9.5-14" 9.50" 9.5-14"	C FlatOval FlatOval C C C C C C C C Thick C Compound Soft V C C	21 Vintage 22 Jumbo 22 Jumbo 21 NarrowTall 21 NarrowTall 22 Jumbo 22 Jumbo 22 Med Jumbo 22 Med Jumbo 22 Med Jumbo 22 Med Jumbo 21 VintageTall 22 Med Jumbo 21 VintageTall 22 Med Jumbo 21 Med Jumbo	Maple RoastedMaple RoastedMaple RoastedMaple RoastedMaple Maple Maple Maple Maple Maple Maple Maple Maple Maple Maple Maple	PauFerroRosewood Maple PauFerroRosewood PauFerroRosewood Maple Maple Rosewood Maple Maple Rosewood Maple laminatedRosewood Ebony Maple Rosewood Rosewood

Fingerboard Radius
The measure of the arc of the fingerboard across its width. Greater Radius = Flatter fingerboard.
Deluxe models - the flattest fingerboard ; 12" radius
Classic Series '60s Strat; roundest fingerboard ; 7.25" radius
American Vintage '65 Strat; roundest fingerboard ; 7.25" radius
American Elite; compound-radius fingerboard; ; 9.5"(nut)-to-14" (12^th fret)

Fret Sizes
The actual fret wire used to create the frets.

narrow tall frets
Deluxe
American Professional

medium jumbo
If you like your fingers to actually touch the fingerboard when fretting the strings
Standard models
Elite models
vintage frets
If you like your fingers to actually touch the fingerboard when fretting the strings
Classic Series '60s Strat
American Vintage '65

jumbo fret wire
American Special Strat
easier playability
better sustain, tone and bending
your fingers probably won’t even touch the fingerboard

Fingerboard Wood

Maple Only
American Special Strat (for the Olympic White model)

Rosewood Only
Deluxe,
Classic Series '60s
American Vintage '65
American Special Strat (for the Sonic Blue model)

Maple or Rosewood
The Standard Strat
American Professional
American Elite
American Special Strat (for the 2-Color Sunburst model)

STRAT HEADSTOCKS

the smaller, streamlined headstock (seen at left
the larger, CBS-era headstocks (at right).

CBS owned Fender for two decades from early 1965 to 1985.
1965 - One of CBS's first changes was the introduction of a larger headstock. Why? To accommodate a larger logo decal, of course.
Smaller headstock- 1954 – present
Larger headstock – 1965 – present

American Special
Deluxe Strat

STRAT ELECTRONICS
All Strats featured here have the classic five-way selector switch, but that's just for starters.
Each offer a unique set of pickups
Additional electronics

the S-1 Switch on the American Elites;
more tonal options by offering extra pickup-wiring configurations
It’s a “push” switch built into a single volume or tone control knob.
it does different things on different instruments

American Elite Strat
S-1 switch is OFF:

Pos 1: bridge
Pos 2: bridge & middle;
in parallel
Pos 3: middle
Pos 4: middle & neck;
in parallel
Pos 5: neck

S-1 switch is ON:
Pos 1: all 3; in series
Pos 2: bridge & middle;
in series
Pos 3: middle & neck;
in series
Pos 4: bridge & neck;
out of phase,
with a special tone capacitor
Pos 5: bridge & middle;
in series
out of phase,
in parallel with neck pickup

Deluxe Roadhouse Strat

S-1 switch built into the volume knob bypasses the preamp.

S-1 switch OFF
Pos 1: bridge
Pos 2: bridge and middle - in parallel
Pos 3: middle
Pos 4: middle and neck - in parallel
Pos 5: neck

S-1 switch ON
Pos 1: all three pickups - in series
Pos 2: bridge and middle - wired in series
Pos 3: middle and neck - wired in series
Pos 4: bridge and neck - wired out of phase,
with a special tone capacitor
Pos 5: bridge and middle - in series and
out of phase,
in parallel with neck pickup

Treble Bleed Circuit found on the American Professionals and the
Push/Push Mini-Switch found on the Deluxe Strats.

This article specfically compares seven single-coil Strats with the traditional SSS pickup configuration.

Strats with other pickup configurations are also available, including the

Standard Strat HH, the

Standard Strat HSH and the

American Professional HSS Shawbucker Strat.

READ MORE: Decoding Standard Pickup Arrangements