So I grew tired of my Stratocaster so fast – it’s disturbing

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nbarts

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Well, I’ve always wanted a Stratocaster since my first el guitar was a cheap 50$ strat knock off. That & a classical nylon is what I’ve been playing for the first 6 years, which I guess explains why I’m so addicted to clean channels. So I was really excited owning a Stratocaster at first, but every time I plug in any one of my LPs all I can think of is why the hell anyone would ever want to play a stratocater. There are 2 things I like about it – the looks & the weight, that’s about it.

So as much as fun it is to look at it, I think I’m going to ditch it soon.

So my question is what I should replace it with. I want a tremolo on this guitar.
1st option – an LP with Floyd Rose or some other kind of tremolo that works well. I think I can't go wrong here, however having something lighter on my back would be much preferred, these goddamn LPs are really ****in' up my back!
2nd – an Anderson or Suhr – now will they sound as thick as LPs? It’s very important for this guitar to have beautiful cleans. Looks matter too (yea, it inspires me to play) – I have to say I really don’t care about the way Anderson guitars look, which is why I haven’t tried one yet. Suhr guitars kind of look better, but still their humbuckin designs look pretty ugly to me & I just can’t glue with single coils apparently.
3rd option – well, you tell me :)

Any input on this subject is appreciated.
 
well see, that's why I ALWAYS say tone is a totally subjective thing hehehe I think the opposite...I can't gel with LEs Pauls.....they sound too dark to me. hehehe..... I wanna own one again someday though.
 
Have you tried a prs? I dig mine quite a bit.
I put a hot rails in my old jap strat and with the vh4 it friggin rocks!! I think it is a ash body strat, really heavy guitar. You should think about trying some hb pickups in the strat.
Later
 
I know you said trem and once in a while you can get a McCarty with a trem on the PRS side. If you can not find one, try a Custom 22 or Custom 24. I am a big PRS fan and love my McCarty's and Singlecut's. My other favorite guitar maker is Gene Baker. His guitars are amazing. Double cutaway but IMO step all over a les paul. He now builds under fine tuned instruments. I also like my Suhr guitars as well. Very nice indeed however at this point I still prefer my PRS and Baker stuff over the Suhr stuff.

How much do you want to spend?
 
Nothing will sound thick as LP, except an LP. I went through many 'alternatives' through the years, just to find out that if you want an LP sound then you should get an LP. Another good sounding option would be Washburn Idol series. They're custom shop series are fine guitars and at http://boogiestreet.com/ I think you can get a lot of additional options (i.e. tremolo).
Never digged the PRS. Way too harsh highs for my taste - that is just a personal preference - don't jump on me :)
 
The Real Baker guitars...(Gene Baker/Fine Tuned Instruments) sound as thick as a Les Paul easily. Far better built too. No trems on them though....B1 model (which is the Les Paul Killer IMO)
 
If you want a LP but with a trem I'd say there's a few different options. Burny makes an LP Custom style that comes stock with a Floyd. They're just hard to find in the states. I had one though and liked it. Carvin is making a sweet looking LP which you could have built with a floyd. Or what currently has my eye is the new floyd equipped EC1000 from LTD.

Or if you're willing to try other options than an LP. I love my Caparison Tat. I know a lot of people don't dig them especially because of the finishes, but mine is the most resonant thick and rich sounding guitar I've ever owned and it plays like a dream to boot. There's actually a used one on ebay right now for $1300.
 
I want to keep this under 2000$, but I'll spend more if it's worth it. Gibson Axcess from the specs looks like something I'd want, but I haven't been able to find a good one yet, I'm so far disappointed how these axes are built. It would be nice to have some $$$ left to try haussel pickups. But let's concentrate less on money and more on the sound, playability & WEIGHT (if possible).


Joeytpg,
That's true, but also I think if I could have you standing next to my rig I could change your mind.

smdb,
Yes, I have tried PRS. I really don't like the feel of PRS guitars, they kind of remind me of Schecters in some way. Yes, I agree, they sound pretty damn good with Diezels for riffing, but I do not like the way they sound for clean stuff & in all honesty I still prefer the way LPs sound for riffing too. I found PRS guitars better for down tuned stuff & I don't really play drop tunings. In fact I do the opposite, I play F# most of the time with the low E dropped to D#.

Duolos,
I've never heard or tried a Gene Baker, you have my attention now. Please tell me more. No trem sucks though.

synchu,
I'd like to try a Washburn, but do they have any retailers or resale value?

shadowfax29,
Burny makes some great LPs, I own one actually. The only thing I don't like about them are the small sized frets.
EC1000 - probably worth to give one a try if they have it in a local store. I think these come with active PUs, that sucks, I don't like active PUs, they mask a lot & it's hard to tell how good the guitar would sound with passives.
Carvin - I'm worried about the resale value of these.


Speaking of Schecters, I have a 7 stringer Schecter which plays pretty nice. I'm not really a 7 stringer person, but it's nice to have around sometimes. I was wondering if it would be worth to upgrade the electronics & PUs on this thing. If so, what would you recommend?
 
Well.....Gene Baker does make plenty of guitars with trems. The B1 model I am referring to is a double cut and thick or maybe thicker then a les paul. The necks and playability are the best in a guitar Ihave ever played or owned. He is a fantastic builder. His new company (Fine Tuned Instruments) or B3 is a line of other guitars.....trems and no trems. Depending on the model etc. They are pricey but worth every penny. I have a B3 with a trem which is fantastic. It looks like a hot rodded strat type but if you really look at it, it is nothing like what it looks. Neck through, thick body, wilkinson trem, Humbucker, etc....of course in olympic white with aged pickguard ;)

Check him out and I will help however I can. :thumbsup:
 
I did some search online & B3s actually look good. Looks like the neck on these is very close to LP neck, which works perfectly for me. Please, correct me if I'm wrong. Prices are a little disturbing though (5200$?), I could get a guitar & an Einstein for the prices a saw, so I've gotta give it some thought.
 
I play a Strat and a Gibson LP and depending on what kind of sound i need i change. The Strat sounds nice in cleans/crunch and killer in Solos. The LP was a long time "raped" for playing in my metall band :D But now it`s used for more rock like songs with riffs. So every guitar has it`s advantages and disadvandantages. I don`t believe that there`s a "perfect allround guitar" out there. That`s impossible IMO :no:
 
I agree, try and find a used B3 metal. Neck is very similiar to an LP standard 50's neck.

nbarts":18993jq7 said:
I did some search online & B3s actually look good. Looks like the neck on these is very close to LP neck, which works perfectly for me. Please, correct me if I'm wrong. Prices are a little disturbing though (5200$?), I could get a guitar & an Einstein for the prices a saw, so I've gotta give it some thought.
Click to expand...
 
nbarts":38ymjeex said:
I did some search online & B3s actually look good. Looks like the neck on these is very close to LP neck, which works perfectly for me. Please, correct me if I'm wrong. Prices are a little disturbing though (5200$?), I could get a guitar & an Einstein for the prices a saw, so I've gotta give it some thought.
Click to expand...

The list prices are high indeed. Worth every penny though IMO. They are out there used and the people who own them are people that take care of them. Get one if you can, I assure you that you will love it. :thumbsup:
 
Wow.... I LOVE my strats tone more than anything out of my Herbert!! then again i have it loaded with Duncans. Little 59 in the neck and a jb in the bridge. So warm and punchy. Awesome for soloing! I wish JUST LIKE YOU though that i could have a trem and personally 24 frets...:/ But then again the reason the neck pickup is so sweet sounding is because of where its located. More frets would probably brighten the tone. i tried the Anderson and suhr with the herbert recently and liked the Anderson better between the two. To me the Suhr was too bright, and very reminisent of my Ibanez prestige. The anderson had a different sound, but im not sure that i liked it better than my strat at all.
I SOOOOO need to find THE guitar to go with my herbert. The guitar you play with it is like night and day!!
 
Hartmut,
Thanks for the 2c. I have plenty of guitars to cover pretty much anything I need. I want this guitar for cleans & soloing mainly with tremolo. I don't really dig the stratocaster sound for cleans or solos, my LPs on the other hand do both very well for me actually. So basically having something with a trem is the key here.

Rob,
Thanks for the post. When I think of a great sounding solo guitar tone I picture something like Gary Moore. Starts do not sound like that, at least not in my hands. Now after what you've said about Anderson & Suhr I think I'm going to wipe them off my book at all.

I'll keep my eyes open for a used B3. Thanks!
 
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