Incoming NSD

[ThePearDream]

Tomorrow is new strat day! I'm in the process of selling off 4 of my 6 strats after deciding that I had too much redundancy in my collection. So far I have sold two good, but unnecessary strats and have spent the proceeds on a new strat that should be a bit different.

I currently have a fantastic 60s style strat with an 86ish MIJ E series Fender neck and MIM OTM body. It checks all the boxes for me in a vintage style strat: 7.25" radius neck, vintage frets, bent steel saddles, and really sparkly/glassy pickups. It's not going anywhere.


For a while I've been wanting a 50s style strat to go with it, rather than the multiple rosewood board strats I had. I was also hoping for a color that would look nice next to my OTM. I was leaning towards a used Classic 50s model in Daphne blue for awhile. Then when the Vintera line came out, I decided to get a 50s Seafoam Green.

I was pretty much ready to get that Seafoam, but a few weeks ago I was swapping pickups on my Mary Kay pink Jazzmasterish guitar and thinking about the features that it has that make it my most played guitar. I realized that I didn't actually want a 50s strat, I wanted a modern strat with a maple neck. Since I don't believe that the fretboard makes any difference to the amplified sound, I almost spent $1000 on another redundant guitar!

So, I started looking for strats with 2 point tremolos, modern necks, locking tuners, etc. I looked at the American Pro, but there just weren't any colors that grabbed me. I looked at used American Standards, but I knew it could be a long wait until one in a good color, in good condition showed up for a fair price. I looked at the Player Series, but again, none of the colors were working for me. Then one day I found what I was looking for. It is definitely not a vintage color and it's one of those love it or hate it colors, that I love. When I found a long (100+ post) thread on TGP of blues dads going on about how ugly the color was, I knew I had found the right guitar.

So what is it?

A Player series in limited Electron Green. I love that type of bright yellow-green, it reminds of so many great things: the first signs of growth in the spring, fresh vegetables, refreshing citrus. Also - and I know this is an unpopular opinion - I like pale maple necks. A brand new neck shouldn't be orange. Taking the extra step of tinting a neck is too much like relicing the body or buying pre-ripped jeans. Anyway, we've got a 2 point trem, which will be getting a set of block saddles, rather than the bent steel, a non-vintage color, a modern neck with little or no tint, it'll be getting some locking tuners, and before too long, I'll put in my customary neck on/off switch. It already has a bridge tone control, so there's very little to mod here. This will be my first new (non-Squier) Fender in about 15 years.



Me being a designer, I do stuff like the image below, to help me visualize things.

[Larry Mal]

I can dig it. If you are new to the quality of the Player series, it's very good. Let us know how you find it.

[ThePearDream]

Thanks Larry. I've seen lots of great reviews of the Players. I'll update later in the week when I've had a chance to get acquainted with it.

[Larry Mal]

Please do, I have a Player series fretless Jazz Bass, but have considered looking into a Stratocaster of the same series also. A review would be great.

[ThePearDream]

Quick first impressions: I have no complaints other than the factory 9 gauge strings. The color is great. I like the neck. The pickups are far better than the stock ones from the late 90s MIM standard I had years ago. The overall craftsmanship seems to be excellent. I went ahead and ordered some new locking tuners that will be here on Saturday - I'm looking forward to getting some real strings on so I can really put it through it's paces.

[Larry Mal]

Yeah, that's what I thought you might say. Fender has really stepped it up with these Players, and the pickups are a huge part of that. I have that fretless Jazz Bass Player now, the pickups are good, and I had a 90's era MIM Jazz Bass and that thing was garbage. They cut corners on it everywhere including using two neck pickups instead of a neck and bridge pickup, so the route for the bridge pickup would not actually accommodate any other Jazz Bass bridge pickups (too small).

And of course the pickup magnets didn't line up with the strings, but whatever, they were dirt cheap ceramic pickups anyway.

But flash forward to the Player series, and there's really nothing to complain about, is there? It's all good, usable stuff. And of course the usual great playing Fender necks.

You have any other mods planned?

[ThePearDream]

But flash forward to the Player series, and there's really nothing to complain about, is there? It's all good, usable stuff. And of course the usual great playing Fender necks.

You have any other mods planned?

I actually bought a new vibrato for this today. The stock vibrato is quite good, but I wanted a pop-in, adjustable tension arm. This should really be the default in this day and age. Fender has made pop-in arms since the Jazzmaster and tension adjustment since the Mustang - there's really no good reason to have a screw in arm. Obviously it's the fault of blues lawyer boomers who hope to sound like Clapton. ANYWAY, I bought a vibrato used on the American Deluxe/Elite/Ultra. So for now it'll just be the locking tuners, ultra trem, and neck switch.

If anybody else loves this color a much as me, there are a few other models sporting it (and some other misc. colors I found during my research:





Limited CME Sherwood Green:



And the limited Capri Orange looks great with Maple and even comes in lefty. I probably would've gotten one of these (in righty of course) if I didn't already have an orange in my collection.

[marqueemoon]

Quick first impressions: I have no complaints other than the factory 9 gauge strings. The color is great. I like the neck. The pickups are far better than the stock ones from the late 90s MIM standard I had years ago. The overall craftsmanship seems to be excellent. I went ahead and ordered some new locking tuners that will be here on Saturday - I'm looking forward to getting some real strings on so I can really put it through it's paces.

The color looks way better here than in the stock photos. Nice.

[Zork]

Another thread to encourage me to refinish my strat one day. They just don't look good in red. Anything green or blue is the right choice.

[ThePearDream]

Anything green or blue is the right choice.

Absolutely, 100% true.

Well, my tuners came over the weekend, but I had to wait until yesterday for the new bridge. Last night I got all of the new parts in place and opened it up to pop in the neck on/off switch. Now it has some real strings and I'm dialing in the setup.



A few months from now, after it adjusts to the arid climate here in Colorado, I will have some fret sprout to clean up - which is totally normal for me. At that point, I'll do a fret level and replace the plastic nut. In the meantime, I'll be enjoying my new strat.

It bears repeating that the stock pickups are really good. Also, I knew I'd like the satin neck, but wasn't sure about the gloss fretboard. It turns out to be a non-issue though and the neck is really fantastic. I've already found myself looking at player Jazzmasters and contemplating gratuitous projects.

[Singlebladepickup]

Hell yeah. I, too, have a Fender from the player series in green. I've decided no more gloss necks for me

[MKR]

cool cool. I'm digging the colour.

So am I right in understanding that the new player strats have different wiring? Did you say there's a tone control on the bridge pickup?

[ThePearDream]

cool cool. I'm digging the colour.

So am I right in understanding that the new player strats have different wiring? Did you say there's a tone control on the bridge pickup?

Yes, the factory wiring is as follows:
tone 1 controls neck and middle pickups
tone 2 controls the bridge pickup

A bridge tone (and neck on switch) are essential strat mods for me, so I would normally make that change myself. It's nice that Fender thought to do it that way from the factory though.

[MKR]

seems like a nice option. I never really understood the logic of the traditional strat tone control.

[ThePearDream]

seems like a nice option. I never really understood the logic of the traditional strat tone control.

Just between you and me, I'd say that Leo Fender, for all of his brilliant ideas, did get a few things wrong.