Should I get a cheap strat?

Monkey Invasion said:
Been thinking of getting a strat for quite awhile, but with it being my 1st electric...I've decided to limit my budget to around $400~500, that way i might have more money to fool around with effects :mrgreen:

But after a fair share of researching, I realized that unstable tuning is a common problem on soft tail strats. Even big names like fender is facing the same problem so i wouldn't dare to imagine how serious it will be on cheaper copies.

So my question would be, should I get a Strat? Or should I play safe and get a tele for now?
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hey there, if your interested in getting a 2nd hand yamaha pacifica, do pm me, i'm intending to let go of mine after getting my strat, it's definitely within your budget.
 
faizal_rocks said:
I remember back in 2006, while walking into Swee Lee, my intention was to get a Fender Mexican Standard Strat but ended up walking out with a Squier Standard Strat..:)

Why? Preferred the feel of the neck on the Squier.
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i agree on that, some squiers hav better neck feel when compared to certain fenders. i was unable to find a fender that gave me the awesome feel so i had to ship from online.
 
bf0502tr said:
whats a 2 point floating tremolo??
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GIT287.rev_fender.fend4_prev-460-80.jpg
 
wilkinson has quite a few designs lol...and the ones at sv didnt have any 2 point trems for me to refer. they only stock the "5+1" which is greek to me also lol
 
thanks for all the replies! now i'm feeling a lot safer buying strats. i guess i have to try out all the strats i can get my hands on. I'm currently looking squiers and swing (haven got to try out the timbres from sv yet)
Any strats suggestions for me to get a headstart when im at the shops?
 
hi bro i think you should get the swing bcause of its feel and tone in my opinion but i think squier has a better market value if you intend to sell away your guitar:D
 
^ thats gonna change quite soon. timbre sr200 is quite good. as for squiers, havent gotten myself to sit down and test one yet haha :p
 
obzervr said:
Just wondering, what's your kind of music and the sound reference that you're planning to achieve?
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woah now that you've mentioned it..... maybe some clean and thin sound for playing blues? i really like bb king's tone but it might be a little too fat and warm for me, somewhere in between clapton and BB.
I didnt really gave much thought on what kind of sound to get. main reason for me to get an electric was because i needed more frets and string bending. sorry for the lack of information on that part.
 
I guess if it the extra frets, string bending and light overdrive bluesy sound a strat or tele wouldn't go too far off. A Floyd Rose equipped guitar may be an overkill for you. As for strings going out of tune. it is not really a big problem as it will soon be second nature to you to tweak the tuning to pitch once in a while as you play more regularly.

$400-$500 can get you a decent guitar if brand is not a primary concern. My suggestion is to pay more attention to the primary specs such as the Wood type of the body - Alder or Ash (I don't recommend basswood bodies for your preferred style) and the neck profile and finishing (touch and feel is best). Other aspects such as pickups, tuning machines etc can be upgraded quite effortlessly and affordably over time.

My suggestion if to spend the excess cash on the best practice amp you can afford rather than effects.

Good Luck!
 
Yep, most Fender strats lean towards the ash-body sides. If you're looking for more frets, i guess you should try finding those with 22 frets instead of the normal 21s found on standard Fenders. If you really need that space for bending stuff, i guess a bare minimum would be medium-jumbo frets? A good practice amp as what obzervr said is definitely important.

Heh i'm on the lookout for a strat myself, anyone got any insights/opinions on the Highway1s?
 
hah - watch out for my up & coming ash body diy strat -work in progress

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@obzervr Thanks alot for the tips and suggestions!!

but now that the strat issue out of the way, I have the amp to worry about..
I'm considering the timbre sr200 package with sound drive sg-15, will that be a good deal or is there a better amp option if i were to buy separately?

Pardon me for asking so many questions cause I'm really skeptical.. Please bear with me for now :mrgreen:

Thanks
 
if u die die wanna keep ur spending to below $500 then stick to that. if not there're other practice amps such as the roland microcube that can do almost anything lol
 
Just went down to SV and tried both the timbre and smash s1 through the SoundDrive sg15 and Nox amp. Really impressed by the sound and effects on the Nox and the wattage seems to suit my bedroom jams better than the 15W SD.

My mind is currently set on the Smash S1 and Nox amp, if everything goes well I should be making a 2nd trip to make the purchase real soon :mrgreen::mrgreen:

Big thanks to everyone for helping out with tips and suggestions these past few days, really really appreciate it!
 
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