Stylish contours, three single-coils and an elegant six-in-line headstock: these elements help make the Fender Stratocaster the most recognisable electric in music history.
Since the first Strat rolled out of the factory in 1954, the model has been refined, redesigned and re-engineered endlessly, on top of inspiring a legion of inspired models adding subtle twists to the formula or reimagining the shape entirely.
There are a few key terms that’ll be thrown around the world of S-types. Firstly, HSS and SSS – this refers to the pickup configuration, with HSS referring to a humbucker in the bridge and single-coils in the neck and middle position. SSS, as you might have guessed, refers to three single-coil pickups. Other configurations such as HSH and HH do pop up in the world of S-types, but when it comes to traditionally-styled, overtly Fender-inspired instruments, HSS and SSS are definitely more common.
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Dual-humbucker configurations are also oft-seen in the world of stripped-back rock and metal-focused S-types. These often won’t let you get what’s considered a ‘traditional’ Stratocaster sound, so be aware of that if you want a that does it all.
Some s have the option to split their humbuckers for a more overtly Strat-esque sound – this, as the name implies, involves taking signal from only one of the coils of the humbucker, leading to a spankier sound and negating the pickup’s hum-cancelling abilities. Results vary, and those with discerning taste will claim that a split humbucker will never sound as good and punchy as a true single-coil – but, it’s all down to preference.
Another specification that’s important to keep in mind when looking at any purchase – but especially S-type s – is fretboard radius. This can confuse beginners, and get lost in a slew of measurements and specs, but it’s crucial to knowing how a feels.
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A good way to visualise this is to imagine a ’s fret extending out of the sides of the fretboard, keeping the same curvature and forming a circle. The radius of that circle is what “fretboard radius” refers to – a smaller radius means a more curved fretboard, and a larger radius means a flatter ‘board.
The earliest Stratocasters had 7.25-inch fretboards, while more modern-spec’d instruments can have ‘boards as flat as 12 or 14 inches. Is one better than the other? No, but again it’s down to personal preference and playing style. A more curved fretboard is often said to feel more welcoming when fretting open chords towards the lower frets, while a flatter radius is said to make bending and fast runs easier, especially beyond the 12th fret and with a lower string height.
The Strat-inspired body shape is one of the most common shapes out there. To prevent this list reaching the same word-count as War And Peace, we’ve aimed to offer an overview of great options for a spectrum of budgets, and of playing styles – so if we’ve missed one of your favourites, know it wasn’t out of spite.
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G&L is the brand that Leo Fender, along with George Fullerton and Dale Hyatt, started after leaving Fender. So, the designs certainly have some pedigree, and the Comanche shape is no exception: the silhouette is the classic S-shape, and there are some standard Stratocaster-like features, but it’s got a lot of little G&L touches that set the apart from the crowd.
The most obvious difference is the three pickups, which are the unique Z-Coil design – these are split single-coils as you might find in a P-bass, only adjusted for six-string operation. They still offer an articulate single-coil sound, but due to the split-coil design, they’re naturally hum-cancelling – think of it like having the top bobbin of your humbucker across just three strings, and the bottom bobbin across the other three.
Other features include Leo Fender’s dual-fulcrum G&L vibrato bridge, and a unique set of controls to match the pickups: there’s a five-way blade switch alongside volume, treble and bass controls, as well as a push/pull expander on treble pot which allows additional pickup combinations of neck and bridge or all three pickups together
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The Tribute series is also excellent value for money, landing (depending on your choice of fretboard wood) just above or below half a grand.
Sire’s collaboration with legendary ist Larry Carlton netted a number of interesting and affordable models, but for this lists’ purposes the most interesting is the S7 FM. Here, the pickup combination is HSS, letting you get pretty raucous with the overdriven sounds if you
The impressive thing here is the price – the looks like it could cost three times as much as it does, with a tasteful flamed maple top and roasted maple neck and fretboard, as well as staggered locking tuners. That’s a lot of for £499.
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In terms of playing experience, the 9.5-inch radius fretboard should please all camps – this isn’t a true-to-vintage super-rounded 7.5-inch radius, nor is it a compound shredder’s radius. However, if you do want to get your widdly-widdly-woos on, the sleekly thinned-out neck joint should let you shred away with abandon across all 22 frets.
Build: Double-cutaway alder body with flamed maple veneer, bolt-on roasted maple neck with 9.5” radius roasted maple fingerboard, dot inlays, 22 medium jumbo frets and bone nut
Fender’s Player Plus range landed late last year, featuring a smorgasbord of modern updates to its classic designs. In the S-style camp, the most notable is the HSS Stratocaster, which features a newly-designed wide range humbucker in the bridge position for punchy distorted tones, as well as noiseless single-coils in the middle and neck.
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It’s not a Fender Strat for the vintage purist – the fretboard radius is a rather flat 12 inches, and for some, the cleanliness of noiseless single coils is anathema to the appeal of a Strat. However, for those who are happy to embrace modern specifications, the Player Plus Stratocaster HSS offers a lot of welcome updates to the formula – the neck carve is consistently slim and comfy, with rolled fretboard edges to present minimum interference with your playing. The modern two-point vibrato and locking tuners are a nice touch too, helping keep things stable throughout the most judicious of wobbling.
Electronics: Player Plus humbucker (bridge) and Noiseless Strat pickups (middle and neck), five-way blade selector switch, volume, tone (middle and neck), push/pull bridge tone (coil split)
So that’s a Strat for the modern-inclined, but what about those who want a no-nonsense take on the vintage Strat formula? Well, Squier’s excellent Classic Vibe range is here for you. The Classic Vibe 60s Stratocaster doesn’t offer anything massively groundbreaking, but hey, if it ain’t broke…
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The three alnico single-coils are no massive compromise compared to their pricier Fender equivalents, and the overall faithful construction is hard to beat at this price range. The fretboard radius is a comfy 9.5 inches, with a laurel fretboard – one of the best affordable rosewood alternatives.
If you’ve got a bit more than Squier money burning a hole in your pocket, the American Original 60s Stratocaster is the most reliably authentic and top-of-the-line take on a vintage Stratocaster this side of the Fender Custom Shop.
The Alder body, bolt-on thick-C maple neck and Rosewood fretboard are all carved to vintage specs, with the fretboard being round-laminated rather than slab-laminated. What’s the difference? It’s down to how the fretboard is joined to the neck. The bottom of a round-laminated board is curved to a similar radius on the top and the bottom, with the top of the maple neck carved to accommodate this curve. Slab-laminated is when the bottom of the fretboard and the top of the neck are simply flat planes, glued together. Does it make a difference? Well, some swear by round-laminated ‘boards, and if that’s the attention-to-detail you need, the American Original Strat has your back.
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Electronics here are a trio of Pure Vintage ‘65 Gray-Bottom Single-Coil Stratocaster pickups, wax-potted to prevent microphonics and voiced to match the sounds of the mid-60s. Fuzz Face and Marshall stack not included.
An area of the S-type that this list is yet to encounter is the metal-focused “superstrat”. That changes with the entry-level Jackson JS11 Dinky AH, which has a minimalist, dual-humbucker design with a dual-fulcrum tremolo – all for under £150.
The two humbuckers here are high-output Jackson humbuckers, which are perfect for slamming into the front of a high-gain amplifier and keeping low-end response tight. Especially thanks to the price, the JS11 is also prime real estate to throw in some aftermarket pickups if you’d fancy either lower output or a more premium sound.
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In terms of feel, the fretboard has a nice and flat 12-inch radius, meaning big bends at the higher end of the fretboard won’t choke out even with super-low action.
Whether you’re a budding metalhead on a budget, or just want to expand your collection to cover heavier territory – the JS11 is a great no-nonsense option.
Keeping at the heavier end of things, Charvel’s Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HSS HT E (catchy name!) brings some rare hard-tail representation to the world of S-types, with a
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