Thinking about an electric?

[rmp]

Originally Posted by Chas007

I like the classic vibe models, but I don't know if I want to have to fool with any adjustments on the tremolo systems. I did not see any classic vibe models with a fixed bridge.

Have a look at the CV Telecasters.

[FrankHudson]

Originally Posted by Chas007

I like the classic vibe models, but I don't know if I want to have to fool with any adjustments on the tremolo systems. I did not see any classic vibe models with a fixed bridge.

There's the Telecaster. One of the reasons I fell in love with them was no moving bridge to deal with. In my old age, I'm now able to appreciate the Strat and other vibrato bridges more.

But if you like the Strat, it takes a minute with a screwdriver to "deck" the bridge by increasing the string claw tension. If you like the sound of a fixed bridge Strat, just wedge a block of wood or something behind the "tremolo block" inside the cavity. Good enough for Eric Clapton.

[Chas007]

This is the strat I'm looking at, Squier Classic Vibe '70s Stratocaster HSS - Black with Maple Fingerboard.

This is the amp I'm looking at, Fender Mustang LT 25 1x8" 25-watt Combo Amp.

Both are based on my budget. I wanted the humbucker pickup because I'm a big classic rock fan. I'm not crazy about the slightly bigger headstock, but I couldn't find an HSS in the classic vibes with the smaller headstock.

(Edit) I might go for the 50's SSS model as I am a huge Kenny Wayne Shepherd fan. The bodies are made of different woods, nato, pine and poplar. Does this really matter?

Opinions?

[Brent Hutto]

In my opinion, that's an outstanding choice. Either the HSS or SSS will be fine but in theory you've got just a bit more tonal flexibility with HSS.

I like that those Classic Vibes have ALNICO rather than ceramic pickups, they'll be a little higher output than vintage single-coils but much more clear sounding than the hot ceramics you often see in entry level guitars.

Personally, I think you ought to get that HSS one in the all-black-with-maple color scheme. Not that I'm biased but it's the best color for a Fender guitar by a long shot (OK not really but the Tele I just got is black-black-maple with chrome hardware just like that 70's CV Strat in the picture).

I also like pairing it with that Mustang, which isn't necessarily the amp I'd choose but I think it's a fine way to start out and a good value at $149-ish. It has an 8" speaker which is the smallest I'd go with, the 6" or smaller ones don't sound like they reproduce the full range of the guitar (low notes on the E string) properly to me.

P.S. Just gotta show a beauty shot of my Tele since I mentioned the color similarity

[Chickee]

Chas
The late 60’s switch from original size and shape headstock to the CBS era big, beautiful, curvaceous headstock, to this very day, is a polarizing feature of the Stratocaster nameplate!
Fender diehards either love it or hate it. I, myself, search out the big bruisers on Stratocasters. Nothing balances better, in my book.

Here are two American Specials with the CBS headstocks and a MIM Jazzmaster with its bespoke headstock(sized between the original Fender and CBS era)




Frank d.

[bleedingfingers]

You sound like you’re still in the exploring phase. If it doesn’t muddy the water too much you might consider looking at the G&L Tributes also - about the same price point as a Squier CV but with the Tribute you generally get US made pickups and only the body / hw is overseas (mostly in the same factories in Indonesia as the CV, probably)

The Legacy is billed as G&L’s evolution of the traditional strat, available either as SSS or HSS, while the S-500 is their take on a more modern sound strat. 3 pups also but they’re MFD instead of Alnico like the Legacy - a bit fuller sounding

And you won’t have to debate pre- or CBS headstock with the G&L

In the Tribute level the Legacy and S-500 will both have vibratos - they’re a newer two pin pivot design vs the older traditional strat design like the CV. But you can block them much like blocking the traditional design if you want….

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by Chas007

This is the Strat I'm looking at, Squier Classic Vibe '70s Stratocaster HSS - Black with Maple Fingerboard...
I might go for the 50's SSS model as I am a huge Kenny Wayne Shepherd fan. The bodies are made of different woods, nato, pine and poplar. Does this really matter?...

Originally Posted by Chas007

I don't know anything about amps. Is the one listed in the quote above that much better than this one, Fender Mustang LT 25 1x8" 25-watt Combo Amp...

In order:

• If you're looking for classic "Fender sound," poplar - customarily used on solid-color instruments - has been around since the 1950's and would be my first choice, especially on an SSS guitar; while pine was in fact used for some of the very first Broadcasters (the original name of the Telecaster, before a lawsuit by Gretsch forced a change of name in 1951) as well as some more recent imports, it's not going to have the "pop" of the ash bodies that became standard with the '52 Tele. As far as nato is concerned, you may be familiar with it as the side/back/neck wood of choice for many entry-level guitars due to its resemblance to mahogany - I tend to associate it with the doors installed in '50s-60s tract housing - and while it'll mellow out the steeliness of many inexpensive single-coil guitars, to my ears (YMMV) something harder and more reflective will tend to make the pickup transition on an HSS instrument more even across the board (listen to the "thick" sound of a Gibson SG and you'll hear what I mean)...
  
  
• As far as the two amps are concerned, neither one is "better" in the absolute and, as Brent stated in an earlier post, there are players who prefer solid-state (analog or digital) amps and players who prefer tube amps - and although I cut my musical teeth on the sound of those little glass tone bottles singing their hearts out, I won't hesitate to grab one of my analog SS combos when a particular gig calls for it. That said, one of the reasons I suggested the Bugera V5 above is its sheer simplicity: four WYSIWYG dials, a three-way attenuator and headphone out on the back panel (for when you're practicing at 3 AM and don't want to P.O. your S.O./kids/neighbors/cat/local constabulary ), and an 8" speaker, in a compact if not terribly lightweight (~26 pounds - tube amps tend to be heavier as a whole, and this little pitbull puppy is built like a tank) package - no scrolling through menus, no deep editing to achieve your desired tone, no planned product obsolescence and loss of resale value (voice of experience here) when the next generation[s] come to market and updates/parts become unavailable; there's a story about how when Dhani Harrison became interested in playing guitar he was given a Strat, cable, and tweed Fender Bassman amp, with strict orders not to ask for anything else until he had mastered that combination - and I'd tend to believe Papa George knew a little something about good electric guitar tone and exactly how to get it...
  
  I also don't know if, as a newcomer, you ever gave any thought to the amp simulations in a typical digital-modeling amp - with very few exceptions (the Roland JC-120 - an analog solid-state amp with its own unique tone - being a near-ubiquitous example) they're based on tube amps, and if you're interested in just how many of these classic tones were/are constructed IME there's no better way than to go to the source. Thankfully most lower-powered tube amps are very user-friendly in this respect: plug in, turn on, twist a dial, if you like what you hear write down your settings (so you can duplicate them next time out), if not keep turning until you find something you (and your audience) like - and FWIW every single guitar idol who got his/her start before the circa-1980 stompbox-pedalboard explosion got his/her start exactly the same way. Finally, there's just the plain old fun factor: if you're a studio player or cover-band guitarist who needs "that sound - right now" there's much to be said for the one-button convenience of a modeling rig - I worked with a studio guy who also did road work with a R&R HOF act, and swore by his first-generation Line 6 rackmount unit; however, speaking as a summa cum loudly graduate of the Hard Knocks Discovery School of Electric Guitar Tone (class of 1966, dual major in church-basement/legion-hall/schoolyard dances and weddings/bar mitzvahs), there's nothing like the satisfaction of finding your "signature sound" by sitting down for a couple hours, turning dials and flipping switches on both ends of the cable, and hitting upon something that you can call your own...

[Chas007]

I haven't mentioned how I can go into a store and spend half an hour picking out what I want, then carry it around the store for another 30 minutes before walking back to the isle where I got it and placing it back on the shelf. Well I should have. Thanks bleedingfingers, but I would never make up my mind if we muddy the waters any more.

Chickee, you sold me on the big head. I see where you have one like I want, except yours is the real deal and out of my price range. I'm going to wait on the Squier CV 70's HSS to come back in stock.

Steve DeRosa, you've sold me on the Bugera amp. I'm going with tubes. When I was 16 years old I had an old Sears/Silvertone telecaster and I believe it was a Silvertone amp. It had tubes in it and it doubled as the case for the guitar.

Thanks to all that replied.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by Chas007

I haven't mentioned how I can go into a store and spend half an hour picking out what I want, then carry it around the store for another 30 minutes before walking back to the aisle where I got it and placing it back on the shelf....

It's OK, we all do that at times - in my case, it's usually when I get a scowl from my wife after she sees the price tag...

Steve DeRosa, you've sold me on the Bugera amp. I'm going with tubes. When I was 16 years old I had an old Sears/Silvertone Telecaster and I believe it was a Silvertone amp. It had tubes in it and it doubled as the case for the guitar...

IME you might find that SSS Kenny Wayne Shepherd model a far-better match with the Bugera V5: the postwar-era circuit was developed in the days when single-coil pickups (from P-90's to early Fender designs to Epiphone Tone Spectrums to DeArmond Dynasonics to add-on suspended archtop pickups) ruled the guitar world, and while it adds depth and sweetness to the expected treble chime and clarity it can sound too dark with a full-size humbucker; BTW not to worry if you're into classic rock, as it's easy enough to get a nice British-style crunch by tweaking the gain/volume/tone controls to match the characteristics of your guitar, and with the right combination you can even induce selective feedback - I used to do the Moody Blues' "Story in Your Eyes" at coffeehouse volume with my last band, running either my 3-PU Gretsch 5622 or goldtop P-90 LP through the V5, and had no trouble whatsoever getting that gradual-onset feedback on the intro (particularly with the LP's hotter pickups )...

As regards your former Silvertone, if yours was the complete combination the guitar would've been a Danelectro, available with either a single (1448) or double pickup (1449/1457) although I've only seen the 1-PU versions in person; an interesting application of early-60's technology that looked better on paper than it actually performed in person (the tubes could overheat if you tried to close the case to give your tone some body, and it sounded thin, nasal, and edgy if you left the case open for proper ventilation), they've acquired cult status over the last 60 years, and if you still had yours it could command well in excess of $1K in clean working condition . Here's a pic:

[Chas007]

Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa

IME you might find that SSS Kenny Wayne Shepard model a far-better match with the Bugera V5:

Yes that was the one I had. The guitar was different. It was the same color but a true telecaster shape. Parents bought it second hand for me. Sad to say, I do not still have it.

As for my current strat quandary, if I switch to single coils that takes me away from my color scheme and I think I really was liking the all black with the maple frett board. If I stay with the 70s CV and a poplar body my pick would be one of these two. And to be clear it was not the Kenny Wayne Shepherd model I was looking at. That's out of my price range. I was saying he is one of the guitarists that I've always admired and liked his style.

By the way I already ordered the amp. I didn't want to take a chance on them running out of them.

[Brent Hutto]

Originally Posted by Chas007

As for my current strat quandary, if I switch to single coils that takes me away from my color scheme. If I stay with the 70s CV and a poplar body my pick would be one of these two.

Of those two I think the cream and tortoise color scheme looks better but I'm personally not a "rosewood" 'board guy. Love me some maple (on electric) or ebony (on acoustics). I put "rosewood" in quotes because I'm not sure what the actual wood is they use on those but it's going to look and feel like the rosewood family.

In the end, all this stuff is somewhat of a stab in the dark when you're just starting out. What's going to matter is how the guitar feels and sounds to you, playing your music. But it's another Catch-22, you don't know how your music will play and sound until you get that first guitar and start playing it.

FWIW, over a period of nearly eight months it took me the following to find out what my music was like and what worked best:

In-store demos of about half a dozen amps

Buying and brining home at least briefly owning two different amp models

Trying out in-store lord knows how many different guitars (40? 50?)

Owning four different types of electric guitar at least briefly

And I don't even want to get started talking about my pedals/effects journey

So it's entirely possible this won't end up being the last or only electric guitar and amp you own for the rest of your life...or even the rest of this year

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by Brent Hutto

Of those two I think the cream and tortoise color scheme looks better...it's entirely possible this won't end up being the last or only electric guitar and amp you own for the rest of your life...or even the rest of this year...

^^^^^ What he said - on both counts... ^^^^^

[Chas007]

Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa

^^^^^ What he said - on both counts... ^^^^^

I just don't see any other colors that I like, even if I went with a 50s or 60s model which would also change the wood type for the body.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by Chas007

I just don't see any other colors that I like, even if I went with a 50s or 60s model which would also change the wood type for the body.

As that famous sneaker company says:

"Just do it..."

[Brent Hutto]

Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa

As that famous sneaker company says:

"Just do it..."

Let me be the voice of reason here...

Just kidding. Pick the one you like best and DO IT!