For my next guitar I've been considering a Fender Strat, in fact, right now I have a strat-copy cat and I really like it I just want something a little better, plus I think having more than one guitar would be good for gigging and stuff like that. My question is that I love the tone of a strat, i'm just a little weary because I like alot of hard rock and I'm not sure if a strat can get as heavy as I want it. I listen to stuff like: metallica, zack wylde, ozzy and stuff like that... the guitar I have right now is more like a Fat-strat copycat, two single coils (in the neck and middle position) and a humbucker in the bridge. Do you think I could get a reasonably heavy sound in the bridge position on a strat or should I go for the fat-strat? or should I consider other guitars (such as a tele or a les paul)?
Steve-0
Kirk Hammett used strats for some work with metallica... at least, back in the 80s...
All Yngwee uses is a Strat.
If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis
Steve-
The HSS Strat might be made for you. Gotten some good reviews, especially for its versatility -- gets both good Strat and the harder bridge-bucker tones. The wiring is more complex than the std 5-position Strat switch, allowing humbucker splitting and some unusual pup combos. But, I don't know how much better it will be than your current HSS-style ax. Take yours to a store and compare.
-Greg
-=tension & release=-
I have a standard strat, and I can get quite heavy with it. Try turning the treble up a bunch and crankign the bass to max, and get rid of most of the mid. When distorted, it sounds really good for metal.
The king of rock, some say lives
the lizard king, is surely dead
the king of France, lost his head
the King of Kings... bled
( email me at esherman@wideopenwest.(com). I almost never check my hotmailaccount.
But you'll have MAJOR problems trying to get your solos heared with virtually no mids. Or atleast, that's my experience...
But you'll have MAJOR problems trying to get your solos heared with virtually no mids. Or atleast, that's my experience...
Many solutions to than problem, the easiest of which is using a well designed gain (overdrive) pedal and the Strat neck pup, which provides the best midrange response. The right amp for a Strat can also make a big difference.
Edit: Just realized you were responding to dialing-out midrange comment above, Arjen. I agree, that the mids body is good for cutting through the live mix -- along with some nice highs keep things from being too muddy.
-Greg
-=tension & release=-
You shouldn't really have a problem...getting a heavy sound is as much to do with amps/effects as it is the guitar, if not more.
As said before, Malmsteen and Hammet both used Strats, and they managed ok, lol.
Somnium Dulcis.
Last weekend a young lady thats been playing acoustic for a couple years, got her first electric guitar a fender Squire strat. All excited about showing me and wanting me to try it out. I plugged it into my rack setup and it played and sounded great. It left the other guitarist that where there crying because they spent mocho dollars on their guitars and this squire strat flat out got down and rocked.
You have to take into account the number of years I've been playing and the investment I have in my equipment. I could not see anything wrong with that squire strat it played and sounded great. Things to consider for improving your sound and tone are Equalizers and attenuators.
Fender Squire-> Eq-> preamp->Eq-> power amp->attenuators->speakers.
From the attenuators other out-> Eq-> power amp->speakers.
Just thinking
Joe
Thanks for all the help guys. I know that strats have always had a bad rap when it comes to playing heavy music and I was just curious as how they would sound, since I really, really love that clean strat sound. Actually, maybe I'll go check out some E.Q's and compressors sometime soon, maybe they'll give me that sound i'm looking for (I tried one out at the music store one time but didn't really get what it did)
Steve-0
But you'll have MAJOR problems trying to get your solos heared with virtually no mids. Or atleast, that's my experience...
Well, it seemed he was looking for more of a metal tone, which dosen't have alot of mids. A solution to that would be if he had seperate EQs for each channel....but it still sounds awesome with lots of Mids.
I got a little Peavy transtube amp, btw.
The king of rock, some say lives
the lizard king, is surely dead
the king of France, lost his head
the King of Kings... bled
( email me at esherman@wideopenwest.(com). I almost never check my hotmailaccount.
Iron Maiden have a good heavy sound and they use strats, you could change the pups and pots in your existing strat if you like the guitar, would be a tad cheaper option.
gaz
Iron Maiden have a good heavy sound and they use strats, you could change the pups and pots in your existing strat if you like the guitar, would be a tad cheaper option.
gaz
I don't think it's necessarily a problem from the guitar, it sounds like it would be good so long as I got a good, heavy sounding amp.
Steve-0
