T H E GA S STATION 98 Words Ed Mitchell / Photography Neil Godwin HIGH-SPEC MIDPRICE S-TYPES If you’re looking for a Strat-style electric, the world is your oyster. These affordable options will make you happy as a clam TOTAL GUITAR DECEMBER 2018 TGR313.gear_test.
the tg test 99 I t’s hard to believe that the Fender Stratocaster is officially an old-age pensioner. Yes, it was 64 years ago that Leo Fender and his team unveiled the follow up to the Telecaster. The Strat was the result of feedback from Fender customers. In direct contrast to the twopickup, hardtail, slab-bodied Tele, the punters wanted something with three pickups, a well-designed vibrato unit and a more comfortable contoured chassis.
T H E GA S STATION FENDER PLAYER STRATOCASTER CHAPMAN ML-1 TRADITIONAL £559 The original. Still the best? £429 Metalheads go old-school... Nice looking guitar. Shame I prefer a slicker, satin-finish neck... This thing looks too good to be true for less than 500 quid... If that’s your preference, then you’re well in here. While the Player’s headstock face and fingerboard are coated in a gloss urethane, the rest of the C-profile neck has a satin urethane feel.
the tg test G&L TRIBUTE LEGACY STERLING BY MUSIC MAN CT50 CUTLASS £479 Leo’s other great brand... £499 Try the V neck on... What’s the sizzle on the Legacy then? What’s the USP of this one? The basswood body has all the classic 50s contours, and the CLF-100 pickups are designed to take us back to that era too. Loaded with Alnico V magnets, these pups are the result of research by G&L’s Paul Gagon. He studied Leo’s old blueprints and some vintage Strats to voice these things.
the tg test Head to head Melding old-school charm with modern features I 102 t’s no coincidence that these guitars find themselves embroiled in the same group test. Alongside the obvious similarities in pickup format and bolt-on construction, all four guitars share a common 648mm (25.5") scale length. This measurement is essential for the classic Strat snap in the top strings, and twang in the fatter ones.
T H E GA S STATION FINaL VeRdICt Choosing the mid-price S-type for you a t the age of 64, the Fender Stratocaster is almost as old as The Rolling Stones, and in much better shape. Each one of the guitars in this group test owes a huge debt to Leo Fender’s second oldest solidbody, yet they also have attributes of their own. Even if it didn’t show its vibrato off to the best effect on this occasion, the G&L Legacy scores big points for its vintage-voiced pickups.
