Fender Deluxe Roadhouse Stratocaster Maple Fingerboard Classic Copper

Although the pictures on the ad for this guitar didn't correctly portray the color, I still love it. I got this strat because of the tone boost in the second tone control. It adds body to the regular tones of a strat, great as an alternative when playing leads.

This is my first Fender in a long, long while and I really wanted to like it. Unfortunately it has a lot to be desired. I have no problem with the sound. It seems the noiseless pickups are not for everybody, they are not as bright as true single coils I feel, but that also means they are never ice-picky, and actually they are exactly how I want them. The preamp works well too, it adds good mid/bottom boost My problem is the build quality. Out of the box the neck was not mounted straight (not a truss-rod issue, but leaned to the right), so I had to straighten it out. The nut is not cut right either, the high E is too close to the edge. The fret edges are pretty sharp and rough, and I found some leveling issues as well. These are the points most players would immediately notice and dislike, and I don't understand why they cannot get them right. Indonesian Ibanez, Schecters and PRS truly embarrass these Fenders. I smoothed the frets myself, but still there is something really uncomfortable about this neck. I cannot pinpoint what it is, but it just feels very, very wrong. At this point I am thinking about just replacing the entire neck with a Warmoth or something. I believe that will transform this guitar, and I can't care less about not having a Fender logo on the headstock. I don't regret buying this guitar, but I will never buy another Fender either.

I had been ignoring Fenders for many years because I thought they were overpriced, archaic and just living off the past glory. However I missed Strat single-coil sounds, so I looked for alternatives and found this. Now I am renewing my love affair with Strat. Noiseless Vintage pickups have pretty warm tones overall. The bridge pickup doesn't have any harshness. When I compare side-by-side I notice certain differences with an Am Pro but I don't feel one is better than the other. Different amps I use make far bigger differences for that matter. Either way I can get the exact Strat sounds I want out of this. And with all the modern features at half the price, I can't care less where it was built. No complaints about the fit and finish either. I was a little skeptical about the preamp but it works great. Unlike common bass preamps, it has 6 pre-calibrated tones that go from almost no-EQ tone to thicker/fatter tones. I never use traditional tone controls because they just make tones dull, but this boosts up the middle and bottom just the right amount instead, and it really works well when you want to add some punch. I am yet to run out of the battery but you can play it in the passive mode without battery, so no worry. A few things I don't like: it is fairly heavy for an alder-bodied Strat for some reason, the satin-finish maple fingerboard gets dirty easily, the preamp rotary switch is very stiff. Also the old-style tremolo is just an anachronism. This guitar has all the modern features except the tremolo. Why, Fender? I will probably replace it with a Wilkinson, and then this guitar will be almost perfect.

The guy who said not great value for the dollar...huh? Best Strat dollar for dollar. 1. nice big neck 2. locking tuners 3. no hum pickups 4. active eq boost 5. pickups work with master tone when your battery dies The only negative: these are not lightweight. Now the secret for all those guys doing custom builds of Jerry Garcia type guitars with preamps etc. Jerry's sound is the middle pickup of a strat. This does it, without hum. Then kick in the preamp for bigger headroom, or thickening the sound from single coil to P90 (almost humbucker sound). Save yourself a few thousand against building your custom "Wolf" and try this one. You're welcome...

I'm just a noodler and a doodler at this point. But I've been doing it for about 40 years, so I know what feels and sounds right for me. Played a Squier Bullet Strat for ages, back in my "If you can't play well, play HARD days." In later years, I've developed a much lighter touch and nothing can do a light touch, IMHO, as well as single-coils. ESPECIALLY Fender noiseless Add some drifty, dreamy reverb, and I'm in Old Hippie Heaven. Then, with the dirty sounds, oh...beautiful. S1 switch adds some very nice sounds, too. A professional guitar for under a grand, very nice. Setup, fit and finish was perfect. Thanks, guys!

Sometimes you just know you have a good one when you pick up a guitar, and that's how this one feels. It is very comfortable, and sounds great. The color is unique and really attractive. This instantly became one of my top 5 guitars when I started playing it.