Fender Player Stratocaster Review

Strat

I do like this guitar!

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Fender Player Stratocaster - 3-Tone Sunburst with Maple Fingerboard

Exceptional guitar for the price, smooth play and amazing sound. I would absolutely recommend the player series to anyone looking for a great price and exceptional quality.

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Just buy it

I've never bought a guitar online until I got this Strat. I was always worried about the guitar not looking like what I thought it would or maybe something happening during shipping. But the pictures Sweetwater takes are spot on and the shipping was great, everything was secure and my guitar showed up in perfect condition, and it plays and sounds fantastic. You can buy from Sweetwater… read more with confidence

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Thank you Spencer

I cannot wait until I get mine this weekend. Just for the help alone I'm giving Spencer 5 stars for helping me score one after they came and went within a week's time. I see them becoming collectors items down the road due to the exclusivity of the guitar. Being a roasted maple neck and a exclusive color it was a no brainer. Only 2 more days.

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Awesome guitar

This is a great littel guitar I got it and order some fat 50s to put in it but the pickups that were in it sounded great . I love how fender gets guitars into every players hands affordable good quality guitars for the rich person and the poor a little something for everybody. I only wished my other favorite guitar maker Gibson would do the same. Affordable guitar with Gibson… read more name on it. The fender mexican guitar is a sweet little player.

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Player's Series Strat - Great Guitar

Many thanks to my Sales Engineer, Ryan Clapper, for his help on getting me this Strat. Ryan has fixed me up with some great guitars over the years and I appreciate his expertise and sales service. Ryan said he'd expedite delivery on this one and I got the guitar the very next day after I purchased it - thanks, Ryan! Also the Strat arrived double-boxed in perfect condition - no damage,… read more dings, etc. Thank you! This Strat is a nice guitar for a decent price. The alder body makes for great tone and the Alnico V pickups give me the Strat sounds I want. This is my first all-maple neck and fingerboard - I got the Tidepool color with maple fingerboard. The maple fingerboard plays nice and smooth. To me it has a slightly sharper attack compared to a rosewood fingerboard, but I adjust everything on the tone knobs and amp to smooth out the sound. I like the satin feel on the back of the neck and the modern C shape, all very comfortable for me all up and down the fretboard. The only thing I would say about the frets is that bending feels a little "rough" at this point but probably with more playing everything will begin to smooth out. The frets are decent, with no sharp frets, but could be a little bit larger for me. Not sure how well they will hold up over time. I think this guitar will give me a lot of years of use. I'm getting locking tuners now, but the only reason is because Sweetwater offered $85 in Bonus Bucks for this color/neck combination and I figured locking tuners would be a free upgrade. Will see how the nut holds up, as it is basically plastic. But the notes sound clear and full, so I feel like I'm getting good tone with this midrange model. I'm happy with this Strat. It's great for someone who wants a Fender that's a step above Fender's lower-priced models and also for someone who may not be able to afford a high-end Strat at this point.

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Very Happy, First Rate Instrument

Fender and Sweetwater did great. I've played it every day since it came. Thanks Stuart!

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So smooth

Neck is so nice: smooth, easy fret dressing, and it all looks cool. Classic strat sound. Classy looks. The roasted maples elevates this thing so much. Great guitar.

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Great!

This is my first review of a Sweetwater purchase. This is also my first Fender Stratocaster. The color jumped out at me. It looks even better in person! The best part about this guitar is the neck. The burnt maple is killer.Smooth and easy to play. It sounds great too. I don't believe a setup will be needed. The action is great and the neck /frets are smooth. It played great right… read more out of the box! I've never played an American strat, so I can't compare. However, this one is a great price and I love it.The only bummer is it doesn't come with a case. I guess most don't anymore, so that's not a big deal. Keith, my sales engineer was super helpful - as always!

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Pictures did justice

An amazingly well thought out guitar. Color way is awesome and the tone is better than my other players series fenders. It's all in that gorgeous neck.

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Shine on you crazy diamond ......

First off if you are anyway concerned about a Fender made in Mexico just stop it! Same wood, same equipment and same training as it's American counterpoint and these Players being produced are just amazingly great. I am so stoked and my buddy who is playing a 70's era Strat he has had since new is wanting one for his arsenal. Three wives same Strat over decades.... a Strat fanatic.… read more This was a "project" guitar for me. I wanted a "Gilmore Strat". I had played a 2021 Player from a friend and was duly impressed with build quality and sound. The guitar was just crazy solid so I decided to go with a Player as my Strat of choice. Additions installed before shipping: 1. David Gilmore Pre-wired pick guard with EMG DG20 pickups. 2. Plek Pro Fret Adjustment First off the pre-wired pick guard will blow you away. Dialing in Gilmore .... SRV..... just some amazing sounds. It is a killer set up and exactly what doctor Floyd ordered. Plek treatment made running the neck smooth as ..... well butter for a well worn phrase. Totally suggest this for anyone who has a bit of coin to spend... it is amazing the difference it makes. I truly do not believe the American Standard has much on this guitar now. The plus side is if you ever sell the guitar it is added value. This has been a terrific experience and many thanks to Cameron Green for bringing it all together. Straight out of the box (from Sweetwater and their 50 point quality checks) this guitar is an amazing value .... add a little bit and it gets even better. I sound just like David Gilmore now (If he was totally drunk and had his finger stuck in the strings).... seriously practice is taking on a whole new experience. Now if I could just download Gilmore's hands. Want a terrific strat for a reasonable purse? Buy this guitar!

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Shocked to say the least.

First I want to say, I've owned American professional strats, and an American artist series. I had purchased 2 American pro 2 strats from sweetwater... Both had issues out of the box, so I returned (not as easy as they make it sound) After a while I decided to order this less expensive MIM model, and throw in a YJM loaded pickguard... Mainly because I want a YJB signature, but… read more I'm not sure if I'd like the scalloped neck, and sweetwater isn't as kind about returns as they claim, unfortunately. But upon receiving this buttercream beauty, I was shocked. I honestly see no downgrade from the American pro strat, with exception of 3 things... 1. No contour to the heal... But that's fine, I'm used to the strat block heal. 2. No s switch... But honestly, that wasn't really my thing anyway. 3. No case (but let's be honest, those are never free, they are bundled in and called free). I love this guitar so much I'm tempted to buy another to put the YJM in, as this sounds and plays great. In a blind test I wouldn't be able to tell the difference between this and an American model. It's just a great guitar.

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Beyond Expectations !

They must have knocked QA and quality of Mexican Fenders up over a notch, amazing guitar. Flawless build, no need for setup. Frets and intonation were perfect and love the Tidepool finish.I had a Fender performer strat and this one plays much better ! And kudos to Sweetwater for sending me an excellent guitar ! 4th guitar purchase in the past 6 months all have been out of the park… read more !

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A very, very tasty guitar!

Bought this guitar with help from my Sales Engineer Adam Vaughn so I could leave my American Professional strat at home when playing out. Thing is, this guitar is *nearly* as nice! Full size pots, shielded cavity, really great pickups and love the two point tremolo with full size block. Will swap out the tuners for lockers, but that's a personal thing and not really necessary… read more on this guitar. Made in Mexico Fender products are really almost on par with their American made counterparts...at a seriously substantial cost savings. Thanks again Adam and Sweetwater!

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Amazing Guitar

Received my strat and it's amazing! Plays smooth and sounds great. Out of the box, tuned it up, and started to play!. Logan was excellent to deal with and didn't steer me wrong. Delivered on time and packaged securely. Will be buying another strat for my wife - she saw mine and played it, now she wants her own!

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Fender Player Stratocaster - Polar White with Maple Fingerboard

Absolutely love this guitar. Saw one in Illinois while visiting my family in 2019. Did not want to chance taking it on a plane so I bought it when I got home. Bought a Fender Princeton Reverb amplifier, perfect combination. Sounds awesome.

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First new guitar

Feels good in hand , sounds great !!! I really like it .

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What an incredible Fender Player Stratocaster for the money!

Wow... I am still utterly speechless over the quality and sound of the Fender Player Stratocaster! Sweetwater (and mainly the sales engineer Stephen Graham) really went all out to provide me with the best!I'll be honest and straight from the heart... Deep down I was somewhat hesitant to order an "unplayed guitar" from an online music store, as I have never done it before. I didn't… read more know what to expect. Granted, I DID check out the Player Stratocaster at my local music store (here in Richmond, VA). But the "Buttercream" paint color was not for me. I loved the sound of the guitar when I demo'd it, but just couldn't bond with the yellowish coloring.I made two individual YouTube videos, if you are interested. (1) I'm unboxing the black Player Stratocaster direct from Sweetwater, as soon as FedEx showed up at my door. (2) After I let the guitar reacclimate to room temperature and get tuned up, I play a few songs of different genres, different gain channels, etc... The guitar is *PERFECT*!!

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Couldn’t Be Happier!

First off, I've always been mainly a Tele player. I've had several over the years, with my latest being an American Performer Hum that I bought from Sweetwater a couple of years ago. I've always loved the simplicity of a Tele - two pickups, two knobs, and a three-way switch - and I still do. Recently, I got the urge to own a Strat and thought that the Player series would be a… read more good choice to get my feet wet. Am I ever glad I went with this guitar. In every way, I am blown away with the quality of this guitar! From set-up, to intonation, to tuning stability, to fit and finish, I am of the opinion that it is the equal of my American Tele. It even looks good next to my wife's baby grand!

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Flawless

With this one I decided to pay up do have it pleked. With over a grand in it my expectations were high and I was not disappointed. First of all the guitar really is flawless, I looked it over top too bottom very closely and could not find anything wrong with it. The action was perfect and the frets were polished to a mirror finish. The fret ends were dressed perfectly as well. So… read more it's a looker but how does it sound? I plugged it into my Vox ac10 and was immediately blown away. These pickups are awesome. Clear, with good output and very different tones from each position of the selector switch. Sounds great with gain as well. So looks great, plays great and sounds great. As for the plek job, I highly recommend it if you can swing the extra cash. I have 13 guitars right now and have owned well over 100 and this one plays better than any of them.

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Sweet, Sweet, Sweet...

This Strat is just gorgeous! She plays beautifully and didn't need a set up. What can I say!? She's a bonafide Stratocaster!! A friend asked; is it made in America!? The last time I checked, Mexico was still a part of N. America AND California was once part of Mexico. So yes! She's as American as any other Strat I've played. She delivers that sweet, clean, single coiled sound that… read more you only get from a Strat. I love, love, love this guitar. I just can't seem to put it down!! DM

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Great strat!!

The team at Sweetwater were awesome from start to finish. And this player strat is everything I was looking for! Love it! Plays and sounds fabulous!

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Smooth Playing, Great Sounding

Love this Strat. I have a Strat in my Tokyo studio that I have been playing for years - love that great single coil sound. Decided I "needed" (that is what I told my wife) for my New York studio. It sounds as great and plays as smooth as my Strat in Tokyo. I really like that with this model you can control the tone of the bridge pick-up - opens up a lot of sound possibilities. Recorded… read more with it all summer and loved the feel and vintage look of the 3-tone sunburst. The other guitarist in these recording sessions loved getting his hands on it. I want to add, that I have always been against ordering a guitar online - wanted to play it, feel it, inspect it in a shop; plus, I never trusted the shipping. Last year, I took a chance and ordered a Fender Tele and an Epiphone SG (the Inverness Green one) from Sweetwater. I was very impressed with the care they took in inspecting the guitars before they shipped and blown away by the great job they did packing the guitars - they treated them with love. Sweetwater's guitar shipping practices have alleviated my fear of buy a guitar online, but only for Sweetwater guitars. Thank you Jordon Clohessy for the great job you do as my Sales Engineer.

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Excellent value

I've been playing since the early 80s and can say guitars have came a long ways in terms of value and quality. This Player series Fender Strat is a good example of that. I recommend this one. Definitely a good choice. The people at Sweetwater are first class as well.

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Fender Player Stratocaster SSS Tidepool

I recently purchased this guitar, and I love it! First, the pictures on Sweetwater's sight, and even on Fender's sight do not do it justice. The color is beautiful! I am learning guitar, so I didn't want to go with an American made and break the bank, but I still wanted something that was substantial enough to incentivize playing and that would encourage me to keep going. I shopped… read more around at different stores and online sights, but Sweetwater seemed to be the right place for me. I also purchased a subscription to Fender Play, and have been putting in time everyday. I've learned some good exercises for stretching out my fingers, which is good because I don't have the largest hands. I've learned some chords, and even a couple riffs. I'm feeling good about it. I have no aspirations of being a rock star, or even performing live at all, but I've always loved music. I've always wanted to learn guitar, and I figured now is as good of a time as any! The uploaded photo is actually one that was sent to me by the sales engineer, Michael, and is better than anything I had as far as lighting goes.

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Excellent Strat - Playability, Build and Looks are Great

Sweetwater sent a fantastic Strat that was ready to play straight out of the box. The guitar was very well packaged and arrived promptly and damage-free. The new Player series is a well made guitar with upgrades including a heavy tremolo block (not the old-style thin block, and Alnico pickups (not old-style ceramics). The overall fit and finish is exactly what you would expect.… read more This is a guitar you can buy and plan to keep . . . and offered at a really good price.

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Fender Player Stratocaster

Great guitar! Plays good, sounds good. And a great looking guitar.

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My originally SSS Strat

Knocked off a 1/2 star for the tuners. This guitar has been through it. First changed the pick guard and pickups to Dimarzios. Was significantly better but still not content with single coils. Decided on a matte finish guard and SD set, tusq saddles, nut, and string tree. Love the way Fenders can be modded!

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Great Strat

Purchased the Player Stratocaster in Buttercream and ordered a bone nut upgrade and had it Plek'd. The guitar looks and plays great. The pickups sound nice and there really isn't a bad thing to say. It's a really nice Strat.

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New Strat and amp

I big thank you to Nick for helping me decide how to customize my new strat to get the sound I want. This is the first time I've dealt with Sweetwater and all I can say is that they are real professionals and very knowledgeable, and I should have used them a long time ago. I know I will be looking for more equipment later on and I know where to go. Muchas Gracias, Bob

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