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Upgrades on (say) a Mexican Strat may well get you nearer to a CS guitar - but by the time you’ve paid for pick-ups, a wiring harness, an upgraded trem system and a fret-dress, you’ll not be ‘that’ far off used CS money. Add in that the outcome of the upgrades can’t be guaranteed - you can’t evaluate them until you’ve actually done them - I’d rather put my money into a ‘better’ guitar.
I don’t think Fender make bad guitars at any price point - but there is a degree of ‘you get what you pay for’ as you move up the range. I agree that the law of diminishing returns means what some perceive as ‘minor’ improvements can cost ‘a lot’ - but that doesn’t mean the outlay isn’t justified for everyone.
By way of an update and maybe to wrap things up...in light of the discussion, I'm going to buy myself a nice new Custom Shop Strat. I will say that I was genuinely considering a lower spec strat with the intention of modding it out. But the arguments herein have convinced me that I didn't just imagine how great that guitar I played was, last weekend, it really was great and maybe I should live a little and get what I want.
Thats not taking anything away from anyone who said anything to the contrary, or guitars that don't have the Custom Shop moniker, not at all. If you enjoy it, and it sounds good, it IS good!
Thanks all!
View my feedback at www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/comment/1201922
Getting what calls to your heart is never a bad plan if you can do it. Looking forward to a lovely NGD post
Fender are very careful to position each of thier tele or strat models in the buyers budget strata. There have been several YOOCHOOB vids where reviewers have worked up from the basic £150 strat to the custom shop. Even with the disadvantage of the compression and computer sound card you can hear improvements in the sound between the price points. Sometimes those differences are more subtle and other times quite noticable. A sub £200 guitar will not sound like a £600 guitar without spending £500 on improved parts and you still have the poorer quality timbers as a starting point plus all the time to experiment and research the upgrades (which fender have already done). But once you get above that mid level giggable guitar the differences get more expensive and the benefits harder to percieve. The likes of Fender are so good at measuring and marketing the quality levels we fool outselves to think we can do it better with out skills and access to aftermarket parts. That doesn't stop us trying!
So a reasonable approach is to buy the best used instrument you can find/afford and ignore colour/endorsee/finish etc. If you later find a better one, trade up, but not too many times unless you are a wiz at deals, it gets expensive too.
Then there is the feel factor, two seemingly identical models might feel different to your hands. The old addage is go try something ready made and if you kiss enough frogs .....
Nil Satis Nisi Optimum