EJ Strat

I traded a 50th Anniversary American Deluxe Strat for an '06 EJ Strat straight up. IMO the EJ is a far better guitar, I love the neck profile and the grain on this particular model is amazing. The EJ's pickups have that classic Strat quack and beautiful bell tones. The Bill Lawrence Samarium Cobalt Noiseless in the deluxe are definately quieter. Which Strat would you rather have..the Eric Johnson or the American Deluxe?

From what I have seen the EJ is the best of Fender's production guitars.

I agree, it's phenomenal. Very well made instrument.

For me, the EJ hands down. I agree that it's Fender's best production Strat.

Yup.
The EJ is the best sounding/playing/looking production Strat, IMHO.
I'd really like to score one of the new rosewood fingerboard ones.
The darker blue one.

For a tele guy, if I had to play with a strat would go for the EJ. I love chunky necks and he is so anal about tone that we would benefit from Fender having to live up to his needs in a guitar.

Maybe having the chunkier neck is the clincher for some, but I love the neck on my deluxe...soft v and fits my hands perfectly. After some tweaking with a new bone nut, callaham parts and ti saddles, and a set of Lollar Dirty pickups, it's my absolute fav. I couldn't want anything more.

Not to knock you guys for liking the EJ model...it is good in its own rights.

Yup.
The EJ is the best sounding/playing/looking production Strat, IMHO.
I'd really like to score one of the new rosewood fingerboard ones.
The darker blue one.

I think there's going to be one in my future as well. I love the bound neck.

I bought and returned the EJ and ended up with the American Deluxe. The key reason:

- More range of tone

I got tired real fast of the same tone of the EJ. The bell thing, no doubt, the quack right there but the output level of the ASD is hotter and I remembered something I very much dislike about older strats, the noise. The ASD is quiet and has the same exact tones except a little less of the chime but not dramatically so.

I felt I was playing a crafted instrument with the ASD, the EJ did not feel that way. That was my experience.

A lot of people walk into the store and get mesmerized by the EJ, I did. But when you put in a few hours on an instrument with your own gear, you get a better sense of the range of the instrument. I just like the American Deluxe better.

Off the rack, I prefer the EJ to any non-CS Strat Fender makes. Played a ton of them before that one caught my eye in a local music store, and once I played it, I had to have it. Had it for well over a month now and I couldn't be happier. Honeymoon definitely is not over with this one. It's pretty much my go-to guitar now. I may end up buying another one.