Non-goofy looking superstrat?

[matrix]

I have picked up a few pointy-headstock, goofy painted superstrats over the years, and as much as I hate the looks, there is a lot that I love about playing those guitars - higher end ones can have a ridiculously high standard of fit and finish, beautifully contoured heels with deep cuts that really facilitate high fret access, and those stupidly fast necks. Along with technologically superior trem systems.

But I cant get over the looks. Pointy headstocks, day-glo (or worse) paint jobs. Is anybody aware of a maker of something that ticks a lot of superstrat boxes, without the goofy looks? And preferably with a complement of single coil pickups?

The closest I have found is the the Ibanez Andy Timmons model. I might be willing to drop some coin on a really superior guitar, but this drifts to silly money:

In the sub 2-K range, I fell in love with the feel of this guitar. But I am um..not sure ... about the looks (to be fair, it looks way better in person):

 

[SRHmusic]

By "pointy," do you rule out Tom Anderson and John Suhr?

If you're inclined to assemble your own: My 1st parts build, er... slow transformation, was from a Fender Deluxe to a Dimarzio HSS set close to the Timmons set there (Areas plus an AT-1) and a Musikraft neck (Fender licensed). You could assemble one yourself for between $900 and $1200.

 

[Jakedog]

The new MIM Charvel offerings are incredible guitars. I don’t know how they can be made in the same factory as their Fender counterparts. The quality is so much higher it’s not even in the same zip code. And they are quite a bit south of $2k.

https://www.sweetwater.com/c589--Charvel--Electric_Guitars

These Ibanez are really sweet as well.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AZ224BCGDET--ibanez-premium-az224bcg-deep-espresso-burst

 

[Jakedog]

Kiesel makes seriously top shelf stuff, and you get to pick woods, colors, all of it. It’s like Burger King. You can have it your way.

 

[Dacious]

My Flaxwood Liekki (Flame in Finnish) 2 P90s

And Laine (River). 3 Duncan lipstick. Strat on steroids including blend all 3 pickups.

Bit spendy.

 

[dogmeat]

make your own

 

[Lucius Paisley]

Sean Hart (Tartar Control) with what I believe is a '97 American Deluxe with Mini-Floyd bridge and loaded with SD Vintage Rails, is probably the closest to a "normal" superstrat I've seen.

(image removed)

 

[edvard]

make your own

I second that motion! Start with some of those GuitarFetish "factory seconds", strip it to the wood, sand down the edges a bit for a more Strat-y vibe and dress it in nice classic Sunburst. Then get a fast neck of your choice, but round off any pointy edges. Trem is up to you though.

Dang, that sounds so good I might just have to take my own advice...

 

[tfarny]

It's an out of the box idea, but have a look at the FGN offerings. I keep on being impressed with my "Iliad" - it's like a supertele. Fit and finish are up there with the best guitars I have owned (PRS McCarty, etc.). Shredder neck, impeccable frets and Gotoh hardware.
It's a MIJ Fujigen factory product - their house brand. The "Odyssey" is their superstrat. I paid less than $400 for my Iliad.
There is also the Charvel Pro Mod. Nice guitar, I've played a couple but never owned one.

 

[MilwMark]

The new MIM Charvel offerings are incredible guitars. I don’t know how they can be made in the same factory as their Fender counterparts. The quality is so much higher it’s not even in the same zip code. And they are quite a bit south of $2k.

https://www.sweetwater.com/c589--Charvel--Electric_Guitars

These Ibanez are really sweet as well.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AZ224BCGDET--ibanez-premium-az224bcg-deep-espresso-burst

I can attest to that Carvel theory.

And now I’m intrigued by the Ibanez LOL.

 

[dimmy]

These Ibanez are really sweet as well.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AZ224BCGDET--ibanez-premium-az224bcg-deep-espresso-burst

The linked Ibanez looks awesome!

 

[Peegoo]

You can get a standard Stratocaster and do an engine (pickguard/pickups) swap to an H-S-S configuration. One of the easiest mods to do to any guitar.

Or get'cherself a Fender Player HSS Floyd Strat. If Stevie Vaughan played in Whitesnake:

 

[Crawldaddy]

I agree that with many existing strat models, you can convert them into "superstrats".

The following come to mind:

Fender Player Stratocaster HSS / HSH
Fender American Standard/Performer/Special Stratocaster HSS

I'm not super sure if I want to recommend the current MIM Charvel range. Don't get me wrong, the upper echelon stuff seems good, but having owned a Floyd version, I feel like the neck is a little too thin compared to MIJ or MIA models from years prior.

That said, maybe I shouldn't have owned it or make any comment given that I am more partial to "traditional" guitars, and I'm really into thicker necks owing to my blues-based, thumb-over-neck style.

 

[ahiddentableau]

I recommend the 90s deluxe strat plus. Classic strat looks. The headstock. The logo. The shape. All of the appointments you expect. Lace sensor pickups, but with the red in the bridge it is a superstrat as the red is a humbucker (and pretty hot one at that). Gold or silver in the neck and/or middle and you get pretty much classic strat tones (although you could use the blue or reds if you want humbucker tones in those spots, too). The Fender Floyd Rose from the later part of the run basically looks like a regular strat bridge, but with all the benefits of a Floyd. They also feature an LSR roller nut which is very inconspicuous and IMO much more comfortable to play than those massive Floyd nuts with sharp corners, and big-but-not-crazy-big 6150 type frets for easy fretting. So you get the best of both worlds: classic looks and modern performance. They're fantastic guitars.

http://www.xhefriguitars.com/page3.html

https://www.stratcollector.com/models/deluxe-strat-plus-1989-1999/

 

[LoveHz]

This Levinson Blade California joined the household recently. Very high build quality and a lot of tone options with the coil tap on the humbucker (push-pull tone knob) and active boost through the mini toggle switch.

 

[Buzzgrowl]

I second the current MIM Charvels.

Ibanez are really good too, slightly pointy though.

You can also look at the Fender Dave Murray model.

There is lots of choice, depends on what kind of neck you like.

 

[4pickupguy]

 

[matrix]

Thanks for these great posts... @Jakedog especially for that Ibanez link - that guitar ticks a lot of boxes!

Plenty of other interesting options to look at as well. The Tom Andersons and Suhrs are maybe a touch spendy for me, but the basic Keisel prices surprised me.

Much appreciated!

 

[Jakedog]

This Levinson Blade California joined the household recently. Very high build quality and a lot of tone options with the coil tap on the humbucker (push-pull tone knob) and active boost through the mini toggle switch.

View attachment 788778

I forgot about Levinson/Blade! That is some high quality stuff.

Remembering them made me remember Zion, as well. Might be worth checking into.

 

[joe_cpwe]

I'm old school and think core elements of super-strat would include a locking trem and full sized humbucker. If locking tuners and graphtec nut are sufficient I suppose that'd work but locking at both ends seems of the string seem like imperatives for a Super Strat.

There's used stuff out there...I paid $200 for a stripped & neglected 1984 MIJ Kramer Focus 3000 last month. Not pointy at all. With some TLC and a couple changes it's a killer. I didn't even bother posting a NGD on this forum about it. The Floyd Rose hate is real....

My other Kramer has a pointy headstock but is a thing of beauty IMO

BTW, that Ibanez looks pretty awesome...