Fender Billy Corgan Stratocaster

2008 Made in USA Stratocaster.
3 Dimarzio Pickups, 5-way selector.
Neck Pickup: DiMarzio BC1 (signature humbucking pickup in a single coil size)based on the DiMarzio Air Norton.

Middle Pickup: DiMarzio Chopper

Bridge Pickup: DiMarzio BC2 (signature humbucking pickup in a single coil size)based on the DiMarzio Tone Zone.

String thru body hardtail bridge.
After I bought it I found out the neck, body and hardware is basically a Highway 1. That means it has a matte nitrocellulose finish on the body and a satinny finish on the light maple neck. The neck is equipped with JUMBO frets.

I got mine at Best Buy, they tried to stiff me on the vintage tweed G&G case. Nay nay, boo boo.

BUZZSAW distortion tones. This guitar sounds best when plugged into an amp with some crunchy distortion. This is capable of going all out fuzz. This is the perfect Cherub Rock guitar. It's clean tones are what I expected, kind of warm, but mostly not note worthy. That's okay, I have an acoustic-electric when I wanna get folksy. The Corgan signature is for when you want to ROCK.

It's a sub American Standard Highway one with different pick ups and a hardtail. What do you expect?

All things considered, it was set up well out of the box. I played three of them (including the one I bought) and all three were pretty spot on.

I liked the neck the best on the one I bought.
The action was a little high, but easily adjusted.

It's a Fender - I wouldn't be suprised if it lasts forever. Then again, if s component does fail it's not like it won't be readily available. I can imagine the tuners might be replaced in the next decade.

The finish is thin, so it probably will wear, but I think that's the point on the highway 1's. Everyone wants Nitro-finish these days and everyone wants insta-relics.

I would use this at a gig without back up.

I like Fender. I've not had any issues with a Fender guitar since 1994 when I got my first Squier Bullet strat. This was my fourth Fender. The only time I've ever called them was to enquire about a used guitar I was going to buy from craiglist and they were able to give me a bunch of info based on the serial number.

I've been playing off and on since 1994. Typically I play strat and tele style guitars, so this was a natural choice for me. Stratty + hardtail. I wish I'd known this was a Highway 1, I might not have paid so much... It's not that it was a rip off or anything, but for the price I think you're paying a bit for the Billy signature on the back of the headstock. That didn't mean that much to me, as I was a Smashing Pumpkins fan from Gish throu Mellon Collie, but I wasn't compelled to buy it 'cause it was made for/by/with Billy.

It was either this or track down a used strat hard tail and add Billy's old pick ups (Red Silver Blue Laces). I do think the DiMarzio's out perform the Lace's but not for the price difference. I feel like I could have put together a similar sounding guitar for $900 or so.

Typical Fender Straocaster features. the 3 dimarzio humbuckers make this a very versatile guitar (more on the later). Mine is a 2008 model from what i can gather with the seriel number. I got the white one, the black one looked a bit tacky. Tuners are fenders own, from what i can see same ones as my 2002 standard tele uses. comes with a vintag tweed case which is pretty cool to.

I only own a Marshall JVM205c so i can only describe what it sounds like on mine. i did use a marshall dsl401 in the shop but anyhting will sound tiny through that amp. got it home, plugged it through the jvm and no such worries there. the bridge pickup is bright but turn the gain up and a bit of resonance and it sounds really bassy but with still enough highs and mids to cut through the mix. the cleans are really cool as well, the only slight thing is at times the neck pup can sound a bit to bassy on a clean setting but a quick adjustment to your amp panel and it will be ok. the other cool thing is on the out of phase settings it only uses the 2 sides of the humbuckers. so efectively it sounds like a normal single coil stratocaster which is good for cleans and hendrix'y sound blues licks. ive played guitar for 8 years and this is the most versatile guitar i have ever played. i do like the smashing pumpkins but i mainly got it for the reason that it sounds good, can play anything and is faily cheap. chap for what it sounds like anyway!

no issues at all with the set-up. soon as it was home stuck a pare of 10s on it (come with factory fitted 9's) quick adjustment to the intonation and it was good to go. as for the satin finish. the guitar never looks dirty!! near impossible to get fingerprints on it. dont see how it would fade any quicker then a "normal" finish. bit of fret but on the low e but taking that to my local guitar shop this week to get sorted. thats why i gave this section a 9. most people would of done that as soon as they got it anyway.

its a usa fender so im not worried at all. had this just over a month now. not gigged with it yet but im sure there will be no problems

never had to deal with fender directly but im sure there would be no problems if it ever came to that.

overall i would give this a 9 and a half. like i said the only slight annoyance is sometimes i have to mess around with the amp settings on the neck pup to get a brighter sound. but this can happen on most guiars. a for everything else could not fault this it will spot on from everything to stevie ray through to the sex pistols and of course the smashing pumpkins. great sounds and fairly cheap for wot you get.

The pick ups that the BC strat are supplied with are phenomenal. This guitar is a pleasure to play, I have owned it for 6 months and it sounds killer!!!

Handles all applications well. omg this is the best strat ever!!!

This guitar was rough lt put together. Glue was smeared all over the head stock...cosmetically everything was nasty, but this guitar played well!

Yeah this guitar will stand up to the test of time....well done

Fender, they rule

This guitar feels GREAT. I recommend it heartily!

Check the specs at Fender's site for the full list; they've got it listed much more organized than I could. But, here are the notables that sets it apart, IMO:

Hardtail bridge, very nice since (I believe) Fender discontinued their American Hardtail Strat a few years ago and the existing ones are getting very hard to find. The Corgan sound is more rich than your American Standard Strat, plugged and unplugged.

S/S/S with double stacked humbuckers by Dimarzio: Corgans in the bridge and neck, and a Chopper in the middle. The tone controls only affect the Corgans though, so the Chopper is only gonna give you one sound (not a huge deal, IMO).

Big 70's headstock, which I always thought looked cooler than the standard ones. Glad to see Billy agrees.

Jumbo frets on a 9.5" radius maple neck, feels better than any Strat I've played.

Features are great overall, and especially perfect for me. Before the Corgan Strat was announced, my dream guitar had these features. I've never been much of a Pumpkins fan (I like most of their singles, but really never investigated farther); I got this because, coincidentally, it had everything I was looking for. 10/10, and what a nice surprise.

Alt rock would be the best description of my style, considering all of the stuff it can encompass from the '90s and on. Since this Strat is the brainchild of a pioneer of that era, it predicably suits those styles very, very well. However, don't be fooled and think it's limited to that very broken-up grunge sound; I personally get an amazing, very focused and rich distored tone out of it, not to mention the clean possibilities seem limitless.

I play it though a Mesa Boogie Duel Rectifier. The only effect I use is an Electro Harmonix Holy Grail Plus. I've played it through low-end solid state combos too and and it still sounds great.

The Corgan pups make more noise than the Chopper, which is predictable because they're wound hotter, but that's still not much noise: I can only hear it when I'm not playing anything and the amp is turned up pretty high, and still, it's not very audible. Only on distorted, of course.

As I mentioned in features, the sound is very rich and sustaining, which of course is in part due to the pups, but I think the hardtail bridge is to thank for this, also. Even when its not plugged in, it just sustains so much better than my standard American Strat; it was the very first thing I noticed when I played it for the first time, and really stuck out.

The three pickups give you incredible variety. Great for all kinds of distorted rock sounds, but also sweet for bluesy stuff on clean and distorted with the volume knob halfway. I feel like Clapton could jam on this and find himself very pleased. Corgan wanted a guitar that he could use on 95% of the songs in a Pumpkins show, which is quite a sonic variety, and I can see how this axe does the trick.

10/10 for so many great sounding tones. You can totally create your own voice with this one, and your playing really shines through.

Action was great from the get go. Plays like butter, but not overly low. Bridge is nice and centered.

Neck pickup was a little louder at first; 10 seconds with a screwdiver makes it perfect.

My only complaint is the finish, and it's mostly preference. I'm not a big fan of the satin Olympic White finish. I think it'd look much better in a gloss white. Also, it's more off-white/cream than it is in the pictures, which for some is a plus, but not me. Also, there must be some kind of strange reaction going on with a shirt of mine, because an area on the back of the guitar is turning pink; not cool, pretty weak paint job regardless of preference. I actually am having a very respected local luthier named Victor Baker strip it and repaint it Pewter, should look nasty. Google his stuff if you want to see some fine instruments.

What the paint job lacks, the maple neck helps make up for it. I've never seen Fender maple look this light in color, and it's stunning. I've gotten alot of complements on it, and I don't think I could ever go back to rosewood again.

-3 for the paint job, but I'll be nice and throw in +1 since the neck was above and beyond what I was expecting.

My other American Strat has withstood 6 years of shows and beatings very well, and I expect this one to do just the same.

American Fender hardware is great of course, though I replaced the volume and tone knobs with chrome Tele ones and the black pickguard with a white pearl one out of preference. Strap buttons seemed fine but I always put Straploks on my guitars just to make sure.

This is now my main axe; it blows my American Strat out of the water. I only bring my other Strat as a backup in case a string breaks and I don't have time to replace it, which of course has little to do with the guitar's reliability.

Again, my only issue with it is the paint job and the weird pink reaction that's going on on the back. That shouldn't be happening when it's 3 months old, or ever really.

-1 for the finish issue, excellent otherwise.

Never needed any support, but I'm sure Fender's great. Forget what the warranty is, probably reasonable though.

I've been playing for 7 years, and I owned my other American Strat for 6 of those. Over that time, I realized what my ideal specs were, but had no luck until the Corgan Strat came out. It was literally everything I was looking for in a guitar. In the distant future, I have no idea what kind of guitar I would get because this one suits all of my needs perfectly; it's going to be my main axe for a loooong time, and I'm very happy about that.

If it stolen or lost, I'd have to get another. There is simply no replacement for this guitar, there's nothing else like it out there. Certainly a departure from other Fenders, but a wonderful one at that.

Love how it just feels so right. Makes my other Strat feel like garbage, which is saying something because for six years I thought it was great. Couldn't convince myself that I was happy the finish, but that was mostly preference aside from the pink reaction issue on the back. For me, a new paint job was a worthwhile investment. Though our sonic needs must be very similar, Mr. Corgan's and my visual styles are quite different; I was never into the offset black and white thing. I also don't wear metal gowns on stage.

Played alot of guitars before choosing this one; some of the runner-ups were Les Paul Standards and a Clapton Strat. This one owned its more expensive competitors.

Wish it came in more colors; black and white really aren't for me. With the custom Pewter paint job, it is truly the perfect guitar, in my eyes (and ears and hands).

Worth all 119,999 pennies. 10/10.

billy corgan model======WHITE======

sounds REALLY good...the chopper pickup was WAY!!too hot so i lowered it{my dad did}...now it is much better.....i play both "pretty" pop music and harder rock...it does both great.....i have had about 25 guitars but this is so far my favorite...and i think Billy kinda lost his mind/talent due to ego over the years,but he has a great ear for gear
and this guitar can do it all....and it looks coold as anything out there

ready to go silky smooth...nice maple...frets well dressed
case is top-notch

LIKE A TANK.....

i always said i would never buy a signature strat..now i am eating my words..........this would make a great guitar for basically any stle..........

I give this a 10 because it doesn't have a lot of stupid features and that suits me and my playing style. I don't play with any effects and I like to keep it simple.

LOOKS: I really like the white satin finish, it looks very impressive and I have never seen the highway one strat or whatever other satin strat. The black satin finish didn't look as good as the white though, in fact it looked stupid. However it seems the satin finish may scratch a lot easier/deeper than the traditional gloss finish. The maple neck looks great with some nice figure (much nicer than my other american strat) and it is a really light colored maple that blends in with the white finish.

PICKUPS: The dimarzio's are cool, I haven't seen another strat that sounds like this. I dropped one point here because the middle chopper pickup needs a tone control.

FEEL: The neck is amazingly smooth, I have never in my life picked up a guitar whose neck felt that silky smooth. It is lighter than a normal strat. I read a separate review about a guy who took the body apart, he verified the body actually weighs less than a standard strat body, counter to Billy's/Fender's claims.

I give it an 8 for sound, and I would give a standard strat a 6 or 7.

NOISE: The Dimarzio's were supposed to be low-noise. I ran an A/B with my other american strat and they have about as much noise. If you are playing a live gig with more signal/circuit noise it may be different though.

CLEAN: I can't get it clean enough on my marshal tsl-100 half stack, there is some crunch from basically all of the pickups. I played through a different solid state marshall amp and didn't really have that problem though.

Still, all the clean tones are AMAZING. You will be picking up chics left and right. Almost all of the pickup/tone combinations are totally usable, whereas on my other american strat I was limited to basically two or three clean sounds that actually sounded good and the other combinations were way to twangy. You can get nice fat tones with all pickups (1,3, and 5), or switch to 2 and 4 to get that twangy strat sound back with the bridge or neck single coil activated. So to my ear you do have the more traditional strat tones available in pickups 2 and 4.

DISTORTION: With distortion, it is fat. The neck pickup is not the traditional sound, it is darker which has one drawback in that it loses some of the presence that provides edge/clarity to pump through fast riffs. If I play the fast riff in "Quiet" it just does not get that higher frequency edge/presence that my other american strat has, and so it is a little muddy and harder to tell the chord changes from the listener perspective. If you have single note riffs, like some Hendrix stuff, it sounds really good and fat with just the one note.

The middle pickup is WAY too bright with my standard amp distortion, I think Fender is on crack, it is somehow super twangy and you would really have to scale back the amp presence/treble to make this usable because there is NO tone control for this pickup. If they had tone control on it that would solve the problem. I don't recall my other strat having this issue although I never use the middle pickup with distortion on it either. The tone on the middle chopper pickup seems to me quite different from the clean to distortion channel. That is one of my biggest disappointments with the guitar is that the middle pickup is not that usable with distortion, and no tone control. However it does give you the 2 and 4 pickup combinations which sound good for certain styles. I have been using the 2nd position to do some chunky metal riffs because it has a little more presence than the neck, but it is still not quite the sound I am looking for (not that the standard strat pickups are any better), but maybe the amp is the real problem here.

The bridge pickup is awesome with distortion, but it is maybe a little louder than the other pickups though. I guess you could lower it from the strings to make it quieter.

OTHER: Sustain seems better than a standard strat but I did not do a real A/B test to verify this.

The clarity seems pretty good if not better than a normal strat both clean and distorted. If you play a chord with some off-notes, you can hear the notes relatively clearly.

Harmonics are good but not much (or any) better than a standard strat. You might get louder harmonics in the neck pickup than in a standard strat, but I didn't really A/B test this.

I've heard people say a guitar is "punchy", and I didn't know what that meant, but this guitar might be it. When you play a note, it is immediately right there. It is like stepping on the gas pedal of a 500hp car, it just GOES instantly without any hesitation. My other strat does not do that or give that feeling, but I'm not sure that it necessarily a bad thing. If you recorded this guitar, you would need reverb to set it back in the mix a little.

Seems to stay in tune very good, like my other american strat, even though I bend a lot.

This is a great product!

I don't know how the satin finish holds up over time, but it looks so good it is worth it regardless. The hardware is solid and fine. The guitar is simplified with the hardtail so there is not that much that can go wrong. But if you need a replacement pickup, etc. on this it may not be available in 5, 10 years if the guitar is no longer produced!

No experience.

I've been playing for 15 years, mostly through a marshal tsl-100 half stack and american strat. I play mostly pumpkins and deftones, and this guitar sounds good with those styles. It sounds great soloing or riffing. I spent two hours at the store in a quiet room doing A/B tests with my other strat because I wasn't sure I wanted to spend $1200 on this, but I walked away happy.

I've had this guitar about 3 weeks, played through 2 different amps, and slept with it on several occassions. It looks and sounds awesome. The fact that it is only a few hundred bucks more than a normal american strat and includes the $200 case is a little hard to believe. Still I would make sure you try it before you buy it, because the other black guitar they had felt like crap, looked bad, and sounded really muddy (mostly action and dirty string issues though).

It would be interesting to compare this to one of the other deluxe strats that has a humbucker in it, but I have no experience with those. Also compare it to a gibson, PRS, etc. if you are shopping, but I have no experience with those and prefer the strat look and feel.

I love the hard tail for simplicity, it is hard to explain but some will know what I mean and appreciate it.

The biggest drawback is the middle chopper pickup not having tone control and sounding too bright/twangy with full distortion. Otherwise this would be 10 points.

If I have to run out of my burning house I will definitely pick this guitar up on the way.

Check out the spec on Fender's site.

Maple neck, matte black finish, maple neck Dimarzio pickups with black covers 70's style headstock... she's a looker.

Non trem. Otherwise a pretty standard strat with all the regular cheap hardware - nut, tuners, saddles.

Pretty, golden tweed case, brings to mind Pulp Fiction when opening.

Strap and lead.

Who needs bells and whistles when you've got a workable tone and a guitar that feels right?

Play all sorts of pop, rock, metal indie stuff in covers bands but love Pumpkins era 90's USA alt/grunge rock, industrial, classic rock (Floyd, Queen etc...), power pop, shoe-gaze dreamy sounds, 80's hair metal, Brit-pop - whatever is crafted and takes you places.

So far I've played it through my Hi-Watt and Orange amps. Yet to try with my JCM800.

The Corgan roars and cuts like a knife when overdriven but cleans up beautifully except maybe on the bridge pickup. Here you need to roll off the volume a little to avoid a bit of grit. I hardly use the bridge pickup on a clean setting anyway.

I reckon it could be the strat sound we've been looking for.

One of my main gripes with strats I've owned is the sustain factor. This was the first thing I listened out for when checking it in the shop where I compared it to my USA std Strat with Kinman high output pickups (Woodstock Plus set). The Corgan strat sustains longer and smoother than my Les Paul which has a bare knuckles bridge pickup even at very low volumes using a distortion pedal. Guess the lack of a tremolo cavity adds to this.

Never owned a guitar with Dimarzios before but I'm very impressed. Still sounds rough and ready - not ear-splitting, tame shred but timeless and right. The pickups do not convert this guitar into an Ibanez. It's like having a strat with a built in flux capacitor nuclear generator. You can get a great gutsy Hendrix tone out of the guitar without the noise and hum of single-coils.

I've only had this guitar a very short while but I'm so impressed I can't sleep!

I have to test it in a live situation to be 100% sure it's what I'm gonna be playing full time but so far it's everything I hoped for...

Perfect action allowing for mega bends and easy chord work. No rattles or buzzes. Feels sturdy and does not go out of tune thanks to the fixed bridge. You can tune to drop D without having to check all the other strings for tuning. Intonation's fine.

Setup up to a tee - not too low, not too high with enough clearance across the high strings for crazy bends. As I've picked up one of the first Corgan's shipped to the UK perhaps Fender have gone to lengths to make sure the initial batch plays good so they make a strong impression. I've known Fenders to arrive in a shop playing like a rusty banjo. Generally though they're one of the better manufacturers for factory setups. Forget quality control at Gibson. Well by the time their guitars get to the UK anyway.

The rails in the Dimarzios make the sound clear and balanced across the strings - no more worrying about whether the pole pieces are staggered correctly for your action or gauge of string. For string bending ala Corgan/Gilmour/Brian May the rails are spot-on. Go for it!

Maybe the middle pickup is a little loud but that's just a simple height adjustment. Really the setup is spot on. I've worked in guitar shops for too many years and this guitar is one of the best factory set-ups I've ever played.

The finish is smooth matte and feels like silk on the forearm. Oops, I done a sex-wee!

It does feel like a mass produced, factory-made guitar but it's sturdy and reliable - no frills, just a workhorse, ready to rock. No fancy birds-eye maple neck or LSR rollernut - no distractions, nothing to worry about, plug in and play. All is how it should be.

It's just like any other USA strat in terms of build quality. Might want to get some better tuners on there or some fancy saddles or nut but see how it goes first. If it ain't broke...

Time will tell if it develops tuning issues (really hope not) or the finish dies (who cares, bring it on!) Got a gig tomorrow so I'll see how it stands up.

Fender are cool I imagine. Setups are almost always the responsibility of the vendor and if it developed any electrical faults I'm sure Fender would turn it round quick. You could always try to sue Mr Corgan if it lets you down?

Been playing 20 years (that's scary) and gig most nights of the week playing a wide range of styles but get off on playing high energy space rock/metal. I own way too many guitars (Strats, SG, Les Paul, PRS) and a few decent amps (Marshall, Hi-Watt, Orange), loads of effects.

I bought this cos' I've been searching for 'that Strat sound' since I started playing but it's never worked out for me. My PRS CE maple top has been the closest I've found to the tone I'm after but while I love the guitar it's lacking that distinctive tone and personality of its own. It's great for covering lots of different tones but somehow rarely sounds unique.

This guitar is for all lovers of that elusive strat tone. You know the one - the strat that you can go have a bite and still hear the sustain but can be mellow as a teardrop on a clean setting. The strat that can cope with high gain settings and still retain depth, clarity and focus. This has a K.O punch without tiring the ear with glassiness.

With a tone and playability to kill for Corgan and Fender has really delivered here.

I've tried so many different modifications to Strats in the past but never got the sound or feel I was after. I own a 70's Strat which sounds thin and weedy in comparison even after trying a Duncan little '59 in the bridge. Also have a a recent USA standard Strat that I put a set of Kinman Woodstocks in. I took this guitar to the shop to A/B with the Corgan and it sounded muddy and wooly in comparison. Also had a Std USA strat in the 80's (that thing was impossible to get in tune) and a 90's model that I fitted with Dave Gilmour's EMG set which were total ****. The equivalent of an aural paper-cut.

There's an interview with Billy Corgan on the Fender site and he says that he used this guitar in its stock form on the last tour whereas most signature endorsees hardly ever do. That's the truth - too many artists wanna cash in whereas this is the real deal. Also it's much cheaper than a Beck, Clapton or Knopfler strat.

While I'm not a fan of the recent Pumpkins sound, if this guitar is good enough for the guy who dreamed the Siamese Dream then it's gotta be up to the job.

For all the gear I own I've never posted a review here (honest, I'm not Billy's agent or a rep for Fender - promise) but I felt compelled to put something back this time for all the reviews I've read here in the past which has helped me decide what gear to go after. Just wanted to let you good folk know that for what it's worth I think this guitar is a real one-off. I hope not too many people latch on though - I still wanna have a secret weapon - hush, hush, mum's the word people!

Nice one Billy.

2008 USA 22 frets Alder body 1 volume 2 tone 5-way switching 3 DiMarzio strat-sized humbucking untinted maple neck & fingerboard satin nitro finish hardtail (finally) 25.5 scale

Fat, Fat, Fat
Dr. Z carmen ghia 2x10
Dr. Z Maz 18 Jr. NR
before you whine; if you wanted a vintage strat for vintage strat tones; you shoulda bought one.

Perfect out of the box.

ALL Fender products are road tested work horses. Don't have to worry about the headstock popping off if the is an accidental knockover from the bass player, drummer etc..

Easy to call. Always ready to field questions. Never had to send one back; ever.

Been playing 30+ years. Owned over 65 guitars from Gibson -Rickenbacker- Fender- Charvel- Pawar- RS Guitarworks - Fernendez - Yamaha - Valley Arts - Schecter -Gretsch- PRS - Hamer - G&L - Chandler - Kendrick - Lace - Reverend - James Trussart - and most of the rest. And the winners are .......Fender G. E. Smith Tele, Fender Double Fat Strat Hardtail Shoreline Gold, Fender Billy Corgan Strat, Martin D-35. Rock solid, road tested, "standards". I realize that we all have varying opinions , AND I RESPECT THEM ALL. I base my #1's on what I reach for first when I know I just have a few minutes to jam at home; and what makes me smile when I start to drive the power tubes in the Dr. Z's.