Fender Jeff Beck Signature Stratocaster

I have 3 Jeff Beck Strats. Two of them are 1991 models, and the other is 1994. They have the original FAT necks before Jeff & Fender started slimming them down. They also have the Lace Sensor pickups; single coil in neck & middle, and the dually in the bridge position. The coil tapping switch allows for either single or dual coil operation with the bridge pickup.
All of them have the rosewood neck. I have the blonde, seafoam or surf green, and midnight purple finishes. The tuners are the best tuner I've ever had on any guitar. I bend strings a lot and go crazy with the whammy bar and it always stays in tune.

These pickups are the quietest pickups I've ever used. During a silent passage, there is zero noise. I oringally bought my first Jeff Beck Strat because of the BIG FAT neck, thinking that i'd replace the Lace Sensors with some "real" pickups. After a couple of months of playing the guitar, I fell in love with the pickups. They help me get that great classic Strat sound, plus a great humbucker sound with the dual coil. I sounds great with clean amp settings and overdriven amps. I usually have a pretty hot overdriven sound. The pickups are extremely repsonsive to any subtle nuances in my playing style. I'm constantly (without thinking about it) switching between a pick, my fingers, thumb, and fingernails in my picking style. It's amazing how those subtle differences come through better with the Lace Sensors than with any of my other guitars that have stock pickups. Great variety in sound. Great sustain. Easy to play with controlled feedback.
My two 1991 models are set up exactly the same. I can close my eyes and can't tell which one I'm playing. They feel and sound exactly the same. My 1994 has a slightly thinner neck, even though still fat by most standards. As a result it has just a slightly different sound but others can't tell the diffence in sound like I can.

The quality of the guitar both in finish, parts, and playability is unsurpassed by anything else I've got. It's right on par with one of my Fender Custom shop guitars. In fact, the Jeff Beck Strats are more consistent than any other line of guitars by any manufacturer that I have played. Very well made, very easy to play, and beautiful finish on the body, fingerboard, and even the aged look of the lacquer on the neck and headstock.
The main thing that drew me to the Jeff Beck models was the big fat neck. The earlier models, 1991 - 1993 are the fattest. Then 1994 started slimming down a bit, and then again even more in the later 90's. Since that time, Jeff has had Fender slim it down even more, contour the heel where the neck & body join, and changed to the Noiseless single coils. I've played these new ones in stores, and while I think they play and sound very good, I still like the early 90's models because of that baseball bat feel of the neck. The ones with the fat necks seem to have more sustain and fullness to their sound.

All three of my Jeff Beck Strats have been extremely reliable. I play hard and they hold up well. I take good care of all my stuff. The finish on all 3 of them still look like they were just made. No checking yet, even though they are 17 years old.
Even though I have other guitars and really love playing some of my Teles around the house, when I play out live, I play the Jeff Becks exclusively. They are reliable and consistent. The reason I take all 3 is that one is my primary, the 2nd is a backup in case I break a string, and the 3rd has an alterate tuning that I use for some of my original tunes. I'm an IT professional, so I'm big on backups. I have backup amps, backup cables, batteries, effects, everything...and rarely have to use the backups. It's like when you take your umbrella, it doesn't rain. But these guitars are reliable even though I carry a backup, the only time I have to use it is when I do break a string. I can quickly unhook the strap-lock buttons, and put the other guitar on, and get right back to playing.
If I wasn't such a freak about having a backup of everything, I would feel very confident that I wouldn't need to have a backup for Jeff Beck Strats. They stand up to a lot of hard playing, string bending, constant pickup switching and volume knob changing...and have never let me down.

I've never had any issues with these guitars that required me to contact Fender Customer support.
However, owning many Fender amps and guitars, I have dealt with them on minor issues and they've been great and very responsive.

I've been playing for about 35 years. I started out on Telecasters, moved to Gibson Les Pauls, Ibanez Professionals, SG's, then fell in love with Strats. I'm mainly a Fender player, as they fit my style better and seem to offer more variety of sounds while still true to their "classic" tone and sound. I play mainly Fender amps (Prosonics, HotRod and Blues deluxes, old Fender tweeds, and an Ampeg V4). Main gigging amps are a Prosonic & HotRod Deluxe in stereo. I record mainly with a Tech21 Sansamp unit and sometimes a Line6 Pod.
If my Jeff Beck Strats were lost or stolen, I would kill myself...just kidding...I'd be on a mission to find replacements for them and would settle for nothing else.
A lot of my friends and people that come to see my band play say "you really must be a big Jeff Beck fan". Well, I respect Jeff and think that he's a great guitarist. I listen more to Jimmy Page, David Gilmour, Roy Buchanan, Tony Iommi, Satriani, and John Jorgenson. I recoginize that Jeff is better than most on the planet and have seen him live many times, and like a lot of his albums. But...the main reason I have Jeff Beck Strats is because the sound and play great...and I just love those BIG FAT necks. I'm even thinking of sending one of my 1991 necks to the Fender Custom Shop, and having them build me a Telecaster with an exact duplicate of the Jeff Beck Strat neck profile. It's bigger than the neck on my 55 Strat and 55 Tele.

Standard strat features with the addition of locking tuners and LSR roller nut. Two great additions. Neck is wider than the American std but thin in a soft "C" shape. Pickups are nothing to write home about.

I play everything and own lots of guitars. I always come back to Fenders. I have an American with Delta tone pickups that sound better than whats on this guitar. I will change the tone cap to an auricap or whatever sounds best for these pickups like I did the American. I played it thru my 67 Blackface Bandmaster, Dr. Z MAZ Senior, Sunn 190L (1973), Sunn Model T, two custom design amps by Kendrick. The pickups seem tonally weak.

The reason I really like this guitar is it's playability. Great fret work, action and the neck is perfect for my hand size!!! I now know what to look for in terms of neck shape and size when I look for humbucker, etc guitars. The LSR nut and locking tuners make this a great strat.

No issues but in past I have had no problems with my Fenders.

No contact on this guitar but past experience leads me to believe that its probably a case by case basis... our local Fender repair place is great.

I would sell many other guitars before I sold this one. If lost/stolen I would replace it. I just wish the pickups were more unique sounding. There are so many great pickups out there it seems odd that Jeff and Fender would choose these. But then again Tone is subjective.

This is a 2007 Jeff Beck Signature Stratocaster in Olympic White with Hot Vintage Noiseless pickups (unique to this model). The finish of the guitar is impeccable. The features of the JB Strat are unparalleled, making this a very versatile Strat. The Schaller locking tuners are a must. The trem works breautifully. I really like the contoured neck heel, which was a feature I did not think I would care about. It is a rather subtle contour, but it really helps with upper-fret access. The only thing that could make this guitar more versatile is to add the "Clapton" mid-boost kit with TBX tone control, which I may do after I gig it a few times. This should really result in a "do it all" gig machine. Alo, I really like the looks of the "Vintage Tweed" case, but the exterior of the case probably will not survive too much bar playing as it is very "fabricy" feeling and will probably grab dirt, beer, and grime easily.

The sound is pretty much what one would expect from a Strat, but with a little less high-end. Exactly what I was looking for. The Hot Noiseless pickups are fantastic. It is actually a little disconcerting how quiet the pickups are. When playing any single-coil guitar, you just expect buzz and hum, and to be moving around and continually facing in different directions between songs to mitigate the extraneous noise. Not the case with this guitar. I currently use this guitar with the following setup for gigs: JB Strat > Peterson Strobostomp > Teese RMC2 Wah > H.B.E. UFO Fuzz > Fulldrive 2 MOSFET > Lovepedal MagicBoy Vibe > Radial Switchbone that switches between 1968 Super Reverb with Weber Alnico (2) and Ceramics (2) and a TopHat Emplexador into a TopHat 2X12 with Vintage 30's. The JB sounds fantastic through this rig. All the strat sounds you could ask for. Totally screams throught the Emplex! I like the fact that the bottom tone control works on the bridge pickup, too. For practice I use it through a Vox DA5. Sounds good through that as well.

Set up was great out of the box, even though it was purchased as a "blem" and probably used, at least for a little while. The pichups just needed the slightest nudge up for my taste. There are no evident flaws in the finish or assembly.

Very well built, American made Strat. I would compare it favorably to my G&L Legacy USA. It should last for many years, and stand up to plenty of gigs. I never gig wothout a backup (usually 2). You never know.

I bought this as a "blem" from Musicians Friend. There are no blemishes or cosmetic issues whatsoever. I have bought blem items before and never had a problem. They are usually just "open box" items that have been returned in perfect shape.

I've been playing over 20 years. Semi-professionally since the late '80s. I own two G&L guitars a Legacy and ASAT Special Semi Hollow, and a couple of old Yamahas, a 1983 SBG-500 and a 1983 SA-800.
This is a pro-model guitar. It should last me for as long as my fingers still work. Then maybe I'll give it to one of my kids.

JB Artist Signature Strat, 2nd series introduced in 2001
bought new in Dec 2004
The specs of the JB-Strat have been listed before.
I think this model has some features that may be useful for any Strat player: The locking tuners and the LSR roller nut serve for better tuning stability when you use the whammy bar. The electric lay-out with the second tone control affecting the bridge pickup too is a surplus compared to conventional Strats. I appreciate the Noiseless Pickups. The tweed case (included) looks prestigious. I wish the guitar had a pop-in vibrato arm.
Accessories: Why do I find strap lock buttons on the guitar, while I miss their complements? The flimsy strap (included) is prepared for vintage buttons and hence absolutely worthless. These details are far from being crucial but this instrument is not that cheap.

I am still amazed at the broad variety of sounds you can get out of this guitar quite easily. It comprises the full range of what one would expect from a "modern Strat". Even some stuff resembling the twangy sound of Hank Marvin is possible. (I like this particular sound more than the actual music played by Marvin & The Shadows.) More often than expected I find myself playing on the middle pup solely. This pup has really got something to say in the JB-Strat. I use the bridge pup occasionally for a twangy phrase, the tone control is a help here. I am not so satisfied with the neck pup alone. It is fine for playing rhythm. But with single note lines it provides a somewhat small tone. I miss a good portion of the praised warmth and depth of the neck pup tone. I am still trying to improve on that and I am confident to find the desired sound of the neck pup.
Generally speaking, the JB-Strat sounds best to me in pup positions 2, 3 and 4; positions 1 and 5 are worthwhile exploring. The guitar sustains artificial harmonics very well.

Finish of body and neck is flawless. I like the satin finish of neck and headstock. The tuners look cool. Set-up was o.k. as far as string action, intonation, fretwork and operation of the vibrato system are concerned. But my guitar probably left the factory with a defective truss rod (see below).

I believe that my guitar is healthy now. But there was an unpleasant incident in Jan 2006. I took the guitar out of the case after a pause of two weeks. As son as I started to play, an ill sounding buzz occurred. (This happened at home.) Knocking on the neck and the headstock made it clear, that the buzz came from the truss rod, which seemed to be completely loose. I went to the local dealer, from whom I had purchased the guitar 13 months before. The friendly salesman accepted the instrument as a case of warranty, which is 2 years. We had no dispute about that. (Support see below.)
In general, I think the JB-Strat is as reliable as any well crafted Strat. I usually go to gigs without a back-up, since I do not bang a guitar too hard. I play in a non-professional big band, so no one misses the guitarist in case he has to lay out for a few minutes reloading a string or whatever.

(truss rod continued from Jan 2006) It was obvious that there was nothing to be fixed or re-adjusted. The complete neck had to be replaced by a new one. The instrument was sent in to Fender, Duesseldorf (West Germany) only 15 miles away from the music store. Fender Duesseldorf is also the Fender headquarter in Europe, as far as I know. The salesman estimated, it would take 4 or 6 weeks to get things done. We agreed that he would inform me within 2 weeks about what was going to happen. He could not do so. Subsequently the dealer phoned me weekly, only to tell me that there was no news from Fender.
Time elapsed and I lost patience. So I set them a term: I would accept my guitar being repaired until March 15th, otherwise they would have to bring a completely new guitar. Finally I fetched my guitar with the neck replaced at March 14th. It took Fender 10 weeks to get it done. No one would expect them to do it within a couple of days. I was angry about the period of 6 or 7 weeks during which no useful information could be obtained from Fender. Why can???t they make a clear statement? A) We can make a replacement neck available within n weeks. B) We cannot make a neck available within a reasonable span of time. I guess, this is the reason why: Fender does not want a customer to charge a new instrument under warranty. This is what I did.
I wish to point out that I did not have any quarrel with my dealer. He felt ashamed by Fender???s proceeding and gave me a leather strap for free.

I have played guitar for 35 years. Over the years I played maybe a dozen of Strats, owned by colleagues ??? most of them for just half an hour. The JB-Strat is the first Fender guitar I own; I play it regularly for one or two hours a week. My main guitar is a Gibson ES 335. For practicing I use a small modelling amp, which is not a first class product. For rehearsals and gigs I use a good small tube amp. Usually I do not take the Fender to the big band. I have just played a handful of rehearsals with the JB-Strat so far. Whenever I jam with buddies, I play the Strat. This guitar will probably not become my main instrument, though. If it were lost or stolen, I would certainly buy another JB-Model. Despite of my misfortune I am proud to own a JB-Strat, simply because it is a very versatile guitar.
I do not try too much to sound like maestro Beck. Not to mention my limited ability??? I guess any experienced player knows, that you cannot make the individual sounds of a great artist a built-in feature of a guitar. I still enjoy exploring the JB-Strat further or just fooling around with its various sounds.
I have always liked the sounds of the Stratocaster. Now that I own one, I am stratified. (???stratified??? is a clever, but seldom used neologism in German. It evokes the notion of being electrified or infected by the Strat. The expression actually has no distinct meaning in German.)

The spec for this guitar has been listed many times before and can be seen on Fender's website. Mine is an olympic white one and brand new. Didn't fancy surf green at all.
I do have a Gibson Les Paul so I would have to say individual volume and tone pots would be good but then it would look silly and not at all like a Fender if it had 6 knobs on the front!

This thing really is quite. I have a Cornell class A amp and my Les Paul makes loads of noise. I was on the point of complaining when I got the Fender. It is so much better so it can't be my amp. I always thought it was the Fenders that were supposed to make the racket!
The sound is everything you want from a top quality Strat.
If I was good enough I'm sure I could make it sound like all the Strat guitar heroes of the past and present.

I am so sceptical of those reviewers here and on Musician's friend who give straight 10s for everything. Not only does it seem suspicious but it is also highly unlikely. I have to say though that my guitar was perfect in every way. Even the intonation was spot on. My local guitar Tech charges 40 pounds for a setup and this does not need one. I have had 3 previous Les Pauls and they are a joke. Gibson might tick a checklist to say it has been setup but I can't see it. The actions are set so high obviously because they don't want potential customers to hear any fret buzz. The intonation seems to be set by eye rather than ear or by tuner. Definitely 1-0 to Fender here. I can't vouch for every Jeff Beck model but mine WAS great.

Haven't had it all that long but everything is solid. Should hold up well.

I got it from a guy who imports them into the UK. He undercuts the shops by over 200 pounds or about $400. You don't get a warranty but what I got was a guitar that so many other people rate really highly as do I now.

I have been playing for years and years but had a period of 15+ years when I hardly bothered. Apparently in the UK there is a rapidly growing trend for middle aged blokes to buy guitars. It is a bit of a mid-life crisis thing. Either buy a motorbike and kill yourself or get a guitar and annoy the wife, kids, neighbours etc.
I can't rate this guitar highly enough but always beware that there might just be the odd lemon out there. With the quality as high as it is, Jeff must have got himself a job at the fender factory personally checking these. Cheers Jeff, very decent of you.
You should be rightly proud of the product that carries your name

First of all let me say that I'm not a big fan of white.....but OLYMPIC white is a creamy, sensational finish that simply oozes class, and I couldn't be happier with my choice over tacky Surf Green. My particular model was made this year I think (I got the Fender 60th annivesary sticker in the case), and imo it's a work of art. The brushed aluminium look of the Schaller locking tuners look great, as does the rosewood fretboard which on mine has that lovely melted dark chocolate look about it. The neck is a bit (but not a lot) thicker than my mex Fat Strat, and the medium-jumbo frets took some getting used to (the Mex has skinny frets), but now I prefer them. Add to that the LSR roller nut, Dual-Coil ceramic noiseless pick-ups, a tone control for both mid AND neck pick-ups (the same control does both individually) and wrap it up in a wonderful tweed case and you have the astonishing Jeff Beck Stratocaster. What more could you want?

I love Strats because they can pretty much do anything, and this model is no exception. I play it through a Laney LC50 tube combo at the moment with absolutely no effects at all, but I do want to step up to a Twin Reverb in the near future. I can get country twang, classic rock, dirty funk, sublime hendrix tones, and even very passable jazz. You name it, it's all here for the taking if your chops are up to it. The noiseless pick-ups have plenty of power, and whether playing clean or distorted, this guitar will be with you every step of the way.

I ordered this from a store in Sydney, and received it in rural South Australia 4 days later in great condition (kudos to Venue Music - cheers boys!). Though it was out of tune (hardly unexpected), the guys did a great job with the set-up and it has been a very playable instrument from the get-go. I don't like 9's, so I got them to place 10's on before shipping, and block the trem (I don't use it anyway, it still has the silver sticker over the tremolo.....well, vibrato...arm hole), and my new strat and I are forging a wonderful relationship that will last a long time. Like many others I get annoyed for the first 10 minutes, ripping that bloody sticky plastic coating off, but meh, at least the scratch plate is pristine when you get it!

I've had this guitar but a few weeks now, and I don't gig. But I believe this particular instrument would stand up to any punishment thrown its way. It just has a really solid feel (and a decent amount of weight) to it. Strap-lock buttons are a nice touch, and they seem solid enough.

Never had to bother Fender, so they don't bother me.

I've been playing about 16 years now, and I've had a few guitars. This is the most I've ever spent on a guitar, and I don't regret a single cent. I first tried one out at a guitar show in Melbourne earlier this year (which is why I want a Twin, as played it through one, and it was sublime), and was instantly smitten with the FAT tones of the JB over a USA '62 reissue I was really enjoying before picking the JB up. After A/B'ing both of the Strats I was most interested in (in my price range), the Jeff Beck was simply too good, and now that I have one I am one happy camper.

Viva la Fender! :)

lsr roller nut - 4 lace sensors w/ coil split - locking tuners - nice fender / g+g rectangular case w/ seperate compartment to hold included case candy [fender strap , cord ,extra trem springs , case keys , manuals ] - hefty neck feels good / takes 3 minutes to get used to and then you are flying - easy to play and i have small hands . low string height w/ no buzzing .

2001 jeff beck - can get any sound you want within reason if you spend time to find it - then its your responsibility to remember the settings - lace sensors - quiet even when standing next to the amp - tone is a personal choice - close your eyes and listen -

came with excellent setup - i tweaked it a little and its as good as any guitar gets regardless of price - everything works properly and looks good -fit and finish is excellent++++ - that soft pale yellow color w/ a poly finish - looks killer and is durable and easy to maintain - for you experts that have to have a nitro lacquer finish , i'll take the ease of maintenence and durability of fender poly finish - if you are to carry on and orate about the virtues of how the wood is free to vibrate w/ the thinner finish , you can stop right there ---- the pickups sense the vibration of the metal strings in a magnetic field - add to the fact that you are sending that signal to an screaming amp w/ pedals /effects and tweaking tone knobs / equalizers and the like and then you are going to be serious and tell me that you can hear the lacquer over the poly ??? get real -- its like sipping wine while blindfolded - the hype of drinking a $300 / bottle of wine makes it taste better than a $15 bottle ???? do the pepsi challenge - you might prefer the $15 /bottle in reality -

stays in tune w/ locking tuners and lsr roller nut - fender tremolo easy to adjust - after you change strings just once , you will swear locking tuners should be mandatory on all guitars - fender quality parts - fender durability - nuff said

never had to deal w/ fender

been playing 40 years - have many , many guitars - way way more than i need - 335 gibsons , les pauls ,cs336 gibson , sg , telecasters ,strats , carvins , b c rich - some early / vintage / some recent / most pure investment - but with all these guitars/ experience came some knowledge / wisdom . most people will become brand/model loyal for a number of personal reasons - some just like the hype - but when you have a significant # of guitars you get a real chance to take some time to a/b test [the pepsi challenge ]. i can truthfully say that if anyone sat down and took the time to truly play this j/beck strat , there is no way you could fault fit , finish , playability , durability , versatility in musical expression .

Well I got rid of the lace pickups.
Other thank that, frets-finish-tuners, all solid as a rock.

I decided to write a followup from my review of March 1998. I think it a good thing to do, to let people know how the item held up physically and in performance.


Sound 10, now that I got rid of the lace pickups

The tops.

Action and fit still the tops after 8 years.

Rock solid indeed

Nope. Never had to call Fender

This is the best of all fender signatures. Period.

Extensively listed in many reviews! Made in the US, 22 frets, Olympic white, S/S/S Samarium Cobalt Noiseless pup configuration, maple neck/rosewood fingerboard, sculpted neck heel, American Std 2 pivot point trem, locking tuners.

This is probably the most versatile Stratocaster I've ever owned! it can
go from pristine bell-tone strat sounds to rip-roaring crunch! The SCN pups deliver this without any 60hz hum! Sustains beautifully too!

Great factory setup, world-class craftsmanship! The neck is a bit chunkier than on an Am Std Strat; but I prefer it.

I haven't gigged it yet, but, it feels real solid, should be a great stage workhorse!

Haven't dealt with them

The many wonderful reviews i've read on this site were partially responsible for my desicion to purchase this wonderful instrument; I'm so glad I did! If you are looking for a great playing Stratocaster, this is it! you won't be disappointed!

My first Jeff Beck Strat is a 1991 model. The main feature about this guitar that I like is the big, fat neck. Secondly, are the Lace Sensor pickups, which are very quiet during quiet passages, and very articulate in their sound reproduction. The locking tuners take all the stretching and dive-bombing I can throw at it, and still hold the strings in tune (D'Addario 10's..since you asked). The strings do not stick in the nut at all.

This guitar fits my many styles, from blues, to heavy rock, to spacey Pink Floyd-ish sounds. I can get the classic single-coil Fender sound as well as the thick humbucker sound with the bridge pickup set for both coils. By far, this is most versatile guitar I have ever owned. There is nothing about this guitar that I do not like. The sustain of the guitar, regardless of pickup selection or volume of amp, is just incredible.
I play a Fender Prosonic and Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, and often switch from clean to dirty to full-tilt overdrive. This guitar sounds great with any of my amp settings.

The setup on this guitar was great right out of the factory. Very nice action, smooth and easy to play. No bad spots on the frets or edges, and no dead-out spots anywhere on the neck. There is nothing "off" about this guitar at all. The finish is perfect, and the neck feels great, top to bottom. The 1991 and 1992 models are so close, that I can't tell the difference with my eyes closed. The 1994 has just a very slightly smaller neck profile, as did all of them after 1993.

This is without a doubt, the most reliable and durable guitar I've ever owned. I rehearse and play out with this as my main instrument, and have for 11 years now. The finish is still in-tact, with no signs of wearing. Everything about it is solid. I depend on this as my main guitar, however, I'm prone to break strings from time to time, so I'm never without a backup. And, my backup is another Jeff Beck Strat. Both of them are. I use a 1991 as my main, a 1992 as backup for string breaks, and a 1994 set to alternate tunings for some original tunes.

I have never had to deal with Fender Customer support about this guitar. I have dealt with them on other issues, and they were very responsive.

I've been playing for over 30 years. The Jeff Beck Strat is the best electric guitar I have ever owned. I'm not the biggest fan of Jeff Beck, even though I respect him very much. So, the namesake was not the draw for me. It was first the big neck, then the Lace Sensors. I have found that this model is extremely consistent out of the factory. More so than any other model from any other manufacturer that I have tried. I own Fender, Gibson, and Ibanez electrics. The Jeff Beck Strat is the best electric I've ever owned. If I lost one, I'd run right out and buy another.

Midnight Purple 1994 model that I have owned now for about 3 years. Same features as listed in other reviews here for original Beck signature model. I will say the infamous "Fat" neck, isn't THAT Fat. I have average size hands and personally I like the way it feels. Has some meat to it! I really use the the TBX tone control and switching capability between single and humbucker bridge pickup much more than I originally expected. Can get a very wide variety of tones with this configuration. Oh - and it stays in tune even with excessive wammy use.

I have played/owned a few strats that have a truer strat tone (particularly in the phase positions), but none with such a variety. The original lace sensor humbucker was replaced with JB Seymore Duncan and it screams! You can kick it in and use TBX control to get something similar to a Les Paul tone.

I had this set up to my own taste by local shop. Action is great, but fatter neck may not be to everyones liking?? Very player friendly for me.

The guitar has a very sturdy feel to it. It's heavier than ohter strats I have and has solid construction. Only downside I have had at all is I tend to break strings more than I would like (may try graph tech saddles), but keep in mind I am a heavy string bender.

I have been playing in a variety of settings for over 30 years now. Got my first strat 26 years ago, have owned 7 different ones and played countless others over the years. I would have to say that this has been my favorite. Only one close is my '65, but overall this just has so much more flexability (plus I don't like to gig with that 65 anymore!!). I'm so convinced that this is some of Fenders best non-custom shop work that I plan to buy a JB custom.

Mines a white one - well I say white - it's more lovely than that!! Just a bit whiter than the 74 transaparent blonde start I had. It's a lovely iconic look that contrasts nicely with the white pickguard which complements the cream pick up covers and knobs. LOoks lovely next to my equally as coooooool American series chrome red/maple fingerboard/EMG DG20 loaded axe. Hmmm a nice pair ...

You know the spec - if not check out the previous reviews and/or the Fender website.


It was delivered 2 days ago.

Since 1976 I've owned 6 strats and they were all different from each other - sound, neck, finish, playability. THis one is a GREAT one.

It obviously sounds darker than my EMG equipped maple fingerboard strat and it has less output. Thats why I bought it. For what it offers. It's more of a classic strat vibe (less harsh though and surprisinlgy mellow) than the EMG loaded one and I love em both to bits.

The Jeff beck one really sings on each of the slector positions - a lovely woody tone - quite mellow for a strat and the noiseless pickups do a terrific job.

If you only buy one strat save up and buy this one. Sorry - it's subjective, what suits me may not suit you, but at least try one.

Bought new on Ebay saving #300 on rrp - one of those Waynes world moments - you will be mine - and now you are.. ha ha giggle giggle. No regrets despite the slight risk I was taking buying an axe I'd not seen or played. THe photos were big though and I could see all the details before I purchased.

This may vary between specimens - so check yours out.

Out of the box I needed 20 minutes to adjust the tension on the tremolo - to get it floating for subtle but essential to me (and Jeff) up bends. Also adjusted the action on the low E which was buzzing and sticking in the roller nut. Fixed that. The strings felt like new ones so after having stretched em in the tuning became as stable as any strat I've owned. 8/10 for this as I was expecting slightly more in the way of whammy gymnastic copeability on his one but I guess whammy abuse will send a strat out of pitch. Subtle use no probs. I used to have an Ibanez equipped locking trem job. Wouldnt stay in tune as well as my Strats so I sold I part chopped it for a Tele. Sorry, off on a tangent. This one is the most stable strat I've owned. Not perfect though.

Intonation was spot on, neck as it should be, tight neck/body joint, lovely locking tuners though I wish they'd come nickel plated for a more vintage vibe.

Action spot on - lowish with no buzzes. Lovely neck, fingerboard and frets!!!! C shaped neck neck slightly (only slightly) fatter than American series. Doenst slow me down and I love the support it gives - less fatiguing for me than a slim neck as it offers support between your thumb and first finger. Thin necks give me cramps but if you prefer thin necks then great!

Pickups well balanced as supplied. Adjusting is a doddle anyway.

Finish flawless. Overall a superb job Fender.

If it lives up to the standards already set by my other strats this one will out live me....

Never had a fualt on any of the 6 Strats I've had. The strat is a professional tool - a relibale work house.

Never needed them.

Been playing for 31 years since I was 17.

My list of gear includes high quality valve amp/cab, 2 US strats and Tele, loads of quality/boutique pedals. Depending on how good your fingers are you could make this axe sound good with a pawn shop practice amp - through great gear it will sound great, through awesome gear it will sound awesome. But, at the end of the day its in your hands. For a skilled craftsman this is a professional tool that will deliver. You don't have to be Micheal Schumaker to appreciate a Ferrari though.

To me, in 2006, Strats dont get better than this. If you like Srats you must give one of these a blast.

Took me years to finally get around to buying the JB... drooled for years... always loved the look of a white strat with rosewood board, the promise exceeded my expectation. It was worth the wait which perhaps makes the final purchase all that sweeter. Man it's sweet...

Nice one Fender.

Any questions fire away!!

2003 Surf Green, over Alder body. Looks great. Vintage noiseless pickups S/S/S. LSR roller nut. Schaller locking tuners. C-shaped neck (thicker than current American Strat. Tweed Case, strap, cord

Great tone. Pickups are a little hotter than the SCN pickups in my 2004 50th Ann Deluxe Strat. Still sounds like a Strat, nice quack, cluck but a little more gain. Bridge pu not as shrill as most other strats

This was a NOS 2003 model (bought in late 2005). Needed a good setup. Neck needed adjustment. Can't blame Fender for this one, it had been sitting in the shop for 2 years. Guitar is flawless. Not a scratch on it. neck joint tight, frets well dressed. Neck is to die for. Best neck on any strat I have tried. Neck is same shape as an American just a little beefier. I liked the Clapton V-neck, but this one is better. I have fallen out of love with the skinny C-shaped neck on my 50th Deluxe Strat. Aged knobs and PU's look great. Basically is a 62 Reissue with bigger frets, locking tuners, hotter PUs and the LSR roller nut. SWEET.

It's a Strat. I could stand on it and it wouldn't break. Does not feel flimsy. Would likely survive a nuclear holocost.

Never had an issue I needed to call Fender on. My 2 other Fenders (Strat, Tele) have served me well, I would imagine this one would also.

Played as a teenager. picked it up again about 5 years ago. I have 3 Les Pauls, an American Tele, 50th Anniv Strat deluxe. Ovation acoustic and the Jeff Beck. Play through a Gibson GA 15-RV and a Cyber-Twin at home. Jam with a Classic 30 when I get together with friends.

2005 Model, features descirbed well by other users, this is olympic white finished, w/passive hot noiseless pups. Moderate weight, rather strat typical. The case is fabulous... standard tweed magic!!!
And a full candy came with: Strap (extremely nice for Fender!!!), cable, polish kit, springs & allens, booklet... You know what that is: Little, usual but also useful things...

The acoustic sound of the axe surprises already before you plug in: Punch, ful attack, and great low end... I play .011, so the volume of the bottom end is high.
Plugged in, the initial sound is quite nice, full and brillant. No mud sounds here, the pups deliver. Though, the level was a little lower than my average axe level (the rest of my strats are either EMG equipped or do have passive pups - Kinmans & DiMarzios - with a linear preamp to compensate level). Also, I thought that the 250K pots could be replaced, in order to get more punch and high-end from the pups. So, I did what I always do, took all electrics (pots & capacitor) out and put in a linear pre-amp and a 25k Vol Pot after it, next to the output. The result is tremendous: The pups now run without load (as the vol pot is placed after the pre-amp) and they are brillant, full, and have dynamics to die for... Now, that's a real modern sounding strat, and something that I needed, since the rest of my strats do sound more vintage oriented. Obviously the wood plays its game here, especially the neck, with its small, and thin headstock, that supports harmonics...
I could also simply change the 250k pots to 500k, but I needed significantly more output level, so chose the pre-amp solution...
Last-not-least I installed the possibility to switch bridge-neck pups, or even all 3 pups together. Now the guitar is a real flexible one, and delivers many useful sounds...

As a general note: I really don't understand why people, when they are not 100% satisfied with their sound, immediately change pups... If you don't replace stock pots (first of all), with higher value ones, you'll never know what your pup(s) can deliver... Stock pots usually vary enormously in their values (I measured 210K on factory Strats), and that's a very bad thing, cause they usually deeply cut high end... Try higher value pots, and/or even a linear pre-amp to enhance the level a little bit, insead of running to high-level pups, that may not have the sound that you want... If you cannot do it by yourself, trust a guitar tech. It'll anyway cost less than a new pup..

The rating here is for the sound after the (small) mod's I've made.. and it's definitely a 10!!!

This is where the guitar really shines... Everything mechanical is PERFECT on this guitar. Body/Neck joint, lock tuners, LSR nut, the - modern - american tremolo, frets, even Schaller strap locks are standard here..
Tremolo plays like butter, and, in combination with .011s, there is no out-of-tune here. The bosy finish is AAA. The neck feels wonderful, is one of the best strat necks I have played on. And the improved joint to the body allows high fret action on the fly...
I could describe here for days, instead of that, a clear "10" !!!

There is no doubt that this guitar came to stay and be played over years... It's a good, far above the average US's, strat, and, if maintained well, it will give endless pleasure!!!!

Not dealt with'em, but not the best words heard !

25 years playing, many axes, rather traditional: Les Paul, Fender Tele, but mainly strats (Rory Gallagher, YJM, vintage reissues, and self assembled). I am guitar tech, so I modify my axes by myself to the best they can give...
Generally I love this JB axe... Nice modern strat, allows great tremolo action.. Not that much more to write here... the only thing I wish it had, is better (or higher value) pots... But even so, its a fabulous one!!!

1991 Made in America Jeff Beck Sig Strat, Seafoam Green.
22-frets, 1 volume, 2 tone controls (1 with tbx), 4 gold fender-lace sensor pickups, S/S/H or S/S/S (bridge is coil tappable humbucker), Fat Maple neck with rosewood finger board and jumbo frets. wilkinson roller nut, sperzel locking tuners, original tweed hs case, fender strap, all tools and booklets.

Sounds great for everything that i play, (from Vai to Hendrix to Wylde)
usually use with a EQ - DS-1 - Vox Wah - Screamin' Blues - Uni-Vibe - Fender Pro-Junior Amp.
Really quiet, even on single coils, but silent on humbucker.
Can give whatever sound i want, from a SRV-style dirt to the clean bell-like sound of "Little Wing" to the chunking rhythm of Zakk Wylde

Everything's great, but i didn't get it straight from the factory. i got it from a local music shop, never played, and set up by the owner of the shop. No noticeable flaws, and the action is perfect, it's low but doesn't buzz, and it lets the harmonics ring beautifully.

I'm not too sure about the reliablilty, since i haven't gigged with this one yet, but i hope to find out soon.

Again, not too sure, just recently purchased the guitar.

I LOVE THIS AXE! I would definately replace it if it was stolen. It is a huge step up from my Squier strats. and i absolutely love the fat neck. This is about one of the pimpest guitars i've ever seen, and it's sound and playablilty can back up this info.

The model I have was built this year. It has all the bells and whistles as per the previous posters on this site and the stand out features are definitely the neck, tremelo system & noiseless pickups.
I bought mine in Olympic White which looks more of a cream colour than any photo's you see in mag's and on the net - it's a beauty.I have given it a 10 because there is nothing else that you could add to the guitars features to improve it.
I traded an Ibanez Jem against this and I couldn't be happier. The Jem was nice but the locking trem on it was a total dog which never stayed in tune for me, whereas this system with the locking tuners can take serious abuse without all the hassle - it's brilliant.

I mostly play blues / rock music and being a strat it covers all the basses and does it really well. The neck pickup is amazing on this guitar. It's a really full sound and even though I am using very little in the way of effects at present it sustains brilliantly even when played clean ; this is probably down to the neck as well as the pickup. This guitar can give you crystal clean sounds to dirty full on rock. It's not too bright and has a very full sound without being muddy and imprecise. The pickup's aren't entirely noiseless but this could be the amp as opposed to the guitar - in any case it's more than quiet enough for me.

I checked out all the nuts and bolts on this before playing it properly, there wasn't one thing out of place and the set up from the factory was spot on. It's been fitted with 9's but I will replace them with 10's. The finish on this guitar is spotless but then again it should be considering that it retails @ ?2,000.
Nothing loose or not in proper working order and set up really well - can't fault it. The vintage case supplied is very, very cool - no stickers going on that baby,for sure !

Fender are the best selling guitar maker on the planet and have been for a long time now. One of the main reasons is that they build their instruments to last and I am sure that this guitar is no exception to that. The finish on mine was perfect and definitely this guitar is dependable. If I was gigging , I would still bring a backup guitar for broken strings perhaps but that's it.

Never dealt with them but one gripe I have is that it took seven weeks from the time I ordered the guitar from Fender Europe until delivery in Dublin. It was a long wait but definitely worth it!
I doubt I will need to contact Fender any time soon regarding the Beck and probably never. I'm only giving Fender a 5 for keeping me waiting.

I have been playing for 24 years now and I know what I want in a guitar. I took a chance when I bought the Beck because no music store in Dublin had one that I could check out. Everybody I spoke to advised against buying one because of the 'HUGE' neck which couldn't be further from the truth. The neck on this is exceptional. It's not small by any means but it is very manageable and really well finished. I haven't got big hands ( average if even ! ) and I have no difficulty getting around on this guitar. The problem is that people are so used to playing guitars with skinny, small necks that when a truly decent neck is put in their hands they freak out, because they can actually feel the neck and let me tell you folks, it feels f**king great !
I knew I had to have this guitar because of it's excellent features / hardware and the neck is a stunner. Do not believe the bullsh*t you read or hear second hand - go check it for yourself ( if u can ! ), you won't regret it. I got a very good deal on trade thanks to the guys in Musician Inc in Dublin, who couldn't have been more helpful and consider myself to be very lucky indeed. I did try the signature Clapton but hated the skinny frets / maple neck and I also played an American Deluxe ( not enough tone ) and a Music Man of some description which retails at 2,600 euros ( very overrated )- JB leaves them gasping in it's wake. I got lucky - seriously lucky!

Alder body; maple 9.5" radius C-shaped neck; rosewood finger-board; medium jumbo frets; 25.5" scale length; contoured heel for easier access to the upper frets; chrome Fender/Schaller Deluxe locking machine heads; 2-point synchronized tremolo with stainless steel saddles; three dual-coil ceramic Vintage Noise-less pickups; passive electronics; 5-position switch; master-volume; two tone controls; aged knobs and pickup covers.

This guitar simply sounds amazing. It still retains that traditional style Strat sound, but with higher output and no hum or buzz. Compared to my ?62 re-issue Strat the output is higher, with more attack and slightly brighter which really helps it cut through the mix, but it?s still unmistakably a Strat. Awesome.

Beautifully built, and setup very well straight out of the box with 10?s and a nice action and no fret-buzz. The tremolo was setup with a slight angle off the body to enable both slight pull-ups and dives, and with three springs in the cavity it was very sensitive (apparently this is how Jeff likes his too, but I?m not sure?). I usually use 11?s and four springs so my tremolo sits flush with the body and has a lot of resistance so it doesn?t go out of pitch when finger-bending on the fretboard. Going to 10?s and three tremolo springs was a slight challenge playing-wise due to the very sensitive nature of the tremolo and the slight change of pitch when finger-bending. But that?s more a case of personal preference than a complaint, and I don?t think I?ll change it.
The neck has quite a bit of meat to it compared to my ?62, and especially against other Strats I?ve played, but it seems perfect to me and was very easy to get used too. After a bit of playing I think it?s the best neck I?ve ever encountered on a Strat, and has more sustain than any other Strat I?ve played. The contoured heel is a great feature and feels very comfortable and helpful when playing higher up the neck. The body seems beautifully built and finished, and looks great in the Olympic White, and has a fair bit of weight, but not uncomfortable at all. In short, awesome.

It?s a Fender! This Strat feels really solid, with a chunkier neck and a fair bit of weight compared to other new Strats. I don?t expect any problems at all, and never have done with my Fenders in the past.

Never dealt with Fender, and don?t expect to.

Ok so here goes my rant about this guitar! I?ve been wanting to try one of these Strats out for over a year and the first one I ever saw in person I ended up getting after about 2 minutes playing time! My main guitar until now has been a 1988 62? re-issue Strat, which I?ve setup with 11?s and had re-fretted with medium-jumbos. I wanted a guitar that addressed the main short-falls of the ?62, and on paper at least, the Beck Strat was the only one for me. I love my ?62, but wanted something with medium-jumbos standard, hotter and quieter pickups, a tremolo that better holds tune, yet something that still retains the traditional/vintage vibe and has a decent size neck.
After ringing around all the shops no one ever seemed to have the JB Strat in stock as they cost a fortune over here and the demand isn?t as high as say the Clapton or SRV models. They didn?t want to order one in for me to try out unless I guaranteed to buy it either. Although I was nearly certain it would be the right guitar for me, I couldn?t bring myself to order one in without at least playing the thing first. So anyway, I went to the Sydney guitar expo joking about maybe seeing one, and there it was sitting there. The ?tunnel vision? started and I was having flashbacks of that scene is Wayne?s World where he says; ?It will be mine, oh yes?!
I ran over, plugged it in, played it for two minutes, and then asked the guy what his best price was, and that was it, sold! Straight away I felt I?d found my long-lusted-after guitar for-life, and now after playing it more both at gigs, rehearsals, and even un-plugged around the house, I know I?ve found ?the one?. The sound is great, the body rock-solid and sustains forever, the neck chunky yet super comfortable and fast, the tremolo stable under all the abuse I throw at it, the workmanship and finish are superb.
This is now my main guitar, and I can?t see myself buying anything else (famous last words!). I also own and play, in addition to my ?62 re-issue, a 1981 Gibson ES 335, 1979 Gibson Les Paul Custom, 1999 PRS McCarty, 2000 Martin 000-28, 1999 Maton ECW80C, 1979 Takamine 12 string, and an Admira Classical guitar. I have countless pedals, and as for amps I have a Soldano Decatone 100w head and quad, Soldano Astroverb 2*12 combo, and a Soldano Atomic 16 1*12 combo. I?m pretty serious about my tone, and I?m totally happy with this guitar. Although I?m a huge Beck fan, that?s not the reason for this purchase and I got this guitar purely because it?s the right guitar for what I personally need in an instrument. Over the last 13 years of playing I?ve gotten closer to knowing exactly what I do and don?t need in a guitar and this is it, I wouldn?t change anything, and it?s the best guitar I?ve ever played, let alone owned. It really is that good!

2004 USA Beck
Standard (22 fret) rosewood fingerboard on maple
Vol, 2 tone, and a 5-way switch
"Hot" Noiseless single coil pickups
All passive electronics
Dual edged fulcrum tremolo
Locking Sperzel tuner heads
and an LSR roller nut
Came with case, strap, straplocks, cable

I play anything from jazz to nu-metal, and this is the strat that can do it all. I use a variety of equipment, from a Mesa Nomad 60, to a Fender Cyber Deluxe, to a Marshall mini-stack. For effects I have been using all Visual Sound pedals (Jekyl & Hyde Overdrive/Distortion, Route 66 Compressor & Overdrive and the H2O chorus & delay).
This guitar is uber-quiet! My normal gig is on a small platform where there are flourescent lights right above and a television directly to my left. This guitar does not pickup ANY of the interference! My buddy who has some pretty nice Les Pauls always is dealing with 60-cycle hum.
The other amazing thing is I can get great controllable feedback from this guitar at anytime I want it! I thought for sure the noiseless properties of the pickups would hamper this, but it did not!
This is a strat on steroids. It is brighter than the normal strat, but roll off the tone and volume a little and you get closer to a classic strat sound. This guitar is fairly versatile, I bought it as a compliment to my Paul Reed Smith CE24.

I bought this guitar 3 months used. The previous owner hardley played it (the sticker over the tremolo arm hole is still there).
The pickups were all adjusted to the "factory suggestion" and I have not any occassion to change it as yet.
The biggest flaw was the frets did not seem filed on the neck sides. A local luthier said it looked like the fretboard shrunk a little and caused this, but it was no big thing to fix.
All other parts were snugly fit together with no gaps, bumps or other cosmetic issues.

This guitar has withstood about two months of travel and fairly heavy play hasn't gone out of tune on me yet.
The hardware is a matted-chrome finish, (less suseptable to fingerprints) and is built rock solid.
I took off the included strap buttons and replaced with my leather DiMarzio locking strap. I have had no problems with "pull out".
I have done the gig 5 times in the past 8 months (including practice) and haven't broken a string the guy I bought it from left on it!
(He says they are the originals from when he bought it).

I have been a player for 17 years, and have had the pleasure of managing a guitar shop for 3 of the first 10 years I played.
My current rig incudes the mentioned Visual Sound pedals, an ART attack S28 carbon fiber amp with a 2x8 extensoin, a Fender Cyber Deluxe, a PRS CE 24,and a Tacoma C1C Chief acoustic/electric.
I have wanted to own a strat for over 10 years, and owned a couple custom strat types built by myself and others. None of those or others that I tried ever had the feel or resonance this guitar had from the first 30 minutes I played it. I bought this through a guitar shop worker who was selling it as a courtesy to a good customer. I had played at least a dozen other strats at this dealer in the past two years prior to playing this one.
I've wondered what it would be like to put a TBX tone control on this guitar for the neck pickup and maybe change over the mid pickup tone to control the bridge, but I think I might just buy another set of pickups and all to make a "hot swap-able" system. I just like this guitar the way it is too much-seafoam green and all.

This is a 2005 Custom Shop model, received earlier this week. As with the other strats, it has one volume, two tone controls and includes the noiseless pickups. Locking tuners, LSR roller nut, medium jumbo frets and great bridge/tremelo system. See the Fender.com site for the rest.

This one is said to be set up exactly the way Mr. Beck likes his. Very quiet but will absdolutely growl when I want to. I am not disappointed.

Guitar set up nicely right out of the box. Excellent workmanship, no complaints.

This would withstand live playing, yet mine will not leave the home studio. The custom model will outlive me.

Fender is fine, never had a problem with them.

I have played since 8 years of age - 40 years later I finally get the best imaginable strat. I'd buy another if it was stolen. Compared to the stock Clapton strat (I have this one too), this custom model feels much better and is more responsive. I own over a dozen good guitars, but this one will likely become my favorite.

Okay, I got this guitar for two reason, the huge neck and the dual sensor pick-ups. It's a 91 and I have done some mods to it. First I ripped out the tone controls, then I took out the 5 way and but in a 3 and wird it like a tele leaving the "coil tap" button alone. the middle pickup doesn't work.

With the tone gone I've found the pickups didn't sound so flat like some have reported. I don't miss the tone controls one bit and I find this set-up great for my needs anyway.

I play mostly classic rock and a little country(I want to be Joe Pass but I learned long ago that's never going to happen) I play through two fender vibro-kings. The only pedals I use is a wah, extreme effects and an ab switch. THE BEST SETUP IT THE WORLD! Maybe not. If I could get away with it plugging right into the amp I would. I hate band leaders.

The huge neck does seem to add tone but that could just be me.

It's a strat!

The neck is the best feature on this guitar, it's huge and I love it.
I went out and got another 91 in seaform. My first is purple. What can I say it's a strat and shouldn't every body have one, no, maybe, yes?

By the way, I've seen early JB necks that have needed fret jobs go for over $500 dollars on ebay.

2004 Jeff Beck Fender Strat (Surf Green)
22MJ Rosewood FretBoard on a maple large C shape neck
Contoured heal around the lower frets which is balls
LSR ROLLER NUT SHALLER LOCKING TUNING MACHINES TWO POINT AMERICAN BRIDGE
THREE PASSIVE DUEL COIL NOISLESS PICKUPS
SET THE ACTION PRETTY HIGH WITH ERNIE BALL SLIKY 10 GUAGE STRINGS

THE HARDWARE IS OF THE HIGHEST QUALITY AND THE CRAFTMANSHIP OF THIS PATICULAR STRATOCASTER IS EXCELENT!!!!

THIS FUCKER IS QUIET AS HELL NO FEED BACK FROM THE PICK UPS AT ALL I CAN BARLEY TELL I HAVE THE AMP ON (100 WATT MARSHALL 1/2 STACK) FROM CLEAN TONES TO HEAVALY OVER DRIVEN LEADS THIS GUITAR IS THE MASTER OF THICK AND THIN TONES TO FIT ANY ONES STYLE. THE VIBRATTO IS AMAZING VERY SMOOTH AND EVEN WITH HEAVEY USE THE GUITAR STAYS IN TUNE VERY VERY WELL. THE JB STRAT SUSTAINS UNTIL THE COWS COME HOME I CAN'T PUT IT DOWN.

THE GUITAR WAS SET UP VERY VERY WELL. CAME WITH 9 GUAGE STRINGS WHICH I IMEDIATLY CHANGED TO A HIGHER GUAGE AND ONLY HADE TO MAKE SOME MINOR ADGUSTMENTS TO THE SPRING CLAW. THE INTONATION WAS SET PERFECT TO MY SURPISE AND THAT MADE ME HAPPY. I DO THE USUAL TIGHTEN UP ALL THE SCREWS AND ALL BEFORE I GET DOWN AND DIRTY AND THIS GUITAR NEED MINAMUL SET UP RIGHT OUT OF THE BOX.

IT'S A STRAT WILL OUT LIVE MY GRAND CHILDREN

NEVER DEALT WITH

IF YOU WANT A STRAT WITH CLASSIC TONES AND MODERN HARDWARE THIS IS THE GUITAR FOR YOU. I AM A FENDER MAN AND THIS GUITAR IS AN ROCK BLUES MACHINE THAT WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN I GIVE IT A TEN. FOR EXCELENT CRAFTMANSHIP AND BEAUTIFUL TONAL DIVERSITY!!!

US-made 2004 Jeff Beck Artist Series Stratocaster. Alder body with soft "C" neck; Fender/Schaller Locking Tuning Heads; Rosewood fingerboard with 22 frets; 3 dual coil ceramic Hot Noiseless pickups; Chrome hardware; Contoured heel; LSR Roller Nut; American 2-Point Synchronized Tremolo and aged knobs and pickup covers.

I ordered mine in Olympic White. I changed the saddles to to GraphTech, because I like'em better for tone and to avoid strings breaking. This guitar has very cool, features allows the player to take the traditional Stratocaster into completely new territories.

The guitar came with a vintage case and the usual case candy that accompany Artist Series guitars. I have to mention that the smell of a new Fender guitar always gets to me.

I plug mine through a Boss TU-1 tuner>Crybaby From Hell>Maxon OD-808>Ibanez TS-9>Ibanez Analog Delay AD-10>Danelectro Tunamelt Tremolo>Radial Tone Bone Classic and finally into either a 1962 RI Deluxe reverb or a HotRod Deville 212.

I find this guitar to have quite an aggresive sound and I love it. I find myself using the middle pickup a lot, especially for loud Hendrixian stuff. The harmonics scream. The neck sound is also very sweet and thick. The bridge is very powerful and in conjunction with the middle pickup it has all the spank you would expect. Noiseless? Sure...there hardly any noise, more so if you consider the amount of overdrive that one would expect using three overdrive pedals at the same time.

It stay in tune very well. I even grab it by the whammy bar and shake the guitar and let it hang and it would still be in tune afterwards. Easy to re-string. No string trees. Awesome!

I had Dave's Guitars set it up for me with 11's and the Graphtech saddles, before they send it over. The guitar has to stay over a couple of days due to Hurricane situations in Florida. When it finally arrived it was still perfect.

The overall workmanship is excellent. The painting is perfect and the fretwork was very well done. Better than mi SRV Stratocaster I must say. The neck on the my Beck Strat has a nice dark rosewood. I wish Fender would put the artist's signature on the back of the headstock. The Jimmie Vaughan model has it that way.

This is a Fender guitar. It will take a beating and keep on playing.

Never had to deal with Fender. Dave's Guitars gave me great service and good e-mail communication. So this 9 is actually for Dave's Guitars. The price I put below is not only for the guitar, but also for the saddles and the work.

I have been playing for 17 years. I own only Stratocasters and I have a few of them. This guitar has become my main guitar. It sounds awsome and it stays in tune. I have some of my guitars with Lindy Fralins Blues Specials and Vintage Hots, Fender Texas Special, Vintage Noiseless, Pearly Gates and Nashvilles and what else not...And all have their special sounds. I have to say that I really like the Hot Noiseless pickups, because they simply scream!

I chose to buy this guitar, based on my love of Beck's music. Also I wanted to play with the whammy bar again. Most of my Strats' tremolos have been blocked.

If it were stolen I would have to get a another one.

lace sensor pups, humbucker w/ button for single coil in bridge, locking tuners, roller nut, big c shaped neck, rosewood fret, surf finish

i love the sounds this thing gets--not everyone has been so happy, but it lets me play a range of stuff--blues, jazz, rock, fits in great w/ all styles, have used it in semi-orchestral settings for film work

it's not that i found anything wrong w/ this aspect of the guitar, but i did have to adjust the neck a bit when i changed the strings to elevens. this has been the best experience i've ever had w/ a trem: the thing never goes out of tune, even when you pop a string. the only complaint is that the trem arm doesn't seem to screw in so that it stops comfortably where i like it, but this was easy to deal w/: i just wrapped a little cloth around the threads and it's right where i want it.

though i would never choose to play live w/out a backup for any guitar--i break a lot of strings, even w/ elevens--i don't have any doubts about the reliability of this guitar.

at first i didn't rate this a 10, b/c eleven hundred bucks isn't normally my idea of a bargain, tho over a lifetime i suppose it is. i've got quite a few other guitars--a vintage casino, a gorgeous hamer monaco, a great 70's tele deluxe, and some more bargain-oriented numbers, but this guitar is probably the one i'd have to pick for playing live, if i had to choose one. i know nothing will go wrong, it sounds awesome, the trem is perfect, and i love the feel of it. fuck it, it's a ten

1994 Jeff Beck strat in purple with rosewood fingerboard.LSR roller nut,gold lace sensors in HSS layout.The one with that big neck.

First thing was to turf those sensors.Ive got the David Gilmour EMG's in there right now.Very versatile,lovely sustain,sings on distortion,but a wee bit sterile.Noiseless,though.Running the guitar through a valvulator,sparkle drive,tuner,carl martin compressor,to a club royale 2/12.Am rating the guitar with these pickups.

Surprisingly fine quality for a non custom shop instrument.Fret work in particular shines.Nice dark slab of rosewood,super tight neck pocket.Strings line up with the neck,trem stays in tune.I love the large neck and big frets.Was attracted to the guitar because of the neck size.May be an issue for some who prefer a smaller neck profile.Find myself going in different directions when I play this neck,and for a factory fender guitar thats saying alot.

Seems as durable as anything else out there.

Havent had to deal with them,but the general opinion seems to be that customer service seems to be a low priority.

Been playing 30 years.Also own an Anderson hollow cobra,early relic tele,and les paul special double cut for slide.Play live twice a month
in a couple of different bands.Had the opportunity to play the beck several times before I bought it.The guitar is very useable for me as a mucisian playing out.It fits in nicely with my other instruments and sounds,plus it looks cool in that purple finish.I trust it,it stays in tune and sounds great.

This guitar is about a year old now, and the honeymoon goes on. The features have been listed elsewhere, so I'll spare you. I'm a one guitar kind of person, and I knew what I wanted in a Strat, and this guitar had everything I wanted plus much more. The neck is perfect, and also comes on the American Series line. The tuners are great, and the rollers add to the overall excellent harmonics of this guitar. The smoothness of the rollers at the nut gives you less tension at the top of bends, for a slinky feel. I especially like the bridge which is slightly curved, and made not to tear up your palm if you like to vibrato that way. No string trees either. There's no way it doesn't deserve a 10.

Take a 1961 Strat, put in in a time machine to the not too distant future, and this is what you'd get. The snob-crit line would say that it was a "full throated sound with incredible chime and harmonics."- yet it doesn't end there. The middle pickup has that vintage, slightly nasal quality to it like the Strat version of a Tele in the middle position. The voicing of the ceramic pu's, while not as ultimately bassy as say Texas Specials, blends the sound from string to string better than any Strat I've played. With a high gain setup on the upper frets it forgoes the typical flutey sound of most Strats in favor of a more precise siren like sound, very expressive. The soundstage provided by the ceramics, while not 'pushy', is broader than other Strats, and definitely favors players who use their fingers, and the increased output is great for pedals and digital effects. I don't know about sounding like Beck, but if Hendrix rose from the grave, who do you think he'd call? After trying a 'Voodoo' he'd toss it in the tip, get one of these, paint it with flowers, and it would be the Jimi Signature. And did I mention it is stone quiet? They say Back worked over 2 years tweaking to get it perfect, and it shows.
I play through a Dr Z Carmen Ghia now, and with this amp I have to check to make sure it's still on, it's that quiet. This guitar has a soul of its own, I swear.

This guitar came from the factory set up perfectly. No flaws anywhere. I only had to put on 10's to replace the 9s, and that was it. I also wanted a slightly lower action, which the guys at the guitar store were happy to do, standard procedure.

Any guitar will go out if you like to ride the whammy bar, but this will come back close enough to finish a set, no problem. You could even beat the club manager with this guitar and still finish the set. I won't even bother to mention the strap buttons, they are the same with every guitar. Rock solid? Definitely.

Who cares? Don't need 'em.

Let me spare you the revenge fantasy if it were stolen. I've been playing let's say a long time, and if someone gave me a pre-CBS Strat, I'd sell it and buy this guitar, that's how good it is. There is really nothing to compare it to; in Beck's typically egoless fashion, he's recreated an early 60's Stratocaster with everything he could want, yet retaining its original character. I'm straining to find something bad to say about it...the closest I've been able to get is if you play an open string and strongly bend another against it, the open note will go down slightly because of the responsive bridge fulcrum, but that's just physics. My JB has more than I could ask for, even if I had one custom made. What more is there to say? A great value at any price for a truly professional quality guitar.

Mine is still a 100% original 2001-model - that means the already updated version which now is basically a standard Stratocaster, but with locking tuners, roller-nut and noiseless pickups.
But for those, who want to read all the details:
- USA-made in 2001
- 22 frets
- master-volume, 2 tone-controls (one for neck and one for middle/bridge pickup)
- standard Stratocaster S/S/S pickup configuration
- Fender Dual Coil Ceramic Noiseless Pickups (obviously a special construction for this guitar, not similar to the Vintage-Noiseless series)
- alder body, maple neck and rosewood fretboard
- olympic white with slightly aged pickup covers and knobs
- Fender American Standard Strat Tremolo (knife-edge non-locking)
- Fender locking machine heads
- especially designed fat C-shape neck - you got a lot of material in your hands, but still very comfortable and thinner that the original Beck-model neck
- case, strap, cable and tools included

I think: a modern version (noiseless and tuning stability) of the original Stratocaster - in that way perfect (if you want a Paula-sound, you won't buy this)

As this guitar is basically a Stratocaster, it is as flexible as the 60ies original - fits perfect to classic rock styles, but would also fit metal, blues, soul, reggae, .....
Together with a Fender Combo and Boss multi-fx, there are not any problems like noise or something - but hey, they call them noiseless for a reason!
This guitar can make a wide range of typical strat sounds with an extended range towards high gain, because the pickups are voiced slightly darker, especially the bridge unit.
I like both: the top-pro clean sounds and the really good-sounding drive-sounds
and: no dislikes - honestly!

- action was set up perfectly
- as well the pickups
but anyone may expect this from a guitar that costs that much
so I was quite disappointed when I realized that the the strings run slightly out of centre from nut towards body. It is not in any way problematic, but still an unexpected fault for a pro-guitar of this level

No problems until now and no problems expected.
BUT:
why do this Schaller-strap locks become loose on every guitar.
I experienced this on just any guitar equipped with those Schallers and I will replace them everywhere as soon as I found an alternative
but I will not let that influence the rating of the guitar

The experience, when complaining about the out of centre strings was quite bad - no real help available

I'm playing since 12 years now and had different stratocaster of my own and I checked out tons of Stratocaster at music stores - this is my favourite.
I would by it again without testing any other guitar, if it were stolen.
I compared it to a lot of other guitars like Fender Stratocaster Deluxe, G&L and others. Besides the locking-tuners, roller-nut, noiseless pickups and overall sound, it was this wonderful neck (feel and playability) that made up my decision
I cannot imagine, what could be improved !

1991
22 frets
s/s/h
active electronics

Lace Sensor pups are somewhat flat. Clean, but flat.
I have since replaced Lace pups with Fralin Blues Specials in the neck and middle position and a Steel poled 43 in the bridge.
Really good clean tone and very good edgy blues when put through a TS9. I always play through a Fender Twin with sometimes a little delay and compression.

The finish is really dissapointing. There are 2 lines running through the paint where the body appears to have been glued toghther. ( I am assuming this is a 3 piece body.) I not a 3 piece then I don't know what caused the lines as they run the whole lenght of the body horizontally on the face.
The fit in the neck pocket is really nice. I have owned this since 1991 and there is no sign of any movement or cracks, nothing.
Action was acceptable but is much better since I replaced the frets with Jumbo frets and blocked the trem and also replaced the original Wilkenson Nut with a LSR roller nut only because I now play with 11's for strings and 11's will not fit the original nut. I do although like both nuts and wish I could still use the Wilkenson.

Very Dependable. Stays in tune very well, especially after blocking trem. The neck on this guitar is large. This guitar is solid as a rock.

Ive been playing 12 years now. This was my first guitar and I will keep it and pass it on to my son when I die. I play this through a Fender Twin (evil Twin)clean channel with a Boss DD-3 for slight delay and a Modified TS9 for a little edge and a Keeley Compressor.
This is a great combination for any one from SRV to Robben Ford to Coco Montoya and a little Joe Pass and a little Keith and a little country.

This guitar was made in 95 or 96. Sea Foam green color, Gold Lace Sensor pickups, Wilkinson Roller nut, Sperzel locking tuners. Maple neck with Pao Ferro fingerboard. Included a tweed case and the usual Fender accessories.
The neck came with a deep baseball bat shape that I subsequently replaced with a Warmoth Strat neck with a compound radius and medium frets. It is a much nicer guitar to play now.

Sound is excellent. My style is blues, R&B, Ry Cooder. The pickups deliver very clean, ringing highs, lows, and bass, plus they deliver the entire range of patented Stratocaster tones, as well as having a beefier honk if you enable the 'double coil' configuration at the bridge. Brights are bright and the neck pickup delivers a very mean Hendrix/Stevie Ray thunder on demand. No complaints here.

Where was the QC department on this?
There were finish flaws in the body and in the neck. The body finish, presumably poly of some sort, had cracks around the 4-bolt neck plate and around the bridge (mostly hidden by the pickguard). The neck had a finish crack (more like a finish 'split') along the skunk stripe.
The Sperzel locking tuners were extremely poor quality. The tuner grommets, which screw down onto the tuning posts on the face of the peghead, were made of a soft metal that allowed the threads to strip out under VERY little torque. I stripped one the day I bought the guitar, simply by tightening down a loose tuner grommet. I have subsequently replaced them with Gotohs.

It seems very reliable now, since replacement of the tuners.

N/A

I rate it a 7 out of the box, because of the finish issues and crummy tuners. The fact that I changed necks because I ultimately didn't like the feel is subjective - I knew I was buying a beefy neck.
After replacing the tuners and the neck, this is my ultimate Stratocaster - a definite 10. Too bad Fender didn't make it that way to begin with.

Innovative, tasteful, tuneful and visionary... That's how we describe Jeff Beck, and his trusty Strat is certainly part of his signature sound. This updated model reflects the significant changes Jeff made to his guitar to accommodate his constantly evolving style. You'll notice the new neck shape is a softer "C," not as large or deep as Jeff's previous choice. Also, the guitar features the new Fender special design dual-coil ceramic NoiselessTM pickups, a contoured heel for easier access to the higher registers, and straight-ahead Strat 5-way switching.

Jeff's updated signature model had better pickups than the previous one. It had also a softer C-shaped neck, not deep and large than his previous choice. His famous warhorse sported Lace Sensor Gold pickups in an efficacious HSS configuration and a clubby maple neck with Brazilian rosewood fingerboard. The Gold Lace Sensor Dually - who was basically two adjacent pickups - looked like a humbucker placed in the bridge position with a push-push mini toggle switch for single or dual-coil pickup operation. After 10 years of extensive use of Lace Sensor pickups, Jeff switched to the Vintage-Noiseless pickups in 2001.

Jeff wanted a softer neck shape for his trusty Strat to accommodate his constantly evolving style. Otherwise, the new Jeff Beck Stratocaster stresses the quality of the model, developed from various early-'60s vintage-style Strats. A new contoured heel now allows the full access to the upper frets for total playing comfort. From the American Series pivot-point tremolo to the LSR roller nut and the Schaller locking tuners, the essential features of this reworked guitar are faithfully replicated. It's a pity that the new model was not available in the cool Midnight Purple finish, the fact that the Olympic White and Surf Green came as "standard" finishes on this wonderful instrument.

Jeff Beck was not only famous for playing a Strat. During its early career with the Yardbirds, he mostly used a cherry sunburst Gibson Les Paul Standard (purchased from the Selmer store in 1966) and a 1950s butterscotch Fender Broadcaster fitted with Seymour Duncan Antiquity Tele pickups. Jeff switched to Fender Stratocasters in 1976 during the "Wired" album release (strongly influenced by his good old friends Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton) and since 1980 he plays several guitars (including a Jackson Soloist superstrat, made in 1985). For honouring Gene Vincent's toting guitarist Cliff Gallup, Jeff Beck used a single-cutaway Gretsch Duo-Jet solidbody to record the "Crazy Legs" album in 1993.

Can't dealt with Fender yet, sorry....

Most of the features of this trusty signature Strat had been kept (the pivot trem, the locking tuners and the roller nut), but the new changes (the softer neck shape, the contoured heel joint and the dual-coil Ceramic Vintage-Noiseless pickups) reflected in some points Jeff's current choice for updating his signature model, rather than the previous one with its early-'50s deep profile and the Gold Lace Sensor HSS pickups. Both signature Beck models (the old and the new) are specially designed to meet the demands of Jeff's virtuosity.

This is the brand-new model--mine's a 2003 and not to be confused with the original JB signature model. USA made, naturally. Solid Alder, I think. Comes with a tweed case, surprisingly acceptable-looking Fender strap (not the one I'm used to seeing), extra trem springs, 10 foot patch cord, adjustment allen keys, instruction book.

It has the standard Strat controls--Vol, tone, tone, five-way selector. All modern hardware--two-point knife-edge tremolo, cast bridge pieces, locking tuners, roller nut (not a Wilkinson), strap-lock ready strap buttons (I hate these, but the quality's great--it's a personal thing).

Uses the new Noiseless pickups, but a special "hot" version that uses different magnets. To the best of my knowledge, these are only available on this model.

Maple neck, satin finish with skunk stripe and rosewood fingerboard, medium-jumbo frets. The real headline here, though, is that it is NOT AT ALL like the original Jeff Beck neck. That think was like a tree trunk. The new neck is the best one Fender makes, in my opinion. Up by the headstock, it's fairly full and rounded, but no more so (and maybe less) than an American Standard Strat. As you move toward the body, the neck profile becomes less "c" shaped and more "u" shaped, and gets thinner. It makes for a guitar that feels great playing open chords, yet is also very easy to play fast runs up high. Just as I hated the old Beck neck, the new one is fantastic.

I've rated this down just a bit for one reason--it only comes in two colors, dang it.

The sound of this guitar is amazing. The new pickups are terrific. What they are NOT, though, is classic Strat pickups. They are substantially higher output, for one thing. The neck pickup is a good deal more midrangy, and does not have some of the twang you might expect. This guitar sports the first Strat middle pickup that I'd consider using by itself--bright and clean. Bell-like might be appropriate. The bridge has a lot of twang, but not with the piercing highs that you find on a standard. For some this may be a disadvantage, but for those of us who've been trying to get a meatier strat tone, this is home.

You still have the usual wide range of strat sounds, but slightly different--stronger and slightly darker. To my ears, the settings that combine pickups are much better than usual--better balanced and because the middle pickup sounds so good, they are usually full. I find that combining, say, the neck and middle on a standard strat leaves me feeling like I'm hearing the neck and middle pickups. On this guitar, it sounds like one new pickup that's very different, and quite rich.

The pickups are also very quiet--quieter even than other vintage Noiseless pickups I've auditioned.

The setup on this guitar was top-notch. I don't know whether this is a factory setup or not, but since it had to be brought up from the basement, I imagine it's the factory setup. Action is great, intonation (inasmuch as I could tell) is fine.

I'm a little suspicious of the pickup positioning--they seem really far from the strings. I may mess with that a little, but I'm not going to go nuts--it sounds really really good as-is.

I will be changing out the 9's (strings) that came on it for 10's, and suspect I may have to adjust some things once I do that. I will also be pulling the tremolo down to the face of the guitar. I seldom use one--on my other guitar it's blocked. With the new nut, I think I'll leave this tremolo useable, but not floating.

Finish seems flawless so far.

I couldn't say what the reliability is, but I trust it--it's a Fender, and doesn't appear to be a lemon.


I probably wouldn't gig it without a backup, but does anyone ever do that anyway?

Don't know anything about dealing with Fender--hope I never have to.

I've been playing for about 20 years, and only own two other guitars. One is a Hamer Special P90, which is a totally different animal (love it, though), and the other is a $250 Charvel Model 1 that I put a single coil at the neck. I've had the Hamer for about 6 years, and the Charvel for 12, with the Charvel being my workhorse through 3 years of playing out with a band. Been playing for nearly 10 years through an MXR Distortion+, Crybaby Wah into a Yamaha T100C (1x12 Soldano designed tube combo), and doubt I'll change much. I've known for a while that I wanted something else, and figured a Strat was the right thing--it'll do straight-ahead rock well, and is unmatched for blues.

I've had to do a lot of research to find the perfect Strat, though. Once you get to a certain level of expertise, you know what you want in pretty much every aspect of a guitar, and it's hard to compromise on any one thing. For me, it was Strat, modern hardware, rosewood fingerboard, some kind of noiseless s/s/s configuration, medium-to-jumbo frets, fatter sound than usual, and not the graceless baseball bat that most Strat necks are. That left me pretty nearly high and dry--there were three choices: The new Clapton (near perfect but for vintage frets), The Classic Player (standard neck, no fat tone), or the Jeff Beck.

I was worried at first about this guitar--most literature and reviews mention that the neck is not nearly as extreme as the old JB neck was (and I thought that an unplayable nightmare). But what nobody says is that this is in fact an extremely moderate and graceful neck. As I said before, I've never seen its equal. I've seen some aftermarket neck diagrams that sounded like this, but never seen a stocker this nice. If you're worried about the neck on this guitar, you owe it to yourself to try it out--it's a 180 degree turn from the old ones.

As much as I love the neck, though, it was the tone that sold me. The salesman (a guy I know personally and trust) said that they get calls every day from guys wanting the HOT vintage noiseless pickups, but they can't get them. I see why (though I don't see why anyone wouldn't just buy the JB and be done with it).

If mine was stolen, you bet I'd replace it, and right away (well, I might have to save up a little--they're not cheap). I didn't even intend to buy a guitar the day I tried it. I didn't even intend to try the JB at all--I was trying the Classic Player, but the sales guy urged me to give the JB a chance when I said what I disliked about the other Strats I'd tried. I played it for 1/2 hour, and knew I had to have it.

I know that not everyone wants a rosewood neck, or maybe they want a Fat strat, or maybe they like the more cutting tone of the other noiseless pickups, but if you are looking for what I listed above, you really need to check out this guitar.

2002 Model: Oly White,new cut-away base plate at neck heel,new noiseless pickups. The rest is covered in other posts!

Style? 60's - 80's Rock mostly. Bought this model since it appears to cover several styles.

Set up was acceptable. Flaw? Chipped Body joint - where it meets the neck.Reason to return to Fender? No. Not noticeable unless you look for it.But rate it low for this reason. At this price, this guitar should be near flawless.Shows American made (assembled) does not mean jack anymore.

Reliable - like most Strats I am sure. On the heavy side overall, so should take a whupping!

No experience here. No comment.

Playing on & off since 1976. Would probably replace this one if it was lost or stolen.

2001 USA Made, "new' model. mine's olympic white wit h the white pickguard (i changed it out to a bronze moto for a hip look), 22 medium frets, LSR Roller Nut (take THAT! wilkinson), Locking tuners, medium maple neck with rosewood fretboard, alder body, 3 Fender Hot-Noiseless Ceramic single coils, volume, tone, tone controls, 5 way switching. American Standard tremelo bridge, came with Tweed Fender Case, cable, polishing cloth, straplocks (why don't all guitars come with straplocks?!), tools, trem bar, etc. For the money, you get a whole lotta features that are all 100% usuable, hence my "10".

My style(s) are pop, funk, latin, blues, R&B, and gospel. I'm playing through these effects: Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive (modded by my tech for ultimate smoothness), Vox Wah-Wah, Akai E1 Headrush loop/delay pedal, Voodoo Labs Tremelo, EH Small Clone Chorus, Ibanez LF-1 Lo-Fi Filter. Through a 1995 Mesa/Boogie DC-5 combo (for some things), otherwise I run the SD-1, Wah, and Akai into a '73 Silverface Twin with Jensen speakers. Now, I really like these pickups because they are what they say- hot and noiseless. No noise. No hum. When playing a strat thru a vintage twin, noise can be a damned problem, which is the main reason I'm liking the HN's so much. Now, you don't get a pure vintage single coil sound, and I do prefer the Fender '69 pickups for that pure tone. But as far as versatility, I prefer the HBs in my Jeff Beck. The bridge pickup is usable- less shreiking highs than my old AmStd Strat, but it still could use a tad more low end to even things out when used 100% clean- I'm thinking about a Fralin baseplate to smooth things out here. The middle and neck pickups are fabulous- neck is very smooth and buttery, and the 2&4 "in-between" positions are probably my favorite for those funky rhythm licks, NOTE- at first, the sound wasn't really up to my standards and I considered taking the Jeff Beck back, but... ***PLAY WITH THE PICKUP HEIGHTS!!!!*** these pickups are VERY sensitive to your string gauge and pickup height, those two go hand in hand. For the record, I use Thomastik .11s or DR .11s, depending on how poor I am that month (I still like good strings)

I had it setup upon purchasing, with my choice of Thomstik .11s, but as noted in "Sound", you really have to play with the pickups to find the ideal height, mine sound superb now. Fit and finish are A-OK, very tight neck pocket, fretwork is fine (not perfect, but for the price you can't complain). Easily equal to the PRS CE24 I used to own.

You shouldn't have a problem with a Strat, I never have and doubt I really will.

I used to work in a music shop, and I did deal with the company reps and they are great guys, but never as a consumer, but I'll give em a rating anyways.

This is my ideal strat for under $3000. From August to December, I was occupied with finding the perfect strat for my needs, and the JB did it for me. I wanted a vintage guitar, but honestly, the new ones feel better to me, I couldn't really justify the extra expense for a vintage piece. The sound is nearly perfect for everything I do, just want to try that Fralin baseplate on the bridge pickup, maybe smooth it out, then I would be as happy as a pig in shit.

I have the new Jeff Beck Strat in Olympic White finish with the Noiseless single-coil pickups, new neck profile (thinner but still has a nice heftiness to it), and the LSR nut, which is a vast improvement over the Wilkinson roller nut. Other than these features, it's a typical Strat with alder body, maple neck with rosewood fingerboard, 3 single-coil pickups and a 5-way switch. I used to own an old Surf Green JB Strat with the Lace Sensors and I could honestly say that this new incarnation is a VAST improvement. The new JB Strat stays in tune better, doesn't have the annoying open-string rattling caused by the Wilkinson nut, and the new pickups sound a LOT better than the Lace Sensors, which I think are just terrible pickups. This Strat also has a heel cutaway that makes upper register access a lot easier. It's a nice feature. As far as Strats are concerned, this new JB Strat pretty much covers it all. I can't imagine adding anything more to it and still retain its Stratocaster character.

I play a variety of styles and own a variety of guitars. I'm a true believer that no one guitar and/or amp could do it all. My other guitars are a Brian Moore MC/1, a Parker Fly Artist, a PRS Custom 22, and an Ibanez JS1000. So compared to those guitars, this Strat is the most "traditional" solid-body electric that I have in terms of look, sound, and feel.

I felt I needed to have a Strat around with the single-coil pickups. One thing I've always hated about the single-coil pickups is the noise but this one doesn't have it. It's pretty damn quiet while retaining the single-coil character for the most part. The Noiseless pickups in this JB model is also somewhat hotter than the Vintage Noiseless single-coils. I like to play with high-gain distortion a lot, so it helps to have some more kick from the pickups. The output is still nowhere near that of typical dual-coil humbucking pickups, but it's definitely hotter than vintage-style single-coils.

The guitar on its own (acoustically) has a typical warm, open and springy sound. I'm sure the the hefty neck adds a lot to the tone of this guitar. The alder body/maple neck/rosewood FB combination is a classic that I do not feel has been surpassed on a bolt-on guitar.

The new JB Strat sounds great. I personally feel that this is as far as you can take a Strat and still retain the timeless Strat character. Once you start adding Floyd Rose bridges or dual-coil humbucking pickups, etc., it really isn't a Strat anymore. This guitar embraces the modern concepts while retaining the classic Strat character.

The action, fit and finish on mine out of the factory was just fine. I put on a set of .010's as soon as I got the guitar because Strats just sound wimpy with .009's. Putting on .010's improved the overall sound and feel a great deal. It also meant I had to readjust the tremolo cavity springs, the truss rod and the action, but I'm pretty good with that stuff, so it was no problem.

The fretwork is excellent for a mass-produced factory guitar. The action needs to be set higher than on guitars like a Brian Moore MC/1 or the Ibanez JS1000, but I believe that's the way Strats should be set up: thicker strings with higher action. Strats sound and respond much better that way. This is a guitar that you want to dig your fingers into. It's not something you want to play Holdsworthian legato licks on.

The new neck shape is just splendid. It's got the heft but is very comfortable. The first JB models had that ridiculous end-of-the-baseball-bat chunkiness that I could never really get used to. I don't like thin necks, but that one was a little too much in the other direction. This new neck shape is one of the best I have ever felt on any electric guitar.

This is a professional instrument and is going to stand up to the rigors of live playing night after night.

Thank God that I won't need to deal with the Fender Customer Service staff.

As I said earlier, no one guitar could do it all. I play a lot of styles but prefer high-speed fusion kind of stuff personally. For that kind of stuff, my other guitars like the Brian Moore MC/1 and the Ibanez JS1000 suit me better. For more tonal variety, I also use the Parker Fly Artist and the PRS Custom 22. Still, this new JB Strat could also cover a variety of musical styles very well. The only styles that I would not try to cover with this guitar would be heavy metal and jazz.

It's a Strat and it does everything that a Strat is supposed to do and does all of that better than any other Strat I've owned. If this one got lost or stolen, I'd definitely replace it with the exact same model. The only thing I wish Fender would do with all their Artist Signature models is to remove the signature from the face of the headstock. Why not put that on the back?

Overall, the new JB Strat is a great instrument that takes the feature set to the limits while retaining its great classic characteristics. I love Jeff Beck, but I don't care about getting his sound. I want an instrument that fits MY own peculiar wants and needs and this Strat fits me better than any other Strat that I've tried.

Purple, 93'(possibly ealier) made in the US blah blah blah blah

I recieved this guitar as a gift so it packs sentimental value. I hated the wilkenson roller nut, the locking tuners, the pickups and the trem block (too thin, the block should be thicker then this)....since I have all my strats customized by my tech, he and I have had to really work with this guitar to make it enjoyable...New pickups(lipsticks, our own wiring which is secret) new tuners and my tech made me a new nut made of ivory...it would have been less costly to just trade for a new strat but it was a gift so I was stuck...I also need dunlop 6100 fretwire so this guitar needed a fretjob...I use 12 to 60 guage strings so you can see why I had to change the roller nut.....after all this, my guitar was thought to have come out of the custom shop, the sound of this thing is killer but for price I had to pay to have all this shit done was just wrong...I give it a one for the initial guitar, and a 10 for the work I have put into it

the factory set up on all strats that I have played and owned sucked which is why I thank god for my techie......he is a miracle worker...thanks Rick K.

I always travel with at least 5 guitars....this strat, like all my others, is used here and there.....whenever I feel like using it

always been a fender guy, but have never dealt with them

Been playing for about 11 years, I own a 61' strat, a red strat, an orange strat, a jeff beck strat, a 57' reissue...

See previous reviews for details.

I originally sold my Steinberger GL2T to pick up an instrument with some soul and less perfection--specifically with single coil pickups. Looking for a similar feel in the neck, I ended up with the JB strat primarily for the rosewood fretboard and the meaty neck. I would have liked the bite of regular pickups, but the splittable Lace Dually in the bridge position made it a real attraction. I cover styles from early 80s clean sounds (The Tubes) to modern grunge rock, and this guitar does a better job of covering that range than any other instrument I've known. I may upgrade pickups soon to EMG's.

I bought it used, and until very recently the set-up was poor. However, studying a few recommendations on string set-up for tremolo-bridge strats made a huge difference, and now it plays like a fraggin' dream!

I read an earlier review and was surprised to hear another JB strat owner has an intermittent neck position pickup. I, too, had that exact same problem. The pickup became thermally intermittent--that is, when the instrument was cold (or at least not under the influence of stage lighting...), the pickup worked fine. As soon as the stage heated up, the windings on the pickup would open up. Less than $50 for a new pickup + 30 minutes of soldering, etc., cleared up the problem, and I've had none since other than string breakage.

N/A

This is a 1997 model; surf green. I won't go into all of the details as the other have above, except to note that I have changed out the pick-ups for a set of Blues Special Lindy Fralin Pick-Up set, purchased from Torres.

I am basically centered around rock and blues, though I do appreciate many other styles as well. But for rock and blues, this guitar is pretty tough to beat. Pretty great strat sounds from all positions...I think that a lot of it has to do with that HUGE neck.

In fact, even stock, with the lace sensors the tone was pretty great. To be honest, I wanted a bit more of a vintage look and sound and the pick up upgrades did just that.

I play this through a Mesa Maverick and am quite pleased with the variety of tones. It does tend to need a stomp box if you want searing sustain, as the Mav is more of a mid-gain set up. Humbuckers definately drive the front end harder than the fralins.

There is also a bit of noise with the fralins, but Lindy says there wil be right on his site!

I actually bought this used and it was set up O.K., but only O.K. nneded more than a bit of tweaking...But once that was done, everything was perfect.

Hey it's a strat! You can (and I have) drop a strat and expect the thing to be in tune when you pick it back up... I am not exactly easy on my stuff, and this (and other Fender gear that I have or still own) has been great. I do not like to gig with only one guitar anyway (I'm a bit heavy handed and can break strings regularly) but I suppose if I had to this would be O.K.

Never had to...

I've been playing for almost 20 years and own multiple guitars and amps including PRS, Gibson, etc. I would certainly entertain another JB Strat if it were stolen or whatever...Especially now that they have done a few mods, including replacing pick-ups. I actually chose this guitar because I had been playing Les Pauls and wanted to get back into strats, but had grown acustomed to the bigger necks on the LP's...As it turns out, this thing has a bigger neck than many LP's I've played!

I've played rock (Van Halen style), blues, and country with this guitar.

The setup and finish was very good. Neck position pickup developed intermittent problem (my reason for the poor rating).

I bought this guitar especially for live performance. I broke a B string after 2 hours of playing and decided to replace the bridge saddles with a set of Graphtechs (no recurance of premature string breakage). The neck position pickup quit working leaving me leary of the reliability of Fender Lace Sensors. I wouldn't use any guitar without a backup, but since the pickup failure the backup guitar will remain readilly available.

The lack of a toll-free phone number for customer support sends up a red flag. I also have not been able to find an email address for customer support or anyone with the company on their website (It seems they are insulating themselves from the problems encountered with their products). I have been trying to get the local Fender dealer to replace the pickup for 6 weeks (three visits). It is an intermittent problem which has not been cured by re-soldering a suspected "cold solder joint", reversing wires that caused the pickup to be "out of phase", or whatever "mojo" Fender forgot to bless it with before it left the factory. Maybe I'll get lucky and they'll diagnose the bad pickup before the warranty runs out (I think it's has a one year warranty).

I've been playing 20 years. I also play a Charvel, a bastardized Strat with a Warmoth neck, and a Tobias. If the Jeff Beck Strat were stolen or lost, I would get something else. One good thing is the tone in the bridge pickup position with a Marshall tone. It has some good blues tones, too (when the neck position pickup is working). The ablility to stay in tune after dive bombing the tremolo is disappointing as I was expecting better after the way this model was hyped. My goal was to purchase a high performance guitar. For the price I paid, it should work flawlessly.

1999 corona california -22 frets -antique white-3 gold lace sensor pickups/s/s/h-rosewood fingerboard-schaller locking tuners-fat neck-tweed hardshell case.

it covers all the tunes i use a electric for. i run a 50 watt sovtek head thru a 61 bandmaster cabinet with a 707 effects mod to simulate reverb. its not as warm as the noiseless pickups but it has a fatter sound than the american standard and the humbucker will just cut through with bitting treble. the roller nut and vibrato work well on string bending and the guitar does stay in tune when you beat on it.

the factory did a great job on the set up . this thing sat on the shelf for 2 years before i bought it. the workmanship was flawless.

i've called fender before- its ok but they need a 1 800 number. i think gibson does a better job!

ive been playing as long as beck-34 yrs-(i think) i currenty own a taylor acoustic 614ce and a early epiphone thin line emperior. i sold my 89 strat in order to pay for the beck. the beck is very solid.

1996 hand made in usa,
stratocaster with 22 frets volume,tone,TBX 5-way selector,
s/s/dual(which you can switch from single to hum) lace sensors gold,
maple neck, rosewood finish, alder body, vintage white color.
american deluxe bridge, LSR roller and sprezal locking.
very fat neck.
tweed case, strap and cables included.

i couldn't imagine a guitar with wider range of possibilities then this.

i play usualy 70's rock, like led zep and pink floyd, also a lot of my own stuff, i use fender all tube amp : "hot rod deluxe" and i also have a zoom gfx-8 and wireless samson cable,
all togather it's the best, i could sound like whoever i want with a veraity of sounds i couldn't imagina going out from just one guitar, but only cause i own a fender all tube amp, if you have a marshal, maybe you should consider something else.
i know meny of you won't like the lace sensors pickups for them being over clean, without a single buzz, but i love them, especialy the dual which i can switch it from single to hum.

this guitar didn't need setup at all for 3 years, everything was perfect, from the pickups to the neck.
the finish is the best fender make, looks very impressive.
also it never goes out of tune for me, i can play for two or three weeks and not tune it.
you also have to know that this baby has a fat neck like you have never seen,i love it ,but it's hard to get used to ,so you should know what you are buying,i would give it a -10
but not everyone can play it and feel comfortable.

have to say that i never tested it for a long lasting concert, so i don't know.

i'm playing for 7 years, i also have 2 nylon-strings acustics, i have been thinkin for a whie about buying a ibanez jem but when i played it i just wanted to play the jeff beck again,
my opinion is that if you are comfortable with this fat neck, you won't need any other guitar, it is the les paul, the 50's strat and alot more in one guitar.
i woudn't trade it for anything.

bought in atlanta 1997,
look for the rest in www.fender.com...

i suits my music style perfectly, all kinds if new sounds that i learn to know about every day...i usualy play old classic rock, like led zeppelin, but i'm not even close to discover the veraity of the ful sounds rang eof this baby...
I use a fender all tube amp, HOTROD DELOUX and a zoom gfx-8, both fukin' graet.
this guitar has the most beautiful, clean sound, you'll never find cleaner then that.

this is the best guitar fender makes.

i have total confidace in it

don;t know

this is the best guitar anyone can make, the ret is compermise

Fender Jeff Beck model. Alder body, surf green,lace sensor pickups, locking tuners...etc.etc.got it brand new, last month,02-2001.the only thing i did to mod it was to put a Musiworks cocoboola neck on it. the neck is almost the same size & feel of the beck neck, but has a 15 " radius..

before i got it i read all the reviews posted here, let me first say that the lace sensor pickups sound fantastic, i set them real close to the strings, and back them off a bit on the volume to 7-8 on clean and 9-9.5 on crunch...i use rivera amps, maybe thats why they sound great...i boost my leads with a boss overdrive, and the leads sound awesome, full of harmonics, the clean tone is as good as it gets.the alder wood body gives a very sweet open sound.

The guitar was set up ok from the store, i traded in a very used anderson drop top, and a newer ernie ball axis, for this guitar and a cool brown case. the people at guitar center in sacramento ca. worked the deal i wanted with no money needed..very cool...i did play a few new PRS guitars and a bunch of fenders and musicman guitars, but this guitar sounded fuller and more open with a nice top end that just sang with tone,,alot of people in the store said the same thing.

the finish is very good,,the parts seem solid, i compared this axe to my vintage strat, and it equals it in feel & sound,,,i always take 2 guitars to gigs, but i would take this guitar alone, and not feel any pressure of failure..fender did a good job on this axe...i will keep the neck as a backup, it is a good neck, i just like a flatter radi.

i never delt with Fender, but they make killer guitars, i never had a need to bitch....

I have had a ton of strat type guitars, from anderson to Zion's. the 2 best guitars i have, a 74 strat with a warmoth neck and emg pickups, and this beck model..i love the sound and flexabillity of this axe..i know i will be playing this one for a long time..if it was lost i would get another the next day. i think i made myself the ultimate strat and i am very happy....

This baby was made in 1996 in the US of A...
22 fret alder body, w/ maple neck,(rosewood fretboard)...
Pickups are all Fender Lace Sensor Golds(YUCH!!!!!!!!!)...
Neck: Single, Middle: Single, Bridge: 2 singles side by side, (humbucking or single, & switchable)...
Contols are standard Strat: volume, tone, tone,(TBX cicuit in bottom tone pot)...
The tuners are Schaller locking..
The nut is an LSR roller nut...
The bridge is a Fender fulcrum pivot type..
The guitar came equipped with Schaller strap lock buttons...
My "JB" is Surf Green...
The guitar comes with all the goodies: "Tweed" case, strap, cable, wrenches, spare springs, polishing cloth, ...the works!!!

OK...before I get into the nuts and bolts of this puppy, let's get one thing straight right off: Lace Sensor Pickups LICK SACK!!!!!!!!!!
if you are considering buying any Fender guitar, be forewarned...these things have no SOUL!!!....cold, thin, and LOW output,(the golds anyway)...once I dispensed with those and installed some good pickups, this guitar went from pretty cool to awesome sounding!!!
So...I play in an original hard rock/metal band, and a top 40/ classic rock band as well...
I always wanted a quality Strat type guitar, and being a HUGE Jeff Beck freak I gave this a try...
I love this guitar...the bad rap about this thing having a baseball bat neck just ain't true...mine is very playable...average in size I would say...maybe I just got lucky???
Very comfortable guitar overall, balances well, feels " friendly"!!...
I installed 2 Fender Texas Specials,:neck and middle, and a Seymour Duncan JB (what else?), in the bridge...
this set up is THE SHIT!!!...
gets that sweet 60 cycle Strat hum, and a crunchy bridge humbucking tone as well...very versatile set up for my needs...
I like everything about this baby, except the aforementioned LACE STINKUPS!!!..ha ha

No complaints at all about the set up on my Beck...played great right off the rack.....neck pocket was nice and tight...no finish flaws...A-OK!!!

This thing is built to last....I'm pretty hard on my stuff, but this baby seems solid...
Gig without a backup?...ya ...when pigs fly!!!!

As far as customer support, they have been great...I emailed their tech guy about suggestions for replacement pickups and he got back to me fast.....very helpful...
The guitar has a lifetime warranty...SWEET!!!
Oh ya ....the website is very cool!!!

I've been playing for 25 years, and have been through a shit load of stuff...so I know a good guitar from a bad one.....
This sucker covers all my needs, it plays , sounds , and feels like quality!!...I'd replace it if stolen, and poke the creeps eyes out with string ends if I cought him!(or her!!!!!!)
Just heed my warning about the Lace Sensors....heck, Jeff Beck himself don't play em'...so there you go!!!!!!!!

My baby was made in 1999, I ordered it through Guitar Center from Fender, who made it just for me because they didn't have any Midnight Purple ones in stock at the time. LSR roller nut, 22 frets, alder body (probably centerjoin), thick neck, locking tuners(Schallers I think), 1 volume, 2 tone, 2 Gold Lace Sensor singles and one Gold Lace Sensor humbucker, coil split button, 5-way switch, American Deluxe floating trem. She's got a rosewood fingerboard, and came with a cable, tools, and a polish cloth. The gigbag was extra.

She suits me fine, I play all kinds of stuff: blues, jazz, rock & roll, hard rock, old school heavy metal, thrash metal, fusion, and I just started trying to learn bluegrass. I play through a Line 6 AX2, and can get a whole bunch of tones. The tone of this guitar is very full and muscular, especially the neck pickup, but I want to change the bridge humbucker to a different model of Lace Sensor for a little more of a PAF sound. There is very little noise with this guitar, unless your near some types of lights, then occasionally there is a buzz.

The finish is great, it was still a little tacky when I got it and I got a little purple on my hand the first time I picked it up. The set up was fine from the factory, I don't know if they did a set up at the store. I put heavier strings on, though, since it came with .009's which are a little wimpy for my taste.

This guitar has survived a handful of gigs, she's very solid. When I first got the guitar, it busted strings constantly, I had to put String Savers on. Now strings last forever, and the tone was sweetened a little. Using the tremelo made the guitar go way out of tune every time, even with a roller nut and locking tuners. I had a Trem Setter installed and now it is a lot better, but still goes out of tune sometimes. I want to put in another tremsetter eventually. I have gigged without a backup with it once because I didn't have a decent backup, and though I would never deliberately do it again, I don't think I'd have any problems. The score I gave was for the STOCK guitar. Now it'd be a 10.

Fender was great about my order, they had to make one specifically for me because I hated the Surf Green color option and wanted the Midnight Purple. Guitar Center was FANTASTIC, the salesman was Walter White, and he bent of backwards to accomodate me, he even let me keep a Lonestar Strat for a really long time until the Beck came in. Another salesman, Jeff Repp, is a guitar tech and installed the Tremsetter for me overnight for $20 (I supplied the Tremsetter), I am going to use him a lot I think.

I've been playing 10 years, use a Line 6 AX2, a Peavey Transtube Bandit, a mid 70's Polaris Solidbody, and an Oscar Schmidt OG-6 acoustic. I love this guitar, if it were stolen or lost I'd be devastated. I might then try to put together a Warmoth Strat, or something. I'd never be able to replace this guitar, I don't get a thousand bucks together very often. I originally ordered a Carvin DC127, which was a nice guitar, but I'm more of a strat cat so I sent it back. I then got a Lonestar Strat, which I liked, but I wanted locking tuners, a coil splitter, and a fatter neck. As I said earlier, I want to change the bridge humbucker and have another tremsetter installed, but this is definitely my main axe for the forseeable future. My band gets mostly cover gigs, and we are working on original tunes. We want to do a DIY cd sometime this year. This guitar/amp setup is extremely versatile and reliable.

Purchesed in November, 1998. I had my local music store order my Jeff Beck Signature Strat brand new directly from Fender. I made sure none of the employees opened the case or even remove any of the plastic protection film from the case latches etc.. My main guitar before the Jeff Beck is a Strat that I had built from hand picked custom parts but I've always wanted an authentic Fender Strat. The features on this guitar are what really attracted me to it. The Jeff Beck has 22 Frets, Alder body, Maple neck with roewood fretboard and bi-flex trussrod. It has Schaller locking tuners, 4 Fender Gold Lace Sensor pickups with two of them side by side humbucker style in the bridge position. The pickups have a 5 way blade switch as well as a push button to turn on\off one of the Sensors in the bridge position. It has and American Standard 2-point tremolo with an LSR roller nut. The tweed case with gold hardware is ultra, ultra cool! I love walking into a gig with it.

The sound is crsp and clear. My other main guitar has a Seymor Duncan JB humbucker in the bridge position with coil split and phase switching. The Jeff Beck Signature Strat is so much brighter and crystalline sounding than my humbucker equipped strat. I love the lace sensors although they have more hum than I am used to with my humbucker. The sensors still have far less hum than a traditional single coil. The pickups distort nicely with my Digitech 2120 Valve Guitar system. They don't have quite the sustain as the humbucker. They also don't get that really smooth heavy metal distortion. Where they excel though is Hard Rock, Rock, Blues, Jazz, and Country. The thing about this guitar is the clarity of the tone. You can hear the slightest nuances of the attack. The middle and neck position pickups are absolutely classic Fender Strat sounding!! I love that. The dual bridge pickup really gives you a thick sound with both coils on. It's definately a nice design idea. One thing I did with mine is switch the positions of the two bridge pickups. I wanted the pickup closest to the bridge to be on when I went to single coil instead of the one farther away. After I did this I got an unbelievably bright sound out of the single coil bridge setting. I can get downright irritating with the brightness yet control it nicely with the tone pot and a slight change in attack as well. After I made the change I switched both pickups on and it was smooth and bright with a midrange punch. This guitar can make so many different sounds it is amazing. One thing I don't like sound wise is with the volume pot all the way up you get some guitar generated distortion if you attack to hard with your pick. It's easily controlled though by turning the pot to 9 or just picking a little lighter.

I was the one who did the setup on this guitar. It had gone out of factory spec slightly during shipping with the strings slackened. I had to straighten the truss rod slightly. Adjust the individual string heights, and do some slight intonation adjustments. I set it up as soon as I got it home and then set it up again after about 15 hours of playing time. It has stayed beautifully set up ever since. I have not had to make any adjutments to it since that second setup. It's really built rock solid. I did have to put a drop of wood glue on the strap button screws and on the neck bolts to set them in tight. They haven't loosened a bit since. That's a trick I learned from my custom built guitar. The locking tuners and roller nut are one of the most impressive things about this guitar. After being used to tuning, locking, re-tuning and re-locking my Floyd Rose double locking tremelo on my other guitar I couldn't believe how fast i had the Jeff Beck Signature restrung and staying in tune. For someone who hates the tedium of re-stringing a guitar you HAVE to get locking tuners. Just because it's so easy i change the strings twice as often on this guitar as I do my other. As for staying in tune the roller nut\locking tuner setup does very well. It will never stay in tune as well as a Floyd Rose double locking system. It does stay in tune well enough that I can use the whammy for 3-4 note dives and it comes right back in tune. It never goes out of tune simply from note bending. Dive bombing till the strings go slack are something to be avoided on this guitar. I do use the tremolo for David Gilmour type vibrato and it works perfecltly. I would have liked a harder finish coat on the paint. The paint is still a little soft on mine because it is so new. It will harden over time though. The paint job was flawless though. I got the surf green because that's what Jeff uses! Which brings us to the neck. Yes it's large but very playable. On my other guitar I had the frets removed and the neck shaved down, then the frets replaced so it is really small and fragile. I am always afraid of breaking the neck on my other guitar. Not so on the Jeff Beck. The beefy neck is extremly solid. And honestly in only a day or so I was just as fast on the Jeff Beck neck as my shaved down custom one.

I use this guitar live 3 out of 4 weekends a month. I play 4 sets 45 minutes in length per night on weekends and have been using this guitar 3 out of those 4 sets since I have gotten it. I've never broken a string or had to switch to my other guitar because it was out of tune in a middle of a set. I wipe the cigarette smoke haze off of the finish at the end of the night and it's been holding up great. The finish is still soft like I mentioned but it is very thick. The strap buttons are schaller locking which I use with locks. At first the swinging around I do onstage was causing them to loosen up. Then I did the drop of wood glue on the screws trick and that solved that problem. I never play any gig without a backup guitar. I will say I would use this guitar with only one backup guitar instead of two.

I called Fender to see how long before they had mine built and they were right on with the time estimate. (It took about 5 weeks from the time I ordered it.) I mainly had the music store deal with Fender as far as ordering and shipping the guitar. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't getting a guitar that was in a huge warehouse store stockpile waiting and waiting for a buyer that wanted next day shipping. I wanted my guitar to go from Fender directly to me. It has a limited lifetime warranty. I've never had to deal with Fender service. Unless the next spontaneously snaps in two I'll probably never have to use them. The beauty of the Stratocaster design is that it's totally user servicable. I'd be afraid to tear apart a Gibson Les Paul.

I've been playing for 17 years now. I got in my first band when I was 15 and I had a Fender Bullet cause it sounded like a Strat. I still have the Bullet as well as my custom made Strat, an Aria ProII copy of a Gibson ES-335, a Rogue minature practice electric guitar (it sucks but it's small!) a Fender Precision bass, and an old beat up acoustic I've had since I was 13. I know my guitars like children and the Jeff Beck Signature Strat is my current favorite of the lot. I use it in tandem with my custom made Strat with the humbucker. I love how easy it is to string and set up. I love the tone the most! I don't really hate anything about it yet. I chose this guitar because of the pickups and their configuration, the LSR rolling nut, and the locking tuners primarily. I crossed my fingers on the tone becuase I didn't play it before I ordered it. I'm totally happy with the tone because it's vintage Fender Strat. And yes I'm a huge Jeff Beck fan and he had a lot of input into this guitars design. It's a unique Fender design for a strat and that's another reason I like it. They don't have any other models that are set up like it.

New. a 1998 model. U.S. made. 22 medium-jumbo frets, contoured alder body, maple neck with bi-flex truss rod, fingerboard is rosewood. Schaller locking tuners. 4 fender gold lace pickups (sensors). 2 point synchronized tremolo. 5 position blade for switching and a push/push button on bridge. The pickup guard is three ply, white on the bottom then the next layer black and then white on top. The scale length is 25.5". The color of mine is surf green. LSR roller nut. It is a well planned guitar.
Also, the nice added touch is that it comes with a vintage looking tweed hard case, strap, 10' practice plug, and two additional tremolo springs if you want to use heavier gauge strings.
The neck? This seems to be a concern for some. Unless the older models were huge I am unsure of what the ruckus is all about. I found the neck thickness to be "just right". But maybe this measurement will help some to compare it to what they are used to. I measured the thickness by wrapping a cloth tape under the strings and around the neck; and it is 4.75" near the nut and 5.25" at the twelth fret (that's based on the accuracy of a tattered cloth tape ruler).

I really enjoy the "quality" of this guitar, both in sound and feel. I play a variety of music styles, from thumping 50's Chuck Berry, to note sustaining David Gilmore. This guitar has it. It is a milestone in stratocasters, because of its ability to capture a wide gammit of sounds. I am continually amazed at its ability to hold a single solitary note prisoner, like an archtop e335.

Factory set up was close, but I had to take it to my local store to have it "refined" a bit to my taste. All the hardware was great as was the finish. Knobs were solid, the locking tuners were top knotch. Overall I got a good factory model.
Playing with a strap on will test you fitness after a while. The guitar is solid but heavy.

I can't comment on the durabilty or reliability, since this is a recent aquisition. But, everything looks extremely solid. I'll tell you, the damn thing stays in tune if after some rough guitar bites. And I hope the surf green stays it's cool color.

Never dealt with Fender.
But, let me tell you about the place I bought this from. Elderly Instruments of Lansing, Michigan. I had it shipped to me. These guys are great. Answered all my repeated questions, by phone and via the net. Shipping was immediate after I ordered. And when I contacted them and told them that I had to have a better set up on the guitar, they sent me twenty five bucks to help cover some of my cost. Pretty good for mail order. Check them out, they have a lot reasonably priced quality instruments. I give them a 10.

I've been playing 29 years, just for the enjoyment of playing. I gig with others, but primarilly I play for self accomplishment, like most guitarists. I've had a multitude of acoustics, a couple of electrics, an E335, and a fender american standard. I have a bullet amp, and two other practice amps, a deluxe 112, and a champion 110.
There's a point when you go after "quality" and the JB is that. You can feel it and hear it. Fender can and does make the quality guitar. When I look at the present Gibsons, I have found them to be overated and overpriced, and that pricing is alienating the great majority of guitar players. You don't need a Les Paul and a E335, just pick up a Jeff Beck, it surpasses both.

1992 American made Strat w/22 frets. Three-piece alder body w/5 way switch. It has four Gold Fender-Lace sensors, two SC, one double-coil (two SC sensors together - a "Dually"), all passive pickups. Bridge dually pickup has switch to go from SC to humbucker. Neck is maple w/rosewood fretboard, & has Wilkenson nut w/locking Schaller tuners. Standard 25 1/2 " scale w/medium jumbo frets. Also includes tweed case.

I liked the Gold Lace-Sensor at first, & bought the guitar when the EMG & Lace Sensors were the "Big New Thing". I also liked less noise (the claim of complete hum-bucking of noise for Lace Sensors is crap; LESS noise, but not NO noise!). Now that I have had years to digest the sound, it is pretty thin & sterile, although the Dually has a pretty decent punch when in double-coil mode. I use a Fender Deluxe Reverb, a Marshall JCM 900 & (don't laugh) a Seymour Duncan Convertible Amp (when it doesn't blow all the tubes, it sounds great). It is a versatile setup, but the Lace Sensors don't have the full vintage tone as advertised. Although it is not as bad as people seem to say as of late, I am still looking into replacing the pickup configuration.

The action was great off the rack, no problems with general setup. There was one thing that severely p***** me off though, the Wilkenson nut was only good for 9&10 gauge strings. I play 11's, so I had to buy a new nut, and then the action was terrible because the new nut was larger, & the action was too high at the nut. So I finally had to cut (ARRRGHHH) my little beauty. Then that nut started getting grooves from the strings, and a string broke off & was trapped down inside the Wilkenson housing. So I replaced it with the LSR nut (although they had to put an insert in the nut area to take up for the "gouging" of the neck). The LSR nut seems to work pretty well, though. I can whammy like crazy, & it stays in pretty good tune. The pickup selector has gotten a little stiff over the years, but otherwise, everything else works pretty well.

This has been a great guitar for durability. It is not mt main axe, but I do like the way it plays & holds up to abuse. I'm not real abusive to any of my instruments, but they hold up to live playing just fine.

Didn't deal w/Fender since there was no real defect. I got the music store where I bought it to get me a larger Wilkenson nut at cost, & do the work for free.

Been playing 18 years, professionally & semi (on & off), own 4 Strats, a Les Paul, Larrivee acoustic, & three amps mentioned above w/ various effects & Roland guitar synth. I wish I had known about the nut, but overall it hasn't been THAT bad. It plays well now, and there shouldn't be the problems I had with it now, since the Wilkenson nut is no longer on this guitar. I love the neck, it's why I bought the guitar; it fit so well in my hands when I picked it up, & I had to have it!! It is a big round neck. I think they have trimmed it down a little in recent years, but I hope not. That is a great neck, especially for a factory job. It kind of is like a custom job on the neck & controls, as I hear Jeff Beck had a Strat Ultra modified to his liking, and his custom changes are the prototype for this version. I am getting new pickups, but Jeff Beck uses this guitar's prototype on Guitar Shop, and it sounds pretty damn good on that album, but I can't play like Beck (who can?), so I'm looking into new pickups. Listen before you buy, I wouldn't mail order, I'd go into a guitar shop & play it first.

I won't say to much about the features as some have already anyway but I will say that this has the american standred trem and not a vintage trem system. the neck was a huge big mochogrande type of affair much to large for my short fingers, I have owned many strats and gibsons been playing for 20 years. this one was the off white {yellow color}

it has taken me about two years to like this turkey but I do like it, I think it is NoW one of the finest guitars I have ever had the pleasure of owning,{NOW} when I bought the flextone amp this guitar really took off. funny I didn't like it that much through most of my other amps it was just another strat. now it is the best I don't need another strat. I guess I struggled with it so much that it is a part of me.

I finally had that extra money and was going to buy that guitar that would be so special, it would be the one I could always depend on, the one to do it all and after carefully reading "much" I special ordered the J.B. without trying it first, when it arrived it came in a shipping crate and I took it home and opened it to find that the neck had a pocket that you could get two {2} picks into between the neck and body, the body at the neck had that finnish crack that many fenders get. the push switch that cuts half of the rear pickup didnt always work and then stopped working altogether {I paid "twelve hundred bucks" cash for this?} the neck although well done felt like a tree trunk in my short fingers and I saw nothing in fenders brosure to warn me of this.

well to make a long story short this was a turkey of the highest order of turkeys so I took it back and they said that there would be a twenty percent restocking fee. commonnnnnnnn Fender, I am still angry about this!! American Music in caldwell Idaho. so I kept it and fixed it myself. I turned down the neck so it would fit my short fingers and fixed the push swich but I finally took that neck and put it on my lonestar and put the lonestar on the JB and it was a happy marriage with no pocket left in the neck.

I didnt call fender I have heard that they don't give good support, I tried to go back through the dealer and thats when I got hit with the twenty percent, they have lost a lot of my business since then and I only shop there when I have to now. I give them and fender a low rating because they are representives of fender because they sell fender products.

I have been playing since 1978 and have owned many fenders and gibsons mutitudes of amps. I wish I had been able to buy one that was in dealer stock, I will never order a guitar again. I like the basic Idea behind this guitar and I love the way it sounds but fender or american music should have fixed this no questions asked. I get a bad taste in my mouth every time I think about this. I am sure Jeff would not want his name tied into something this shoddy

Alder body, made in USA, rosewood fingerboard, 22 frets, one volume knob, one regular tone knob - one PBX knob. Coil tap on bridge humbucker (Dual Gold Sensor). Pickups : 2 single coil Gold Lace Sensors, bridge - Dual Gold Lace. Bridge is vintage fender tremelo, but LSR rolling nut keeps it in tune. Locking sperzel tuners. Important: Although much is made about the thickness of the Beck neck - it is way overblown - the neck is no thicker that a Strat ultra - it feels great!

I play rock and jazz, this guitar fits a variety of styles. I'm using a Line 6 Flextone and it suits the guitar very well. This isn't a metal type guitar - not enough output, but it does provide an amazing number of tones. The bridge humbucker gives a full sound, but remains bright. The single coil pickups are very clean - almost to clean, but I like them. The in-between sounds are fantastic on this guitar. The PBX tone knobs is useful. This guitar really shines in a clean setting - shimmering tone esp. throught a Marshall clean channel.

Good action from the factory - a little high, but playable. This is a very well constructed guitar and it is solid, but heavy. The finish is good, but not exceptional. I got the surf green, so it looks cool anyway.

Remains to be seen. Just got it.

No yet.

I've been playing for 23 years and have several guitars. I bought a Mexican strat last year (my first strat) and really enjoyed it - I wanted to buy a higher quality strat with better workmanship ( ala the Beck sig). I am very happy with this guitar, I tired a variety of sig strats like the Clapton, Blackmore and Voodoo, but the Beck is best by far - it is so solid and plays very well. I delayed buying a Beck for about a year because of all the horror stories I had heard about the thick neck - totally false. When I finally got my hands on one, I couldn't figure out what all the discussion was about; the neck is fine.

THIS GUITAR WAS MADE IN 1996 IN THE UNITED STATES AND I PURCHASED IT HERE IN LOS ANGELES. IT HAS 22 FRETS AND A ROSEWOOD FINGERBOARD WITH A MAPLE NECK, WHICH IS JOINT TO THE BODY BY FOUR BOLTS(LIKE OTHER STRAT MODELS). I HAVE A SEAFOAM GREEN COLOR BODY MADE OUT OF BASSWOOD, LIKE MOST STRATS. THIS TYPE OF WOOD HAS A VERY GOOD SOUND WHEN WORKED TOGETHER WITH GUITAR EFFECTS. THERE ARE FIVE CONTROLS ON THE GUITAR, THE VOLUME, TWO TONE CONTROLS, THE FIVE WAY SWITCH, PLUS A KNOB, WHICH IS USED TO CUT DOWN REVERB. IT HAS ONE LACE SENSOR HUMBUCKER, AND TWO LACE SENSOR SINGLE COILS. THE BRIDGE HAS THE SAME VIBRATO AS THE AMERICAN MADE STANDARD STRATS. THE NECK IS PRETTY UNUSUAL, DUE TO THE DESIGN BY JEFF BECK HIMSELF; IT SEEMS AS IF IT IS A COLLABORATION OF A GIBSON LES PAUL NECK AND A STRATOCASTER NECK. THE TUNERS ARE THE SAME AS ONE THE DELUXE AND THE DELUXE PLUS STRATOCASTER. I RECEIVED THE GUITAR WITH A CABLE, A STRAP, A TWEED CASE, AND SOME PARTS AND ACCESSORIES.

I PLAY USUALLY BLUES AND JAZZ BUT OCCASIONALY GO BACK TO HARD ROCK, EVEN PUNK ROCK AND HEAVY METAL. ALTHOUGH THIS GUITAR IS WELL SUITED FOR BLUES, JAZZ, AND ROCK (A BIT OF PUNK) YOU DEFINATELY CAN FORGET ABOUT PLYING DIRTY AND NASTY HEAVY METAL ON THIS GUITAR. EVEN THE BRIDGE LACE SENSOR HUMBUCKER DOES NOT HAVE THE FAT AND CRUNCHY SOUND YOU EXPECT FROM HUMBUCKERS. HOWEVER, I BELIEVE THIS GUITAR PRODUCES AN AWESOME, AND GALVANIZING SOUND FOR BLUES, JAZZ AND ROCK AND ALSO IN CLEAN SOUND, THE GUITAR HAS A HEAVENLY VOICE. IF YOU LIKE THE SOUND OF A HUMBUCKER, THEN CONSIDER A GIBSON LES PAUL, HOWEVER IF YOU LIKE A MILD HUMBUCKER TONE AND THE GREAT SOUNDS OF SINGLE COILS, THEN THIS GUITAR IS A GOOD CHOICE. I HAVE A PEAVEY AUDITION 110 AMP, WHICH IS PRETTY GOOD ON THE CLEAN SETTING BUT AWKWARD WHEN DISTORTED, THAT` S WHY I USE A BOSS BLUES DRIVER, FOR THAT GREAT DIRTY AND LOUD BLUES SOUND PLUS A WAH WAH AND A CHORUS PEDAL BY BOSS FOR THOSE GREAT PINK FLOYD SONGS, LIKE COMFORTABLY NUMB OR SORROW ETC. THE GUITAR CAN PRODUCE A GREAT VARIETY OF SOUNDS LIKE ON A REGULAR STRATOCASTER, THOSE LACE SENSOR PICKUPS AND THE LACE SENSOR HUMBUCKER MAKE THE SOUND SOMEWHAT MORE CLEANER AND WITH LESS FEEDBACK, AND I BELIEVE THAT IT SOUNDS BETTER THAN MAGNET POLE PICKUPS. IF YOU LIKE HEAVY METAL AND HARD HARD ROCK FORGET THIS GUITAR, BUT IF YOU LIKE JAZZ, BLUES, ROCK (LIKE THE EAGLES, PINK FLOYD, STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN, ERIC CLAPTON ETC.) THIS GUITAR RULES.

WHEN I BOUGHT THE GUITAR FROM THIS GUITAR SHOP HERE IN L.A. I WAS VERY SATISFIED WITH HOW THE GUITAR WAS SET UP. ALTHOUGH THERE WERE SOME MINOR, LITTLE SCRATCHES ON THE GUITARS BODY, BECAUSE A LOT OF PEOPLE TRIED THIS GUIATR OUT, IT WAS IN AN EXCELLENT CONDITION.

THIS GUITAR IS PRETTY STRONG AND WILL DEFINATELY WITHSTAND LIVE PLAYING, INCLUDING ITS HARDWARE, THE STRAP BUTTONS ETC. I MEAN WATCH HOW STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN ABUSED HIS NUMBER ONE STRAT IN THE VIDEO "LIVE AT THE EL MOCAMBO"; STRATS IN GENERAL ARE VERY SOLID GUITARS, VERY WELL MADE. HOWVER I AM SLIGHTLY WORRIED ABOUT THE FINISH. I HAVE SEEN A LOT OF STAROCASTERS WHERE THE FINISH CAME OFF AFTER TEN YEARS OF PLAYING. I DEARLY HOPE MINE DOESN` T. I USED THIS GUITAR SEVERAL TIMES ON GIGS WITH OUR SCHOOL BLUES AND JAZZ BAND AND I ALWAYS RELIED ON IT AND IT NEVER LET ME DOWN.

I HAVE NEVER DEALT WITH CUSTOMER SUPPORT

I HAVE BEEN PLAYING FOR FIVE YEARS NOW, AND I ALSO OWN AN EPIPHONE CHET ATKINS ACOUSTIC/ELECTRIC GUITAR. I WOULD DEFINATELY BUY THIS GUITAR AGAIN IF IT WAS STOLEN OR LOST, BUT I WOULD ALSO CONSIDER THE GIBSON ES-355 SEMI-HOLLOWBODY GUITARS OR THE GIBSON LUCILLE. I LOVE THE GUITAR` S VERSATILITY OF SOUNDS YOU CAN GET FROM IT, I LOVE IT` S COLOUR AND DESIGN, AND THIS IS MY FIRST ELECTRIC GUITAR AND IT IS SPECIAL TO ME. I WISHED HOWEVER, THAT THE HUMBUCKER COULD GIVA A MORE FAT AND BASSY SOUND SOMETIMES. THAT` S WHY WHEN I BOUGHT IT I HAD TO THINK A LONG TIME IF I WOULD PREFER GETTING THE LES PAUL STUDIO OR THIS ONE HERE. AFTER VISITING THE GUITAR SHOP FOR SEVERAL TIMES I FELL IN LOVE WITH THIS STRAT AND PREFERED IT OVER ALL LES PAUL MODELS. I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO ADD SOMETHING. FOR ALL EURPOPEANS, WHO THINK OF GETTING A LES PAUL HERE IN THE U.S. DON` T. A SIGNATURE STRATOCASTER IN AMERICA COSTS ABOUT 1000 DOLLARS IN ENGLAND IT COSTS ABOUT 1000 POUNDS. IN AMERICA A GIBSON LES PAUL STANDARD COSTS 1600-1800 DOLLARS (EVEN MORE), IN ENGLAND A LES PAULS STANDARD STARTS AT 1050 PUNDS. SO IT WOULD BE MORE ADVISABLE, ECONOMICALY SPEAKING, TO BUY A STRAT RATHER THAN A GIBSON LES PAUL.

Purchased brand new in Guitar Center in 1998, serial number starts with N6. Sea-foam green finish, alder body, maple neck with rosewood fretboard, 22 frets. I purchased the Fender tweed case with it.
The neck on this guitar is thick, but not uncomfortably large. From what I understand, Fender scaled these back a bit after 1993 or '94. The uniquw neck dimensions was one aspect of this guitar that I really fell for when I first played it. I always liked the thin/wide "shred" necks but this was very comfortable to play. It feels "solid".
Pickup/electronics configuration: Four Fender gold lace-sensor pickups (two in a humbucking configuration at the bridge.), one vol, two tone controls. The bottom tone is "TBX" and is "neutral" at 5 and provides a boost at 10. One coil-splitter button between tone knobs which controls bridge humbucking option. 5 position pickup selector.
Tremolo/tuners: This guitar is equipped with an American Standard tremolo, LSR nut and Schaller locking tuners. After learning how to string the guitar properly, I've discovered that it holds its pitch extremely well with tremolo use. I've always used Floyd Rose trems before and the simplicity and stability of this tuning equipment has been enlightening - so far I've found no reason to go back to double-locking tremolos.

The sound of this guitar is what convinced me to buy it. I A/B'ed this guitar with a custom shop fender 6? reissue that I also liked. The other guitar had a very nice explosive "blazing" single-coil tone (ala Yngwie Malmsteen) but this Jeff Beck guitar had a darker tone, probably one of the "ballsiest" Strats I've played. It sounded less like a Strat and had its own unique humbucking tone that I really like. I think the tone can be attributed to many things about this guitar from the thicker neck to the pickups and body woods.
Another A/b comparison was done with a very nice Tom Anderson with a DiMarzio Evolution in the bridge. That guitar had a very "hot" sounding rock tone which I really liked. The Jeff Beck seemed to get close to the output level, but didn't have the "grind" that the Anderson had. From memory, the Beck strat had a fatter bottom end and a rounder high-end sound. It didn't sound _better_ than the Anderson, just different.
This guitar has a thick, long sustain. It rings pretty loudly unplugged.
I will probably use the full-humbucking bridge pickup 85% of the time. It's relatively dark sounding with relative high-output. Certainly high enough for most rock tones (which is what I play most of the time.) Although the humbucking mode sounds "darker" than normal strats, harmonics are very easy.
The second tone control is TBX enabled so at 10 the bridge pickup is in a "boost" mode while at 5 it's in a normal "flat" sounding mode. There is a button between the tone knobs that when pressed deactivates one of the dual bridge pickups and provides a single-coil tone in the bridge position.
As noted previously, the guitar is equipped with Lace Sensor pickups. They're a little less "shimmery" as regular Strat single coil pickups but these can get very close to nailing that sound without the noise.
I think that this guitar could "nail" most conventional tones - anything from rock or metal or more conservative styles. The single coil sounds are very good and as I said earlier, I think the humbucking tone is unique and inspiring. The TBX tone control and the coil switching button add to its tonal flexibility.
Currently I play this guitar through a 100 watt Marshall 25/50 silver jubilee head and through a Boss gx-700 preamp. I can get very "vintage" sounding tones straight into the Marshall (in fact I dare say it sounds a lot like Jeff's older tones) and higher-gain tones through the preamp. I'm very happy with the tonality of this guitar.

This guitar was set up well for .009s from the factory. It needed a minor truss rod adjustment (to reduce neck relief) at home when new types of strings were installed. I also adjusted the tremolo intonation associated with the truss adjustment. Coming from a double-locking Floyd Rose background, I absolutely love the simplicity of Strat hardware.
Fretwork is uncommonly good compared to most production Fender Guitars. Action is comfortably low - no buzzing.
No serious complaints in this context. Very solidly built - I have found no flaws.

Long term: unknown. It feels solid, and everything seems like it'll last.

The salesman at Guitar Center failed to include a tremolo arm so I called Fender the next day and asked for the part number to ensure I got the right component. I waited on hold for approximately 15 minutes but once I spoke to a person he was excellent and very helpful.

I've been playing for almost 12 years, have been through a lot of gear (many Ibanez, various Japanese, USA and custom shop Jacksons, Steinberger, Yngwie Malmsteen Strat, other Strats, Peaveys, BC Rich, and so on.)
I've only owned this guitar for a week but no regrets in my decision. I've not grown a strong attachment to it yet, but if it were stolen I'd probably buy a new one.
I was considering a Parker Fly Deluxe and other high-end guitars. As stated earlier, I a/b'ed this J.B with a custom-shop Strat and an Anderson. They all sounded and played great - the JB is unique, has a unique sound and feel - seems to have a lot of a unique "character".
One thing I like about this guitar is that it's a great blend of traditional sounds/technology and newer systems such as the LSR nut, locking tuners, Am Std. tremolo, and lace-sensor pickups. It performs and sounds exceptionally well. I'd definitely recommend anyone to check one out.