Fender Squier II Strat

this is a review for my 1989 squier II,serial is E-980369,silver on black squier logo.one piece maple neck,medium sized frets.body is black with one-ply pickguard in white(well,it was once...lol)3 single coils,all stock electronics.made in korea 20 years ago...

so,after i traded for this guitar(an older yamaha acoustic)and got it home,i wanted to see if all the hype on this review board was accurate.IT IS.

the guitar is independantly routed for 3 single coils,which you don't often see nowadays.the cavity is shielded(looks aftermarket,but i'm not complaining!)it has the vintage 6 screw style bridge,and old school saddles..the body wood is 2 piece of some kind,and has an unusual arm contour that i've only seen on one other of these,the contour extends down almost to the strapbutton on the front of the guitar.i was told the first couple thousand of these guitars used up the leftover stock from the japanese plant...don't know if that's true or not...but the guitar sure feels solid as a rock.

it was in an awful condition when i got it.

well,as i said,it was not set up.at.all....the guitar would go out of tune quickly,until i set it up with 10-52's...and then i blocked the tremolo(i never use them anyways).and that took care of the tuning issues.the tuners themselves look like ther were replaced at some time by older open shaft fender branded tuners,and they're set in what looks like graphite surrounds.holy crap!it looks cool as hell,and i'd love to know who did the work....the guitar DOES NOT go out of tune anymore.

as far as sounds go,it's very beautiful..very full and bright on the bridge,and crystalline on positions 2 and 4.the neck is pure texas swing/blues.

i did have to reconnect the groundwires,as it looked like they were NEVER connected..they still had the little solder button/cap to attach it to the trem claw!

if you like classic,singing strat tone...this is it.
about those pickups...i had to screw them nearly all the way down into the body,as they have a HUMONGOUS output to them.they sound better than the pickups in my friends SCN equipped strat.. no idea if they are original to the guitar,but they sure look old...

it's also rather quiet,as far as extraneous noise goes,for a strat.

i hosed out the entire electronic cavity,and you should have seen thc crap that came out of the pickup selector,and the pots...yikes!contact cleaner is wonderful for de-funking cruddy old guitars...i swear by it.

i set it up myself,and it is a great strat,not as easy to play as my 1990 strat,but it's a lovely guitar on it's own.

i've heard horror stories about these needing soooo much work to make them playable...just wasn't the case with mine.

i would depend on it,sure.it's a stratocaster.set one up well,and plug it in,and go for it!
it's 20 years old,and it still looks really good for it's age.
i did put straplocks on it,as i hate it when a guitar takes a dive...no sense not putting them on your gear.

fender's squier divison were rather happy that someone was still using these,i think they're proud of what they put out there,and it shows...

playing for over 20+years,and pro for over 15 of them.
i have a peavey classic VTX,a special 130,my 1990 fender strat,this squier II,and my soon to be picked up new find,a squier protone!that guitar is amazing,when i saw it,i HAD to have it.just like this one...this guitar is rapidly becoming one of my favourites to pick up and play,it seems to say that from across the room,in my studio...come and play me...come and play me.

if it were stolen,i'd track down the thief,and and beat him senseless with the guitar,and the guitar would probably survive just fine,it's that tough.

so,a 20 year old american made strat goes for about a grand or so,nowadays...and these,which are essentialy the same guitar,go for about 1/10th of that...and if they need a bit of work,so what?nearly ALL guitars need a bit of work to make tham truly playable.if you put a little time,and effort into one of these,you will be rewardedand very well,at that.

1989 made in India. 21 Frets. Standard Strat S/S/S pickups & 5-way. Deep Pearl White gloss finish. Maple Neck with Indian Rosewood fingerboard. Tremolo. Replaced the Tuners with Mini Klusons. Jumbo frets on a very comfortable and fast neck. Purchased Used with hardcase for $75 in 1995.

Very clean & hot. Excellent tone.

Sweet low action. The Indians rock.

I've used this on 200 gigs with no problems. I sometimes leave the Gibsons at home.
Finish still fresh. Fit still tight. Solid and dependable.

It compares to my old & new Gibsons & Fenders in pro quality & reliability. In Value it has surpassed all other guitars I've owned. I took it to my tech to get it roadworthy when I bought it, he replaced the tuners & resoldered the pots, added more shielding, and added lock washers to the jackplate for $100. So the whole thing with setup cost $175.

Squier II Strat, 1991 (made in Korea), "N" serial number series with a Rosewood neck, red body/white pickguard. Had H/S/S original pickups, tremelo, basic strat setup for the most part.

surprising sound! Coming up on 20 years now since I bought this new. I had no intention of buying another guitar that day I was at Guitar Center, but I bought this one because it was so inexpensive, yet it played very well and the tremelo stayed in tune! I put new Bill Lawrence pups in and WOW what a sound!
These guitars have a GREAT feeling NECK to play! The Action also can be set so low with no "buzz" that it blows me away. It also has alot of sustain...I called Fender and found out that the body is made of Alder. (No wonder, since it's so heavy) It was always rumored to have cheap "plywood", but that's not the case. It is a heavier guitar, but has a better tone that's not as brash as most american strats.

These guitars are a uephoric surprise- Don't let the "Made in Korea" tag fool you. These guitars play and sound better than most higher priced American Strats that I've played!!

WOW...for some reason, the action on these guitars can be as low as you want with no "buzz". No other guitar I have had has lower action without some buzz. It seems well-made and has tested the times so far...

Durable, seems built like a tank other than the plastic tuners..

N/A

I've been playing guitar for over 20 years. My rig is all analog and has serious tone (without going into detail). To have a "Korean" guitar like this one that plays better than most expensive guitars I've played still boggles my mind. This is an incredible guitar!! The low action, great feel of the neck and surprising tone is a major plus for these Korean made guitars. I also have a PRS CE22 that is awesome, but I still love my Squier II more. The feel, play and tone of this guitar is irreplaceable!!! If both of my guitars were stolen, there's no doubt I would cry over this Squier II and not the PRS!!

I have 2 squier II's. the first one I baught is a korean squier II serial #E983354(made at the Cort factory IN 1989). S/S/S with a maple neck 21 frets. guitar is oyster metalic.(similar to vintage white with metalic in it).
I have left it totally stock except for custom pickguard. I am not sure what the wood is, but this guitar has weight to it!!!

I play southern rock and blues. This guitar sounds much better than the MIM strats. I have 2 guys I play with that play a 62 re-issue strat and a american delux strat and this guitar can hang with them all day long!! they can't believe this guitar every time I play with them.
I play through a line 6 spider III 30w. guitar sounds good on all settings but the bridge setting is where this thing really smokes! This guitar definatley has it!! The thing stays in tune every time even with the cheap tuners.

Baught the guitar used and all i did was switch to 10's and play with pick up height a little. action is perfect and the overall finish on the guitar is so much better than the new squiers! totally different animals!

I have played many gigs with this guitar! Rock solid. I don,t ever think about a back up. the thing is 20 years old and is getting better with age! It is my main guitar!

Haven't had to use it.

I have been playing for 23 years. I have another squier II. serial#S983015 Made at the Samick factory I beleive also in 1989. very good guitar but not as good as the #E Cort factory Squier II!!! I also have a ibanez, a Dean, and an Aria pro. If this guitar was stolen, I would be looking every where I could till I could find another #E just like it! These Squier II's in my opinion are unbeleivably UNDER rated!! The necks are like butter and the Serial#E guitars are the HOLY GRAIL of these guitars!!! I have played much more expensive guitars and always come back to this one!

The inspection tags say 12/80 on the neck and 2/81 on the pick guard. No "made in xxx" label or serial #. 21 jumbo frets, rosewood finger board, maple neck. 4 piece alder body. HSS 5 way. Black with white pick guard. Tremolo with narrow string spacing. This is my first guitar and got it used in 89, so it was like 8 years old when I got it. I knew Squires were lesser models than the standard Strat but I had no clue how different they were (or similar)till recently. Suffice to say this oldie will hold it's own against new Strats.

The humbucker is what I usually played early on for hard rock but now I play some other styles and actually use the switch. Sounds like a strat. I have a Ibanez S Series with an alnico PAT in the bridge position for the Les Paul sound now and you can really hear a difference. The Squire has more treble and fuzz. Neck plays great and there is no buzz.

There were no issues with this guitar. Once intonated and action set it has been fine. Screws on the humbucker were short so it had to be kept close to the strings but I didn't mind. Never broke strings. After 30 years all hardware is still shiny. Now that I have compared it to $500-1000 guitars I can't tell the difference, except for pick ups maybe. Tuners aren't the finest quality but it stays in tune so I never changed them.

I can't imagine it not withstanding live gigs. It's been solid for the last 20 years and I bought it from an artist who took it on stage. Some of the frets are worn a tad flat but still plays fine without buzzing.

Never had to deal with them.

Playing for like 20 years. My fav is my Ibanez just cause it's just totally sweet with a faster neck. I know some Squires are junk but I got lucky with this one. I also just got a Korean Squire for $50 and put USA string spacing trem on it. That plays awesome too (even though it is a plywood body, got it for taking camping, etc.) Nothing to hate except its almost as heavy as a LP.

squier II the headstock label is Gold with Black outline no serial number just squier with fender and statocaster writting Black nut boxy type tuners with the vintage style pegs and vintage style gromets for the tuners ( no nut to tighten down). the neck has no skunk stripe but is a flat radius and very glossy very vintage. maple with rosewood fretboard med to jumbo frets. very nice neck indeed. much better feel than a mex standard. stays in tune well. I took it apart and the pickguard has a inspection sticker that has 4/90 so that has to indentify it's a 1990. the guitars configuration is s/s/h.vintage style bridge ( like the fender stamped one, claw type but with no stamps. large block not the small ones typical in cheapo squiers. the body is black and the guitar is heavy but i'm convinced the neck makes up a lot of the weight. it is not plywood i looked carefully. I have a pearl white squier II body that is the same not plywood either.

the guitar sounds great. lot of sustain. the bucker is powerfull yet not muddy. the singles sound bright but not quacky. I'm gonna change them out. the guitar is not shielded but is painted all black in the pockets. and makes no amp noise.i am currently using a crate rfx 200s and it sounds great through it. this guitar has a very vintage feel and feels very much vintaged.

totally love the feel of this guitar solid for sure

very thick finish if you wnat to relish this guitar you'll be scratchin and sanding awhile. these necks are very!! very!! good

I have been playing quite awhile I own some expensive guitars fender and Gibson. and I am amazed on how well built the older squiers are.

I love cheap guitars that play well. I have a Korean 1991 Fender Squier Strat that was bought new. It was a gift from my son who was 18 at the time which automatically gave it a "cool factor". Right out of the box this guitar played excellent. Playing-wise it played as well as any of its more expensive Strat siblings. I could play all night without tuning the guitar unless a string broke. It came with the H/S/S pick up arrangement and 5 way switch mounted in the body. The controls were not mounted in the pickguard like a standard strat. The controls are the standard one volume and two tones.

The cheap hardware and electronics are adequate but due to the fact that I am partial to Les Pauls and humbuckers, I just never got used to that breaking glass sound of Fender pickups and the cheap ones they use in the Squier are even worse. Thin is the best word I can use to describe the sound of these pickups. The switch becomes noisy and cuts out after awhile and cleaning it doesn't seem to help.

I play blues, rock and country and the stock hardware is adequate, just not excellent. It delivered a full sound but a little on the thin side.

The fit and finish on the white body was excellent and the clear finish on the neck has stood up well over the last 17 years. With some minor adjustments (intonation and string height) this guitar played as well as any of my Les Pauls, maybe even better. The strings kept breaking though where they come across the saddles and every time one broke, all the strings went completely out of tune which made it unreliable on stage as my main axe.

Here's where cheap guitars really shine. You can modify the hell out of them for very little money, especially if you can find some used parts. I replaced the bridge saddles with graphite ones and haven't had a single string break due to the saddles since. I ordered a new set of good ol' USA pots and 5 way switch off Ebay and took out the bridge and neck pickups. I routed out the front pickup hole (and no, the guitar is not plywood. It's one chunk of wood all the way through). I then stuck in a set of Gibson humbuckers I had laying around and wired it up so that P1 (all the way back) lights up the bridge PU, P2 activates both the neck and bridge, P3 activates the neck PU, P4 the neck and middle and P5 the the middle, which is a single coil. Then I blocked the tremolo bridge which got rid of the tuning problem on the rare occasion a string does break. This also added a lot of sustain. I also eliminated one of the tone control knobs since I don't use the remaining one, let alone two. I covered the resulting hole with a small after-market pickguard.

Now I have the best of all worlds. A guitar that plays like a Fender (excellent), stays in tune all night, feels warm and smooth, screams like a Paul with that singing sustain and humbucker sound and still has that Fender single coil sound when I want it. My acoustic simulator works well with the single coil too and virtually eliminates the need to have an acoustic guitar on stage. With just two controls to contend with it makes the guitar easier to play as well. I spent about $30 on parts and a couple hours making the mods. Now this guitar is the best all around guitar I own and is my primary axe. Even after 17 years it still plays like a brand new Strat.

Never tried. Fender only warranties their Squiers for one year anyway. Besides modifying to this extent voids the warranty.

I've been playing over 50 years. I use a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe as my primary amp (60 watts) and an Ampeg Super Jet SJ-12(50 watts) as a back up. For bigger gigs that aren't miked a have a Carvin XV112 (100 watts). All of them have a single 12 inch speaker. My other guitars include a 75 year old Orpheum arch top, a 60 year old Martin 001, 1965 Guild Starfire with a Bigsby tremolo tail piece that does stay in tune when a string breaks, a mid 1990's Gibson Les Paul Studio with Burstbucker Pros, an Epiphone Les Paul Special that I put a set of Gibson Burstbuckers in, and a full-size Guild acoustic-electric guitar.

If it were lost or stolen I would buy the guitar again and make the same mods. As I said, this guitar is the best of all worlds, at least for me. The guitar body and neck itself is well made, making it an ideal platform, and doesn't sound too bad right out of the box but with some minor PU changes and a few mods it makes that $150 guitar sound and play just as good as a $2000 guitar. For a first guitar or one of many it is still a top contender. Let me qualify that by saying my 1991 Squier 2 is a top contender. Fender no longer makes the Squier 2 and I don't know how the quality of their latest Squiers compare to the one that I have.

I have a squier two made in Korea, very thick glossy finish with skunk stripe neck (Maple) the frets are smooth the frets are vintage style. the tuners are sealed square boxy type. The Body is a full thickness. same as a mex standard or American. The Body is not Ply-Wood. I repeat not ply-wood. the finish is a thick white pearl Jobber. triple single routing.

not sure what the original pick ups sounded like someone before me installed fender standard pu in it. Let me tell you the sound rivals my standard strat with blindfolds.

the overall feel of the squier two is truley a vintage vibe. The action stays low and the fit is like a glove.

good as it gets

yikes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Overall the squier two has an incredible neck pure magic it's fast, smoothe, and rock solid. The squier two is simply as good as my Jap strats squier / fender. I don't know who's spreading the rumors that squier 2's are plywood cause I have 2 of them and neither are plywood. these necks are the exact same as the Jap necks.

1989 Squier II made in Korea. Stamp on butt end of neck indicates '89.
Serial number starts with S9XXXXX. White plywood Strat body (yellowed from age) with white pickguard and maple neck with 21 medium frets.
Mine was upgraded with better tuners and 3 GFS hotrail humbuckers.

DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THIS GUITAR. It can easily compete with my American Strats. At first I tried some Custom Shop Fat 50's (great pickups) in it and it sounded pretty lame. Then I put a set of Mexican ceramic double bar magnet pickups in it with 500k pots. All of a sudden it had more bottom end, incredible volume, and a sound I've never heard from a Strat before. I must have lucked out on the perfect combination. It's not a thick or beefy sound at all but I have pedals that can compensate for that. It sounds super sweet with a compression-like pick attack, TONS of Strat-personality quack (that comes from the neck - not the pickups). This thing has resonance and volume that none of my American Strats (including my '76) has.

I can describe the neck in one word - effortless. Smooth, fast and butter-like. It blows my American Strats out of the water.

So far so good.

Don't know

I saw this guitar on Ebay and it was dripping with vintage vibe. My gut told me to take a chance and it was cheap. I checked out the reviews on Harmony Central and went with my gut.
When the guitar arrived I was skeptical about the reviews I had read.
I've been playing professionally for 30 years and have owned about 50 Strats in my life.
None have sounded like this one (including my '76). The pure sweet Strat personality is amazing. Think Dire Straits and country quack.
It's lacking in the thickness/bottom end department but the other qualities it has out-shines that problem.
THIS GUITAR DOES NOT SUIT AMERICAN STRAT PICKUPS. Use Mexican ceramic double bar magnet pickups with an output around 6.7 k.
The neck is absolutely effortless to play and it's probably the loudest and most resonant Strat I've ever owned.
I play through a '79 Deluxe Reverb and vintage pedals.

This one is the laminated maple/alder body. Description otherwise same as other reviews. Made in Korea.

I had trouble with sound from the time I bought this in about '91 or so. I always thought the buzzing came from the Squier 15 amp I got as part of the package. However, many years later, I find that there is a broken wire inside. Solder it to the most logical place and bam! sounds pretty good. They do sound good, but not great. Switch was so noisy the sound would crackle in and out while playing. Pots were very noisy. Finally, after replacing the pots and switch, it will play without cutting out.

Plastic coating is really tough. I painted over mine, but the paint just chips off super easy now. I didn't play this evil machine for years because every couple of hours of playing time, I'd snap a string.
Always the b or e. Replaced the saddles and now strings last okay. The tremolo block is made of some cheap potted metal and mine broke where the springs attach to it. Really shoddy stuff. Action when I bought it was crap. After replacing the nut, it finally plays ok. Wiring inside was pretty crude. No shielding in the body cavities, so it can be a little buzzy around computers and the like. Really, I have to say that the neck is the only really nice feature of this awful product. I love the neck. Oh yeah, I had to replace the tuning machines as well.

I wouldn't rely on this much at all. Mostly junk, except for the neck.

No experience

Here's where I share why I hate this guitar. Everything I had to replace had to be somehow modified to fit in this thing. Squiers are not made to the same specs as Fender products and it's a real headache to try and make aftermarket stuff fit this horrible thing. I have several other cheap guitars, but the only one worse is a Saga TC-10 tele copy that is laughable. I bought a Johnson JS-800 to replace this. I was going to use the pickups out of the Squier, but to my utter surprise, the Johnson EMG pickups sound just as good, with slightly less power. I still tried to use the Squier coils just for a trial, but the middle pickup is wired backwards. Just another in a long list of stuff that didn't work. Anyway, do yourself a favor and buy a strat copy that is closer to the Fender specs.