Fender Yngwie Malmsteen Signature Stratocaster

Mine is the Sonic Blue 1989 US Model. These were modelled after one of his 1959 Strats and feature a smaller headstock than the new models. It's an American Standard bridge and the tuning posts are a very old vintage style. You have to push the string down inside the post and start wrapping it around the post from there..if it pops out before it's tightened it tends to get a little difficult. HS3 pickups in neck and bridge and standard strat pickup in the mid.

It's an extremely dynamic sounding instrument. I play everything from Ozzy Osbourne and Yngwie Malmsteen to Death and Carcass. Believe it or not, it works very well although you do have to adjust the bridge a bit to tune it down to B for Carcass. I use a Johnson J-Station exclusively now. Yngwie endorsed it and put his settings on his website and that was all I needed. I had originally pulled the pickups and put in Duncan Hot Rails, but I've since put the HS3s back in because I missed the sound of the wood. Just like when Yngwie plays live, your chords and everything will cut right through the mix. The scalloped frets make every note sound unique to the player. I guess it's the way the fingers grab the string. Everyone that picks my guitar up sounds different even when playing the same song. I love the instrument..it's a wonderful design and it'll make you play your best.

The factory setup was terrible. The action had to be lowered substantially when i got it. Pickups were adjusted exactly like Yngwie specifies. No flaws

This is a working mans guitar. Very well put together..it's been dropped with little damage. A few dings and scuffs on the neck but nothing that affects playing. Careful with your strap because the strap pegs are just standard. I've had this guitar for 6 years and I've never broken a string on it.

Never needed them. I'd probably write to Yngwie's guitar tech on Yngwie.org if I needed assistance with it.

This was my dream guitar. I'm proud to own one. I'd like to get one of the new models as well just to have that 70's look. I've been playing since 1987. If it were stolen I'd definitiely replace it. I compared it to my BC Rich Warlock and Ibanez Saber and I have to say I love the strat the most. I wish it had better tuning posts but I'll bet money the way the string is set inside the post also adds to the tone of the instrument.

Here's Fender's page on it, which gives all the details about the features:
http://www.fender.com/gear/gear.php?partno=0107100

Mine is a brand new 2002 model with a really beautiful aged white finish, mint green pick guard, and rosewood neck (looks just like the one in the picture at the link above). It is a really clean, classy-looking guitar. The aged hardware helps to hint at the subtle beauty and finess incapsulated by the instrument. The features are great, and worth every penny (especially if you find a deal like I did)!! And that scalloped fretboard is kind of unique *wink,wink*... I got it with a cool locking tweed case too, which Fender also did a great job making.

The sound is actually much more versatile than I once believed. It really reflects the tone of the amp, so adjust accordingly... For example, I was having trouble getting a good 80's George Lynch-esque rhythm tone with my old patches (I use a Line6 Flextone II XL) and I was shocked (since my patches all ruled...). I thought I might have to replace the pickups ASAP, but some quick fiddling with the amp and I'm getting very good results. The trick there was to give it the most distortion possible. Getting the thin Yngwie shred sound isn't difficult, but I've also been able to coax some very good metal tones, and blues tones from it so far! It's much more versatile than you might think, so don't knock the p/u's until you test them out. The guitar is very quiet too, as quiet as any humbucking-equiped guitar I've played...

The guitar was set up with high action, but everything was adjusted correctly, and all I've had to do is lower the saddles, and tighten the claw springs by a quarter turn. It plays really nice, and you can tell it will only get better with time. Everything is easy to adjust on the guitar, and all the hardware works just fine. The only flaw I can find so far is that there is a tiny gap between the top of the neck and the neck-route. The finish is stunning. The aged white color is really great. Every line, curve, and shape on this guitar fit together perfectly, and it really looks impressive when compared to other guitars. Even a AAAAA+ Quilt top I have it standing next to!

Fender knows how to build a solid instrument, so I think it will hold up as long as I treat it right. But since I've only owned it a short while, I will leave this as a 'No Opinion' until I need to post a follow up...

Never dealt with Fender directly yet, so who knows?

I got so lucky in getting this for such a good price. Technically its used because someone owned it a short while before I bought it, but it really is new, and its one of the best guitars I've ever played. It beats the pants (if guitars wore pants...) off of anything you will play in your local music shop. The scalloped fretboard is a cool feature, and it will expand anybody's technique (You will get used to it in about an hour or two). It sounds great, looks great, and makes other guitarists green with envy when learn its all yours. Pick one up, you will certainly not be dissapointed. Although, your other guitars might be ;)
Feel free to e-mail me with any questions you may have about it.

This guitar was made in the United States in 96. Alot of feature for the money. The brass nut makes chording nice. But best of all the scalloped fretboard is what seperates this guitar from many others. The bending is insane on this guitar...PURE GOODNESS. when I recieved the guitar and played it for the fist time...I though that the neck was going to be the weirdest thing ever..It turned out to feel perfect..got used to it in 30 seconds. Do not fear the scalloped neck...enjoy it

This guitar fits my musical style perfectly... It works great for metal, blues, jazz, anything I play pretty much.. The pickups are surprisingly quiet for single coil pickups (NOT STACKED HUMBUCKERS AS SOME PEOPLE HAVE SAID) Although i dont like the bridge pickup much the neck pickup sings. I think eventually I'll put a new pickguard in and put a humbucking pickup in the bridge position for a fatter sound.

The guitar was set up well when I recieved the guitar.. I dont know what the factory set up is like but usually you have to tweak with them some to get it just right. everything about this guitar was perfect.

I've gig'd with this guitar time and time again. Live work and studio work this guitar does it all. The trem stays in tune great for me..and neck is very solid and the finish is great. I of course would never use it without a backup for obvious reasons.

I've never dealth with fender so I cant give my opinnion on their service

This guitar is the best guitar I have played...EVER! I've played and owned many guitars from USA HAMER, Gibson, Fender, Music Man, Ibanez, Jackson...and This strat to me has em all beat. The Scalloped fretboard is a dream and not many guitars can allow me to express myself as this guitar has. If you are thinking about purchasing a guitar with a scalloped fretboard...do it. you wont regret it. SHRED IT!!!

2002 American YJM Fender Stratocaster w/ 21 frets. Vintage white body (looks like bannana creme custard), mint green guard, aged parts, maple scalloped fretboard, brass nut, vintage tuners, vintage bridge. The pickups are Dimarzio- HS3 (bridge), YJM (neck & middle).

The case is really nice tweed. It came with a strap, able, allen keys, polish cloth, warranty info, & bumber sticker. The dealer threw in 2 t-shirts, 2 sets of strings, a bunch of pics, and free shipping. Whatta deal!!

I've been playing (trying to anyway) Yngwie songs since 1985. I figured it was about time I just bought his guitar. I play through a Line 6 Vetta on a channel called "yngwie." It consists of a '68 plexi Marshall and a '96 Marshall blended. It sounds EXACTLY like his CD's. Specifically, I was going for the "Odyssey" guitar tone, and got it! The Dimarzio pickups sound good, but I think the Fender Noiseless pickups sound better. The guitar does, however, mimic the classic YJM tone. The neck pickup sounds really, really good. It's a low-put guitar so it cleans up nice as well.

It took me about 5 minutes to master the scalloped board. I was breaking into "Overture 1383," "Vengeance," "Rising Force," and "Trilogy Suite" as if I had always owned this guitar. I just recieved the guitar today- as I'm writing this review, and I can honestly say I feel comfortable with this guitar. It took me no time to adapt to the scalloped board. I've never owned one before either, so don't be intimidated by this guitar! The scalloped board allows for great grip so you won't miss your positions when playing fast. Also, minimum pressure is needed to make the notes sing. This means less hand fatigue. It really makes a big difference; especailly when playing physically demanding Malmsteen solos. The dealer set it up with Ernie Ball 10's, low action. Fender's craftsmanship is top-notch on its signature and custom shop models.

I don't play out anymore, so I can't attest to its road-worthiness. But it's a Strat, and Strat's have always held up for the long haul for me. It seems just as well built and well finished as any high-end Strat I've ever owned (and I've owned many).

No opinion. Guitar just arrived today. Historically, my dealer has taken care of any problems I've ever had while the guitar is still within its 1 year warranty.

I've been playing since 1979 (8 years old). I no longer play out, but record and collect guitars. I have no regrets about this purchase. I should've gotten this guitar years ago. If it were lost or stolen, I'd definitely replace it asap. I love the fact that it's uniquely different than all my other guitars. I love the look of it and it feels great. The maple neck has some slight flame and birds eye, so it's very pretty to look at. It's so different than my other Strats, so I couldn't draw a fair comparisson. I hope that I'll be able to master more Yngwie solos now that I don't have to apply so much effort to play on this wonderful scalloped board.

Mine is blond color and maple neck YJM strato made in USA.

It has two HS-3 pick ups and one YJM pickup, I guess. I like the

between positions. But the pick up switch has tree positions.

I bought it from West LA music, in 1100$ include tax and everything.

I wish it has a five positon pick up switch.

I like most of music except Creed and nowaday's musics.

I am using Marshall Artist 4203 with, full-drive2,Boss OD-1,

Boss CS-3, Ibanez TS-9, and so on. The guitar is very quiet.

On the other hand, the sound is thinner than other Strato.

I guess that It cancels part of the sound while canceling the hum

by the Dimazio pickups.. I want to change my pick ups.

I had hard time to be comfortable with my YJM guitar. Now I get it.

It is my favorite in terms of action and play ability. I feel really

comfortable with my guitar. The finish is amazingly great. There's

no mistake. I love the finish and the feeling of the guitar.

It had a tunner problem. I am gussing that was because of my strings.

My strings are skinny top & heavy bottom .01 series.

I had tunner problem and I could fix it at the Fender repair shop(

guitar tradition). The guitar tradition's service was great!

I am play aout 15 years. 1986, I heard YJM for the first time and

decide to play guitar. This guitar is special for me.

Brand new (2001/2002), American made YJM Sig Strat. Vintage White, scalloped maple fretboard w/ 21 frets. Two Dimarzio YJM stacked humbuckers (Neck/Mid)one Dimarzio HS3 stacked humbucker in the bridge. Alder body, brass nut. Big late 60's headstock, "F" tuners, vintage style temolo. HUGE dunlop frets. Vintage tweed case included, with hokey strap, cord, owners manual and allen key for truss rod.

I play rock in all its styles and incarnations. I tend to play fast, and in the tradition, and tonality of guys like Uli Roth, Blackmore and YJM. I am also a huge Hendrix and SRV fan. I have many Strats that give me that vintage, bell like quack sound. I purposely bought this Strat to get away from that sound. For those rasied and weaned on high output p'ups.....these Dimarzio HS3 and YJM's are gonna be a whole different ballgame. These are extremely LOW output, which gives you a sweeter tone, and allows more amp distortion. The hs3 sounds great distorted. I played this through a cranked Marshall with a Tube Screamer. Nice and punchy - warm. Leads sing and dont have that "ice pick on the ears" thinness that some single coils have. Dead silent.....no hum. Open strings ring out (partially due to the brass nut) and the overall sound is bright and snappy. Cleans up nice when rolling back the volume on the guitar. The YJM's are simply wonderful. The neck is probably the best neck pickup I can think of for soloing. It sings and sustains and is almost flutelike, but it does not muddy up like some other Strat neck pickups I have played, and the sound of the pick on the strings sounds real nice. Middle pickup is along the same lines, perhaps a bit thin. This guitar is designed to rock, the same pickups played clean and without gain, sound dull and lifeless. So, plug it into a good tube amp, crank it, and slam the front end with a good overdrive.........

Guitar was special ordered from Fender. The neck is too straight, perhaps convex. This may be due to the teperature changes it encountered on its Journey from the West Coast. Be that as it may, it has some real bad buzzing frets. There is also some perferation in the laquer where the maple meets the skunk stripe on the back of the neck. Nothing that cant be fixed, but for a guitar at the top end of Fenders line..it is not acceptable. The action is quite low due to the straight neck. It plays great though, and once set up properly, and with the strings of my choice (Ernie Ball Hybrids) it will play even better. Tremolo floats just right and stays in tune. The scalloped neck is really cool, its easier to grab the note, or get underneath it to bend.

Its a Strat....no question it will withstand live playing and even a little torture!!

I have been playing since 1979. I own three other Strats, a Les Paul and a Charvel w/ a Floyd Rose. The YJM Strat has been on my want list for a long time, due to its custom features. This ones a keeper...

1.2001 USfreakinA

2.21 JUMBO Dunlop 6000 fretwire

3.Solid Top

4.The usual strat controls 1-vol 2-tone 3-way vintage selector switch
S/S/S configuration or I should say H/H/H since the pickups are the YJM in the neck and middle and the HS-3 in the bridge (dimarzio) and are all stacked humbuckers that sound like single coils without the noise and alittle heavyer

5.All passive electronics

6.Body is alder I suppose neck is maple as is fretboard with a somewhat satin finish on the neck

7.Finish is really heavy clearcoat over vintage white (really awesome almost pale whitish yellow color...yellower depending on lighting)

9.Strat style body

10.Bridge is vintage stat six screw trem (floating just a tad)

11.Stock fender vintage tuners

12.Neck is kinda thin at top and meaty at bottom...fits my palm perfectly..very very comfortable...I must say though the scallops is what is the most amazing thing about this guitar if not the guitar itself..I had no problem getting used to the scallopes immediatally...If you are thinking about getting one..DO IT

13.Came with the vintage tweed case with orange fur interior ,strap,cable,bar,and a yellow fender wipin off rag.

This suits my style perfectly (neo-classical/metal shred)

Im using this guitar with sadly at the momend a fender ultimate chorus DSP (i say sadly only because it's not a marshall...even though its still an amazing amp and sounds very sweet thru the yngwie strat)

The guitar is super quiet

Very rich amazing sound in the neck and middle pickup..however the bridge pickup doesnt have much output and is not as loud as the neck and middle

I think it has tons of variety

I dislike the fact that the bridge pickup is so low output although this makes great for high volume and gain levels...it wont distort the pickup only making the sound clearer as the volume rises lol (reminds me of the clarity of an active pickup)

The guitar came setup nicely right outta the box although the action was only a *TAD* to high for me...came with a fender super bullet ten set on it..I had the guitar repairman set it up with a set of ernie ball hybrid (9-46) basically the bottom 3 strings from a 9 set and the top three strings from a ten set (perfect) Also I had him lower the action alittle and the guitar flys...absolutey no buzzing whatsoever

The only flaws this guitar came with is the fact that the brass nut was so new it needed to be filed just a tad so that it slipped really well...thats about it

This guitar is a TANK

The hardware will surely last

Finish could weather a bullet

I use a dimarzio clicklot strap (ocelot print direct from dimarzio) so I don't worry about puny strap buttons

This guitar I can totally depend on..although I won't gig without a back up strat with scalloped fingerboard.

I have dealt with fender about this guitar..it was out of stock and they didnt ship it right away when they had new ones made...so I called em up and they fixed the problem right away though...very nice people..nice enough to call me back and tell me no worries.

Repair wise I can bring it in anytime if I have any problems and it'll be free

Im not sure how long the warranty is

I've been playing for 4 years and own very minimum gear

If this guitar where stolen i'd save up for another

I love everything about this guitar

THE END

2001 USA Malmsteen Strat
21 frets(dunlop 6100's)
Alder body/maple scalloped neck
with large headstock
dimarzio single coils
hs3/yjm/hs3 pickups
nitro clear shot over candy apple red strat
2 pickguards(original mint guard removed)
added white pearl pickguard(makes this already beauty look that much better)
1 volume control 2 tone controls tbx tone pots with 3 way switch
25.5" scale length
Nice tweed case(orange inside color)very different
fender strap,polish cloth,hex wrenches,spec book

All of my other expensive guitars I own, all get their original pickups scrapped and I put EMG's in them. I love the EMG sa/sa/81 combination. It makes all my others sing. I planned on doing this to this strat but much to my surprise, this things full of tone(especially the neck pickup)I'm using this with a multi amp setup:
My Mesa Boogie Triaxis and this guitar is pure heaven. Much better than even Yngwies. Dont get me wrong, I love Yngwie, his lead tone is some of the best(he's got a great ear 2 to come up with this perfect combination). But his bottom low E chord is quite muddy with his Marshalls and The Mesa sound is just that much tighter. Just imagine Yngwies guitar with John Petruccis rig(basically what I have).Kinda low output pickups but the Mesa makes up for that. This guitar sounds just like Yngwie(only louder if thats possible) through my 1978 Marshall JMP 100 watt master lead head(fawn color). Very clean indeed.
Last but not least this guitar sounded bad through my Soldano sp-77 preamp(surprised me) All of my other guitars sing through the soldano.
This guitar also cuts through the mix very well

Recieved guitar with 10's on it. Had em changed to 9's reset up and it almost plays itself. The amount of hand vibrato and bends you can achieve is like none of my others.Great action No flaws whatsoever. I did change the strap holders to Dunlop straplocks. I also throw the guitar around me and never want one to get away from me. Now it's secure

I would take this thing with me all by itself cause I love playing it all the time.Sweet feel/tone, persona
Vintage look/tone to die 4
very solid axe

Lifetime warranty
Bought this guitar from Dan at Guitar Exchange(thanks a lot Dan)
in St Charles Missouri Recieved it 2/8/2001
Never had to deal with em for support but I'm sure they will be there and very helpful

Ive been playing 21 years, own many quality guitars and amp rigs
Guitar IS my life
This is my dream guitar If it was ever stolen I'd buy 2 of em to replace the one(LOL)
Also love to play along with Yngwie on cd and listen to the matching tones(I can't play fluent Yngwie) but have quite a bit of talent and can play some of his stuff. WAY TO GO YNGWIE.

year: 2000 and 1989
frets: 21 each
body: alder with a nitrocellulose cream finish.
controls: 2000: 1 vol, 2 tone, 3 way switch. 1989: 1 vol, 2 TBX, 5
way switch.
pickups: 2000: 2 x YJM (n & m), 1 x HS-3 (b). 1989: 2 x HS-3 (n & b),
reverse wound single coil (m).
electronics: passive on both.
neck: both maple with light figuring and maple fretboard.
bridge: 2000: vintage, 1989: US Std.
Tuners: 2000: Schaller "f", 1989: Vintage style.
neck/scale: 25.5" on each, scalloped fretboard, Dunlop 6100's.
other: case, patch cord, lifetime warranty, strap.

sound: very silvery and violin like. Perfect!
using: Marshall Mk II w/ 4x12" cabs & Digitech GSP 2101 effects
processor.

Action was perfect on both guitars from factory.

Lifetime warranty on both. Both'll survive =)

Warranty is lifetime.

Myself: Been playing for a very long time. I've had most every guitar out there, and these two bury them all. Gibson and PRS are nice and all, but I'll be sticking with these thanks.

This guitar was made late 2000 in the USA. It has a solid alder body with a maple neck & 21 fret scallopped maple fingerboard. The frets are Dunlop 6000's, which are a touch shy of my favorites, the 6100's. Guess you really don't need large frets on a guitar with a scallopped fingerboard, though. the nut is brass.

The pickups are passive, stacked single coils (DiMarzio HS3 in the bridge, the other two are DiMarzio YJM's). The rest of the electronics are typical Strat... two tones and a volume, except the pickup selector switch is only three-way. It has a white finish, mint green plastic bits (pickguard, knobs, pickup covers, etcetera) and a vintage bridge & tuners. It came with a tweed case, all necessary adjustment tools and a Fender guitar cable. Most importantly, it came with the setup specs. More on that later. This is a Strat... simple, but it does what it does with grace and without drama.

This guitar adds to my style and is a different voice. I like it a lot. The HS3 is a pretty warm pickup for a single coil. The YJM's specs don't seem like it, but it is actually a little warmer. Both pickups have nice, thick mids that aren't honky at all. They are stacked, so there is obviously, no noise. They both also cut very well, which I expect from a single coil. They have the tone of a single coil, but with warmth and no noise. The output of the pickups is actually a touch less than that of an American Standard Strat, but they sound bigger. I am playing this guitar through a 5150 head & cabinet (using only the gain from the amp) with various Boss pedals. This guitar is a nice switch.

The action is low, but the scallopped fingerboard creates a bit of an illusion of high action. The guitar is very easy to play as long as you don't press too hard and send notes out of tune. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, though. You have to press pretty hard to do that. One thing I really do like about the scallopped fingerboard, though, is that you can really grab on to notes and work them. It just feels like you have more grippability (did I just make up a word?). It took me a few minutes to get used to playing this guitar, but it took even longer for me to get used to one of my guitars with a normal fingerboard once I put down this one. I like it a lot... not enough to scallop all my guitars, but this guitar is an excellent change of pace. The guitar itself was perfect... no paint or construction issues.

This guitar will stand up to live playing very, very well. I have never seen a Strat stay in tune so well. Just for grins, I work the tremolo like crazy. Every string stayed in tune every time, even after dive bombs. I have two other Strats and neither one will take this kind of torture. The rest of my electric guitars all have Floyd Rose bridges and the Yngwie stays in tune almost as well. Evidently, it will as long as you set it up to Fender specs exactly. The tuners are very nice... very tight and you can make very small adjustments. This has always been the reason I've preferred Floyd Rose bridges... you can make small adjustments with the fine tuners. A friend of mine said he'd hook up with me to work on my Strats and told me I'd never go back to a locking tremolo after he showed me a few tricks. I'd always have a backup at a gig, though and never forget to put strap locks on the thing.

I have never used Fender support for any of my Strats.

I have been playing for 14 years. I play a 5150 head & cabinet with various Boss pedals and have various ESP's, Ibanezes and a few Wolfgangs. This guitar was everything I thought it would be except I expected the pickups to have a little more output. Still, I wouldn't change a thing. It is a great change. If it were stolen, I'd be rather pissed, but I'd get another one. My favorite feature is, obviously, the fingerboard. The scallopped fingerboard is something that is a lot of fun. Like I said, it was easy to me to adjust to it and actually took me a little longer to revert to my other guitars. I love this thing.