martin_gotte's Country Amp Rig

I own a 2009 cherry red Gibson Memphis ES-335. Wide slim taper mahogany neck, rosewood fretboard, laminate maple/poplar body with center block, 57 Classic pickups. Very low action and very easy to play. Extremely responsive and dynamic. This guitar sounds awesome on all pickup positions, with a great balance of warmth and brightness. It is a most versatile guitar suitable for all musical styles.

Made by Fender Japan. I own a ca. 1987 first edition Fender JV model with the 3 bolt neck, large headstock and bullet trussrod. The neck is comparably slim and has a V profile, vintage frets and 7.5 radius. Body wood is basswood in the export series (i.e. mine) and ash in Strats for the Japanese market. Later editions have a small headstock, 4 bolt necks and 57 specs. The original US-made pickups sounded good, but had a very low output that I did not appreciate at the time. I replaced them with Fender Texas Specials which sound great in all 5 pickup switch positions in this guitar. This not always the case with Strats according to my experience. I own 3 Fender Strats, and this one is my Classic Rock Strat, as it has a fat 60s/70s Rock sound that pairs well with both Marshall and Fender style amps.