Versatile, well-built, does what it says on the box

I'm a Strat fan and a lot of them have passed through my hands. I had an early 2000s American Deluxe Strat for many years, and have nothing bad to say about it. It's beautifully made and felt slick and comfortable in my hands: the satin finish on a beautifully shaped maple neck is perfect, and is a neck type I've preferred ever since even when playing custom guitars.

If you're picking up a Stratocaster, the vintage Noiseless pickups deliver basically everything you want tonally. They're rounder and less harsh sounding than a lot of single coils, and give you a lot of that Strat "quack" without ever being too shrill or tinny. The version I played had an LSR roller nut, which is an upgrade in most ways from the Wilkinson roller nut of earlier years, and if you do a lot of bending or trem play, it's a nice improvement.

Other than that, not much to say. It's a Strat. You know what that's supposed to mean, and this model delivers exactly that. No surprises, either pleasant or unpleasant ones. Dependable, high-quality, and a great working guitar. I never fell in love with it and didn't keep it after custom-building my first guitar in this same niche, but you really can't go wrong with it. Among the countless Stratocaster models now available, this one is consistently top-quality and one of the best available unless you have a lot of excess money going to the Custom Shop, Master-Built, or Signature Series Strats for something you want that's very particular. As far as general all-purpose Strats go, this is one of the best commonly available.

Great in any situation!

This guitar is beautiful and a well balanced instrument that I purchased in 2010.

The N3 pick ups work a treat, and the rosewood neck really helps to give this a mellow tune, suitable for Smooth Jazz playing. The action on this is absolutely amazing and, with the right strings, you can really run any riff on this guitar without any issues. Even from stock, the strings are easy to press on the highest frets resulting in clean notes right the way through the range.

The S1 selector is a good feature as you can achieve humbucker tones quite easily. However, the bridge setting is a little too thin and quiet for live playing. Other than that, the S1 system offers a range of sounds that works with a range of playing situations! My choice for accompanying soloists.

Also, it came with a great flight case! I use Ernie Ball Regular Slink Strings on this.

This is my #2

Outstanding guitar from Fender. This girl sees a LOT of play time. Effortless to play. A myriad of tones can be coaxed from it with the S1 switching. The vibrato arm is smooth and returns to pitch all night. Locking tuners. An absolutely beautiful piece of ash for the body and very nice dark rosewood board. A swiss army knife of a guitar.

My 'home & studio' Axe

This guitar absolutely beautiful in olympic pearl. I modded the daylights out of this axe as well. American Deluxe body, Dimarzio Injector pups, American Standard maple neck, Locking Fender tuners.