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Description
The Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster is a distinguished member of the electric guitar family, revered for its exceptional craftsmanship and timeless sound. Handcrafted in Fender's Custom Shop, this Stratocaster embodies the pinnacle of guitar artistry, combining vintage aesthetics with modern playability. It features a select alder or ash body, which provides a balanced tonal range, from bright, crisp highs to warm, resonant lows, making it a versatile choice for any musical style.
The neck is crafted from premium maple, with a smooth satin finish that ensures effortless playability across the fretboard. Its comfortable "C" shape is designed to fit naturally in your hand, allowing for extended play without fatigue. Custom-wound pickups deliver a rich, articulate sound that pays homage to the legendary tones of classic Stratocasters, while offering enhanced clarity and dynamic response for today's musicians.
Whether you're on stage or in the studio, the Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster promises reliability and performance. Its vintage-style synchronized tremolo bridge provides smooth action for subtle vibratos or more intense dives, without sacrificing tuning stability. Each instrument is meticulously inspected and set up by Fender's master builders, guaranteeing that your guitar is ready to inspire from the moment you pick it up.
Key Features:
- Handcrafted in Fender's Custom Shop
- Select alder or ash body for balanced tonal range
- Maple neck with "C" shape profile and satin finish
- Custom-wound pickups for rich, articulate sound
- Vintage-style synchronized tremolo bridge
- Meticulously inspected and set up by master builders
Videos
Ola Englund
MY GUITAR - FENDER CUSTOM SHOP STRATOCASTER
Reviews
Owner Insights
We analyzed real musician discussions from forums and Reddit to find what players love, question, and tweak about Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster.
Features and functionality
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Direct-mounted pickups reportedly offer unique overtones, especially when played with high drive.
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The SD Seth Lover pickup in the neck position is praised for its exceptional tone.
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Texas Special pickups are preferred by some owners for their tonal qualities compared to other options like Fat '50s.
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Comparisons
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The guitar is likened to a Nashville Tele with a "Keef" style HB at the neck, combining Strat and Tele elements.
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Build quality
User experience
Critic Reviews
5.0 out of 5
Based on 6 Reviews and 26 Ratings
2423
awesome custom
I got a custom strat some time ago. It has a Floyd rose, a Gretsch steel guitar bridge pickup and Seymour Duncan Antiquity Lap Steel middle pickup and a Lace Alumitone single coil neck pickup. It also has a in/out of phase switch and is in a heavy relic 2 tone sunburst finish.
250
I love it!
I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! I love it! :D
An ugly purple sparkle but a beautiful tone!
Picked up on a whim at a music expo in Sydney, this Strat instantly "spoke" to me. A little on the heavy side, even unplugged it seems much cleaner and richer sounding than most other Strats I've played or owned.
Artist usage
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in this video Rebea does a shootout of his fender strats. one of these strats is his customshop 50s reissue strat
"This is his main axe here...He likes this one, the tone of it, specifically. It actually was made in 89," says Buddy Guy's guitar tech, in this rig rundown video.
Adam has a few Custom Shop Stratocasters he uses, they usually have floyds and a humbucker on them. A close look at the guitar can be had at 4:08 into this video.
At 32:44 in this video rig rundown, Adam Day, Neal Schon's guitar technician, goes over Schon's Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster with many of his signature specs including "the Roland Synth pickup, as well as the Fernandes Sustainer, same pickup combination, frets and neck to Neal's specs, Neal's neck contour."
In this post fender master builder Brian trasher shows off a guitar he did for tony. His guitar is a custom Stratocaster. His guitar is based on the specs of the jim root signature
Robbie Robertson uses a Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster, characterized by its Capri blue finish, see-through amber pickguard, and brass hardware, as detailed on Robbie-Robertson.com.
In a 1994 model photo shared on Tumblr, Soccer Mommy is seen with a Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster.
Jim James is confirmed to use a Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster as highlighted in the "My Morning Jacket Rig Rundown" by John Bohlinger on Premier Guitar.
Tyler Bryant plays a Fender Custom Shop Reissue 1962 Stratocaster in Shell Pink. He's since swapped the pickguard to customize it.
At 38:42 in the "Bryan Adams Rig Rundown with Keith Scott" video by Premier Guitar on YouTube, Dan Ely, the guitar technician for Keith Scott, confirms the use of a Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster as part of Scott’s guitar rig.
One made by John Cruz is mentioned in an October 27, 2017 Reddit AMA reply.
kaygraphic What sort of signal processors do you use live and what kind of pick ups do you prefer? Also, thank you for all the inspiring sounds!
buttholesurfers_ These days I play a John Cruz Stratocaster with noiseless pickups that were custom-wound by John himself. I have an old Ibanez 808 Tube Screamer, a Boss DD3 delay, a Boss pitch-shifting pedal, a Boss chorus pedal, and a "Dirty Little Secret" distortion pedal. I'm exploring Earthquaker pedals now, they have a new one called a "Data Corrupter" (I think), and it is really fun
Album Usage
The Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster has been featured on the following albums:
Genre Usage
Based on how artists on Equipboard use this gear, it is most commonly found in the following genres.
Used With
Based on how musicians on Equipboard use Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster, it is most commonly used with the following gear.
Community setups
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Add recommendation3 alternative and related items for Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster, curated by the Equipboard community.
$1,960.03 - $2,499.99
With the American Vintage II Strat, Fender has now brought back the quintessential 1961 model with unparalleled authenticity. Built with alder and maple, and rosewood tonewoods and featuring an exclusive trio of single-coil Strat pickups, the ’61 Strat is a perfect emulation of a beloved axe classic. Considering it retains the same “C” neck profile and familiar fretboard access, holding an American Vintage II guitar feels akin to wielding an instrument rife with legendary 20th-century tone.
I have owned a Fender Custom Shop strat. At about 1/4 of the price, the Shijie that I own blows it out of the water. I'm not going to say that all Shijie STE's are Fender custom shop quality but the one that I own definitely is. I highly recommend this brand.
$2,179.00
Nash is not cheap by any means. They clock at around $2600 new, but that is still a lot less than a Fender CS which could set you back $5K depending on the amount of aging / relic. I've owned a Fender CS Strat and my Nash S57 (based on 57' strat obviously) is every bit as good as the Fender CS that I owned. I highly recommend Nash.
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