Not only a MONSTER player but… FINALLY someone who actually plays without using a boatload of pedals to demonstrate Strat tone!! It’s all about the guitar not the pedals. Thank you!! Cheers Dallas
Finally someone who really knows how to use tone knobs. I have come to loath guitar reviews where the guy playing would complain about some sound being too bright, but wouldn't touch the tone knobs once... without the tone knob, my favorite guitar (a Tele) would be useless!
Just my own personal tip: I have found that setting my Strat's volume on "7" is the sweet spot so I'll set my amp volume accordingly and I can just make little adjustments at the guitar. Nothing worse than trying to run over to the amp and do stuff during, or between, songs.
@@badscrew4023 I wish I could play a gig… lol I don’t even like listening to my playing and I feel my music would make people angry 😂. Just bought my first real guitar to replace my $170 Epiphone LP special ii… the Fender Player Plus in Olympic Pearl w/candy apple pick guard and it’s beautiful! I’ve never played a guitar with this much precision out of the box and it looks like it costs $3000 even though it wasn’t cheap I have no regrets. Just got it today and played for 3/hrs… didn’t even take the plastic off
The problem with turning your guitars volume control down is the signal out of the guitar isn’t particularly large and noise can more easily creep into your overall sound.
😊great presentation, I've been playing for sixty years and do not use a pedal board other than for reverb or other colors, never for breakup/distortion. The volume and tone knobs are where your guitars personality lives. "Play the guitar " is absolutely spot on.
If the people who watch this are paying any attention at all to what you have said here, you will save them countless hours of searching and mistakes in the quest for the epic Strat sound. You have covered all of the basic elements of how to get there, and anybody who will listen is going to be spared considerable headaches, lots of un-necessary trial and error, and probably at least a few bucks in the process. I'm currently on Stratocaster number 8. All the previous ones were disappointing in one way or another. Since I didnt have the price of a new car to spend on an instrument, I figjured the way forward was to round up the best parts I could find, and build what I wanted myself. It took about 4 years to round up everything I needed because I was very picky about what would go into it,, but I built a very decent "Salvagecaster" that can sit at the table with the old ones becsuse its mostly made up of old parts. That helped a lot. But at the end of the day, the tone really does begin with the hands, especially the right hand, and as you have demonstrated, how you set the controls. I dont like to think about how much further ahead I'd be if I had just accepted a few simple truths decades ago. I sure am glad I found your channel because truth is an elusive commodity in a sea of lies and hype. You're the real goods, and I look forward to more interesting stuff. Keep it comin' Cheers!!!
I went down a rabbit hole chasing Ken Fischer amps and stumbled across Jeff that way. Phenomenal player. And OMG there's a lesson called Bend it like Beck. Top notch stuff
@@JeffMcErlain Found you on True Fire! i have learn so much via your blues course. When are you traveling down under, great place to enjoy local talent, a beer or the Tamworth Music Festival.
The wiring in my Stratocaster is the neck and middle pickups wired to the top tone control with a .1mfd Fender foil and paper in wax "phone book" capacitor, as the neck and middle pickups can use a much larger capacitor than the bridge can, my bridge pickup is wired to the bottom tone control with a Fender .05 foil and paper in wax capacitor using 50's wiring with a 3way switch, as I don't like the combination settings(neither did Leo Fender), I use my 6 screw vintage vibrato bridge decked with 5 springs so that it doesn't lift even when doing 4-5 fret bends, so my arm action is pretty stiff, but my guitar stays in tune and has a zero point so it returns to pitch. Great video, I always like to learn what others do and how that works for them. Rock on Brother!
I personally like having one tone for the neck and middle, and another for just the bridge, because when using position 2 I can dial in more of the bridge and less of the middle and get a tone I prefer more.
You hit the nail right on the head. I’m listening and learning. Need to stick just one of my guitars in order to fully understand its characteristics before two- timing my guitars. I guess I have a long road ahead, but your sound advice (no pun intended) is very helpful and informative. Much appreciated.
I've found that simply by running the bridge pickup to a tone pot at all helps cut down on harshness. I run my bridge pickup to the neck tone pot as that way I can still mess with tone of the middle and bridge in the #2 position, which offers a lot of options. There's so much good stuff in this video. I just put new pickups in my strat and this is a great guide to getting dialed in.
I loved what you said, "You need to play your guitar." When I aquire a new guitar, I will only play it for at least 90 days. It allows me to glean what I need out of the instrument. Great stuff, thank you!
I like making the middle tone pot a master tone control and adding a blend pot for the bridge and neck pickup in hole #3. Tone control on every pickup and the neck/bridge combinations.
Go for it. I have a slightly more modern strat with a treble bleed and blender pot but still these principles are applicable. I just have to use the tone pot more often.
Great information &lesson I have modified my Fender Mexican Stratocaster with Fender Hot Noiseless pickups No 60 cycle hum and Now I'm A proud owner of a New Fender Custom Shop Eric Clapton Signature Stratocaster with Fender Vintage Noiseless Pickups TBX tone circuit etc You get what you pay for When you Modify a Stratocaster then you have a Great Stratocaster
Is there anything better than sitting down with my Strat and watching Jeff reveal all his years of experience and professional secrets on this wonderful instrument. Just the best. I thank you and my Stratocaster thanks you!
Re tremolo, the 6pt is great. I have a nash ‘62 copy relic setup with 8’s and tuned half step down. I keep the pivot points lubricated and the nut lubed with pencil graphite. I fitted a roller string tree to reduce friction on B & E strings, and really stretch the strings at replacement. I’m modest on trem use however it rarely goes out of tune.
Fantastic info and a great insight into Strat tones and knowing your Strat guitars. Thanks for making this video, I think I’ll look at your courses now. 🙌
Great info as always! The tone control on the bridge is the first thing I do with any Strat. And once you have it, it's impossible to go back. Fantastic job, thanks Jeff!
Done this a couple of weeks ago on my strat copy and amp and came up with some interesting tones. I think it's a personal thing with tone setting. I agree, if you have an original why Change anything, great lesson, thanks.
I dialed in my Stratocaster by buying a Les Paul. I like my Stratocaster but it has been a work in progress since I bought it. Tuning issues are still a thing with the Studio. The Les Paul was good straight out of the box.
I usually use 2 different eq settings for neck and bridge. On any guitar. I pick one pickup. Most bridge pickups are pretty linear and belanced and a small treble cut w the tone control does the job. Neck pickups are more scooped. More vibrations which affects the bass response. You can lower the bass side of it but id rather shave off some low end and maybe add some mids depending on pickup. So, i start with the bridge pickup as my core sound in combi w the amp and then adjust the eq for the neck pickup..
My Squier CV 50s has a tone control for the bridge pickup, and another for the neck and middle. Works well, but I'm thinking of wiring all three pickups to one tone control, and fitting a switch or blend pot in the vacant position. I fitted a treble bleed circuit, and generally play with the volume as low as 5, with plenty of spare capacity to drive the amp just by turning the volume control up. This makes it easy to gig with just a Strat, a lead and a reverb-equipped amp. No pedals needed. Like Jeff's, my six-screw bridge holds tune just fine and I set it pretty much the same. I think six-screw bridges sound better than two-point trems.
Thank you for sharing your abundant knowledge. Beautiful guitar, monstrous tones, and tasteful playing, as well. For myself, the one thing that made a huge difference for me tonally with my Strat was adding an Ibanez Tube Screamer to my board - gain off and level Dimed. Really fattened it up. Then when I added a Wampler Ego Compressor right before the TS (half dry/half compressed on the blend), it was tonal Nirvana. Also, rolling back the treble and volume smooths things out considerably, as Jeff pointed out. I play with the pickups in position 4 80 to 90% of the time (bridge pickup being position 1). I have no problem with the Fender Gen IV noiseless pickups I have on the guitar. They sound fabulous. I hate noise and I think the listeners do, as well.
After years of investigation and review of other's comments I ended up playing with pickup selection (after balancing volume across all pickups and all strings) to maximize clarity. Only then do I begin adjusting tone of the interaction of guitar and amp.
I've tried so many Strat setups, but one thing I'm surprised I've never heard of, is going to be my next experiment. Vol controls for each pickup, so I can do some blending - may even add a bridge/neck switch. For tone? I would rely on the natural treble roll-off of rolling back the Vol. If that doesn't work for me (only care about the bridge tone), I'll use a concentric vol/tone for the bridge. I'm psyched about it and feel confident that I am going to love it. First candidate will be my '74 hardtail.
Just found you. Fantastic work. Great vibe - inspired me to get out of bed- grab my strat and play the bridge pickup w new eyes. I will be playing all night. Thanks for the therapy session! Can’t wait to dig into your channel more.
My 1990 strat has some weirdness going on with its electronics and I'll have to open it up because of that - will use this occasion to wire the second tone knob to the bridge pickup!
Funny thing about the Strat. Many guitar heroes have played or play the Strat, including mainstream modern rock bands that get pretty heavy guitar tones out of it (The Smashing Pumpkins, Biffy Clyro)... But it's said that the Telecaster is the most recorded guitar, but there aren't many guitar heroes playing the regular Telecaster. Of course, there are real masters and virtuosos, but they're not as famous. I just recently picked up a used Squier Affinity Telecaster, and I really like it! But the Strat is more versatile and it's a different beast. This video is a reminder to use the edge of breakup, use the tone knob, use the volume knob... Just gotta play and listen and play some more! Oh, also, fuzz on a Strat is killer!
I recently installed an FU Tone Trem stabilizer and a graphite nut/string tree combo. I can use the bar now, within reason (I don't do crazy VH/Vai dives), and it stays in tune great.
Great video .. I rewired my 65 reissue to have the tone control on the bridge pick-up .. it worked but somehow it works on the middle pickup too.. so I now have tone control on all of the pickups .. don’t know how I did that. ❤
When you bypass the tone on the middle pickup, it increases the volume on the pickup a little bit enabling you to lower it more than the neck and bridge so it’s out of the way.
Thanks for the video. We don't use our vol knobs enough. Would love to see how you dial in your pickups. I do it by listening, first on the Strat neck then move to the other pickups to mostly balance the output, but listening and adjusting for tone, too. It seems the low E on the neck ends up low, so it is more distinct and not boomy.
The most popular tone mod with an older Strat is wiring the middle and bridge pickups both to the second tone pot. You have tone control on all three pickups. Newer Strats have been wired like that for some time. Replacing the three way toggle with a five position switch is maybe the most popular mod. Fender began installing five way switches in the ‘70s, ‘76 or ‘77 possibly? Makes it easy to get the neck/middle and middle/bridge sounds, which makes a Strat, a Strat!
My strat came as you described, 2nd tone pot is for middle and bridge, but I'm thinking of modding it so it's only for bridge. I tend to like tone turned down on the bridge and all the way up for the middle.
@@drothberg3 That’s what I did when I got my ‘66 - second tone for the bridge pickup only; neck and middle together on the first tone pot. I thought I invented that wiring. WRONG, KEMO SABE! It’s a great mod, no matter what. The bridge pickup can sound like a humbucker with the right combination of rolled off tone and an overdrive you’re comfortable with.
I also love the sound from the middle pickup on a Strat but I believe that Robert Cray lowers his middle pickup claiming that the resulting tones in the in-between positions sound better to his ears.
I'm with you on your specific desire to only use the whammy bar in a small way. But, there are places for more tonal adjustments, and a 2 point bridge, or similar, is more reliable than a 6. there are places for dives, not only for show, but for a sound. 6 points rarely measure up. Love the channel, prosit!
Just curios why you don't have your neck and mid pup on the same tone knob? You don't lose anything that way and it allows you to tame that spikey middle you get in many pickup sets.
That's for your advice regarding the tone knob. I have Fat 50s pickups and they are fantastic but the bridge only is real ice picky so I gotta make this mod.
Thanks for this Jeff. Getting the Strat to sound equally consistently good as my humbucker guitars has always been a challenge for me. But these things you bring up here have been good choices also in my experience. One thing I've found is when you share your amp and pedalboard with both a humbucker equipped guitar and a single coil one, it might be useful to set your amp to be optimal for the humbucker guitar and have an overdrive pedal that you dedicate to your single coil guitar. In that way you can get that bite or push of the amp that you more easily get with the humbuckers also with the single coil. Cheers, Thor
It's mostly strat/tele single coils against P90s in my case. I use a booster pedal which helps to bring the other single coil guitars up to the same level as the P90-equipped ones without adding more drive/distortion.
I know my L Sensor Strat will never be as loud as my 496/500 pup equipped L Paul. But each is a different tool and has its job. 3 color L Sensors and a TBX knob gives a lot of sound variety. And the L Paul with loud,hard pick ups and using Daddario EXL140 lite top heavy bottom gives the Paul it's own sonic territory the Strat can't cover as well.
I've never, in over 30 years of playing, had a guitar that sounded exactly like I wanted on both the neck and bridge, without adjusting amp settings. It's always a sort of deal-with-it as it is situation of going back and forth. Modern amps with foot-switchable channels help so you can have multiple EQs set.
The problem with using the tone control on the bridge pickup is you lose some output. If you go between neck and bridge pickups you can notice the difference in volume between the two settings. I have a cap and resistor from the top of the volume pot to the wiper. I didn’t like the change in timbre. I wanted to increase and decrease volume without affecting timbre. I like pulling up and down on the vibrato arm, but it doesn’t always come back to the same spot. A graphtech nut works wonders on a Strat and is low maintenance.
Great video. I like having the bottom tone knob set as a blend. Can blend in some neck to tame the bridge brightness or brighten up the neck by blending in some bridge.
Great video,low pressure. I was hoping you would speak directly about the Fender "treble bleed" effect. I have a 2021 Roadhouse Strat (mainly I play acoustic) I believe the change in tone I find by moving the volume knob indicates my Roadhouse strat is wired for treble bleed? I read the Pro series is wired for treble bleed, not much about the Roadhouse strat.
I wish you came out with this video when I just started out playing. It took me about 10 years just to know what the different pickups did and how the sounds were different and also what the different knobs do and how they sound.
All you have to do for the bridge pickup is tag on to the middle pickup tone pot. And there...you have tone control for both middle and bridge pickup tone control. Put in a treble bleed and you will stope the roll off treble with the volume control. Very simple fix on both cases.
I'm always surprised how Eric Johnson sets his bass and mids so high on his Fenders. Bright switch engaged too. I wouldn't like that sound myself, but he sounds great. The way Jeff does it is cool and i do that too. It took me years to get a good tone out of everything, especially your favorite rig. Pickups settings and pots, etc help, but knowing how to use it is invaluable.
Hey Jeff!! I've learned so much already from you about the Les Paul that this is just chapter 2 in the story! I own both! Love your lessons especially the history and personal touch ☺️... awesome work as always! Thank you
@@JeffMcErlain very welcome Jeff..your work is world class stuff and I have a tremendous amount of respect for your professionalism and musicianship...I learn so much from you
One of my favorite tones on my main strat is neck and bridge (I added a "gilmour switch" to select both together). I'm still searching for a bridge pickup that I enjoy by itself though. I think deep down I'm looking for a throaty tele-esque bridge tone for a best of both worlds sound. Then you have my single humbucker strat with no tone circuit, which is purely for my heavier stuff I play haha
If you just leave the wiring ( with a 5 way) untouched and just swap the position of the middle and bridge pickups in the guard you get a bridge pickup (was middle) with a tone control. You also get the following combinations. Pos 5 = neck with tone cont Pos 4 = neck and bridge (tele style) both with tone controls Pos 3 = bridge with tone control Pos 2 =middle + bridge only bridge has tone control. Pos 1= middle. no tone control
Not only a MONSTER player but… FINALLY someone who actually plays without using a boatload of pedals to demonstrate Strat tone!! It’s all about the guitar not the pedals. Thank you!! Cheers Dallas
🍻🍻Thanks!
Thank you good sir
Finally someone who really knows how to use tone knobs. I have come to loath guitar reviews where the guy playing would complain about some sound being too bright, but wouldn't touch the tone knobs once... without the tone knob, my favorite guitar (a Tele) would be useless!
everyone knows that the tone knobs on stratocasters don't actually do anything
@@FenderShredderOnly on the bridge. It still sculpts the tone on the other 4 positions, just not as dramatically as the Tele.
Just my own personal tip: I have found that setting my Strat's volume on "7" is the sweet spot so I'll set my amp volume accordingly and I can just make little adjustments at the guitar. Nothing worse than trying to run over to the amp and do stuff during, or between, songs.
Oh yeah. Reserving some gain for the live gig going wilder is a great thing to do!
@@badscrew4023 I wish I could play a gig… lol I don’t even like listening to my playing and I feel my music would make people angry 😂. Just bought my first real guitar to replace my $170 Epiphone LP special ii… the Fender Player Plus in Olympic Pearl w/candy apple pick guard and it’s beautiful! I’ve never played a guitar with this much precision out of the box and it looks like it costs $3000 even though it wasn’t cheap I have no regrets. Just got it today and played for 3/hrs… didn’t even take the plastic off
@@greg6162 learn couple of power chords and you're a punk guitar king already :D
The problem with turning your guitars volume control down is the signal out of the guitar isn’t particularly large and noise can more easily creep into your overall sound.
I’m a 7 guy too👊
😊great presentation, I've been playing for sixty years and do not use a pedal board other than for reverb or other colors, never for breakup/distortion. The volume and tone knobs are where your guitars personality lives. "Play the guitar " is absolutely spot on.
If the people who watch this are paying any attention at all to what you have said here, you will save them countless hours of searching and mistakes in the quest for the epic Strat sound. You have covered all of the basic elements of how to get there, and anybody who will listen is going to be spared considerable headaches, lots of un-necessary trial and error, and probably at least a few bucks in the process.
I'm currently on Stratocaster number 8.
All the previous ones were disappointing in one way or another. Since I didnt have the price of a new car to spend on an instrument, I figjured the way forward was to round up the best parts I could find, and build what I wanted myself. It took about 4 years to round up everything I needed because I was very picky about what would go into it,, but I built a very decent
"Salvagecaster" that can sit at the table with the old ones becsuse its mostly made up of old parts. That helped a lot.
But at the end of the day, the tone really does begin with the hands, especially the right hand, and as you have demonstrated, how you set the controls. I dont like to think about how much further ahead I'd be if I had just accepted a few simple truths decades ago.
I sure am glad I found your channel because truth is an elusive commodity in a sea of lies and hype.
You're the real goods, and I look forward to more interesting stuff.
Keep it comin'
Cheers!!!
Thanks for this! I appreciate your thoughtful comments and compliments. Happy to have you here!
How does this channel only have 18K subs..?
Sir you are one of TH-cam's hidden gems
Thank you. Working on it!!! lol
I just discovered his channel yesterday, its pure gold. The dialing in ur LP is a great watch too.
I went down a rabbit hole chasing Ken Fischer amps and stumbled across Jeff that way. Phenomenal player. And OMG there's a lesson called Bend it like Beck. Top notch stuff
@@JeffMcErlain Found you on True Fire! i have learn so much via your blues course. When are you traveling down under, great place to enjoy local talent, a beer or the Tamworth Music Festival.
i've said this for a long time.....:-)
The wiring in my Stratocaster is the neck and middle pickups wired to the top tone control with a .1mfd Fender foil and paper in wax "phone book" capacitor, as the neck and middle pickups can use a much larger capacitor than the bridge can, my bridge pickup is wired to the bottom tone control with a Fender .05 foil and paper in wax capacitor using 50's wiring with a 3way switch, as I don't like the combination settings(neither did Leo Fender), I use my 6 screw vintage vibrato bridge decked with 5 springs so that it doesn't lift even when doing 4-5 fret bends, so my arm action is pretty stiff, but my guitar stays in tune and has a zero point so it returns to pitch. Great video, I always like to learn what others do and how that works for them. Rock on Brother!
Man that is the ideal strat tone right there! Warm and round, almost squishy sounding, but still very bright and articulate without being piercing
I like the " you have to play your guitar" comment. I believe if you play your guitar a lot , the guitar parts settle in. That equals good guitarin.
I personally like having one tone for the neck and middle, and another for just the bridge, because when using position 2 I can dial in more of the bridge and less of the middle and get a tone I prefer more.
You hit the nail right on the head. I’m listening and learning. Need to stick just one of my guitars in order to fully understand its characteristics before two- timing my guitars. I guess I have a long road ahead, but your sound advice (no pun intended) is very helpful and informative. Much appreciated.
I've found that simply by running the bridge pickup to a tone pot at all helps cut down on harshness. I run my bridge pickup to the neck tone pot as that way I can still mess with tone of the middle and bridge in the #2 position, which offers a lot of options.
There's so much good stuff in this video. I just put new pickups in my strat and this is a great guide to getting dialed in.
So many cool combinations! I like that one! Thanks for being here!
That's a cool idea. As bridge pickup is never used at the same time as the neck, why not reuse its tone pot!
I'm certainly stealing this :)
I loved what you said, "You need to play your guitar." When I aquire a new guitar, I will only play it for at least 90 days. It allows me to glean what I need out of the instrument. Great stuff, thank you!
I like making the middle tone pot a master tone control and adding a blend pot for the bridge and neck pickup in hole #3. Tone control on every pickup and the neck/bridge combinations.
Excellent stuff! I'm going to go pick up my Strandberg Boden "Strat-a-like" and do everything you say Jeff.
Ha! Thanks Keith!
Go for it. I have a slightly more modern strat with a treble bleed and blender pot but still these principles are applicable. I just have to use the tone pot more often.
@@JeffMcErlain over
Are you bragging or what? Lol
Good to see you looking well and recovered from the COVID. Studying your new course ATM. Best wishes from Australia
Thanks! The COVID wasn’t too bad fortunately!
@@BennieTarrMusic Sorry? Can you speak English please
Great information &lesson I have modified my Fender Mexican Stratocaster with Fender Hot Noiseless pickups No 60 cycle hum and Now I'm A proud owner of a New Fender Custom Shop Eric Clapton Signature Stratocaster with Fender Vintage Noiseless Pickups TBX tone circuit etc You get what you pay for When you Modify a Stratocaster then you have a Great Stratocaster
Man you get such killer tones in all positions Jeff, great touch and clearly a great ear, love it!
Thank you David.
Someone with a very good ear and intricate understanding of the small and finer details. Appreciate the experience and wisdom!
Thank you and you are welcome!!
Dialing in the Les and now the Strat. Got a new subscriber. Cudos on your talents. Good shite.
Is there anything better than sitting down with my Strat and watching Jeff reveal all his years of experience and professional secrets on this wonderful instrument. Just the best. I thank you and my Stratocaster thanks you!
Greetings from England.
Mate this is probably one of the best vids I've seen on Strats. I just learned loads and I've owned my Strat since 92!!!👍👍👍
Thank you!!
Re tremolo, the 6pt is great. I have a nash ‘62 copy relic setup with 8’s and tuned half step down. I keep the pivot points lubricated and the nut lubed with pencil graphite. I fitted a roller string tree to reduce friction on B & E strings, and really stretch the strings at replacement. I’m modest on trem use however it rarely goes out of tune.
You shouldn't use pencil graphite to lube the nut.
I'll use 0w-20 next time
Fantastic info and a great insight into Strat tones and knowing your Strat guitars. Thanks for making this video, I think I’ll look at your courses now. 🙌
🙌🏻🙌🏻
Awesome video. Thank you for sharing this with us.
Thank you. You are welcome!
Great info as always! The tone control on the bridge is the first thing I do with any Strat. And once you have it, it's impossible to go back. Fantastic job, thanks Jeff!
Thanks Jimmy!!
They FINALLY are putting tone control on bridge for the current MIM Player series...
Done this a couple of weeks ago on my strat copy and amp and came up with some interesting tones. I think it's a personal thing with tone setting. I agree, if you have an original why Change anything, great lesson, thanks.
I dialed in my Stratocaster by buying a Les Paul. I like my Stratocaster but it has been a work in progress since I bought it. Tuning issues are still a thing with the Studio. The Les Paul was good straight out of the box.
That's what I do.
Also have a backup.
With a bridge seymour duncan .
Hotrail
I usually use 2 different eq settings for neck and bridge. On any guitar. I pick one pickup. Most bridge pickups are pretty linear and belanced and a small treble cut w the tone control does the job. Neck pickups are more scooped. More vibrations which affects the bass response. You can lower the bass side of it but id rather shave off some low end and maybe add some mids depending on pickup.
So, i start with the bridge pickup as my core sound in combi w the amp and then adjust the eq for the neck pickup..
Jeff, can you please make a video for dialing in a telecaster?
I think I can do that…
@@JeffMcErlain Thank you very much, Jeff 😊
It’s sooooo true. After a session today it hit home, the knobs are like spices when cooking, doesn’t take much.
Exactly!!
Dialing for Dollars. This is like tuning in your first color TV in the ‘60’s. Strats & color television are necessities today.
Thanks! I will check your course out.
Thank you!
My Squier CV 50s has a tone control for the bridge pickup, and another for the neck and middle. Works well, but I'm thinking of wiring all three pickups to one tone control, and fitting a switch or blend pot in the vacant position. I fitted a treble bleed circuit, and generally play with the volume as low as 5, with plenty of spare capacity to drive the amp just by turning the volume control up. This makes it easy to gig with just a Strat, a lead and a reverb-equipped amp. No pedals needed. Like Jeff's, my six-screw bridge holds tune just fine and I set it pretty much the same. I think six-screw bridges sound better than two-point trems.
Had a -64 in the 80's with that transition logo and sunburst. This sounds exactly how I remember it.
Awesome instructions for a great sound. Thanks!
Thank you!!
Thank you for sharing your abundant knowledge. Beautiful guitar, monstrous tones, and tasteful playing, as well. For myself, the one thing that made a huge difference for me tonally with my Strat was adding an Ibanez Tube Screamer to my board - gain off and level Dimed. Really fattened it up. Then when I added a Wampler Ego Compressor right before the TS (half dry/half compressed on the blend), it was tonal Nirvana. Also, rolling back the treble and volume smooths things out considerably, as Jeff pointed out. I play with the pickups in position 4 80 to 90% of the time (bridge pickup being position 1). I have no problem with the Fender Gen IV noiseless pickups I have on the guitar. They sound fabulous. I hate noise and I think the listeners do, as well.
🙌🏻🙌🏻
After years of investigation and review of other's comments I ended up playing with pickup selection (after balancing volume across all pickups and all strings) to maximize clarity. Only then do I begin adjusting tone of the interaction of guitar and amp.
9:22 This Video was so great! THANK YOU!
14:14 Thanks for the Trem Explation and that It was meant to float...a bit at least!
🙌🏻🙌🏻🙏🏻
Great Vid, nothing like the neck PU on the strat (any guit for that matter)
Setting the neck first makes total sense. Thanks
I've tried so many Strat setups, but one thing I'm surprised I've never heard of, is going to be my next experiment. Vol controls for each pickup, so I can do some blending - may even add a bridge/neck switch. For tone? I would rely on the natural treble roll-off of rolling back the Vol. If that doesn't work for me (only care about the bridge tone), I'll use a concentric vol/tone for the bridge.
I'm psyched about it and feel confident that I am going to love it. First candidate will be my '74 hardtail.
… and how did you like the results?
Just found you. Fantastic work. Great vibe - inspired me to get out of bed- grab my strat and play the bridge pickup w new eyes. I will be playing all night. Thanks for the therapy session! Can’t wait to dig into your channel more.
Thank you and you’re welcome! Inspiring someone to play is the highest compliment. Thanks and happy to have you here.
Great video thanks Jeff. I just bought a 90s Japanese Strat after 20 years 'away' from strats
One of the best Strat explainers I've ever seen.
Thank you.
Les Paul and Strats in 1952 both massively iconic.. I own both, both are a pleasure to play. But I find I love my Les Paul a little bit more.
The beginning with your playing sounds amazing
Your awesome Jeff man love your strat
🤟🤟
Exactly the video I’ve been searching for! Thanks man
🙌🏻🙌🏻
Love your hat men!
Could you please share brand/model?
Made a similar tone know mod. 1st tone knob is for neck and middle p/u and 2nd tone knob is for the bridge p/u.
Very well-done. Thank you sir!
Great video great playing Jeff thanks!🎸
Thanks and you are welcome!
My 1990 strat has some weirdness going on with its electronics and I'll have to open it up because of that - will use this occasion to wire the second tone knob to the bridge pickup!
By the way, I did that; in the process also replacing the pickups and all the electronics, restored it all to its original conditions.
Funny thing about the Strat. Many guitar heroes have played or play the Strat, including mainstream modern rock bands that get pretty heavy guitar tones out of it (The Smashing Pumpkins, Biffy Clyro)... But it's said that the Telecaster is the most recorded guitar, but there aren't many guitar heroes playing the regular Telecaster. Of course, there are real masters and virtuosos, but they're not as famous. I just recently picked up a used Squier Affinity Telecaster, and I really like it! But the Strat is more versatile and it's a different beast. This video is a reminder to use the edge of breakup, use the tone knob, use the volume knob... Just gotta play and listen and play some more!
Oh, also, fuzz on a Strat is killer!
This video has reminded me why I need to keep my strat, despite having a preference of late for the Les Paul.
I recently installed an FU Tone Trem stabilizer and a graphite nut/string tree combo. I can use the bar now, within reason (I don't do crazy VH/Vai dives), and it stays in tune great.
This is great. The Strat is my favorite guitar for sure. It's what I picture when I hear the phrase "electric guitar"
Nice to see someone show some middle-pickup love.
Great video .. I rewired my 65 reissue to have the tone control on the bridge pick-up .. it worked but somehow it works on the middle pickup too.. so I now have tone control on all of the pickups .. don’t know how I did that. ❤
When you bypass the tone on the middle pickup, it increases the volume on the pickup a little bit enabling you to lower it more than the neck and bridge so it’s out of the way.
Yup! I don’t have a problem with that probably because I’ve always played Strats. Good tip!
Thanks for the video. We don't use our vol knobs enough. Would love to see how you dial in your pickups. I do it by listening, first on the Strat neck then move to the other pickups to mostly balance the output, but listening and adjusting for tone, too. It seems the low E on the neck ends up low, so it is more distinct and not boomy.
That’s a glorious Strat
The most popular tone mod with an older Strat is wiring the middle and bridge pickups both to the second tone pot.
You have tone control on all three pickups. Newer Strats have been wired like that for some time. Replacing the three
way toggle with a five position switch is maybe the most popular mod. Fender began installing five way switches in the
‘70s, ‘76 or ‘77 possibly? Makes it easy to get the neck/middle and middle/bridge sounds, which makes a Strat, a Strat!
Good to know.
My strat came as you described, 2nd tone pot is for middle and bridge, but I'm thinking of modding it so it's only for bridge. I tend to like tone turned down on the bridge and all the way up for the middle.
@@drothberg3 That’s what I did when I got my ‘66 - second tone for the bridge pickup only; neck and middle together on the first tone pot. I thought I invented that wiring. WRONG, KEMO SABE! It’s a great mod, no matter what. The bridge pickup can sound like a humbucker with the right combination of rolled off tone and
an overdrive you’re comfortable with.
I do the same thing to my 90’s Roadhouse Strat👍🏼
I also love the sound from the middle pickup on a Strat but I believe that Robert Cray lowers his middle pickup claiming that the resulting tones in the in-between positions sound better to his ears.
I'm with you on your specific desire to only use the whammy bar in a small way. But, there are places for more tonal adjustments, and a 2 point bridge, or similar, is more reliable than a 6. there are places for dives, not only for show, but for a sound. 6 points rarely measure up. Love the channel, prosit!
🤘🤘🤘
Oh yes 64 strats so thick and creamy , heavenly , whoooo !! 😍 thankyou , made my night
I have a freeway switch on mine so I can combine bridge and neck, or all three, and also any pair in series. I love ALL the sounds it makes ❤
That bridge screw trick was worth the subscription alone. Thank you, kindly! 😉👍
Sure wish you would come play in Houston TX ! I would cancel a paying gig to come see you !
Just curios why you don't have your neck and mid pup on the same tone knob? You don't lose anything that way and it allows you to tame that spikey middle you get in many pickup sets.
Strats are my favourite guitar by far !
Me too… I think… 😅
Thanks Jeff 👍👍
Your song (chord progression) reminds me of John Mayer's "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room" and a song from Lester Quitzaw. All of which are excellent.
Thank you!!!
Otto Mann is my favourite Strat player, great video 👍🏼
Awesome information. The Tone mod at the bridge pickup makes so much sense. Getting that done asap.
It's really easy to do yourself if you can use a soldering iron.
That's for your advice regarding the tone knob. I have Fat 50s pickups and they are fantastic but the bridge only is real ice picky so I gotta make this mod.
👍👍
Really cool lesson.
Thanks!
Thanks for this Jeff. Getting the Strat to sound equally consistently good as my humbucker guitars has always been a challenge for me. But these things you bring up here have been good choices also in my experience. One thing I've found is when you share your amp and pedalboard with both a humbucker equipped guitar and a single coil one, it might be useful to set your amp to be optimal for the humbucker guitar and have an overdrive pedal that you dedicate to your single coil guitar. In that way you can get that bite or push of the amp that you more easily get with the humbuckers also with the single coil. Cheers, Thor
Excellent suggestion Thor!
It's mostly strat/tele single coils against P90s in my case. I use a booster pedal which helps to bring the other single coil guitars up to the same level as the P90-equipped ones without adding more drive/distortion.
I know my L Sensor Strat will never be as loud as my 496/500 pup equipped L Paul. But each is a different tool and has its job. 3 color L Sensors and a TBX knob gives a lot of sound variety. And the L Paul with loud,hard pick ups and using Daddario EXL140 lite top heavy bottom gives the Paul it's own sonic territory the Strat can't cover as well.
Such a helpful video thanks. It’s always frustrated me that I can not adjust the tone on the bridge pickup. Time to find a good electrics person.
You are awesome, thankyou I learnt so much.
Thank you!!
I've never, in over 30 years of playing, had a guitar that sounded exactly like I wanted on both the neck and bridge, without adjusting amp settings. It's always a sort of deal-with-it as it is situation of going back and forth. Modern amps with foot-switchable channels help so you can have multiple EQs set.
The problem with using the tone control on the bridge pickup is you lose some output. If you go between neck and bridge pickups you can notice the difference in volume between the two settings.
I have a cap and resistor from the top of the volume pot to the wiper. I didn’t like the change in timbre. I wanted to increase and decrease volume without affecting timbre.
I like pulling up and down on the vibrato arm, but it doesn’t always come back to the same spot. A graphtech nut works wonders on a Strat and is low maintenance.
Great video. I like having the bottom tone knob set as a blend. Can blend in some neck to tame the bridge brightness or brighten up the neck by blending in some bridge.
Great video,low pressure. I was hoping you would speak directly about the Fender "treble bleed" effect. I have a 2021 Roadhouse Strat (mainly I play acoustic) I believe the change in tone I find by moving the volume knob indicates my Roadhouse strat is wired for treble bleed? I read the Pro series is wired for treble bleed, not much about the Roadhouse strat.
I installed Ulbrick NRS for noise reduction in my strat and it works really great- no tone loss!!!!
Excellent. I have the backplate on my other Strat. Not familiar with this one! I’ll check it out.
Good stuff! 5:15 "Your amps will be different...'. Well, yeah, I don't have a Two Rock. Yet.
Lol! That’s the spirit!! I am well aware my friend! 😃
I wish you came out with this video when I just started out playing. It took me about 10 years just to know what the different pickups did and how the sounds were different and also what the different knobs do and how they sound.
Thanks! Yeah, it took me forever to figure out! Lol
@@JeffMcErlain 🤣🤣🤣
All you have to do for the bridge pickup is tag on to the middle pickup tone pot. And there...you have tone control for both middle and bridge
pickup tone control. Put in a treble bleed and you will stope the roll off treble with the volume control. Very simple fix on both cases.
I'm always surprised how Eric Johnson sets his bass and mids so high on his Fenders. Bright switch engaged too. I wouldn't like that sound myself, but he sounds great. The way Jeff does it is cool and i do that too. It took me years to get a good tone out of everything, especially your favorite rig. Pickups settings and pots, etc help, but knowing how to use it is invaluable.
Hey Jeff!! I've learned so much already from you about the Les Paul that this is just chapter 2 in the story! I own both! Love your lessons especially the history and personal touch ☺️... awesome work as always! Thank you
Thank you !!!
@@JeffMcErlain very welcome Jeff..your work is world class stuff and I have a tremendous amount of respect for your professionalism and musicianship...I learn so much from you
Thanks Jeff. This and the Les Paul video helped me tremendously! Much appreciated. ✌️❤️
Fantastic!
One of my favorite tones on my main strat is neck and bridge (I added a "gilmour switch" to select both together). I'm still searching for a bridge pickup that I enjoy by itself though. I think deep down I'm looking for a throaty tele-esque bridge tone for a best of both worlds sound.
Then you have my single humbucker strat with no tone circuit, which is purely for my heavier stuff I play haha
That’s a great wiring setup as well!
The pure vintage 59 single on the bridge is amazing
Twangbanger? Dunno, supposed to be a tele pickup for a strat cavity.
Thank you
You’re welcome. 😉
This is an incredible video and resource!! Been playing Strat’s for 20 years and even I learned something here!
What Josh said.
Really good information, even for a newbie. thanks 👍
If you just leave the wiring ( with a 5 way) untouched and just swap the position of the middle and bridge pickups in the guard you get a bridge pickup (was middle) with a tone control. You also get the following combinations.
Pos 5 = neck with tone cont
Pos 4 = neck and bridge (tele style) both with tone controls
Pos 3 = bridge with tone control
Pos 2 =middle + bridge only bridge has tone control.
Pos 1= middle. no tone control
No tone on the middle pickup also makes it a little louder, so you can lower the middle pickup height a little so it’s out of the way! 👍🏻
great stuff.....no nonsense ! thank you Jeff ! Big fan
Jeff ,, when ever you have time,, how about some rolling stones licks??? Thank you so much 👍
Great insights from a professional who learned them by doing it. Thanks Jeff!
Glad you enjoyed it!