United States

Hey Gang,

Been playin an old "borrowed" 80's Peavey Predator copy (12"radius) for 3 yrs and have to give it back next week. ..Kinda unexpected after 3 YRS!!! Tryin to talk him into sellin it but ...? Just wonderin if any avid Strat players have played/owned the "60's Classic Player" or the Deluxe Player?. Have you ever compared them? If so, Id like to hear your likes , dislikes, opinions etc regarding both. Their specs are very closely related. Ive watched alotta youtube reviews but havent seen/heard a comparison...Thought about tryin to get an another Pedator but alittle hesitant about gettin something 20- 30 yrs old USED. Anyway, any info regarding either model would be appreciated.

Thanks,
KIDD

A guitar is a very personal thing and they vary a lot from one to another. I'm not sure how anyone's advice regarding their own guitars could trickle down in a meaningful way. I own 8 guitars and have played a Strat for 10 years.

Both guitars you mention are made in Mex. (no big deal). The Classic is more vintage looking/sounding and the Deluxe has modern noiseless pickups so no hum on stages with sub-standard electrical circuits or old school light dimmers.

My rule when buying guitars is to ignore all the marketing hype, signature models, special editions, Anniversary edition, Classic, Deluxe, 50s, 60s BS and just play em and trust my hands and my ears (Sorry Fender). Most of my guitars were bought used and cheap and I'm sure I could find a nice Mexi Strat player on CL for $300 tonight. A USA Strat can be found for $500-$700 used.

Good hunting!

Hey man , thanks for your reply. Yeah, since Im actually a drummer (NOW YA KNOW the TRUTH.. ) I wanted to get veteran responses because when ya know your stuff, you tell it like it is. The closest store that would have both of these is a couple hrs away. 9.5" Radius is outta the question for me so these are the only 2 Im considering. That Peavey has such a narrow/thin neck that I just really wanted to get incite on the playability of them both. I wish I did the whole Ebay/buy online thang so I could buy used but Im an ole 70's guy thats barely into the 90's tech wise.. (cell phone: yr 2000 flip phone.. )..Anyway, Ill consider the details you mentioned.

OH BTW, really enjoyed hangin out on your page. Tunes sound great!
KIDD

Thanks for checking out my page.

Here is a like-new Deluxe Players for $450. It's probably an hour away from you in South Pt OH. Worth a look (click on the link)

http://huntington.craigslist.org/msg/3668982842.html

I can only speak of that which I have personally touched and played.

A guitar with a 9.5" radius is not to my liking.
A guitar with a 7.5" radius is MUCH better. Some do not like them though.
Usually the 7.5" comes on what's called a "slim-V" profile neck.

I know they make them via Made In Mexico models but never played one.
I got lucky and got a MIJ, 7.5", Slim-V neck on a 50 something reissue from 80 something and that strat ruined it for all the others.

I had a MIJ, 9.5", c-shape neck and it was awful. (sold)
I had a MIM, 9.5", u-shape neck and it was worse. (sold)
I had a MIM 60th anniversary in blizzard pearl and it was no good. (sold)
I had a LP, hated it, sold. I had a flying V, hated it, sold.
I had an epiphone SG, THE WORST OF THE BUNCH, (sold)

I had an Ibanez RG 550, not bad but not good. (sold)

Whatever you buy, you better play that neck and realize you will be stuck with it. It doesn't matter what it looks like or what color it comes in.

Play it, listen to the pickups and check the neck for buzzing.
(9x out of 10 a tremolo on a strat is fairly useless and a strat with a locking nut setup is a joke IMO.)

Hardtails are a premium piece. The older fender tremolo is useless, but has the sound you want. The newer fender tremolos are garbage, incarnate.

The necks with a large headstock are an acquired taste which I don't like, personally..

So many options mean you almost have to play a guitar you are thinking of buying for a minimum of 30 minutes before buying.

(The worst reality is that if you get a decent unknown strat, you can set it up to be just as good or better than one that has the fender name plastered all over it.)

My personal mantra goes like this; 1) the neck.. is the neck comfortable to play? It should seem like butter.

2) The sound of the pickups. Are they noiseless? Do you have to cope with 60 cycle hum? Has the body cavity been shielded? MADE IN MEXICO stock strat pickups are designed to be removed and discarded.
(You can always tell them by 2 magnets with the poles floating in the middle with nothing around them. THEY MUST GO OUT WITH THE TRASH.)

3) How it looks. My favorite guitar is scarred beyond belief, but it sounds like money in the bank. I.e. I don't really care how any instrument looks anymore, it's not a deciding factor.

Hope that helps.

Thanks again guys, I appreciate your frankness. Yeah, Im a special case I guess. ).Was a road drummer for 19yrs, and now ,Im tryin to re event myself doing the backing trx, perform with gtr and vocal out front thang.I bust my ass every day on YT coppin lead gtr lessons, workin out breaks tryin to "catch up".. I always ignored all the gtr talk the guys would continiuosly engage in over the yrs so Im payin the price now. The perfect gtr for me would be one that plays like a Les Paul but has the SC config like a Strat. Man , I think Im gonna BEG this guy to sell that Peavey... . Ive kinda bonded with that super thin neck. I didnt push it at first thinkin I would find more models in my price range with 12" R. Good buying advice too guys, unfortunately not much has changed since 76 when I bought my first 74 black strat with mirrored pickguard. I walked in, played it 5 minutes, bought it, got home , HATED IT!... Of course at 16?...... OK Jim, Ill say Heavy Cowboy is the only one with LP tracking. Songs 2-3-4 sound like Strat. (might be wrong about 3?.. )

KIDD

I play a US made Strat Lonestar model with maple neck - has to be maple for me with big hands.

With your small hands a regular Strat neck should do fine - they have me tripping all over my fingers!

The Lonestar model sounds like a million bucks - has a Seymour Duncan HB pickup at the bridge which sounds a bit like an LP. The two Strat pickups were designed (they say) for Stevie Ray Vaughn. Don't know how true that is but they sound very good.

Picked mine up used for 750.00 and considered it a steal.

Talbot

I'd guilt him into selling you that guitar.

You had it for 3 years and now he wants it back?
What an ass that guy is.

Once you find a guitar you truly like, it's difficult to start using another unless you simply have no choice.

(Tell him there was a break-in and it got stolen, you'll reimburse him for the guitar within reason.)

A quick search of craigslist reveals a Peavey Predator in Fredericksburg.
http://fredericksburg.craigslist.org/ms ... 35527.html

Is that close enough?

one in King George..
http://fredericksburg.craigslist.org/ms ... 24781.html

There are 2 in VA beach/Hampton roads are Craigslist as well.

GOOD LUCK !!!

Well Chief,I didnt tell the whole story. Borrowed the gtr assuming it was the lender's BUT, HE had borrowed from another guy a few months before I got it.. The guy who actually OWNS it doesnt know I have it. (gettin interesting isnt it? ). Heres my plan:.. Im gonna give it back to the lender THUR. THEN, have him call the owner and tell him I wanna buy it. That way, the owner never has to know I had it for 3 yrs.. Damn, sounds like a teenage stunt we woulda pulled in 75... .Thanks for those links, but those towns are both 5hrs away...It would be hard on my poor old van to make a trip like that. Hell, 30yrs ago, I would trusted sendin a check and had the guy ship it to me. I dont have pay pal or a credit card. I still operate fiancially the same as I did in the 70's...COOL EDIT PRO! Yeah Jim, I started with that myself in 07, then gradjeeated up to Adobe Audition 1.5 from the late 90s and thats what I use today. A GREAT "old people friendly" program for sure! Your riffage sound clean through my 20yr old yamadog nearfields. They dont bring out good highs so they were prolly fine. THUR or FRI , Ill know whether Ill be buyin this thing. She's got some quirks but Ive learn to compensate for the high E 's intonation (have to set it slightly sharp)..Thanks guys for chimin back in!

KIDD

Good Luck John, I hope you get that guitar.

I can hear that it's already a part of you, just by the way you talk about it.
Yeah, definitely try to hold onto it.

If he's just decent fellow, he should give it up for 100-150$ or LESS.

More than that, I'd laugh at him and walk.

Some very good sound advice from Scott and the others...
You can always replace or customize your hardware and electronics but make sure the neck is right. Oh and fret wear can be a costly mistake.
I have a Squier Pro-tone... it sat in a case for 14 years untouched. Got it off CL for 175.00. Needs some work but the neck fits like a glove.
Will eventually replace the pups and tremelo but the Ash body, maple neck and frets are perfect.
Plenty of good deals to find just be patient.
Good Luck.

I got my Chinese Strataclone for $27 plus shipping. Worth every penny! Eventually, I'll probably swap out the pickups by popping on a whole new prewired pickguard like this one: http://www.guitarfetish.com/BlackWhiteB ... p_130.html

Yep-yep, I'd rather play a guitar that sounds bad, "pick ups" wise than one that has a crappy neck.

(You can remove the pickups and install something better, but the neck is difficult to cure of serious ailments.)

Even among one basic type of guitar, say a Fender Stratocaster, there are so many variations and exceptions as well.

I played a friend's no name strat copy last night.
He was giving me grief afterwards, saying that I played his guitar like it was stolen.

I just simply looked at him and told him that I got a little carried away, since the neck is just about 100% of what I look for in an electric guitar neck.

He mentioned that the pick ups were sh*t. I told him that I don't dispute that but you can junk the pick ups and put something better in there and you have a decent guitar, IF YOU LIKE THAT NECK.

He then says something like he was going to sell it for 50$ to his neighbor.
I immediately pulled out a 50$ and waived it at him and laughed.

Then he decided not to sell it and asked me what pickups to install, where I let him know I don't know anything about pickups. I generally use the stock pickups in the MIJ strats and that's perfect for what I do.

I just know what I like and what I don't like, end of story.

"See a guitar technician for good advice on pick ups, not me".