I have no idea how or what to play on a Strat

[duzie]

Or

 

[ragingplatypi]

Ty Tabor from Kings X might also be a good entry.

 

[Stone]

As @la szum stated this guys tone is awesome and what a great player
Roll a Doobie spin some Vinyl and trip !!

 

[Enchilada Jones]

Strat, add fuzz pedal….

 

[metropolis_4]

A long time ago I was asked to give a presentation on the history of the electric guitar in modern music at a University. I had a 3 piece band with me and we played examples from all eras from the ‘40s-‘00s: everything from Les Paul/Buddy Holly to Dream Theater/Papa Roach. And I did the whole thing with my SSS Strat.

I can’t think of any styles I haven’t played on a SSS Strat.

Personally I think they can sound great with gain. This works for me and is about the most gain I ever play with:

Thread 'Strat Prog Metal'
https://thegearforum.com/threads/strat-prog-metal.472/

 

[metropolis_4]

 

[fretworn]

I’ve seen a few gigs there… spent a good, long time in that part of the world.

That rock formation creates a lot of interesting stuff north to south in the state.

The devils backbone, great golf courses in between that stuff down by castle rock, Garden of the gods, etc; pretty epic.

 

[Jarick]

What model Strat and what pickups?

Here's a few things you might want to try:

1. Experiment with pickup heights. Strats are low output compared to humbuckers, so you may want to try raising them up a bit. But you don't want them too close because that will promote harshness.
2. Try putting an EQ/boost in front of your amp. Again the Strat is low output, so you may need to raise the level 6 dB to compensate. You also may want to try lowering the high end, maybe try a tilt EQ.
3. If you don't have the bridge pickup wired to the bottom tone control, it's worth doing that. Typically it's a quick and easy mod that just involves moving a single wire. Then you can roll the tone control off a bit on the bridge to take the edge off.
4. If all the above doesn't work, I would try a different set of pickups. If you want to stick with true single coils, check out Suhr V60LP's. They have a higher output but still vintage sound, but with a warmed up high end to avoid harshness. If you want to check out noiseless, look at the Dimarzio Area pickups. Often you can find a good deal on used ones, and the Injector set is a good place to start as it's hotter in the bridge and neck positions and warmer all around than low output vintage pickups.

As for inspiration, outside of all the above mentioned artists, check out what Rabea does with his Strat. He's a guy known for playing higher output humbuckers with high gain but found a niche with vintage sounding pickups. He dials in a darker tone with them but the clarity of the single coils pokes through really well.

 

[JT]

I’ve seen a few gigs there… spent a good, long time in that part of the world.

That rock formation creates a lot of interesting stuff north, the south in the state. The devils backbone, great golf courses in between that trap down by castle rock, Garden of the gods, pretty epic.

Story I always tell. Saw Sting there when I was 19. What a PHENOMENAL venue. Holy hell. Loved it

 

[megametal7]

My main style is 80s thrash metal, I've always used humbuckers with plenty of tight high gain distortion.
When I bought my first Fender Stratocaster (SSS) four years ago I quickly learned I have no idea how or what to play on it.

I have a huge collection of music but almost no one uses a Strat aside from Pink Floyd, RHCP, Chic, Dire Straits, Jimi Hendrix, that I listen to.
I need some suggestions where I should to start to build a solid Start playing style.

Highway star by purples

 

[spawnofthesith]

Europe '72 Grateful Dead is all strat

tbh I just play the same stuff on a strat Id play on any other guitar and enjoy the unique tonal differences

I’ve seen a few gigs there… spent a good, long time in that part of the world.

That rock formation creates a lot of interesting stuff north to south in the state.

The devils backbone, great golf courses in between that stuff down by castle rock, Garden of the gods, etc; pretty epic.

Story I always tell. Saw Sting there when I was 19. What a PHENOMENAL venue. Holy hell. Loved it

I am lucky enough to get to see 10+ shows there a year #blessed

 

[metropolis_4]

I’ve seen a few gigs there… spent a good, long time in that part of the world.

That rock formation creates a lot of interesting stuff north to south in the state.

The devils backbone, great golf courses in between that stuff down by castle rock, Garden of the gods, etc; pretty epic.

Story I always tell. Saw Sting there when I was 19. What a PHENOMENAL venue. Holy hell. Loved it

Ok quick random tangent story about Red Rocks:

About 15 years ago I saw Ringo Starr there with a group of friends. A girl in our group went to get a beer and came running back to us freaking out yelling “PAUL MCCARTNEY IS HERE!!!!!”

She was so mad we didn’t believe her so she dragged us to him to get his autograph…

We see a guy in his 20’s who sort of looks like Paul wearing his Sgt. Peppers uniform. It was an impersonator

First - you realize Paul isn’t still 25?

Second - do you really think that Sir Paul McCartney would come see Ringo at Red Rocks, and come dressed in his Sgt Peppers uniform, and stand in line for a beer at concessions?!?!?

 

[Sleezy E]

My SSS mexi strat and the helix bogner shiva go together like peas and carrots..

I highly recommend starting there

 

[la szum]

Ok quick random tangent story about Red Rocks:

About 15 years ago I saw Ringo Starr there with a group of friends. A girl in our group went to get a beer and came running back to us freaking out yelling “PAUL MCCARTNEY IS HERE!!!!!”

She was so mad we didn’t believe her so she dragged us to him to get his autograph…

We see a guy in his 20’s who sort of looks like Paul wearing his Sgt. Peppers uniform. It was an impersonator

First - you realize Paul isn’t still 25?

Second - do you really think that Sir Paul McCartney would come see Ringo at Red Rocks, and come dressed in his Sgt Peppers uniform, and stand in line for a beer at concessions?!?!?

Holy How Much Pot Do You Need To Smoke To Get To That Place?

 

[spawnofthesith]

Holy How Much Pot Do You Need To Smoke To Get To That Place?

If they were partying in lower south lot ahead of the show it makes perfect sense...

 

[dk_ace]

I’ve always enjoyed the sounds others get out of strats, but couldn’t figure out what to do with one myself. Finally, it made me angry and I decided to play one exclusively live until I really figured it out. It was something like 18 months or so before I really felt like I had it. Here’s the main stuff I found, some of it applies to HB guitars too but :

- Wire the bridge pickup to the tone control.
- Use the tone controls and volume knob, a lot, constantly. If you’re used to leaving everything on 10, better to abandon that notion now if you want to get the most from the strat. You might find that you almost always have the bridge tone around 7-8 for example (depends on the strat, pups, your hands, etc)
- Really pay attention to where you’re striking the string relative to the bridge and neck and vary this for the sounds you want.
- Set the amp, pedals, model, etc up for the strat sound, don’t try to reuse things that work with your HB guitars.
- Work the pickup positions, change them often for the part you’re playing.

D

 

[Eagle]

If you want to step sideways and still improve everything you play go and learn a bunch of Nile Rodgers parts as accurately as possible. This is so good for everything rhythm and muting.

 

[FuzzyAce]

The cool thing about a strat is its versatility. I say play whatever you want to play and make it your own.

 

[JT]

If you want to step sideways and still improve everything you play go and learn a bunch of Nile Rodgers parts as accurately as possible. This is so good for everything rhythm and muting.

Yessssssssss! His signature strat is awesome looking \m/

 

[Byrdman]

Personally, it's a little easier to work stuff out for me on my Strat vs Epi 335, although I love the tones of the 335 better. I assume it has mostly to do with the scale of the neck. Lately, the more I play it the better I am at dialing in the tones, but still not as good as the HB. Not really liking the noiseless PU in this Strat, but I may put a rail PU in the bridge for more variety.