Fender Deluxe Roadhouse Strat - Olympic White with Maple Fingerboard Reviews

This guitar is a really great addition to my collection. I love the mint green pick guard on the olympic white color body. The on board pre amp add so much color to an all ready diverse sound canvas. If you are tech friendly you can polish the frets and tidy up some minor things to really make this a custom guitar.

I just got this thing last week after saving for a while, and my parents throwing in some money(I'm 15) after having a not very good Squier Bullet Mustang, and this thing is a STEP UP. The pickups are more noiseless than the humbuckers the Mustang had! Not to mention the incredible neck and locking tuners, the 2 point trem which I prefer, the V6 switch is cool, the upper cutaway is great, I love it so much, 10/10 would recommend.

This one is replacing a '96 US Strat in my stable that has a humbucker in the bridge and a rosewood fretboard. It's a really nice Strat, but I never liked how the humbucker basically de-Stratified the tone in positions 1 & 2. I decided a few weeks ago that I'd rather have one with a SSS configuration, a maple board, and my ideal color would be white. So I searched online for a good replacement. The Deluxe Roadhouse Strat fit the bill perfectly.

I received it a little over a week ago. I've been playing it for 2-3 hours a day since I got it, so it's already got 20 or so hours on it. The finish is perfect, I love the 12" neck radius, and the noiseless pickups sound to my ears like a Strat should sound - delicate and articulate. At the moment it seems to be my perfect guitar and I haven't touched any of my other guitars since I got it.

The only "negative" is the S1 switch boost with the built-in battery. The difference between the boost vs no boost is negligible. I barely even tell whether it was on or off when I was playing, and I had the 6-position switch set to max. Plus if you leave the cord plugged into the guitar jack, it kills the battery. I used it for a few days, forgot and left my cable plugged into the jack, and the next day after I realized I drained the battery I just pulled it out and have been using the guitar without the boost. Not sure I'll ever put another battery back in. It doesn't seem to do much at all.

Got the Roadhouse about 3 months ago from CJ Antol at Sweetwater. Also bought a proper hard case to protect it. First the likes: fit and finish is very good. I did not notice any flaws in the paint job. Neck joint is nice and tight for a bolt on. Frets are well done, very glassy and no tool marks that I could see. They look like they were polished. No burrs on the fret ends although they could have been dressed a little better, but they are not sharp. The fretboard is nicely done. Love the C shaped neck and the satin feel of the back of the neck. I did need to adjust the neck relief. The noiseless pickups are just that, noiseless. To my ears they sound great especially since they can be passive or active. The 6 way selector dial with the S1 button out or pressed in make this very versatile. I'm currently running this through my Headrush pedalboard and two 150 watt powered studio monitors.

Dislikes: Since this is my first Fender Strat and I'm used to playing Les Pauls and 335 style guitars which I love, the following comments are subjective. I'm not sure I like the layout of the controls because I keep hitting the 5 way selector and changing it's position or the hitting the volume knob with my little finger. It's going to require me to modify my strumming technique since I don't have that problem with my other guitars. Also, I don't like the fact that you need to unplug the cord when not playing so that the battery doesn't discharge. I also think the selector knob should be changed to a 6 position switch, maybe like a chicken head on a varitone, rather than a standard tone 0-10 knob. That way you could better identify what position your actually in. Maybe I'll put my own chicken knob on.

Bottom line: I didn't send it back. Overall it plays great, sounds great and is fun to play. A welcome addition to my collection. If your looking for a Strat I don't think you will find one more versatile. Give one a try.

The Roadhouse Deluxe vs my 2006 Fender American Deluxe Strat (which I've played everyday for the last 14 yrs)
The Roadhouse has a much more comfortable neck....better tone with the rotary tone control(which I mistakenly thought I'd never use).....the best sustain from any solid body guitar I've ever played.....the sustain is so good that it makes my amp sound as though it has reverb (which one of my amps does not).
I did have Sweetwater set up the guitar with D,Addario NYXL .11 guage strings before shipping.
I play through a Blackstar Artist 30 with Celestion 90th Anniversary XC35 speakers and a Blackstar Handwired Artisan 30 with Celestion 90 watt Alnico Cream Speakers. Hope this info is helpful to someone looking for a Strat. *****Excellent purchase experience with my longtime Sales Engineer Chris Neyman*****

Rcieved my roadhouse guitar today and have been playing it most of the night. This is now my favorite. Great sound and feel. I have a Gibson les Paul studio that I bought a few years back and its a good guitar but I have to admit the roadhouse to me gives a better sound. I did have to retune the guitar a few times starting out until the strings started to cooperate and then it pretty much stayed in tune the rest of the night. The fret board feels so much better and seems easier on the fingers than my Les Paul. Right out of the box the guitar was set up perfectly and did not need any adjustments. I would thoroughly recommend this guitar...

I wanted to add the road house strat to go with my telecaster and all my gear from the last 5 yrs. has come from sweetwater but the thought of buying a... guitar without playing it and having it ride in a truck where they toss things around for 3 days made me really think about it but ive bought many sensitive items from sweetwater and they always arrive well packed and secure so I called roq martin my sales guru and it arrived very well packed and protected and it was almost in tune! Its a real nice guitar, plays great looks great and I also got the Boss GT-001 with it and its crazy good ! So dont have any doubts about getting a pricey guitar shipped to you unless your getting a 59 les paul.

I have owned and number of American Strats, and quite honestly I prefer the Deluxe Roadhouse. I love everything about this guitar. The neck is perfect for bending strings and it fits my hand perfectly. The pickups sound great, and the extra tone offering are awesome. This is Strat will be with me for a long, long time. Special thanks to Jed Elliott. I've made a number of purchases from Sweetwater, and Jed is always extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Cudos to Sweetwater for delivering this guitar ready to play. I usually have to do some setup when I receive a new guitar. This one was perfect right out of the box.

After playing only les paul style guitars...mine eyes have seen the glory!
The feel of this guitar is Amazing. It sounds great. The neck radius for my hand feels perfect and because of the radius, bending on this strat is smooth with no fret noise.

The front and back cuts feel very comfortable. I'm a big fan.
Many more Strats to come.

Quick rundown of why this might be the best strat you can get right now, as a gigging / studio musician.
First, it fixes these regular "strat" issues, that have been deal breakers for me for a while.
1) 12" radius neck - (Better bendability for me than a standard 9.5" radius)
2) Satin finished neck - (Faster, slicker, and less sticky than standard poly'ed necks)
3) Contoured neck joint - (Easier to play than the standard neck joint)
4) Fender Noiseless pickups - (Stage or studio, they're great)
5) Locking Tuners - (Tuning stability is better, restringing is faster, win-win)
6) Master tone control - (Sooooo nice to have, gotta wrangle that bridge)

ALL of that would have been enough for me. But then, you get the 6 position active EQ. Engage this with the S-1 switch, and you can have a scoopy sound, perfect for ultra clean funk, country & 80's. Or crank that 6 position up for an awesome mid boost to push that solo super hard. Honestly, with that mid control up, tone rolled back to 5 on the bridge pickup, you can grunt out any humbucker-y thing, short of a Djent explosion, and the audience would be none the wiser!

This all adds up to and incredibly versatile, easy to play, easy to maintain, tonally awesome guitar. Minus the depths of the blackest metal, and the lumpiest of jazz tones, you can get whatever you want from this axe. Rock, pop, funk, soul, country, post-modern-neo-industrial-gangsta-polka, it's really all in there.

+1 to Dennis Konicki, my rep, for finding me a great missing piece to my rig, at an amazingly affordable price.

Can't quit playing this thing
So many different sounds
Philip was very helpful
Seemed to be better quality than the player series
Fast delivery
Active electronics very cool

I've been wanting this for several months after playing one in a guitar store that shall not be named ;) The time finally came to buy it. I LOVE THIS GUITAR!! It has the tones for pretty much any style you like. The neck and fretboard are SO comfortable to play. If you don't like the glossy fretboards, this is for you! The Olympic white and mint green colors look even better in person. Also, Sweetwater has the best customer service around! Thanks Sweetwater and Fender for making this affordable!! Ken Davis is the man!!!

I admit when I first purchased this guitar online be I was a bit nervous. My premonition seemed to be correct when I opened the box and found that it was unplayable. Multiple frets buzzing and rattling, etc... When I told my Sweetwater Rep he immediately took steps to rectify the situation in a spectacularly fashion for me.. The next challenge was trying to get decent tone from my old Frontman 25 Amp... I admit it was frustrating to say the least... But now, I paired it with a Mustang 40 modeling Amp and skies the limit... I"m not a professional but I do know tube Amps are the way to go for a serious mucisian but the tone and the fun I"m having with this pairing leads to hours of practice.... Boredom can never seep in..... Its a beautiful guitar and once you get it set up properly and pair it with the right Amp, you are good to go.....

This guitar is not only stunning to look at but plays like butter. So easy to move from standard Strat sounds to the V-1 settings SO MANY SOUNDS to choose from. 6 x 5 = 30 tones to choose from, really fat clean stuff to shimmering highs with that killer Strat sound. With effects this baby really starts to shine you can bend notes for days on this guitar. The noiseless pickups sound amazing. The most versatile guitar in my arsenal by far, can't wait to here it on stage.

Usually a Jackson Rhodes player but it was time for me to get a go to blues guitar. Being a big Buddy Guy fan this guitar fits nicely into my collection the tone and playability are outstanding. The neck is buttery smooth and plays like a dream. One of the pleasant surprises is the many tones you can get out of this stratocaster. With some distortion pedal boost this guitar also can produce some sweet Dave Murray Iron Maiden tones. The bridge pickup on certain V 6 tone settings has a nice full bottom sound which is great for that eighties metal sound. Very happy with my purchase it's an extra bonus being able to get the sweet metal tones out of this guitar.

Back in the late 90's, I owned a Shoreline Gold American Strat. It was really nice. I ended up selling it, which I have always regretted. For some reason, I decided I wanted a Les Paul because of the shorter scale. I've played a Les Paul since that time, but really wanted a Strat. I wanted that sound that you can only get from a Strat.

So, I picked the Olympic White Roadhouse Strat. I could have bought a more expensive Strat. But, the features of the Roadhouse were just awesome for the money.

I received the guitar today from Sweetwater, the best in the business. My Sales Rep is Darius Beatz and he is just great - can't get better. I inspected every single inch of the guitar before I played a chord on it. No problems were evident. I played it for a couple of hours tonight and wow! This one plays better than my Shoreline Gold American Strat from the late 90's. But what blew me away was that great Strat sound. The pickups are great - no noise, and have great harmonics. You won't go wrong buying this guitar! Top notch in my opinion for the price you pay!

One note though...I have a lot of experience setting up a guitar to my liking. I did adjust the whammy bar to be a bit stiffer. It was too lose for my playing out of the box. That took about 15 minutes. I found the action right out of the box to be pretty close to what I like. It's not bad at all for my tastes. I will likely adjust it a little after a few days. So, I would suggest you get Sweetwater to set it up for you if you don't know exactly how to do it. ...will be the best $ you've ever spent if you are not good at setting up guitars. Don't just play it out of the box and assume it's ready to go. Most guitars require a little setup for the player to get the best experience. It will make a huge difference! The only reason I didn't do it is because I've done it for many years and know exactly what I like.

Thanks and best wishes.

I received my Fender Deluxe Roadhouse today and am completely blown away by it. This MIM Fender is extremely well built and the appointments are fantastic. I have been playing guitar for nearly 40 years and have other Fenders, Gibsons, Schecters and ESPs in my collection and this guitar ranks right up there with the best of them.

Neck: I purchased my Deluxe Roadhouse with the Plek'd option and also upgraded to a Tusq nut. The action is low and fast. No dead spots or fretting out on even the most radical bends. The frets are well dressed, with no sharp edges. The satin neck finish is very smooth and makes position changes a snap. The maple neck definitely adds a brightness to the overall tone which I like. Intonation is spot on. The "C" profile is comfortable. I can move from a Les Paul or ESP and back to the Roadhouse with not much adjustment needed. I have a wide palm and also play bass so the profile may not affect me as much as others.

Electronics: The main reason I made this specific purchase was the versatility of the rotary tone switch, combined with the noiseless pickups. Man am I super happy with all of it. I can get tones from Country to Jazz, from Dirty Blues to Saturated Metal (using Amplitube and POD HD500X). The noiseless pickups I would say are about 99% noiseless but are a blessing over my Strats that have full on single coils in them. The noiseless pickups aren't quite as bright as a vintage single coil or Texas Specials but a little EQing pretty much solves that.

Hardware: Love the addition of the locking tuners and the two-point tremolo on this axe. The guitar seems to stay pretty much in tune, even with whammy bar dive bombs, pull-ups & flicks.

Finish/Cosmetics: The Olympic White finish is beautiful with no waviness or orange peel effect. I have an older MIM strat that you can see the orange peel effect in the finish. I don't know if that was unique to the guitar or if Fender has just upped their QC in their Mexico plant. I really dig the aged, mint pickguard.

This axe is 5 Star in my book. Don't let the MIM fool you. The guitar plays just as well and looks just as good as an American Made. I only wish Fender offered it in Surf Green or Daphne Blue with the maple neck. If they ever do I will no doubt grab one.

I am so pleased with this guitar.It`s feel has already inspired me to be a better guitar player.I want to practice more now just because... I love this guitar!!!

I was a little apprehensive about ordering a Mexican strat online, but was I a happy boy when I pulled it out of the box! A beautiful, flawless instrument! It plays and looks on par with an American at less than half the price. In fact, my teacher has seriously offered to trade me for his American strat several times; he's so in love with this guitar. And after reading so many reviews, it seems that my experience has been the rule rather than the exception. Don't hesitate! Buy it!

I ordered the Mystic Blue first, had to return it because of the S1 switch going out.. after the first Gig.. Was very un easy about ordering another one.. after researching seeing a couple of reviews under the Sunburst color option.. Just received the Olympic White one.. It Plays Great.. and sounds excellent... My confidence came back after experiencing the Customer Service from Sweetwater.. Aaron Hoff is My sales Rep.. Quick response No Hassle.. and with the Warranty from Sweetwater.. I'm confident in this Purchase... I have a 10 year old American strat.. Plays and sounds just as Good with some additional sounds.. with the Noiseless Pickups... and The s-1.. The color is classic. The Pickguard is fresh . No setup needed .. done for you.. Recommended .. Thanks

This is a beauty to behold. Of course you can't go wrong being able to dial up all the classic Stratocaster sounds but then...this is just the beginning. A friend in HS had a beautiful Korean made Olympic white Stratocaster with a maple neck and I was always a little envious of it!

Now I have this beauty and it is even more gorgeous in your hands. The antique white pick guard looks like a piece of glass on the Olympic white body

The extra features only offered on this model that make this a no-brainer purchase are; 1) active electronics that give you six more tonal choices to give you the options of dialing in all the classic Strat tones plus six hot rod Strat tone levels on top. 2) Tremelo bar for adding just a bit of vibrato to chords and solos. 3) Last but not at all least is the addition of the noiseless pickups. You won't miss not having that 60 cycle hum!

When you pair all the features together at this price point it is amazing that there are any left on the shelf! Buying from Sweetwater is the smart choice for the educated consumer who wants to assure their purchase is protected. Sweetwater adds additional coverage to the warranty, they do a 55 point inspection of your purchase before it leaves their facility and they are adamant about their customer service which is second to none!

Thanks to Mike Picotte who takes great pride in his job of providing the utmost professional customer care!

I had high hopes for this guitar and it exceeded them all. It's beautiful of course. The fit and finish were perfect. The active electronics are amazing and easy to use. Lots of variations to work with. I reach for this guitar more than the others now that I can just plug in and play. No more stomp boxes to mess with. I can get all of the distortion I need by using the middle tone knob.
I would highly recommend this to anyone considering a Fender Strat. I hope some other guitar makers will take a look at the on board pre-amp idea and give it a try.

I also bought the Deluxe Thinline Tele with similar features. What I can't get over is the incredible beauty, tonal options, tone, and features of this special run of guitars at this price point. I have been buying Fender products for 50 years. I am reminded of the magic now that I felt as a kid in my first band with much older guys and loving the Fender tone and goodness of their products. They have never failed me once. I've always bought my everything I own with my own hard earned cash and think I really appreciate the few things I do buy for myself. I've never owned more than one electric guitar at a time because of other priorities, even the 30 years I performed live. The special switching and tonal overdrives/fatness is very useable and EASY to access.. All 6 settings on the rotary knob sound great, like 6 different incremental settings of semi clean boost, and will allow you flavor each many songs with no amp adjustments or stomp boxes. I just love it. These models are so beautiful they can be hung on the wall as art. The pics, as good as they are, do them no justice. Fender is famous s for its limited summer runs on their guitars. Don't let these go by if these features mean anything to you. If these models go away you will kick yourself believe me. I just love'em. I may buy 1 or two more, like HSS model and the Nashville Tele all with these baseline features. This is Fender's most generous offering I have ever seen .

This is a very well playing and sounding guitar. In the $800 range, it has many of the same appointments as the way more expensive American models. I've owned 3 other USA's and honestly I cannot tell the difference. Highly recommended for guitarists who want a guitar they don't mind spilling some beer on!

Mine is a 2015 model, which came with Texas Specials and a six-point tremolo. The noiseless pickups in the current model are a good choice, because that active preamp and six-position tone control can dial in sounds that range from just a little brighter and spankier than the bypass mode, to a kind of thick and creamy that goes well with some gain. Standard single-coils would make horrendous amounts of noise at gain settings that would otherwise be useful and interesting with this guitar. I solved the problem in my Roadhouse by installing stacked hum-cancelling pickups that sound great clean or otherwise; Fender does that for you now with their Noiseless pickups. On top of all that, it is a nice Strat.

I purchased a demo.
First let me list the positives.
Tone:
This is a versatile axe. You have the 5 switch selector.
The 1st tone knob is a 6 position selector.which with the 5 position selector can give you 35 different configurations.
Love the noiseless pick ups. You can still get traditional Fender single coil sounds.
The Vol knob has a push button coil tap to get that chimey sound.
This sounds awesome through my Blues Deville 410.
Appearance:
Actually could not find any flaws on this demo.
Playabiilty:
Action was right on out the box.
Now for the negatives:
Floating bridge- did not stay in tune even after stretching strings.
Tremelo bar kept hitting 5 position selector arm .
Solution: Added 2 more springs to sit bridge flush against guitar body.
Coil tap button gets stuck between settings and cuts out. You have to make sure you hit button directly.
All and all I love this guitar.
However even at the demo price I would advise potential buyers to entertain paying a little more money for an American Standard.

This is my third MIM Strat. I have an 05' standard, a '15 Deluxe Lonestar and this '17 Deluxe Roadhouse. The Deluxe series is far superior to the standard series. These have the 22 fret neck and they feel like they are MIA. The overall fit and finish is just outstanding.

Specifically, this guitar has the 12" radius so it is flatter for your solos and note bending. If you are a Gibson Le Paul, Ibanez, Schecter, LTD player looking at Strats. you will like this better than the traditional or vintage fret boards.

The pre-amp feature is described as a tone feature and that is false. The second tone knob is the only true tone knob. The first tone knob is just six positions of pre-amp boost. Which is fine. I just don't like how Fender represents it as six different tones when it is really six levels of boost. It is designed for a gigging guitarist to be able to press the button when it is time to solo for just a little more volume to cut through the mix.

The Vintage Noiseless pick ups are much better than the ones in my standard, but honestly, I like the Texas Specials in my Lonestar just a bit better. I think with time I'll be able to find the right blend of tone to really take advantage of that vintage voice. Where the Roadhouse is better than the Lonestar is in the hardware. Two point tremolo, locking tuners, 12" radius neck, built in preamp with six settings.

Build quality I think this rates a 5, but overall I think Texas Specials would have been the bees knees compared to vintage noiseless. So, 4.5 as it is.

This is a solid guitar (literally). This is my second Strat and I was looking for something more versatile and higher end to accent my modified Squier Bullet and this guitar certainly fits the bill. The maple neck is super easy to play, it's like butter. The action was tight right out of the box. The Grover locking tuners make this a dream to just pick up and play. The noiseless pickups are extraordinary and the range of tones is absolutely phenomenal! I have been wondering when the Stratocaster was going to feature something a kin to "coil splitting".

My only negative on this guitar (if it is actually a negative) is the weight. I always envision a
Strat being nice and light but this thing is heavier than my Les Paul and I was rather surprised by that point.

However it is beautiful and has an amazing on board pre-amp that literally gives you a breath taking range of tones with just the push of a button. This guitar is a keeper for my small collection and I can proudly say "I own a Fender Stratocaster!"

I've been living with this strat for a few weeks now, and I'm pretty pleased. There were a few things I was looking for in a strat, and this had just come out and ticked a lot of those boxed. I'd been looking at the Hendrix strat, but it was a little like wearing a Jordan jersey to go play basketball at the playground. But I definitely wanted Olympic White, maple board, and I do love that big headstock. I was concerned that I might not like the larger fretboard radius, and I loved the idea of the pickups being a vintage noiseless. The V6 tone switch was a mystery too, but I tried it out.

And I'm very happy. It's $100 cheaper than the Hendix strat, but all the quality is there. It sounds great, and plays beautifully. Smooth and fast. It sounds like a strat, and the fingerboard is wonderful. The trem didn't stay in tune at first, but over time, it's gotten to be pretty good. If I divebomb, I'll have to retune, but when I change out the strings, I'll put in some lube and make sure the nut is smooth.

The pickups sound just like what you'd expect, and they're quiet. I mostly play with the pre-amp bypassed. The 6 variations are pretty subtle. But you can get more of a humbucker type tone with some more fatness, or more high end as you advance through the settings. But it still sounds like a strat. If you don't like the pre-amp, don't use it. But if you ever need a boost right on your volume knob, well, there you are.

It's gorgeous. Plays great. I wish it was a hard case, but the gig bag is fine. It's a step up from the Mexican standard, and it played as well as the American Standards I tested.

This is my 1st Fender Strat and they are OK overall (I have not tried or have any USA made Strat, therefore I can not give a comparison reference). Here some of my findings;
1. Best thing is the Strat sounds you can get out of it. It does give a great tonal pallet to choose from.
*It is practically noise less as stated
2. Worst thing is the Gig Bag, it is not padded as it should, it is merely a bag, it will not protect your guitar from a hit as many others from other guitar brands.
*Mine had a little bit sharp frets at their lower section