Fender Mike McCready Stratocaster Electric Guitar - 3-color Sunburst Reviews
Across three decades and more than 10 albums, Mike McCready’s lead guitar work with Pearl Jam defined the instrument’s very role within the world of grunge and alternative rock. His 6-string of choice? A well-loved 1960 Stratocaster that’s served as a staple part of the band’s sound since 1992. The Fender Mike McCready Stratocaster is an exact replication of that very instrument, boasting all the bones of a true pre-CBS Fender, including a lightweight alder body, slim maple “C” neck, and a 9.5-inch-radius rosewood fingerboard. A trio of custom pickups directly modeled after the single-coils in Mike’s Strat instantly unlock the sound of legendary Pearl Jam leads and solo, with a remarkably dynamic feel and classic Strat sparkle. Finally, a Road Worn nitrocellulose lacquer finish sets this guitar apart from a sea of vintage-inspired Strats, with every nick, ding, and scratch mirroring the play wear from Mike’s beloved 1960 Stratocaster.
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Highest Rated Reviews
Love it!
I have a 2010 American strat...never felt like I could dial in the tone with it...never got the feels from playing it. This McCready tho....perfect out of the box...even in tune! The pick-ups sound great. The neck feels amazing. I have a feeling I will be playing this a lot.
Worth the wait
first of all, love the neck And the Frets feel great. Removed the middle spring But it was set up great right on the box Pick ups sound nice and fat no Ice pick . Gigged with the guitar two days after receiving it sounded fantastic. opened up the guitar out of curiosity to see What the electronics looked like high-quality CTS pots paper and oil capacitor shielding looks like custom shop quality . Great guitar , staysin tune with Light. Used to the tremolo. Great addition to my guitar arsenal. My other guitars are American vintage ii and otherMexican and American Strats Definitely one of my favorite guitars now. Also, the Rosewood fretboard is nice and dark Love the broken in feel on the neck Sharp to cut you
Even better than I hoped for!
I got my Mike McCready strat a couple days ago and am really loving it. The neck is an absolute dream, fast and easy to play. My other strat is an American Elite with the C to D compound neck radius, which I loved right up until I got this, and it probably won't be getting much attention going forward. I use a Ibanez TS9 into a Rat Distortion into a Fender Blues Jr IV, and there isn't a setting where the tone doesn't sound amazing. I am soooooooo glad I bought it!
"Mexican Custom Shop" Stratocaster
I'd call this the "Mexican Custom Shop" version of Mike McCready's 60's Stratocaster.
My copy is very well done, a beautiful piece of gear! The relic work is really similar to the official marketing pictures! The damage to the headstock (where Mike put the guitar through an amp speaker) is on this model only replicated by removing the lacquer, i.e. it doesn't seem they took out any wood for this. Just a minor detail.
The guitar plays really nicely and sounds even better. The amount of detail spent on the pick-ups really paid off!
As it came to me, the relief was a bit more than I like. Also, the tremolo is decked with five springs. It comes with 0.010 strings which play surprisingly easily (I normally have 0.0095s on my 25.5 scale guitars). I have not changed any setup yet because it does play so nicely!
This is a really good blues to rock instrument, even if you are not a particular Mike McCready fan. Well done, Fender and Mike!
Needed work out of the box
For the price of this guitar, the quality out of the box was embarrassing, honestly. The high E string was extremely close to the edge of the fretboard, the frets were pretty dull and scratchy, and one of the tuning pegs was binding and needs to be replaced. The hardcase is also nice, but it does feel cheaper than I was expecting. Maybe my hopes were a little too high for a made in Mexico strat, compared to an American made one. However, after adjusting the neck to deal with the high E string, polishing the frets and conditioning the fretboard (it was extremely dry feeling) this guitar plays more like it should've out of the box. It could probably be even better with a proper setup, but I am not equipped to do that myself. Sweetwater also sent me a new set of tuning pegs and strings with no fuss. I still think it is a bit expensive for what it is, but I am a big fan of Pearl Jam so I am willing to deal with the extra price.
Now, the sound of the guitar is great. There were no problems there. I love the custom voiced pickups. They hit the mark with that aspect.
Not special in any capacity
I hate writing a review like this, but for the cost, this guitar is simply not worth it. Fret ends protruding from the fingerboard, aging feels distinctively fake, overall just very unpleasant, and absolutely unacceptable for the cost and pedigree of the brand. It's not a secret that Fender guitars have a reputation for poor fretwork, and if no one calls them out, it will never improve. For this much money, from this brand, this should be better.
