Fender Player Stratocaster HSS Plus Top - Aged Cherry with Maple Fingerboard Reviews

First of all, Jacob was great. He really took his time explaining everything and was very knowledgeable.

This being my first electric and a beginner guitarist, I did my homework and felt the HSS was best for a variety of sounds. I was not disappointed. This was easy to play and learn on in addition to my acoustic. Very happy with this guitar so far.

I've been playing guitar for forty years and I've owned dozens of guitars. This one is by far the best guitar I have ever owned. It's beautifully made and sounds incredible. The neck is super comfortable. You'll be glad that you bought this guitar.

About a year ago I got into a kerfuffle with Fender when they lost a bass I purchased directly from them and told myself I would never again give them my money. But I wanted a real strat. I was going to purchase this model from Fender, but Sweetwater lets me pick the exact instrument I will receive. I decided that was worth the full price to me vs. the 10 percent you save direct from Fender if you're a Play subscriber. Sweetwater never lets me down, and they happened to have a promotional deal from Fender that got me the same price as if I'd bought direct. SO very happy with this purchase!
I snagged a plus top that had the most beautiful quilted maple. The finish is amazing to me, I cannot find a single flaw anywhere. The neck is my favorite part with its gloss finish on the front that continues up across the headstock, while the back of the neck is the nicest satin finish I have run across on any guitar. Combine that with the neck profile and I suddenly don't want to set the guitar down.
I am not a good guitarist, and only play for my own enjoyment. With that in mind, I really can't justify going up beyond the Player series in cost. I have to admit, this guitar surprised me with the quality of the finish and the feel when I play. Some reviews of other MIMs led me to think I might be rolling the dice on the quality control, so I am grateful that Sweetwater includes their inspection before shipping. Going to close this out now so I can get back to playing with my new baby. This might just be enough to make me forgive Fender. Maybe.

I read & watched a lot of reviews for Mexicans Strats bfore purchasing one. & it paid off! I love this Strat! not only is it more beautiful in person. But also feels and plays well. Most people are right when they say Strats are really comfy to play with. Not only are they super lightweight compared to Gibson LPs but also the contours helps a lot in the comfort section. A big check for me in that department. Also, shoutout & big thanks to Zack for packing & setting up my guitar with his trusted luthier for making the action as low as possible & frets are smooth as well for my 1st Strat. Sweetwater is really the best when it comes to customer service.

Well, most of my guitar collection is made of budget guitars and I always loved the true strat sound. Thanks to Pat Walsh with Sweetwater, he made it possible for only a few bucks a month. It arrived quickly even though I had Sweetwater do a complete setup. (I highly recommend). The finish is fantastic and the HSS configuration works great. You get the best of both worlds. One the hard heavy distortion Humbucker and the traditional strat sound with the 2 singles. This guitar is amazing so easy to play works with you instead of fighting against you when playing it. The only complaint is the fret ends on mine were very sharp. They should have noticed it before it left the factory. I highly recommend the Fender Player Series HSS and I would buy soon due to the special financing that is still going on. Ask for Pat Walsh for all the buying options. He is a great and knowledgeable sales engineer.

I wrote a review prior to receiving my guitar and wanted to do a follow up. I have been a collector of so called budget guitars for a while now and you would be surprized at the quality of some of them. Many are great works of craftsmanship. I never owned though a real Fender Strat. I have had a couple of Squier Strats but never a true Fender one. Well, I received it and the quality champions all my other guitars. I do not know if I was lucky and had a rare set of workers in a good mood while building it or the fact I had it setup by Sweetwater but now all I want to do is practice. I will say Pat Walsh was an important factor in me doing business with Sweetwater. Even though Pat knew I was doing business with another company he kept calling or sending me an email just to say hi not using any pushy sales pitch but just to say hi. If you want a good rep please select Pat Walsh as your man to do business with. I highly recommend it. Well, The true Fender Strat plays incredible and I am so happy with it and recommend it highly.

I wanted to add another strat to my collection and the newer Fender line piqued my interest. I was looking for one that I would call a "basic" strat as I already have an American Deluxe with S1 etc. After trying out a few of the other models in local stores I focused in on the Player Series models. I liked the improvements from the previous MIM Standard I.e., 22nd fret added, tone control wired to the bridge, and the 2 point tremolo. I much prefer to play a guitar before buying, however local stores had very limited selection. I decided to call Sweetwater as I read good things about them. The Sales Consultant was Trey, and he was extremely knowledgeable, helpful and patient in helping me make my decision.

I decided on the Player HSS Plus Top, a bit nervous what to expect upon arrival. After a few weeks since it arrived and playing the hell out of it, I must say that I am extremely pleased with the guitar. It is a solid strat with a very comfortable neck for great playability. The pickups sound like classic strat which is what I wanted. I decided to go with humbucker in the bridge and glad I did. You can go from classic strat tones to wicked lead tones and the position for middle and bridge connects middle to the bucker split so you get that classic tone as well. This configuration provides great flexibility.Looks are not my primary reason for buying a guitar but this one with the Plus Top maple veneer looks great.

The guitar plays, sounds and looks great. If you are looking for a solid strat at a reasonable price I highly recommend you check out the Player Series. Sweetwater especially Trey made this an exceptionally good customer experience.

Ok, my search for a new guitar was long..you know how guitar players can be. ;)

I'm typically a Les Paul guy but have been wanting something that had that Fender chime and a tremolo.

After looking at all the usual (and unusual) suspects, I came to realize that if I wanted that "thing" Fender does, then the best guitar to that would be a Fender.

However, since I'm a Les Paul guy who's used to thick necks, I was concerned the Strat's neck would be too thin. Also, I'm a big fan of sanding necks down as I prefer that natural feel and playability, and I do NOT like having ANY gloss coating on my fretboard!

So yes, I definitely took a chance ordering online, but was VERY pleasantly surprised by just how nice this guitar is!

Yes, she's a beauty to look at, no doubt about that. But she's also a beauty to play! The neck isn't Les Paul thick, but it's meaty enough. And the coating on the fretboard? Whatever it is, my fingers fly on this guitar! I don't even have the urge to sand the back of the neck. the two-point trem gives me the freedom to go up or down, and that's exactly what I wanted.

Tonewise? It's absolutely quintessential Fender. I couldn't really ask for more, am I'm so glad I got the HSS pickup configuration! I like having that humbucker to really turn up the heat.

Shout out to Brendan Murphy, my sales guy for almost two decades. He very kindly puts up with my endless questions on gear.

I owned a MIM Telecaster several years ago, and it was a nice guitar. But this new Player series Stratocaster is simply amazing. The fit and finish is as good as any guitar. I did add some locking staggared Fender American Deluxe tuners (personal preference). There is no way the American Pro series provides enough extra features to offset the difference in price. And the customer service provided by Sweetwater cannot be beat. Thank you Sweetwater!

First off, the guitar looks gorgeous. Beautiful aged cherry flame top perfectly complemented by a maple fingerboard. Were it up to me, it would come stock with aged white plastic, but the glossy white is still nice. Thinking this would look kickass with a tortoiseshell pickguard. Anyway, on to the actual features. The instrument feels utterly perfect. The chunky C profile neck fits naturally in my hand for thumb-wrap playing and provides a great secure platform for thumb-anchoring. The satin finished neck feels like a part of me - so gloriously smooth I forget it's there. The body contours let the guitar sit naturally against the body for a comfortable, unimpeded playing position. It sounds like a strat should, but the bridge humbucker adds a nice bite to those glassy tones. Perfect for heavier blues and even Green Day and indie stuff. Surprisingly, it sustains better than my Epiphone Les Paul, so props to Fender for that. As a nice bonus, mine's serial number ends in 777. Fun.

its a very beautiful guitar and sounds great i love the humbucker i have a sss but wanted a hss this didnt disappoint i will cherish this guitar

The neck is smooth and great to play. Even when played unplugged it feels and sounds great. I changed the neck pickup for a Seymour Duncan Cool Rails and it sounds fantastic!!! In the middle i replaced the stock pickup for a Seymour Duncan Vintage rails and I could not be happier. Stays in tune very well. Highly recommended at this price point.

My fender players series guitar arrived exactly how it looked in its picture on the website! It performs perfectly, and I love it. It was packaged very well with safeguards to prevent damage. a plus!

Been playing over 30 years. Played all kinds of guitars. This guitar is a crazy good value. Paired with my Laney IRT60. Sounds great. It showed up in tune and ready to play.

Sweetwater Rocks!

Beautiful guitar, it is flawless. Set-up was spot on. Tone is more bell-like (sweeeeet!) than my USA made strat. Really like having the humbucker bridge pick-up to change it up. I was very impressed with the quality of this MIM strat. Thanks to Chris and the whole Sweetwater team!

It looks amazing in person. The finish is flawless. As always it was ready to play out of the box and I like having that humbucker pick up. This guitar rips and the quality of the MIM strat is incredible. The neck is slim and comfortable. I could not be happier with the Sweetwater team. The finish is like a work of art and for the price I feel it is a lot of guitar eapecially with it arriving with a pefect action and intune.

Best guitar I"ve ever owned. I"ve always wanted a Strat but delayed getting one until now. The playability and tone are luscious. It was certainly worth the wait.

Played many Stratocasters over the last 40 yrs. This one played as well as any I"ve ever picked-up. The quality is spot on. The tone is beautiful & the intonation seem to be perfect and the finish near flawless. If you are looking for a Strat you can"t go wrong. Think diminishing returns. You could pay a whole lot more for just a little difference.
Thanks to Jason Thiele for all your help !!

I've been playing off and on for 35 years, and in that time I've never owned or wanted a Fender. But no collection is complete without the most iconic and ubiquitous solidbody guitar in the world. With a humbucker in the bridge, a beautiful flamed maple top, and the aged cherry burst finish, this seemed like the strat for me. This was my first MIM guitar, so I wasn't sure what to expect, but my fears were unfounded. The finish is beautiful, the frets are well-polished with no sprout, and action and intonation were good out of the box. For the record, I played one of these in a local guitar store that did have fret sprout, so quality control may vary. My only complaint is the humbucker. I play rock and metal, and I can't get a decent tone out of this pickup. It sounds as weak and thin as a single coil, and ranks with the worst humbuckers on my cheapest guitars. It may be OK for blues and country. Of course, tone is very subjective. One oddity, that is not necessarily good or bad, is that the fingerboard finish is incredibly reflective; you could use it as a shaving mirror. I've never seen another maple fingerboard quite like it. Big thanks to Nick Reedy, my sales engineer, who has helped me with several recent purchases, and pointed out the aged cherry burst when I thought I wanted a sienna sunburst. For some reason this guitar didn't jump out at me when I was scrolling through guitars; I think the black pickguard didn't "pop" like the white one does. But comparing the two side-by-side, I much prefer the aged cherry.

Wasn't sure if I would like the Strat but I wanted an all around good guitar. This thing is the most beautiful guitar I've ever played. The HSS is perfect and I love the versatility in pickup selection. I am used to a thin neck style but the thicker neck was easy to get used to. Very glad to own this guitar! It may not be a shredding machine but it sure is an all around excellent choice.

I was pretty convinced that I never wanted a Strat. You know, everybody in the world plays a Strat, it seems. I got the notion that I wanted to try one out, but didn't want to spend the $$ to go American, in case I really wasn't crazy about it. Well... I have to say, everything about this appeals to my taste and ear. There is really no need to spend the extra $$ to get an American version, even though I'm all about American made products. The fit and finish of this plus top is excellent. The electronics sound great through my tube amp or my solid state. The HSS model gives me lots of tonal options. The only thing that might be a nice addition would be a coil tap on the bridge pickup to really give you that final single coil sound. Otherwise this is a very nice guitar at a more than reasonable price. I'm really glad I got the plus top. The grain of the maple cap just adds some beauty that can be appreciated. I can't close without giving a shout out to Sweetwater and my sales tech Craig Kyle. They make buying pleasant and trouble free. I'm sold on this guitar and buying from Sweetwater. If you are looking for a moderately priced guitar that you an be proud of, Just pull the trigger. You'll be happy you did.

Simply great all around guitar. Weight is perfect. The neck is smooth, very fast and playable. Plugged into my Marshall it does not disappoint. The bridge humbucker has all the growl you will need to perform. Played clean the split coils and single coil settings give you that Fender sparkle and tone. This is one of my go to guitars, next to my Les Paul and Flying Vee.
You will not be disappointed. Amazing guitar for the money.

It"s about time the MIM strats got revamped, especially as they were being outgunned by Squier (and maybe still are). The guitar I purchased was setup with quite low action and sounds great. It"s my third Fender stratocaster and easily the best. These pickups sound great but to achieve tonal balance with the humbucker I have to leave the top tone pot set to 7. Having said that the single coils are well balanced with the humbucker.

I have reservations about the Sweetwater 50 point inspection. Neither Fender or Sweetwater seemed to notice that the nut slots were cut too shallow. Actually they weren"t cut on the guitar at all, the nut was installed with a pre cut nut designed to be cut deeper after installation. It simply wasn"t done. Any string bending at the low end of neck resulted in the strings popping right out of their slots. Something I had to rectify myself and not a recommended fix for most customers to try.

My only other gripe is that guitar companies will still sell you a guitar with a useless volume control. Please start fitting treble bleeds to new guitars. Some of us guitar players actually wan"t to use the volume control without it turning the tone to mud.

If you are looking for a Fender strat then look no further. Sweetwater please look closer during your "50 point inspection".

Short as I can be... Firstly, bought this 2 1/2 years ago before I knew much about electric guitars.
Guitar is a beauty, except for the stark white pups and knobs. It's everything you should expect from a strat.

The biggest problem: 1/2 the frets were not level, which causes the dreaded fret buzz. Had I known about this 2 1/2 years ago, I would have returned it. It took me about (4) hours to file/sand them down, now 95%+ of the buzz is eliminated.

I have bought $100/200 guitars since then that had better fret dressing. The other problem is that the "chrome" is already beginning to break down on the saddles and bridge, even though I always wipe it clean after use. Sweetwater did a good job setting it up, although it should've never been sold due to the fret issue. There you go.

Figure you don't get too many reviews past a couple years of ownership, so now you have one.

**I miss my old Sweetwater rep. Thanks Dom

I just received my Player Series Strat, my first Fender. I've had Squiers, and mostly Chinese and Indonesian guitars, and I was excited to get this guitar. It was packed excellently, and the guitar looks beautiful. When I got it out to play, I was a little disappointed. There were some really sharp fret ends, I would expect better for a guitar costing this much. I have a Slick guitar and a Harley Benton that cost a third of this, and have much better fret ends. The neck itself feels great, the actual frets are nice and polished and smooth. As I moved up the neck, there was major buzzing at the 17th fret, the 18th fret is a little taller than the others. Some filing should solve this, but again, should've been done at the factory. Plugging it in, the sound is great, really glassy and sweet. The humbucker really barks hard when pushed, so I'm at least really happy with the sounds. After a little work with some files, this guitar should be good, but it should've come without these problems at this price.