Open Box Fender American Professional II Anniversary Stratocaster HSS HT Limited-Edition Electric Guitar Level 2 Eclipse 197881349257

I saw this at my local store while I was looking for an American Series bass to try out. I had been eyeballing the shimmery amethyst 70th anniversary American Ultra strats, because I liked the look of the roasted maple necks, but I literally have never seen a guitar neck with figuring as striking as this one has. I came back the next day to play it to make sure it was worth trading in my modified American Standard Tele. Turns out it was definitely worth it. The humbucker sounds much better with distortion and fuzz than my Tele did (which was literally the only thing I wished was different about that guitar). In humbucker mode it's nice and thick, but not dark and muddy like some humbuckers I've played. It plays nice with the bridge+middle position in both humbucker and coil split modes. Other pickup selector positions sound _very_ Stratocaster-ey, which I love. The neck is very smooth and comfortable to play. The "Deep C" shape is great--I actually prefer not-too-slim necks, and the shape fits nicely in my hand. Rolled fingerboard is very comfortable. Not a sharp fret end to be found. The fit and finish are among the best I've ever seen on any guitar. The setup needs a little tweaking, but it's not bad for a guitar hanging on the wall at Guitar Center. No buzz that comes through the amplifier, and no high/low spots on the neck. For 13 years, there was no guitar I had seen that I wanted more than the American Standard Telecaster that I had. I imagine it'll be quite some time, if ever, before I see one I want more than this one.

I always wanted a hard tail Strat. This one looks and plays amazing. The flame neck is amazing. The pickups sound good with Metal and anything else you can throw at it.

This strat feels like it was designed for me. I've never cared for fender, but the flame maple neck, hard tail bridge, and finish won me over. Not to mention the tones this thing can produce are exactly what I was looking for. I highly recommend it!

This thing is great. The neck is incredible, to look at and to play! Was a little hesitant at first with the Narrow Tall frets but it didn't take long to really dig 'em. The neck on mine was flamed big time, which I was hoping for. If you're on the fence, go ahead and jump on over before they're gone.

Best playing and looking Stratocaster I have ever played.