STRAT-ALIKES ROUND-UP
£1,000 - £2,000
VOLA OZ £1,049
A new name for us too, Vola offers both Japaneseand USA-made models, though it’ll be the former that are available shortly in the UK. The Oz veers on the modern-rock side of the classic recipe with its stylised shape, and more-pointed-thanSuhr headstock, in either HSS or HH pickup configurations, a 22-fret 12-inch radius fingerboard, Gotoh 510 two-post vibrato and Gotoh tuners with height-adjustable posts and an altogether modernvintage vibe in Daphne Blue or Vintage Ivory gloss. We’ll be reviewing them very soon. www.volaguitar.com
JOHN PAGE CLASSIC ASHBURN SPECIAL £1,629 (inc gigbag)
These Japanese-made guitars, designed by exFender veteran John Page, show how the Strat can be thoughtfully reimagined. This Special version of the standard Ashburn offers tinted maple neck and ash body. It’s a proper bolt-on too with a 12-inch radius ’board, Gotoh 510 vibrato and rear-lock Gotoh tuners. Throw in the Page-designed JP-1 single coils and you have quite a piece. It's a
Guitarist fave, as you can read in issue 422. www.johnpageclassic.com
FENDER AMERICAN ORIGINAL 60S STRAT £1,639 (inc case)
The 2018 reboot of the previous American Vintage series, the American Originals give us a 50s and 60s Strat (both available left-handed) in a choice of three nitro colours per model. They’re obviously the most vintage-specific USA-production models with the more contemporary 9.5-inch fingerboards. If you like your USA Strats more vintage-spec but can’t afford £3k in the Custom Shop, these are the obvious choice. Reviewed in issue 431. www.fender.com
FENDER AMERICAN ELITE STRAT £1,799 (inc case)
The American Elite series offers an innovationladen approach with features such as fourthgeneration noiseless single coils, expansive S-1 switching, 9.5-14-inch compound radius fingerboard, truss-rod adjustment wheel, locking short-post tuners, two-post vibrato and even ‘softtouch’ control knobs. You have a choice of seven colours with both maple or rosewood fingerboards plus there’s the HSS Shawbucker-equipped Elite Strat at £1,769. Reviewed in issue 403. www.fender.com
IBANEZ AZ AZ2204F PRESTIGE £1,799
Reviewed next issue, the AZ could be a gamechanger judging from the AZ2204 we’ve just got our hands on. Bringing £2k-plus specs to a wider audience, highlights include the roasted-maple neck and 12-inch fingerboard, stainless-steel frets, oil-impregnated bone nut, All Access neck joint, Ibanez-design/Gotoh-made vibrato, and Seymour Duncan Hyperion HSS pickups with passive dynaMIX 9 switching, offering four additional sounds. It might be the best Ibanez guitar we’ve ever played. www.ibanez.com
G&L LEGACY £1,899
We really liked this guitar when we reviewed it back in issue 427. It is the more classic Strat-alike made in Fullerton, USA, by G&L and remains a valid option, not least when USA guitars seem to be escalating in cost by the month. Combining a distinct headstock design with an equally distinct two-post vibrato, the sounds from the CLF-100 Alnico V pickups are unmistakable. Unique features include the treble and bass tone controls while the 9.5-inch radius fingerboard and Jescar frets offer a smattering of modernism. www.glguitars.com