by RUSSET » Wed Nov 11, 2009 8:36 am
Well, as promised by Dolphin music, the FEDEX van arrived yesterday (one day delivery - post free), & the Squier 'Biffy' Strat arrived in a very high quality cardboard box. It , being a signature guitar in the Classic Vibe series, is great quality for a budget range instrument. The neck & headstock have that nice tinted varnish that looks vintage, like the Mex Classic series. The Rosewood fingerboard is nice & dark & the finish is perfect. The set-up was pretty good too, & after a quick tune up it played well straight out of the box. The Fiesta Red colour is good, but maybe slightly more of that 'Hot Rod Red' shade than the truer pinker Mex Fiesta Red. Not much in it though, & pefectly acceptable. The trem arm seems slighty longer ( about 1" ) than I'm used to with the Mex Classic player, but that's a minor gripe. The neck is a comfortable shallow 'C' profile. I've lowered the action a little & released the trem from it's 'locked down flat' position on the body, to float.
The sound is quite bright & twangy, which may be the fact that it has brand new strings, & they are '9s'. It also has a mix of Alnico III & Alnico V magnets in the pickups. I'll change them to '10s' in due course, & try to fit a chunkier steel trem block.
All in all, this is a really good guitar for the price, & ideal for anyone on a strict budget, with opportunities to upgrade as you see fit. Wish I'd had one of these in the sixties, instead of the rough old Hofner.
Tony.