HDTC Back Wood and P/U Choice

[pappy]

Hi All,

Finally, after a six-year hiatus, I just placed an order for a HDTC! Very excited! It's spec'd like my last one (10-18-03T) but it's been so long I don't really remember what it sounded like plus my tone preference has evolved since I sold it.

Over the last couple of years I've been playing a Strat. Hated it's build quality but with some work (pickups and shielding mainly) I got a tone I really liked.

I don't have the soundcabulary that you folks do so rather than trying to describe it, I'll just say that the tone I'm looking for would be something very similar to Clapton's on his "One More Car, One More Rider" DVD (Claton CS Strat through a Vibroking) with the occational foray into high-gain territory.

The ax I ordered has a hollow mahogany back, quilt maple top, maple/rosewood neck, SA's and H2+, and will be most likely playing it through a Fender Delux Reverb Reissue.

Am I completely mad expecting this to provide that classic strat-vibe or not? If not, I may be able to change it as the order's only a week or two old with a December delivery so please make some suggestions.

[tom]

i wouldn't expect hollow mahogany with a maple top to sound like a solid alder guitar. i know the allure of the maple top is strong, but i can't tell you how many people really want alder and buy the fancy top because they can't resist. some are thrilled and some are not. why not save some bucks?

[mdrs]

Excluding some vintage gems, the best Strat I've played was an Anderson Alder Classic "S". I'm pretty sure it had the VA5 pickups in it. The tone was true to what I consider classic Strat tone. Being an Anderson, of course it played way better!!

If you liked your Strat tone, and want the best build on the market, I'd go for a Classic "S".

[suparsonic]

i wouldn't expect hollow mahogany with a maple top to sound like a solid alder guitar. i know the allure of the maple top is strong, but i can't tell you how many people really want alder and buy the fancy top because they can't resist. some are thrilled and some are not. why not save some bucks?
What does the Maple top do to the Alder Tom, add brightness?

[Pietro]

Excluding some vintage gems, the best Strat I've played was an Anderson Alder Classic "S". I'm pretty sure it had the VA5 pickups in it. The tone was true to what I consider classic Strat tone. Being an Anderson, of course it played way better!!

i've played a couple like that. CLASSIC strat tone.

[tom]

putting a maple top on alder deepens the bottom some and makes the top a bit more focused, maybe a bit extended. take a little middle out.

[kevin h]

if you want a classic start type tone then i would not go the maple/hollow mahogany route.

like tom mentioned, stick to alder and you will get that tone, for less dough.

[pipedwho]

I agree with the guys above. The tone you're after will not roll out easily from your superstrat specs.

You want a maple/rosewood neck on an alder bodied Classic, with VA pickups, and VA booster circuit. This combination makes a pure classic tone machine.

I love me some flame/quilted maple, but if you're going for a specific tone, you need to forgo some of those visuals.

A transparent tinted finish will bring out some of the wood grain in the alder for an elegant look.

There's also the option of a chocolate maple neck with a swamp ash body for an interesting look that still has that classic tone.

If you really can't stand hum, you can deviate slightly from that perfect classic tone and go for hum cancelling SC1s instead of the VA7s.

And if you absolutely need a humbucker in the bridge, but still want a mostly classic sounding strat, then you can always go for a VA7/VA7/HF2 combination.

[pappy]

I really appreciate all the feedback. Tom, you're input here is sooo appreciated and one of the main reasons I would never consider buying a custom guitar from anyone else!

Truth be told, I really do want the quilt top just 'cause it's purty. Tone is a desire but I'm flexible. Maybe I should change the back wood to Alder - hollow or not - if it's not too late for that (order placed on Aug. 19th Martin Music in Memphis).

Tom, can you recommend a pickup combination with those wood choices that would bring me closer to the vintage tone realm? The humbucker was what I had last time but isn't really a necessity for what I play. I think I went spec-happy when I placed the order. Money and delivery time aren't a factor for me as long as it doesn't cause any issues for the dealer.

[tom]

that's not due til december, so you can change away. neck is probably getting carved now so that's gonna stay the same. i think alder back is the right choice.

instead of the SA's i'd either do SC's as they will smooth out some of the maple topness, or if you have played, really really enjoyed, and can live with hum, VA7's.

[pappy]

Thanks. One last question: How about hollow vs. solid? Lighter weight would be a plus but not at the expense getting farther away from my target tone.

[pipedwho]

Thanks. One last question: How about hollow vs. solid? Lighter weight would be a plus but not at the expense getting farther away from my target tone.
You want solid for a traditional strat target tone. You gain sparkle and lose some of the mids with a hollow body. It's subtle, but since you're already going in that direction with the maple top, the hollow body might push too far away from classic strat territory.

The weight saving isn't that dramatic, as TAG's solid guitars aren't really that heavy anyway. (Especially compared to some of the bricks from Fender and Gibson that I've held in the past.)

[pappy]

OK. So: solid alder back, SC1- neck/middle, and SC2 bridge? Does the middle need to be reverse wound?

[tom]

we take care of where the reverse needs to be so everything is happy.

[suparsonic]

I really appreciate all the feedback. Tom, you're input here is sooo appreciated and one of the main reasons I would never consider buying a custom guitar from anyone else!

Truth be told, I really do want the quilt top just 'cause it's purty. Tone is a desire but I'm flexible. Maybe I should change the back wood to Alder - hollow or not - if it's not too late for that (order placed on Aug. 19th Martin Music in Memphis).

Tom, can you recommend a pickup combination with those wood choices that would bring me closer to the vintage tone realm? The humbucker was what I had last time but isn't really a necessity for what I play. I think I went spec-happy when I placed the order. Money and delivery time aren't a factor for me as long as it doesn't cause any issues for the dealer.
I just took possession of a DT Classic, Alder, maple top, SC's and a HC3. I have been playing a HDT Classic Sa1 and H2+ for about 8 years. The HC3 is not as hot to my ears as the H2+, with more of a classic tone. The weight difference is not much. In a nutshell I think the hollow body sounds better for cleaner stuff, there's more air in the notes.

[pappy]

I just poured through about 4 years of posts here looking for more info. What about SF's with the solid Alder back and maple top?

[strat56]

I have DTC, alder back, quilt maple top, with the M pickups in it and it has replaced all my Strats, Tele's and Humbucker guitars, it's pretty much all I play on electric gigs these days.

With the Kickback on it gets very good "fat" single coil sounds and with it normal Humbucker mode it's got a good Humbucker tone. maybe not as "middle-y" as a full sized humbucker but it covers the Humbucker sounds that I need and one of the groups I play in does everything from Patsy Cline to Pink.

[tom]

sf's are only slightly different uncovered SC's. they came first and the SC was our attempt at duplicating that sound but with a cover.

[pappy]

Fortunately for me, my dealer (Martin Music, Memphis) had two DTC's in the store with SC1's, one Alder and one Mahogany. Spent some time with both and agree the the Alder back is the way to go for me. I found the pickups a little hot to my ears so I revised my order to load it up with SC1-'s and an SC2 in the bridge.

Thanks again to everyone for all the input!

[pipedwho]

The booster circuit is also a great addition on a guitar with lower output pickups. Make sure you add that too. It allows you to boost all your pickups to sound like they are the next model higher/louder/fuller at the flip of a mini toggle switch.

[pappy]

Good idea just in case.

[pappy]

Ok. Only a couple of weeks left until it's delivered. Getting seriously excited now!!!

:D

[pappy]

My main problem:

resisting the tempation to e-mail Tom every five minutes for an update.

:p

[pipedwho]

That's a difficult temptation to resist. :D

[bear79]

Tom,
I thought I had seen somewhere that a Maple/Basswood combination would get you the closest to that Classic Strat sound with a pretty top and supporting pups.

Is that right?

[tom]

i believe that is what our friend john suhr says, but i would have to respectfully disagree.

[pappy]

@tom: No time to respond to posts here. Back to work you! My guitar's awaiting! Haha!

:eek: Oh no...What have I done?

[brokenvail]

i believe that is what our friend john suhr says, but i would have to respectfully disagree.
So how would you describe it?

[tom]

It's a flatter response from top to bottom. It doesn'thave the low mid fullness or high end edge ofAnd it doesn't have the percussive definition of ash. Andvit

[pappy]

Well, today's the day! UPS says it's out for delivery to my dealer. Just waiting for the call!!! :D

Talk about a nice Christmas present. Woohoo :cool:

[Pietro]

let's get those pics up... shall we...?

[pappy]

Outstanding! Simply outstanding!

12-09-13P

[RVA]

Outstanding! Simply outstanding!

12-09-13P
+1 on the outstanding!! A Merry Christmas to you indeed- what a top! Congrats!

[GDane1]

wow that is one pretty guitar! enjoy!

[pappy]

It has THE MOST three-dimensional flame top I've ever seen. At one angle it looks perfectly book-matched. Ten degrees over it looks like two different pieces of wood joined together. Absolutely amazing. :eek: :eek: :eek:

I need to find a real camera and take some pics in good lighting and find a place to host them so I can link the images here rather than upload leeetle jpgs.

[Briggs]

Wow... what a beautiful guitar... Congrats!!

[brokenvail]

find a place to host them so I can link the images here rather than upload leeetle jpgs.
Photo Bucket!

[wolf]

Absolutely stunning. Congratulations.

[pappy]

Finally got around to finding a place to host the photos I have of my new ride. Enjoy!

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-gjcrqMq8cyY/Uvftuob0BRI/AAAAAAAAL-k/JMRLHaG2B74/w653-h871-no/20140112_122621.jpg
Overall view. Doesn't look this yellow in real life.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-1vMde2gYkzM/UvftukYXOiI/AAAAAAAAL-k/epsFTIG6vog/w653-h871-no/20140112_122609.jpg


https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-VhiL7eIilZY/Uvftun0G9qI/AAAAAAAAL-k/8K_vlZn6AGo/w1161-h871-no/20140112_122544.jpg
These two shots capture the color more accurately.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-GrqShN3sbaQ/Usouh2MnykI/AAAAAAAAKxk/XGG-hH7zuYg/w1548-h871-no/20140105_171016.jpg
Stunning fit and finish. Fretwork like no other.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-MDQAL-j8a9E/UsotN8wr5bI/AAAAAAAALqw/WkuRRfHflE0/w490-h871-no/20140105_164804.jpg
Compare the various views and you'll see how the top changes. It has so much depth that it changes depending on the angle you view it from. I've never seem a flame-top with this attribute before.

[Pietro]

NICE... very nice.

[CoKid]

If I were to buy another Classic with a fancy top I would get one as close to that as I could. I think I'd like a solid color for my next one but this one is very tempting. Just beautiful.

[morty]

I just poured through about 4 years of posts here looking for more info. What about SF's with the solid Alder back and maple top?

i Have two almost similar speced Drop Top' s one with Basswood/Maple SD
and my latest from 09 Alder/Maple SF. Its huge differens in tonal quality. the one with Adler is fuller sounding with more bottom and more midrange.
I just love my Andersons, and my Fender just collects dust

[pappy]

Oh yeah. I could not be happier with the tone. If I had any Strat it would be broken up for kindling. :eek: