@@kbcarroll True. They even list the Telecaster at or higher price than the Stratocaster even though it's way easier and cheaper to produce. No contours, no bridge routing, one less pickup, etc....
It's honestly so refreshing to hear this from a younger, professional guitarist. I I feel like all I see recently are guys with pedalboards that are full of only the most expensive pedals, Two Rock amps and custom/master built guitars. A lot of us often dismiss cheaper guitars but some of the cheapest guitars I own have also been the most inspiring.
Who are these young punks with 2 Rocks and real klons + strymons + obscure boutiques...[edit: And PRS 10 Tops & Novo/Fano shiney pink custom Jazzmasters with minihumbuckers or something off the wall ?? (I'm Soo jelly!😆) ]. But who are they?! When I was a young muso, we borrowed and interchanged what little gear we could get! I remember playing pearl jam on an Ibanez RG ! And Metallica on a Tele, hahaha! In my time (90's) mismatching, doing things unexpected and having that whole grunge aesthetic of being held together by Gaffa tape (! Lol) was part of it. We had one guy with a Mesa Boogie and some high end guitars but he was really good, like Satriani. And his old man was a Doctor. But other than him, the rest of us kinda schlepped around as best we could. There was some good gear in amongst the pool of young muso's in my home town. It was a strong middle class town so, there was good gear out there. But certainly no single muso had a two rock and impressive top shelf pedal boards, like their Fathers were plastic surgeons and their Mothers were ex- Miss Something or others ! I just can't imagine... Are these guys any good?? The guys with boutique everything on their Insta?
Agreed. Built a partscaster and sold a real Fender Strat American Deluxe because the partscaster (made from a Kramer 111 body and neck, neck well reworked) played and more importantly sounded a LOT better to my ear with matched set of custom Planet Tone AlNiCo II pups. I threw out everything but the body and neck. Mostly Fender parts with my own harness and Klewson locking tuners with roller string tree. Holds tune and fantastic action with 9's.
Have 2007 Squier Jazz bass, absolutely nothing wrong with it. Great guitar - I think its mainly in the quality of parts, production year, origin of build but if you are careful and do your research you can get a great instrument. I also have a MEX Fender Stratocaster 2015 - Jimi off-white with maple neck. Its a stunning guitar, holds tune, decent pickups through a Marshall DSL 40 valve. Use a Bluesbreaker pedal to give it a little pre-amp. Half the cost of an American. 95% people cannot tell the difference at a gig.
For the price of those three guitars you could have bought one decent American fender. I see this long haired dude playing a Squire but I bet he has like 7 custom shop tier American fender guitars
Back in the day when I used to tip the bottle. I bought a squire 2 that turned out to have crumbling trem system and less than desirable electronics inside. I kept it as a reminder that getting hammered and buying anything is about as stupid as you can get. But after looking at it day after day and also having spent 2 yrs on the wagon I decided I would make it into a player. With the help of Steve the guitar tech at Guitar Center I changed the trem system, tuners, pups to Tex Mex and bingo bango it's one of my favorite guitars. I love the way it plays and the sound is pure beauty. Squire doesn't have to mean crap. A little TLC and you've got something that can surprise you. Also, by upgrading you can make it more the way you want it to really be.
I have a ‘92 Silver Series MIJ Strat which I picked up for £180 .... few changes on pots, caps and a set of Alinco 2 Tone Riders and man it’s awesome. Best Strat I have ever played... play it more than my Custom Shop Gibson R8👍🎸. As ever great playing can’t wait to see you live next year.
The opening to this video is the best guitar sound and playing I’ve heard. It’s all personal taste of course, but so many things about that song, played like that, are the reasons I want to play guitar. Also the fact that the solo and the chords at the end both sound equally awesome - that is some nice tone!
I have a red 1983 Japanese JV and its just fantastic. It still has all the original Fender stamped hardware cos back then the bridges and tuners were all the same stock. The body has aged an amazing "orangey" red while the maple neck and fingerboard has mellowed with that deep vintage amber lustre and if it didn't say Squier by Fender you'd think it was a US standard Fender. Love it.
I’ve got a few Fenders (don’t get me wrong, they’re fantastic instruments)and a Gibson due to arrive tomorrow but one of my favorite guitars to pick up is my affinity Tele and a Jackson Dinky that I paid like 160 bucks for. They play so damn great makes me really appreciate the awesome quality of cheaper guitars these days
Squiers are great in that they're fundamentally amazing guitars/basses for their value but also cheap enough that you can progressively upgrade the parts as you go and make it even better.
are you kidding me? The amount of expression in this final improv is next level! Chris Buck, I how humble you are, but please take these compliments and be proud sir!
I bought a Squire as a backup guitar, chose it because it sounded good acoustically. A set of decent machines, pots and some Kinman pups I had lying around later and it was my 1st choice for doing Dire Straits numbers. It was much lighter than the custom Strat I'd built and not as dark. Had to sell it when I was broke and still miss it.,. Great vid and awesome playing butty
I'm an Aussie. Super cool strat! I bought a Peavey classic 30 off a guy in Sydney a few years back who later was selling a Korean Silver series Strat for $270 Aus. Sent a message as soon as I saw it but he already sold it. 10 mins late. 😢 Anyway, not long after, l bought a Korean Vester Catalina (Strat) for $80 Aus. OMG! What a beast that thing is... The Co' folded coz Fender planned to sue... Damn shame, that!
Thank you Chris for naming that song. I deleted my comment as I found the song with some digging. Keep up the great playing brother. Your tone and approach is incredible. Cheers.
Amen re: who cares about the name on the headstock. I have an inexpensive Washburn I use exclusively for jazz and it’s regularly mistaken for an Ibanez or D’Angelico: guitars worth several times mine. I did drop a different pickup in the neck, but even before then, I preferred it to guitars I had played that cost $1k more. It’s all about that instrument and that player. Wonderful playing as always, Chris.
It is really important to understand that not all Squiers are "created equal". Many different factories, many different countries. Here is my own personal list of Squier greatness... 1. Squier JV (Fujigen) 2. Squier Silver Series (Fujigen) 3. Squier Series (Ensenada, Mexico) 4. Classic Vibe (Grand Reward/Cort) 5. Squier Contemporary (Greeta, India) 6. Squier Vista Series (Fujigen) 7. Squier Standard Series (Cort and Samick) 8. Squier Showmaster and Stagemaster (Cort) 9. Squier II (Greeta, India) 10. Squier SE and Affinity (Yako)
I have a 1990 American Squier Strat that has made me a lot of money. I bought it new in March of 1991.They were built briefly in the US that year after a fire in the Mexican factory. I have upgraded it over the years with better bridge saddles, several different pickup changes, and a better trem block. Great guitar with an excellent neck. I have never touched the tuners as they are rock solid.
Randy McRae big fender logo on the headstock? I was told that story about mine from around the same era, but I checked the SN and it turned out to be a Korean made model. I ended up changing out everything, but the neck is incredible!
Randy McRae: I thought I owned a USA strat but after finding some differences I got on strat-talk and discovered that what I have is a 1990 USA made Squire. But it doesn’t say Squire on the headstock and it does say Made in the USA. The first clue was when I checked the pickups and they had bar magnets glued to them, typical of Squire. I have since replaced them with texmex pickups. Funny thing is It’s a great sounding and playing guitar, even when it had the original pickups.
@@phillipwatson1821 No. It says Squire. If you look it up, you will see the verification that some were made in the US after the fire in Mexico in 1990.
That sounds like the model I have. I thought mine was USA made when I bought it, but I think someone just tried to pass it off as American made. It doesn't say Squier anywhere, but the bottom part of the Fender logo was sanded off and said USA under it. It probably used to say Squier there or something.
Despite having owned dozens of American Strats now, two of my all-time favorite Strats are Squiers. Both of them are out of production, or production and materials have been long since changed. Regretfully I only have one of them (re-acquired), but i'm working on finding the other. The thing is that I knew it was a great guitar, but I was convinced I was moving on to better things based on the name on the headstock and price point. My snob days are over. That won't happen again.
Never a truer word spoken. I love my 82 JV bought new in Gamlins, Cardiff. It has Squier on the headstock. So what. It's just paint and varnish. The fact that she's still with me after almost 40 years says it all.
I should say how much I agree with you. I should say that my recent acquisition of an inexpensive but beautiful 90’s Epiphone Sheraton totally backs up what you are saying. But I’m just so blown away and lost in that playing that I don’t really care. You make a guitar sing so beautifully, and quite literally like NO ONE ELSE CAN. I can’t even articulate it. So I’ll just thank you instead. Much love.
I've had a Squier silver series strat with a rosewood fretboard, 3 tone sunburst for 25 years. My main guitar. Nothing comes close to it for playability.....the stock pickups are very nice despite being ceramic. Had 3 different sets of decent pickups in it and always put the stock ones back in....
I have 5 pre 90’s Fender & Squires. Great guitars. My ‘86 MIJ Squire Tele has one of the best Telecaster fingerboards I’ve played. Including many Custom Shops.
@AgentYpsilon If I had to buy a cheap guitar for myself I'd get a second hand squier affinity strat off reverb, you can get a mint/like new one for around £100 easily. Most of the stuff on reverb is american with expensive shipping but you can set a filter to only show UK gear.
@@SimonYpsilon I have the HB Strat copy and it is very very good. I will be honest, if I had the money, I'd mexi strat (as I don't like the glossy neck on the classic vibes) My favourite that I mentioned is their version of the ES335 the HB35. If you go to my channel there are reviews of both 😀
I got me a couple of HB acoustics that sit very favourably alongside my gibbo and martin, and by all accounts their electrics punch well above their weight.
I have the exact same, I brought it brand new when I I was about 15 or 16 from musical exchanges in Birmingham, still have it and in mint as new condition, live this guitar
At the same time these silver series were released, Fender also released a Fender Squier Series.. again built in Japan, but badged up as a Fender.. I bought one new, my first electric guitar.. it’s incredible! The silver series was the top end squier and the squier series was the bottom end Fender but ultimately I believe they were pretty much the same guitar.
As always, come for the tone, stay for the tone, wish to hell I had the same tone, resume practicing in the hopes of one day being a fraction as good. Great video.
4:53 Really well said. "Judge guitars entirely on their merits and not necessarily by what it says on the headstock." Recently I got a replacement neck on my Squier Jagmaster and I thought about whether I should put a decal on the headstock. After all, I didn't put anything on the headstock to remind myself that what really makes your playing sound great is yourself/your hands but not necessarily your gear especially the brand. And when I go out and play, people don't judge my tone or playing by the headstock of my guitar but really by what they hear.
Chris, imho you've become the authority on strat-sounds! You're a phenomenal player, yet you remain humble.I'd love to attend one of your gigs in the near future.IOh yeah: i've owned and played numerous strats over the past 20+ years and honestly...the best ones were a CIJ 62 reissue and a Warmoth partscaster.Great video!
A lot of truth in what you say, I bought a 20 year old Squier Stratocaster from a charity shop a year ago for £30 and it’s incredibly good, I must make the effort to play it more. Good video as always.
Hello mate! I have a Fender Silver Series. They were popular on Argentina in the 90s, mine looks just like your squier and the Silver Series decal it is the same. I never heard about this squiers. Nice weekend for you Chris
On the look out for a Squier and this one is an absolute gem which has further inspired my search for “the one” for me. Loving your playing more and more each time I listen to you Chris, and what a voice you have found! Incredible and very unique guitar playing up there with some of the best I have heard. Please keep these videos coming.....
You're exactly right about not worrying what label is on the headstock. I have a cheap Strat copy that I have $30 total in it. It plays like a dream...after doing a good setup! Your Squier is awesome!👍😎🎸🎶
I own two squiers that i’ve modded the heck out of. My strat I upgraded all the pickups and configuration to have the second tone knob for the bridge when on. And and push pull for the neck pickup to activate for that neck bridge setting. Fixed all the high frets and sharp ends. Remade a new bone nut from scratch (took me 3 tries to get right) and refinished the whole guitar in a lavender sparkle that I reliced and wore out the neck and gave it the vintage tint. Its also a rosewood fretboard so its really dark and beautiful and has all the playing divot wear. The tele is a newer one that just has all the hardware and pickups upgraded and soon to be refinished to a better looking butterscotch.
I bought a Black Hello Kitty squire Strat just for laughs to play on stage. It has only a humbucker in the bridge and only one volume pot. I didn't do a thing to it except tweak the neck and it plays great and sounds fantastic through my Hiwatt. I do play custom shop Fender telecaster and a gold top Les Paul, but that hello Kitty is quite the rocker.
I have a 50's classic vibe and it feels so good and satisfying to play. The pickups are good too. Not the best but it sounds pretty damn awesome. I put locking tuners, a full size block, new wiring and capacitor, new nut and a good setup and she feels pretty premium. Ill never get rid of it.
Matt Gilbert They are changing the line for 2019. They are not going to be made in China anymore. Now they are going to be made in Indonesia. And specs are “better”. $50.00 bucks less (american dollars).
I got a white tele 50's vibe tele. Amazing guitar. The only thing i changed was that i sanded down the gloss on the fretboard. Apart from that. Good to go.
@nineball26 jack pearson plays new indonesian squires and sounds great. my indonesian squire is as reliable and good sounding as some of the custom shop guitars i have owned.
I've been playing a Squier for 15 years. I love it. Great guitar. It's all about the player. You really don't need a $2000 strat. A $200 Squier can produce amazing tones with a quality amp, and I don't mean an expensive amp. Price isn't everything.
It is something though. I have both and love both. But side by side my 200$ squire is amazing for 200$ but i can’t compete with the american. Granted. Is it 10 times better? Debatable
It follows with the Squier basses also. I have a Squire Fretless Jazz bass and a Squier Precision. In the 70s, I had a 1960 Fender Precision (which I had to sell in the 80s to stay in school). My Squier Precision plays and sounds just as good and costs 1/10 the price. The fretless Jazz bass is my favorite. Of course, I spent a lot of time setting each up and I run super light gauge strings 30-50-70-90 s
I recently bought a 93 Squier Strat and the neck was as worn as the one in the video. It plays and sounds fantastic and I prefer it much more than the US made Strat I used to own!
The best Squier guitars were the e.series 84-87 I bought one new back in the day,still have it,best guitar I have owned,it has earned me £1000,s over the years,my back up guitars were Fender and Gibson.😊
Super content and awesome playing as always. After x years **cough** I am finally figuring out exactly what you are saying. I am finding that "my name" on the head-stock holds a special value to me and isn't that what it's all about? Thanks for the vid and cheers!!
I have a Classic Vibe 60' and I love it. Tried different Fender like the Road Worn, standard MIM and others model... The only model I tried and found way better was the Silversky
Hi Chris, I have two Squier Silver Series Strats, one is a Sunburst with black pick guard like yours, but with a rosewood fretboard, the other is a Torino Red, also with a rosewood fretboard. These guitars are fantastic, especially the necks, but they are great all round instruments. The red one is original pickups, the sunburst one has replacement pickups that I fitted. Both are superb, the only thing I would say is that they benefit from upgrading the wiring and pots as the originals were not of the highest quality. They are getting increasingly scarce, but are still available for not too much money.
I hear you 💯 percent one of my all-time favorite guitars was a 60s classic vibe telecaster & I've owned a couple custom shop guitars that didn't even come close to that guitar.
I have soooo many vintage guitars. Two USA made gibbons, a bunch of Mexican and Japanese strats, a Swedish 1972 Hagstrom HiiN OT, and many, many more. Last October i picked up an Indonesian Squier Bullet series Telecaster in Surf Green at GC in Ft. Meyers for a discounted 129.00 bucks because it was the last one in stock, snd was also the floor model. I kid you not, stock it outshined most of the guitars in my collection. Only thing i did to it was put in Fender pots, and an orange drop capacitor, and a electrosocket jack which made it even better than stock. I may as well start selling my other shit since I don’t play anything else.
Dude! Have you ever made a playing lesson series? Your playing is top notch. I would 100% pay $$$$ for your lessons if you ever put them out! Keep it up, I’m always looking forward to your videos. Cheers!
Great video. Enjoyed my Squier’s for years. Started out of necessity because I could not afford the Fender. As I got older I realised the value is in the feel not the brand. Saved a few quid as a result over the same years..👍🇦🇺
I have learned to my cost that the price of a guitar is not necessarily reflective of the playability. You get better wood (usually) and finishes like nitro are nice but my most problematic guitars have been custom shops and a 7k Lowden acoustic which cost more than a couple of squires to fix to where it should have been at the start. If the fretboard isn’t straight, it’s gonna play like a dog. For consistency, Yamaha is amazing, they just always seem to play right.
All guitars can get problems, that includes Yamaha. A Yamaha SG400 that I bought used, had a slight torque in the neck because of the GHS heavy bottom strings that had been on it for at least 20 years. So I made my own set of "Heavy Tops" and pulled the torque out of the neck with the anti-torque. I guess I can play it now with a regular set of 10s if I like. Whether your guitars get problems depends on where and how you live. I have a house full of humidifiers and I keep the humidity at 46%. That's exactly what's good for my health and for the health of my guitars.
Hello Chris! I really enjoy your playing and your videos! I too have a 1983 JV Strat, a '62 Reissue I bought brand new and I've had it ever since. The neck has worn in so well it is slightly scalloped along its edge and the end grain of the Rosewood is wide open, its so cool. These are amazing guitars aren't they?
Expensive isn't always best. I have a 93' peavey predator that iv put maybe 200 dollars in upgrades, and I would put it against any American made fender any day.
I have a Korean Squier gold label from the 90s, I just put some fender custom shop fat 50s pickups in it and it sounds great, alder body and flame maple top and back that was hiding under a cream whit paint. My first and favorite guitar bought it in 97
Excellent video! I just got a classical guitar which Id like to try learning to play. Once I master some basics, I’d like a beginner electric. Love the piece at the end of the video
That sounded amazing even through my I phone speaker. I can’t imagine what it sounded like in a cave. I’ve owned Fenders and Squiers in the past and always got rid of the Squiers because of the snobbery. I think I will repent lol
as soon as he said he developed a second set of pups for maple fretboards i was in, Subbed! Its shocking how many people dont hear or maybe just dont care about the difference!
I agree, they are brilliant, I've played both Strats and Squires, and prefer the Squires, I have a black Silver Series and a blonde Squire, I travel and record with them all the time, they are awesome.
This guy could play a tennis racquet and make it sound good!
You're right. He has a phenomenal groove and feel.
No doubt!
You ain't lie Bruh! You ain't lie!
I've got one in the garage would make a fantastic vid lol
That's haw he started
At fender: Why is there a spike in squier sales? Oh...
Picking one up tomorrow! Limited ssh metallic with HSS satin finish neck. $129
2 reasons:
1. There's a spike in Squier quality
2. More importantly, year after year insane spikes in the price of a Fender.
su1ac0 Agree.. Fender seem to be missing the point of Fender! Affordable for the working people.. 👍
@@kbcarroll True. They even list the Telecaster at or higher price than the Stratocaster even though it's way easier and cheaper to produce. No contours, no bridge routing, one less pickup, etc....
@@kbcarroll not insane, but spiky
It's honestly so refreshing to hear this from a younger, professional guitarist. I I feel like all I see recently are guys with pedalboards that are full of only the most expensive pedals, Two Rock amps and custom/master built guitars. A lot of us often dismiss cheaper guitars but some of the cheapest guitars I own have also been the most inspiring.
Who are these young punks with 2 Rocks and real klons + strymons + obscure boutiques...[edit: And PRS 10 Tops & Novo/Fano shiney pink custom Jazzmasters with minihumbuckers or something off the wall ?? (I'm Soo jelly!😆) ]. But who are they?!
When I was a young muso, we borrowed and interchanged what little gear we could get! I remember playing pearl jam on an Ibanez RG ! And Metallica on a Tele, hahaha! In my time (90's) mismatching, doing things unexpected and having that whole grunge aesthetic of being held together by Gaffa tape (! Lol) was part of it.
We had one guy with a Mesa Boogie and some high end guitars but he was really good, like Satriani. And his old man was a Doctor.
But other than him, the rest of us kinda schlepped around as best we could. There was some good gear in amongst the pool of young muso's in my home town. It was a strong middle class town so, there was good gear out there. But certainly no single muso had a two rock and impressive top shelf pedal boards, like their Fathers were plastic surgeons and their Mothers were ex- Miss Something or others !
I just can't imagine... Are these guys any good?? The guys with boutique everything on their Insta?
Agreed. Built a partscaster and sold a real Fender Strat American Deluxe because the partscaster (made from a Kramer 111 body and neck, neck well reworked) played and more importantly sounded a LOT better to my ear with matched set of custom Planet Tone AlNiCo II pups. I threw out everything but the body and neck. Mostly Fender parts with my own harness and Klewson locking tuners with roller string tree. Holds tune and fantastic action with 9's.
I’ve just bought this exact guitar from a pawn shop and I’m telling you it plays like a bloody American strat - maybe even better ha! So happy with it
I have 3 Squier guitars and one Squier bass. Love them all. Phenomenal value.
Have 2007 Squier Jazz bass, absolutely nothing wrong with it. Great guitar - I think its mainly in the quality of parts, production year, origin of build but if you are careful and do your research you can get a great instrument. I also have a MEX Fender Stratocaster 2015 - Jimi off-white with maple neck. Its a stunning guitar, holds tune, decent pickups through a Marshall DSL 40 valve. Use a Bluesbreaker pedal to give it a little pre-amp. Half the cost of an American. 95% people cannot tell the difference at a gig.
I have a strat deluxe and im absolutely love it
Got 2! Switched the tuners, and BAMM, instant quality instrument! (Even love the tele!)
For the price of those three guitars you could have bought one decent American fender. I see this long haired dude playing a Squire but I bet he has like 7 custom shop tier American fender guitars
All my favorites are squires..all of them
Wow. You are one of the tastiest, most expressive guitarists I've ever heard.
I'm starting to put on weight due to Chris Buck solos being so damn tasty
That right hand technique is fascinating.
Reminds me of ritchie kotzen
One of the best guitarists around today. We have much yet to hear from Chris!
Love that play-out piece, gorgeous, you make it look so damn easy.
Thanks for sharing.
Chris, your playing is just exquisite! I could listen to you all day.
Back in the day when I used to tip the bottle. I bought a squire 2 that turned out to have crumbling trem system and less than desirable electronics inside. I kept it as a reminder that getting hammered and buying anything is about as stupid as you can get. But after looking at it day after day and also having spent 2 yrs on the wagon I decided I would make it into a player. With the help of Steve the guitar tech at Guitar Center I changed the trem system, tuners, pups to Tex Mex and bingo bango it's one of my favorite guitars. I love the way it plays and the sound is pure beauty. Squire doesn't have to mean crap. A little TLC and you've got something that can surprise you. Also, by upgrading you can make it more the way you want it to really be.
OMFG! Your tone is amazing!!! The way you adjust your playing to get those nuances out is astonishing! Great! Greatest!
I like my Squire, and that's that.
Nuff said
After watching countless videos I gotta say your note selection, phrasing and syncopation easily exceeds most of whats out there..
Been playing for 44 years. Highly creative. Very nice. Very fluid.
Musicians are always cool but a musicians musician is even better.
I have a ‘92 Silver Series MIJ Strat which I picked up for £180 .... few changes on pots, caps and a set of Alinco 2 Tone Riders and man it’s awesome. Best Strat I have ever played... play it more than my Custom Shop Gibson R8👍🎸. As ever great playing can’t wait to see you live next year.
You just made me dig out my hoodie from the cupboard with that outro bro. Bloody chills down back of my neck mun 😂👊
The opening to this video is the best guitar sound and playing I’ve heard. It’s all personal taste of course, but so many things about that song, played like that, are the reasons I want to play guitar. Also the fact that the solo and the chords at the end both sound equally awesome - that is some nice tone!
I have a Squier Tele and it's brilliant. Set up is fantastic and even the stock pickups sound great. Love your playing, very expressive! Thank you.
I had one of these MIJ Squire Silver Series strats back in the day, regrettably sold it. Killer guitars.
I have a red 1983 Japanese JV and its just fantastic. It still has all the original Fender stamped hardware cos back then the bridges and tuners were all the same stock. The body has aged an amazing "orangey" red while the maple neck and fingerboard has mellowed with that deep vintage amber lustre and if it didn't say Squier by Fender you'd think it was a US standard Fender. Love it.
ding dong the JV’s also had US made Fullerton pickups.
@@iwctonly the top of the line JV’s with nitro had USA pickups.
@@pdxbmw77 my JV has US Fullerton pickups and a polyester finish, not Nitro. It’s a ‘57 model bought new in the UK in 1984.
I’ve got a few Fenders (don’t get me wrong, they’re fantastic instruments)and a Gibson due to arrive tomorrow but one of my favorite guitars to pick up is my affinity Tele and a Jackson Dinky that I paid like 160 bucks for. They play so damn great makes me really appreciate the awesome quality of cheaper guitars these days
Squiers are great in that they're fundamentally amazing guitars/basses for their value but also cheap enough that you can progressively upgrade the parts as you go and make it even better.
Wow… blows me away! Lovely tones!
Japanese Squiers are the best!
Just love watching you play!
What an INCREDIBLE outro, thx Chris, thoroughly enjoyed that!
Japanese-made Squiers still exist. They're called Fender Japan, and they are still greater than ever. They only just went up in price, that's all.
are you kidding me? The amount of expression in this final improv is next level! Chris Buck, I how humble you are, but please take these compliments and be proud sir!
I bought a Squire as a backup guitar, chose it because it sounded good acoustically.
A set of decent machines, pots and some Kinman pups I had lying around later and it was my 1st choice for doing Dire Straits numbers.
It was much lighter than the custom Strat I'd built and not as dark. Had to sell it when I was broke and still miss it.,.
Great vid and awesome playing butty
I'm an Aussie. Super cool strat! I bought a Peavey classic 30 off a guy in Sydney a few years back who later was selling a Korean Silver series Strat for $270 Aus. Sent a message as soon as I saw it but he already sold it. 10 mins late. 😢
Anyway, not long after, l bought a Korean Vester Catalina (Strat) for $80 Aus. OMG! What a beast that thing is... The Co' folded coz Fender planned to sue... Damn shame, that!
I have a 1985 Japanese Squier I bought new in 86' Excellent quality compared to my Strat Professional series.The neck is superb.
Japanese squiers are an incredible value, but now that the cat's out of the bag it's much harder to find those killer deals
Thank you Chris for naming that song. I deleted my comment as I found the song with some digging. Keep up the great playing brother. Your tone and approach is incredible. Cheers.
Amen re: who cares about the name on the headstock. I have an inexpensive Washburn I use exclusively for jazz and it’s regularly mistaken for an Ibanez or D’Angelico: guitars worth several times mine. I did drop a different pickup in the neck, but even before then, I preferred it to guitars I had played that cost $1k more. It’s all about that instrument and that player. Wonderful playing as always, Chris.
It is really important to understand that not all Squiers are "created equal".
Many different factories, many different countries.
Here is my own personal list of Squier greatness...
1. Squier JV (Fujigen)
2. Squier Silver Series (Fujigen)
3. Squier Series (Ensenada, Mexico)
4. Classic Vibe (Grand Reward/Cort)
5. Squier Contemporary (Greeta, India)
6. Squier Vista Series (Fujigen)
7. Squier Standard Series
(Cort and Samick)
8. Squier Showmaster and Stagemaster (Cort)
9. Squier II (Greeta, India)
10. Squier SE and Affinity (Yako)
I have a 1990 American Squier Strat that has made me a lot of money. I bought it new in March of 1991.They were built briefly in the US that year after a fire in the Mexican factory. I have upgraded it over the years with better bridge saddles, several different pickup changes, and a better trem block. Great guitar with an excellent neck. I have never touched the tuners as they are rock solid.
Randy McRae big fender logo on the headstock? I was told that story about mine from around the same era, but I checked the SN and it turned out to be a Korean made model. I ended up changing out everything, but the neck is incredible!
Randy McRae: I thought I owned a USA strat but after finding some differences I got on strat-talk and discovered that what I have is a 1990 USA made Squire. But it doesn’t say Squire on the headstock and it does say Made in the USA. The first clue was when I checked the pickups and they had bar magnets glued to them, typical of Squire. I have since replaced them with texmex pickups. Funny thing is It’s a great sounding and playing guitar, even when it had the original pickups.
@@phillipwatson1821 No. It says Squire. If you look it up, you will see the verification that some were made in the US after the fire in Mexico in 1990.
That sounds like the model I have. I thought mine was USA made when I bought it, but I think someone just tried to pass it off as American made. It doesn't say Squier anywhere, but the bottom part of the Fender logo was sanded off and said USA under it. It probably used to say Squier there or something.
Fujigen Squiers are on par with Corona Fenders, love them
I have one of these with a S-H combination and bronce tremolo block and i just love it...
Despite having owned dozens of American Strats now, two of my all-time favorite Strats are Squiers. Both of them are out of production, or production and materials have been long since changed. Regretfully I only have one of them (re-acquired), but i'm working on finding the other. The thing is that I knew it was a great guitar, but I was convinced I was moving on to better things based on the name on the headstock and price point. My snob days are over. That won't happen again.
Never a truer word spoken. I love my 82 JV bought new in Gamlins, Cardiff.
It has Squier on the headstock.
So what.
It's just paint and varnish.
The fact that she's still with me after almost 40 years says it all.
I should say how much I agree with you. I should say that my recent acquisition of an inexpensive but beautiful 90’s Epiphone Sheraton totally backs up what you are saying. But I’m just so blown away and lost in that playing that I don’t really care. You make a guitar sing so beautifully, and quite literally like NO ONE ELSE CAN. I can’t even articulate it. So I’ll just thank you instead.
Much love.
Nice hard tail, sounds great! And totally dig your techniques when picking :-)
I've had a Squier silver series strat with a rosewood fretboard, 3 tone sunburst for 25 years. My main guitar. Nothing comes close to it for playability.....the stock pickups are very nice despite being ceramic. Had 3 different sets of decent pickups in it and always put the stock ones back in....
Kid you’ve got some great life in your playing. Beautiful!
I have 5 pre 90’s Fender & Squires. Great guitars. My ‘86 MIJ Squire Tele has one of the best Telecaster fingerboards I’ve played. Including many Custom Shops.
I have a Squier 60's custom vibe. I love it.
One of my favourite guitars that I own is cheap harley benton. It just sounds and feels great!
Which one? Been thinking about getting one of those or a squier or mexican strat
@AgentYpsilon If I had to buy a cheap guitar for myself I'd get a second hand squier affinity strat off reverb, you can get a mint/like new one for around £100 easily. Most of the stuff on reverb is american with expensive shipping but you can set a filter to only show UK gear.
@@SimonYpsilon I have the HB Strat copy and it is very very good. I will be honest, if I had the money, I'd mexi strat (as I don't like the glossy neck on the classic vibes) My favourite that I mentioned is their version of the ES335 the HB35. If you go to my channel there are reviews of both 😀
I got me a couple of HB acoustics that sit very favourably alongside my gibbo and martin, and by all accounts their electrics punch well above their weight.
Got a jay turser strat w mojotones. It screams like SRV Charley
Love those 2 stage bends Christopher!
I have the exact same, I brought it brand new when I I was about 15 or 16 from musical exchanges in Birmingham, still have it and in mint as new condition, live this guitar
At the same time these silver series were released, Fender also released a Fender Squier Series.. again built in Japan, but badged up as a Fender.. I bought one new, my first electric guitar.. it’s incredible! The silver series was the top end squier and the squier series was the bottom end Fender but ultimately I believe they were pretty much the same guitar.
As always, come for the tone, stay for the tone, wish to hell I had the same tone, resume practicing in the hopes of one day being a fraction as good.
Great video.
4:53 Really well said. "Judge guitars entirely on their merits and not necessarily by what it says on the headstock." Recently I got a replacement neck on my Squier Jagmaster and I thought about whether I should put a decal on the headstock. After all, I didn't put anything on the headstock to remind myself that what really makes your playing sound great is yourself/your hands but not necessarily your gear especially the brand. And when I go out and play, people don't judge my tone or playing by the headstock of my guitar but really by what they hear.
Chris, imho you've become the authority on strat-sounds!
You're a phenomenal player, yet you remain humble.I'd love to attend one of your gigs in the near future.IOh yeah: i've owned and played numerous strats over the past 20+ years and honestly...the best ones were a CIJ 62 reissue and a Warmoth partscaster.Great video!
A lot of truth in what you say, I bought a 20 year old Squier Stratocaster from a charity shop a year ago for £30 and it’s incredibly good, I must make the effort to play it more. Good video as always.
Magnificent Chris. Thanks for another fascinating Friday Fretworks.
Hello mate! I have a Fender Silver Series. They were popular on Argentina in the 90s, mine looks just like your squier and the Silver Series decal it is the same. I never heard about this squiers. Nice weekend for you Chris
Own two Yamaha pacificas 721 from '87 the other 611 hardtail 2015, great sounding great feel. Both bought with the ears rather than the eyes.
not every squier is any good at all. but ive found every pacifica played excellent.
On the look out for a Squier and this one is an absolute gem which has further inspired my search for “the one” for me. Loving your playing more and more each time I listen to you Chris, and what a voice you have found! Incredible and very unique guitar playing up there with some of the best I have heard. Please keep these videos coming.....
You're exactly right about not worrying what label is on the headstock. I have a cheap Strat copy that I have $30 total in it. It plays like a dream...after doing a good setup! Your Squier is awesome!👍😎🎸🎶
I own two squiers that i’ve modded the heck out of. My strat I upgraded all the pickups and configuration to have the second tone knob for the bridge when on. And and push pull for the neck pickup to activate for that neck bridge setting. Fixed all the high frets and sharp ends. Remade a new bone nut from scratch (took me 3 tries to get right) and refinished the whole guitar in a lavender sparkle that I reliced and wore out the neck and gave it the vintage tint. Its also a rosewood fretboard so its really dark and beautiful and has all the playing divot wear. The tele is a newer one that just has all the hardware and pickups upgraded and soon to be refinished to a better looking butterscotch.
I bought a Black Hello Kitty squire Strat just for laughs to play on stage. It has only a humbucker in the bridge and only one volume pot. I didn't do a thing to it except tweak the neck and it plays great and sounds fantastic through my Hiwatt. I do play custom shop Fender telecaster and a gold top Les Paul, but that hello Kitty is quite the rocker.
I have a 50's classic vibe and it feels so good and satisfying to play. The pickups are good too. Not the best but it sounds pretty damn awesome. I put locking tuners, a full size block, new wiring and capacitor, new nut and a good setup and she feels pretty premium. Ill never get rid of it.
I own a 2016 Squier Classic Vibe 50’s Tele. Is my only guitar and I’m in love with it. Is my Frankenstein guitar. Out of the box they sound great.
I'm considering selling off my Schecter or another of my guitars and grabbing one of those Classic Vibes. Everyone raves about them.
Matt Gilbert
They are changing the line for 2019. They are not going to be made in China anymore. Now they are going to be made in Indonesia. And specs are “better”. $50.00 bucks less (american dollars).
I got a white tele 50's vibe tele. Amazing guitar. The only thing i changed was that i sanded down the gloss on the fretboard. Apart from that. Good to go.
songs for the deaf.
I did the same thing. Sanded the neck and the body.
Jeff Healey played squire almost exclusively. Hence you won't catch me talking shit about squire.
nineball26 such a huge loss, amazing artist! ( and that was such a bad joke 🤣)
@nineball26 jack pearson plays new indonesian squires and sounds great. my indonesian squire is as reliable and good sounding as some of the custom shop guitars i have owned.
Kevin Cull What was the "joke" I think I missed something??
Jeff played a Japanese strat. A whole different squier
I just picked up the Squire 40th anniversary guitar and it's great, I highly recommend it
Really beautiful playing in this one Chris. This guitar looks really played in... I bet it's a treat to play. What a sound!
I've been playing a Squier for 15 years. I love it. Great guitar. It's all about the player. You really don't need a $2000 strat. A $200 Squier can produce amazing tones with a quality amp, and I don't mean an expensive amp. Price isn't everything.
It is something though. I have both and love both. But side by side my 200$ squire is amazing for 200$ but i can’t compete with the american. Granted. Is it 10 times better? Debatable
It follows with the Squier basses also. I have a Squire Fretless Jazz bass and a Squier Precision. In the 70s, I had a 1960 Fender Precision (which I had to sell in the 80s to stay in school). My Squier Precision plays and sounds just as good and costs 1/10 the price. The fretless Jazz bass is my favorite. Of course, I spent a lot of time setting each up and I run super light gauge strings 30-50-70-90 s
Pleasure to see you recently in Manchester, could listen all day.
I recently bought a 93 Squier Strat and the neck was as worn as the one in the video. It plays and sounds fantastic and I prefer it much more than the US made Strat I used to own!
Truly amazing player. The kind of player I've always wanted to be.
Just found your channel today. Great playing, great content. Definitely subscribing!
Keep it up dude 👍🏼
The outro was sublime!
The best Squier guitars were the e.series 84-87 I bought one new back in the day,still have it,best guitar I have owned,it has earned me £1000,s over the years,my back up guitars were Fender and Gibson.😊
Super content and awesome playing as always. After x years **cough** I am finally figuring out exactly what you are saying. I am finding that "my name" on the head-stock holds a special value to me and isn't that what it's all about? Thanks for the vid and cheers!!
I have a Classic Vibe 60' and I love it. Tried different Fender like the Road Worn, standard MIM and others model... The only model I tried and found way better was the Silversky
Maxime Beaudoin I actually sold my ‘89 e series Japanese strat for my classic vine strat and never looked back
Hi Chris, I have two Squier Silver Series Strats, one is a Sunburst with black pick guard like yours, but with a rosewood fretboard, the other is a Torino Red, also with a rosewood fretboard. These guitars are fantastic, especially the necks, but they are great all round instruments. The red one is original pickups, the sunburst one has replacement pickups that I fitted. Both are superb, the only thing I would say is that they benefit from upgrading the wiring and pots as the originals were not of the highest quality. They are getting increasingly scarce, but are still available for not too much money.
I love how the neck yellowed and worn
I hear you 💯 percent one of my all-time favorite guitars was a 60s classic vibe telecaster & I've owned a couple custom shop guitars that didn't even come close to that guitar.
I have soooo many vintage guitars. Two USA made gibbons, a bunch of Mexican and Japanese strats, a Swedish 1972 Hagstrom HiiN OT, and many, many more.
Last October i picked up an Indonesian Squier Bullet series Telecaster in Surf Green at GC in Ft. Meyers for a discounted 129.00 bucks because it was the last one in stock, snd was also the floor model. I kid you not, stock it outshined most of the guitars in my collection. Only thing i did to it was put in Fender pots, and an orange drop capacitor, and a electrosocket jack which made it even better than stock. I may as well start selling my other shit since I don’t play anything else.
Dude! Have you ever made a playing lesson series? Your playing is top notch. I would 100% pay $$$$ for your lessons if you ever put them out!
Keep it up, I’m always looking forward to your videos. Cheers!
i just put the irish tour 74' pickup in my squier and i love it !!!!! SQUIER FOR LIFE!!!!
Great video. Enjoyed my Squier’s for years. Started out of necessity because I could not afford the Fender. As I got older I realised the value is in the feel not the brand. Saved a few quid as a result over the same years..👍🇦🇺
I have learned to my cost that the price of a guitar is not necessarily reflective of the playability. You get better wood (usually) and finishes like nitro are nice but my most problematic guitars have been custom shops and a 7k Lowden acoustic which cost more than a couple of squires to fix to where it should have been at the start.
If the fretboard isn’t straight, it’s gonna play like a dog. For consistency, Yamaha is amazing, they just always seem to play right.
All guitars can get problems, that includes Yamaha.
A Yamaha SG400 that I bought used, had a slight torque in the neck because of the GHS heavy bottom strings that had been on it for at least 20 years.
So I made my own set of "Heavy Tops" and pulled the torque out of the neck with the anti-torque. I guess I can play it now with a regular set of 10s if I like.
Whether your guitars get problems depends on where and how you live. I have a house full of humidifiers and I keep the humidity at 46%. That's exactly what's good for my health and for the health of my guitars.
best 3 strats i ever owned, a cortez, a mako, and a harmony. best necks I ever played, and after customizing the pickups, sounded great as well.
My lord, that was some nice guitar playing mate.
Man. Your playing is getting better and better. Awesome.
Hello Chris! I really enjoy your playing and your videos! I too have a 1983 JV Strat, a '62 Reissue I bought brand new and I've had it ever since.
The neck has worn in so well it is slightly scalloped along its edge and the end grain of the Rosewood is wide open, its so cool. These are amazing guitars aren't they?
Fantastic touch.
Expensive isn't always best. I have a 93' peavey predator that iv put maybe 200 dollars in upgrades, and I would put it against any American made fender any day.
I have a Korean Squier gold label from the 90s, I just put some fender custom shop fat 50s pickups in it and it sounds great, alder body and flame maple top and back that was hiding under a cream whit paint. My first and favorite guitar bought it in 97
Excellent content and playing, as ever.
Excellent video! I just got a classical guitar which Id like to try learning to play. Once I master some basics, I’d like a beginner electric. Love the piece at the end of the video
Love a Squier... Sweet ambient jam at the end! Cheers :)
All of the neck on my guitars are kieran squier necks. Beautifully made to a level that you’d have to pay an arm and a leg for from Fender now
That sounded amazing even through my I phone speaker. I can’t imagine what it sounded like in a cave. I’ve owned Fenders and Squiers in the past and always got rid of the Squiers because of the snobbery. I think I will repent lol
as soon as he said he developed a second set of pups for maple fretboards i was in, Subbed! Its shocking how many people dont hear or maybe just dont care about the difference!
I agree, they are brilliant, I've played both Strats and Squires, and prefer the Squires, I have a black Silver Series and a blonde Squire, I travel and record with them all the time, they are awesome.
chris, what a great guitarist you are!! love your playing and musical style...
As much as I love you Chris. I can't take anything you say seriously when it comes to gear because you make anything sound good. 🙈