Fender Stratocaster Product Description
Introduction: Since its inception in 1954 the Fender Stratocaster has remained one
of the guitar industries top-selling guitar. Its design and components have also
remained relatively unchanged since the original model as well. Its innovative style
and overall quality is what lead to the guitar’s massive
Tuning Posts
success. The signature double cut-away body style is one
Tuning Pegs
of the most replicated guitar shapes. Also the Stratocaster
was the first guitar to use three different pickups as well as
the first to use a floating tremolo system.
Headstock: The Stratocasters headstock has an iconic
shape, which helped contribute to its signature style.
Functionally the main purpose of the headstock is to house
the tuning system on the guitar.
Head Stock
Tuning Pegs: The tuning pegs are located on the topside of
the headstock. Their function is to allow a player to adjust the tension of the strings
to ensure that the guitar remains in tune: twisting the pegs either clockwise or
counter-clockwise can do this. It should be noted that the direction of the pitch
change will depend on how the string is wrapped around the tuning posts.
Tuning Posts: These posts are located in the middle of the headstock, adjacent to
their respective tuning posts. Strings are slid through small holes in these posts and
then wrapped around them to anchor them on the top of the guitar. These posts
turn with the tuning pegs to adjust the tension of the strings.
Frets: Frets are small metal bars running down the neck of the
guitar that indicate places a players finger can be pressed to
play a different note. This is achieved by making a string
shorter, which changes the frequency at which it
vibrates. The Stratocaster contains 21 frets.
Fret Marker
Fret Markers: These are small circular marks on
the neck of the guitar the helps a guitarist identify which fret their hand is on, as it
can be difficult to quickly count them without an easy point of reference.
Body: The body of the Stratocaster has little functional use in the guitar, but it is
responsible for housing critical equipment that makes the guitar work. Unlike an
acoustic guitar’s body the body of an electric guitar is solid and not responsible for
the tone of the guitar. The particular look of the Stratocaster is rather iconic. It
features a double cutaway look that has been copied by many guitars since its
release in 1954.
Frets
Bridge
Pickups
Bridge: This is located on the bottom portion of the body
and is mainly used to anchor the strings at the bottom of
the guitar. Strings are inserted through the backside of the
guitar and up through the bridge. Guitar strings are
manufactured to have a knob on the end of strings that will
get caught in the bridge. Once the strings are caught in the
bridge they are pulled into a notch in order to keep them in
proper alignment. The bridge is also part of
Tremolo bar
Input jack
the innovative floating tremolo system of the Stratocaster that will be
Pickup selector
Tone knobs
Tone knobs
Volume knob
explained at length in the tremolo bar section.
Volume Knob: The volume knob is located below the bridge, and as the name
suggests, is used adjust the volume of the guitar. Simply twisting the knobs does
this. This raises or lowers the amperage that is sent to the amplifier.
Tone Knobs: These nobs are used to fine-tune the sound of an electric guitar. They
are connected to a capacitor that removes high frequencies from reaching the
amplifier. This will give the guitar a warmer smoother tone that is sometimes
desired.
Input Jack: The input jack is used to send the current produced by the electric
guitar to an amplifier so it can be heard. A guitar creates electricity, but it is not
enough to generate a loud noise, so an amplifier must be used. Also many amplifiers
as well as effect pedals can be used to achieve specific tones that are not able to be
achieved with the guitar alone.
Tremolo Bar: The tremolo bar itself is a simple device. It is a bar on the front of the
guitar that can be pressed down to tilt the bridge forward and momentarily loosen
the tension on the strings. This was a feature that had been used in the past. The
floating tremolo system is a bit different however. In a standard tremolo system the
bridge is connected to springs in the body of the guitar so that the bridge will not
move unless there is force applied by the tremolo bar. In the floating tremolo
system the tension of the springs is lessened so the tension from the strings gives
the bridge a slight tilt forward to start. Because the bridge is already tilted forward
the player isn’t just limited to the ability to loosen the tension of the strings, it is also
possible to pull up on the tremolo bar tightening the strings and getting a higher
frequency.
Pickups: The pickups are the most important part of the Stratocaster, or any guitar
for that matter. They are what makes the guitar able to generate the current that
creates music. The pickups themselves are made up of two key components,
magnets and a wire coil. The wire coil is a copper wire that is wrapped around the
pickup thousands of times. The magnets are in the middle of the coil. The reason
why pickups are able to turn vibrating strings into current relies heavily on
principles of electromagnetism. The magnets create a magnetic field that is constant
hen the guitar isn’t being played. When a string is struck it causes a disturbance in
the magnetic field. On an electric guitar metal strings must be used, as they need to
have the magnetic properties that cause this disturbance in the magnetic field.
When the magnetic field is disturbed there it causes what is called a flux in the
magnetic field. This flux is what generates the electric current in the coils of the
pickups and subsequently the current that leaves the input jack. The reason that the
sound that leaves the guitar is a sound that matches the tone made by the string is
that a vibrating string vibrates at a certain frequency, this causes the disturbance in
the field to occur at the same frequency as the string. A Fender Stratocaster has
three pickups.
Pickup Selector: This selector is a switch that selects which pickup’s current will be
sent to the amplifier. The difference in the pickups is their location on the guitar.
The pickup nearest to the bridge creates much more high frequency tones as it is
located near a point where the strings have their highest tension. The pickup
nearest the neck provides a much more bass oriented tone. Using the selector a
player can choose between all three and a combination of the front and middle
pickup or the back and middle pickup. Since no other guitar before the Stratocaster
had three pickups the Stratocasters pickup selector lets a player have more choice in
creating a very specific tone.
Conclusion: The Fender Stratocaster is a classic guitar that has kept a winning
formula the same for many years and still remains a staple of the guitar community.
It’s innovative and stylish design has become a standard of the industry.