Strat guys, what would you do?

[wrxplayer]

I have a Fernandes LE-2 (pictured below), a MIJ strat style guitar, in mint condition. It's really well made and I like the thin neck very much. Hardware is also nice (Gotoh). Pots and pickups, however, aren't so nice.

I'm playing in a band now and would like to have the strat option. I'm considering either buying a pickups/pots assembly from Acme or buying a new (but used) strat that's good to go.

If I upgrade what I have the total cost would be a bit under $600, so that's what I'd use a maximum price for a purchase.

What would you do and why?

Also, Ive posted to different pickguards. Which do you think would look best on this guitar?

Thanks.

http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee199/evanlerner/hamer010.jpg
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee199/evanlerner/pickguard1.jpg
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee199/evanlerner/pickguard2.jpg

[dosmun]

If the guitar is a good player for you then I would go for new Pups. A lot cheaper than another guitar but , another guitar is fun as well.
Maybe another guitar and new pups.

[NR2112]

If that guitar feels good I would saty with it. It looks cool as hell. And there are SOOO many upgrades you can do!

Yum....

[TS808]

If you're happy with the feel of the guitar and the wood, I'd go with upgrading too. You can find a lot of pre-wired assemblies to drop right into that guitar with different types of pups.

A company that puts out some nice pre-wired assemblies is Metal Shop Music:

http://metalshopmusic.com/metalshopmusicscustomstratloadedpickguards.aspx

[Carbohydrates]

I'll reiterate what everyone else said: it's down to whether you enjoy the feel and playability of this guitar.

[Drew816]

Lots of pickup options out there and Acme's has quite a few good choices that are on pre-built pickguards which is attractive if you need to replace the entire electronics section.

What kind of music and tone are you looking for? I've become quite a fan of Lollar pickups which aren't offerred but Acme has Fenders, Van Zandts, Suhr, Fralins, and Duncans so I'm sure you can find a set to match what you're looking for. Want to kill the single coils hum, get a Suhr BPSSC when you're buying and you're totally set. I really need to invest in these for my Strats but I've kinda gotten use to them the way they are...

If you already have another axe then I say upgrade one you like and enjoy. To me it's the neck and how the guitar plays, buying another axe might lead you down another costly upgrade path too or you might find out it's not going to do the job and then you're really stuck. I purchased an axe here recently only to find the neck is not going to work for me, now I'm having to sell it and likely take a loss in the process; HASSLE!

Good luck and nice looking guitar.

[GAT]

Shameless spam, but I bought an ACME kit with Suhr FLs, SSC system, back plate. It's all ready to go. PM is interested. I bought the kit to put in a strat, but then I bought a Suhr guitar with the same stuff and sold the other guitar. It's all brand new.

BTW, the Suhr FLs and amazing.

[plain-boy]

I would upgrade that one. Trade-in value/Resale value on these (wonderful) guitars is not good at all in this economy. So getting what you paid for it originally would be unlikely.

[dazco]

I had one of those and while a lot of it may have to do with getting lucky with the wood, the thing was one of the best sounding MIJ's i ever had. I ruined it unfortunately or i may still be playing it. All you need are some decent pickups and a trem. Defiantly change the trem because they have those tiny light wedge shaped blocks, and any trem with a normal block will be an improvment. If you like the strats tone and feel i would say definatly upgrade. Used you can probably get away with about $150, and buying a new strat with all good stuff will cost you a lot more. And you won't get near as much for the fernandes as it's worth. Those guitars are the EXACT same guitar made in the exact same factory as the MIJ reissues were. the only difference is the ones slated to be fernandes' were given a differen head,decal, trem and maybe pups or such. But the necks and bodies are the same guitar.

[skyblue]

With a $600 budget, I would get a good set of p/ups. $150-$200 should cover the entire gamut of name-brand stand-bys for anything from classic to aggressive tones. With the remainder, I'd get another guitar in a style I don't currently have.

[wrxplayer]

With a $600 budget, I would get a good set of p/ups. $150-$200 should cover the entire gamut of name-brand stand-bys for anything from classic to aggressive tones. With the remainder, I'd get another guitar in a style I don't currently have.

The out of pocket/"new money" budget is $300. If I bought a different guitar (rather than upgrade) I'd sell the Fernandes for $300 and invest another $300, hence the $600 number.

[mnjordan]

That is a cool looking guitar.

I'd do Fralin pickups, and RS Guitarworks (http://www.rsguitarworks.net/rsstore/product_info.php?cPath=47_61&products_id=398) kit. I got all my Fralins used, anywhere from $100-$150 for a set of three.

The prewired kits are a little less if you are into doing it yourself.

[Texas_Blues]

Pre-wired Fralin kit +Callaham Tremolo system= tonal goodness.

[guitarfish]

I'd buy a used MIA Fender Strat for $600-650. They're out there, and in good condition.