CS Strat choice-'60s v '66 v '69

[enuenu]

Tossing up between a custom shop '60s Strat and a '66 Closet Classic.
Also a '69 is in the mix if I find one. Just wondering about the different pickup tones.

I played the '60s at super high gain on a Mesa DR and got some tones I liked. It cut some of the flub from the recto as the bass notes had real snap. Chords kept definition even at high gain.

I have read that the pups are a bit thicker in the '66 ('65 vintage set) than the '60s but not as clean. The idea of a dirtier and thicker pup set (ie the '65s) is attractive, but I would not want to lose that bottom end definition through my rig that I enjoyed with the 60 single coil in the bridge.

I haven't been able to play a '66 yet.

Any opinions or preferences?

[exodus]

Good post. I have a '69 strat but swapped out the pickups a while back--not that the '69s are bad (they are great), just wanted to try some WCRs. Ordered a '66 custom shop about 3 months back. The 65-66's pickups are supposedly more bell like and capture the early Hendrix tones. The 60's CS strats- while nice, to me, are just too common. I've owned a couple. Great guitars, but I like big headstock veneer board strats.

[Yossi]

I have a 65 Todd Krauss Masterbuilt closet classic with handwound 65 pickups that are great sounding. I wouldn't think of swapping out.

[Guitarnotsoguru]

whichever one you choose, go for one with modern touches 9.5" radius, medium-jumbo frets. You will enjoy playing it more.

[enuenu]

Thanks a lot. A '66 looking good but still haven't been able to find one to play. I will buy online. The thin nature of the 60s pups actually complemented the bass heavy tone of my Dual Rectifier. A bit more thickness in the '65 vintage pups sounds good as long as I don't lose that bottom end bite. It will come down to what I can get hold of to some extent.

Is the "C" shaped neck especially wide or thick? I have smallish hands and the 50s neck was a bit thick for me (still OK though).
I saw a '66 that was nitro metallic over poly. Would this still breath like a full nitro? Not sure if "breathing" is real anyay.

[enuenu]

Leaning a bit towards the CS 60 pickups for the bass response. As I have a high gain metal rig I don't need bottom end that some Strat players may look for. In fact the thinner and more crisp the bottom end the better for me. I am thinking maybe the '65s and '69s have a fatter sound with less defined bass...maybe????

[Ahess86]

I bought a 66 online and its flat out amazing. Wire the bridge pickup to a tone pot and roll it back to 6-7 for higher gain, gets really fat. This is my least expensive guitar and my favorite... sounds awesome.

[enuenu]

Thanks. I have seen Fender wire the bridge pup to a tone pot on some other models.

[Phil M]

I like the '65 NOS with the 9.5" radius, do they still make that one?

[enuenu]

Not sure. That's something I was kind of looking for.

[rust_in_peace]

If you're looking to buy online, Wildwood has a huge selection of CS Fenders.

http://www.wildwoodguitars.com/electrics/fender/custom_strat/

[Phil M]

If you're looking to buy online, Wildwood has a huge selection of CS Fenders.

http://www.wildwoodguitars.com/electrics/fender/custom_strat/

That candy apple red '65 has been toying with my emotions for months. Oh how I wish...

I like the smaller headstock of the '65 as compared to the '66.

[buddastrat]

The '66's have great necks, chunky C's. I've had a few '69's they were nice too. Necks are a little slim on some of them.

Go for the big headstocks, they rock!

[SonicBlue61]

Tossing up between a custom shop '60s Strat and a '66 Closet Classic.

I was in the same position. I went for the 1960 strat. I found the neck shape more comfortable than the 66. I also thought the pickups were about as good as Fender gets...

[Kelsey]

I have a Time Machine '60 Relic and a Limited Edition '66 Closet Classic with maple veneer fretboard. The neck on the 66 is much thicker front to back than the one on the 60, so I prefer the 66. The pickups have the grey bottom bobbins and sound a littler hotter than the '60 pickups, but it's not a huge difference. They still have a nice full, tight bottom end and high end bite. A '65 should be pretty similar to a '66 in terms of neck profile and pickups.

If you prefer slimmer C necks, then get the 60, but if you want a medium/large chunky C neck get the '65 or '66.
Good luck!

[Joe F]

I'll let others chime in on the pickups, but keep in mind the 69 has a maple cap which also changes the sound. Personally I like it. The necks are all over the map though in my experience. They are all C shaped but some are big, some thin, some the same from 1st to 12th and some that get very fat. I think it's more to do with the piece of wood they start with than the spec per se.

[Alister]

You can get slightly more variety, neck-size (thickness) than this at Wildwood:

http://www.wildwoodguitars.com/electrics/fender/custom_strat/

. For example, they used to have a sorting of '59 necks' on their 60's CS strats, which are described as like a 59 LP neck. Also some "oval" shapes which I believe are thicker than what you'd expect on a strat from this era.
Some of these also violate the holy writ of "the 'lighter, the better,' body wise, so that they sound thicker than you would expect.
All of which is why I bought one (a Blackie 60's.)