Does anyone actually use position 3 on a Strat?

thegummy

Zoolooter said:

Could get past the 1st, I imagine the 3rd is equally as crap.

No idea what this sentence means.

Philly_Q

p90fool

All the time, and it's much easier to grab in a hurry with a 3-way switch.

SpankThePlank

I use them all but I really think it depends a lot on the pickups. I have a '60 CS Relic that has fantastic pickups with a real chime. Other strats I have/had only really suggested this jangly tone. Too hot and they don't have that compressed treble thing, or whatever it is. The rear pickup is great too - really chewy and wiry - quite Tele-like. 

Re the middle position (if that's what the OP meant), Jimi definitely used it a lot and Sultans of Swing sounds like it too, not mid/rear as many might might assume. 

UncleBiff

Don’t currently have a start but I was never a fan of position 3. On a previous one I rewired it to have neck+bridge in position 3, like a Tele.

springhead

Chris Buck has recently made a programme about it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bC7uwiw-XE 

Check out the picture of the Stratocaster manual from 1954 which describes the middle position as "Normal Tone Pickup" with the neck and bridge being "Rhythm" and "Lead" respectively.

the_jaffa

It’s definitely in my top five positions

Musicwolf

I've always thought of the 3 position as being the Wolverhampton of pickup selection.  Something that you pass through on the way to somewhere better but you never actually stop there.

axisus

I didn't touch it for decades, but I use it a bit these days. Definitely the least of the five. I mostly like the neck pickup on a strat.

merlin

I could happily live with the middle and neck pickups only and a three way switch. 

Pablocrackers

Lol......No just no!

kentuckyklira

StuartMac290 said:

The Edge

This would be an argument against ever using it!

Lebarque

the_jaffa said:

It’s definitely in my top five positions

Ahead of doggy style?

KBStrat

All the time, it's my standard gain lead tone, punchy and cutting without being overly dark or shrill. 

Lebarque

In my experience, it depends on the pickup set. The middle position can often sound crap, but get the right pickups and it's gold.

Think Clapton and Trower use it a lot. I've often used the strat like Trower: use middle position as 'bridge', use neck/middle as 'middle' and use neck as neck obvs.

There's another argument that you needn't ever venture from the neck pup on a strat. It's an iconic sound.

Bill_S

With the right amp and signal chain the middle position can be awesome for rhythm. 

HAL9000

merlin said:

I could happily live with the middle and neck pickups only and a three way switch. 

This.

Mark1960

I use the middle (3) as my go to sound when I'm not looking for any particular sound if that makes sense. The neck is great for blues with effects, or mellow clean, the bridge is nice and punchy, and I personally don't use 2 and 4 (out of phase) that often. I think a lot depends on the type of music you play, and the type of pickups you have.

Pabcrane

My band mate from an old band of mine used it all the time - much more than the other two or in-between.

CountryDave

Rarely used it until I got an EBMM Albert Lee.  It was one of my favourite sounds on that guitar.