Fender Fret Famine ?

KevS

I received a New Fender Player Strat HSS maple fingerboard via courier yesterday from Peach Guitars..
The frets are very low,I can bend strings..Legato and getting the notes to happen during it is difficult..
I have a corn type of thing that has appeared on my pinky from having to pull off so hard..
Double Entendre city there..I know..These frets are so low,I find the guitar a bit difficult to play..
I would say it was due a refret really..Apart from that it is a very nice guitar..

There are 2 possibilities,,either Fender is rationing fret metal very tightly,
or the guitar originally had frets up and down like the Alps and they have been levelled within an inch of their life..
Has anyone got a recent Player Strat..I find these frets very low,whats your opinion. compared to other guitars..

Again it is a nice guitar,not a weighty beast..
No other issues,at least I can play it to some degree rather than the frets causing dead note and dead bends..
I can do the Gilmour 5 step bend on the B sting on the 13th fret,a perfect fourth..
You usually have to get the frets dressed to a flatter radius that the board camber to do that..
Unless you hike the action,none of that happening here.. 

The Single Coils are maybe a bit puny and lacking in body and sizzle..
I handily have some Texas Specials to sort that out..
I heard folk say they are Fat 50s/also old USA Fender Standard Strat pickups...
It says they are Alnico 5 magnets..
I'm not a Fan myself,they lack balls and presence for me...
I have 2007 USA Standard Strat Pickups and they are much ballsier..
The humbucker is actually pretty bright..
It is quite a low output affair..

Strangely it was the actual guitar in the picture..
The little knot in the wood is in the same place..
The guitar now on display for that model is a different one..

I like my little knot in the wood..

chotu495

Get in touch with Peach, and i’m sure they’ll be happy to help resolve any issue 

stickyfiddle

What guitars are you comparing against? I'd be surprised if any modern spec Fender had particularly low frets.

Though if you're managing a 5-fret bend without choking and without needing a stupidly high action that suggests the guitar plays just fine.

KevS

stickyfiddle said:

What guitars are you comparing against? I'd be surprised if any modern spec Fender had particularly low frets.

Though if you're managing a 5-fret bend without choking and without needing a stupidly high action that suggests the guitar plays just fine.

I have a Roland Synth Ready Mexican Standard Strat..The frets are miles taller on that..That guitar is basically the equivalent series before the Player Series just with a Roland GK pickup in it......All of my guitars have taller frets..Gibsons,Fenders,Epiphones,A Sterling Music Man...Some have had fret dresses because of fret wear...I don't have a time machine,but I'm sure before I got my Mexican Classic refretted with medium Jumbos the frets were higher..These frets seem tiny..I have heard a lot of tales of uneven frets on the Player series guitars..So as I said above,maybe it has had an over zealous fret levelling..I know I like the guitar and I bought it for a purpose..For something versatile and back friendly...I didn't have an HSS Strat.I just didn't expect frets this small..Jumbo frets may be fine for bending,but they can end up choking out before smaller frets choke,it depends on a lot of factors...You can also camber the frets flatter than the fingerboard radius..What may have happened here..This guitar has a 9.5 Radius,not a Vintage 7.25...My other 4 Strats..An American Special Strat,now that has big Frets..An American Standard.,,now an HH with coil splits...A Mexican Classic,now refretted and levelled once,also had the fingerboard taken to a 9.5 camber....I played the frets off that as you do,plus my Roland Strat.. and 3 Teles have higher frets.A Highway one series 2..That has big Frets..Although that guitar has been hammered and dressed twice..A now refretted with medium Jumbos Japanese 60s reissue Tele with binding..I think the official name is Edgebound Tele..again that now has a 9.5 Radius,,.Plus a American Special Tele now converted to a Thinline..Again full Jumbos on that...  .Two of my Les Pails after 15 years playing and 2 fret levellings have higher frets..A Standard and an old style Classic..These had normal Gibson frets..I have a Junior and a 70s Tribute with Jumbo frets....Those guitars have been hammered between band practice and gigs etc.I play guitar a lot,,this takes it's toll on fets...This Strat has very low frets..I have owned a lot of Fender guitars in my 35 years of playing probably over 20..Plus a few stray Squiers too of different eras....

The thing is the literature states that this model has Medium Jumbo Frets..Why I asked if it was normal for this model..
I really like this guitar apart from the frets and the present single coils..I usually end up modifying my guitars for what is more useful to me..i know what pickups I like etc..I am just confused as there are definitely not medium Jumbo frets..

Jackobean

chotu495 said:

Get in touch with Peach, and i’m sure they’ll be happy to help resolve any issue 

This. Peach are good people.
I'm sure they'll gladly exchange it or give you a refund without any bother.

skunkwerx

Maple fretboard you say? how thick is the poly? That could add to the perception. 

KevS

skunkwerx said:

Maple fretboard you say? how thick is the poly? That could add to the perception. 

Actually it is quite thick and shiny..

KevS

Jackobean said:

chotu495 said:

Get in touch with Peach, and i’m sure they’ll be happy to help resolve any issue 

This. Peach are good people.
I'm sure they'll gladly exchange it or give you a refund without any bother.

I like the guitar apart from the frets..I may get 6100s put on it..I normally like medium Jumbos as well..
These just don't seem like medium Jumbos..A good guitar is a good guitar though..It sounds mad.but I think guitars tell you what they want and what they want to be....I have more modded guitars than unmodded..It is cheaper to mod this than buy say an American Performer..I usually buy guitars knowing I will end up changing the pickups and playing the frets off the thing..This guitar has a good vibe about it..I trust instinct..Very few guitars are perfect,especially not when dealing with buying by mail..

Again I am more wondering what other owners think about the fret height of theirs..I don't expect perfection for just over £500.. 

skunkwerx

Mm I just dug out a couple pics. I used to own one back when they first came out, so about 3 years ago or so now. Back when they had bent steel saddles and terribly cut nuts in the first runs. 

I don’t remember the Player Series feeling particularly low, not as low as say the mediums feel on my LPJ. When I first played that I was like those are damn low, surely these arent mediums! 

Bit crappy quality as I had to screenshot them from my insta, and I know its almost impossible to judge anything by as well.. 

KevS

skunkwerx said:

Mm I just dug out a couple pics. I used to own one back when they first came out, so about 3 years ago or so now. Back when they had bent steel saddles and terribly cut nuts in the first runs. 

I don’t remember the Player Series feeling particularly low, not as low as say the mediums feel on my LPJ. When I first played that I was like those are damn low, surely these arent mediums! 

Bit crappy quality as I had to screenshot them from my insta, and I know its almost impossible to judge anything by as well.. 

Mine are lower than that still..They really are miserly..I have been standing up playing it plugged in..Lots of cool riffs are falling out,but as soon as I start to play lead,,it's like the notes disappear when I do any pull offs..There isn't much to grip onto..I have another Strat I am swapping over and I can play on that..Or at least my version of playing....lol..I can confidently go for it on it..My lead playing just falls apart on the Player series..I can't pick 16th note runs faster than about 150 bpm,so I slip in Legato,I have pretty short fingers though..lol..What I do around my limitations works for me..We are all different..I reckon finding our own way around things when limitations show up is a lot of what makes us all different..Not having enough fret there makes me fall on my arse basically..lol..I guess I am a Wimp..lol... I have set the guitar up to be comfy enough to play and get big bends out of it etc..The thing is,the feel of the guitar inspires you to want to go for it on it..It is as I said,a nice weight..I have had a few heart attacks and surgery..So I am weight watching as far as guitars go..I don't feel the weight as much with a Strat anyway..I think that might be the top horm..I get back problems too and hip problems..The Strat seems to bother those less..Maybe I need to go to a knackers yard.lol..I got the trem working nicely and staying in tune.I think Peach have recut the nut..I put big bends nut sauce in there anyway..It seems to last for a very long time..Put in a Graph Tech string tree...It feels like a really nice guitar..I think although pricey I am going to save up and get it refretted..I can feel the potential..Some guitars just don't have it..Apart from the frets and the single coils ..Which I have anyway,,this is a good guitar..I have played Dogs with no actual real issues..This thing has potential..I feel it is something I could bond with big time..Guitars are strange..I have guitars that are a bit too heavy for me,but I know how many duffers are out there,so I know things could be so much worse.So I tolerate them...I definitely have guitars I like and am more attached than others I own,,some are tools,some almost play you..I have a satin Finished Les Paul Junior that writes riffs for me..I can just feel potential in this guitar..It just needs bigger frets..

I think Peach have probably levelled very uneven frets..I keep reading about uneven frets on these guitars..My Roland/Mexican Standard had ridiculously uneven frets.It has a rosewood board,so I have never came across these think varnished shiny maple boards before...I've experienced quite a few Epiphones with very uneven frets too.. .

Winny_Pooh

Send it back

JonHosker

Defo send it back
 Fender quality is usually strong.
Peach and Coda are the best shops for customer service. Speak to them.
All the best.
Jon

KevS

The problem is my health doesn't really allow me to do that..I have no transport,,I am not able to carry it..I am in 6 risk groups for Covid..I think I will get this sorted out..Then stop buying guitars..I have plenty..

Alex2678

I’d hope that if that’s the case and there’s something wrong with it they’d help you arrange collection 

KevS

I have taken the action down further and things have improved a bit..
I can't take the high E too low or it starts to lose tone..
I wish they gave you fret choice when buying new guitars..
I guess that is builder/custom shop stuff..
Even with a refret which will probably make this into a guitar that would be better for me than a Professional Series..
The Performer Series is over a grand with juicy big frets..
Back when it was the American Special Series,you got Texas Specials which I like..
The Yosemite Sam pickups..I'm not so keen on..
So Factor in a pickup change.. 
I am not a fan of small frets..Economical in the long run to make the Player play how I want though,
rather than have to pay for Fender expensive options and they choose those options,not me....
The Jumbo frets as standard are great..
Although I find they tend to need dressed to make the fret radius a little flatter than the fingerboard radius..
So factor in a fret dress from new..This would be included in the price of a refret..
So an actual refret on a Player Series is not that drastic really..

p90fool

Fwiw I had my number one gigging guitar refretted with huge stainless frets.
I could have just bought something with bigger frets but I loved the guitar. It was worth every penny and the frets will outlive me. 

If a guitar really speaks to you don't be afraid to make it exactly what you want, there's too much fear of damaging resale value in the world when it could be the one you want to take to the grave. 

brucegill

Surely a refret would be over double the cost of a fret dress. And by the time you’ve added a refret to the price of the guitar and new pickups your getting into the territory of a different guitar altogether price wise. 

Just get them to collect it. if it’s not right, it’s not right. 

SPECTRUM001

From what you have said above, due to the current covid situation you are quite compromised with travel etc - which makes refrets and setups a real chore.

I previously owned a Player series guitar, and the MJ frets were of a comfortable and generous size - and became my preferred fret. If for whatever reason your neck has been allocated the wrong gauge, taken down in height prior to sale or just had a batch of wire that was skinnier than normal, then send it back.

As has been said already, Peach’s after sales is considered one of the best, so you should be well cared for.

KevS

brucegill said:

Surely a refret would be over double the cost of a fret dress. And by the time you’ve added a refret to the price of the guitar and new pickups your getting into the territory of a different guitar altogether price wise. 

Just get them to collect it. if it’s not right, it’s not right. 

The problem is,most guitars arent really right...Or at leas a comprimise..They don't make a guitar for just me..They make a guitar to have a broad appeal..I would rather make it my guitar..A bit more expensive,but experience,both good and bad has told me what works for me..

I know what pickups I like and what frets I like etc...

I also know other alternatives..

Fender don't do a Strat with Texas Specials on it until you get to much higher money theses days..

A refret isn't cheap,but aStrat with Jumbo frets is around twice the price I paid for the Player Series..

I usually end up modding my guitars as I use them..

For me a guitar should fulfil at least one function..

Lets say you don't have a Strat for Metal,but hate locking trems..

Modify your Strat a bit,especially if you like the feel of the guitar..