[blank] Makes the Greatest Tone Difference In Stock Strat.

The player???

 

Adjust the pickup height, deck the trem, try different brands/gauges strings. The sound is in there, you just sometimes have to look for it.

 

Beat me to it...

Having proper setup for intonation aside, probably pickup height makes the biggest audible difference for the smallest changes.

 

Yup, I'll third that.

 

New strings, experimentation with eq on guitar and amp, plus effect pedals can all make big differences. Even the environment in which you play.

 

high action

 

One of the most noticeable adjustments I found is to slacken all the strings off a bit (I’ve done it at full tension but I don’t think your supposed to so maybe go half) and then loosen each of the four neck bolts a couple of turns and you’ll likely hear a worrying but perfectly harmless CRACK as the tension of the strings pull the neck into the pocket. I imagine the crack is the noise the neck and body finish make rubbing together as they move a thousandth of an inch but I noticed a difference doing that. Probably more obviously acoustically but that will also effect the guitar plugged in.

 

Try rotating those two bottom knobs.

 

Leave it in a car overnight during a blizzard, then bring it into a very warm room. Gives it a great tone.

 

A better amp. More improvement there than anywhere. If just guitar adjustments, agree with everyone above.
and then PRACTICE.

 

If the tone were a Kilometer... then the player's talent gets ya 900 meters, the amp, another 90... the remaining 10 are representative of anything else you care to mention, in no particular order.

Or,. if you have the chops and have a good amp, nothing else matters much... and if ya don't think that's sincere, note, I cannot give ya the chops, and I don't sell amps...

r

 

i would say full calibration - neck angle, relief, fretwork, nut slot heights and intonation.

i say that if a guitar is setup as well as can be then your action height is just your choice and will still be easy to play even with a high action.

almost every guitar i have ever picked up has major settings way out of whack.

after fretwork and setups all my guitars are the same grade.

 

As expected the majority of responses dont answer your question.

Depending on the block you have, the block may be the biggest difference.
If you have a pre-2006 MIM Standard change the thin zinc block to a full size steel block.

 

Talent

 

I'm assuming with the same player, pup height, bridgefloat and string gauge.

 

On the nose.

 

[blank] Makes the Greatest Tone Difference In Stock Strat.

A Hearing Test

 

Thick neck and frets made out of good material

 

If you sink the middle pickup down a bit from the neck and bridge, it’ll get out of the way of your picking hand (especially for us hybrid pickers) and the notch positions become even more chimey.

Also, with overdrive it gives this cool hollow 3d bell sorta tone to the middle pickup.