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Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E

Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW

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Playability

70

Sound

79

Build

72

Value

69

Score

74

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Playability

73

Sound

77

Build

77

Value

61

Score

76

FIND IT ON:

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Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E vs Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW

Price History Comparison

Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E Prices

• New from $1,549.99 >>
• New from $1,549.99 >>
• New from $1,549.99 >>
• New from $1,549.99 >>
• Used from $1,077 >>

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Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW Prices

• New from $4,511.51 >>

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Which One is Better Overall?

After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW is probably the better product overall with its final score of 76 compared to the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E's 74 score, although not by a lot.

The Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW wins when it comes to playability, build quality. On the other hand, the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E has the upper hand when it comes to sound, value for the money.

If you got small hands, you'll probably feel more comfortable playing the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW.

Which One is Better for Beginners?

If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW is the better choice.

The Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW meets 6 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E meets only 4. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players.

Nevertheless, when it comes to choosing an instrument, you should pick the one more compatible with your personal style. Still, below we'll try you to give you our results as objectively as it's possible to help you decide.

Sound Quality Comparison

The wood used in an electric guitar or bass is not as important to determine the final tone. However, some people prefer specific wood types, so we'll take a look at those first. Then, we'll take a look at the electronics to determine the versatility and sound quality of each instrument.

Woods Used in the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E

Maple is one of the most popular necks for good reasons. It is a strong wood that is relatively cheap to make and looks beautiful. The highest quality maple is the hardest that comes from North America. Find out more about Maple.

Ebony is a high-end wood, so it is not cheap. It's only used for fretboards because it's also very heavy. It does an excellent job as a durable material while looking elegant. Find out more about Ebony.

Mahogany is a fairly rare wood nowadays. It's used mostly for bodies due to its relatively lightweight. Gibson popularized it with their Les Paul guitars during their golden years, so this wood has a lot of good reputation behind it. The most expensive type comes from South America and it's still used by Gibson even today. Find out more about Mahogany.

Woods Used in the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW

This wood has beautiful patterns only found in specific types of maple.

Rosewood is an almost purple-looking wood that is used mainly for fretboards since it's heavy, rare, and expensive. It's sometimes used on acoustic guitar bodies to create stronger warm tones. Find out more about Rosewood.

Ash is a type of wood that Fender used almost exclusively in the 50s, and it's still used by many brands. It's a dense wood with a light color that works well for a transparent, natural finish because of its beautiful patterns. In terms of sound, it's known for emphasizing the mid and high frequencies, but with strong low end. Find out more about Ash.

Winner: Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW.

Pickup Configuration

The Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E has an H configuration while the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW has SSS pickups.

A single H pickup gives you the advantage of having a little longer sustain (all other things being equal) because there will be less magnetic fields from other pickups affecting the strings' vibration. However, they also give you the least versatility because you won't have other pickups at different distances from the bridge to create different tones. A single humbucking pickup is used for noiseless high output, which is used mainly for Hard Rock genres.

On the other hand, SSS is perfect for players who like to play clean. The definition you get between notes and the crispiness is unmatched by most other configurations. You can still use it for distortion, but you won't get the same kind of output and power compared to a humbucker, and the hum they produce also makes them less adequate for high gain.

Pickups Quality

Both come with very good pickups from at least one of the specialized brands in the market. With pickups like these, you probably won't need an upgrade anytime soon.

However, the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW has a slight sound quality advantage when taking into account other factors like the type of pickups, magnet, position, etc.

You can purchase similar pickups to the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E's and use them on any guitar:

The Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E's pickups are Active while the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW's are Passive.

Passive pickups are what most guitars use. These have a normal output that works well for most genres. However, Active pickups are the preferred choice of heavy metal players because they offer extra output thanks to their 9v battery, which results in a heavier, more distorted sound. Bear in mind that achieving a completely clean tone with them won't be easy. So if you want to also use clean tones, you might want to avoid Active pickups.

Winner: Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW.

Versatility Comparison

Some instruments offer you more ways to explore your creativity than others. Below you'll find how both compare when it comes to versatility.

Switch Options

The Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW gives you 5 switch options while the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E gives you 0. This means that the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve

Only the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E comes with some kind of pickup modification: Multi-Voicing.

Multi-Voicing means the pickups come with multiple ''voices'', which means they can change the tone and gain by a simple switch or knob. Piezo, Fishman and similar are considered multi-voicing pickups.

The Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E doesn't come with pickup switching options.

When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.

Winner: Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW.

Final Sound Quality Scores

Build Quality Comparison

When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E compares to the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW.

Country of Origin

The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E is built in Mexico while the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW is made in United States.

Mexico has been for a long time where Fender has built their semi-premium series. If you don't want to overpay for a wellp-built instrument, a guitar built in this country by a good brand always offers good value for the money.

The United States is considered one of the best electric guitar manufacturers in the world. A guitar made in this country is supposed to have world-class quality control. Nowadays, guitars made in other countries can beat some of the ones made in the US, but most of the time, this country offers the best you can get. Of course, that comes at a price.

Winner: Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW

Nut Material

If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.

The Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E has a Locking nut. Instead of a regular nut, this guitar has a locking system that will lock down the strings at the nut, preventing it from getting out of tune. It removes one of the disadvantages of tremolo bridges, tune stability.

On the other hand, the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW comes with a Bone nut. It's a type of nut found in high-quality instruments. They sound similar to Ivory since they give a lot of sustain and a bright sound (at least when striking open strings). The only problem they can run into is that you may get a bone piece that simply doesn't sound as well as others because that's just how natural materials are.

Winner: Tie.

Fret Material

Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.

Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.

Winner: Tie.

Bridge

The perfect bridge for you will depend on your playstyle because they all have advantages and disadvantages. However, some bridges are more expensive—like Floyd Roses and Evertunes—and thus add more value to a guitar.

The Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E's brige is a Floyd Rose. This is a double-locking bridge system that allows you to perform techniques like dive bombs and pinch harmonics. The locking nut allows your guitar to stay in tune even after the most intense tremolo usage. The disadvantage is that it takes more work to change the strings and set up everything correctly.

On the other hand, the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW's is a Tremolo. Tremolo bridges give you more versatility than fixed bridges. They let you perform the intense vibrato effects that would be impossible with a fixed bridge. However, since the bridge floats and there's less contact with the body, the strings lose sustain slightly faster. They can also be a bit harder to restring and set up correctly than fixed bridges.

Since we need to be objective, the most expensive type of bridge will be the winner of this section. In the end, this doesn't matter if you're not going to use the bridge for its original purpose, so choose the bridge that fits your playing style better.

Winner: Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E.

Tuners

Both come with regular tuners. The Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E's are Charvel-Branded Die-Cast while the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW's are Sperzel Die-Cast with White Pearloid Buttons

Winner: Tie.

Neck Joint

Contrary to popular belief, the difference in sustain and tone that some neck joints give to a guitar is simply unperceivable—if they're all well built. However, some of them do have advantages over the others.

Both have a Bolt-On neck joint. This neck is joined to the body by 4 bolts that you can simply unscrew. This allows you to replace the neck or take it off for travel. It's the most common and cheapest way to build a guitar.

Winner: Tie.

Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:

Final Build Quality Scores

Playability Comparison

Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.

Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.

Nut Width

The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E has the wider nut with 42.9mm (1.688'') vs 41.9mm (1.65''). This is a 1mm (0.038'') difference

This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.

Scale Length

The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.

In this case, both have a scale length of 25.5".

This is the scale used in most Stratocasters. It's slightly longer than the typical 24.75'' size found in Les Pauls, and it's one of the main reasons why Stratocasters have such a bright sound in general. A longer scale also means that the strings will have higher tension. This will help you get lower action without suffering fret buzz, which will also be helpful when playing in lower tunings without having to increase your string gauge.

However, this also means that there will be more separation between frets, which can make it more difficult to play. Also, bending the strings will require more strengths due to the increased tension, but remember that a tremolo guitar will offset this difficulty.

Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.

Neck Profile

No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.

Both the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E and the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW have a C-shaped neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.

Fretboard Radius

Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.

Both have a compound radius. This means both offer you the best craftsmanship when it comes to fretboard design. You'll have an arc to help you play chords close to the nut, while also having a flat design at the higher frets for faster soloing and easier bends.

Hand Size Comfortability

Everyone has a different hand size, and that's why it's recommended to try a guitar before buying, even if others tell you that it's comfortable to play. However, we can know whether a guitar favors small or large hands just by knowing its exact measurements.

And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E favors large hands more than the Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW. But it's still more comfortable for people with small hands, as you can see in the score meter below.

Charvel Phil Sgrosso Signature Pro-Mod So-Cal Style 1 H FR E:

Fender Custom American Custom Strat RW:

Fret Size

Both have a Jumbo fret size. This is one of the tallest frets you can get. You won't feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings. It will give you the best sustain and all types of chords will be easier to play. However, you can end up changing the pitch of your notes if you press too hard, which is something people used to feeling the fretboard do when trying Jumbo frets for the first time.

Final Playability Scores