Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster vs Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V
Reasons to Get
Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster over Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V
Reasons to Get
Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V over Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster
Other Key Differences
Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster vs Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V
Shared Features
Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster vs Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V
Common Strengths
- From a High-Quality-Standards Country
- Top Pickup Brand
- Expensive Wood
Common Weaknesses
- Weight Relief
- Locking Tuners
- Stays in Tune (Evertune)
- High-Quality Frets
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Luminescent Sidedots
- Strap Lock
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Table of Contents
Price History Comparison
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Which One is Better Overall?
After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that the Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster is probably the better product overall with its final score of 74 compared to the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V's 72 score, although not by a lot.
The Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster wins when it comes to sound, build quality, value for the money. On the other hand, the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V has the upper hand when it comes to playability.
If you got small hands, none of these instruments will make a big difference when it comes to comfortability.
Which One is Better for Beginners?
If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster is the better choice.
The Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster meets 5 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V meets only 3. 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.
New Player Friendliness
Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Short scale
- Locking tuners
New Player Friendliness
Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V- Easy-to-use bridge
- Narrow nut
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable shape
- Comfortable fretboard
- Tall frets
- Short scale
- Locking tuners
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.
Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster Overview
- From Fender Custom's 2022 Custom Artist series
- Johnny A. Signature
- Made in United States
- 6 strings
- 25.5"'' scale
- 7.25" Fretboard Radius
- 2-Piece Select Alder with Offset Seam body
- 3A Birdseye Maple neck
- Round-Laminated 3A Rosewood fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Fender Custom Shop Hand-Wound Special Design Single-Coil Strat (Single Coil/Passive)
- Middle pickup: Fender Custom Shop Hand-Wound 11/56 Single-Coil Strat (Single Coil/Passive)
- Neck pickup: Fender Custom Shop Hand-Wound 11/56 Single-Coil Strat (Single Coil/Passive)
- 1 volume and 1 tone Bell knobs
- 5-way Switch
- Custom Shop Vintage Synchronized Tremolo bridge
- 1965 C Bolt-On neck
- 21 Medium Jumbo frets
- Vintage-Style with Fender Logo tuners
- Compare Specs >
Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V Overview
- From Gibson's 2020 Artist Collection series
- Jimi Hendrix Signature
- Made in United States
- 6 strings
- 24.75"'' scale
- 12" Fretboard Radius
- Mahogany body
- Mahogany neck
- Ebony, with 1-ply White Binding fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Gibson Custombucker (Humbucker/Passive)
- Neck pickup: Gibson Custombucker (Humbucker/Passive)
- 1 volume and 2 tone Bell knobs
- 3-way Switch
- ABR-1 Maestro Short Vibrola bridge
- Authentic 67 Flying V Set neck
- 22 Vintage frets
- Kluson Single Line, Single Ring Tulip tuners
- Compare Specs >
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 Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster
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.
Alder is the most popular wood that Fender uses in most of their guitars nowadays. Even though they say it's because of its balanced tone with an emphasis in the upper midrange, it probably is because it isn't too expensive, and it's also pretty lightweight—more than Mahogany. Find out more about Alder.
Woods Used in the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V
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.
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.
Winner: Tie.
Pickup Configuration
The Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster has an SSS configuration while the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V has HH pickups.
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.
On the other hand, Double Humbucker (HH) is the choice for people who want a fuller, more round sound with tons of mids and lows. Humbuckers also get rid of the hum noise that plague single-coil pickups. They can work out for almost any genre going from Djent to even Jazz.
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 Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster has a slight sound quality advantage when taking into account other factors like the type of pickups, magnet, position, etc.
Both use Passive pickups. This is what's used for most music genres. They have a regular output and will serve you for both high-gain and clean tones. The alternative (Active pickups) offer a higher output that is mostly used for heavy music.
Winner: Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster.
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 Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster gives you 5 switch options while the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V gives you 3. This means that the Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve
Only the Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster comes with some kind of pickup modification: Parallel Split.
The Parallel Split feature allows it to split and connect some of the pickups in parallel. When wired in parallel, the result is a very bright tone. This is the wire technique used in most Stratocaster guitars, and it's what gives them their signature transparent and clear sound. This is because the pickups' inputs and outputs are wired together, which reduces the signal's travel distance to the output jack.
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 Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster.
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 Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster compares to the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. Both in this comparison where made in United States.
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: Tie
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 Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster has 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.
On the other hand, the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V comes with a Corian nut. It used to be the go-to nut for Gibson, but it's slowly being replaced by Graph Tech (Tusq). It's a synthetic material made to be similar to Bone, but it doesn't have the same self-lubricating properties, and it's less resistant.
Winner: Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster.
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.
Both come with a similar bridge: 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: Tie.
Tuners
Both come with regular tuners. The Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster's are Vintage-Style with Fender Logo while the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V's are Kluson Single Line, Single Ring Tulip
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.
The Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster has 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.
On the other hand, the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V comes with Set neck joint. This neck is tightly glued to the body. They give you the least versatility because you can't swap them for a neck that fits your hand better if you want to, unlike bolt-on necks. Some people think this gives more resonance and sustain, but there's no real difference if the bolt-on joint is well built.
Winner: Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster
- Made in United States
- Expensive Wood
- Bone Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Parallel Split Pickups
- Tremolo
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V
- Made in United States
- Expensive Wood
- Top Brand Pickups
- Tremolo
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- No High-Quality Nut
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
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 Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster has the wider nut with 41.3mm (1.625'') vs 40.6mm (1.6''). This is a 0.7mm (0.025'') difference
This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster, 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.
The Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster has the longest scale: 25.5". The Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V is only 24.75" long. This is a 0.75'' (19.1mm) scale length difference.
This longer scale means that the strings need more tension to get in tune. This is good if you want to avoid fret buzz, which can happen when the strings are too loose and touch the frets while vibrating. This is especially important when playing in lower tunings. This will also let you reduce the gap between fretboard and strings (low action) to make them easier to press down. However, this higher tension will also make it harder to perform bends and vibratos as the strings will feel stiffer.
This also means that the frets have a longer separation between each other, so this will make it harder for people with smaller hands when playing some chord positions.
Another characteristic of a longer scale is that it makes the guitar sound 'snappier' or brighter. This is due to the extra separation between harmonics and overtones produced by the tension. This influences tone more than any other factor (except the pickups).
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.
In this case, both have different neck shapes:
The Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster has a C type of 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.
The Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V, on the other hand, has a D neck. This is a thin and flat neck that is made for playing fast. If you prefer a neck that doesn't get in your way when soloing, this is the shape you should use. Guitarists that prefer to have a bit more grip won't like this type of neck.
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.
In this case, the Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V's. This extra arc will make playing chords easier in this model. You won't be as likely to mute the strings, especially if you have big hands. However, playing single notes and bending will be easier on the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V.
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.
After taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that both in this comparison favor small hands .
Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster:
Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V:
Fret Size
The Fender Custom Johnny A. Signature Stratocaster has Medium Jumbo frets, which should be taller than the Gibson Jimi Hendrix 1969 Flying V's Vintage frets.
Some people prefer taller frets because they result in more sustain since the strings get pressed cleanly without interference from the fretboard. However, if they're too tall—like Jumbo frets—, you might change the pitch of the strings accidentally if you press too hard because you won't be touching the fretboard with your fingers. This is also why some guitarists with a heavy grip prefer smaller frets. They like to feel the fingerboard to avoid pressing down too hard and getting out of pitch.
