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Sterling Valentine
Sterling St. Vincent
VS
Playability
72
Sound
69
Build
59
Value
72
Score
67
FIND IT ON:
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Playability
70
Sound
70
Build
62
Value
72
Score
67
FIND IT ON:
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Sterling Valentine vs St. Vincent

Reasons to Get
Sterling Valentine over St. Vincent

Release Year
2019 vs 2018
From a more recent year
Pickup Mods
Boost vs None
Increases the output of the pickup
Pickups
SH vs HHH
Very bright bridge tone and a very warm neck pickup
Bridge
Fixed vs Tremolo
Good sustain and needs no set-up

Reasons to Get
Sterling St. Vincent over Valentine

Switch Positions
5 vs 3
More tone options
Pickups
HHH vs SH
High output without hum and tons of tone versatility
Locking Tuners
Yes vs None
Easier to change strings
Bridge
Tremolo vs Fixed
Simple vibratos without too much maintenance

Other Key Differences
Sterling Valentine vs St. Vincent

Bridge Pickup
Sterling Single Coil vs Sterling Humbucker
Different Bridge Pickup
Body Wood
Ash vs Mahogany
Different Body Wood
Neck Wood
Roasted Maple vs Maple
Different Neck Wood
Fretboard Wood
Roasted Maple vs Rosewood
Different Fretboard Wood

Shared Features
Sterling Valentine vs St. Vincent

Neck Pickup
Sterling Humbucker
Same Neck Pickup
Headstock
4-2
Same Headstock
Nut Material
Compensated
Same Nut Material
Strings
6
Same playing style
Body Type
Solid Body
Feedback free
Volume Knobs
1
Same volume control
Tone Knobs
1
Same tone control
Number of Frets
22
Same maximum octave
Nut Width
1.65'' (41.9mm)
Same string separation at the nut
Paint Finish
Poly
Resistant paint that ages well
Scale Length
25.5'' (647.7mm)
Same string tension and fret separation
Fretboard Radius
9.5'' (241.3mm)
Same fretboard comfortability
Pickups Power
Passive
Cleaner sound and no battery needed
Neck Profile Type
C
Comfortable neck that works for most people
Neck Joint
Bolt-On
Allows you to detach and swap the neck
Type of Frets
Narrow Tall
You won't feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings

Common Strengths

  • High-Quality Nut
  • Expensive Wood

Common Weaknesses

  • Neck-Through Build
  • Weight Relief
  • Stays in Tune (Evertune)
  • High-Quality Frets
  • Compound Radius Fretboard
  • From a High-Quality-Standards Country
  • Luminescent Sidedots
  • Strap Lock
  • Top Pickup Brand
  • 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • Active/Passive Preamp

Table of Contents

Price History Comparison

SET PRICE ALERT

Sterling St. Vincent Prices

SET PRICE ALERT

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Which One is Better Overall?

After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that both instruments scored 67 out of 100, which makes them similar in terms of quality.

The Sterling St. Vincent wins when it comes to sound, build quality. On the other hand, the Sterling Valentine 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?

Both meet 6 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness. 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. If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, you can't go wrong with either of them.

New Player Friendliness

Sterling Valentine
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Tall frets
  • Narrow nut
  • Comfortable neck
  • Short scale
  • Locking tuners

New Player Friendliness

Sterling St. Vincent
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Locking tuners
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Tall frets
  • Narrow nut
  • Comfortable neck
  • Comfortable shape
  • Short scale

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.

Sterling Valentine Overview

  • From Sterling's 2019 Artist series
  • James Valentine Signature
  • Made in Indonesia
  • 6 strings
  • 25.5"'' scale
  • 9.5" Fretboard Radius
  • Swamp Ash body
  • Roasted Maple neck
  • Roasted Maple fretboard
  • Bridge pickup: Sterling Single Coil (Single Coil/Passive)
  • Neck pickup: Sterling Humbucker (Humbucker/Passive)
  • 1 volume and 1 tone Dome knobs
  • 3-way Switch
  • Hardtail with Vintage Bent Saddle bridge
  • James Valentine Bolt-On neck
  • 22 Narrow Tall frets
  • Open Gear tuners
  • Compare Specs >

Sterling St. Vincent Overview

  • From Sterling's 2018 Artist series
  • St. Vincent Signature
  • Made in Indonesia
  • 6 strings
  • 25.5"'' scale
  • 9.5" Fretboard Radius
  • Mahogany body
  • Hard Maple neck
  • Rosewood fretboard
  • Bridge pickup: Sterling Humbucker (Humbucker/Passive)
  • Middle pickup: Sterling Humbucker (Humbucker/Passive)
  • Neck pickup: Sterling Humbucker (Humbucker/Passive)
  • 1 volume and 1 tone Dome knobs
  • 5-way Switch
  • Vintage Tremolo bridge
  • St. Vincent Bolt-On neck
  • 22 Narrow Tall frets
  • Locking 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 Sterling Valentine

Roasted Maple wood pattern used for guitar building
Roasted Maple
Ash wood pattern used for guitar building
Ash

Roasted Maple is just maple without a finish. It's technically cheaper than regular maple, but it doesn't have any extra disadvantages because of this. The color is darker, and it's lighter weight and very stable even when there's a lot of humidity.

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.

Woods Used in the Sterling St. Vincent

Maple wood pattern used for guitar building
Maple
Rosewood wood pattern used for guitar building
Rosewood
Mahogany wood pattern used for guitar building
Mahogany

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.

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.

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.

Winner: Sterling St. Vincent.

Pickup Configuration

The Sterling Valentine has an SH configuration while the Sterling St. Vincent has HHH pickups.

SH is a more versatile version of the classic telecaster (SS) configuration. The bridge pickup usually produces a bright and twangy tone, while the neck Humbucker gives you the warmer tone you'll need for more Jazzy/Bluish solos and chords.

On the other hand, A triple Humbucker (HHH) can be intimidating at first, but it's one of the combinations that offer the most tone versatility. You'll be able to have from a lot of output for Hard Rock genres, to warm and clean sounds that are more common in Jazz.

Pickups Quality

None of these use a specialized pickup brand for their pickups. Some of the best guitars on the market come with pickups from brands like EMG, Seymour Duncan, DiMarzio, etc. You might want to replace your pickups eventually if you want to get the best sound out of any of these instruments.

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: Tie.

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 Sterling St. Vincent gives you 5 switch options while the Sterling Valentine gives you 3. This means that the Sterling St. Vincent gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve

Only the Sterling Valentine comes with some kind of pickup modification: Boost.

A Boost will give your pickups more output, similar to an active pickup. It's great if you like to use a lot of output for heavy genres, but also like to use a cleaner tone often.

Sterling Valentine pickups switch and push knobs diagram
Sterling Valentine's switch options
Sterling St. Vincent pickups switch selector and push knobs diagram
Sterling St. Vincent's switch 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: Sterling St. Vincent.

Final Sound Quality Scores

Sterling Valentine
Pickups 60
Sustain 80
Versatility 64
Tuning Stability 70
Sound 69
Sterling St. Vincent
Pickups 60
Sustain 75
Versatility 70
Tuning Stability 75
Sound 70

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 Sterling Valentine compares to the Sterling St. Vincent.

Country of Origin

The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. Both in this comparison where made in Indonesia.

Indonesia is becoming the most popular country for guitar building because they can make good instruments for a low price. Some people think that they're 'the new China' when it comes to build quality. But the truth is that Indonesian guitars are more consistent, although Chinese quality has improved a lot in the last few years.

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.

In this case, both have Compensated nuts. Each hole where the string sits at the nut is cut at a different distance from the bridge, which compensates for the different amount of tension that each string is subject to. This fixes most intonation issues across the fretboard, so it gives great tuning stability.

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 Sterling Valentine's brige is a Fixed. It's a simple bridge that is very beginner-friendly since it doesn't require any set-up. You can swap strings easily. It might also give more sustain since it doesn't have complex moving parts that make the strings lose vibration. However, it doesn't have the same versatility as a tremolo bridge.

On the other hand, the Sterling St. Vincent'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: Tie.

Tuners

The Sterling St. Vincent has the best tuners of the two because they are locking tuners. They'll help to keep your guitar in tune because they allow you to tune it without wrapping the strings around the posts. This avoids variations in the tuning due to the strings changing position at the post after a bend. They come at the disadvantage of being slightly heavier than regular tuners. Also, it makes it a lot easier to restring.

Winner: Sterling St. Vincent.

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:

Strengths & Weaknesses
Sterling Valentine
  • Expensive Wood
  • Compensated Nut
  • Boost Pickups
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • Made in Indonesia
  • No Top Brand Pickups
  • No Neck-Through Build
  • No Weight Relief
  • No Luminescent Inlay
  • No Tremolo
  • No Compound Radius Fretboard
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock
Strengths & Weaknesses
Sterling St. Vincent
  • Locking Tuners
  • Expensive Wood
  • Compensated Nut
  • Tremolo
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • Made in Indonesia
  • No Top Brand Pickups
  • 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

Sterling Valentine
Quality of materials 51
Features 55
Quality Control 70
Build Quality 59
Sterling St. Vincent
Quality of materials 51
Features 65
Quality Control 70
Build Quality 62

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

Sterling Valentine Nut Width
Both Guitars Have The Same Nut Width

The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, both have a nut width of 41.9mm (1.65'').

This is considered a narrow width for a 6-string guitar. This means that this guitar will have a narrower string separation at the nut, which will affect your fretting hand.

If you are a player with big hands, you might find it difficult to play chords without muting strings. However, this is good for players who have smaller hands, as it will allow them to reach each string more easily at the nut.

Scale Length

Sterling Valentine and Sterling St. Vincent's Scale Length
Both have the same 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

Sterling Valentine Neck Profile
Sterling Valentine's neck profile
Sterling St. Vincent Neck Profile
Sterling St. Vincent's 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 Sterling Valentine and the Sterling St. Vincent 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

Sterling Valentine Fingerboard Radius
Both Guitars Have The Same 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 the Sterling Valentine and the Sterling St. Vincent have the same fretboard radius of 9.5". This is the most common radius for Stratocaster guitars. It's considered curved when compared to most other models. This allows you to play chords very easily without muting strings accidentally and gives you more space between strings for fingerpicking. However, this curve also gives the guitar less allowance for lower action. If you bend too hard at the high frets, some of your notes might get muted because the curve will make the string fret out.

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 .

Sterling Valentine:
Big Hands
Small Hands
Sterling St. Vincent:
Big Hands
Small Hands

Fret Size

Sterling Valentine and Sterling St. Vincent Frets Size
Both have a similar Narrow Tall fret size

Both have a Narrow Tall fret size. Their height is very similar to Jumbo frets, but they have a narrower crown. They won't let you feel the fretboard when playing, which will make it easier to get clean notes. However, if you press down too hard you might get the notes out of pitch.

Final Playability Scores

Sterling Valentine
Bending & Vibrato Ease 75
Chord Playability 70
Solo Playability 70
Playability 72
Sterling St. Vincent
Bending & Vibrato Ease 70
Chord Playability 70
Solo Playability 70
Playability 70

Specs Side-by-Side

Sterling Valentine vs St. Vincent
General Sterling Valentine St. Vincent
Brand: Sterling Sterling
Year: 2019 2018
Configuration: SH HHH
Strings: 6 6
Made in: Indonesia Indonesia
Series: Artist Artist
Colors: White, Sunburst Black, Blue
Left-Handed Version: No No
Body
Type: Solid Body Solid Body
Body Material: Swamp Ash Mahogany
Bridge: Hardtail with Vintage Bent Saddle Vintage Tremolo
Neck
Neck Joint: Bolt-On Bolt-On
Tuners: Open Gear Locking
Fretboard: Roasted Maple Rosewood
Neck Material: Roasted Maple Hard Maple
Decoration: Black Dot Markers Custom St. Vincent Inlays
Scale Size: 25.5" 25.5"
Shape: James Valentine St. Vincent
Frets: 22 Narrow Tall Nickel Silver 22 Narrow Tall Nickel Silver
Fretboard Radius: 9.5" 9.5"
Nut: Compensated Compensated
Nut Width: 41.9mm (1.65'') 41.9mm (1.65'')
Electronics
Bridge Pickup: Sterling Single Coil (Single Coil / Passive) Sterling Humbucker (Humbucker / Passive)
Middle Pickup: Sterling Humbucker (Humbucker / Passive)
Neck Pickup: Sterling Humbucker (Humbucker / Passive) Sterling Humbucker (Humbucker / Passive)
Switch: 3 Way 5 Way
Knobs: Dome Dome
Pickup Mods: Boost None
Volume Controls: 1 1
Tone Controls: 1 1