Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top - Overview and Best Prices
- From Fender's 2018 Player series
- Made in Mexico
- 6 strings
- 25.5"'' scale
- 9.5" Fretboard Radius
- Flamed Maple top
- Alder with Flame Maple Top body
- Maple neck
- Maple fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Fender Player Series Alnico 5 Strat Single-Coil (Single Coil/Passive)
- Middle pickup: Fender Player Series Alnico 5 Strat Single-Coil (Single Coil/Passive)
- Neck pickup: Fender Player Series Alnico 5 Strat Single-Coil (Single Coil/Passive)
- 1 volume and 2 tone Bell knobs
- 5-way Switch
- 2-Point Synchronized Tremolo with Bent Steel Saddles bridge
- Modern C Bolt-On neck
- 22 Medium Jumbo frets
- Standard Cast/Sealed tuners
- Weight between 7.7lbs (3.5kgs) and 8.15lbs (3.7kgs)
- Side-By-Side Comparison
Show Specs
| Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top | ||
|---|---|---|
| General | ||
| Brand: | Fender | |
| Year: | 2018 | |
| Configuration: | SSS | |
| Strings: | 6 | |
| Made in: | Mexico | |
| Series: | Player | |
| Colors: | Brown Burst, Sunburst Burst | |
| Left-Handed Version: | No | |
| Body | ||
| Top: | Flamed Maple | |
| Type: | Solid Body | |
| Body Material: | Alder with Flame Maple Top | |
| Bridge: | 2-Point Synchronized Tremolo with Bent Steel Saddles | |
| Neck | ||
| Neck Joint: | Bolt-On | |
| Tuners: | Standard Cast/Sealed | |
| Fretboard: | Maple | |
| Neck Material: | Maple | |
| Decoration: | Black Dot | |
| Scale Size: | 25.5" | |
| Shape: | Modern C | |
| Thickness: | 1st Fret: 0.82'' (20.8mm) - 12th Fret: 0.87'' (22.1mm) | |
| Frets: | 22 Medium Jumbo | |
| Fretboard Radius: | 9.5" | |
| Nut: | Synthetic Bone | |
| Nut Width: | 42mm (1.654'') | |
| Electronics | ||
| Bridge Pickups: | Fender Player Series Alnico 5 Strat Single-Coil (Single Coil / Passive) | |
| Middle Pickup: | Fender Player Series Alnico 5 Strat Single-Coil (Single Coil / Passive) | |
| Neck Pickup: | Fender Player Series Alnico 5 Strat Single-Coil (Single Coil / Passive) | |
| Switch: | 5 | |
| Knobs: | Bell | |
| Volume Controls: | 1 | |
| Tone Controls: | 2 | |
| Hardware | ||
| Strap Lock: | No | |
| Hardware Color: | Chrome | |
Show Diagram
Our Scores and Tone Evaluation
- Heavy Metal
- Hard Rock
- Jazz
- Blues
- Funk
- Country
Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top
- Expensive Wood
- Synthetic Bone Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Tremolo
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in Mexico
- 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
Price Overview
Its average competitor's price is $1050, which means that the Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top is around 26% cheaper than the competition. This takes into account all instruments of the same category in our database with 6 strings and Tremolo bridge that are made in Mexico.
User Reviews & Feedback
Not all instruments are created equally. That's why it's important to have different opinions. Here's what our users who have played this instrument say. If you've played it before, help others by voting below!
Weight
VoteTuning stability
VoteNeck speed (thickness)
VoteNeck access to high frets
VoteNeck profile shape
VoteFret edges
VotePickups noise
VotePickups power
VoteOften Compared With
Hand Size Comfortability
After taking into account the neck profile, scale size, fretboard radius, and nut width, we can conclude that the Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top's construction favors people with relatively small hands.
Nevertheless, this comes down in the end to personal preference. Make sure you test this guitar—or another one with similar characteristics—before buying.
Beginner Friendliness
The Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top meets 6 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, which means that it's a good guitar to start with as a complete beginner. 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 to get used to.
New Player Friendliness
Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Comfortable fretboard
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Comfortable neck
- Short scale
- Locking tuners
Videos
How Lightweight is it?
We found that the Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top weighs between 7.7lbs (3.5kgs) and 8.15lbs (3.7kgs). This was recorded from some online retailers that publish the weight of the instruments they sell.
Playability
Scale Length
Scale length is the distance the strings will span between the bridge and the nut. It can tell you a lot about the overall playability and tone of the instrument. A longer scale length means longer distance between frets, brighter tone and more string tension—which means lower action, but more difficult bending of the strings.
Here's the Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top's 25.5" scale length compared to other common sizes:
This is the same scale length used in Stratocaster guitars, and it's one of the main reasons they have such a bright sound. It's considered a long scale when compared to most non-baritone guitars.
Since the distance between bridge and nut is relatively long, you'll need to give the strings more tension to get them in tune. This higher tension will allow for a couple of things. First, you can get a lower action (get the strings closer to the fretboard) because the strings won't 'wiggle' too much when pluck and won't cause fret buzz. This can allow you to use lower tunings without increasing your string gauge, and it will make it easier to press down the strings fast.
However, the frets will also have a wider separation between each other, which can make it harder to play, especially if you got small hands. The higher tension will also make the strings feel stiffer, so bending will require more strength.
Neck Profile
The neck profile tells you the thickness (neck depth) and shape in cross section. Every difference will completely change the feeling and comfortability of the neck. This is a highly subjective thing, but most players indeed prefer certain types of necks (like Cs and Ds) because they feel nice in most hands.
The Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top's neck thickness is approximately 0.82'' (20.8mm) at the first fret, and 0.87'' (22.1mm) at the twelfth.
These measurements were taken either from the official Fender website, or, in case this information wasn't provided, by researching multiple online marketplaces and forums where owners of this model have posted their measurements.
It has a C type neck. C-shaped necks like this have been the most popular for the last years. The reason is that they feel good in most hands. It's generally a thin neck that doesn't get in your way when playing fast, but that also has enough mass to give your hands a comfortable grip for chords if they aren't too big.
Thin necks like this make it easier to move your hand across the neck and it helps when playing fast solos, especially if you like to leave your thumb free while playing high on the fretboard. However, thinner necks are also weaker and will need adjustment more often than a thicker neck.
Fretboard Radius
When it comes to fingerboard radius, personal preference will dictate which one is better for you. However, most people seem to agree that a more curved (lower) radius will make it easier to play chords while a less curved (higher) radius is better for soloing and bending.
The Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top has a 9.5" fingerboard radius.
Here's an image comparing this fretboard radius to other popular choices:
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.
Compound radius fingerboards give the best of both worlds. Unfortunately, the Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top has the same radius across the board.
Playability compared to main competitors
Nut Width
The Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top has a nut width of 42mm (1.654''). 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.
Frets
The Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top has 22 frets. Even though 24 frets has become really popular, there's still a good reason to get fewer frets; the pickup at the neck position will be further away from the bridge. This makes the neck pickup achieve a warmer tone. You might want this if you're playing Jazz or similar genres.
However, if you don't care about the warmer neck pickup, more frets will always be better. It's always nice to have the option to play higher notes if you want to.
It comes with nickel silver frets, so they won't last as long as stainless steel frets. If you use your instrument a lot, you might need to replace the frets after a few years. But this is unlikely as most people change instruments before this happens.
Fret Size
Finally, let's talk about fret size. Some people prefer tall frets because it's easier to press the strings and perform bends since there's less friction against the fretboard. On the other hand, some people like shorter frets because they like to touch the fretboard when playing, or because they got heavy hands and tend to press too much on the string and alter the of the note pitch accidently.
The Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top's frets are Medium Jumbo size. These sit somewhere between a Jumbo and a Medium fret. They're not quite as tall as a full Jumbo, so you'll still feel the fretboard, but you won't feel it as much as with medium frets. This is a good size if you want to make it easy to press the strings but would also like a little bit of ''feedback'' to know when to stop pressing so the notes don't go out of pitch.
Playability Score
Tone
Wood will have little influence in the final tone of an electric guitar or bass. Instead, the hardware, especially the pickups, will be the most important thing to look at. Bur first, let's see the quality of the wood.
Wood
Flame Maple Body: This wood has beautiful patterns only found in specific types of maple.
Maple Neck and Fretboard: This is one of the most popular types of wood used in all kinds of guitars. It's heavy, strong and compact, which makes it great for necks. However, it's also used for fretboards, bodies and tops due to its light color, resistance and beautiful patterns. When it comes to tone, it highlights the mid and high frequencies.
Pickups
This guitar comes with pickups from one of the top brands: Fender. So you can expect well built pickups with great sound that shouldn't need an upgrade anytime soon.
These are passive pickups, so you can expect a rounder sound and a moderade level of output.
The Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top's configuration is SSS. This is the pickup configuration made famous by the Stratocaster. It gives you beautiful clean tones, but also a vintage-sounding distortion. This pickup combination will sound chimey, but you might be surprised at the warmness that you can get from a single-coil at the neck position on a 22-fret guitar. The disadvantage of this configuration is the hum noise that single-coils produce due to their nature.
More with the same pickups
Versatility
It gives you a good amount of tone options with its 5-way switch. You can use it to choose at least 5 different pickup combinations.
Unfortunately, it doesn't come with more options for coil split or coil tapping. This makes it less versatile than some competitors.
What music genre is it good for?
As a 6 strings, Solid Body guitar with SSS configuration and Passive pickups, we'd recommend it for genres like Funk or similar. However, you can use almost any guitar for any genre. This is just the typical type of music for this particular one.
Sound Score
Build Quality
Country of Origin
Knowing where the instrument is produced is a good way to know how well it's built. Some manufacturing countries are known for having higher quality standards. For example, most expensive instruments are made in the US or Japan, but there are some exceptionally great countries—like South Korea—that are building a good reputation.
The Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top is made in Mexico. This is the country that some American brands choose for building really good, but cheaper guitars. You can expect a guitar that offers a good price-quality relationship, although they don't get the same quality control as the ones built in Japan or the United States.
Bridge
2-Point Synchronized Tremolo with Bent Steel Saddles: This type of bridge allows you to change the pitch of the notes by pulling the bridge with the attached bar, which gives you better versatility. Also, since the bridge is not fixed to the guitar body, the bridge will move as you bend the strings. So you'll have to increase the distance of your bends to reach the same tension (note) compared to a fixed bridge. This allows you to perform smoother bends but will also make you slower. Finally, remember that this type of bridge requires a bit more maintenance than fixed ones, especially when changing strings.
Nut Material
Another important thing to analyze is the nut material, as it's one of the most important aspects that can affect the sound and playability of your guitar. A well-cut nut will make sure it stays in tune and will make it more comfortable to play.
In this case, the Fender Player Stratocaster Plus Top has a Synthetic Bone nut. One of the best nuts you can have is a Bone nut thanks to their rich tonality and resistance. The problem is that they're a natural material, so different bone nuts will have inconsistent tonal properties. In other words, one bone nut might not sound as well as the other even when they're made from the same piece. Synthetic bone helps with this by giving you a high-quality, consistent nut that resembles the tone produced by bone.
Neck Joint
The neck joint is the part where the neck of the guitar meets the body. There are three main techniques to attach both parts together: Set-In, Bolt-On and Neck-Through. The latter two provide different advantages, although neck-throughs are the most expensive.
This guitar has a Bolt-On neck joint. Even though this type of neck was looked down upon for a long time, nowadays bolt-on necks are well built and provide just as much sustain as any other join method. First of all, it's cheap to make because it consists of simply 4 bolts that attach the neck to the body. And you can travel with the guitar more easily, swap out the neck if you damage it, or upgrade to a more comfortable neck later on.
