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Will,
skip the humbucker - the true surf sound is all about single-coil
pickups. Single-coils have a much broader frequency response and
sound more dynamic when played clean or slightly overdriven (of
course, humbuckers work much better when played heavily overdriven,
but very few self-described surf guitarists use heavily overdriven
tones). As Leo Fender said, humbuckers sound like somebody threw a
blanket over the amp!
The color is totally up to you, though you may want to take a look at
some vintage colors, if you want it to 'look surf'. The most common
colors back in the sixties were just plain sunburst, which was the
standard finish. Dick Dale's and Jim Messina's Strats were white.
The Surfaris lead guy (as well as Hank Marvin of the British instro
band the Shadows) had a Fiesta Red Strat, which was creamy, orangish-
pinkish red and today considered one of the classic vintage colors.
Most of the other 'custom' colors were rare back then, but today are
accepted as traditonal looking: lake placid blue, candy apple red
(dark metallic red), surf green (very light green), foam green
(slighly darker, creamy-looking), shoreline gold, etc....
Finally, fretboard wood: I'm a huge fan of rosewood. Rosewood has a
slightly darker, fuller tone which is a benefit when playing Fender
amps with heavy reverb which tends to make the tone very bright and
give you 'ice-pick-like' highs. The fact is that back in the sixties
all surf guitarists played rosewood fretboard guitars - that's all
that Fender was making from '60 until '65, the surf music years. In
addition, Jazzmasters and Jaguars only ever came with rosewood
fingerboards. Myself, I'm a big fan of rosewood also cause maple is
a soft wood and must have a lot of lacquer on it to protect it.
Well, rosewood is much harder, and therefore comes with very little
finish so you can actually feel the wood under you fingers - I prefer
that feel to the plasticy, heavy finish maple. But it's a personal
preference, and the tone differences are subtle.
Hope that helps. Good luck with your decision! It's very exciting
to be purchasinig your first serious guitar. Though I agree with
what the others said that spending more money on an amp than a guitar
will get you a better tone, to me the guitar is not just an
instrument but an object of admiration and a companion, even a
friend. It's important to find a guitar that you really enjoy
playing, as well as one that gives you great satisfaction when you
just look at it! My personal recommendation would be to get a '60s
Classic Mexican Strat - great, great guitars, very affordable price,
and it will last you a long time.
Ivan
--- In , "anotherquixote"
<willbaumann@h...> wrote:
>
> Hey--thanks for the advice; I've decided to re-think my Surf Guitar
> budget and direction. I'm getting a new Fender Mexi-Strat (now the
> big problem--choosing body color deciding on maple or rosewood) and
> a decent amp with good reverb.
>
> So, should I get a Fender Strat HSS, or the basic Mexi-Strat? The
> owner of my local music store (who's matching Musician's Friend
> prices on his in-store inventory and is a really nice guy) thinks I
> should get the HSS for $60 more.
>
> You've saved me from making some decisions that I would most likely
> regret sooner than later. I've upped my budget a bit, but I think
> it's worth it.
>
> Stand by for Pipeline....
>
> Thanks,
>
> Will
