Do you shop by headstock?

What is the difference between a Fender and a Squier guitar headstock?

The obvious differences is that the colors, tuning keys and truss rod entry points are different. The non-obvious difference is that the countries of origin are different.

However what all guitar players see first is the logo, and that's shopping by headstock.

I admit that for a time I did shop by headstock, but after a while I started shopping by dimensions, feel and sound instead. The overall look of a guitar does matter to me, don't get me wrong, but when I took the other factors into consideration, that's when I decided on the Squier brand.

Squier is to the best of my knowledge the only guitar company other than Fender itself who is 100% legally licensed to recreate Fender designs to exacting detail. In other words, a Squier Stratocaster is a "true Stratocaster" in every sense of the term.

The Squier Bullet Strat for example is for all intents and purposes "modern vintage Fender spec". 21-fret neck, 25.5-inch scale, 9.5-inch fingerboard radius, 6-post vintage-style bridge, etc. It's all there and is absolutely a Stratocaster.

Fender has put a ton of effort into improving the Squier line of guitars, and for the most part has been very successful at it. When you buy a Squier Stratocaster or Telecaster these days, you're getting something good (assuming you like Fender-style guitars). And besides which, a Squier is the absolute closest thing - if not exact same thing in some instances - to a Fender without the Fender price tag.

Think about that the next time you're shopping by headstock.

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Published 2012 Jan 22