hey, perhaps this is a better place to ask this. i'm just wondering what i need to do in order to get some good sounds using a slide, out of my late 90's mexican strat w/maple neck? i hear that raising the strings and increasing string gage help. also need to find out how to block the strats trem...i hope you all can help me out. thanks.
-h
p.s. it would be used exclusively for slide work. i've got a thinline that does everything else.
it's just not a friday night without some good chinese beer.
All three of those things will help. I find it's good though, to learn how to play slide on a guitar with a "regular" setup. Duane Allman used a low action and light strings on his guitars.
As to blocking the trem, I don't anymore; just make sure the six bridge screws (on "top" of the guitar) aren't too tight, then tighten the trem screws until the plate is firmly resting on the guitar body. It's easier to do than it sounds.
Hope this helps!
Bigger strings always help especially with slide. Try some 11's on the guitar and see if you like it. Try to develop a lighter touch with the slide and you probably won't have to raise the action. Get a nice singing tone from your amp, not too distorted, just enough gain to give a round sustaining sound. You can roll off your tone controls a little to help smooth out the high end. Using a compressor with a strat and slide is a nice tone. I've used a MXR Dynacomp for years and it gives a nice sustaining tone without having to jack up the gain on the amp. Think of the Lowell George, Sonnie Landreth or Bonnie Raitt type of tone.
And the best tip I can give you is to always play slide with your fingers, not a flatpick. If you've got glass or steel in your left hand and a plastic pick in your right, ya got no skin on the string.
Harpua
Whoops, I just reread your post and you were asking how to convert a strat for slide not how to get a better tone for playing. Excuse me if I got off topic. Playing slide is a passion for me and I can go off when I start talking about it.
An option to blocking your trem is to install all five trem springs and tightening down the adjustment screws.
I have an MIJ Strat set up for slide and with five springs tightened down that bridge doesn't budge at all!
I always found that leveling the strings, instead of generically raising the action, was the key for me. But then again, I pretty much suck at slide.
Jason
The Bear Guy
I've also got a Strat that I'd like to setup for slide. However, I'm new to slide so I don't have an appreciation yet for how the slide should meet the strings. If I'm setting up the bridge/strings, should it be flat/even like Black Bear suggests or should the bridge/strings curve to match the radius of the neck? BTW - I don't have a curved bottle neck slide or anything like that.
The flatter the better (for slide, that is).
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