I'm in the minority here but...I love the Strat!!!

[Froggy]

Seriously, I see so many people complaining about the RB Guitar and it baffles me. Yes I had a little bit of a hard time adjusting from the GH guitars, but once that phase was over I haven't looked back. in fact I have a hard time playing with the GH guitars now. Also how could you possibly hate the solo tap buttons?!
I heart my strat!!

[toMsons1987]

It's just something to get used to, my friend loved the RB guitars after a while. Then once again played GH with the old guitar and didn't like it, but after a while he didn't want to go back to the RB guitar. It's just what you play on the most, I play with the RB guitar and curse the GH one.

[fecaled]

I much rather the strat than any of the GH controllers, but thats me. now i just wish my drums weren't broken :(

[cromartie90000]

Also how could you possibly hate the solo tap buttons?!


if I'm going to be good, it's not because the controller i'm using play the solos for me.

[Froggy]

Yeah, I have a hard time going between the 2, usually takes me a song or 2 to get up to speed.

[Froggy]

if I'm going to be good, it's not because the controller i'm using play the solos for me.

it's called "work smarter, not harder"

[Hugoku]

For me, the Strat is the superior guitar controller... when it works.



if I'm going to be good, it's not because the controller i'm using play the solos for me.

just don't use them then:rolleyes:

[Bosco32]

I'm in the Strat club. I don't dislike the LP or Explorer by any means, but I much prefer the silent strumbar and the frets on the Strat, as well as the size. I wish it had more weight to it, and I obviously wish the Quality Control would have been higher, but all in all, I prefer it by far.

[dastuffPS3]

i like the strat to though i'm forced to used it (PS3) i like it cause to enter overdrive i could just nail the select buton with the side of my hand becuase playin sitten down is esair for me and not haven to tilt to to get to overdrive is great

[Bosco32]

if I'm going to be good, it's not because the controller i'm using play the solos for me.

Actually, the solo buttons require plenty of skill because they are more demanding on accuracy. You're penalized for hitting a fret too early or late within a solo just as if you had strummed.

[Dalamari]

I use the ol' x-plorer GH2 guitar because I like the big chunky buttons better, but my mate loves the Strat so I let him keep it.

[Bearclaw]

THANK YOU!

I'm always so surprised when I see somebody make a post and bash the strat. It really is such a great plastic toy but nobody wants to give it a chance because of initial issues.

[Coldplayer]

I love the Strat too. I think it is way better than any other plastic guitar.

[jtrousd]

I'd love the strat, too, if the damn wireless ones weren't such ****ty quality. I've bought three and returned all three (same store, within a week of each other) because the strum bar is whacked out. Gah.

[Froggy]

I would also like to note that I have never had any technical issues with my Strat. infact the only guitar I have had issues with was the GH3 one because the neck kept sliding so in the middle of a song my green fret would stop working because the receptors weren't touching anymore :(

[cromartie90000]

it's called "work smarter, not harder"

It's called "I don't give a ****." I don't like the strats ****ty strummer, big fat clicky fret buttons, and training-wheel solo buttons. I can do just fine in BREs and in solos without them. Bah humbug. u_u

And the whammy bar is annoying too.

And so is the effect switch, it sounds like ****.

[Jasssooonnn]

It's called "I don't give a ****." I don't like the strats ****ty strummer, big fat clicky fret buttons, and training-wheel solo buttons. I can do just fine in BREs and in solos without them. Bah humbug. u_u

And the whammy bar is annoying too.

And so is the effect switch, it sounds like ****.

lol, Damn.

Training-wheel solo buttons ?
Please explain.

[czek1976]

I prefer the Strat big time... and I don't even use the solo buttons.

[Bosco32]

lol, Damn.

Training-wheel solo buttons ?
Please explain.

He's saying that it plays the solo for you, or makes it easier. Not really true, but so be it.

[Elegy]

god...the solo buttons make the solos harder for me, lol.

strat rocks though. I find it sad that people get their panties in a bunch over it.

[cromartie90000]

He's saying that it plays the solo for you, or makes it easier. Not really true, but so be it.

Don't forget BREs.

[schmeankman]

I love the strat. It is so much easier to slide your hand down/up then on the Les Paul.

[CENACHAINGANG54]

if I'm going to be good, it's not because the controller i'm using play the solos for me.

Ummm, do not think using the solo buttons for taps say anything about being good or not. I honestly think you have to be good to use these especially for hard solos like GG&HT.
Let's not forget this concept was taken from real guitarist some of the best in the world!

With that said I love my strat! I wish it was compatible with GH. For the few times I do play it I would love to use the strat as it feels a little more natural.

[footwo]

I'm having a hard time adjusting from GH controllers.

I just cant do long stretches of fast notes like I could in GH. The strat strum bar feels so unnatural.

Should i be flicking up and down on the strum bar when theres a line of notes that are very close together? I always just strummed down on the GH guitars and even with lots of notes close together i could always hit them.

Guess im not good enough to play RB :(

[Bearclaw]

Who actually uses the solo buttons for solos? Personally, I find them to be a hinderence on most solos, with exception to the beginning of Ride the Lightning's solo. I can hit it both ways, I actually prefer it woithout the solo buttons. I use solo buttons for BRE, but that's about it.

[alex10819]

I love the solo buttons. They don't really make it much easier, you still have to have exact timing (just like with any other HO/PO), but they free up my strumming hand for stage antics (giving the bassist a high five in the middle of a song, stupid stuff like that :P)

[KevinTheDeviant]

I like the strat, because you have to actually keep rhythm by the music and not the annoying clicking sounds. The frets are also much easier to slide your fingers over, so hammer-ons and pull-offs feel more natural. I've tried playing with the GH controllers again recently, and it feels like I'm holding a small, yet bulky toy, and when I try to do hammer-ons, I suck pretty badly. The strum-bar clicking throws me off quite a bit, too.

The one thing the GH guitars have over the RB guitars, though, is they feel a lot more durable. I feel like I could throw it around without any problems. The Strat, on the other hand, feels like it might snap if I look at it the wrong way. I can feel the plastic grinding together like it's being held together by thumb tacks and staples.

[Shevin]

Yea, the RB guitars feel more like you are playing a guitar rather than a game peripheral. I enjoy both the GH2 guitar and the RB guitar but I feel a certain affinity towards the newer RB guitars more than the one I got on launch day. It just feels better.

[David2380]

i like the strat to though i'm forced to used it (PS3) i like it cause to enter overdrive i could just nail the select buton with the side of my hand becuase playin sitten down is esair for me and not haven to tilt to to get to overdrive is great

Can you hit the select button for overdrive on the Xbox as well?

[army_of_me]

I think the problem is it's hard to switch to the Strat when you're already good with the GH guitars.

Personally, I really dig the Strat... if only my whammy didn't break a couple weeks out of the box.

[Hockeywall]

The strat takes some while to get used to after using the guitar hero guitars for so long. I can say after having taken a break for a fair bit from playing either and then hoping on the rock band guitar, that i think it is A-OK!

[hello271]

Sorry but the strat is terrible. The strum is awkward, there's no clicking sound so it's harder to keep time, and it's a nightmare to strum up-and-down to fast rhythms. I can use it for most songs in Rock Band because they're so easy, but the GH ones are so much better.

[Maizdog]

I love my strat [+bytearts]. I would kill to be able to use it on GH3. I cant stand the GH guitars compared to the strat - and not because of the solo buttons. It has a better feel and just flat out plays better, IMO.

-M

[Ragin_Caucasion]

I really like the strat, pressing buttons feels alot more natural and fits my hand size:D. The only bad thing is that whenever I have friends come over, they're so used to GH guitars they can't do as well as they usually do (PS3 here, so no GH guitars). And friend always holds his at too high of an angle so he always activates overdrive immediately.

[dastuffPS3]

I love the strat. It is so much easier to slide your hand down/up then on the Les Paul.

I know right

[Der_Lex]

I love the size and feel of the strat, but I still can't manage to do fast strumming sections with the strum bar. Am considering getting the PS2 adapter thingy so I can use my SG for songs which require a lot of fast strumwork, and using the strat for everything else.

[Head For METAL]

at first i though i could never get used to the strat now i like it alot

[killer_roach]

I love the Strat... the frets feel a lot better to slide across (great for bass players), and the non-clicky strum bar feels significantly more smooth and natural to me.

[Jorm]

I love my Strat, though it did take 5 returns to finally get a wireless one that worked properly. Now that I have it, though, I'm set.

When I play GH3 (and I do to get my GnR/PJ/Journey + 3 mo' Muse tunes groove on), I really dislike my Les Paul.

1. That clicking sound drives me up the wall. I have to jack up the sound to drown it out.

2. My Les Paul is bad and will launch overdrive immediately whenever I have enough Star Power. Sucks, limits me saving up OD to get through tough patches.

I think most people who went the RB -> GH path will prefer the Strat, while people going the GH -> RB path will prefer the GH controllers. Just the way things work.

It would be bloody awesome if my Strat worked with GH3 on my XBox.

[BrutalBrian]

I like the recessed buttons which makes for easier play, at least for me, and the solo buttons, if it wasn;t for those BRE's would be alot harder.

I'm just glad the wireless ones finally became availible.

[Azriel Angelo]

My main beef with the Strat is the high falure fate that I've heard so much about.(this goes for RB products in general)
But they may have fixed it with the new wireless controlers.
Hopefully my next paycheck won't go to waste.:)

[alex10819]

Yeah, everyone complains about the failure rate, it really makes me wonder... I had to RMA my first guitar, it was the 1st gen guitar. Since then, I have my new guitar, and a second guitar I picked up at a gamestop, and neither one has had any issues. My drum kit works fine (after a good 5 months), and the microphone is generally fine. (Despite having been dropped numerous times)

[osteofight]

The strat actually failed a "blind taste test" for me. Before I got RB I was at a friend's house and played with one guitar, then another. I liked the second one better, the buttons just felt better to my fingers. The first guitar was the strat; the second, LP.

Still I got RB for it's sheer awesomeness and got used to my strat. Both are nice peripherals imo.

[chess]

Unlike most folks, I pieced my RB set together...mainly because I didn't think I wanted to deal with the drums. I initially got the PS3 disk only for ~$30 online and picked up a used Strat and a PS2 microphone for ~$50 at Gamestop. I loved everything about the Strat EXCEPT for my inability to time notes in fast progression due to the mushy strum bar, and it was enough to make me take it back. I love the way the Strat looks and size of it. I also loved the fret buttons and the whammy bar...and I didn't really have any problems with activiating Star Powe....Overdrive. But the strumbar...the part that I interact with the most...absolutely SUCKED.

For lack of options on the PS3, I picked up the Nyko Frontman from Amazon, and am scoring much better. It's not perfect, but it's a pretty nice unit overall, and it has the added advantage of being usable on GHIII should I want to pick that up cheap somewhere down the line.

I still may pick up a used Strat and try the ByteArts mod to fix the strum, because a Strat with a usable strum bar would be perfect.

[quinaking]

I like it too :/.

[DuckDodgers]

I only played GH with a guitar controller two times before getting RB so my first real experience with a guitar controller was the Strat so I might just be used to it, But all I know is I love it. My brother (and the Muse songs) have got me to start playing GH3 lately and every time I do, the Les Paul frets just makes my fingers hurt and I can't stand the click or feel of it's strumbar.

[Bullseye]

Count me in on the Strat Love Fest. The Xplorer, while it isn't bad just feels cheap and toy-like. Now my wireless SG for the PS2 was nice, it also felt like a toy. I RMA'd my first Strat at about day 50, because of a mushy strum bar and some phantom dropped notes. Really, I was just concerned that since everyone else was having issues, that mine must be breaking down too. The new one seems to work better than the 1st and I've had zero problems since. I played with the demo Les Paul at BB...nothing special there. So long live the Strat!

[papasmurf427]

I'd prefer my GH2 strummer in my strat.

I love the weight, feel, and size of the Strat. But the mushy strum bar is awful.

On the other hand, my original Guitar Hero controller (2 years of abuse and still going strong) just doesn't feel as good compared to the strat. But it has the superior strummer.

[thedoorsdk]

I actually love the strat as well. I can give or take the solo buttons (sometimes they're fun), but when it comes to feel I greatly prefer the inset buttons and the non-clicking strum bar. It took a little while to get used to but it feels much more natural than the GH guitars ever did now.

[Parodygm]

I love the Strat. Of course, I own a real one (well, a beaten up old Strat copy to be honest) so I can't imagine why someone who has ever played an real guitar would like the design of the LP or the old Explorers better...

[Convertables_10]

After spending the time i have buying broken ones from ebay adding the Byte arts stummer and fixing the tilt sensor problems and adjusting the frets to my liking I love it and easy to repair also. Guess thats why I started a company devoted to repairingand customizing these guitars.

[MooTrain]

I'm in the minority here a lot.

I prefer the RB controller over the GH3 controller. The ONLY thing I don't like about it is that it's wired, but even then, not having to fish batteries out of the TV remote when my guitar controller is dying is nice. The big thing I like about it is the body. Having a larger body means that on charts like 30 Seconds to Mars - Attack, I can rest my wrist on the body of the guitar. Screw figuring out timing - I'll just downstrum the whole way with my thumb on a song that's otherwise too fast to fully downstrum on the gh3 controller.

Yeah. I'm a bad player :)

The thinner neck of the guitar makes my left hand feel more comfortable too. :)

[killer_roach]

I'm in the minority here a lot.

I prefer the RB controller over the GH3 controller. The ONLY thing I don't like about it is that it's wired,

It's wired? Oh, wait, 360 bundled guitar. You were kinda making me wonder there for a second about what I did to my Strats :)

(Note to self: I need to lay off the caffeine, big time)

[LoopyChew]

Count me in. While I don't really mind the LP (the collapsibility would've been awesome had it not caused so many problems with the fret buttons--I had to RMA my first controller because of it), the neck of the Strat, plus the way the buttons are built, feel so much more natural and easier to use. The one downside is that occasionally my fingers catch another note during chords and I screw up a little.

Much as I like the GH strum bar for its clickiness, I also like the RB for its silence. It's also a lot less fatiguing for me.

The solo buttons are awesome for the fact that they work as regular fret buttons outside of solos, and are kind of fun to wail on when you've got a solo. (I find them to be a pain in the ass when it comes to zigzags, though. I fail out if I don't use the regular frets.)

So yeah, love to the Strat and all that.

[patmac0014]

Count me in as a lover of the strat. Having played since GH1, it took some time to get used to it. I remember not liking it at first and going to the Les Paul to beat some of the mid-range songs on expert, and using the loud click of the strum bar to keep time. But, the LP started to double strum, so I moved over to the strat and haven't looked back. I've tried the Les from time to time, and it's too big and clunky now, and the clicky messes with me rather than helps.

And in response to an earlier question, yes, the select button activates overdrive on the 360 as well. It's pretty much what I do to really coordinate activiting it with my drummer.

[Ollie1990]

I love it too, doing big rock endings by mashing the solo buttons is great.

[only1yzerman]

How fitting that this is my first post on these forums? :p

First off, I started with the XPlorer on GHII. That lasted about a year until my dog got hungry for some plastic. So I went out and bought a LP wireless with GHIII. Then I bought the Rock Band bundle pack. These are really the only 3 games on the XBOX I play, so I use the Guitars a lot.

My main gripe with the strat is, it's way too flimsy. I have had it since the game was released and the neck is already starting to crack. Another few gripes about the strat is that the whammy bar gets in the way of the strum bar, and also to activate overdrive I nearly have to flip the guitar. Instead of getting used to it, I said screw it and stuck with the LP. The back/select button is out of reach while you are strumming (with the LP I can nail it with my palm while strumming). Another thing I hate about the Strat is the XBOX buttons. They put them on the other side of the controller? WTF? Oh, one other thing - the solo sound selector. I freaking hate that. My roommate plays bass with that controller all the time and he put it on WAH-WAH once and went into overdrive and nearly blew out my speakers. Seriously, why not disable that for bass?

IMO the only thing that I regret not using the Strat for is on player matches people with the strats have an advantage during rock endings. If you both get perfect - the guy with the strat wins because he can click instead of strum and usually get a higher score because of it.

This doesn't mean that the LP is flawless by any means - I had a blister on the inside of my thumb because the geniuses who made it decided to leave a wide gap between the bottom and top parts in the neck without smoothing it out.

[leftover_crack]

im never going to get used to the strum bar

[Ledgo2]

Seriously, I see so many people complaining about the RB Guitar and it baffles me. Yes I had a little bit of a hard time adjusting from the GH guitars, but once that phase was over I haven't looked back. in fact I have a hard time playing with the GH guitars now. Also how could you possibly hate the solo tap buttons?!
I heart my strat!!

Alot of people hate it due to their durability. I had mine and was fine for two weeks, then OD and strummer messed up. I bought GH2 with the GH2 guitar and now use the X-plorer on it. I like tapping, but I really hated the button lay out. I am use to gripping the neck with my thumb on top, and I couldn't do that well on the strat due to my big fingers, I would mess up chords trying to grip, having my thumb set off the green or red button detection.

[Hanrahan89]

I don't think a lot of people hate the RB Guitar I think they are upset that they break. I liked mine for the 2 weeks it worked now it doesn't strum down I can only upstrum. Thats why I perfer the GH guitars both my GH2 and GH3 guitars still work.

[Ledgo2]

Same thing happened to mine, but now the strummer actually sticks. I never bothered to send it in for a new one just to get a new strat with the same problem.

[Mycool]

I own 2 PS2 GH controllers (1 original + 1 Wireless), 2 360 X-plorers (purchased with GH II), 1 360 wireless Les Paul (Purchased with GH III) and the 360 wired RB Strat and I definitely prefer the Strat over all of them by far. I only wish that I could use the Strat to play GH II & GH III. The main reason I don't play those games anymore and I won't be buying any future Guitar Hero games is because I can't use the Strat to play them (otherwise GH Aerosmith would have already been pre-ordered).

[dome420]

i love the strat also, so much better than the gh toy they call a guitar

[Munger88]

I personally only use the Strat for tapping on solos. It got me 5* on Ride the Lightning and Blackened, and almost got me gold stars on GGaHT. But songs like Creep and Dead on Arrival with a strumming pattern or fast strumming I can't do for the life of me on a Strat, I think the strumbar on that guitar is horrible. It also annoys me that the buttons are louder than the strumbar. Overall, I always use the GH controller.

[brunoponcejones]

I recently went back to the GH guitar after months of nothing but the Srat. I had a REAL hard time playing it. I can't stand the raised up frets on the GH. I often slide from fret to fret and that is extremely difficult on the GH. I also don't like that the frets are not endcapped on the GH. The endcapps help me keep track of what fret I'm on.

That being said the GH guitar does have less problems. I've already had to replace one Strat because the strum bar broke. Then the whammy bar broke on the replacement but I fixed that myself. Also the Srtat deploys when IT wants to. I can't tell you how many times I've died trying to get the Strat to deploy into overdrive.

But even with all of it's problems I'll take the Strat ANY DAY over the GH.

[MD333]

I love the Strat as-well. I can't stand the LP now. At first I didn't like the solo buttons, too difficult to move my hand, but now I use the solo buttons for the entire song. I tried using the LP and then the Strat on Highway Star. with the LP I got 4 stars and Gold Stared it with the Strat. My strat is also much more responsive than my LP as-well despite that most people have problems with them.