when did fender stop the swimming pool?

[j9fd3s]

i guess the early American strats have a swimming pool route, but when did they stop it? my 98 and 99 are normal strat routed, so its before that...

[dominus]

97 had it... so.. 97?

[Funkfingers]

Not soon enough!

[El CHupacabra]

^Someone's not a fan?

I thought I was gonna need one, but turns out my bridge cavity was already shaped big enough for a humbucker, and the neck pocket just needed a slight trim. I think it looks nice that way than the swimming pool.

[beandip]

Am I the only one who can't hear a difference? I never can tell until I take a peak under the pickguard, and still it doesn't affect what I hear. The only thing I think is "cool, I can hide **** in there".

[El CHupacabra]

^ I actually taped me lucky Toonie in the empty middle pocket of my strat.

Since then I've broken 2 strings (D, then G) in 3 days and nearly lost it.

[ErikH]

Am I the only one who can't hear a difference? I never can tell until I take a peak under the pickguard, and still it doesn't affect what I hear. The only thing I think is "cool, I can hide **** in there".

No, you're not. I can't either. Most of the voodoo stuff out there that folks say they can hear the differences in is because the want to hear those differences so their mind tricks the ears to thinking it hears something that's not even there.

[beandip]

No, you're not. I can't either. Most of the voodoo stuff out there that folks say they can hear the differences in is because the want to hear those differences so their mind tricks the ears to thinking it hears something that's not even there.

I'm a large believer in the placebo effect, and I also understand the physics of acoustic properties. If you change something, the resonance and acoustics of that something will change. BUT, will it change to a degree that the human ear can perceive?

That's what I get at with everything I tell my customers, yeah, the tone will change, but will it change 120 dollars worth, or to an amount that you can even hear it?

[metlking]

Am I the only one who can't hear a difference? I never can tell until I take a peak under the pickguard, and still it doesn't affect what I hear. The only thing I think is "cool, I can hide **** in there".

I'm with ya! I was gonna mention that but I didn't want to start a flame war with the cork sniffers!

[theodie]

am i the only one who can't hear a difference? I never can tell until i take a peak under the pickguard, and still it doesn't affect what i hear. The only thing i think is "cool, i can hide **** in there".

+1

[ErikH]

I'm a large believer in the placebo effect, and I also understand the physics of acoustic properties. If you change something, the resonance and acoustics of that something will change. BUT, will it change to a degree that the human ear can perceive?

That's what I get at with everything I tell my customers, yeah, the tone will change, but will it change 120 dollars worth, or to an amount that you can even hear it?

Exactly. I was at the Arlington Guitar Show and was talking with a pedal designer very well known in the DIY community and who has been doing this stuff for a very long time and he and I were discussing this very thing when it came to opamps in Tube Screamer type pedals, along with other things, and he has those same thoughts. Even the tech I take my guitars to for fret work says the same thing about some of this stuff.

Some may hear a small difference when playing alone, but add in the rest of a band and that small difference just became no difference.

[DonP]

My 1996 Classic 50s has the same route - almost big enough for an H-S-H but not quite.

[j9fd3s]

I'm a large believer in the placebo effect, and I also understand the physics of acoustic properties. If you change something, the resonance and acoustics of that something will change. BUT, will it change to a degree that the human ear can perceive?

That's what I get at with everything I tell my customers, yeah, the tone will change, but will it change 120 dollars worth, or to an amount that you can even hear it?

i have 2 AM stds, that are routed the same but sound way different, i agree it might make a difference, but its a different piece of wood too

i really just wanted to know, cause ive got two AM std's...

[ganzosrevenge]

Fender Changed from the swimming pool to the HSH route sometime around Mid-98, although I have seen a few N9s with the swimming pool, so I would venture they fully ran out sometime in early to mid 99. Realize, fender uses things until they run out, that's why even though 3 bolt necks came out sometime in 72, there are 74 and 75 strats with 4bolt necks. They did the changes gradually and used old stuff until it just ran out.

[DMyers77]

It was sometime around '98-'99. I remember our Fender rep coming in and talking about the new American series guitars. The HSH route replacing the swimming pool route was one of the highlights.

My '99 Am Std has the HSH route, and my '97 Lone Star has the swimming pool route.

[Zerberus]

Am I the only one who can't hear a difference? I never can tell until I take a peak under the pickguard, and still it doesn't affect what I hear. The only thing I think is "cool, I can hide **** in there".

+1

Neither I nor my master were able to hear the difference on a unfinished strat body that was originally 3 tite /w guard that we routed out to a pool for exactly this purpose. We strung her up, recorded her, then simply removed the neck and pickguard (so as to keep the setup intact), routed with the bridge still mounted, reinstalled pickguard and neck, tuned back up, and VOILA!! Massive lack of difference

[PFDarkside]

i have 2 AM stds, that are routed the same but sound way different, i agree it might make a difference, but its a different piece of wood too

i really just wanted to know, cause ive got two AM std's...

I'd chalk it up more to individual wood variance than the route. However, given the same piece of wood, I would think the individual routes would sound better. However, through any gain on there and you'll never notice I bet.

That's the thing with all these subtle tone improvements, if you are playing delicate clean passages it'll be much more noticable than under heavy gain.

[slightly_rude]

The release of the American Series in summer 2000 ended the swimming pool era.
I can't tell the difference either. I had a '97 Roadhouse (the old American Std. series) that had amazing tone. I still kick myself for selling it.

[Ashurbanipal]

I don't hear people complaining about the routing on their Tylers .

[Archer_of_Fish]

G&L has also used the swimming poop route.

I dont think it makes any difference