Fender Squier Stratocaster MIDI Controller Guitar

This guitar was designed by Fender as a Rock Band 3 game controller but few people realize that this is one of the best MIDI controller guitars on the market. If you connect it to a computer and run a sampler software like Kontakt you can play virtually any instrument: acoustic, electric, 12 string, classical guitars, piano, organ, flute, harp, all kinds of ethnic instruments. The possibilities are endless. There are other MIDI guitar controllers like Lineage, YRG or Yamaha MIDI but they don’t have real strings and do not feel like real guitars, they use either buttons or pressure sensors on the fretboard. Another guitar MIDI technology is Fishman TriplePlay which is a pickup that senses the frequency of string vibrations and converts them to MIDI signals but it has significant latency and produces a lot of false notes.

 

The item includes:

• Squier Fender Stratocaster MIDI Controller Guitar

• Fender hard case

• Fender belt

• 6 sets of Fender nickel-plated strings

• MIDI-to-USB cable

• Manual

 

The guitar is in mint like-new condition.

 

This guitar:  

 

1. Has both AUDIO ¼” output and standard MIDI output.

2. As a self-standing instruments, it produces standard electric guitar out of its 1/4" standard jack, for connecting to external amplifier, or to a PC via an audio interface.

3. Plays just like a real guitar, even for MIDI, because IT IS a REAL GUITAR, with real strings and a full 22 fret range and size.

4. Does not use switches at the fretboard, it senses the steel string's contact with the metal frets. Therefore, there is no adapting difference as when playing MIDI "guitars" that use buttons in the fretboard.

5. It is TRULY polyphonic. Each string goes out in its own MIDI channel. It has a hex pickup built-in which allows these desirable MIDI channel independence for each string.

6. It tracks really well and can be easily played absolutely clean with no doubles or glitches. Overall much better than FTP or YRG/Lineage

7. It has a nice way to do pitch-bends by tilting the guitar (can be enabled or disabled)

8. It has two buttons to move as many octaves as you want up or down

9. It has an essential MIDI patch selection of forward or backwards via two dedicated buttons.
   One can customize a soft/hard synth so as to switch the desirable patches to be in a selected order, and quickly select them, and see in the hardware synth or in the software synth which patch (sound) one has activated. This guitar does not have a built-in synth, for which there is no real need with today's multitude of available free or paid-for software sounds, or hardware synths.

10. There is no latency as far as the MIDI sending of notes is concerned, since it does not convert sound to MIDI. The function of rendering sound out of MIDI messages is left to external hardware or software synths. Thus, any latency is external to this guitar, and would depend on the audio interface plus the soft synth or sampler and samples played. With a hardware synth, the latency would be hardly any. With a modern laptop or PC, and a modern audio interface, the latency is also pretty much un-affecting.

11. Its real-time audio output via the /4" jack can also be used (forked) to trigger, additionally, the MIDI software called MIDI-Guitar, which can also then trigger MIDI notes, and those notes can be simultaneously used (forked) to separated MIDI sound producing modules (synths). All of these sound-producing aspects are optional, and as said, simultaneously applicable, for pretty much countless possibilities.

12. There is no need for special MIDI interface-box, as described for one of its intended uses (game playing). It does have a STANDARD MIDI-out 5 pin jack that is ALWAYS active as long its 3 AAA batteries are ON for the MIDI functions.

13. It does have a battery ON/OFF switch. Batteries are not needed when used as a standard electric guitar. Just plug it into a typical guitar amp via its 1/4" jack, or to the audio interface of a laptop or PC. The 3 AAA batteries are only for MIDI use.

14. MIDI has TWO modes.

    1. "STANDARD" mode notes play when strings are plucked by the right hand while left hand at frets determines the MIDI notes. Fret detection is not velocity sensing, but right hand plucking of strings IS velocity sensing, Adjustments of its pickup, and potentiometers at the battery compartment, may help for sensitivity response.The volume knob in the guitar is ONLY for the audio-out from the pickup. It does not affect the MIDI volume.
       The second MIDI mode is called "SYNTH" mode. In that mode, notes are triggered by just the fingers touching the strings at the frets, which is a very sensitive, non-adjustable aproach.

    2. In this "SYNTH" mode the notes are produced when the fingers touch the fretboard. Plucking the strings is not necessary but one can still pluck strings with the right hand, where that provides velocity sensing.

15. The MIDI modes DO NOT affect the AUDIO output (of its being a standard electric guitar) to the 1/4 inch jack. Audio output and MIDI output are completely independent of each other.

16. As an audio output electric guitar it mediocre so I do not recommend it in the audio electric guitar mode. Standard Fender Stratocaster would be much better for that purpose.

17. It is unfortunate that these guitars are discontinued. They are NOT throw-away toys. They are real instruments, made out of solid wood, except for the fretboard plate which is durable and suitable plastic where typical guitars have ebony or other woods. Using a plastic plate there has to do with the electronics inside the neck.
    
    

 

I adjusted this guitar for the best MIDI fingerpick performance by:

• Lowering the string action to ~1.5 mm

• Using G-strings for the first 3 strings and D-strings for the last 3 strings.

• Detuning all strings down by 3 tones.

After these adjustments the guitar became poorly unplayable in audio mode but in MIDI mode it became lovely and effortless: it lowered the string picking threshold a lot so that I don't need to pluck the strings strongly anymore and can use my regular plucking strength, and also it made the left hand playing really effortless. If you still want to use it in both audio and MIDI mode then it can be easily converted back to the standard setup.

 

Please look at the demos on youtube: