HSS Super Strat Shootout! Fender American Performer vs Ibanez AZ vs Charvel DK24

[@gabriel_guitar]

All 3 guitars are great in their own way, but which one do you think sounds best? ✅ Timestamps below! In a mix: 0:00 - Intro 0:09 - Ibanez - Metal Riff - Bridge 0:20 - Fender - Metal Riff - Bridge 0:31 - Charvel - Metal Riff - Bridge 0:41 - Ibanez - Hard Rock Riff 1 - Bridge 0:51 - Fender - Hard Rock Riff 1 - Bridge 1:01 - Charvel - Hard Rock Riff 1 - Bridge 1:14 - Ibanez - Solo 1 - Neck 1:24 - Fender - Solo 1 - Neck 1:34 - Charvel - Solo 1 - Neck 1:45 - Ibanez - Hard Rock Riff 2 - Bridge 1:55 - Fender - Hard Rock Riff 2 - Bridge 2:00 - Charvel - Hard Rock Riff 2 - Bridge 2:05 - Ibanez - Clean - Bridge & Middle 2:10 - Fender - Clean - Split Bridge & Middle 2:15 - Charvel - Clean - Bridge & Middle 2:20 - Ibanez - Solo 2 - Neck 2:30 - Fender - Solo 2 - Neck 2:41 - Charvel - Solo 2 - Neck 2:51 - Ibanez - Country Rock Riff - Bridge & Middle 2:56 - Fender - Country Rock Riff - Split Bridge & Middle 3:06 - Charvel - Country Rock Riff - Bridge & Middle 3:11 - Ibanez - Solo 3 - Bridge 3:22 - Fender - Solo 3 - Bridge 3:32 - Charvel - Solo 3 - Bridge 3:42 - Ibanez - Rock Riff - Middle 3:52 - Fender - Rock Riff - Middle 3:57 - Charvel - Rock Riff - Middle 4:02 - Ibanez - Solo 4 - Bridge 4:07 - Fender - Solo 4 - Bridge 4:12 - Charvel - Solo 4 - Bridge 4:23 - Ibanez - Solo 5 - Neck & Middle 4:33 - Fender - Solo 5 - Neck & Middle 4:43 - Charvel - Solo 5 - Neck & Middle Isolated Guitars: 5:04 - Ibanez - Metal Riff - Bridge 5:15 - Fender - Metal Riff - Bridge 5:25 - Charvel - Metal Riff - Bridge 5:35 - Ibanez - Hard Rock Riff 1 - Bridge 5:45 - Fender - Hard Rock Riff 1 - Bridge 5:55 - Charvel - Hard Rock Riff 1 - Bridge 6:08 - Ibanez - Solo 1 - Neck 6:19 - Fender - Solo 1 - Neck 6:29 - Charvel - Solo 1 - Neck 6:39 - Ibanez - Hard Rock Riff 2 - Bridge 6:49 - Fender - Hard Rock Riff 2 - Bridge 6:54 - Charvel - Hard Rock Riff 2 - Bridge 6:59 - Ibanez - Clean - Bridge & Middle 7:05 - Fender - Clean - Split Bridge & Middle 7:10 - Charvel - Clean - Bridge & Middle 7:15 - Ibanez - Solo 2 - Neck 7:25 - Fender - Solo 2 - Neck 7:35 - Charvel - Solo 2 - Neck 7:45 - Ibanez - Country Rock Riff - Bridge & Middle 7:50 - Fender - Country Rock Riff - Split Bridge & Middle 8:00 - Charvel - Country Rock Riff - Bridge & Middle 8:06 - Ibanez - Solo 3 - Bridge 8:16 - Fender - Solo 3 - Bridge 8:26 - Charvel - Solo 3 - Bridge 8:36 - Ibanez - Rock Riff - Middle 8:47 - Fender - Rock Riff - Middle 8:52 - Charvel - Rock Riff - Middle 8:57 - Ibanez - Solo 4 - Bridge 9:02 - Fender - Solo 4 - Bridge 9:07 - Charvel - Solo 4 - Bridge 9:17 - Ibanez - Solo 5 - Neck & Middle 9:28 - Fender - Solo 5 - Neck & Middle 9:38 - Charvel - Solo 5 - Neck & Middle

[@MageGills]

Charvel all day for me. The neck on the DK24 is wonderful to play on.

[@gabriel_guitar]

For sure mate, if you're into fast necks the Charvel is hard to beat 🍻

[@DaipayanKarmakar]

There is always something off about the Charvel dk24 neck single coil... may be due to the 24 frets which pushes it more towards the bridge or the pick up it self... it never sounded musical to my years... whereas dk24 HH is a totally different beast. Apart from these, there is nothing to complain about all these beautiful guitars

[@CroneRaven1810]

Personally, the biggest plus for why I would choose the Ibanez AZ is that it has SS frets. Lasts a lifetime, bending and sliding feels smooth and great. Since the Charvel is in the same price range, I would go for the Ibanez. Not sure how much the Fender costs but it is a Fender, so probably not cheap. If I had to choose the Charvel vs Fender, I would go for the Charvel. The Seymour duncans sound great and the shred neck is a breeze to play on.

[@gabriel_guitar]

Nice one mate, 100% agree with you the SS frets on the Ibanez makes it an absolute joy to play, and I’ve gotta say the neck on this Premium AZ actually feels better to play than my Prestige AZ, the edges of the fretboard are more rounded with no fret sprout, overall it’s a steal of a guitar that you can get for not that much money second hand. The Fender at present you can get the black version of the American Performer Strat HSS for around £1050 from Andertons, which isn’t too bad all things considered, TBH I haven’t played an American Fender in a while and the neck on this one is very comfortable and fast the modern C shape feels just right, I actually preferred it over the Charvel which is a bit too wide and thin for me. Cheers for checking the video out 🍻

[@adsr22]

Always a big big pleasure to watch you and hear all your test ! 🙏🤟👏

[@gabriel_guitar]

Thank you so much my friend, really appreciate it 🍻🎸

[@ericrude4416]

I liked the Ibanez humbucker and the Fender single coils the best.

[@gabriel_guitar]

Nice, that's a cool combo. The single coil tones on the Fender sound just right 🍻

[@geoffnightingale9290]

I love your videos. You are such a clean player and have excellent groove. Write fab riffs too.

[@gabriel_guitar]

Thank you very much my friend, that’s so cool of you to write, really appreciate it 🍻

[@roadfordays]

Charvel sounds the best to my ears, but I'm guessing most of that is just pickup differences

[@gabriel_guitar]

Nice one mate, for sure, a pickup swap would transform any of these guitars 🍻

[@JohnLloydDavis]

This is an excellent way to demo these guitars so we can hear them side by side and in context, a great idea. I've previously owned a DK24 2PT HSH in mahogany and a SoCal HSH with a Floyd but I sold them and bought an RG550 and a DK24 HSS like the one on here. I love them both :)

[@gabriel_guitar]

Thank you so much my friend! Really appreciate it. Excellent choice of guitars, recently sold my 550 and I'm regretting it massively, it was such a great guitar.

[@JohnLloydDavis]

@@gabriel_guitar I know what you mean. I first got an RG550 in 1988 when they first came out and a few years later I sold it as it wasn't getting used much. In the late 90's I needed a guitar with a Floyd and regretted selling the RG ever since until I got one again this year. The things you learn eh!

[@gabriel_guitar]

@@JohnLloydDavis That's incredible, a 1st generation RG, hey?? Must have been such a great guitar! The new RGs are amazing guitars as well 🍻

[@AkiraSpectrum]

killer video concept, great job and loved your playing.

[@gabriel_guitar]

Thank you so much mate, very cool of you! 🍻

[@joelovatomusic]

heard a different high end punch/sparkle on the ibanez that fell away when the fender came in for all crunch/distortion clips. fender single pickup had warmer/fuller acoustic tone it seemed though.

[@gabriel_guitar]

Yeah mate, I agree, the Ibanez is definitely a brighter guitar, much more modern sounding in comparison to the Fender.

[@17silence]

@gabriel_guitar , which one you enjoyed playing the most?

[@gabriel_guitar]

Hi mate, I enjoyed Fender the most.

[@17silence]

@@gabriel_guitar Thank you a lot for your reply. Greetings.

[@gabriel_guitar]

@@17silence my pleasure mate!

[@xXPoisonShotsXx]

I have that exact charvel dk24 and i could not be happier with it, charvel makes the best guitars for 1k!

[@gabriel_guitar]

Nice one mate, Charvel is making some great guitars.

[@xXPoisonShotsXx]

@@gabriel_guitar oh they definitely are, i was never that into charvel but i saw this pink beauty and bought it on impulse, have had it for a month and no regrets at all

[@JayDoge]

I'm a simple man. I see a Gabriel video. I like. Which one of these is your favorite and why? What do you think is the most useful between your fav' hss vs EC-1000T vs Se Dgt?

[@gabriel_guitar]

Thank you so much my friend, very cool of you! Hmmm, that's a bit difficult to answer, all 3 guitars will be very versatile. But I'd say the EC-1000T will win for versatility, in terms of tones it'd be a tie between the Fender and the SE DGT for me 🍻

[@treishtrei]

surprising for me, cuz i thought I'm gonna like the more ... rock/metal oriented brands... I prefer the Fender. Still shocked

[@gabriel_guitar]

Nice one mate, my thoughts exactly, this Fender sounds fantastic even for heavier styles 🤘🏻

[@JoseA-Divergent]

Si tuvieses que elegir una? yo Charvel !

[@gabriel_guitar]

Charvel es una muy buena guitarra, pero prefiero la Fender. Me gusta mucho el sonido de las pastillas single coil y el mástil.

[@rcdmrl]

How about playability Gabriel? Do you have any strong opinions or did they all feel good?

[@gabriel_guitar]

The Charvel has a very fast wide and thin neck, a bit similar to the Ibanez wizard neck. But I prefer the much beefier neck on the AZ, the neck on the Fender is great too it has the modern C shape, not too thick not too thin. 🍻

[@nirbhaysaini9578]

i am planning to go for a guitar to give me the "Strat sound", like john mayer, eric johnson and cory wong stuff. Will charvel be able to give me those tones. Or should I go for something like a player plus fender or silver sky.

[@gabriel_guitar]

Hi mate, I'd say a player plus or silver sky might be a better choice for the classic strat sounds. The pickups on the Charvel may be a bit too hot for that.

[@nirbhaysaini9578]

@@gabriel_guitar but i am also more of like a shredder kind of a person. Are there any guitars around that $1000 price range which have slightly slimmer necks and that classic twang.

[@trevinpendry136]

@@nirbhaysaini9578I traded a silver sky se for a charvel dk 24 hss like the one in the video. Strat tones of the silver sky are amazing, but the neck radius is not shredder friendly and the pickups are super low output. I much prefer the charvel for my taste, but the silver sky sounds awesome in the right hands. The charvel would be cool with some Strat pickups in the neck and middle and the high output humbucker in the bridge. You’d be unstoppable.

[@nirbhaysaini9578]

​@@trevinpendry136 Hi! Thanks for the reply, I already have a shredder guitar for metal and Rock. I am looking for one which can help me do all the funky stuff (cory wong) and also SRV and Eric Johnson.

[@nirbhaysaini9578]

​@@trevinpendry136I could also mod that guitar in the future tho, also a valid option. But I am a student and wing have another chance to spend money on my guitar. 😔

[@juankmarte4046]

hey mate, how did you get so similar in sound? since fender and charvel must be alder and ibanez basswood

[@gabriel_guitar]

Hi mate, not quite sure, other than trying to play the parts as close as possible and having the action and pickup height very similar on these 3 guitars, this is how it came out. I hear a difference but it’s indeed quite subtle on some of these clips.🍻

[@juankmarte4046]

Thanks, another questions does the neck on the charvel and the fender felt similar? obviously the fender radius is rounder but im going for width and thickness @@gabriel_guitar

[@gabriel_guitar]

@@juankmarte4046 my pleasure mate. I wouldn't say so, the neck on the charvel feels more like an Ibanez wizard style neck, it's flatter at the back, feels thinner and wider.

[@jkf9167]

Overall, I think the Charvel wins the tone contest. I like the way it cuts through just a little bit more than the Fender or Ibanez. For the more controlled-sounding stuff like your recording, I think that the Charvel is especially good. I'd go for the Fender myself because I bash on on them a bit, and Fenders are built for that. Also, I like to leave the bridge sitting flush against the body, so you can detune only. I don't know how easy it would be with the recessed trem of the Charvel.

[@gabriel_guitar]

Nice one mate, appreciate you checking the video out. Yeah, for tighter more produce tones the Charvel is great. But yeah, for the exact same reasons you mentioned,I tend to play the Fender quite a lot more, I put the bridge flush to the body and it's so much more reliable in terms of terms of tuning stability, also it has some of my fav single coil tones, really fun guitar to play. 🍻

[@huka83]

Az for me!

[@gabriel_guitar]

It's a great guitar for sure 🍻

[@heartsquaremusic2953]

Charvel marginally sounded the worst. It felt dimensionally “flat.”

[@gabriel_guitar]

Nice one mate, I'd agree with this, the pickups have quite a bit more output on the Charvel, it may be a contributing factor to it sounding less "textured".

[@m.d.1677]

Algo

[@MyanmarMediaLight]

no one beats Fender's clean tone. 1. Fender 2. Ibanez 3. Charvel

[@gabriel_guitar]

Nice one mate. Indeed, Fender’s clean tone is hard to beat.

[@mesfigas]

1 fender 2 ibanez 3 charvel

[@gabriel_guitar]

Nice one mate, that’s how I’d rank them as well 👍🏻

[@brianpeterson5516]

Ibanez. Charvel/fender tie. Charvel is the best deal for the money.

[@gabriel_guitar]

For sure mate, Charvel is great for the money 🍻