Fender Custom Deluxe Strat HB-S1 MGSP

Fender Custom Deluxe Strat HB-S1 MGSP review

The Fender Custom Deluxe Strat HB-S1 MGSP is a U.S.-made Custom Shop Stratocaster with an HSS pickup layout, a vintage-style tremolo, and a magenta sparkle finish over three-tone sunburst. Its listed price is 6890. The available information is limited to the supplied specifications, with no customer reviews or playing impressions to draw on. This assessment therefore focuses on what the construction and hardware indicate, not on claims about sound or feel that would require hands-on testing.

The model is identified as a limited-edition Custom Shop instrument, while the specifications also state that it is not a limited run. Those descriptions are not fully aligned, so the exact production status would be worth confirming with the seller. The item number is 653120. A hard case is included; a gig bag is not.

Body, finish, and hardware

The body is alder, with no separate top listed. The finish is described as Heavy Relic, in magenta sparkle over three-tone sunburst. That layered color treatment and intentionally aged finish are defining visual features, though the specifications do not describe the degree or location of the aging. The pickguard is identified as a Strat GBG pickguard, and the hardware is chrome.

A vintage-style Stratocaster tremolo provides the bridge's vibrato function. The specifications do not identify the bridge's number of springs, setup, or range of movement, so those details cannot be assessed here. Schaller F tuning machines are fitted. Together, the tremolo and tuners establish the instrument's hardware configuration, but the information provided does not support claims about tuning stability under heavy tremolo use.

Neck and fingerboard dimensions

The maple neck is bolt-on and quartersawn. Its profile is listed as a 65-style C, measuring 20 mm thick at the first fret and 24 mm at the twelfth. These measurements give a more precise picture of the neck than the profile name alone, while still leaving the player's preference for neck shape a matter of personal fit.

The rosewood fingerboard is specified as AAA grade, with white Micarta dot inlays. It has a 241 mm radius, equivalent to 9.5 inches, and 22 narrow, tall frets. The scale length is 648 mm, or 25.5 inches, and the nut width is 41.9 mm, or 1.65 inches. These are familiar Stratocaster dimensions. The fret count, radius, and neck measurements are useful selection details, but fret leveling, setup, and fret condition are not documented in the supplied data.

Pickup configuration and controls

The HSS system combines a Seymour Duncan SH-4 humbucker at the bridge with two hand-wound '69 Strat single-coil pickups. The middle pickup is reverse-wound and reverse-polarity, while the neck pickup is listed as a standard '69 Strat model. This configuration gives the instrument a bridge humbucker alongside two single-coil positions. The specifications identify the pickup types and locations but provide no output readings, wiring diagram, or measured tonal results.

Controls include one volume knob with an S-1 switch, two tone knobs, and a five-way pickup selector. Tone control 2 blends the neck pickup into the signal. That blend function adds a way to combine the neck pickup with other selected positions, subject to the exact wiring. The supplied details do not explain what the S-1 switch changes, so its specific switching effect should be verified rather than assumed.

What the specifications establish

The clearest case for this model is its detailed combination of Custom Shop construction, an HSS pickup set, and distinctive finish. The quartersawn maple neck, rosewood fingerboard, stated neck thicknesses, and included hard case are concrete points buyers can compare against other guitars. Its 25.5-inch scale and 22 frets also place it squarely within familiar Stratocaster territory.

There are practical questions to resolve before purchase. The listed price does not specify a currency, the limited-edition and not-limited-run labels conflict, and the S-1 switch function is not explained. The specifications also do not provide weight, factory setup details, or a condition report beyond the Heavy Relic finish designation. No customer feedback is available, so there is no basis here for claims about comfort, sound quality, reliability, or value in use.

Based strictly on the supplied data, the Fender Custom Deluxe Strat HB-S1 MGSP is a well-specified U.S.-made instrument with a clear HSS design and a particular neck and finish recipe. Buyers should confirm the production-status wording, price currency, and switching details with the seller before ordering.