review
Tradition SP-1
The SP-1 is an electric guitar based on the classic Stratocaster design, with a few upgrades. The Stratocaster design is a classic because of its good looks and versatility. It is popular and works well in nearly every style of music with the possible exception of jazz.
Over the years, it had become common for guitarist to take stock Strats and “hot rod” them with hotter pickups, coil splitters, locking tremolos, etc. With the SP-1, Tradition does the hot-rodding for you.
Soupped Up
The SP-1 has a number of features not found on a standard Strat, including humbucking Hot Rail pickups with coil splitting toggles. There are three mini toggles between the volume and tone control (one for each pickup) that allow you physically switch between humbucker and single coil mode. Along with the five way pickup selector, this makes for a lot of pickup configurations. Another variation is the side mounted input jack, which allows you to see more of the beautiful Flame Maple top. Super smooth, locking Grover mini tuners make string changes a snap and tuning a breeze.
Construction
The Tradition SP-1 is built in Korea and features a Flame Maple top over a Basswood body. It has a Rock Maple neck with a Rosewood fingerboard. The body and front of the headstock have a glossy finish, but the back of the neck has a light satin finish, so you feel more of the wood. The neck inlays are Tradition’s own “T” design in a “perloid” color. Construction was flawless all around.
Appearance
The Flame Maple top was on my review guitar was stunning in its red finish. Although it has a white pickguard, black pickups, and chrome hardware, everything looked good together, and made for a very sweet looking axe.
Hardware
Tradition uses chrome hardware on the SP-1, including Grover locking mini tuners and Vibrato (also known as Tremolo or Whammy bar). It comes with Tradition’s own Hot Rail Humbucker pickups.
Setup
Out of the box, setup was perfect. The action was low, and as I’ve come to expect from Tradition, the neck was ruler flat. No string buzzes or other problems were found. The guitar was very easy to play.
Tone
The Hot Rail Humbuckers are a little darker than typical Strat single coils, and considerably hotter. This guitar seems designed for high gain playing. However, thanks to the coil splitting toggles, you can switch to a true single coil setup also. Although I found, that even in single coil mode, the pickups didn’t have the usual single coil sparkle or “quack” Strats are known for. And since you are cutting out one coil from the pickup, you also lose some volume when you switch to single coil mode. This not necessarily a bad thing, since you could use the toggles to switch between rhythm and lead playing during a song, giving your solo an extra boost. And as expected, in single coil mode, there is additional hum in the signal.
While the pickups are darker than normal single coils, you can get closer to a traditional Strat sound by boosting the treble on your amp. I found the guitar best suited for rock, metal, or shredding style playing. It wouldn’t be my first choice for country, surf, or roots music.
In Use
I used the guitar for my usual Sunday night gig and it handled the more pop and rock type songs with ease, although I missed my Strat (with Kinman pickups) when I needed a very clean “country” tone. The whammy bar is a “knife edge” design that is best suited for smaller amounts of vibrato. It only goes up a half step (one fret higher in pitch) and only dives about a whole step. The guitar stayed in tune most of the time, even with heavy use of the bar. Nice. The neck is ruler flat, with no radius whatsoever, so it has different feel than the usual Strat neck. Shredders will probably like this as it makes for a fast neck, others may not.
Final Thoughts
The SP-1 features stunning looks, a fast neck, and a heaping helping of “cool” factor. Its coil splitting pickups offer plenty of pickup configurations and tonal versatility, although the SP-1 is not as bright or detailed as a typical Strat. Still, if you live and breath in the high gain zone, the hot rail pickups will take you there, and its knock-out looks will help you look as cool as you sound. Before you buy a Strat and hot rod it, check out the Tradition SP-1. It may be just what you’re looking for.
Reader Comments
Better Guitar encourages your input. Agree with this review? Think I’m crazy? If you have played a Tradition SP-1, email me your comments and I’ll post them below. The more opinions we have available, the better our buying decisions will be.
Roger Atlas
I own an SP 1 and I love the action, awesome array of sounds. The only thing is a crackle in the finish on the body by the neck joint, it could be in the wood as well. I sent pictures of it and called Tradition but they didn’t care much about it and it was only 3 weeks after I bought it.
stats
- • Solid Basswood Body w/ Flame Maple Top
- • Rock Maple Neck with Rosewood Fingerboard
- • 1 Volume control, 1 Tone control, 5-Way Pickup Switch. 3 Coil Tap Pickup Switches
- • 3 High-Output Coil Tapped Hot Rail Humbuckers
- • Transparent Finish available in Black Cherry Burst, Honey Burst, Natural, Cobalt Blue, Red, Vintage Burst
Positives
- Great looks; flawless construction; multiple pickup options; hot humbucker pickups.
Negatives
- Not as bright or “quacky” as typical Strat pickups.
Estimated Street Price
- $699 (Prices are set and vary by dealer)
Rating
- Performance: 8
- Sound Quality: 8
- Construction: 10
- Overall: 8.7
Ratings Key
- 0 = Worthless
- 10 = Excellent
Company
- Tradition