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Dieds said:
I had two other Rockband guitars as well as a Guitar Hero-branded guitar before getting the Sunburst Fender Stratocaster Replica. While two of those old guitars looked like the real-deal — they were smaller and made of cheap plastic. As a result it was painfully obvious at all times that they were mere shadows of their wood and metal cousins.
But since the Fender Stratocaster Replica guitar is actually made by Fender — with all of the same materials (you can easily imagine just adding strings and handing it to a real rock star); even the strap is authentic — you take pride holding your axe and jamming to Beatles tunes and other rock classics. My skill level increased mainly because it FEELS like a real guitar in my hands and therefore I can really get into the songs I’m playing along with.
Mad Catz’ axe also looks amazing in my man cave. I purchased a real guitar stand and the Xbox Sunburst Fender Stratocaster is now a treasured addition to my favorite room in the house. I wouldn’t recommend this guitar controller for children, though, as it is quite heavy and they could get hurt.

Rating: 5 / 5
# 6 May 2010 at 10:36 pm

Fishabe said:
Got this for Christmas and have been playing with it for 3 weeks now. I love this controller. I admit it is the video game equivalent of conspicuous consumption, but I really enjoy using it. The realistic weight and size are a plus in my book – after playing with it for a few hours I let a buddy try it while I played on the regular Rock Band controller and I am now spoiled. The regular controller felt like a toy. (I know technically they are both toys.) In short this is a completely unnecessary item that is a heck of a lot of fun to own. Highly recommended.
Rating: 5 / 5
# 7 May 2010 at 12:31 am

Conrad J. Obregon said:
Let me start out by saying that although I used this item, and loved it, I am not a serious guitar player. I really enjoyed using it for Rockband and felt like I was really a musician. But to make a really valid evaluation, I enlisted the help of my son, who was for a while, a serious musician, and played at clubs like CBGBs in New York. Here’s his review:
I’m an amateur musician and a newcomer to RockBand and other music

video games games that use controllers shaped like musical

instruments. Being a newbie, this guitar controller was the first

that I ever used, so although I was pleased when I started using it, I

didn’t really have any experience with other controllers with which I

could compare it. However, I was recently able to try out some other

available controllers at a local electronics store, and I see now that

I’ve been spoiled.
I’m not a great guitar player by any means, but I’ve played a bit over

the years, and I have my own Japanese Stratocaster copy. Using this

controller feels like you are using the real thing – at least as close

as we are going to get for now, until the controllers have actual

strings on them. The weight, materials and form are the same as an

actual Stratocaster. In fact, it may be too heavy for small

children. My own 9-year old son said that his shoulders were tired

after using it for a few songs, although he seems to be getting used

to it.
Of course, all the basic controls can be found here – A, B, X, Y

buttons, etc. – but some care was taken in working them into the

design of the guitar. I thought the use of the Stratocaster’s volume

and tone knobs as a Back and Start button was a clever design choice.
It’s true that this is a luxury item, and maybe the other controllers

would play just as well, but for me, the thrill of the virtual rock

star experience is one of the reasons that I play RockBand, and this

guitar controller makes the illusion that much more real. It even

looks great on my guitar stand when I’m done playing it.

Rating: 5 / 5
# 7 May 2010 at 1:02 am

Lisa Shea said:
Let me say first that obviously this is not a casual purchase. However, as a gamer who went out and bought not only the Ion rock drum kit but also the conversion module so I could play it with both my PS3 and 360 systems I will generally spend the money for an upgrade if it is warranted. I definitely believe high quality is worth it for a game you play for hours and hours a day. So the question is, is this solid wood game guitar worth the price?
A real Fender Standard Stratocaster (made in Mexico) goes for about $500, the US version is $1000. This one, made in China, is cheaper than both of those, and substitutes Rock Band innards for standard guitar innards. The rest of the guitar is impressively the same. It’s solid wood, except the plastic fretboard. The finish is gorgeous. The whammy bar “hangs down” like on a real guitar. Your knobs turn, rather than push in, for start and back.
I admit that in the “real” music world I don’t play heavy electric guitars – the only guitar I play is a light acoustic guitar. So my shoulders aren’t used to this kind of weight pulling down on them. It only takes me an hour or so of Rock Banding before I have to put this Fender down and switch to one of my other guitars. The pain gets to me. My boyfriend calls me a wuss – his main regular guitar (stringed) weighs 13 pounds. This is a mere 7 pounds. Still, I think many Rock Band players will run into this same issue with the weight.
On the up side, if you have a desire to play real guitars, this can be great training for you. Build up that shoulder strength while you game!
The buttons are spaced a little differently than on our other Rock Band guitars. Let’s see if I can explain this. The distance between the five buttons by the headstock is the same on the various guitars we own. So moving from green to red and so on is the same. However, the neck itself is much longer on this Fender version. It’s sized like a real guitar. So if you use the lower set of buttons, then moving your hand from that upper button set to the lower button set is a much longer reach.
Also, the strum bar is rather stiff and clicky. So your Fender guitar playing has a lot of clicking noises in it.
Again, because I don’t play “real” electric guitar, I found the dangling whammy bar to be a pain. I am used to it sticking right near my fingers. However, instruction from my boyfriend taught me the catch-in-the-crook-of-your-little-finger technique. I am slowly learning.
This certainly plays better than the super cheap guitars out there! However, it seems to play just as well as some of our other more high priced guitars in terms of finger responsiveness – both on the buttons and on the strum bar (once you get used to the stiffness). The wood would seem to be a reliable setup – but I’m not sure that’s a distinctive benefit. I’ve had some of these other guitars for quite a while – and we hammer on them fairly frequently. I haven’t had any problems with them either.
So I won’t give this a five star rating. Unlike the Ion Drums, you aren’t getting a “maximum benefit” from buying the Fender guitar. With the Ion drums, they are head and shoulders better than playing anything else. With this guitar, it’s as good as many other much cheaper guitars in terms of performance.
Still, Fender definitely gets high kudos for the quality and beauty of the instrument. You are building up arm / shoulder strength using this – which is useful in using real instruments. Also, you’re holding your arms in a much more natural position for real guitar playing, since the size is proper.
So in the end if having high quality, beautiful instruments is important to you, then I would say that splurging on this guitar will bring you a lot of satisfaction. It really is a work of art. However, in terms of ultimate gameplay, the instrument does not bring anything new – and some might feel it slightly impairs gameplay compared with other good quality Rock Band guitars.
Feel free to write with any questions, we have numerous guitars in the house (game guitars and real guitars) so we can be pretty fluent in our answers.
Rating: 4 / 5
# 7 May 2010 at 3:31 am

J. Finkel said:
The Mad Catz Xbox 360 Rock Band Wireless Fender Stratocaster Replica – Sunburst is as close to authentic as video game guitar controllers get.
== Design ==

As the price suggests, no expense is spared. This is the absolute pinnacle of gaming peripheral design and construction. The neccessary plastic buttons, knobs and switches are laid over a real fender stratocaster body, neck and headstock. Even the tuning pegs on the headstock are authentic and fully functional; unfortunately, they jangle about as you move the guitar (fixed with some weak, gentle glue). The glossy sunburst finish and the heft of the wood are just great. This is just a beautiful wireless (3 AA batteries) guitar that you may want to keep out on a stand rather than tossed into the back of a closet.
A few departures from a standard stratocaster are the neck finish, a slightly oversized whammy bar, and the fret spacing. Strats usually have a solid maple neck or a maple neck with rosewood overlay. This replica has (i believe) a real maple neck but with a plastic rosewood-like finished inlay. Rosewood would have been very impressive and slightly better on the fingers. The longer whammy bar makes it easier to use. The fret spacing, similarly eases play by conforming to the rock band guitar controller’s spacing. An actual strat has wider frets at the top and narrower frets at the bottom, in a gradual transition. A real strat also has several more frets on the neck. It’s understandable that Mad Catz would want to stick with the video game’s convention for fret layout, but I would have preferred the layout of a real strat, as I’m sure most guitar players would. It would have been very slick to be able to pop off one set of buttons and pop on the differently spaced set at will.
== Performance ==

Playing with the Fender Strat Replica is a real pleasure. It is the most accurate controller I’ve tried. With the size and weight of a real stratocaster, it will add realism and comfort to the whole Rock Band experience. Overdrive is activated by tilt sensors, but unlike cheaper guitars, it works exactly the way it should. The clicking strum bar is fairly stiff and requires much more force than most other guitar controllers. It takes some getting used to, but after an hour or two you’ll have no problem coaxing out a quick and rapid response. This is a guitar that feels like it will work just as well in 2 years as it does today. One negative, it lacks the auto-calibration of the Rock Band 2 guitar.
== Conclusion ==

While the price is steep, you’re getting the best Rock Band guitar controller on the market and a work of art. Although I will have to report back a few months from now, I doubt I’ll experience any sort of wear and tear, as I have with other guitar contorllers. A warning to parents – some of the positives (heft and size) could be big negatives for someone under 54″ tall. If you have already taken the plunge for most of the DLC, Xbox 360 Drum Rocker,Xbox 360 Rock Band Wireless Fender Precision Bass Replica – Hot Rod Red, and a mic stand, I’ll easily recommend this to complete your high-end set up. For those just looking to replace a faulty or broken plastic guitar to play a couple hours a week, obviously this may be overkill.
Rating: 5 / 5
# 7 May 2010 at 4:20 am

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