Chinese-Made Matte Black HSS Stratocaster

The Chinese-Made Matte Black HSS Stratocaster takes the familiar double-cutaway Strat design in a much darker, more modern direction. With its stealthy matte black finish, black pickguard, dark fingerboard and black controls, this model has an understated appearance that stands apart from more traditional Strat colours.

A subtle red pinstripe around the edge of the pickguard provides just enough contrast to break up the all-black aesthetic without taking away from the guitar's minimalist look.

Unlike a traditional SSS Stratocaster, this guitar uses an HSS pickup configuration, combining two single-coil pickups with a bridge humbucker. This makes it particularly versatile, retaining the clearer Strat-style tones of the neck and middle pickups while adding a fuller, more powerful bridge sound for distorted rhythm and lead playing.

The traditional five-way pickup selector is accompanied by one volume and two tone controls, providing plenty of tonal flexibility from a familiar control layout.

The dark fingerboard features understated dot position markers, while the matching dark headstock continues the blacked-out aesthetic along the full length of the instrument.

A chrome Strat-style tremolo bridge and chrome output jack provide some contrast against the otherwise dark hardware and finish.

The result is a Strat-inspired guitar that retains much of the versatility of the traditional design while offering a distinctly more aggressive contemporary appearance.

Features

• Chinese-made Stratocaster-style electric guitar
• Matte black body finish
• Black pickguard with subtle red detailing
• HSS pickup configuration
• Bridge humbucker
• Neck and middle single-coil pickups
• Five-way pickup selector
• One volume control
• Two tone controls
• Dark fingerboard
• Dot position markers
• Dark matching headstock
• Strat-style tremolo bridge
• Chrome bridge and output jack
• Double-cutaway body
• Suitable for rock, metal, blues, alternative and modern styles

Why You'll Love It

This guitar offers something quite different from the classic sunburst Strat we just covered. The matte black finish and HSS pickup configuration give it both a different appearance and a different musical focus.

The bridge humbucker is particularly useful for players who want heavier distorted sounds without giving up the cleaner neck and middle single-coil tones that make a Strat so versatile.

The tiny red accent around the black pickguard is also a nice touch. It's subtle enough that the guitar still looks almost completely black from a distance, but gives the design some additional character up close.