The guitar does sport some nice amenities––including a set of suped-up “hot” singlecoil pickups (reverse wound/reverse polarity in the middle position,) a satin nitro lacquer finish, and Fender’s Greasebucket Tone Circuit––though to my mind there are some downsides to the design as well. But if you are a working player, and you don't have a lot of money, and you want a reliable, straightforward Strat that sounds good and plays well, and sounds like a Strat should, the Highway One is an excellent choice.Introduced in July of 2006, the upgraded Highway One Stratocaster is Fender’s least expensive American Made Strat, and as such has been highly touted as the obvious answer for those guitar players longing for American Made quality at a reasonable price. It's not a Custom Shop, and if you can afford one of those get it. But the concentrated hate that gets thrown at the Highway One from some corners is entirely and completely justified. The satin finish on the neck may be throwing people off, perhaps the more rounded pickup sound, the fact that the neck is not tinted and the body doesn't have a glossy finish may be throwing them off too.
The reaction against it by some people is mystifying. It covers a lot of bases sonically, and it's meant for people who don't have money to throw away but who want something that is American made, and is better than the standard MIM models. That being said, the Highway One is not just for "modern" players, either.
If that's what you're looking for, you would be better off buying one of the MIM 50's, 60s or 70s models, or paying more money for one of the American Standards or Hot Rod Vintage models. The Highway One is not a vintage-styled Strat. I really am amazed at the negative reviews the Highway One Strat gets, and I don't think they are fair reviews. I have been playing for 30 years and I own quite a lot of gear - Gibson SG, 1959 Fender Jazzmaster, Rickenbacker 330, and lots of other stuff. If you want fullness, warmth, and a good Strat vibe, the Highway One will get you there. It is true that if you want the typical pingy, brittle, 1950s vintage Strat sound, these won't get it. The complaints about lack of warmth and sterility that are in other reviews are simply not true. They have a medium output and to my ears, good tone - a bit more rounded off than the vintage sound, but still clearly a Stratocaster. But I do want to make it clear that for most players who are not fixated on having their Strat sound exactly like a vintage model, these pickups will do well. If you are looking for a 1950's Strat sound, go elsewhere. This doesn't happen with the Highway One.
For me, this is good, because I find that Stratocasters - especially in the bridge pickup - can be ear-piercingly shrill. There is a bit less of a "twang" than the vintage Strat sound and a bit more midrange. They seem a bit biased toward a rock sound, so to speak. Overall I would say the Highway One pickups give a well-rounded sound that covers a lot of Strat bases. They're not noiseless, but they are not noisy at all. I find the stock pickups a lot less noisy than the Stratocasters I've had in the past - significantly less noisy, actually.
They are not ear-piercingly shrill, and they get a classic Strat sound. The Highway One has darker pickups than most other Strats. The Highway One is not a Custom Shop model, but it does not deserve the merciless ragging it gets from so-called Strat enthusiasts. I'm here to remedy this and tell you the truth. From the way some people talk, you would think that the Highway Ones are only marginally better than buying an Agile Strat copy. The number of horrendous reviews for the Highway One is disconcerting.
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