Hey there, welcome back to another review of a nice, budget-friendly electric guitar by Squier. This time I will be looking at a Fender Squier Affinity Stratocaster electric guitar and telling you why you should just grab one. Basically, the Affinity series is a step up from Bullet Strats.
I can’t tell you they are completely different as there’s a slight difference between the series. However, one will definitely feel and hear the difference between a Bullet and an Affinity guitar.
During my time in the MI industry, I had the chance to play Fender Squier Affinity HSS and SSS Stratocasters very often and I really liked the raw quality of the instruments.
Especially the maple fretboard version was so perfect for my needs since I love unfinished fretboards and am a big fan of their attack. Even with a low-budget, entry-level guitar like this, you can feel the difference.
The most frequently asked question about the Affinity series is which one you should go for. HSS or SSS version? It’s basically up to you and a very simple question to answer:
If you like heavier music genres a humbucker pickup on the bridge position will definitely help, but if you are more into traditional music genres such as blues, rock and roll…etc you can go for the standard 3 single pickup version. Before we dive into details, let’s hear the guitar first as we always do 🙂
Squier Affinity Stratocaster Review & Sound Demo (no talking)
Squier Affinity Stratocaster Tech Specs
| Body | Alder |
| Neck | Maple - C Shape |
| Fretboard | Maple |
| Frets | 21 Medium Jumbo |
| Scale | 648mm |
| Radius | 241mm |
| Pickups | Standard Single-Coil Strat |
| Selector | 5-way Selector |
| Controls | Volume - Neck Tone - Middle Tone |
| Bridge | 6 Saddle Vintage Style Tremolo |
| Tuners | Standard Die-Cast |
| Neck Plate | 4 Bolt Standard |
| Strings | Fender USA 250L, NPS 9-42 Set |
As you can see from the table above, there is not much difference between a Fender Squier Bullet Stratocaster and a Squier Affinity Stratocaster. The most notable difference is the body wood, in this case, it’s alder wood and it’s known as the standard body wood of strat guitars.
What I really like about this guitar is the neck! It’s unfinished both the neck part and the fretboard part. I must say it does have one of the best full satin necks I have ever bumped into, of course at this segment. Tuning stability and pickups sound are not so different from a Bullet version, but it feels like a tiny step up from its siblings. 
I usually don’t comment on tremolo bars at this level as they always cause problems. However, if you are after a raw Strat vibe without spending too much money, this is one of your best options out there. If you want to have a look at my other Fender Squier guitar reviews click the link and stay tuned for the upcoming reviews! Thanks for visiting my blog and supporting me so far! I will hopefully see you in the next review here!
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