Paoletti Alfa Loft HSS Maple Fretboard “Stratospheric” w/ Case – Heavy Black

Information

Brand New w/ Warranty. We are an authorized Paoletti Dealer.

Like what you see? All photos are of the exact instrument you will receive.

Formerly known as the Stratospheric, the Alfa model is Paoletti's S-Style guitar featuring 130-150 year old reclaimed chestnut body and superb custom hardware appointments. It is available in SSS, HSS and HH configurations and in both the solid body "Loft" and thinline "Lounge" variations.

What Does Josh Think?

This is an S-Style that completes the dichotomy of a robust low end and a sparkling, vibrant upper register. When I have one, I rarely find I have the other. But this guitar dissolves the dilemma with one perfectly-balanced instrument.

The neck position Paoletti single coil is scooped but throaty. The bottom is lush and the top end has a nice bite. The middle position removes the smiley face EQ and surrenders an even tonal response from top to bottom. Every note is firm but clear. The “in-between” position is just the right amount of glassy quack, not giving up any volume but filtering out certain frequencies to create new lanes in the harmonic playing field.

The bridge humbucker adds some extra midrange punch and girth without sacrificing the clarity of the other positions. This pickup really highlights Paoletti’s own pickup winding prowess and reflects every dynamic of your pick attack while putting a nice bloom behind it. Where most HSS Strats strive on either the single coils or the humbucker and fight balance issues between the different positions, this one delivers a flawless tonal sequence across all five positions of the switch.

And not to forget the combination of bridge humbucker with middle single coil… this position has the charm of a standard position 2 but with a bit of natural compression rolling off the humbucker. It has a big post-production character right off the bat, without any fiddling on your amp or in your DAW.

How Does It Play?

The neck is on the full side of medium C, nice and round. Just the way I like it to feel. It sets up perfectly with mild relief and low action. The string action measures barely a hair over 4/64” on the low E string at the 12^th fret and right at 4/64” on the high E and still allows room to dig in without buzz. The 12” fretboard radius takes kindly to all styles of playing, including big high-on-the-neck string bends.

Paoletti wires their S-styles in the traditional configuration of neck & middle pickups on independent tone knobs, with the bridge pickup going straight to volume pot for maximum punch and clarity. If you prefer to have the bridge pickup wired up on the second tone knob, just inquire about having us do it for you!

Weight: 7lb 14.8oz

The Paoletti hardshell case pictured is included.

Specifications

BODY MATERIAL: Aged Chestnut Wood

BODY COLOR: 400 Heavy Black

NECK MATERIAL: Canadian Roasted Maple

NECK SHAPE: Medium "C" Profile

NECK DIMENSIONS: 21mm 1^st fret, 24mm 12^th fret

FRETBOARD MATERIAL: Canadian Roasted Maple

FRETS: Dunlop 6110

FRETS NUMBER: 22

FINGERBOARD RADIUS: 12"

SCALE LENGTH: 648 mm

NUT: Bone

ELECTRONIC: Volume/Tone/Tone CTS Pots 250K / CRL 5Way Switch

TUNING MACHINES: Kluson Deluxe

NECK PICKUP: Paoletti 60's – 7.5K Alnico 5

MIDDLE PICKUP: Paoletti 60's – 7.5K Alnico 5

BRIDGE PICKUP: Paoletti Rock II – 7.8K Alnico 5

BRIDGE: Paoletti 6-Screw Tremolo

PICKGUARD: Paoletti Nickel Plated

CASE: Hard Case

MISC: Certificate of Warranty & Authenticity

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