What Guitar Did Jimi Hendrix Use?
Jimi Hendrix played right-handed Fender Stratocasters restrung for left-handed playing. He turned the guitar upside-down so the low E string was on the bottom, creating a reversed headstock and reversed control plate. This is the most identifiable feature of his guitar setup.
Primary Guitar: 1962–1965 Fender Stratocaster (Reversed)
Hendrix's primary stage and studio guitars were stock right-handed Fender Stratocasters from the early 1960s — sunburst, Olympic White, and various other finishes.
Why right-handed guitars?
Left-handed guitars were difficult to obtain in the mid-1960s UK, where his career began. Rather than waiting for left-handed instruments, Hendrix bought right-handed Strats, restrung them in reverse order, and flipped the guitar over.
The tonal effect of the reversed guitar:
- The tremolo arm is now above the strings rather than below — different physical relationship for the whammy hand
- Low E string is closer to the neck pickup — alters the pickup's response to the low strings
- High E string is closer to the bridge pickup — changes the bright string's character
The specific tonal effect of these pickups-in-reverse is audible but subtle — not the primary reason for the setup.
Notable Specific Guitars
1968 Fender Stratocaster (Olympic White) — Woodstock
The most historically significant single guitar in rock history. Hendrix played the US national anthem on this white Stratocaster at Woodstock in August 1969 — the performance that became a cultural touchstone. This guitar was auctioned in 1990 for $198,000.
Black Stratocaster — Isle of Wight (1970)
His final major performance used a black Stratocaster. One of his last recorded guitars.
1965 Fender Stratocaster (Sunburst)
Used extensively in studio recordings throughout 1967–1968. The warm sunburst finish is associated with many of his classic Are You Experienced recordings.
Secondary Guitars
Gibson Flying V
Used on the European tour of 1967 and some studio sessions. The Flying V appears in several photographs from this period. Restrung and played upside-down like his Stratocasters.
Gibson SG
Used occasionally in studio sessions. Less documented than the Strat but present on some recordings.
Acoustic Guitars
Hendrix used various acoustic guitars including a 12-string on "Angel" and other acoustic tracks from his late recordings.
The Fender Jimi Hendrix Stratocaster (Current Production)
Fender produces a Jimi Hendrix Stratocaster in the following specifications:
- Reversed headstock (left-handed headstock on a right-handed guitar)
- Olympic White finish (Woodstock tribute)
- Reversed peg arrangement (tuning machines mirrored)
- Surf Green version also available
- Price: Approximately $900–$1,200
This is the most direct modern access to the reversed-headstock Strat configuration without restringing a standard instrument.
Budget Alternatives
The Fender Jimi Hendrix Stratocaster Player Series is the most accessible option at ~$800. For players wanting the configuration without the signature guitar:
Buy a right-handed Strat, reverse the nut (or buy a pre-notched nut for left-handed), restring with .010s or .009s in reverse order. This replicates the reversed configuration on any Strat.
Squier Classic Vibe Stratocaster (~$400): Similar specs without signature branding.
Strings and Tuning
Hendrix typically used light to medium strings (.010–.046 or similar). Standard tuning for most recordings, occasionally Eb (one half-step down) for comfort on certain sessions.
The "heavy strings" narrative associated with other blues players (SRV's .013s) does not apply to Hendrix — his characteristic tone comes from the amp and fuzz circuit interaction, not string gauge.
Why the Reversed Setup Wasn't Just a Workaround
It's tempting to treat Hendrix's upside-down Stratocaster as pure historical accident — a left-handed player making do with right-handed guitars — but the specific pickup geometry this created genuinely shaped his tone, not just his playing angle. With the guitar flipped, the neck pickup sits closer to the low strings and the bridge pickup closer to the high strings, the reverse of a standard setup's balance. Combined with a reversed headstock that changes string length and tension slightly between strings, this produces a subtly different tonal balance than either a standard right-handed Strat or a purpose-built left-handed model.
This is worth understanding because it means an exact tonal replication requires the full reversed configuration, not just "any Stratocaster" — a standard left-handed Strat, correctly proportioned for left-hand play, won't reproduce the specific pickup-to-string relationship that resulted from Hendrix's particular workaround.
Common Mistakes
Buying a standard left-handed Stratocaster expecting identical tone. As explained above, a purpose-built left-handed guitar has pickups positioned symmetrically for left-hand play — it lacks the specific reversed geometry (right-handed body, flipped and restrung) that shaped Hendrix's actual tonal balance.
Assuming the reversed setup was purely a stylistic choice rather than a practical necessity. As the guide states, left-handed guitars were genuinely difficult to obtain in mid-1960s UK — understanding this as a real constraint, not an aesthetic decision, explains why the resulting tonal quirk exists at all.
Overlooking string gauge and tuning as secondary but real factors. As the strings section notes, Hendrix used relatively standard light-to-medium gauge strings, unlike SRV's much heavier setup — assuming a heavy-string approach is part of "getting his tone" mixes up two different guitarists' distinct physical setups.
Treating the Flying V and SG guitars as equally central to his sound. As the secondary guitars section makes clear, these appeared on specific tours and sessions but the Stratocaster remains overwhelmingly the defining instrument across his recorded catalog — a Flying V-based approach to "Hendrix tone" chases a much smaller slice of his actual output.
ToneStakr's Take
For players chasing this tone without committing to a full reversed setup, a standard right-handed Stratocaster played normally with the amp and fuzz settings covered in the companion guides gets you most of the practical way there — the reversed pickup geometry is a genuine but subtle contributor compared to the much larger role played by the amp saturation and Fuzz Face interaction. Only pursue the actual reversed configuration if replicating the exact historical setup, rather than the general tonal character, is the specific goal.
Frequently Asked Questions
What colour was Hendrix's main guitar?
He played many finishes across his career — sunburst, Olympic White (most famously at Woodstock), black (his final major performance at the Isle of Wight), and various custom-painted models throughout different periods.
Can I buy a Jimi Hendrix signature Stratocaster?
Yes — Fender produces a Jimi Hendrix Stratocaster in Olympic White and three-colour Sunburst finishes, built with the reversed headstock and mirrored control layout that replicates his actual setup, at roughly $900-1,200 depending on the specific model.
Did Hendrix ever use a Les Paul?
Very rarely and not significantly — his entire recorded career and reputation are defined by Stratocasters through Marshall amps, with the Gibson Flying V and SG appearing only on specific tours and sessions as secondary instruments.
What is the "upside down" Strat sound, specifically?
Playing a right-handed guitar's pickups in reversed orientation means the low strings sit closer to the neck pickup and the high strings closer to the bridge pickup — the opposite balance of both a standard right-handed setup and a purpose-built left-handed guitar, contributing a subtle but genuine tonal difference.
Is it worth restringing a standard guitar to replicate the reversed setup exactly?
Only if exact historical accuracy matters to you specifically — for most players chasing the general tonal character, a standard-strung guitar (right or left-handed, played normally) combined with accurate amp and fuzz settings gets meaningfully closer to the recognizable sound than the reversed pickup geometry alone would.
Why didn't Hendrix simply special-order left-handed guitars once he became successful?
By the time he could easily afford custom instruments, the reversed right-handed setup had become integral to his playing technique and stage presence — switching to a conventional left-handed guitar would have meant relearning physical relationships (like the tremolo arm's position) he'd built his entire technique around.