LTD ST-203: Owner's take

I've been playing my ST-203 for days now, here're some opinions:

Feel/ Playability

Fender Strat? Maybe in looks but not in feel; the LTD's neck isn't C-profiled like the Fender. In fact, it's still very curvy, it's LTD's U-profile which means the roundness is in tact, just thinner in depth. Inevitably, it would attract the shredders more than the blues campers. In the true spirit of vintage vibe, the action adjustment saddles are the tradition types featuring much screw protrusions to discomfort the picking hand. The default strings in this one were not .009s for sure but I had the Pyramid .009s in there for personal comfort.

Tone

I didn't expect too much from the trio of ESP's LS-120 single coils. They are there to reflect the price tag, really, but this trio were much more than I had hoped for. They sound warm in clean mode, nothing too sparkling ala Fender. This might be due to the rosewood fretboard as well but that's what I hear. In overdrive mode, the pickups' non-hot output make their presence heard, it's something I know would sound splendid with my Butah & it proved to be true. This LTD-Butah combo is the best coupling in terms of enjoyable overdrive but in excess, the LS pickups could handle proceedings well. These pickups stay put in there. They were also wired like the mid-life Strats; 5-way selector but the bridge is free from any tone control manipulations.

Pyramid strings

As the Pyramid strings season, they maintain a great bounce despite feeling less crunchy. That in between, neither-too-crunchy-nor-too-flimsy feel makes playing rather addictive.