Depending on how you improve, you might honestly want to get something like lower quality than that even. This comes from experience, in which I progressed more than I ever would have imagined in about 2 years. You'd be amazed by what gear you go through in a year or two. Point being... if you can find something really cheap that's tolerable, go with that for a while and svae the rest of the cash for your next guitar. Sounds like a lot of pre-planning, but that's my thought. Definitely not the thought process you had, but you might enjoy having the extra 200 bills lying around in the near future. To help that... stay away from effects for as long as possible. :D Anyways, I have strayed from the point. Yes, strat would be a great start, but even start lower if you think you'll pass it by too soon. A few of my friends have epiphone les pual special II's. $150 and it plays pretty nice too. Also, definitely try em' out first. Crap, that's a lot of junk I just spit at you. (don't be shy, ask for a napkin if you need) Well, I'll shutup now. Good Luck. :D