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I want to buy a Strat or a Tele or one of each.

I'm just curious what you Fender guys use and why you like what you have--- or why you don't like what you have.

Opinions vary widely from the group the thinks anything made after 1957 is a waste of money to the group that thinks a Squire model is good enough. As always, the answer lies in the middle. I'm suspicious of the artist-named models as well as the road-worn garbage.

I have my own ideas (American alder, fwiw), but I'm more interested in yours. BTW-- I'm not a novice. I just don't have a Fender and am only now trying to fix that.

Strat and Tele guys, let me hear from you.

What do you use and why?

My wife has an American made Fender Music Master, as it fits her hands well she likes it. I am also thinking of a Strat and I have been trying them out. So far I have found each one plays differently. The American Strats are much better than the rest in playability and sound. All the Tellys I have tried play well but I think they have a limited sound range. I have a friend who got a cheap Strat after trying tons of them out he found one that was good and after putting new hardware and pickups on it he got a nice guitar. Some of the newer Strats have noiseless pickups and to me this is a good thing. I feel the thing is playability and sound, if it feels good in your hand and you like the sound then it may be the one for you. So far the ones that run about $1500+ at GC are the ones I like best.

Uber Short answer...

I've been a strat player all my life and out of the two are more versatile, but the tele is a unique sound and more bright, hence why they work so well in country music but jazz players like em as well (go figure)

Long answer coming soon, to a thread near you....

Playing rhythm guitar with a Tele on a crunch tube amp is something very special. Both bridge and neck pickups.
IMHO, if you like it, no other guitar can produce such vibe.

Mine is a very *heavy* 1971.
BTW, you need a special strap to play this one, cause of it's weight.
(Neotech Neopren Guitar/Bass-Strap)

Dan and you other Telly guys; every Telly I have played was very playable, is this the rule for Tellys? If so why?

Mine is really heavy, and has a thick neck. It's been set with new jumbo frets. But still a very appealing instrument to me.
Any other guitar with these features would stay in a closed coffer.

Multiple Strats here:
Clapton Signature Strat - one of the first that rolled of the assembly line in 1988 with Lace Gold Sensors. Nice V-shaped neck and plays quite easily. A bit picky with setup but once you've got that taken care of it's a sweet axe. Likes Ernie Ball Super Slinky's in .009. Blocked tremelo with a wooden block because that's the way EC likes his guitars. I'm not a fan of whammy bars on guitars so that's no skin off my nose.

Double Fat American Strat - 2 Seymour Duncan humbucking pickups - Little '59 in the neck and a Pearly Gates at the bridge. The neck is a bit wider than the EC Strat but not so much that's unplayable unlike some PRS guitars. 5 way switch that in a couple of the positions splits the humbuckers. Allows me to cover for when I need humbuckers and still stay with the Strat neck scale/feel. I do have a Les Paul that I haven't played in years due to the neck having a nasty warp so this Strat fills the bill. Ernie Ball Slinkys in .010 and not picky on setup.

SRV Signature Strat. Big ol' neck like Stevie liked it. Gold plated hardware and working trem which I never use. 3 Texas Special single coils that really cut through. Ernie Ball 2215 Skinny Top Heavy Bottom strings has lighter gauge high strings that work well if you don't want to go the whole SRV route with the hawsers that he used. Again - not picky on setup which is fortunate because the truss rod adjustment is not in the usual position at the headstock - you have to take the neck off to adjust the rod.

Used to have a Telecaster but sold it mainly because of the squared-off body edges. I lost a lot of weight when I went through my cancer episode 3 years back and the body really dug into my ribs no matter whether I sat or stood while playing. I don't like playing with my guitar down low like a lot of players do any more, but then again I don't wear it up high either like Dave Matthews.

All in all, with Strats it boils down to what sound are you looking for and what feels comfortable to your hand. I made a quip earlier about PRS guitars - talk about playing a log! I guess if you had large hands like Hendrix it'd be okay.

daniel.sneed wrote:Mine is really heavy, and has a thick neck. It's been set with new jumbo frets. But still a very appealing instrument to me.
Any other guitar with these features would stay in a closed coffer.

That's unusual with the neck. Every Tele I ever played had a very thin neck. Are you sure your guitar hasn't been re-necked?

n2mpujack wrote:

daniel.sneed wrote:Mine is really heavy, and has a thick neck. It's been set with new jumbo frets. But still a very appealing instrument to me.
Any other guitar with these features would stay in a closed coffer.

That's unusual with the neck. Every Tele I ever played had a very thin neck. Are you sure your guitar hasn't been re-necked?

Some of the 70's tele's I've played have had thickish necks.

I have an old '69 Strat which has a "vibe" to it..... I've played some nice Tele's too! My only advice is to play the individual guitars and go with the one that sings and tells you to take it home....

I have an old Mexican Strat that had an amazing Maple neck... So I put Area 58's in it and now it sounds amazing!!! I have a Les Paul Standard, a Gretsch and an old Hamer Chapperelle and the Strat wins everytime!!!

You can't go wrong with a good Strat... However, a Tele is AMAZING in the studio and fits perfectly into any mix. The Strat can be a little to overbearing at times....
You're gonna have to get your hands dirty to figure this one out:)

Wish I had your problem too:)

Good luck!!!

Fuller

n2mpujack wrote: All in all, with Strats it boils down to what sound are you looking for and what feels comfortable to your hand.

fullertime wrote:You're gonna have to get your hands dirty to figure this one out:)

I can think of worse ways to pass an hour or two or three or....!!

Thanks for the responses, everyone. They're greatly appreciated.

N2, that's an impressive collection you've got. Wow-- I had no idea you'd been ill at one point. It's great that you're here hanging with us. Be well. Stay well.

Tom-- Apple Music Row is having their half-price sale in a couple of weeks (hint-hint)!! Who wouldn't want to spend an afternoon in that place getting their hands dirty?

Dude! Let me know when you do that. I'd love to watch from behind my coffee cup !

n2mpujack wrote:

daniel.sneed wrote:Every Tele I ever played had a very thin neck. Are you sure your guitar hasn't been re-necked?

Yes I'm sure. I know personally every one who owned this guitar prior to me. Even the original purchaser.
This is sort of a big, strong, deep AND bright sounding guitar. Not the smoothest to play, but what a personality! And what power inside!
This guitar is not a delicate little instrument. But I do appreciate it's expressive possibilities.

Of course, two of the main aspects aside from construction and neck quality, are the feel and the sound. Not sure if the feel matters to you, or only the sound.

I personally cannot feel comfortable on anything from MM, G&L, or Fender, that I have tried -- though there are stilla couple of signature models from Jeff Beck and others that I think might be worth trying, if I can track them down.

I recently sold my G&L Legacy (1995) and bought an el cheapo ESP Ltd ST-203. To me, the latter has a much more playable neck and a more Strat-like sound and range than the G&L did (including the dramatically different newer models). ESP has a higher-end version called the Vintage Plus, but it too is pre-worn. I still can't find a non-pre-worn that I like.

Do you prefer maple, rosewood, or other for the fretboard? Or no advance preference? I went from maple to rosewood and am not sure I could ever stand to play maple again -- even for a Tele.

If it has to be Fender branded, the rep told me there are five basic models, when I saw him recently while he was stocking some boutique models (including a high-end Jazzmaster that I have my eyes on) at Leo's Pro Audio in Oakland recently. The American Deluxe seems to be the basis for many of the signature models -- though all are different.

Tele-wise, I still haven't found one that I like both the sound and feel of, so will look forward to your findings. No one carries the higher-end models here, as far as I have seen so far, and rosewood seems less accepted (though it is available on some models). Some of the tele and strat forums say as much: rosewood for strat and maple for tele. And here I always thought it was maple for both!

While you're at it, have you considered a Jazzmaster? I was quite amazed by the tone and feel of the $2000 model from Fender, which just came out. It isn't quite a tele or a strat and I doubt it would stand in for either, but has a unique tone, and quite a range from creamy to a bit grungy, that I found worked well for 60's music for some reason (maybe stuff that you might otherwise play on a Gretsch?).

If you're going to be using these mostly for recordings, be aware that the ESP tribute models seem better shielded than most of the current Fender line-up, but do maintain that traditional single-coil sound.

There's also a higher-end line distributed by ESP called Navigator, which makes very appealing teles and strats that are not pre-worn. These might be Japan-only; I heard them discussed in forums and then tracked down the website (sorry, I left that info at home). I am hoping to find out if any of the smaller guitar-only boutique shops have access to them, as I have a feeling these might be some of the best.

Eastman, and probably Suhr, also makes (or made) some tribute models. Probable Lakland as well, unless they're back to just making basses.