What the hell is it about vintage style Teles

[JeffB]

That makes me love them.

They are primitive, and a ***** to play. Intonation can be wonky. String to string volume balance also wonky. Stock jack is a PITA. Strings move on the saddles if you are the least bit agressive.

Its a frigging lap steel you dont have to play in your lap. Its like you are stuck in a time warp in 1950.

I was happy with my new strat. Its a great playing, good sounding strat. Really. Then I pulled the old tele out of its bag its been sitting in for 6-7 months and now I dont even wanna touch the strat. Its like a pussy guitar now

I HATE Teles.

[AlexR]

Luckily for all the right reasons!!

They just scream rock to me. Much heavier hitting than a strat.

[FretFire]

They are electric guitar in it's purest form Plus, they can do anything. I slightly tweaked mine to take care of the intonation and jack issues you mentioned, and it's the best guitar I've ever owned, hands down.

[the guy who invented fire]

I hear ya Jeff...I hear ya.

I love playing my Tele's more than anything else most of the time, and the truth is I feel very little need to modernize them much...

I do use Electrosockets in 2 of them and a milled cup in the other because that stamped metal cup and retainer is a joke...

Past that I just roll with it and enjoy them for what they are...old school planks that rock!!!

[JeffB]

Intonation is not too bad on mine. I have tried brass and steel comped saddles, and it takes care of it, but they both are tone sucks with this guitar and pup set. I have found being meticulous about getting the strings radiused to the neck makes things much less of a problem. Guess iits a pressure thing. Also some string brands did not intonate worth a crap on the original saddles. Not sure if thats a negative for the strings in question or not my classic vibe intonated quite well too.


And yeah, I put on an electrosocket almost immediately.

Now I wanna build or buy an Esquire. Grrrrr.

[the guy who invented fire]

Intonation is not too bad on mine. I have tried brass and steel comped saddles, and it takes care of it, but they both are tone sucks with this guitar and pup set. I have found being meticulous about getting the strings radiused to the neck makes things much less of a problem. Guess iits a pressure thing. Also some string brands did not intonate worth a crap on the original saddles. Not sure if thats a negative for the strings in question or not my classic vibe intonated quite well too.


And yeah, I put on an electrosocket almost immediately.

Now I wanna build or buy an Esquire. Grrrrr.

I used to use comp saddles on all Tele's...now they are all off except on one!

As for the Esquire I hear ya...they are a blast, I love mine!

[firebirdV]

I think of teles as the guitar equivalent of punching bags, they're meant to be wailed on.

[Jocelyn]

FRET FIRE that is how I always describe a Tele . They are Simple but just Rock.

[ItsaBass]

They're the best all-around guitars ever made. That's what it is! And I believe that Leo had it 90% right from the get go. The dark circuit I'm not so sure about...but all things considered, the three 1950 style Esquires (pre-production black pine single, pre-production black pine double, and regular production blonde ash single) are about as good as it ever got for Fender...and the P-Bass is right behind.

[Funkfingers]

Teles 'n' Gibson Juniors. Nowhere to hide.

[ItsaBass]

Teles 'n' Gibson Juniors.

Replace Teles with Esquires, and that is how I feel.

I view it not as having nowhere to hide, but more as having nothing to worry about. With a basic guitar, the instrument itself is rarely something you have to think about when playing.

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Like my Teles bigtime.....

Always liked the Strat and the Tele.

[SirJackdeFuzz]

I think it is partly because of the raw primitive nature of the Tele.
You know, that true blue collar working man's guitar. A few metal parts, a flat plank, quickly cut into a shape and assembled to make sounds ASAP !
The guitar does not shout, "Hey, look at me, i am sooo flashy !"
It just do what is was made to do - make music, no matter what the genre.

[Jessie's ghost]

I think it is partly because of the raw primitive nature of the Tele.
You know, that true blue collar working man's guitar. A few metal parts, a flat plank, quickly cut into a shape and assembled to make sounds ASAP !
The guitar does not shout, "Hey, look at me, i am sooo flashy !"
It just do what is was made to do - make music, no matter what the genre.

Exactly. I've never seen someone explain it this well before.

[That90'sGuy]

The telecaster is really my new love. I thought I was always a strat guy... I thought I wanted more pickups, more versatility, a trem for fancy tricks, a double cutaway for better upper fret access.... I was wrong. I kept listening to my favorite bands and something just clicked.

The problem I had was that most of them were too freakin' bright (like "ice pick in the ears" bright). I had bought a parts caster tele and sold it about as soon as I had it... just bright, thin, tinny... I hated it and swore off them completely. Somehow, I never really thought about an alder body, maple w/ rosewood telecaster until I just played everything I could get my hands on and that combination ended up speaking to me. All of a sudden I realized I had the bridge twang and authority I was looking out of a strat bridge single coil and I found I didn't miss the other strat positions because the middle position is so damn useful and the neck sounds just as good as any strat neck pickups I've used.

I thought I'd miss the trem, but having no trem is a blessing (I could never use the thing to begin with; I'm no Jeff Beck, that's for sure ). The vintage 6 saddle bridge irked me because of the way the strings would rest against the bridge springs. The vintage 3 saddle is limited access to adjusting the intonation and it really isn't the most stable design in the world, but it does work once the strings are tuned up and it adds such a unique tonal character to the instrument that is unmistakable and beautiful.

It's such a simple instrument and there's charm to that (at least for a simple guy like myself). Mine is a relic and it's beat to crap and looks like crap (and I hate that), but it just plays and sounds so good that it becomes the first thing I pick up these days. There's something about the clarity and the fact that the 3 positions are all so different and yet so useful, there's nothing excessive or wasted on it (which is the big thing for me). For the first time in my life, I find myself actually REALLY using the tone control. I can get faux humbucking tones if I want the smooth and dark thing and with a simple twist of the knob I get that cut and clarity that only a tele can do. Incredibly versatile and laughably basic.

Worst of all, I used to read thread after thread on Telecasters for years and I just didn't get it - I thought it was hype and I thought the fanboys were deaf and I thought they were a trend that was certain to die. I thought Strats were superior in every way and now I'm blown away at what I've been missing after 15 years of fooling around with guitar. I hate to be another one of "those guys", but yeah... I'm a strat turned tele junkie and I can guarantee for as long as you see me around I'm not buying another strat. These guitars are way more fun that any other electric I've ever owned, including all the PRS, custom shop Gibsons and such I've had over time. My tele and my Vibrolux Reverb and a cord and I'm entertained for several hours. Simplicity breeds creativity in my case and telecasters are amazing.

[SirJackdeFuzz]

Exactly. I've never seen someone explain it this well before.

Thanx Jessie . . .


. . . just look at this thing !

It just skreeems, "Lets make dirty Rock N Roll !!!"

[Andrew Lamprecht]

I want a tele... don't remind me.

[MetalManiac]

Tele is all things to all people. You can rig one up with Invaders, or just stock pickups that will take your head off with their brightness.
The old teles sound great with vintage amps. Newer Teles sound good with modern amps, but atrocious with vintage amps...in general.

[guitarkid]

I used to hate Teles.... but now I LOVE THEM!!! When I find myself looking at new guitars now, its always a Tele! Lol

[jalguitarman]

If you do a Tele in the right way, it can give you the fatness of a Les Paul but, with a viscious bit that will send a Les Paul yiping like a wounded dog!