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Hi people, hope you're all doing good.
After a long hiatus I'm back to wanting/needing a guitar again. My tastes have changed so much since I last had a guitar, and so after a lot of listening and researching, I've realised my ulitmate goal is to aim somewhere around the Ted Greene/Tim Lerch sort of tone and style. I had a Blonde/Black Japanese Tele in my teens, but didn't really know how to set it up correctly and, looking back, the V shaped chunky neck was probably a little too big for my smallish hands. But I did enjoy its overall tone. But enough of all that - I'm sure you've all seen Tim Lerch's video about getting a Jazz sound out of a Tele (if not, link below). He has a Road Worn 50's that he's setup to his tastes and put some 12's on it, through a Princeton Reverb - sounds gorgeous. Now I'm looking at all the Teles out there and just cannot decide which to go for! To try and simplify things a little 1.My hands are kinda small, so I'm looking for a smaller neck (read: easy to play) 2. The Tele Tim plays has a Tex Mex neck pickup if I'm correct? How different would this pup sound compared to other Tele neck pup's? 3. Can I get a 'similar' sound to Tim with a cheaper Tele (not Squire), provided I'm running through a Princeton Reverb (and dedicate 20 years of my life learning to even come close to playing that way, haha)? 4. Here in the U.K. I can get a standard Tele for £460, or the Road Worn for around £950 - considering I'm no pro, and don't intend to gig, how much of a difference would there be between these two through a Princeton '68 if I'm aiming for that Lerch/Greene typa sound? Or if you can recommend any other Tele that might come close to what i'm looking for, as long as it's really not much more than £1,000 (Thinline '72, I'm looking at you
) that'd be great.
Any help greatly appreciated!
Tom
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07-24-2016 11:26 PM
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It's a pity you wouldn't consider a Squire Classic Vibe Tele, as it already comes with brass saddles, and has a neck that is better than any Fender neck I've played - honestly. The Classic Vibe Tele is an amazing guitar for the money. You could always upgrade the pickups at a later date.
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I've mentioned it a few times here but I can't say enough good things about the American Special Tele. I tried lots of Teles of all kinds before settling on this one. Super easy to dial in a wonderful jazz tone. Check it out. As far as I'm concerned, it is one of the best Tele deals around. Only drawback (of you can call it that) is it has the 70s style fender logo. Otherwise, brass saddles, amazing pickups.
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Oh and the Squier Classic vibe mentioned by Rob is really nice too. It would have been my second choice and I played all the high end Teles to compare including a G&L.
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Actually, it's just a reaction I was kinda conditioned to have towards that range years ago, but upon researching a little further it seems these classic vibes are getting a lot of love! My other issue is, I'm reinvesting into an art form that I once put all my time into, but stopped for a good 5 years or so. So now I have saved up a nice pot of gold so that I can have the guitar and amp that I just couldn't afford when I was a teen. Squire just seems like it wouldn't fulfill that need I have to buy something of real quality, that would last me until the end of my days (haha, maybe). That being said, I can go play one at the store today, and if the feel is there, plus the sound, then I might go with it! Thanks for the advice.
Tom
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Just looked and it says it has a 9.5 radius fret board and jumbo frets - would this be a problem for someone with smaller hands, compared to a 7.5 with medium jumbo or other fret size?
Originally Posted by AlainJazz
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I have a FSR tele which I think is "fender special run" that I have been happy with. It has a ash butterscotch body, a maple fingerboard, black pickguard and is made in Mexico. I guess its a small step up from the standard model. R
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Just remember that used guitars usually go for half the price they cost new.
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I love my Baja tele.....Custom shop design, made in Mexico.
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honestly, the squier classic vibe will be better bang for buck than a roadworn
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I had one for a while. It is a great value, and the neck is to die for. As a bonus, the neck pickup rout is big enough to accommodate a humbucker if that's your fancy. Originally Posted by Rob MacKillop
My only issues with mine were the weight (mine was extremely heavy), the finish was too thin and the body wood was too soft. I had a couple of places where the body had chips in it, and I'm generally very careful when it comes to handling my guitars.
That neck, though.
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The more I listen/read about it the more I'm sold that it's a strong contender against a £700+ alternative. My biggest concern would be things breaking but I've found a shop that offers a 5 year warranty and sells the Classic Vibe for just £325. Could you recommend a tube amp to go with it for around £5-600, that could possibly be compared to a Princeton Reverb or is just a good tube amp for playing jazz in a bedroom? Originally Posted by nick1994
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blues junior is stock bedroom valve amp. good for jazz, blues and pretty much anything else. Originally Posted by NeonJung
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you can find an used blues jr with a 12" Jensen speaker for about 300US ..and it is far more than a bedroom amp..it will do fine in a small club in a 5 piece group..
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Older fender solid state amps can sound really nice for Jazz. I have a Baja Tele (about £700 new) and it gives everything you could want tone wise and its played through a fender Princeton solid state.
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After reading some more, I've noticed there is the CVC and the CV50, with quite a few reviews recommending the CVC the most. Do you know how much difference there is between the two? The CVC, at least, doesn't seem to have the brass saddles. Thanks for the help Originally Posted by AlainJazz
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Yeah I'm really tempted by this guitar. How would you describe the neck - I had a Japanese Tele with a really fat v neck that I want to avoid this time. Thanks for the amp advice too. Originally Posted by meehaja
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One is a 1950s-type model, though not an exact replica, and the other is a "Custom" model. Which one would be better for jazz, I don't know. See http://intl.fender.com/en-GB/squier/.../classic-vibe/ Originally Posted by NeonJung
The 50s comes with Alnico III and a pine body, the Custom with Alnico V and an alder body.Last edited by Rob MacKillop; 07-26-2016 at 03:19 AM.
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Best way to find 'the' tele is to play lots in shops. If you go for a Squier in the end, you'll probably have enough left to get a re-issue BF Princeton. Job done! Go for it man. I have large hands and stock tele necks too narrow for me, but you should be fine. Its mainly in the hands anyway, in actual fact. Good luck and enjoy the search.
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NJ, I see you are referring to the £ which makes you a UK-ender. Whereabouts?
Squier 60's custom has a rosewood fingerboard the 50's is maple.
My s/h modded squier tele is all I play at the moment. Such a great combination of everything. Boy, the stars were alighned when I got that one.
Check out the big UK dealers like Andertons, they will be discounting 2016 stock soon in lieu of placing orders for 2017!
Buying second hand means you can get bargains.
Check out the newer 60's Baja Tele for lots o' tone options.
I gotsa say though that Tele's are a modders delight.
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One of the nicest Tele's I've owned was a blonde Highway One. A bit heavy, but it had a nice slim neck profile and sounded great. Then like a knucklehead I sold it. Kinda surprised they still sell used for $600-$800, since I think I paid $550 new for mine.
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I got mine used, for, I think, $600. You got an excellent deal. I probably paid a little more than I could have for it, but I was buying it from a friend who was in need of cash, and didn't feel right about haggling too much. Originally Posted by Dana
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Originally Posted by jazzbow
Hey man, thanks for the reply - I live in Nottingham city center. Nowhere has the BSB CV50 around here for me to try. I think I'm gonna order one though - apparently the BSB 50 has the same Alnico pups as the CVC, which a lot of people give great reviews, but as a plus has brass saddles instead, and a maple fretboard. I've heard some really gorgeous sound demos of this guitar, so I'm feeling confident. Plus the shop offer free returns and a 5 year warranty, so if I get it and it's a bit of a 'runt of the litter' I can send it back no worries. With it being just £325 with a 5 year warranty, I don't think second hand is even worth it tbh! Actually you can't find many of these second hand which says a lot eh? The only thing stopping me from purchasing one right away is the fact that I've also noticed the Modern Player series, and also the Squier Thinline '72 - it seems these are all really good value for money too - do you know anything about the Modern Player range compared to the Classic Vibes? And would a Squier Thinline be 'better' overall for playing jazz? Btw, for me I think the Baja may be a little too thick-necked, and not offer much of a leap up from the CV50. And also, the thought of only paying £325, and then modding it like you mentioned, is really attractive to me - can tinker without fear of wrecking a really expensive instrument!
Cheers
Tom
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I have a Japanese Fender '62 Custom Reissue and couldn't be happier. Previous to owning that guitar I had never owned a Fender (or Fender style) instrument. When I went to the shop I ended up spending a few hours trying heaps of different guitars. There were a few very nifty guitars there- a MIJ Thinline Stratocaster for example, a couple Telecaster Customs (with the wide range pickups) too.
My general impression was that the USA made Telecasters were a bit heavier than the MIJ guitars. I preferred the slimmer neck on the MIJ and the light weight was more comfortable to play, tonally they were very similar.
The quality of the electronics in the USA guitars is better too- the pots in my guitar are tiny / flimsy looking things. I will replace them eventually, but since they still work fine I'm leaving it. The pickups were nice but I ended up replacing them with Bill Lawrence Micro-Coils. Almost no hum despite still being a true single coil, but "wider" sounding... ie. deeper lows, and more extended highs.
I have it strung up with Thomastik-Infield JS 11-47s and it can I can still bend, twang etc. like a normal Tele, but it also has the sweetest jazz sound.
I paid $1100 AUD for mine ... used they can be had for $600- 700 ... not sure what that equals in USD.
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Hey Tom, Roy here. Originally Posted by NeonJung
As for differences twixt Fender modern players and CV Squiers is the 'F' decal! No, really. Both made in China.
Not much difference in price either.
Pay close scrutiny to the neck wood of this price range
Can you see the nice even grain pattern of the wood?
This juxtaposition of grain to the pulling force of the strings add a lot of stability
And an even pattern right the way down the neck.
This is the most important part of a guitar. Mess this up and you'll be in tears.
As for thinlines being better for jazz the answer is long and complex.
Listen to this....
Is it jazz?
If your answer is no then no.
If your answer is yes then thats what they do where we from.
Blah blah blah blah
lol lol lol lolLast edited by jazzbow; 07-27-2016 at 12:32 PM.
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