Members Elias Graves Posted February 8, 2010 Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 Never owned one but I've been getting gas. I mean, they're ugly and the bridge just hurts my right hand but I feel the pull. I played a gold thinline Squier VM and a sunburst CV. There were points about both that I liked but what does one look for in a telecaster?What is the essence of teleness? EG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Elias Graves Posted February 8, 2010 Author Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 Oh, not really seeking specifics like "Get X model tele." More just in general about why is a tele so popular, what makes them distinct from other models. EG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dooshbag Posted February 8, 2010 Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 Teles are simple and easy to play. Twangy. I have had a few. Even the Korean Squier is a nice guitar. I loaded mine with a barden though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Willyguitar Posted February 8, 2010 Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 A vicious bridge pickup, with metal base plate and bridge parts interacting, that cuts through the mix, and which, with the tone turned down a touch, can do the rock and roll. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kap'n Posted February 8, 2010 Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 A vicious bridge pickup, with metal base plate and bridge parts interacting. Make that a stamped steel box bridge with three saddles, and you've nailed it. Everything else is cosmetic/preference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members -Assy- Posted February 8, 2010 Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 a "tele" in my mind is a single/single guitar with traditional tele pickups and wiring setup, the 3 saddle bridge, and no body carves. anything else just isnt a tele to me. if its lacking any of those qualities, it ain't nothin' but a single-cut in my eyes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Carbohydrates Posted February 8, 2010 Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 A tele is a barebones machine. It can hit smooth lows and trebly leads, making it usable for almost every possible genre of music. It's built strong enough that it should be the first guitar you choose if you ever need to use one to bludgeon somebody in a pinch. And you know what? It'll still be in tune when you're done. So, to answer the question in the OP, I'd say that its usefulness as a melee weapon is what makes a tele a tele. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Clinically Deaf Posted February 8, 2010 Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 This nails it. It's got a really powerful bridge sound. The sound varies in power from Tele to Tele, but it's a really distinct sound.Shimmer, cut, twang. I can point it out whenever I hear it. And I don't think they're ugly! I think they are gorgeous! Hmm I've never really been a fender guy, and I always think teles and country, strat and rock. How does the Tele bridge construction make it sound different than a strat? Forgive my noob question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Belva Posted February 8, 2010 Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 I think the country twang partly comes from that bridge pup being surrounded in all that metal. Bottom line: the Strat is the prom queen of the family and the Tele is the slutty sister. Nuttin' like a good slut! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Carbohydrates Posted February 8, 2010 Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 Hmm I've never really been a fender guy, and I always think teles and country, strat and rock. How does the Tele bridge construction make it sound different than a strat? Forgive my noob question. It has a hell of a lot more metal and it's screwed flat to the body. On top of that, tele bridge pickups have large copper bases as well, so there's a lot of metal factoring in. Also, when I think of teles, I think of country and blues, of course, but I also think of the slew of indie bands that favor them, plus The Clash, Soundgarden, Led Zep, and the Stones. they cover a lot of ground. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members alphamarquis Posted February 8, 2010 Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 I dunno about the bridge part, the ASAT makes a pretty convincing tone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaleH Posted February 8, 2010 Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 The bridge and bridge pickup make a tele. Neck pickup to taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Elias Graves Posted February 8, 2010 Author Members Share Posted February 8, 2010 I've never been around them all that much but one of the guitarists in my brother's band plays a MIM through an H&K and it sounds really good. You hear teles described as "thin" sounding but I don't hear it. EG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members golias Posted February 9, 2010 Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 The Tele is all about the hard attack, especially playing clean without compression. For some of us, the quirky tone of the covered mini-single in the neck is part of the fun too, but most Tele players are in it for the TWANG. Oh, and for the record, I agree it's usually an ugly-looking guitar. Somebody said it's the pickup truck of the guitar world, and that seems like as good of a metaphor as anybody can come up with for the function-before-form design aesthetics of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Clinically Deaf Posted February 9, 2010 Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 [YOUTUBE]-buTQE-f8eY[/YOUTUBE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members golias Posted February 9, 2010 Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 Hmm I've never really been a fender guy, and I always think teles and country, strat and rock. How does the Tele bridge construction make it sound different than a strat? Forgive my noob question. It's been mentioned before, but: 1) The bridge pup is VERY close to the bridge, so the overtones get emphasized over the root wave a lot more than it would if it was maybe a half-inch farther away. 2) The metal plate around the pickup messes with the magnetic field in a rather distinct way. 3) Some people will tell you that the string-through fixed bridge results in a slight difference in sound and sustain from the spring-suspended tremolo bridge of the strat (and of those, some will insist that the two-strings-per-saddle choice also makes an impact... but that's a debate which has been raging on forever.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Clinically Deaf Posted February 9, 2010 Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 It's been mentioned before, but:1) The bridge pup is VERY close to the bridge, so the overtones get emphasized over the root wave a lot more than it would if it was maybe a half-inch farther away.2) The metal plate around the pickup messes with the magnetic field in a rather distinct way.3) Some people will tell you that the string-through fixed bridge results in a slight difference in sound and sustain from the spring-suspended tremolo bridge of the strat (and of those, some will insist that the two-strings-per-saddle choice also makes an impact... but that's a debate which has been raging on forever.) Which results in me hearing what? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Elias Graves Posted February 9, 2010 Author Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 I played this one... And this one... EG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nicolasrivera Posted February 9, 2010 Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 For me is all about the simple beautiful design, uncompromised tone and the spank i get with every note. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Doctor49 Posted February 9, 2010 Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 I shunted a 2HB config to get sc outers, sc inners and HBs on a three way toggle.Surprisingly there is a distinct tele twang from the bridge outer even on a trem bridge. The pup is very close to the bridge in this one as well.Less of it in the inner bridge sc, confirming the distance idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nicolasrivera Posted February 9, 2010 Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 Even EVH had to have a tele like body for his signatures...now thats telling you something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members alphamarquis Posted February 9, 2010 Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 It's been mentioned before, but:1) The bridge pup is VERY close to the bridge, so the overtones get emphasized over the root wave a lot more than it would if it was maybe a half-inch farther away.2) The metal plate around the pickup messes with the magnetic field in a rather distinct way.3) Some people will tell you that the string-through fixed bridge results in a slight difference in sound and sustain from the spring-suspended tremolo bridge of the strat (and of those, some will insist that the two-strings-per-saddle choice also makes an impact... but that's a debate which has been raging on forever.) #2 is BS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Elias Graves Posted February 9, 2010 Author Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 #2 is BS How so? I know a metal cover on a P90 changes things. Wouldn't this be the same? EG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Oldskool Texas Posted February 9, 2010 Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 Remember your old one-speed BMX bike? You know - two wheels, two pedals, and a brake? That's a Tele. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members photon9 Posted February 9, 2010 Members Share Posted February 9, 2010 Remember your old one-speed BMX bike? You know - two wheels, two pedals, and a brake? That's a Tele. Only a Tele can cover a ton of sonic ground. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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