Standard Telecaster Review

21 frets. Traditional Telecaster poplar body. Maple neck and fretboard. Die-cast machine heads. Standard Tele pickups. 3-position blade controls. Master volume, master tone.

Features:	8.4
Sound:	9.1
Action:	8.7
Reliability:	9.5
Impression:	9.2
Overall rating:	9
Users rating:	8.9
Comments:	73

Featured review by: unregistered, on november 29, 2004

Price paid: $ 434.5

Purchased from: N/A

Features: This is a 2003 Mexican Telecaster. 21 frets, maple neck and fretboard, standard tele neck pickup and a angled single coil pickup in the bridge. One volume knob, one tone knob, and a three way Switch. I removed the knob off the three way Switch as it makes it less likely for me to strike it while I'm playing. // 10

Sound: This guitar was perfect for me when I started getting serious and writing music. I was into more of a punky/grunge sound. The stock pickups give off a fairly loud hum through my amp (Marshall Valvestate 100w), but it has never really bothered me much. I'm heading in a new direction with my sound, doing more of a punk/rock thing now, so I'm shopping around for a pair of humbuckers to put into this guitar. I wouldn't consider buying anything else. // 8

Action, Fit & Finish: Everything was in great shape when I got this guitar. Since then I've scratched the finish up, and put a few dents in it here or there. My only problem is it doesn't stay in tune for long, but that can be fixed with locking tuners. No problems with the electronics, jack or knobs whatsoever. // 8

Reliability & Durability: I have absolutely no concerns with playing gigs with this guitar. My equipment takes a beating, and holds up without a doubt. This guitar is no different. Sure it may have some cosmetic flaws from my careless use, but other than that it works just fine. I have no regrets purchasing this guitar, and would buy it again, even if I could afford the american model. // 10

Impression: This guitar is going to be with me the rest of my life. It is my soul mate. // 10

overall: 9.6

Reviewed by: Stud_Muffin, on april 11, 2008

Purchased from: PSS Music (Grimsby, UK)Th

Features: My guitar was made in Mexico, to a very high Standard, the kind of quality I have come to expect from Fender. It features an alder body, with a B/O maple neck with 21 medium-jumbo frets; a 3 way pickup selector; chrome Fender hardware; Standard Telecaster string-thru bridge and pickups and came with Fender Gigbag and tools to adjust the truss rod and bridge, Two packets of Fender strings (Extra light 0.09-0.42) and a Venom lead, which the guys at PSS Music threw in. The colours available are Black, Chrome Red, Brown Sunburst (mine), Midnight Wine, Arctic White and Electron Blue. For you southpaws, there's a left handed version for a little extra money. // 9

Sound: It's been said that you can't play metal on a Tele, but I beg to differ. My style ranges from Classical to Blugrass and from Metal to Jazz and can deal with all of them very well. The neck Pickup is very warm and perfect for clean, bluesy solos and acoustic style songs, such as Jack Johnson. On my profile, my cover of Better Together was played on this guitar, and had a few people thinking it was an acoustic guitar. On the other hand, the pridge pickup is bright and twangy, just how a Tele should sound. I use this to recreate tones from anyone from Hetfield to SRV, that's how good it is. The variety you can achieve with this is just superb. This is why the Telecaster is one of the longest running and most famous guitars in the history of music, and the choice of many professional musicians the world over. Sorry to sould like a Fender Advertisment, but that's how good it is! // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: The guitar came well set up from the factory, but the staff in the shop that I bought it in checked the intonation and gave it a clean before selling it to me. I have not had to adjust it yet, and hope not to for many years. The hardware was fixed perfectly and there were no flaws with the instrument. Absolutely perfect! // 10

Reliability & Durability: This guitar will certainly stand up to a Live performance, whatever the style. I have not had the pleasure if gigging with it yet, but will do on th 30th of April, my bands next gig. I will take a backup of my Squire Stratocaster (though I doubt that I will need it) and my Ridgewood Acoustic/Electric, as we do an acoustic set. The hardware seems very solid and will last a lifetime and the finish is as good as the day I got it. A very versatile instrument throughout. // 9

Impression: As I said before, I play a huge range of music and I can safely say that this beast does it all! The range of tones is just amazing and I couldn't wish for a better instrument for the asking price. Although it is only a Standard Mexican made Tele, it sounds brilliant, and I will certainly buy a higher grade Telecaster, if the funds arrise and I need a new guitar, which won't be for some time. If this is the Standard, I can't wait to have a go on a deluxe version of this guitar. If it were to be stolen, I would try my hardest to reclaim the instrument. Failing that, I would definately buy another. The only thing that I had considered was a rosewood fretboard. All my other instruments use rosewood as fretboard materials and I was worried about making the swap but it has come as awelcome change. Now I can see why many varied professionals, like Bill Frisell, John 5, James Burton, Muddy Waters, Deryck Whibley and so many others play Telecasters almost exclusively. I am honoured to be a part of this Elite list as a Tele user. // 10

Reviewed by: unregistered, on november 07, 2007

Price paid: $ 355.5

Features: This guitar is made in Mexico. It has 21 frets thin neck rosewood fretboard and maple neck. Maple body with black laminated finish with blue pearl pick guard. Tele-style bridge passive electronics to single pickups one neck and bridge. 3-way selector. One volume, one tone. Non locking tuners (Fender) get locking tuners. Case, Strap, wrong size allen key for bridge adjustments (too small), and a manual. // 9

Sound: I mostly use this guitar for playing country leads or blues but it can be used to play metal if you turn the tone knob down just a bit. I use a Line 6 Spider 2 75 watt amp and sounds good on the clean settings but can kinda sound to bright for metal and rock unless turn the tone knob down slightly. The sound is very bright and twangy good for country and blues. I use a Dunlop Crybaby Wah and it sounds good with this pedal and doesn't mess with the tone of the guitar and amp. It has good sustain and sometimes can be noisy on high gain settings. // 9

Action, Fit & Finish: This guitar I assume came with 9-42 gauge strings cause when I cahnged the strings to 10-46 strings the strings were hitting the fret board so tried the 9-42 and the action was perfect for these size strings. the pickups were evenly spaced for a good tone. The only thing I think I should get checked is the Pickup selector because it fuzzes a little after you Switch pickups. // 9

Reliability & Durability: I never used this guitar live yet but I have jammed with so may times that I think it should withstand live playing. everything should seem to last. The straps are solid but I suggest strap locks. I would use without a backup but only for certain types of music for other styles I suggest a different guitar. // 10

Impression: I play metal, rock, blues, and country. This guitar is good for all types except I would suggest you use a different guitar for metal since it's not really meant for this style because of the tone of the guitar is too twangy and bright. I have been playing off and on since I was 10 and now I'm now 18 so I really don't know exactly. If this was stolen I would buy it again. I love the way the tone sounds for clean settings and I hate that it doesn't come with locking tuners, but I love the finish and blue pearl pick guard. // 10

Reviewed by: unregistered, on march 17, 2006

Price paid: $ 369.99

Purchased from: Guitar Center

Features: Mine is an '04 Mexican Tele. It has 21 frets, but I'm not sure about the neck's exact specs. There is one volume and one tone dial, a 3-way pickup selector, one Tele pickup and one single-coil. It has non-locking tuners (which can get a little annoying, as the guitar gets out of tune if you leave it alone for a single night). // 8

Sound: I play mostly punk and metal, but the standard tele is very versatile and can work with many styles. I use it with a Fender FM212, and the sound is amazing. When my band gigs, I always use it without the fear of it screwing up in the middle of a song (it is a Fender product, after all). // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: This guitar has great action. I have had no problems with the pickups, but the bridge is a slight issue. I have had it adjusted multiple times over the past 6 months, and it still continues to deviate from time to time. The first and second frets on the first three strings sound dull and tinny at points, and that's when I know it's time for an adjustment. Aside from those problems, it's a great guitar. // 8

Reliability & Durability: This thing will withstand live playing and more. The hardware is good quality, and I haven't broken a single strap button (I had bad experiences with the strap buttons on my first guitar, a Squier Affinity Strat). This guitar is quite dependable in a gig situation, and the finish is still very much intact after two years of borderline obsessive and nonstop playing. // 10

Impression: Once again, I play punk and metal, and the tele can play a wide variety of styles including those. I have been playing the guitar for 5 and a half years, and I own a Squier Affinity Strat, a Fender Precision Bass, a Fender FM212 guitar amp, a Fender Rumble 15 bass amp, and a 10 watt Ibanez something guitar amp that I naver use. I am glad I bought the tele because it is a great guitar, and if someone stole it, I would track him down, run him over in my car, then back over him three more times and of course take my guitar back afterward. If it were damaged, I would run over him three more times. I love everything about except the bridge problems I've been having. I compared it to all other Fender guitars before buying it (at least the ones in my prace range. If I had a thousand extra dollars, I would have bought an American Tele). // 9

overall: 9.8

Reviewed by: MAXWELLMURDER, on april 11, 2006

Price paid: $ 442.4

Purchased from: Avenue Guitars

Features: This is an all white 2006 Mexican made Fender Telecaster, this is actually cool because it was made in 2006 on the back of the head-stock it has a little metal piece in the shape of a diamond symbolyzing Fender's '60th anniversery. 21 frets, laminated top with a maple neck. Tele-style bridge. It's got a three way Switch, a volume and a tone. Standard pickups that come with a Tele. // 9

Sound: This guitar fits my style well, people say you shouldn't play metal on a tele, I beg to differ. I play metal-core, punk, rock, pop-punk stuff like that, fits it perfect. But on the clean channel, this is the nicest sounding guitar I've ever played, I run it through a Vox AC-30, and use a boss metal zone pedal, sounds so effing great I can't belive it. The only problem I had was when I had the tone turned all the way to the right, it wouldnt stop giving feed back, other then that it sounds great. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: This guitar was perfectly set up, no adjustments needed. The action was so great, pick-ups adjusted good. The only thing is the little plastic knob on the three way Switch comes off, but nothing that couldn't be fixed with a little glue. Finish was perfeccct. // 10

Reliability & Durability: This guitar could withstand playing live easily, I doubt I would even bring a backup. The machine heads might need a change in a little while but I just got the thing so. I replaced the strap buttons with drill-in strap locks, only because my Les Paul came crashing to its doom, but for 16 bucks that's a good investment. The finsih seems that it will last me for a long time to come. // 10

Impression: This guitar could match any style of music you wanted to play, thats how diverse. I have been playing for about 3 or 4 years, and this is by far my favourite guitar, and I've owned Gibsons. I wish I had gotten a better case, because I got this crappy Fender gig-bag. If this were stolen or lost I would deffinetly get a new one. I love how you those high frets on the guitar easily. The only thing I hate is when I'm playing it sitting down it seems to slip off my leg. This beats any other Fender I've played, and most Gibsons. The only thing I wish this had was a whammy. // 10

overall: 8.6

Reviewed by: JPJ_12, on october 28, 2008

Purchased from: Dawsons

Features: 2008 mexican Standard Telecaster, 21 frets, maple neck & ffretboard. Alder body. arctic white finish with white pickguard. Standard tele bridge, tuners, pickups and the lot. came with a Standard gig bag, two allan keys (one for action, one for truss rod), and a nice litte cloth to clean the guitar. Suppose it's fairly Standard, and I wouldn't really expect any more from it. // 8

Sound: I had never tried a Telecaster prior to the day I bought one, but the main types of music I play are Indie, alternative and bits of classic rock here and there. and by judging what my favourite bands were, most of them used telecasters or used telecasters at some point. needless to say it sounds brilliant for me, besides the occasional times I play metal, but besides metal, it is a very versatile guitar, and on stage I only find the need to change guitars for alternative tuning songs, never for the need of a different sounding guitar. I'm using it through a Laney RB-3, because I'm primarily a bassist, but I'm paying also with a big muff pi, Boss DS-1, Holy Grail, Q-tron and more recently a bass big muff pi (Yes, I'm an ehx fan:P), this guitar sounds brilliant, perhaps a bit noisy if the tone is too high on the muff, but the pickups are probably the worst feature of this guitar, and I shall change them when I get money. // 9

Action, Fit & Finish: It was set up ok, there was some severe action problems and fret buzz, but the guy in the shop said it had been in for about 10 weeks before I had bought it, so there was probably people fiddling with it. There was no flaws that weren't easily fixed, and now it plays great. // 7

Reliability & Durability: I replaced the strap buttons to straplocks after about 20 mins of playing, it's just a Standard for me, I just don't feel safe otherwise, although the ones on it did feel ok, I still recommend changing them, as it's really never wise to play without straplocks, especially on stage, to avoid embarresment. However, even if it did crash to the floor, I'm sure it would be ok, mine certainly has it's fair share of dings and scratches, but I'm really not careful with my gear, but I wouldn't be stupid enough to do anything that could damage it more than aesthetically. I've gigged with it before, as I mentioned, and it was fine, nothing went wrong with it. Very durable and reliable. // 10

Impression: This is a perfect match for me, I have been playing guitar for about 2 years, but bass for 5, and I finally got round to upgrading from my hss Squier Strat, and it was worth it. If it were stolen or lost, I would possible save up for a highway 1 or american Standard, just for the better pickups and bridge etc, but hey, I'll get round to upgrading them eventually. My favourite feature of the tele's is the gorgeous twang you get from the bridge pickup, and it's masses of tonal variety. In the shop, I also played a Standard mim Stratocaster, and Epiphone les paul, I just prefer the telecasters sound and looks, and the les paul felt very strange... only thing I wish it had was better Standard pickups, they are a must to upgrade if you get a mim Fender. I don't regret buying it, and if you ply Indie, telecasters are the ones to get, and they sound brilliant in all genres, besides metal, don't get me wrong it can do it ok, but there are a lot better choices for metal. I'm not going to tell you to buy one, as it is all opinion, but I will suggest trying one, as they are a great value for money. // 9

overall: 7.6

Reviewed by: richard_edwards, on april 02, 2007

Price paid: $ 530.7

Purchased from: www.Imuso.co.uk

Features: Ladels and Gennermen, I present to you the Fender Standard Telecaster. Made in 2004, I got it Brand New at a fairly decent price. It's Mexican, which does put a lot of people off, including me after getting this and trying out some other Mexican stuff. I recommend sticking to your American and Japanese stuff. 21 frets, 22 please Fender! Quite a nice neck though! Nice and slim in every aspect, small frets (which I love) set on a maple neck (which ages and relics nicely). Solid Alder covered in Midnight Wine, which is lovely in a nice bright light. Just your regular Tele, nothing changed over 50odd years. So just your normal volume, tone and 3 way Switch. Two single coils, I'll talk about them later. Very good tuners, never want to go out of tune! Only when you slam it to the floor, I found that out at a gig. No case or anything included. Only the tags that say it's a real Fender. // 6

Sound: Right, the pickups. You get what you pay for really. A low-end Fender, you don't expect USA Standard hardware. If you're rich enough, just go for a Highway One or a USA strat/tele. It's decent for rock and blues, clean is OK, just have to mess with the settings to get a nice tone as it's too bright. Noisy as anything! Bloody 'ell. Never heard anything like it on a 300 quid ($600) guitar. Not happy, will change them in the future. If you're patient, you can get a good array of sounds out of this. // 7

Action, Fit & Finish: The action was a little too high for me (I like my action very low as I'm really picky =]). The pickups were fine, they just sound bad. All fitted very well, except the nut has a bit of overhang. All set-up well, except I had to lower the action, only to find fretbuzz! So I sent it to a luthier friend of mine and he sorted it. So now it's all good. Plays well. Noisy pickup selector, clicks really loudly. Weak-ass finish, it chipped through my padded softcase! Also scratches really easily. So it should age nicely. // 8

Reliability & Durability: It has withstood Live playing, I was happy with it. I may change the bridge to a 50's style one, and get some nice new pickups for it. Bottom strap button came loose within a month. I'd happily gig with it again, as the wiring is set-up second to none. Well done on that aspect, Fender. I'm hoping to keep this Fender for the rest of my life, even if it isn't up to Standard, but that's easily fixed. Have a lovely relic that's got my character. Lovely aged Wine Red, can't wait till I'm sitting in a rocking chair, aged 70 playing some lovely tunes on MY Fender. Will need a refret in about a year's time I think, I've had it two years now and they're wearing down fast. And that'll cost a lot if I want the maple fretboard refinished. Simply speaking, this guitar could survive the Hiroshima bombing. // 9

Impression: I like to play a lot of stuff from Metal to Acoustic, and seeing as I don't own a proper acoustic (I own a Semi and a cheap-ass classical.) this fits it just fine. Metal is a bit weak and is noisy as f--k (pickup buzz, not metal in general). I've been playing for around 3-4 years, and this suits me fine. I've always wanted a Fender, and when I look at it and think 'That's MY Fender.', I smile and stare in bemusement at the fact I own a Fender (I own two so I'm a happy guy). If it was stolen/lost, I think I'd save for a Highway One Tele. I'm a mega Fender fan and I love Tele's, so I don't think I'd be happy without it. Even if it does sound a bit bad, I still love it, the shape, the history, the wonderful playing experience, it's all there. Especially the huge reputation it has gained over it's 50 year lifespan. We love you, Fender! Heh, and to think I was gonna choose a cheap-ass BC Rich Warlock over this, I'm mad. The cheap BC's are shit. I'm happy chappie. // 8

Reviewed by: unregistered, on september 08, 2007

Price paid: $ 395

Purchased from: Small shop in Virginia

Features: My guitar is a 2003 model, three-color sunburst, maple neck with Vintage frets, slim "C" contour. Original pickups replaced with Bill Lawrence 280 series noiseless single-coils. Standard tailpiece replaced with Wilkinson Vintage with brass compensated saddles. Pickup and control cavities have been copper shielded. Everything else is Standard. // 8

Sound: I'm a blues/rock guy. For years, I played guitars with humbuckers, but while shopping for a cheap Les Paul, a sales guy turned me on to the brightness, twang, and sizzle of single-coil pickups. I rarely play anything but Fender these days. Originally, this guitar's pickups were more than adequate, but the 60-hertz hum was almost always there, and I found it annoying. Bill Lawrence's pickups gave me extra punch, a sweet clean sound, and no hum. I highly recommend shielding any guitar that has single-coil pickups. I love this guitar now. // 8

Action, Fit & Finish: The fit and finish on the 2003 Standard Telecaster is remarkable. As other reviewers have said, if you didn't see it on the headstock, you wouldn't know that this guitar was made in Mexico. Paint is perfect, as is the neck. Action is nice and low with very little buzz, which I can tolerate. If I wanted to get rid of that by giving the neck a little more relief, I'm sure I could, but I don't want to mess with a good thing. Original tuners are excellent; guitar stays in tune, period. Original tailpiece was okay, too, but I wanted the classic sound and look, and I got it with the brass barrel saddles. // 10

Reliability & Durability: Anyone Who knows Teles knows they're built to take a beating. This one is no exception. Strap buttons were fine, but I put Dunlop straplocks on everything I own. Modified, this guitar ties with my American Strat as a favorite axe. If I could have one thing changed at this point, it would be the frets, I'd prefer medium-jumbo on a slightly thicker neck, and I may invest eventually in a custom neck for this reason. Or maybe I'll leave a great guitar alone. // 10

Impression: I'be been playing for nearly 30 years, mostly for my own enjoyment. I have many guitars of all sorts, but always seem to come back to solid-body electrics. This Tele turned me on to the Fender single-coil sound, and now I find humbuckers sort of boring. If this guitar were stolen, I'd be very sad because I've made it what I wanted, and the price, even with the modifications, was low for such a sweet instrument. I recently played a 2007 MIM Std. Tele, and some changes have been made. The frets are more to my liking now, and the pickups are a bit quieter and a little crunchier as well. Excellent clean sounds. I have to recommend this guitar to anyone Who wants classic Tele sound and would be willing to spend a little time on the modifications I've mentioned here. // 9

overall: 9

Reviewed by: tommytomato, on december 09, 2008

Price paid: £ 289

Purchased from: GAK.co.uk

Features: I have a Standard Fender Telecaster, made in 2007 (I've only owned it about 4 months) and coming from Mexico. It has a maple neck & maple fretboard, with 21 medium jumbo frets. Personally I love this neck to bits because it's so nice to play, it slides easy and it's just so thin. The body itself is made of alder, and it has a polyester finish (my one has an arctic white finish). The bridge is the new string-thru body 6 saddle one (easier for palm muting) 1 volume knob, 1 tone knob, and a 3-way selector. It still has stock pickups on it, and I'm looking to get new ones, but I'll get into that later. // 9

Sound: I actually love this guitar, you've probably heard everyone say you can only get a bluesy or country sound out of it, just don't listen, it suits my styles okay, but the pickups could do better. I play a lot of punk rock, ska, reggae, hardcore, blues and alternative stuff, but every now and again I play a bit of rock and Indie stuff. At the moment I'm using one of those crappy free amps that came with my first guitar (from Argos!:D) so that can make things sound a bit crap at times. But I always get to play on Marshall mg amps throughout the week, and it really makes this guitar sound awesome. The pickups aren't all that great in my opinion, they're single coils, so expect a bit of hum, I'm looking to get some Seymour Duncans put in. It's obviously got that classic Tele twang, but if you turn the tone down, you can get a better middle and low end sound, great for punk riffs. It can fit pretty much any sound with a little adjustment of the tone and EQ on the amp, although it really doesn't do metal well (not for metal heads). // 9

Action, Fit & Finish: The action straight out of the factory was just fine, I haven't had to adjust it yet, and I don't think I'll need to for ages. Everything was fitted great, just what you'd expect from a Fender product. The intonation was slightly off, but I fixed that in two minutes. All the electrical stuff was properly wired (not that I know a lot about the wiring stuff) and the finish was good (no chips, shiny and new). // 8

Reliability & Durability: I haven't played Live with this guitar yet, but I know it'll be fine because of the hours of rehearsals & practice I put this thing through. It seems pretty solid, nothing has fallen off, the strap buttons are like rocks, and I would use it without a backup because it's seriously solid. The finish on my guitar now has 2 chips in it, due to my major clumsiness:( don't expect the paint to come off easily, mine has taken quite a beating, but it only has 2 SMALL chips on it. // 10

Impression: The guitar is amazing, I love it and will never ever sell it. It matches what I play and it's solid as a really tough rock. This is the first decent guitar I've owned, but I've played lots of others and still chose this one because it is simply an amazing guitar, it's so lush to play! If someone stole it, I wouldn't sleep until I hunted them down and made the PAAAYYY! My favorite feature is definitely the neck, it's what makes the feel of this guitar so great. I was going to buy an Epiphone Les Paul Standard, but I found that this tele was nicer to play, and still had a great sound. I wish it had the pickups I wanted, but seriously that's the ONLY thing I want to change, I love this guitar, it sounds great, feels great, it's solid, I love it! // 9

overall: 9.8

Reviewed by: Tele Echoes, on october 22, 2007

Price paid: $ 497.7

Features: I believe my guitar was made in 2005. It was made in Mexico (says so on he headstock). It features 21 maple frets on a maple neck. It's got your Standard Telecaster body and headstock shapes. It features a Tele style bridge of course, and the Standard angled single coil bridge pick up as well as the neck pick up (I believe they're called "soap bars"). It a simple control design with a 3 wat selector and features one volume knob and one control knob. My guitar is a left hand model and it came with a tobacco sunburst finish and a gig bag with tools and all the Standard little information/warranty booklets. // 10

Sound: The Telecaster of course is pretty much the equivelant of that awesome grandparent Who comes over and always gives you one hell of a good time. It's old and while it may have been crafed in an earlier age, it's still survived the test of time and kicks some serious butt. It plays everything (used sooo much in country, too bad I don't like county); country, blues, jazz, blues rock, classic rock, hard rock, alternative rock, metal, r&b, and I'm willing to bet it works with hip hop (whenever it involves real instruments). I use this baby through a Fender Blues Jr. (Mexicans get along well), and tend to use a Double Muff overdrive/fuzz and a Crybaby wah. I also use the Blues Jr. without guitar pedals and use it's natural gain and it's spring reverb. Guitar always sounds great, no matter what effects you use on it. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: The Mexican of course, is easily as good as any other Fender guitar out there. People are just racsist that's all. I've never had to make any adjustments besides changing the strings after they've died. I'll probably get it checked up after the 1 year anniversary of owning it (which will be May 08), just to make sure there isn't anything small that I'm missing. // 10

Reliability & Durability: Everything about this guitar is solid and durable. The hardware will last, and the strap buttons are mighty solid. I can depend on this guitar and wouldn't even think about having a back up for reasons other than somebody trying to steal this masterpiece. I'm left handed though, so it would be of little use to most people, so I guess I have nothing to worry about ever! The finish looks marvelous to this day! // 10

Impression: I play the rock & roll, but I also play a lot of the softer stuff and classical on it as well. I've been playing without much of a break for just over 4 years now. If it were stolen, I would buy another one, after a good lifetime of crying in my sleep, as well as during the day. I love everything about this guitar. I hate that people feel it's not as great as it really is because it's a Mexican model. My favorite feature is definately the combination the maple neck and it's respected pick up give me when I apply just a little creamy overdrive! I compared it with several other options I considered buying based on what I could realistically afford. Those were; 1)Mexican and American Strat&Tele 2)Epiphone Les Paul 3)Gibson SG 4)Gibson Flying V and Explorer 5) Gretch and Epiphone hollow body electrics 6) a few PRS. I felt that this guitar was the best deal, and considering it was in stock, left hand, and the best priced option, I would have deserved a slap for rejecting the deal. I love this guitar inside out and am considering getting a 2nd Telecaster in the future (perhaps a 60s or 70s model). If you want a guitar that's affordable and incredible, go for it. If you, like myself have a hard time finding great left hand guitars that are well priced as well. I must highly recommend this guitar. Fender is overated, and this guitar shows off exactly why the company deserves such a high rating. If you can make guitars this good. I'm going to give this a 9 though, because I didn't have the option of getting any other Telecaster because of my playing hand. Make more models available in left hand! // 9

Reviewed by: unregistered, on january 06, 2009

Price paid: $ 450

Purchased from: GC

Features: I have the new 08 model MiM. typical tele, alder body and a one piece maple neck tinted satin urethene finish. The absolute best part of this guitar is the neck, it feels like an american (I bet the ran out of necks and had to use americans; ) The stock pups are pretty good however the bridge is a little bright. the tuners are Fender ping Standard cast/sealed. // 7

Sound: this guitar is very versitile it can handle anything throw at it except metal as it was not meant for that. I play mostly rock but I like to play country, which this guitar excels in. as I said the bridge pickup is a tad bright but I planed on changing it any way with a Seymour Duncan hot rails. this guitar is also good for rythm playing. // 7

Action, Fit & Finish: factory set-up was Standard so I had to adjust a few things, I like my action and pickups slightly higher. when I got it the neck pup was uneven so I had to adjust it. also there was a loose strap button no biggie.. I am especially found of the nutwork on this guitar. overall this guitar came with very minor flaws. // 9

Reliability & Durability: I have not gigged with this guitar yet but I never go to a gig without a backup. before I play Live with this I will have to change the tuners because the tuning on this won't hold for a whole show. The strap buttons are solid on this but as I have with all my guitars I am putting straplocks on it. the finish seems pretty solid. // 9

Impression: I play rock and this is a good for it and many other syles. I have only been playing 2 1/2 years but I know a good guitar when I play one this is a good guitar. Iv'e played this through a Marshall jcm and my Fender Super Champ XD and it didn't dissapoint. if it was stolen I would find the bastard that stole it and steal it back for myself. I love the neck it's the best thing about it. only thing I wish it had was a coil tapping bridge humbucker, but I can't have everything. // 9

overall: 9.4

Reviewed by: Reisgar42, on october 06, 2009

Price paid: $ 420

Purchased from: Guitar Center

Features: I got this beautiful guitar this last April, about six months ago. Mine has a Standard solid Midnight Wine body with a 3-ply white/black/white pickguard, and a maple neck and 21 frets. Everything is Standard about this guitar, stock pickups, stock bridge, stock everything. It may be completely Standard, but that doesn't make it anywhere near bland. I love the famous Telecaster versatility and twang and this thing outshines every other guitar seen alongside it. // 9

Sound: I usually play a mix of mid-90s alt rock and Indie rock with some other styles thrown into the mix, and the Tele is easily up to any job thrown at it. I've even heard a friend of mine try it out for metal (with minor effects) and he was frustrated that this relatively cheap single-coil guitar could match and surpass any and all of his guitars that he'd spent so long fiddling with. The Telecaster has a kind of rare versatility that pays for itself time and time again. Just as a recommendation, if you're playing something with a lot of sliding, Switch to the neck pickup and set the tone mid-low and just listen. If that doesn't sell you on this guitar, I don't know what will. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: This guitar is absolutely beautiful. At first, I was a bit hesitant about the color as it wasn't anything I'd ever expected myself to own before (I'm not much a fan of red), so I left the store and went home to come back another day. I ended up coming to my senses and buying it within 24 hours. Being a Telecaster, the body may seem a bit plain as it's mostly a curved plank, but if you can get past this you're sure to love it. // 9

Reliability & Durability: This is by far the most sturdy-feeling guitar I've ever held. Everything is tight and solid, the tuners don't lose their hold with a lot of bends and there has been absolutely nothing changed with the truss rod after all this time, which is a far cry from my last few guitars. // 10

Impression: My only complaint about this guitar is mostly a complaint against the Telecaster body shape, which is that I would kill for a body contour. The rounded edge of the body can cut into your ribs if you play for too long sitting down, but it's only just annoying and not painful. Next time you consider getting a new guitar, at the very least give a Telecaster a shot, regardless of what you play and what you're used to. I've let players from all genres take a test Drive with it and a good portion have bought one. This is a fantastic guitar that everyone is sure to find something good in. // 9

overall: 8.8

Reviewed by: arjAG, on october 21, 2009

Price paid: £ 379

Purchased from: Nevada Music

Features: Made in Mexico, 2008 Telecaster, 21 medium jumbo frets, maple neck & fretboard. Stock Fender pickups, and 2 tone nobs Tone & Sound. 3 way pick up selector Standard machine heads and non locking tuners. Alder body I think, came with a gig bag and a spare set of strings but the guy at the store wouldn't throw in the Fender strap! // 9

Sound: I tend to play indie/alternative music and abit of rock also, and this can handle anything you throw at it, especially equipped with a better amplifier almost and tone can be achieved with the right equipment. Traditional tele twang which is nice and on the neck pick up the sound is crips and clean but when swtiched down the the bridge it can scream. Overall versatile and well suited to my taste. // 9

Action, Fit & Finish: Nice action, very easy to play and instore quality matched exactly how it played out the box. Solid machine heads and strap buttons, quiet pick up selector, although the pick up on the neck did seem slightly loose but was sorted with a screwdriver! Nicely polished neck and nice Vintage finish ( arctic white ). It was also perfectly tuned out the box not that this really mattered, // 8

Reliability & Durability: Not had having this guitar long I can't comment on wether it would withstand Live play but I'm pretty self assured I wouldn't need a back up, the hardware seems solid and with some heavy gauge strings it could be a workhorse. The body does get chipped easy but put back in bag every time after play avoids this. Pick ups could be replaced for even further improvement but not exactly nessacery right now. // 9

Impression: Overall this guitar is perfect for me, after upgrading from a awful acoutic with a rather difficult action it plays like a dream, I love the Vintage style white finish and the tone I get from it. If it was stolen I would track the person down, Hurt them then either get a replacement or get it back!

I also tried out the Standard Strat and epi les paul stndrd, but decided above all the Strat was for me, even paired with a crappy practice amp it still sounds so sweet! Couldn't think of another guitar I would want, apart from a american deluxe tele or Gibson es 355:) cheers x // 9

overall: 7.6

Reviewed by: imabookie3, on october 26, 2009

Price paid: $ 300

Purchased from: Guitar Center

Features: This Telecaster was made in 2006-2007 in Mexico. It has 21 frets. The neck is made of Ash and as far as I can tell so is the body. It has a black gloss finish with a white pickguard. It features a Standard Tele-style bridge and the rest of the features are Standard. I feel dumb complaining about this, but Fender should really try to include tonal controls for both pickups, if that's possible. // 7

Sound: I like to play ambient music, trashy rock, classic rock, country, and folk. This guitar does very well for these types of music, though it lacks a certain punch necessary for the trashier music. I play it through a 50-Watt Marshall and it sounds absolutely beautiful when played clean. The distortion leaves a bit to be desired - it lacks punch - but this guitar certainly sounds better than my cheaper guitars. This guitar is a bit noisy when the distortion is turned up, which can get annoying. The sounds though is fantastic when clear. It can range from a mellow bassy sound reminiscent of 60s soul music, to screaming distortion from early Led Zeppelin/Yardbirds, to good reggae sounds, and of course the classic twang. It is definitely on the brighter end of the spectrum though meaning it lacks the bassy wallop necessary for heavier songs. The sound, however, is immensely better than the sound of most other guitars that fall in the $300 price range. // 8

Action, Fit & Finish: The factory set-up is not particularly good. The guitar was quite difficult to play when I first got it though I've gotten used to it. The set-up is not horrendous but I do need to pay to get it fixed. I know basically nothing about pick-up adjustments, but I never hit the pick-ups with my pick, though that's probably a function of where I tend to do my picking. There is a major flaw on my guitar (I don't know if this is Fender's fault or Guitar Center's) which is that there is an area on the 17th fret that has been damaged and thus the strings won't sound when they touch it. The reps at Guitar Center blamed this on old strings (presumably because they thought I was an idiot) but this was extremely dishonest on their part. For the record, the Guitar Center in question is in Seven Corners in Falls Church, VA. // 7

Reliability & Durability: I don't play live so I don't know how this guitar would stand up to Live playing. I have, however, dropped it several times and knocked it over even more times and it has only one small ding on it. This leads me to believe it's pretty durable. The hardware seems quite simple and durable. The strap buttons are fairly good, though I would probably replace them with better ones were I to perform frequently. The finish is thick and dependable. Even in the place where I dented the guitar, the finish is still solid and uncracked. // 8

Impression: I've been playing for four years. My other guitars are cheapos (Lotus Les Paul, Memphis Strat) and this one is miles away in terms of quality. I think of it mostly as a workman's guitar though. Were I to join a band, I would probably buy something else to play as soon as I got the money. This guitar is very dependable, however, and for very certain kinds of music (when twang is necessary), I think it would be tough to find anything better. // 8

overall: 9.6

Reviewed by: RealGuitarHero, on june 30, 2009

Price paid: $ 250

Purchased from: MusicGoRound

Features: With some research I found out that my tele was made in 2002, in the Fender factory in Mexico. It has a maple neck, C shaped, with a 21 fret maple fingerboard. Solid Adler Top, with a surf green finish(the only one I've seen in this color actually). Standard Tele bridge on this one, with 3 way switching One volume, One Tone. Two Standard pickups. Standard Fender tuners, no real modifications done to this baby. Also the one I bought came with a hardshell case included. // 10

Sound: I bought this guitar for the cleans, which in my mind are amazing, I play mostly punk rock music in a band, but my solo project is a more of a Soft Rock sound and this thing does that perfect. I've used this through many amps, but right now I'm using a little Fender practice amp, and I swear that it still sounds like a dream, I can't imagine it on a tube amp. Single coils though, are noisy if you're near other electronics, but I have a noise gate so it works out. While I do use this for my solo project mostly, my solos often use high amounts of distortion. I have used this guitar a few times for practice with my band and it had no trouble getting the punk sound I need. // 8

Action, Fit & Finish: The guitar was set up perfectly, and the action was just where I liked it. I see no problems with the pickups or the finish on the guitar at all. This guitar was perfect at the store, and caught my eye immediately. The strings it came with were a bit dead, but that could easily be fixed with a fresh set of Slinkies. // 10

Reliability & Durability: This guitar would last through a gigs for sure, especially now that I've added strap locks. The hardware will last as well as the finish. I could depend on this thing without a backup, which is good, because the gigs I play really don't have the room for me to switch guitars. The finish will last forever thanks to that polyurethane. // 10

Impression: Like I said, I play punk rock music, with soft rock music on the sides, and this guitar suits either style perfectly. I've been playing for 3 years now and I've owned a few other guitars in my time playing. I was very careful in picking out this guitar, and I got all the information I needed. If this guitar was stolen or lost, I would find the person Who took it, and murder them. Honestly I think this guitar is one of a kind. Eventually I'm gonna add some locking tuners to it, and maybe a bigsby. But for right now I'm pleased with it. // 10

overall: 9.4

Reviewed by: xvasmx, on april 09, 2009

Purchased from: Cosmo Music

Features: -Made in 2006
-Alder Body
-Maple Neck
-21 Frets, Medium Jumbo I believe
-Tobbaco Sunburst Finish
-6 Saddle Bridge
-2 Single Coil Pickups (Bridge and Neck)
-3 Way Switch
-Your everyday Telecaster Body :)
Well Thats Pretty much it, mine came with a soft case which was a good thing. // 9

Sound: I play a lot of Blues, Blues-Rock and Classic Rock; mainly Zeppelin, Beatles, Eric Clapton, Rory Gallagher. So this guitar suit's me perfectly.

Currently using it with a Vox AD15VT and also at time my Cube 15.It sounds amazing with my amps.The neck pickup sounds wonderful clean perfect for chord work and clean passages, while the bridge pickup clean sounds amazing for Beatles work, bright and twangy. Distorted on the other hand the bridge pickup with my Vox actually has lovely sustain, perfect for ballad/sax-like legato soloing, and with the bridge pickup(messing with the tone) It sounds perfect rolling down the tone a bit can give you a good sound(yes Teles can handle distortion incredible well). The pickups can be noisy with distortion but then again they're single coils.In the end I find this guitar quite versatile; it can handle anything from clean to overdrived(Revolution- Beatles kind-of sound) to Zeppelin to Guns N Roses to modern rock, I find it perfect for my style too so I'm happy. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: This one that I got was a floor model so it had a few things that needed osme adjusting. First of all the neck had to be adjusted.The acton was also a little bit high, so I got it set to Fender standards. I also had the saddle adjusted too, same with the the nut which also had to adjusted. I also had a minor problem with my bridge pickup which was twisted but after bringing it in, it was set adjusted and fixed in no time at all.

One thing I really have yo say about this guitar though was that it had a wonderful shave, slide you hand down the neck and you wouldn't feel the frets at all the ends were cut perfectly.

The finish so far is still lovely and pefect, so no problems with that. // 8

Reliability & Durability: So far I haven't had the honor of gigging with it yet. I have been jamming a lot at school with some friends and so far it's perfect, I've had no problems with it at all. I believe the hardware will definitely last, yet again I've hadn't owned it all that long so time will tell. The strap buttons haven't failed me yet and has never gave in so far so they seem pretty solid. I can definitely depend on this guitar, it's sturdy, the guitar's hardware seems liek it will last me a long long time, and it's finish looks liek it will last. // 10

Impression: With The Music I play, blues, blues rock, hard rock; as I have mentioned before it is perfect.It definitely suit's my style and I just love it. I've been playing for 3 years owning a Acoustic(Yamaha F-310)and a Squier Fat Strat; mind you I have played other guitars borrowing from my friends, but I find the Telecaster is jsut what I've been looking for.If this was lost/stolen I would do anything to the greatest of my ability to get it back, if I really can't I'll definitely buy it again. I really love the neck of the guitar it's just perfect, maybe 22 frets would have been better but it's great. I believe this guitar is pretty much the same quality as a American Standard for half the price(lovely deal right there). Before purchasing this guitar I was considering actually buying a Gibson Les Paul Studio, but I found that this suited my needs and wants more so I'm perfectly happy with this thing. These are one of the thing that I will keep with me forever. // 10

overall: 9.8

Reviewed by: Natilator3, on january 23, 2009

Price paid: $ 432

Purchased from: Allegro Music

Features: This wonderful '08-'09 Fender Standard Telecaster, finished in Midnight Wine, features 21 medium-jumbo frets on a Maple neck and fretboard, Alder body, string-through bridge, and Standard Tele electronics and hardware. Included were the two allen wrenches and a gig bag which barely fits one small music book. // 9

Sound: This is so perfect in comparison to my old Teisco. I can get it to make any sound I want. I have a Roland Micro Cube, and it sounds great even on the "R-fier" (high gain) setting. I love the brightness of the tele as it suits my favorites such as the Ventures. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: The guitar was perfectly set up right from the get go and the finish is spectacular. Action and pickups were perfect, and there were no manufacturing flaws. The neck, by the way, is the perfect size for my hand, being a relatively narrow c-shape. // 10

Reliability & Durability: I haven't gigged with it yet, but it is a very sturdy guitar, and everything seems like it will last forever. I don't have a backup guitar, so I would have to gig without one, but even if I did, I would gig without the backup. The finish is definitely good enough to last. // 10

Impression: This guitar is perfect for everything I play. At the writing of this review, I've been playing exactly one year (and advancing much faster then my friend Who has been playing longer). It won't get stolen or lost, because I won't let it be, but if it did get stolen or lost, I would definitely get the same guitar. I love everything, hate nothing. My favorite feature is the retro look and sound. I compared it to many different products including Strats, Epiphone Les Pauls, Epiphone Dots, et cetera. It's an absolutely Perfect guitar and a keeper for life. // 10

overall: 7.4

Reviewed by: toyboxmonster, on april 01, 2009

Price paid: C$ 400

Purchased from: L'Escale Music

Features: My Telecaster was a Lake Placid blue '00s Mexican model and had the classic Tele layout: 21 medium frets, Fender tuners, Standard strings-through-body bridge. There are two knobs (one volume, one tone) and one three-way pickup selector Switch on a chrome plate. The pickups are Standard Telecaster single-coils. The neck was the usual maple bolt-on. I can't say for sure what material the body was made of, but I think it was a little light to be alder. It's a guitar with a very simple layout, but one that is efficient and has been a favourite for half a century. // 10

Sound: The Telecaster is known for it's twangy sound and is consequently associated with genres such as folk rock, country, jangle pop, etc. The most annoying aspect of the Mexican Tele (which led me to sell mine) is that it simply doesn't deliver that distinctive Telecaster sound. The front pickup sound much too muddy to be twangy, and the back pickup is so trebly that it almost chimes. Setting the pickup selector Switch in the middle position gets some fairly good sounds, but the realisation that I could get janglier tones out of my Jaguar HH led me to give up on this guitar, no matter how attached I was to it. This is a fairly noisy guitar, but it's something you need to Live with if you're looking for a bright single-coil sound (which this doesn't provide anyways). Don't get me wrong, it is a very nice sounding guitar, but if you're looking for that Tele tone as I was, this is the wrong model to be looking at. I play ambient Shoegazing music, and with effects added onto it, the Mexican Tele became much too murky to be able to satisfy my needs. // 7

Action, Fit & Finish: The wormanship on this guitar was fair, but I've seen better. Everything was well-aligned and most parts held solidly to the instrument. One obvious flaw was that the control plate was warped and protruded slightly from the guitar. I did buy this guitar used, but it couldn't have been more than five years old and the pots were already quite noisy. I don't know whether Fender or the previous owner is to blame. There were no flaws in the finish, and the intonation was fine. // 6

Reliability & Durability: This seems like a fairly solid guitar. For all the faults I mentionned in the last paragraph, it still played fine and was quite comfortable. The strap buttons are good, but I replaced them with Dunlop StrapLoks the day I bought the guitar just to be safe. I would definitely trust this guitar at a gig; then again, I've gigged with a pretty beat up and semi-functional guitar before. The one obvious problem a far as durability goes is that the finish on this guitar is painfully thin; it cracks and wears off at a surprising rate. I never played this guitar outside of the house, yet over the 6-7 months it was in my possession, I put a fair number of dings, scratches, and dents in it (without being rough). It already had a great number of blemishes when I bought it, so it isn't just me. // 7

Impression: This is an all-around average guitar. It doesn't sound great, isn't particularly sturdy, and isn't hugely versatily, and it doesn't sound bad, isn't fragile, and isn't limiting. All in all, it's a good guitar for a new-ish player, but it just didn't cut it for me anymore. When I bought this, I was considering three guitars: an Epiphone Les Paul, an Epiphone Dot, and the Tele. I picked the Tele because it was the cheapest and lightest, and because I was looking for a twangy sound. Sadly, this guitar did not deliver what I was looking for. I've recently sold it. Someday I do plan on getting another Telecaster, but it won't be a Mexican Fender. Squier has been putting out some excellent Indonesian variations on the Telecaster (The Custom, Custom II, Thinline, Double Fat, etc.) and I'll be looking into those soon. It's a guitar that looks and feels great, but that could ultimately be replaced by a better-sounding, cheaper alternative. // 7

overall: 9.4

Reviewed by: dirk-pitt, on october 28, 2006

Price paid: $ 693

Purchased from: Muziker Slovakia

Features: // 9

Sound: I play Frusciante-style rock music, it suits me perfectly, together with D`Addario EXL 110 it plays like butter, it`s great. I use it with Behringer X-Vamp guitar efect processor and Behringer GM-108 amp, the sound is excellent. It`s very noisy, there`s no problem with the volume, altough I'm thinking about buying some noiseless pickups, because I don`t really like the bridge pickup sound. It can make every sound you like, it`s ideal for any music style, no matter if jazz, blues, rock or funk. // 9

Action, Fit & Finish: The strings were setup on the highest possible distance from the fretboard, it was too high for me, so I had to change it immediately, after I have set it up, it had no problems at all. The pickups were and still are properly adjusted, the sound`s full and rich. The packaging was OK, it didn`t contain any flaws. // 9

Reliability & Durability: I defenitelzy rely on this guitar because I have no backup, but I never had any problems with it, I play in a place with extremely high humidity, the finish lasts without a doubt (unlike the strings of course, which become rusty and dirty after a short period of time), I play at about twelve hours a week in high humidity and almost a year and it doesn`t seem to be worn off by now. // 10

Impression: The Telecaster is great for all music styles, I play rock and sometimes funk music, it fits me perfectly. I've been playing for nearly 7 years, and I'm fully satisfied with the features this guitar gives me. I use it with a Behringer GM-108 amp a and Behringer X-V AMP guitar processor, so not quite the most expensive equipment, but the sound`s cool and playability is amazing. If it were stolen, I would definitely buy a new one. When comparing it to Fender Standard Stratocaster, it`s heavier, so you have to get used to it, but the playability is better for me thanks to the maple neck in combination with D`addario EXL-110 strings, which suit me the most for my music style, so the Fender Standard Telecaster is definitely the No.1 choice for me. // 10

overall: 8.8

Reviewed by: k7_korn, on april 17, 2006

Price paid: $ 602.07

Purchased from: Sound Control - Bristol

Features: This guitar is Mexican made and is a 2005 model, it has 22 jumbo frets on a maple neck. is a laminated top with a maple body. The guitar has a beutiful vinate white finish with a cream pickguard neatly placed on the body. Has a modern Telecaster style bridge (not the original 3 sadles with 2 strings per sadle, biut a sadle for each string) there is a master volume knob, a tone knob and a 3-way pickup selector. There was a free Fender gig bag included as well. // 8

Sound: This is an incredibally versitle guitar. It suits my very broad, and sometimes random, styles of music. I can play anything from children of Bodom to some good ol' fashioned johnny Cash on here. It is particularly good for modern rock like Nickelback, Alter Bridge and Fall out Boy. I am currently using a Vox valvetronix amp with it and running it through a distortion channel on the FX unit. it has a very pleasant bright sound on a clean channel with that indeering and signiture Telecaster twang that you would excpect. It can make all sorts of sounds, from really bassy blues and a good chrunching shredd solo with some pinch harmonics. The single coil pickups deffinatly do not hold you back. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: The set up was pretty standard of what you would excpect from Fender, bloody good. It was very good apart from one of the sadles was loose when I brought it, but before I left the store with it they fixxed that up whilst they were ringing up the prices. The pickups are standard stock pickups and are very well adjusted. But it does have wuite a noisy pickup selector, only when u Switch. It has a very dull buzz when you Switch. But then settles down quickly and is pretty much slient after that. Remember that every guitar is different and your guitar might or might not have these problems. // 7

Reliability & Durability: This guitar would deffinatly hold up to my energetic live playing style, I can do everything from my jumps to hula hoop swings and guitar duels. the hardware will deffinatly last and the strap buttons are rock solid, but just to be safe, wiv my all-over-the-place live style, I brought some strap locks jsut incase. I would be able to use it without a backup however I will always use a backup just incase, you can never be to carefull. // 9

Impression: This guitar is a perfect match for my primary style of playing, pop punk and emo. Its great. I have been playing fro jsut over 2 years and previously had an Epiphone les paul, this is a bit of a step up dont u think? lol. I have no regrets and if it were to be stolen or lost. I would deffinatly buy another one, or try out a Gibson SG, which is on sale at the moment for only £500. I love the sound, that Telecaster twang and treble that you get from it. And the pickups are oh so versitle, however I sometimes get annoyed with the trus rod line on the back, I feel it somehow ruins the finish of the maple neck. I compared it to a custom Epiphone les paul with Gibson USA humbuckers and I chose my tele over it, I also tried a Schecter PT but that was unbearably heavy, so that was out of the question. however I do wish that it had mabey ESP pickups on it instead of the stock ones, I mean ESP single coils still, I wouldnt change them to humbuckers, I enjoy the change. // 10

Reviewed by: unregistered, on july 28, 2004

Price paid: $ 374.5

Purchased from: lawrence music

Features: I'm guessing this guitar was made in 2004. I bought it brand new. It's a mexican. It has 21 frets. The frets are medium size. And it has a maple neck. With a (black) poplar body with a gloss finish. Body style is Telecaster. Bridge style is tele-style. Comes with volume and tone controls with 3-way selector Switch. It has 2 single coil pickups. Fender non-locking tuners. // 10

Sound: I play a lot of different kinds of music ranging from Metallica to the All-American Rejects and it seems to fit both styles. Right now since my other amp is all f--ked up, I use it with my Frontman 15G practice amp. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: This guitar was flawless when I got it. It came tuned. The action is awesome. The pickups are set up right. There were no flaws on it. // 10

Reliability & Durability: This guitar will without a doubt withstand live playing. The hardware is a lot better on the Telecaster than the Strat and I think it will last forever. I've had no problems witht the strap buttone. I would use this at a gig without a back up. The finish looks like it will last a long time. // 10

Impression: Like I said before I play all kinds of music. This is a perfect match. I have been playing for 3 years (self-tought) I also own my first guitar Squier Affinity Strat which is a piece. And an Epiphone acoustic guitar thats really old but sounds good. If it was stolen I'd kill the guy who took it because this guitar drained what was left in my bank account (I also bought a gig bag and new amp cord) one thing I love about it is the weight it makes the guitar feel more powerful. // 10

Reviewed by: unregistered, on september 13, 2004

Price paid: $ 823.5

Purchased from: Merchant Street Music

Features: 2001 Mexican Fender Telecaster. 21 frets, after moving onto this guitar from a Yamaha Pacifica I found the fret wire was thin and found barre chords very hard to do. Sunburst body with white scratch plate and maple neck. Came with hard case which was nice. The machine head's are great and make tuning easy and it holds it tuning very well. Getting the lead into the jack can be a pain in the a**. Its shaped pretty outwards and I've to feel before I put it in as so I dont cause unnessary noise. // 8

Sound: I play blues, old rock and the tele suited me fine. It suits these styles manificently. The clean has a nice gentle low and a cutting high. The neck pickup will satisfy any of you tele fans and the bridge compliments it nicely with a sharper sound. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: Nothing perfect and the tele was no exception. It had nothing major wrong with it at all. The volume and tone knobs were both wobbly and need tightening, the scratch plate had some frayed and jaged edge which need some gently sanding. Its quite a heavy guitar but this benefits sustain which its got alot of. After about an hour of playing you really want to take it off. Playing sitting down with it in your lap is also uncomfortable as the tele's edges dig in to my body. Thats its main bad flaws. Its neck's really playable and once I got used to the smaller fret wires I really enjoyed playing my tele. I've also givin the tele a good few knocks and I'm very surprised to say it has no dents at all. Its bomb proof. The harmonics need setup and when the strings do snap, you will often notice its at the point where it passes over the saddle. // 8

Reliability & Durability: This guitar is as solid as it is heavy. Its a 2001 and its still going strong with no dents, some minor scratches but nothing a good buffer wont take out. Nothings fallen off of stopped working and I would glady use it at a gig without no backup. Very dependable and its finish will last and I've really thrashed this guitar and its taken it. // 10

Impression: For the price I paid I'm loving it. Could of done with a nicer scratch plate which I did replace but apart from that I highly recomend to anyone wanting the old look guitar. Please ask about the scratch plate and strings condition before you buy. You could get a free pack of strings, you never know. I love its sound and look, hate its weight and the jack. If it were stolen id probably go into depression then after a while go right out and if I couldnt find my tele, its very unique. I'd buy another. I wish it had better fret wires. // 8

overall: 6.8

Reviewed by: matherin, on october 29, 2004

Price paid: $ 711.87

Purchased from: sound pad ,barnstaple N devon

Features: I got a standard mexican Telecaster in june 2004. I thought you couldn't get thet much better quality than Fender (except Gibson ofcourse). The serial number is MZ3103618 but I'm not sure what year it was made in. Now I think it sounds amazing for the price but around 3 months after I bought it the tone knob fell off. It could happen to any guitar. A week later the jack socket became loose and rattled all the time. Now I think its a good guitar but the accesories need to stay put. I would reccommend this axe as a begginers next guitar but only Tom Morrelo can get away with it on stage. // 4

Sound: This is great for getting a good trebly tone both pickups are full of brightness and its great for that chili peppers sound. When distorted the you can still here the notes ring its great for solos as it has bags of sustain. Only dissapointment is the neck pickup. It's far too deep. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: The finish on this guitar is way too thick but the action makes up for it. I think it's just at the right height its low but not too low. One of the bridge saddles is at an angle but I cant tell if thats from the factory or from when I changed the strings. // 6

Reliability & Durability: Personally Tom Morrelo is a nut case if you take this on the road your gonna be spending all your earnings on this thing and not by spoiling it. I suppose it will be fine for a gig every once in while but not a tour. // 6

Impression: I bought this guitar because I cant afford a 65 Telecaster like john Frusciante. But it's in my oppinion does great job. // 8

overall: 9.2

Reviewed by: socialtool, on july 12, 2004

Price paid: $ 200

Purchased from: Zoo music

Features: I'm not sure what year it was made, I bought it used. It is a mexican Fender. 21 tiny frets, the neck is a then maple neck with a maple fretboard. The guitar is solid. Poplar of course. The string through gives it a great sustain. The stock single coils are passive. There is a master volume and master tone and three way Switch. // 8

Sound: I play anything from blues to hard rock. and I can get any setting I need by tweaking the knobs. I play through a Peavy Keyboard amp, which is different but I can still get great sound from it. The pickups aren't noisy as I thought they might be. With the tone on Ten the pickups are bright and bitting, and with it rolled to 0 you can get that Full conatined sounds. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: The action ismagnificient. The strings are as low as they could get and I don't get any fret buzz. The pickups pick up every strum. The guitar was flawless. The finish is strong. I've bumped it so many times but there's still not a scratch. // 10

Reliability & Durability: I play hard and strong always. This guitar has taken abuse and the tuning stays. The hardware seems like it will last but I'm going ot change ouit some of it anyways just to get a good variety. The strap buttons are strange. I'm prolly gonna change him. I think the guy that owned it before me screwed them up though. I would use it without a back up any day. The Finish will last. // 10

Impression: I play a lot of different stuff. I play more bluesy stuff and this guitar gets a great tune. I've been playing for about 2 years now and this guitar is great. I own an Ovation that the Telecaster can replicate the cleans. I would definetly by another one if this was stolen or lost. I love the entire guitar. The only thing I hate about it is the strings are really lite. My favorite feature is mixing the tone. I compared it to American telecasters and mexi strats and I still picked this one. It was better than the Strat but a little worse than the American Tele but not enough to make 400 dollars different. I only wish that it had a vibrato arm so I'm putting a bigsby on it. // 8

Reviewed by: unregistered, on july 09, 2004

Price paid: $ 400

Purchased from: american musical supply

Features: This Telecaster was made in mexico it has 2 single coil pickups one for treble which is the bridge and the other is for rhythm which is the neck. It has one volume knob and one treble knob. It also honly has 21 frets which takes some getting used to when switching from 24 fret necks. The body is mahogony I think and the neck is maple with no rosewood. // 8

Sound: I play a huge range of things from Metallica to Dire Straits, Led Zeppelin and even some Tool and Manson. No matter what if I tweak with everything I can make it sound almost identical to anyone. I also play with a Randall RG200 which might have somethin to do with it. I've seen pickup sets you could get from Fender to get rid of excessive noise when playing with high gain but I've never had any trouble with it. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: The action on this is flawless. As soon as I got it I bought a set of ernie ball extra slinkys and I can play unbelieveable. I've found that I can play more intense solos with this than I ever could on my LTD EC-50. It fits what I play perfectly I love the look of the Telecaster because its different from any other guitar. It has its own distinctive shape. // 10

Reliability & Durability: It's pretty durable. Every now and then I'll get pissed and I'll drop it then pick it back up about 10 minutes later and start where I left off at and it's still there with me. // 10

Impression: My overall impression is very good. I looked at Les Pauls before buying this and I found that this is up there with them. I still love Less Pauls cause they are the gods of guitars but for the money that I spent for this I am incredibly happy with it. I have noticed one thing with all the chrome on it I do have to cleanit alot to get the Shine and get rid of my fingerprints. If you want a nice reliable guitar that you can play many stles of music on this si yours. // 10

overall: 10

Reviewed by: corsa, on january 21, 2004

Price paid: $ 602.07

Purchased from: guitar amp kyboard

Features: It is a 2002 standard mexico tele. It has a 21 fret neck and it's a solid top. I had it in arctic white which in my opinion is the only colour too have it in. On the tone side of things it comes with a hot rail and a single coil both Fender I think. It has a treble knob and a volume. It uses a 3 way slector system. The bridge is the standard tele bridge. Ihe neck is nice and medium. The tuners are standerd tele style. It is all american hardware just assembled in mexico. // 10

Sound: I mainly play blues music so t realy suitas my music style. it can be pushed to a rock tone and can easily make a trebely light tone. The sound is realy bright. the tele was originaly ment for blues so it hasn't changed only get this is you are going to play blues. It can be used for other styles but it wont play like that all the time. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: All I can say here is no problems, it's sorted all round. // 10

Reliability & Durability: I find it very reliable although I haven't had it that long I wouldn't know. But the hardware seems realy secure and I haven't had any problems. I already gig with this with no back up except for my acoustic songs. // 10

Impression: This Is An Amazing Guitar For Blues. It Has All American Hardware And They Cut Costs By Paying Mexicans Nere Too Nothing For Asembly. // 10

Reviewed by: unregistered, on january 29, 2004

Price paid: $ 545.1

Purchased from: Claude De Bussy Music

Features: It's a 2003, Fender Telecaster with bigsby tremolo, assembled in Japan. It has 21 standard frets, thin maple neck and a rosewood fretboard. It has an alder tele body, laminated top with treble, volume knob and 3-way Switch. The 2 pickups are Vintage noiseless tele Fender's. // 8

Sound: You can play blues, jazz or even hard rock. It suits many styles, unless you want to play Metallica. I play everything between Led Zep and Coldplay, and sometimes crank it up for some Offspring. It offers a multitude or sounds: rich, full, bright, crispy...name it, it's got it. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: The guitar was already well tuned at the shop. The action was great and the pickups didn't need to be ajusted and the bridge was properly routed. The only flaw on this guitar, as it is the case on many Fender's, the polyurethane finish tends to crack in the ears. // 8

Reliability & Durability: I believe this guitar is perfect for playing live, the hardware appears to be of good quality. The finish is quite thick and I don't expect to have much trouble with it. I don't anticipate having any problems playing a gig without backups. // 10

Impression: I've been playing for 15 years and this is without a doubt the best gear I've ever owned. The only other guitar I own is an Ovation Celebrity. If anything were to happen to my Tele, I'd instantly get the same one to replace it. I love everything about it, especially the bigsby tremolo, not only does it serve it's purpose it also gives the guitar a great look. // 10

Reviewed by: unregistered, on july 22, 2005

Price paid: $ 695.3817

Purchased from: Mid Wales Music Centre

Features: This guitar is beautiful but yet so simple. It is a mexican made, maple neck, sunburst Standard Telecaster, and I love it. But it would be oh so beautiful if only the body was contoured for much needed comfort. The neck is beautiful. So comfortable to play. // 8

Sound: The sound suits my style as it has more snap than growl, suitable for moderate rock, funk, blues, rock and roll. The sound is very bright and cheerful. I am currently using it through a DigiTech RP200A and it sounds awesome on wah. // 8

Action, Fit & Finish: Action is perfect (any lower and fret buzz would occur). Not a single flaw apart from a slightly loose volume control. Finish is beautiful. // 8

Reliability & Durability: A very solid guitar. You can tell this by the chunkiness. It feels like a mans guitar, not like one of those poncey feather weight PRS guitars made for those who can't handle a bit of weight. Strap buttons seem solid, though 6 months on they seem to now start to rip off. // 10

Impression: A beautifully versatile guitar. If it were stolen or broken I would probably get it replaced. Wish it had a contoured body and a slightly thinner neck, although the actual finish of the neck is beyond comparisonly good. // 10

overall: 8.6

Reviewed by: EccentricLui, on october 03, 2005

Purchased from: Mars Music

Features: Lets see I bought this guitar in '01 and it is of the Mexican variety. It has 21 frets and the fretboard is made of maple. When I bought this guitar online it listed it as midnight blue, however it is actually purple. I replaced the standard pickups which decent with a pair of Fender noiseless pickups which are a step up. // 8

Sound: I have very eclectic taste but mainly I play blues, funk, latin, jazz with this guitar. The tone is great the lead pickup is a big more bassy while the bridge is lighter. I think Teles arn't the best metal or heavier style of music because of the single coil pickups but for the music I play it is great. The standard pickups hummed at higher distored gains, volumes. The noisless pickups that replaced those took care of all humming. I have run this guitar through multiple amps for the cheapo my first guitar you buy at wal-mart to more expensive Marshall amps and it always gets the most out of what the amp has to offer. This is a really good wah guitar because of that tele twang. My friend has a $700 Ibenez (forget which model) he played my Tele and liked playing it more than his Ibenez! // 9

Action, Fit & Finish: Out of the box everything came set up great the innotation and tuning were perfect. The pickups were as they should be very little fret buzz but the action wasn't so high that it tired your fingers out quickly. // 10

Reliability & Durability: I have had this guitar for about 4 years of home playing and have moved twice. The only thing that shows wear is the fretboard. When I first got my guitar the first chord I learned was Am so there are chips in the fret board from where my fingernails dug into it. The lamination is also wearing off. // 8

Impression: This is a good guitar for the type of style I played when I first got it and have no regrets about getting it. Well to be honest the guitar I whished I had gotten was the 72 Fender custom tele and if this guitar was stolen that is the one I would get. The best thing about the tele is it's playablity. You get a great Fender without paying triple for the american variety. This is a great first guitar or anyone who plays with a bright tone. // 8

Reviewed by: unregistered, on january 21, 2004

Purchased from: Local Guitar Store

Features: Made in Mexico. Dont let this fool you, it's still the same old Telecaster you've always loved. It just costs less than shipping in from Japan.

21 frets
Traditional Telecaster poplar body
Maple neck and fretboard
Die-cast machine heads
Standard Tele pickups (Single Coil on bridge, Tele pickup on neck)
3-position blade controls
Master volume, master tone
3-ply white pickguard
Standard Tele bridge with 6 saddles
String-thru body
Fender Tuners

It has all the features you need. Stays in tune. Not top of the line features, but they work well and are reliable. // 8

Sound: It could suit almost any music style. I use it with my Vox 15w Pathfinder w/ reverb and I havent found a song I cant play with it. It has a soft mellow sound on the neck pickup and a sharp treble sound on the single coil, which is great for most rock songs. Setting it inbetween the pickups gives a rich and full sound. You can reach those screeching notes on solos easily. Cant find anything I dont like. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: No Flaws, everything was set up perfectly, except the knobs were a little loose, but I got that fixed. // 8

Reliability & Durability: This guitar will withstand live playing, and it will last. The finish is thick and with all the bumps ive given it, there hasn't been a scratch yet. I would use this on a gig without a backup. // 10

Impression: I play rock/alternative and it fits me well. It has lived up to my expectations. // 10

Reviewed by: unregistered, on may 11, 2006

Price paid: $ 756

Purchased from: Music Incorporated Dublin

Features: 2005 midnight wine Mexican Telecaster. 21 medium jumbo frets. Maple neck. Solid Alder body. Standard Fender tuners. One volume and tone knob. 3-way pickup selector. Two stabdars single coil Telecater pickups. // 10

Sound: Suits every range of playing other than heavy metal (which I hate). The tonal range is very wide you have the choice of a clean wooden sound comparable to an acustic to slightly driven sound of blues using a little gain to the more distorted full gain sound that gives one a real growling sound. I use a marahall 15 watt practice amp and believe it or not the sound is excellent I haven't got bored with it yet two years later. I have been playing for a long time and have used Vox amps and a Yamaha guitar and changed this guitar for a Strat and the I bought the Telecaster about year later. I paly anything from blues to rock to Dylan on this Tele it can do it all and with that beautiful Telecaster tone. The sustain the amazing for a guitar with a bolt on neck. This is due to the heavy body and the density of the alder wood. // 9

Action, Fit & Finish: Setup was excellent. I have read reviews wher people said bits fell off their Mexican Fenders this has not happened to me excellent. However, I plan to change the stock pups and buy the Fender noiseless beacuse of the high hum. Furthermore the rhythm or bridge pus sounds very low in volume. However this is only a slight modification and due to the low price of the guitar I can't complain. but I gave a 8 due to the pickups. // 8

Reliability & Durability: I would say this guitar would last for a lifetime. You may have to get it refretted but that is to be expected. But this guitar could take a lot of punidhment. However, like any instrument treat it with respect if you play it a lot don't forget to wipe strings after playing and ploish it at leat once evewry month. // 10

Impression: If it were stolen I would get another one but maybe a delux nashville model with the extra pup. What I love about this guitar is its spectrum of sounf I actually love this guitar as well as my Strat I have all I need in electric guitars. // 9

Reviewed by: unregistered, on january 30, 2006

Purchased from: Guitar Center

Features: My guitar is an Arctic White 2004 Mexican made Fender Standard Telecaster. It is unmodified except for the bridge pickup which I have replaced with a Seymour Duncan Hot Rails humbucker. My previous guitar was a Schecter 006 which cost $420, unfortunately my exgirlfriend smashed it before we broke up. When I was shopping around for a new guitar on a $400 budget, I happened to pick up the Tele, played it, and I just knew it was the one. // 9

Sound: When I first got the guitar, I absolutely loved it, but to me the stock bridge pickup was just lacking something. I chose to replace the pickup with the Duncan to get a fuller, brighter sound with more output which better suits the type of music I play which is mostly punk rock. To anyone who plans on using this guitar for punk rock, I would highly recommend considering the Hot Rails, you will be very pleased with its sound. I use a Marshall G50RCD 50 watt combo amp and the two together sound great. // 9

Action, Fit & Finish: This is a very attractive guitar which is built solid. It has a Vintage look which I really like and I don't think I would ever change anything about the appearance. The neck has great action, it's a very playable guitar. People wonder why Fender hasn't contoured the body to make it a bit more comfortable like the Strat, but I like the way they have stuck with the original body from all the way back in '52. The parts are all of excellent quality as you would expect from a Fender, I have no complaints there. // 9

Reliability & Durability: I just formed a band an we will be doing gigs very soon and I am confident that this guitar will hold up very well. I beat the hell out of it for hours every day in my bedroom and the worst I have encountered is broken strings here and there. It stays in tune through hard strumming and note bending and I have never had any malfuctions whatsoever. I say this again, this thing is built solid. // 9

Impression: I play mostly punk rock and with the Hot Rails humbucker this guitar sounds great. I also play reggae and ska type stuff and I've found using the two pickups together produces the best clean sound. I think the Telecaster is the best guitar Fender makes and I will be holding onto mine for quite some time. Eventually I may buy an American made one, but right now I am very happy with mine. I would tell anyone who has $400 to spend on a guitar to pick one up and play it, you will be impressed. // 9

overall: 9.2

Reviewed by: jammymanny, on january 28, 2006

Price paid: $ 570

Purchased from: allans music

Features: 05' Standard Tele made in Mexico, wine red finish two single coil pickups which to my surprise the neck pickup has a deeper sound than the bridge, spruce body and for a standard it does pretty damn well. // 8

Sound: I usually play metal, punk, blues and just plain anything close to rock. Its' an awesome guitar and extremely versatile it even works for my metal and stuff going through the bridge pickup and I have figured out some pretty cool fx with it, the best being using a drill about 30cm away from the guitar and when on distortion this sounds like a lazer gun. I play it through a spider II 212 and yeah it rocks. then only thing I don't like about this guitars sound is the noise. I think my one came from the factory not earthed properly though as whn I place my hand on the strings or bridge the noise softens. besides that it's brilliant. // 9

Action, Fit & Finish: Action was pretty much perfect from the factory and the neck is pretty thin compared with my old guitar the finish is flawless with no spots or anything close. The strap buttons are a bit hows your father as my guitar has fallen off a couple of times but hey nothing strap locks can't save. One of the screws in the scratchplate was missing when I bought it but it saved me 50 bucks so I'm not complaining. The output jack is coming a bit loose but that's okay all you need to do is tighten a nut so overall it came greatly set up from the factory. // 10

Reliability & Durability: This guitar is extremely reliable and even though I do gig I dont think I'm not going to take this guitar simply as I'm on a tight budget and I don't want to wear it out (I like swinging my guitar around my head) the strap buttons were ok but I have changed the over to strap locks as sometimes it would fall off (caught every time thank god) and yeah reliable guitar that I will try to make last. // 9

Impression: I love this guitar it is as versatile as a contortionist hooker it is my first actual guitar and I think it's made me a Tele man for life I only wish I had bought one with a humbucker for less noise with high volume distortion, my friends all own Ibanez's and were amazed that this sounds awesome when highly distorted and still sounds good when on clean (take that RG). If it were stolen I would find the person that stole it and steal his favourite posession and not give it back 'till he returned my Tele. Overall a lovely guitar even though my friends say you just pay for the name there all wrong what I payed for was a top class guitar. // 10

Reviewed by: unregistered, on december 01, 2005

Price paid: $ 300

Features: My guitar was made in 1993, Mexico. 21 frets, vintage/thin frets, great neck, 2x single coil passive pickups 3 way Switch. 1 volume and 1 tone knobs, original Fender locking tuners (beacause it's standard series they aren't as stylish as Fender's vintage-tuners). Keep in mind that Telecaster is one of the simplests guitars. Not very feature-packed. I cannot tell you about the accessories because this was 2nd hand bought (at half price). // 7

Sound: When I tested this guitar I fell in love with its tone. high bass note attack. lowered mids. high treble. the Telecaster is known for it's twangy sound. It makes a an excellent guitar for jazz, blues, funk, fusion, pop, ambiental/IDM, light rock and their derivates. Wah-wah sounds great. The same for old style fuzz, helped by some amp reverb. I have no amp to play on (yes, shame on me) however, this guitar sounds great on an Marshall or Fender cabinet (marshalls are a little better for distorsion). Also ambiental effects, synthetical (chrystal or inverse delay, fake pitch) sound pretty good because of it's rich tone. Over 10 seconds of sustain on clean tone if strummed hard. This isn't an excellent guitar for heavy distorsions. You might try something mellow, or anything wich will benefit from the bass and treble gain. On metal distorsions, the general tone is extra-fat, and you can hear the notes clearly, which isn't always a good thing. Very bright sound on the bridge pickup. however I use the middle Switch position: it sounds like a different guitar too. very creamy, and good for harmonyes/chord progressions. In this Switch position the pickups are noiseless and the output is obviouslly louder. The neck pickup sounds almost like a Dreadnought acoustic if the tone knob is closed (of course, with a little reverb and hand tehnique) Great for killer solos where you need a little more tone. never use this pickup with large amounts of gain beacause it will sound awful (too much tone).

Compared to a Strat, the tele is fatter. Not as fat as a Rickenbacker Vintage or a Fender Telecaster Vintage '65 (hollowbody). The original pickups are decent, not the best, not too noisy, noting too-too. But they are OK. Unless you wish a specific change in sound, do not change them. I wanted an extra vintage-blues feel so. I changed the pickups with Seymour Duncan's APTL-1 and STL-1b. They are replacements pickups, fairly cheap, but worth the money, you will get richer tone, less bass in sound leveled mids, without affecting the traditional twang. Those pickups are used on American Telecaster Ashwood '72 (well, instead of STL-1b there is another. it's a matter of personal preference). I try to play jazz and blues, mostly clean tone. Heavy distorsion effects like metal drives or a lot of grungy fuzz will sound professional, if you want to work a little extra to set your effects correctly. keep in mind this guitar was not intended for heavy use, but I am an adept of anything is possible. However, if I had the money, I would have bought another guitar, strictly for that heavy sound. // 10

Action, Fit & Finish: as I said before, this guitar was bought second hand (oh, the guitar comes with Fender strings. the ideal gauge for this guitar is 009, but Fender strings are quite unflexible and loose tone quick, so I use other strings now): it was poorly adjusted, the pickups were badly placed, most of the metal parts were severely rusted, the output jack was decalibrated, frets were noisy, some were badly deteriorated due to overplaying and aging, and the neck was mishaped. I managed to solve all the problems on my own, so I can say one conclusion: this is a fairly durable guitar, if referred to hardware. Rusty screws didn't remain in the wood or damadged further so they were easy to replace. other rusty components, have been cleaned and they look at least decent. There is a problem with the saddles. from time to time, you should get a light metal scraper to reshape the saddles a little. There might be microscopic bavures which might damge your strings. I am saying this beacause when a string breaks on a tele in 95% cases, it will break from the saddles. reading previous reviews, I think this is one of the few major problems this guitar has. You might try to lower the saddles also. The Telecaster also has an incresed pressure per string compared to a Stratocaster. The same 0.09 string-pack un a Strat will feel like a 0. 095 on a Telecaster if you understand my point. The maple neck is superbe as playability. The tunning machines, too, which are extremely sensible. The finish is decent, but the paint is fairly thick. It resists medium bumps, whitchout scrapping the paint. However it's a standard series so do not expect extremely expensive paint, like those you see on gibsons. To me it was ok to clean it with alcohol, a practice which I DO NOT recommend to do, especially on very old instruments. // 8

Reliability & Durability: this guitar is heavy. If you have shoulder problems, you should take this in consideration. sitting on a chair is not an option because the guitar will have the tendency to fall away from you, or just carva into your body. However, if you are smart enough, you can compensate the weight with added playability while doing vibratios and bends. As described before, the hardware doesn't have major problems, except for the knobs; they wobble a little, so you would need to tighten the screws a while. I didn't tighten them for awhile and nothing happened, except for the feeling of insecurity when playing. So I think nothing would happen in a gig. The strap buttons are solid, but the guitar itself is stubbornly unconfortable, beacause of its body shape and weight. I would adivice having a 2nd guitar for a gig. If not, be sure that you wont play with big distorsion and have high quality/new strings. Live is nothing compared to practice/studio, where you are generally relaxed and you have no room acoustics to worry about. This guitar has 10 years at this time. It's been overplayed, poorly stored, badly damadged (I changed all the electronics except for the Switch). // 9

Impression: My guitar looks like hell, but plays like a dream. It plays well for any style, blues especially. I am quite a beginner in term of guitar playing (and pretty poor too, I wouldn't have bought it on 2nd hand), and I have no gear (aside from 2 acoustics, some cables and a computer). Cabinets were borrowed from friends and so. If you want a guitar that breathes some country air, this is the one you are looking for. It is a love it, or hate it guitar. Telecaster has a special touch. Every good guitar has it's own something. If it were stolen, I'd get a custom-shop Telecaster which looks aged, and has a floyd rose on it and the bridge pickup necessarely would be a humbucker. Good guitar, but if you are a professional, try a better variant of the Telecaster. This has as a minus finishings, worse pickups (which aren't that bad at all), and the tunning machines look less smooth. // 9

overall: 9.2

Reviewed by: Preid, on december 02, 2005

Price paid: $ 768.6

Purchased from: www.gak.co.uk

Features: I'm reviewing my 2002 Mexican Telecaster. 21 med/small frets, 3 tone sunburst, laminated maple neck, maple body. 2 pups, 3-way selector. 1 volume pot and 1 tone pot. It's simple and easy. Non of this fancy crap that just causes problems. // 10

Sound: I play everything from RHCP's to power solo's. Standard pickups are ok but they do hum quite badly when using heavy distortion. Its got the classic tele sound, brige is twanging and dry, neck pup is smooth and soft. Stock it can play most types of music with easy, except hard rock and metal. I changed the pickups to a Lace sensor in the neck and a hotrail in the bridge. Now its the most verstile guitar I own. Only cost me £100 to upgrade it. USA Tele has nothing on the sound of my Tele and I didn't spend near a grand on it either. // 7

Action, Fit & Finish: When I recived the guitar, apart from rusty strings it was pretty much perfect. Intonation needed a little work but no guitars perfect. The pickups were quite low into the body and needed to be raised slightly, this is what I suspect causes the bad hum. It's easily corrected by lowering them again but some of the classic tele twang is lost. Yeah the saddles suck, most of the strings snap points are at the part where the saddle ends and the string begins. I still have the stock saddles on mine and they're fine if the guitars stringed properly. // 10

Reliability & Durability: I've been playing this guitar for near three years and its seen it all. Live playing, this guitars exellent, no problems what so ever. No tremolo means if a string snaps when its being played live the guitar dosent lose it tuning. So far I've had no problems with the strap buttons. Only problems I find with the tele are the volume and tone pot knobs fall off shortly after reciving the guitar. Its easily sorted with the supplies alan key. I've dropped this guitar, bashed it off walls by mistake and loads of other stupid mistakes and its got no dents at all. I think its because of the 3 tone sunburst and the masses of varnish. Its like a tank, only 4 hairline scratches to complain about and the usual pick scratches from extreme strumming. I dont think the finish will flake away for another ten years at least. Exellent live guitar. // 10

Impression: For my style, mainly rock, funk and ocasional metal its perfect. Couldnt wish for a better guitar. The med/small frets dont make this guitar a great beginners guitar but once in the flow its a awesom guitar. Its been my main guitar for 3 years and its served me very well. The frets will need tapped in the next year as they wear down rather fast but its not a big job (I play daily). If you decided to order one over the net make sure you get a free pack of strings with it as the ones on it may be rusty and need replacing. If this guitar was stolen id be very very peeved and would go on a Quest to find it. I adore this guitar. Its simplicity is its strong point, no stupid unnessary gadgets that just cause problems. Its rather heavy but you get used to it and plus its the reason for its great sustain. Fave feature has to be its great looks. // 9

overall: 8.6

Reviewed by: Kandizzle, on august 28, 2006

Features: Made in Mexico, Telecaster, 22 frets, cream color, a lighter colored wood, 2 tones 1 volume, 2 pickups. I think it's kind of plain looking but they are good guitars. The pickups are a little plain but other than that it's good. Solid body. It's a little heavy for a guitar but It fits comfortably. It's moderatly easy to play. // 7

Sound: They fit anything really. I had one of my friends play it and he's from a thrasher band. It sounded awesome with his stuff. It also sounds really cool for rock, practicing at home, coffee shop gigs. Whatever. I use a Twin Reverb and a Zoom FX 707 pedal with it. // 9

Action, Fit & Finish: Good set up. Pickups are good, a little plain looking for the guitar though. Didn't contain any flaws or anything. Mine is a cream color and I really like it. I didn't see anything wrong with it when I got it and I usually inspect everything to the last dot. The electric jack inlet for the cord sometimes comes loose and needs to be tightened. // 9

Reliability & Durability: I have used this guitar for a long time. 4 years so far. Everything works good. No bending on the neck, nothing wrong with it so far at all. Sometimes I have to take a screw driver to the ends of the strap holds but that's about it. I have used it many times without a backup guitar for a gig. One time I broke the strings while playing and I didn't have extra strings so that's the only time I had to use another guitar. Everything looks the same on it from when I got it. The only thing different is like 2 tiny dents. I can depend on it. // 10

Impression: I play rock but it sounds great with anything really. Blues, rock, country, soft stuff, or thrashing it sounds good. I just wish it had a whammy bar. Inlays in the fret board would be awesome and some other designs. This guitar is a little plain but it's a good intermediate guitar. // 8

Comments

[Fredheim]

Mexican Tele? Give me a break.

The real deal is the Standard American Telecaster Sunburst .Thats what i got, and i must say i am very satisfied. It costs $1850 here in Norway, but what the heck, im 17 and can afford like 6 more of them.

Ørjan Fredheim

[Mitchy_Ramone]

Spoiled bitch^

[Robert_Terry]

Fredheim wrote:

Mexican Tele? Give me a break.

The real deal is the Standard American Telecaster Sunburst .Thats what i got, and i must say i am very satisfied. It costs $1850 here in Norway, but what the heck, im 17 and can afford like 6 more of them.

Ørjan Fredheim

Orjan Fredheim, norweigen for "rent boy"

[ArcherTheVMan]

the 3rd review down is stupid, if its made in japan Its Not A Standard Tele, Its a Japanese Tele Or a Japanese Standard.

[ArcherTheVMan]

i do fear that if it is a fender product, it Is a reason to worry whether or not it will break in a gig. seen as even the good ones a machine made.

[pe_666]

Robert_Terry wrote:

Fredheim wrote:

Mexican Tele? Give me a break.

The real deal is the Standard American Telecaster Sunburst .Thats what i got, and i must say i am very satisfied. It costs $1850 here in Norway, but what the heck, im 17 and can afford like 6 more of them.

Ørjan Fredheim


Orjan Fredheim, norweigen for "rent boy"

haha nice one

[selloutpunx]

i own one of these.
it was alright. but i swapped out the single coils and had a bunch of mods done to it. can't really review it now.

[AznInvazn666]

Telecasters suck.

[MAXWELLMURDER]

^stfu

[AznInvazn666]

No you shut the f*ck up. They suck and why don't you just get a Stratocaster? Although those suck too.

[Deff Kidd]

No way man I got A Custom ash body maple neck American strat. One of the my favourites. If it ever got stollen I would shoot myself.

[Fredheim]

Mitchy_Ramone :
Spoiled bitch^
POSTED: 03/17/2006 - 07:41 pm / quote

Fact is, that I've got a job, that kind of pays off, you know. The only thing my parents buy for me is food, and clothes once a year, so please...

[Fredheim]

Robert_Terry :
Fredheim wrote:

Mexican Tele? Give me a break.

The real deal is the Standard American Telecaster Sunburst .Thats what i got, and i must say i am very satisfied. It costs $1850 here in Norway, but what the heck, im 17 and can afford like 6 more of them.

Ørjan Fredheim


Orjan Fredheim, norweigen for "rent boy"

Robert_Terry, poorlanguage for: "I'm poor and cant afford a cheap guitar, however I love to write alot of bullshit in guitar-forums."

[01chardw]

The tele's have so much more character than strats imo

[Cal UK]

I love Teles I hope to get one soon.

[andrew22]

im thinking of getting one of these but im a little worried about buzzing from the stock pickups, anybody here have problems with that?

[MAXWELLMURDER]

the buzz is actually quite minmal, its still there but its not loud at all

[Arlabester]

teles equal the shit. strats are cooler though. i get a black std tele in a week!

[flying jello]

Lots of people at my school don't like the tele. They say it's either the LP or the superstrat. But they're all shred heads or punk. I love the tele.

I wish Stevie Ray Vaughn was still alive.

[flying jello]

I've one more thing to add:

Rich people like to show off their money.

Rich people with class are very discreet about the matter.

[wilson479]

i love my telecasters

[captain faggot]

heres a misconception.
theyre american bodies and necks but theyre paitned in mexico so they stick that on there.
this is a real deal.

[evill22]

so whats with people fighting with eachother on a guitar review comment forum, sounds kinda pointless...

[Der Bomber]

totaly love the classic white finish on it!!!

[quimson]

can the made in mexico be scratched off? is it a sticker?

[richard_edwards]

made in mexico says nothing. ive owned mine for 2 years now, and its never let me down and always sounds awewsome.

its a mega guitar. and i got it cheap =D

[davec_24]

Seriously, I've played several of these, and some are lame, some are totally awesome. One of them in my local music shop out-played the 3 US Teles in the shop. It was just nicer...it felt nicer, was set up better, and sounded as good (though I couldn't say it sounded any better). Basically, if you play one and like it, get it 'cos it won't let you down, even ifit is Made in Mexico!

[Der Bomber]

Has anyone here changed the pickups to something else, like noiseless ones or something?

[richard_edwards]

the reason i got my tele is that they are different. so many companies rip off the strat too much. telecaster - not so much.
small ass companies need to make their own guitar designs, not rip off every-bugger-else.

[pl0x]

is there such thing as supertele? im a strat guy personly :P

[richard_edwards]

of course there is a supertele. just whack some humbuckers in it, probably make it out of a differnet wood, theres your supertele, my friend!

[zoso1016]

can you get good stairway to heven tone on the standard???

[zoso1016]

heavem

[zoso1016]

heaven, heaven, heaven CAN YOU GET GOOD STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN TONE ON THE STANDARD TELECASTER??

[lilsheep345]

i love tele's and i think the american and mexican telecasters dont sound to different

[samisabig1]

Robert_Terry :
Fredheim wrote:

Mexican Tele? Give me a break.

The real deal is the Standard American Telecaster Sunburst .Thats what i got, and i must say i am very satisfied. It costs $1850 here in Norway, but what the heck, im 17 and can afford like 6 more of them.

Ørjan Fredheim


Orjan Fredheim, norweigen for "rent boy"


Robert_Terry, poorlanguage for: "I'm poor and cant afford a cheap guitar, however I love to write alot of bullshit in guitar-forums."

i think ur on ur own mate

[FenderBassist21]

zoso1016 wrote:

heaven, heaven, heaven CAN YOU GET GOOD STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN TONE ON THE STANDARD TELECASTER??

yes... seeing that Jimmy Page used a Telecaster for recording it... HE used teles on the early days before switching to his LP

[lilsheep345]

i heard something about them going out of tune alot. is that true at all?? please give me an answer because ide like to go and buy one. thanks alot

[Tele Echoes]

^^^
It depends. If you're really rough and hard with your bending then of course you're going to throw it out of tune, but if you're softer and less aggressive with your playing it'll be fine. I play classic rock and classical on my Standard and it doesn't go out of tune easily. The thing is, you should probably tune your guitar every day, where with myself I just tune the strings so they work together andtune it for realz at the end of the week.

It's a Mexican, which doesn't take away from the Telecaster at all. You're smarter to go with the MIM Teles since you're getting the same thing at half the price in exchange for it saying "Made in Mexico"

One thing my old guitar teacher recommended with Mexican Fenders is to buy them and replace the electronics and then you'll have one that's better than the American ones for a lot less dough.

[sg4ever]

I like Teles. If I weren't into so much humbucker stuff I'd get one. Maybe I'll get one to balance out my other guitar. My amp is more compatible with single coils on the clean channel anyway.

[rokknrollldude]

THESE GUITARS OWN WITH TV JONES HUMBUCKERS....PURE VINTAGE TONAL BLISS!!!!!

[epi les paul69]

Why does it matter? If you think people are going to not take u seriously because you have a mexi tele, then maybe you shouldn't be playing guitar. its not about the guitar, dude, its about the player. and no, the "made in mexico" is not a sticker. its engraved on the head-stock.
Cheers.

quimson wrote:

can the made in mexico be scratched off? is it a sticker?

[picklepopcikle]

wow by the looks of things, i might just have to get me one!!! do they do them in white with black pickguard? or what about black on black eh?

recommendations please
cheers

[dr_92]

picklepopcikle wrote:

wow by the looks of things, i might just have to get me one!!! do they do them in white with black pickguard? or what about black on black eh?

recommendations please
cheers

they make them in white with white pickgaurd, and black with white pickgaurd, but if you really want that black pickgaurd thay arent that expensive
im getting one of these and i want a white with black pickgaurd like you so i think ill just get the white one and then buy a black pickgaurd

[dinosaur sr]

I just got one of these and I love it

looks great, sounds great and Its not too exspensive

[FloyDZeD]

I looked at a Guitar Center close to my town and they had a used black-onblack tele with Seymour duncan pickups for $279. I checked it out and it played and sounded perfect. Unfortunately, someone bought it before me.

[rayq78]

a tele w/ a humbucker? thats crazy!!

[Tartan_nick]

Um, it could do with more tone controls, and I dont like the look of the guitar. It looks very standard, I would definately not be seen on stage with it.

I do like the tone though, and it has a nice neck.

[xwearesinking]

does anyone here use their tele for playing stuff along the lines of hopesfall, misery signals, shai hulud or poison the well? if so, what pickups would you reccomend? i think you could get a really unique tone for playing leads and using effects for this type of music.

[zeroth]

I have been playing acoustic guitar for 6 months; and I want a side electric guitar to play in small gigs and with friend jam sessions. I like the sound of the telecaster clean-wise; and I plan on getting a ruffer guitar later (for grunge)

I'm tight on a budget atm (job doesnt start up til summer). This is where I need help: I have been looking at teles off Craigslist for 300-325 lately. I'm very likely to buy one; but I've heard throughout sites that if you replace the pick-ups; then you can take advantage of the guitar better.

I honestly know little about electric guitars and the setups. I want a clean sound, with a little twang and that doesn't need any more hookups but just a straight plug into the amp. (which I've heard tele is great for)
So what pickups out there are best to put on a Tele and how much would they cost to be put on there. (and ENHANCE the sound and not change it; but give it mroe of the prof. tele sound)

[Astrofissure]

I think this tele would be great for you although you may want to go to a local store and try one out. Seymour Duncan makes some of the best pickups on the market, here's the web address for the Seymour Duncan Telecaster replacement pickups: http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/electric/telecaster/

[RodrigoFerreira]

What is the best guitar?

- Fender Standard Telecaster (MEXICO);

- Fender Special Ed. Lite Ash Telecaster

????

[lesbian_men]

must say that im not a fan of the strat or the tele all that much...gibson LP or SG's win hands down IMO...however, fender make gorgeous acoustics and would never consider any other make...

[camloveshockey]

im geting one of these soon

[deaddeed1]

I AM BUYING ONE A.S.A.P

[live4ever2008]

What is the best guitar?

- Fender Standard Telecaster (MEXICO);

- Fender Special Ed. Lite Ash Telecaster

????


I'd say the Lite Ash Tele

[live4ever2008]

lesbian_men :
must say that im not a fan of the strat or the tele all that much...gibson LP or SG's win hands down IMO...however, fender make gorgeous acoustics and would never consider any other make...

Of course a £1000+ guitar is going to be better than a £280 one, all you could afford with £280 would be an Epiphone copy, which I'm sure this pisses over in terms of quality and sound.

[prt1990]

I plan on getting one of these for Christmas.

Does anyone know the extent to which you can get a heavy sound out of it? I'm not looking for death metal, but something like the grungey, stoner rock type tone that Queens of the Stone Age often use.

Thanks

[Coldmystery]

I gotta say the diff. between mexican or american... its all BS. Just go to the store, play them and whichever plays best wins. I have played some americans that played like poop. HOWEVER a big plus for owning an american is the collectors or resale value. Mexicans just dont hold up as well for re-sale..... TYPICALLY. I have an mexi standard and i think it plays great but im probably never selling it.

[dalcyon]

This is probably a dumb question, but how do you know where the guitar is made?

[Bling Dogg]

dalcyon wrote:

This is probably a dumb question, but how do you know where the guitar is made?

If you can get your hands on the guitar, in person, there's a sticker on the headstock that will say.

[morganite14]

rayq78 wrote:

a tele w/ a humbucker? thats crazy!!

Seymour Duncan makes single coils for strats and for any guitars really. I want the ashbody standard but I dont know how much different it is than the reg standard

[Clutch32192]

flying jello wrote:

Lots of people at my school don't like the tele. They say it's either the LP or the superstrat. But they're all shred heads or punk. I love the tele.

I wish Stevie Ray Vaughn was still alive.

yeah, uum stevie ray vaughn played a strat, but yeah, people today who think dragonforce and such are the greatest guitar players need a lesson taught to them by the true greats

RIP SRV, Hendrix,...

[COBHC_inurface]

finally got mine a week ago! omg i was blown away, its a sunburst with alder body...talk about tone...i love metal and heavy shai hulud and august burns red, but for a single coil minimalistic axe, it surprised me, i love it and when im sittin at home noodlin around or out in pubic, tele goes with me, not ibanez ic300 with emgs...not ltd ec-400at...fender mim tele standard, it plays so good, its a '09 model an i got it before fender jacked up their prices so its '09 style with '08 price ^o^ ownage! take that fender corporation!!! leo fenders gone anyway...started up g&l guitars, which rule btw ftw, love the tele, its my fave clean and even overdriven, not heavy metal, but can handle underoath and some post hardcore stuff

[COBHC_inurface]

about to replace pups on it though to play my metal on it, any suggestions? i was thinking either hot rails or dimarzio super distortion, for those who want an idea of sound i want http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1LG_WfHVgg

[Wolfsblood138]

AznInvazn666 wrote:

Telecasters suck.

Itz not bu00talz orf me lolz

I would really like to try one out; very bright tone that seems good for country or accompanying an acoustic for leads. And I've seen some good metal videos where the tele can really sound great.

[slypoonce]

i've had a thinline, a mexican standard, and the nashville model. surprisingly.. the nashville is my favorite. i don't even play country.. but the 5 pickup selections allow for so many different sounds. i'm just a fender guy regardless. with any tele, it's just pure tone tone tone. LOVE that guitar

[JamieIsHere]

All the people who say "This is just as good as an American Standard and the only difference is the sticker on the headstock ect ect" are right unfortunatly. Generally, people who say this sort of thing are just a little sore because they couldn't afford the full-fat American Telecaster. But infact, I've played a mexican telecaster and two Americans, and the mexican absolutely killed one of the americans and was pretty much equal with the other. Which is a little odd. Why would fender basically undercut their own prices?

I had a lot to say didn't I?

[I am punk "BF"]

this guitar is the best

[arjAG]

Get some seymour duncan Alnico II pros
( APTR-1 & APTL-1 ) in there, and your sorted

[milwaukeerocker]

Yeah, i agree with you guys saying there isn't much difference between Mexi-made and US-made. Again, like others, i've played some nice and not so nice US-makes, and i don't mind saying i own a mexican made, it's more affordable and i wasn't making much money at the time. Have had mine for 9 years, love it. Black body, maple neck, i put a black pickguard on it, so it's black on black, and dude, it looks the sex. I replaced the stock pickups with an American tele delta-tone neck pickup (noticed really no change with this pickup unfortunately), and a seymour duncan hot rail tele bridge pickup. The variety of sound i can get with the new pickups, 3 way switch and knobs is just really incredible--- from ballsy crunchy evil sounds with the humbucker hot rail, and gorgeous tele cleans with the neck, middle switch position is a great right in between sound, obviously i can't say enough about this guitar. And yeah, it's quite lame and not very rock n' roll to be bragging about the half a dozen or so teles you could buy, we're all real impressed Mr. Norway.

[Parkesie959]

I love the look of these, they sound awesome but the only thing that does put me off (and not by much) is that it only has 21 frets, I'd prefer at least 22 on my guitars.

[skateordie24f]

Fredheim wrote:

Mexican Tele? Give me a break.

The real deal is the Standard American Telecaster Sunburst .Thats what i got, and i must say i am very satisfied. It costs $1850 here in Norway, but what the heck, im 17 and can afford like 6 more of them.

Ørjan Fredheim

Is that because your mum's a *****, or your dad's a rent boy?