Most Tele sounding Tele model

[tune_link]

A few years back I bought and ended up gifting the only Telecaster I've ever owned. It was a MIM one but I cannot recall the exact model. At any rate, I've owned enough JMs, Jags, and Strats over the years that I can def tell you what I think a typical sounding one would be like (say if someone said what Jag is the "most Jaguar sounding" I'd probably point them to one with the regular switches on the lower horn, rhythm circuit, trem unit properly spaced from the bridge, and of the modern pickups Fender's Pure Vintage 65 set would get you a very typical "Jaguar sound").

I have zero experience with Teles but I wasn't super into the one I had. I've heard them sound great so I figure maybe I just got one that was atypical in some fashion.

If you were going to point me to a Tele model that would get me the sound most associated with the guitar, which would it be? Not vintage but something from the last 10 years or so is what I'm thinking. Doesn't matter if it's Fender or Squier just whichever one you think sounds closest to what a Tele should be.

[Larry Mal]

So, on the traditional Telecaster, there is a brass plate that runs under the bridge pickup. But, you know, since that plate is an expense and your average person doesn't look under there to see it, the slack-ass company that is Fender often doesn't put that plate on there.

For instance, my American Standard didn't have it. But it's actually a pretty big part of the sound, and is the main reason why a Telecaster and a Stratocaster sound different in the bridge position (there are other factors).

So if I wanted a classic Telecaster sound, I would go for something that has a three saddle bridge of high quality, fairly low wind Alnico pickups of some kind (I have 2 and 5, both are great), and that plate under the pickup there. Oh, and they have to be real Telecaster pickups... nothing else will do. They aren't like other pickups.

You can read about the pickup plate here.

If you have those three things then you have a Telecaster.

My point about my American Standard is that you can't quite trust Fender to do this stuff... I think on whatever they replaced the American Standard series with did have that plate, but who knows. You could buy an American Vintage level instrument (I own of of those also) and then you'll be in the ballpark.

But the Mexican made stuff, shit, who knows. Probably some has it. Anything goes with Fender.

Even if you buy one that doesn't have it, you can always mod the guitar. My American Standard Telecaster is a great playing guitar, but when I got it there wasn't a lick of shielding under there, the bridge plate wasn't there, it had a lame six saddle bridge that has no business on a Telecaster or really anything else, and over the years I made it better.

Good luck- keep at it, because Telecasters are wonderful.

[Larry Mal]

Since you asked on a recommendation, though, the American Professional Telecaster (which I think replaced the American Standard) does have all the classic Telecaster elements finally.

The V-Mod pickups are a blend of Alnico 2 and 5, probably sound great, and have the bridge pickup plate.

It also has a three saddle bridge, compensated, with brass saddles. Probably a good bridge setup.

It's a good guitar.

[Embenny]

Larry's absolutely right about the plate under the bridge pickup. Vintage Telecaster bridges were also ferromagnetic (chrome plated carbon steel), which induced further eddy currents and also helped to lower the resonant peak of the bridge pickup. Some modern bridges are made of other materials under the chrome, but you want old fashioned ferromagnetic steel if you're going for the vintage tone.

I'll add that, similarly, the vintage neck pickups were covered in brass (chromed this time), which induces massive eddy currents and therefore darkens the tone considerably. A lot of modern tele pickups use nickel silver, which has a less pronounced effect, and some remove the cover entirely or use chromed plastic in order to preserve a more "strat-like" high end.

The straight up vintage option is the brass. It's a darker tone for sure, but that's the tone of those classic guitars.

[Maggieo]

The real key to the classic Tele sound? Get a guitar with the stock Fender ashtray bridge with either brass or steel saddles.

My MIJ Pink Paisley is dead stock and it's got that Tele mojo. I've played some Squier Classic Vibe Teles that have it. The 50's Vintera I played at the store last week had it, too.

And they all have the original ashtray with vintage-spec PUPs.

Ask Zac has some of the best info on this in this video.

[tune_link]

Thanks for the info Larry! I'll keep all of that in mind while looking. I was curious about the pickups on the Am Pro Tele in particular because as offset players we know that line doesn't have typical pickups in either the JM (more Strat-like) or Jag (darker, more P90ish if I say so from the one I have).

I love that Mystic Seafoam they offer the Tele in though. As much as I appreciate the Jazzmaster version of that color with the maple neck, the Tele looks even better.

[tune_link]

The real key to the classic Tele sound? Get a guitar with the stock Fender ashtray bridge with either brass or steel saddles.

My MIJ Pink Paisley is dead stock and it's got that Tele mojo. I've played some Squier Classic Vibe Teles that have it. The 50's Vintera I played at the store last week had it, too.

And they all have the original ashtray with vintage-spec PUPs.

Ask Zac has some of the best info on this in this video.

Thanks Maggie! I def like that traditional ashtray bridge too. Even just the look of it with the three saddles is better than those weird strat looking six saddles bridges. I've heard good things about the Squier Classic Vibe. That might be an even better starting point for me just from a price perspective and then if that works out I can always trade up to another model later on.

[Larry Mal]

Larry's absolutely right about the plate under the bridge pickup. Vintage Telecaster bridges were also ferromagnetic (chrome plated carbon steel), which induced further eddy currents and also helped to lower the resonant peak of the bridge pickup. Some modern bridges are made of other materials under the chrome, but you want old fashioned ferromagnetic steel if you're going for the vintage tone.

I'll add that, similarly, the vintage neck pickups were covered in brass (chromed this time), which induces massive eddy currents and therefore darkens the tone considerably. A lot of modern tele pickups use nickel silver, which has a less pronounced effect, and some remove the cover entirely or use chromed plastic in order to preserve a more "strat-like" high end.

The straight up vintage option is the brass. It's a darker tone for sure, but that's the tone of those classic guitars.

Good points there- the Telecaster has certainly undergone a lot of changes.

I tend to use the guitar with both pickups on, so the darker neck and the bright bridge pickup tends to merge into one nice sound.

Of all the mods I did on my Telecasters, the one mod that I didn't do was a blend knob. Seems like probably one of the best things that I could have done. You could really almost do without a tone knob at that point.

[Larry Mal]

Thanks for the info Larry! I'll keep all of that in mind while looking. I was curious about the pickups on the Am Pro Tele in particular because as offset players we know that line doesn't have typical pickups in either the JM (more Strat-like) or Jag (darker, more P90ish if I say so from the one I have).

I love that Mystic Seafoam they offer the Tele in though. As much as I appreciate the Jazzmaster version of that color with the maple neck, the Tele looks even better.

I guess I could also mention the route that I did take. I bought that American Standard cheaply. It's just a no-frills black Telecaster. At the time I thought that Fender was a good enough company that I could just get the American made, well, "standard" and it would be great.

I was pretty surprised to find how it really didn't meet my idea of what a pro level instrument would be. Or even what a Telecaster is supposed to be.

One thing they got right, though, was the playability of the thing. I mean, I just love playing it. But before I fully realized how much I like the Am Standard I bought this AVRI:



And I have never really liked it as much.

Here's the two together:



And that black Telecaster is totally different from that point. I have literally replaced pretty much everything on it. It has new pickups, locking Schaller tuners, a Callaham bridge, Q Alnico 2 or 3 pickups, an Ilitch noise cancelling guard, new string trees even.

I went crazy. But I have been playing it a lot lately, and have come to realize what a wonderful guitar it is.

So consider that an option... the American Standards were great guitars in a sense, and you can find them for $600 if you look. Then you can upgrade shit as you go. You can even go nuts like I did.

The good thing about the Telecaster is that there is such an embarrassment of riches in the aftermarket parts for it, and you can get great stuff very cheaply compared to aftermarket stuff for other guitars.

[tune_link]

Thanks for the info Larry! I'll keep all of that in mind while looking. I was curious about the pickups on the Am Pro Tele in particular because as offset players we know that line doesn't have typical pickups in either the JM (more Strat-like) or Jag (darker, more P90ish if I say so from the one I have).

I love that Mystic Seafoam they offer the Tele in though. As much as I appreciate the Jazzmaster version of that color with the maple neck, the Tele looks even better.

I guess I could also mention the route that I did take. I bought that American Standard cheaply. It's just a no-frills black Telecaster. At the time I thought that Fender was a good enough company that I could just get the American made, well, "standard" and it would be great.

I was pretty surprised to find how it really didn't meet my idea of what a pro level instrument would be. Or even what a Telecaster is supposed to be.

One thing they got right, though, was the playability of the thing. I mean, I just love playing it. But before I fully realized how much I like the Am Standard I bought this AVRI:



And I have never really liked it as much.

Here's the two together:



And that black Telecaster is totally different from that point. I have literally replaced pretty much everything on it. It has new pickups, locking Schaller tuners, a Callaham bridge, Q Alnico 2 or 3 pickups, an Ilitch noise cancelling guard, new string trees even.

I went crazy. But I have been playing it a lot lately, and have come to realize what a wonderful guitar it is.

So consider that an option... the American Standards were great guitars in a sense, and you can find them for $600 if you look. Then you can upgrade shit as you go. You can even go nuts like I did.

The good thing about the Telecaster is that there is such an embarrassment of riches in the aftermarket parts for it, and you can get great stuff very cheaply compared to aftermarket stuff for other guitars.

Bound Teles are a thing of great beauty! That thing looks incredible! I’m going to keep an open mind with regard to maybe building a parts caster or doing upgrades then. I’ve done enough wiring on JM and Jags I can’t imagine a Tele being incredibly difficult to deal with from a wiring stand point.

[marqueemoon]

Lots of stuff covered already.

A light body is important to that classic Tele “pop” in my opinion.

I owned an American Standard forever and while it was a good guitar it didn’t fully have the thing. It was heavy with a thick poly finish and pretty heavy 6 saddle bridge. Fantastic guitar for cutting through a dense live mix, but not as good for doing delicate stuff, and not very complex with fuzz.

Now I have one with the classic setup and it fits my current needs a lot better.

[Veitchy]

For me the three saddle bridge is a big part of it. I have an Am Std that i put a retrofit three saddle bridge on - it wasn't necessarily revolutionary, but it gave the guitar that last 3 tenths to get it squarely in tele territory. I find it plays subtly differently to. Definitely louder acoustically. It came with early 50's style pickups with the baseplate in there, so that's covered too.

In terms or recommendations, you're pretty spoilt for choice these days. 52 Reissue used to be the go-to on TDPRI to that question. These days I'd say you know what you're going to get with either an AO 50s or 60s. If you're after a cheaper option the new Vinteras are meant to be fantastic. I wouldn't bother getting too confused with 4-way switching* or S1 switching unless you're already familiar with how that'll work and you know you're after it. It's all really simple to mod back in down the track anyway. Ash or alder - maybe a slight difference in sound but not enough for me to worry about these days. Most modern Teles are going to be alder going forwards anyway.

*4 way switching is a very popular option on Teles, and I may very well be in the minority on this one.

[mackerelmint]

But, you know, since that plate is an expense and your average person doesn't look under there to see it, the slack-ass company that is Fender often doesn't put that plate on there.

No shit? Wow.

I got a strat bridge pickup once, that was supposed to be more Telecastery since it had the brass plate. It kinda was, but it was also kind of an odd duck pickup that didn't really work for me, so it was sold on. But a "traditional" tele bridge pickup without the plate is some really half assed stuff. I'm surprised.

So, I'm gonna piggyback a question in here. Has anyone got a tele with the JM/Jag bridge and trem? How would you describe the difference in sound it makes given otherwise trad tele specs?