Agree...playing for decades....bought/sold dozens of guitars....mostly humbuckers.....then...1 year ago...rediscovered the Tele and have acquired 6 of my 8 in the last 6 months...selling off Strats, Eastman, LTD's, D'Angelico, Gibson, and others. Got an LSL TBoneOne last month...getting my first CS Fender tomorrow...used '61 in shell pink. I can still play and enjoy classic rock, AC/DC, etc...with a Tele...sure can...all in the hands....and pedals. Been doing some crazy schiff too....droppeld a used set of Suhr Classic T pups into my Harley Benton, reversed the bridge (lefty to a righty)...sounds bright but very nice.
I took 20 years off...lazy and to raise kids....but, it's been a wonderful 15 years since the jump start and learning to really play with the help of RUclips....
I have a 2014 American Standard Tele in Jade Green Metallic (maple neck). Always played an SG until I got the Tele. I absolutely love the simplicity and stability of it, and I don't care what some people say, they are sexy and versatile guitars. Seems like a lot of Strat players chastise Teles for being "too twangy", as if they are only for country music. They couldn't be more wrong.
I love that color, I remember when Fender took a chance with that run of american standards color wise they are gorgeous. They can say it's too "twangy" all they want, if they want to play with any sort of gain on the bridge that strats gonna need a humbucker or it's going to be paper thin haha
They sure are, out of all the CV's I think the teles are the pick of the litter and not just because I'm heavily biased towards the model. They are just stellar
Awesome vid, and yes, ... in whatever brand, T-Style is master. I have 5 Harley Benton T-Style, ... different quality ranges but al exellent instuments in playing them because of the Telecaster design and specs👌💖💥💯
Learning from the ground up, I have the 52 vintage HB. Very cheap and super good quality for the price. Very happy with it. Great learning guitar as well as anything else 😊
Strat is superior and that’s not opinion. I left a message in the main thread, the Strat was designed based on complaints of the Tele. If people didn’t complain we would never have a Strat and at least Leo thinks it’s better than a Tele.
Picking up my 8th tomorrow....my first Custom Shop....also have a pimped out HB TE52 with Suhr pups......and others.... Been selling off my Gibsons, D'Angelico, Eastman, and others to acquire more Teles. Something about a Tele that I rediscovered this past year or so. They all sound great with a set of quality pups...regardless of price point....e.g., the HB.
Thank you and that's a special thing I came up with, the day I got that guitar it randomly just came out while I was filming the demo for it. Lightning in a bottle and it's been polished a bit more since - will be happy to share the whole thing soon
I disagee… there is one single con. The top of the body juts into my rib cage when I play it sitting down an im hunched over. So it gets 1 demerit for comfort, but otherwise, yea… Teles are great stripper down guitars that have a unique tone that cuts through everything and fits nicely in the mix.
I've seen there are some teles which are "boxier" than others, the ones with double binding. I have a Monoprice replica with rounded edges and it's super comfortable, even without a belly-cut.
Even within this one type of guitar, there are so many (too many) options! I've got decision fatigue. I'm down to spend some money. But I'm afraid I'll spend 1k+ in time just looking for one. What are all the things to consider? C, D, V-shaped necks... bridge choices... tuning machines... wood... - I'd love to hear someone break all of these down.
There is nothing that beats it, but if you are playing like shit the telecaster will let everyone in the audience know - maybe that's part of why some people choose other guitars
While I really love Les Pauls, I do also adore a good telecaster. And like Les Pauls, there a variety of telecasters. It takes some searching to find the right flavor. I recently scored a used Fender deluxe tele from Dave's Guitar. This 2015 model, not be confused with a tele deluxe, preceded the elite/ultra series. It has a compound radius, locking tuners, modern saddles, and the original owner added Lindy Fralin pickups.
Great video. they are superb guitars, where simplicity is key. Sometimes miss mine, especially the pickups (i chose the wrong options for looks - your finish of choice is faaar nicer) but love how much you love that instrument.
@@AudiomoMusic it was the natural finish - the one like it’s cut out of a table 😂 played lovely and sounded great though just the look was an error on my part and I preferred my offsets - maybe revisit it one day in a better way!
They really can do it all. Too twangy? Roll back the tone knob. Use that switch down there. Adjust your amp. Learn to play dynamically. Swap a different, bluesier type pickup. Get a humbucker. Get a 3 pickup Nashville tele. After that, there's really nothing else to tweak.
I love teles! My first was an $89 dollar SX Furrian that i still own and adore! i love em but i have bad luck finding "the one" when it comes to teles, i have purchased and sold several lower end Fenders and Imports that i just didnt get along with. I currently have a pink Harley Benton that needs pups bad, a Fender American Pro that i friggen love but its not a true tele because its an offset, a Fender Baja Tele that i have never gotten along with but it does sound great and then the Furrian, not the easiest playing guitar but it also sounds great! My dream would be a Custom Kiesel tele but i just dont have the funds right now and i still have Flying V GAS lol.
The Rondo music special!!! That's awesome I hadn't heard SX in years. You have quite the collection indeed but you can really never have too many teles
That was from the day I got the guitar, I don't know what inspired me to turn all those effects on at once and write it but man that was magic day and I'm glad I remembered it!
Tele's are the best all-around most versatile guitar on the market. I was totally against them simply because of the look until I played one. I was sold after upgrading a Squier and later purchased a Fender Tele. You want Jazz? Funk? Rock? Country? Progressive? It'll do it all and do it VERY well. Sweep picking on a Tele is like magic in your fingers!!!
it's true, there is nothing better than a tele and I actually hated them growing up I thought they were old man guitars or country guitars... funny how we evolve right?
Good video. I was late to the party on Teles, just thought I needed a strat, LP and ES335 early doors. Even my Squire CV Tele sets up so v easily and plenty good enough for many things. Near as basic as it gets and no fancy modern ideas for solving problems it does not have.
Ya don't need fancy things when it comes to these guitars, it's so simple that if you get the core ingredients right it's gonna always be right in the ballpark
with a bit of nuance and know how you can get away with playing any style on a tele, and i have 2 of them, and for the little that it has incredibly versatile, however my japanese ibanez AZ has a more comfortable body with access to everything, a contoured neck heel, 24 stainless steel frets locking tuners, and 10 tones that will get it to sound like anything very easily, which makes it my gigging guitar now, but i enjoy playing my teles at home
Just try as many as you can in person. They are all vastly different depending on the model but when you find the one that fits it's the only guitar you'll ever need.
Everyone has a different taste and that is good or else we will be all clones. I personally don't like the look of the tele, and too girly (shape not colour). The Strat has the best look to me. Anyway the look is secondary. The Feel, playability, stability and sound are decisive. BTW the fender tele was created for the workers and for the not so wealthy. Now its an expensive instrument. Are there any good teles form other brands notably Japanese that at as good but notably cheaper (and maybe a bit better looking)? I love Japanese guitars from Ibanez and Yamaha. I love their flat necks suitable for people with small palms and shorter fingers while American guitars have thicker necks for longer fingers and huge palms like bear claws..
I wouldn’t say it was a winner off the bat the Stratocaster was designed based on multiple complaints on the Tele. If the Tele wasn’t a pain the Strat would never have been birthed.
What can I say, I own three Telecasters, an original 80s JV, an American and a MIM the latter being my go to, even if it is a little heavy. The only disadvantage of a Tele in my opinion is the original bridge. And I know they come compensated for intonation now but I still do not like them. Your playing at the end was spectacular!
@@AudiomoMusic When I was younger the Telecaster never really appealed to me. My heros as a teen were Hendrix, SRV, Clapton, EVH, Satriani, etc. However, one day in my early 20's I witnessed a real life Crossroads battle at Sam ash. A young very impressive metal shedder dude and an old geezer with a Fender Tele. When I heard that old man tear into some chicken picken country my Jaw hit the floor. I finally surrendered to the power of the Telecaster. Now, I'm the old man with the Tele.
Not trying to burst your bubble jim but i still don't own and have no desire to own a Telecaster. I have tried a few, from Fender and other brands, but only one came close and sadly it was damaged so i never bought it. I agree that if you want a bullet proof workhoarse then only a Telecaster will withstand constant abuse and still play. Any guitar with a Trem no matter how good has an instant weak spot, they are a pain to change strings on even in a well lit room, electronics access is poor, and if you overuse the trem at some point it will give you problems. But despite all of this, i still prefer S shaped guitars. Each to their own.
@@AudiomoMusic The only SG style guitar i have is an ESP with no neck dive and the jack socket where it should be. Gibson like Fender have failed to improve on their design weak spots Gibson just hand out law suits, Fender just keeps making them the same, yet people buy them at todays crazy prices.🙂
""There's no place to hide on a Tele. You ain't got it? Well, let me tell ya something, the suck button will be on." - Greg Koch
Engaged. 👍
Agree...playing for decades....bought/sold dozens of guitars....mostly humbuckers.....then...1 year ago...rediscovered the Tele and have acquired 6 of my 8 in the last 6 months...selling off Strats, Eastman, LTD's, D'Angelico, Gibson, and others. Got an LSL TBoneOne last month...getting my first CS Fender tomorrow...used '61 in shell pink. I can still play and enjoy classic rock, AC/DC, etc...with a Tele...sure can...all in the hands....and pedals. Been doing some crazy schiff too....droppeld a used set of Suhr Classic T pups into my Harley Benton, reversed the bridge (lefty to a righty)...sounds bright but very nice.
I can say from experience, your head will break before the guitar does. Ouch! Kept the guitar got rid of the woman that swung it!
This explains so much, and I kind of hope its true
@@AudiomoMusic It's true, she also put her foot through a Fender Princeton! The longer we were married the worse she got!
Picking up my guitar again after almost 40years without playing. Love your channel. Learned a lot from you. Keep going!
I took 20 years off...lazy and to raise kids....but, it's been a wonderful 15 years since the jump start and learning to really play with the help of RUclips....
Thanks for another great video, Jim! Loved your playing for the outro!! 👌
I have a 2014 American Standard Tele in Jade Green Metallic (maple neck). Always played an SG until I got the Tele. I absolutely love the simplicity and stability of it, and I don't care what some people say, they are sexy and versatile guitars. Seems like a lot of Strat players chastise Teles for being "too twangy", as if they are only for country music. They couldn't be more wrong.
I love that color, I remember when Fender took a chance with that run of american standards color wise they are gorgeous. They can say it's too "twangy" all they want, if they want to play with any sort of gain on the bridge that strats gonna need a humbucker or it's going to be paper thin haha
I love my Squier 50's Classic Vibe Tele. Its an amazing guitar.
They sure are, out of all the CV's I think the teles are the pick of the litter and not just because I'm heavily biased towards the model. They are just stellar
To think the first solid body production guitar got everything so right ! I'd take it over anything designed and made today for sure. 😊😊
I whole heartedly agree, simply the best
Awesome vid, and yes, ... in whatever brand, T-Style is master. I have 5 Harley Benton T-Style, ... different quality ranges but al exellent instuments in playing them because of the Telecaster design and specs👌💖💥💯
Learning from the ground up, I have the 52 vintage HB. Very cheap and super good quality for the price. Very happy with it. Great learning guitar as well as anything else 😊
I'll always be a superstrat guy at heart, but the Telecaster will always have a place in my collection :) Love these things!
Super strats are really fun guitars, but I think I've always gone for the tele over anything else because I am not a lead player at all haha
Strat is superior and that’s not opinion. I left a message in the main thread, the Strat was designed based on complaints of the Tele. If people didn’t complain we would never have a Strat and at least Leo thinks it’s better than a Tele.
I only have a Tele
Totally agree with the entire video
You have the only guitar you'll ever need!
i just got a tele from harley benton today and it's so good, i don't want to put it down
100% agree. That’s why I have 6 of them 😂 and almost no other styles
A man with perfect taste indeed
Picking up my 8th tomorrow....my first Custom Shop....also have a pimped out HB TE52 with Suhr pups......and others.... Been selling off my Gibsons, D'Angelico, Eastman, and others to acquire more Teles. Something about a Tele that I rediscovered this past year or so. They all sound great with a set of quality pups...regardless of price point....e.g., the HB.
I would like another hour of that outro please, beautiful!
Thank you and that's a special thing I came up with, the day I got that guitar it randomly just came out while I was filming the demo for it. Lightning in a bottle and it's been polished a bit more since - will be happy to share the whole thing soon
I disagee… there is one single con. The top of the body juts into my rib cage when I play it sitting down an im hunched over. So it gets 1 demerit for comfort, but otherwise, yea… Teles are great stripper down guitars that have a unique tone that cuts through everything and fits nicely in the mix.
I've seen there are some teles which are "boxier" than others, the ones with double binding. I have a Monoprice replica with rounded edges and it's super comfortable, even without a belly-cut.
I have a strat and a tele and the tele is just as comfortable as the strat when playing standing or sitting
Even within this one type of guitar, there are so many (too many) options! I've got decision fatigue.
I'm down to spend some money. But I'm afraid I'll spend 1k+ in time just looking for one. What are all the things to consider? C, D, V-shaped necks... bridge choices... tuning machines... wood... - I'd love to hear someone break all of these down.
I've owned a bunch of different guitars but the telecaster is by far the best. Any sound you can imagine can be obtained with a Tele.
There is nothing that beats it, but if you are playing like shit the telecaster will let everyone in the audience know - maybe that's part of why some people choose other guitars
Same I tried em all but wanted a Swiss Army knife and tele does everything i need
While I really love Les Pauls, I do also adore a good telecaster. And like Les Pauls, there a variety of telecasters. It takes some searching to find the right flavor. I recently scored a used Fender deluxe tele from Dave's Guitar. This 2015 model, not be confused with a tele deluxe, preceded the elite/ultra series. It has a compound radius, locking tuners, modern saddles, and the original owner added Lindy Fralin pickups.
Great points brought out and they’re hard to argue against. What model tele are you playing? Beautiful finish 👌
In the first clip I was playing a JV Modified, the one I was holding the for majority of the Fender was a custom shop 63 in burgundy mist
Great video. they are superb guitars, where simplicity is key. Sometimes miss mine, especially the pickups (i chose the wrong options for looks - your finish of choice is faaar nicer) but love how much you love that instrument.
Haha I don't think you ever told me what finish yours was???
@@AudiomoMusic it was the natural finish - the one like it’s cut out of a table 😂 played lovely and sounded great though just the look was an error on my part and I preferred my offsets - maybe revisit it one day in a better way!
They really can do it all. Too twangy? Roll back the tone knob. Use that switch down there. Adjust your amp. Learn to play dynamically. Swap a different, bluesier type pickup. Get a humbucker. Get a 3 pickup Nashville tele. After that, there's really nothing else to tweak.
I 100% agree, there is no excuse when it comes to the tele... if it can't do what you want odds are the guitar isnt the problem
I love teles! My first was an $89 dollar SX Furrian that i still own and adore!
i love em but i have bad luck finding "the one" when it comes to teles, i have purchased and sold several lower end Fenders and Imports that i just didnt get along with. I currently have a pink Harley Benton that needs pups bad, a Fender American Pro that i friggen love but its not a true tele because its an offset, a Fender Baja Tele that i have never gotten along with but it does sound great and then the Furrian, not the easiest playing guitar but it also sounds great! My dream would be a Custom Kiesel tele but i just dont have the funds right now and i still have Flying V GAS lol.
The Rondo music special!!! That's awesome I hadn't heard SX in years. You have quite the collection indeed but you can really never have too many teles
Well said, I love my teles. Up to 3 right now. Great tones at the end. Some of it sounded like old tunes from the Nintendo Zelda games 😂
That was from the day I got the guitar, I don't know what inspired me to turn all those effects on at once and write it but man that was magic day and I'm glad I remembered it!
Tele's are the best all-around most versatile guitar on the market. I was totally against them simply because of the look until I played one. I was sold after upgrading a Squier and later purchased a Fender Tele. You want Jazz? Funk? Rock? Country? Progressive? It'll do it all and do it VERY well. Sweep picking on a Tele is like magic in your fingers!!!
it's true, there is nothing better than a tele and I actually hated them growing up I thought they were old man guitars or country guitars... funny how we evolve right?
Good video. I was late to the party on Teles, just thought I needed a strat, LP and ES335 early doors. Even my Squire CV Tele sets up so v easily and plenty good enough for many things. Near as basic as it gets and no fancy modern ideas for solving problems it does not have.
Ya don't need fancy things when it comes to these guitars, it's so simple that if you get the core ingredients right it's gonna always be right in the ballpark
Agreed, but failed to mention, “The Ice Man”, “The Master of the Telecaster" - Albert Collins
with a bit of nuance and know how you can get away with playing any style on a tele, and i have 2 of them, and for the little that it has incredibly versatile, however my japanese ibanez AZ has a more comfortable body with access to everything, a contoured neck heel, 24 stainless steel frets locking tuners, and 10 tones that will get it to sound like anything very easily, which makes it my gigging guitar now, but i enjoy playing my teles at home
Dang! You're so convincing.
I just love telecasters man, i could talk about em all day haha
Does that particular tele have zero fret?
Nope, just a bone nut
All Pros, no Cons = Tele is The Best!
No arguments from me haha
I’ve been browsing Telecasters for the last 2 years, and still can’t decide what I want…😢
Get out and play em in person, you’ll figure it out quick 👍🏼
I need advice I want a usa telecaster but anyone say different and why?
Just try as many as you can in person. They are all vastly different depending on the model but when you find the one that fits it's the only guitar you'll ever need.
As a les paul zealot for years I think I might just need to switch to a tele ( I haven't had a guitar in a few years)
There's nowhere to hide with a Tele. That bridge pickup is a tone of fragile beauty. You get found out really quickly if you can't play.
Exactly, if you suck this is the wrong guitar to play haha
Everyone has a different taste and that is good or else we will be all clones. I personally don't like the look of the tele, and too girly (shape not colour). The Strat has the best look to me. Anyway the look is secondary. The Feel, playability, stability and sound are decisive.
BTW the fender tele was created for the workers and for the not so wealthy. Now its an expensive instrument. Are there any good teles form other brands notably Japanese that at as good but notably cheaper (and maybe a bit better looking)? I love Japanese guitars from Ibanez and Yamaha. I love their flat necks suitable for people with small palms and shorter fingers while American guitars have thicker necks for longer fingers and huge palms like bear claws..
If you can't do it on a tele,
You can't do it. 👍😎
100%
I wouldn’t say it was a winner off the bat the Stratocaster was designed based on multiple complaints on the Tele. If the Tele wasn’t a pain the Strat would never have been birthed.
It’s the best guitar ever made….
Perfectly stated
What can I say, I own three Telecasters, an original 80s JV, an American and a MIM the latter being my go to, even if it is a little heavy. The only disadvantage of a Tele in my opinion is the original bridge. And I know they come compensated for intonation now but I still do not like them.
Your playing at the end was spectacular!
Which JV do you have??? I missed out on one recently and am still kind of bummed about it. I wanted a buddy for my 82 JV strat
Shots fired
Toss up between a Tele and a Jag for me. If only that Tele had a vibrato arm lol
You'll see a really cool guitar this week in a video that really made me question a lot of things that kind of hits the best of both haha
@@AudiomoMusic Looking forward to seeing it!!!
Don't forget Guthrie Trapp.
Simply too many to name with the Tele but Guthrie is a beast indeed
@@AudiomoMusic When I was younger the Telecaster never really appealed to me. My heros as a teen were Hendrix, SRV, Clapton, EVH, Satriani, etc. However, one day in my early 20's I witnessed a real life Crossroads battle at Sam ash. A young very impressive metal shedder dude and an old geezer with a Fender Tele. When I heard that old man tear into some chicken picken country my Jaw hit the floor. I finally surrendered to the power of the Telecaster. Now, I'm the old man with the Tele.
Ｐ𝐫Ｏ𝕞Ｏ𝓢ｍ ✌️
Not trying to burst your bubble jim but i still don't own and have no desire to own a Telecaster.
I have tried a few, from Fender and other brands, but only one came close and sadly it was damaged
so i never bought it.
I agree that if you want a bullet proof workhoarse then only a Telecaster will withstand constant abuse
and still play.
Any guitar with a Trem no matter how good has an instant weak spot, they are a pain to change strings on
even in a well lit room, electronics access is poor, and if you overuse the trem at some point it will give you problems.
But despite all of this, i still prefer S shaped guitars.
Each to their own.
It's ok Allan, we all make mistakes in life nobody is perfect, at least you don't prefer SG's hahaha
@@AudiomoMusic The only SG style guitar i have is an ESP with no neck dive and the jack socket where it should be.
Gibson like Fender have failed to improve on their design weak spots
Gibson just hand out law suits, Fender just keeps making them the same, yet people buy them at todays crazy prices.🙂
Lies! We need more than just “A” Telecaster, we need several Telecasters
I admit, i have a few telecasters myself hahaha