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King Loudness « A Tele to rock »
Published on 08/13/11 at 20:21The Fender American Standard Tele is a guitar that is really a jack of all trades. They were initially picked up by country players, blues cats have used them on occasion, even the odd jazz man has grabbed one of these ol' planks to play some Charlie Parker. However... one thing that these guitars really do and do well is rock. Some particular Teles have a certain extra kick to them that allows the sound to have a bit more raunch and filth, and this particular Crimson Red Tele is no exception. It features an ash body, maple neck and fretboard, Tele bridge and sealed Fender tuners, and a set of Fender's updated American Standard pickups. To top it off,it's made in the good ol' USA. Awesome.
UTILIZATION
The Tele is a guitar that is slightly less ergonomic in its design then say, a Strat is. This is due in part to the lack of contouring on the typical Tele, as well as the fact that they're generally heavier guitars (both in look and sound) than their Strat counterparts. To add to it, this one is ash bodied and weighs a fair bit, but the sustain is there. When you hit a note and it rings... it's all worth it. The upper fret access on Teles isn't quite as good as the Strat but it's certainly not unusable by any strech.
This particular red Tele has a very raunchy sound to it that none of the other Teles at this shop did. It might have been due to the ash/maple combination or just an extra bit of mojo inside the guitar. Whatever the theory... it sounds great, especially for rock tones.
SOUNDS
I've tried this guitar most notably through a Mesa Royal Atlantic 100 and a Marshall 1923 85th Anniversary head. It's a very bright sounding guitar, with a prominent top end that cuts through a band mix superbly. The midrange is a bit subdued in this particular guitar (probably a trait of the ash/maple combo) and the bass is not quite there nearly as much as some of the Gibson guitars. However it sits brilliantly in a band mix and my coguitarist (the proud owner of this particular 2011 Tele) is pleased as punch with the tones he's getting out of it. He's always eschewed away from humbuckers (his longtime #1 is an SG Standard with Gibson P94s) and this Tele gives more of that bright sound that suits the hard rock sound he hears. It works very well with my Les Paul in a band setting, and allows different voicings and chords to stand out very prominently.
In my own experience, trying this guitar was pleasing. The bright tone lent itself very well to country and certain snappy blues for cleans, and of course for '70s to modern classic and hard rock on the drive side of things. Compared an ash/rosewood Tele we A/Bed with it... this guitar just had more oomph and a fuller, brighter sound that better suited what he wanted in a Tele.
OVERALL OPINION
All in all I think you can't go wrong with one of the new American Standard Teles. This one was a bit more than usual ($1,149 new compared to $999 for an alder one) but it sounds killer and is well worth it. They come with a great TSA approved flight case too... perfect for flying with. And trust me when it comes to it, you won't want to be parting with your Tele when you fly away either. Try one today!
UTILIZATION
The Tele is a guitar that is slightly less ergonomic in its design then say, a Strat is. This is due in part to the lack of contouring on the typical Tele, as well as the fact that they're generally heavier guitars (both in look and sound) than their Strat counterparts. To add to it, this one is ash bodied and weighs a fair bit, but the sustain is there. When you hit a note and it rings... it's all worth it. The upper fret access on Teles isn't quite as good as the Strat but it's certainly not unusable by any strech.
This particular red Tele has a very raunchy sound to it that none of the other Teles at this shop did. It might have been due to the ash/maple combination or just an extra bit of mojo inside the guitar. Whatever the theory... it sounds great, especially for rock tones.
SOUNDS
I've tried this guitar most notably through a Mesa Royal Atlantic 100 and a Marshall 1923 85th Anniversary head. It's a very bright sounding guitar, with a prominent top end that cuts through a band mix superbly. The midrange is a bit subdued in this particular guitar (probably a trait of the ash/maple combo) and the bass is not quite there nearly as much as some of the Gibson guitars. However it sits brilliantly in a band mix and my coguitarist (the proud owner of this particular 2011 Tele) is pleased as punch with the tones he's getting out of it. He's always eschewed away from humbuckers (his longtime #1 is an SG Standard with Gibson P94s) and this Tele gives more of that bright sound that suits the hard rock sound he hears. It works very well with my Les Paul in a band setting, and allows different voicings and chords to stand out very prominently.
In my own experience, trying this guitar was pleasing. The bright tone lent itself very well to country and certain snappy blues for cleans, and of course for '70s to modern classic and hard rock on the drive side of things. Compared an ash/rosewood Tele we A/Bed with it... this guitar just had more oomph and a fuller, brighter sound that better suited what he wanted in a Tele.
OVERALL OPINION
All in all I think you can't go wrong with one of the new American Standard Teles. This one was a bit more than usual ($1,149 new compared to $999 for an alder one) but it sounds killer and is well worth it. They come with a great TSA approved flight case too... perfect for flying with. And trust me when it comes to it, you won't want to be parting with your Tele when you fly away either. Try one today!