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xbassman_K « THE Japanese Twang! »
Published on 01/03/12 at 14:20Squier Telecaster Japan 1986 (Series E) appears to be a reissue of a series of rare American Telecaster in the mid-70 equipped with a bridge (quite heavy and thick you it seems) "top load" (no strings traversing) with a jumper by rope, good news to set the intonation. Rosewood handle and otherwise in accordance with a standard Tele (2 single pickups, volume, tone, 3-position selector).
UTILIZATION
Channel excellent (relatively thin C shape quite similar to the sleeves of US Tele 70's) and very well done with mechanical origin of sufficient quality (Gotoh type quite common on Japanese 80s). The varnish vintage white poly is a bit thick for my taste (often the case on the Japanese), but still flawless and beautiful after 26 years. It's pretty hard to know what stuff is made the body, by removing the handle to discover the unvarnished parts I could identify what I believe to be of alder, but I could be wrong. In any case it sounds like it should do and is in the average weight issue (just a little heavier than a standard Tele recent US alder).
SOUNDS
Needless to describe the sound of a Telecaster, it is no exception to the norm.
While at the base, I thought that because of his humble origins, it would leave more to be desired that her cousins USD. Especially because of its famous bridge "top load", which in my mind would not sustain as many as editing traditional through-string. This is not so! Question sustain, it's all the same! I also thought that the microphones would necessarily be worse than their US. Not at all! The bridge pickup is surprising bite and efficiency, it's a great mic Telecaster which is mounted on it! It bears comparison with a Fender Custom Shop '52 US is to say! In fact, I'd find another one like this. However the neck pickup does have a output level slightly lower than usual, but compensates for this weakness by its much more flattering and smooth over US versions (standard course) that often have an unfortunate tends to be a hint "muddy." But these differences in output level between the two microphones was a bit a problem, so much so that I spent some time to adjust properly the heights of the microphones for a proper balance in a central position. But now it is a pure delight.
Vox AC15 in a good year (with HP that go) is cantankerous, twang it, sings it with ease, it can even be pretty nasty ... In a Fender Deluxe 60 years, it becomes downright Steve Cropper!
OVERALL OPINION
Purchased $ 200 (shipping included) in 2001 to a seller on Ebay Japan, a pittance. It was clearly a guitar that was played very little, she was probably 15 years of stay in a closet in fact. So she needed a good makeover before being quite playable, the action was catastrophic, it was wrong, in short, it took just re-adjust ... But it was worth it! And have left absolutely and totally original.
Despite my well stocked collection of guitars (+ 30 !!!), I am not ashamed to say that this guitar, however, after a line in the low-end pedigree (I remember that in the years 80/90 , nobody wanted those shovels!), is now one of my favorites, although I also have a Tele US equally formidable but too young for my taste (I am among those who think that a scratch becomes mature after 10 or 20 years old, as the booze). But news travels fast and I'm not the only one on the vintage Japanese squint to see the price they can reach today. A model similar to mine can easily be exchanged against more than € 1000 following his state! But small clarification though, there is now a kind of snobbery that wants the Squier SQ series are better than the following series (the E and A), they are rubbish! The SQ is just the first series (82-85), series E and A (85-89) were manufactured by the same people in the same workshops with the same wood and the same components with the same finishes! Subsequently (after 89) is indeed different, the Squier Standard (Japanese of course) being lowered.
The value for money? Uh ... Fantastic, but not sure how to do the same today, considering the price of these things right now ...
UTILIZATION
Channel excellent (relatively thin C shape quite similar to the sleeves of US Tele 70's) and very well done with mechanical origin of sufficient quality (Gotoh type quite common on Japanese 80s). The varnish vintage white poly is a bit thick for my taste (often the case on the Japanese), but still flawless and beautiful after 26 years. It's pretty hard to know what stuff is made the body, by removing the handle to discover the unvarnished parts I could identify what I believe to be of alder, but I could be wrong. In any case it sounds like it should do and is in the average weight issue (just a little heavier than a standard Tele recent US alder).
SOUNDS
Needless to describe the sound of a Telecaster, it is no exception to the norm.
While at the base, I thought that because of his humble origins, it would leave more to be desired that her cousins USD. Especially because of its famous bridge "top load", which in my mind would not sustain as many as editing traditional through-string. This is not so! Question sustain, it's all the same! I also thought that the microphones would necessarily be worse than their US. Not at all! The bridge pickup is surprising bite and efficiency, it's a great mic Telecaster which is mounted on it! It bears comparison with a Fender Custom Shop '52 US is to say! In fact, I'd find another one like this. However the neck pickup does have a output level slightly lower than usual, but compensates for this weakness by its much more flattering and smooth over US versions (standard course) that often have an unfortunate tends to be a hint "muddy." But these differences in output level between the two microphones was a bit a problem, so much so that I spent some time to adjust properly the heights of the microphones for a proper balance in a central position. But now it is a pure delight.
Vox AC15 in a good year (with HP that go) is cantankerous, twang it, sings it with ease, it can even be pretty nasty ... In a Fender Deluxe 60 years, it becomes downright Steve Cropper!
OVERALL OPINION
Purchased $ 200 (shipping included) in 2001 to a seller on Ebay Japan, a pittance. It was clearly a guitar that was played very little, she was probably 15 years of stay in a closet in fact. So she needed a good makeover before being quite playable, the action was catastrophic, it was wrong, in short, it took just re-adjust ... But it was worth it! And have left absolutely and totally original.
Despite my well stocked collection of guitars (+ 30 !!!), I am not ashamed to say that this guitar, however, after a line in the low-end pedigree (I remember that in the years 80/90 , nobody wanted those shovels!), is now one of my favorites, although I also have a Tele US equally formidable but too young for my taste (I am among those who think that a scratch becomes mature after 10 or 20 years old, as the booze). But news travels fast and I'm not the only one on the vintage Japanese squint to see the price they can reach today. A model similar to mine can easily be exchanged against more than € 1000 following his state! But small clarification though, there is now a kind of snobbery that wants the Squier SQ series are better than the following series (the E and A), they are rubbish! The SQ is just the first series (82-85), series E and A (85-89) were manufactured by the same people in the same workshops with the same wood and the same components with the same finishes! Subsequently (after 89) is indeed different, the Squier Standard (Japanese of course) being lowered.
The value for money? Uh ... Fantastic, but not sure how to do the same today, considering the price of these things right now ...