View other reviews for this product:
nicobackseat « Excellent value for money »
Published on 08/01/14 at 14:56
Best value:
Excellent
I don't pretend to have the ultimate truth so all info must be confirmed...However, currently, from my point of view, things are this way:
- Vester is a US brand from the '70s/'80s/'90s which had a good reputation, especially, for its (very?) good Fender and Ibanez copies...
- They were made in Korea or Japan
- The company closed in 1994, after Fender sued them considering that their copies were too similar to the originals...
Concerning this Telecaster Stage Series:
- The body is made of massive alder, in theory
- The neck is made of maple, in theory, too
- The bridge is Tele-type
- 2 single-coil pickups
- Volume and tone controls plus 3-way toggle switch.
Do note that Tele copies usually have a different headstock shape, but that isn't the case with this one. An important detail if, like me, you are somewhat of a purist in terms of aesthetics.
And Vester even went so far as to copy Fender's logo (which, partially, explains the lawsuit...).
USE
The neck is very nice and fast.
The guitar is weighty, but I love it anyway.
It's not a shredder guitar (and I'm not one either), so access to the upper frets is average, in my opinion.
At first I was surprised because, as I mentioned above, the truss rod can't be accessed from the headstock, but rather from the body/neck junction.
Personally, after purchasing it, I had my luthier replace the tuners with a Gotoh set, among other things, which makes tuning more reliable than with the original ones.
SOUND
Before I say anything else, I must say that this guitar is totally new to me.... Being used to a Gibson Les Paul with fat humbuckers to play punk-rock/rock'n'roll, I'm exploring new territories...
I kept the original neck pickup, which provides a very nice warm and round sound, typical Fender (I wonder if it hadn't been replaced before). I had a ball playing songs with clean sounds.
I mounted a Kent Armstrong pickup on the bridge and it's wonderful. It's twangy, with a good punch, but precise and it crunches really fast depending on the attack on the strings.
I alternate between a 90W Fender Transistor Deluxe (for clean sounds) and a 40W Marshall DSL40C tube amp (for crunch and distortion) to play The Gaslight Anthem, The Hives, The Clash, and even ZZ Top...
One last point: I can hear a buzzz when I plug it to the amp without playing it, but you only need to line the interior of the guitar with tin foil to reduce it considerably (that was a tip from my luthier).
OVERALL OPINION
I've been using it for two months..
For the record, I paid 49 euros at a secondhand store (it was on top of a shelf covered with dust and it had a couple of scratches) and with all upgrades it came to almost €200. So it's an excellent value for money!!
I love the Telecaster design, so I looked for a while for a Squier, a Mexican Fender, etc... But I can now tell you that this upgraded Vester clearly outclasses any Squier and some Mexican Fenders, which cost way more.
Specialized sellers with whom I have talked about it have confirmed that it is indeed a very good guitar.
I'm really happy and do not plan to part with it. If you ever run into a Vester, give it a try, it might be what you're looking for...
- Vester is a US brand from the '70s/'80s/'90s which had a good reputation, especially, for its (very?) good Fender and Ibanez copies...
- They were made in Korea or Japan
- The company closed in 1994, after Fender sued them considering that their copies were too similar to the originals...
Concerning this Telecaster Stage Series:
- The body is made of massive alder, in theory
- The neck is made of maple, in theory, too
- The bridge is Tele-type
- 2 single-coil pickups
- Volume and tone controls plus 3-way toggle switch.
Do note that Tele copies usually have a different headstock shape, but that isn't the case with this one. An important detail if, like me, you are somewhat of a purist in terms of aesthetics.
And Vester even went so far as to copy Fender's logo (which, partially, explains the lawsuit...).
USE
The neck is very nice and fast.
The guitar is weighty, but I love it anyway.
It's not a shredder guitar (and I'm not one either), so access to the upper frets is average, in my opinion.
At first I was surprised because, as I mentioned above, the truss rod can't be accessed from the headstock, but rather from the body/neck junction.
Personally, after purchasing it, I had my luthier replace the tuners with a Gotoh set, among other things, which makes tuning more reliable than with the original ones.
SOUND
Before I say anything else, I must say that this guitar is totally new to me.... Being used to a Gibson Les Paul with fat humbuckers to play punk-rock/rock'n'roll, I'm exploring new territories...
I kept the original neck pickup, which provides a very nice warm and round sound, typical Fender (I wonder if it hadn't been replaced before). I had a ball playing songs with clean sounds.
I mounted a Kent Armstrong pickup on the bridge and it's wonderful. It's twangy, with a good punch, but precise and it crunches really fast depending on the attack on the strings.
I alternate between a 90W Fender Transistor Deluxe (for clean sounds) and a 40W Marshall DSL40C tube amp (for crunch and distortion) to play The Gaslight Anthem, The Hives, The Clash, and even ZZ Top...
One last point: I can hear a buzzz when I plug it to the amp without playing it, but you only need to line the interior of the guitar with tin foil to reduce it considerably (that was a tip from my luthier).
OVERALL OPINION
I've been using it for two months..
For the record, I paid 49 euros at a secondhand store (it was on top of a shelf covered with dust and it had a couple of scratches) and with all upgrades it came to almost €200. So it's an excellent value for money!!
I love the Telecaster design, so I looked for a while for a Squier, a Mexican Fender, etc... But I can now tell you that this upgraded Vester clearly outclasses any Squier and some Mexican Fenders, which cost way more.
Specialized sellers with whom I have talked about it have confirmed that it is indeed a very good guitar.
I'm really happy and do not plan to part with it. If you ever run into a Vester, give it a try, it might be what you're looking for...