Want a new sound

toejam · April 12th, 2005, 02:59 AM

I have always played humbucker-equipped guitars but now I want to try someting new. I want a guitar with nice, clean sounds. I want to experiment to get spaced out sounds. I don't play country :) Is the Tele a good choice?

Chris S. · April 12th, 2005, 03:08 AM

Yes. – CS

denny · April 12th, 2005, 03:10 AM

Even the cheep Squier Teles are solid players' guitars. If you dont think teles are for spacey new stuff, check out John5.

And WELCOME to the TDPRI board, toejam.

denny

toejam · April 12th, 2005, 06:12 AM

Thanks :)
I play at home as a hobby so maybe the Squier Tele is enough then to play around with?

wcap · April 12th, 2005, 06:13 AM

I'd also try out some Stratocasters before you buy. I have both a Tele and a Strat, and I really can't decide which is my favorite – whichever one I am playing at the moment tends to be my favorite I guess. I'm primarily a fingerpicker, and play all sorts of things (but I guess not really much that would be called country).

My Tele (a Fernandes, Japanese made) is a really really nice guitar. Very alive sounding, and has a wide range of tones possible (the tone knob on a Tele has gives you a big range, from mellow to *very* bright). My particular Tele happens to have a bit more background buzz/hum than I would like, and least with my amp setup, which bothers me a lot when I play with headphones (but it is not too much of a bother when playing through the amp normally), but it is a darn nice guitar, and a surprisingly nice guitar to play unplugged if I need to be really quiet. This whole guitar resonates when I play it, and the base notes are particularly amazing and alive sounding. I find that this guitar can sound a bit harsh sometimes, but I'm really coming to think that this is more a function of my amp than anything (I probably also should try heavier strings). My jazz-playing friend sounds just amazing on my Tele (playing through his amp, not mine), and he likes my Tele better than his Strat.

My particular Strat has a cleaner (but less alive) sound than my Tele (less background hum usually – I guess this background noise issue is probably not a Strat vs. Tele thing really, but more likely just a function of what pickups my particular guitars have (???)), and it can give me some wonderful mellow tones, including some that sound almost like a pipe organ. I know some folks think of Strats as rock guitars, but I love playing Bach on this guitar. The sound is fantastic.

My Strat has a narrower neck than my Tele, which I personally tend to like, but that's just me.

If you like switching between alternative tunings, a Tele will likely be more to your liking, since the floating bridge arrangement on a Strat can make changing between tunings a bit more of a challenge (you change the tension of one string and the others tend to go out of tune). However, it is possible to set up a Strat (some of them anyway...I actually only have experience with my particular bridge arrangement) to have the bridge more fixed in position if you have no need to use the whammy bar.

bigdog · April 12th, 2005, 08:00 AM

I second wcap's reply. I have always owned and played both Strats and Teles and have a hard time deciding which way to go . with the right set up I can get a passable Tele tone from my Strat and the body contours have a whole new meaning as you grow older .
That said I also love my Tele for the simplicity and ease with which I get solid working tones almost every time I pick it up. Try as many as you can and play what feels good ![/code]

maestrovert · April 12th, 2005, 08:13 AM

the Tele has influenced every style of "modern" (ie: postwar-{ww2}) musical form and still has validity... and perhaps may have been the "spark" for rock n' roll....
no matter the style the Tele has it's champions....
you can't go wrong with a Tele.....

wcap: i think you may need to have your Tele's wiring checked....a grounding/shielding issue...

teletwangler · April 13th, 2005, 10:19 AM

How 'bout a Nash? I've tried playing virtually every type of "out there" music out there

Space Rock, Post-Rock, Abstract Jazz, World Beat on my MIM Nashville Tele (emphasis on the word "tried"!). Sweet!

Or, If you're more of a Strat fan, you could put in one of those Rio Grande Stelly pickups to get those Tele bridge pup tones that are so perfect for those Codeine/Mogwai/Mono "ice on the tree branches on a winter's day" post-rock licks.

April 12th, 2005, 02:59 AM	#1 (permalink)
toejam NEW MEMBER! Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Sweden Posts: 5	Want a new sound I have always played humbucker-equipped guitars but now I want to try someting new. I want a guitar with nice, clean sounds. I want to experiment to get spaced out sounds. I don't play country :) Is the Tele a good choice?

April 12th, 2005, 03:08 AM	#2 (permalink)
Chris S. Friend of Leo's Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Near TELE-Town (Wash. DC) Posts: 2,894 7 Photos	Yes. – CS __________________ "I go online sometimes, but everyone's spelling is really bad. It's depressing." – Tara, from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" "It was born at the junction of form and function." – Bill Kirchen, from "Hammer of the Honky-Tonk Gods"

April 12th, 2005, 03:10 AM	#3 (permalink)
denny Tele-Meister Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: North of Dallas Posts: 454	The Tele is always a good choice for a player... Even the cheep Squier Teles are solid players' guitars. If you dont think teles are for spacey new stuff, check out John5. And WELCOME to the TDPRI board, toejam. denny

April 12th, 2005, 08:00 AM	#6 (permalink)
bigdog Tele-Meister Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 126	It is hard to decide between the two. I second wcap's reply. I have always owned and played both Strats and Teles and have a hard time deciding which way to go . with the right set up I can get a passable Tele tone from my Strat and the body contours have a whole new meaning as you grow older . That said I also love my Tele for the simplicity and ease with which I get solid working tones almost every time I pick it up. Try as many as you can and play what feels good ![/code]

April 12th, 2005, 08:13 AM	#7 (permalink)
maestrovert Poster Extraordinaire Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: West Branch Mi. Posts: 6,553	Tele & tones the Tele has influenced every style of "modern" (ie: postwar-{ww2}) musical form and still has validity... and perhaps may have been the "spark" for rock n' roll.... no matter the style the Tele has it's champions.... you can't go wrong with a Tele..... wcap: i think you may need to have your Tele's wiring checked....a grounding/shielding issue... __________________ Sing the Song Bro' Play on Drummer www.godonthe.net

April 12th, 2005, 06:12 AM	#4 (permalink)
toejam NEW MEMBER! Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Sweden Posts: 5	Thanks :) I play at home as a hobby so maybe the Squier Tele is enough then to play around with?

April 12th, 2005, 06:13 AM	#5 (permalink)
wcap Tele-Meister Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 170	I'd also try out some Stratocasters before you buy. I have both a Tele and a Strat, and I really can't decide which is my favorite – whichever one I am playing at the moment tends to be my favorite I guess. I'm primarily a fingerpicker, and play all sorts of things (but I guess not really much that would be called country). My Tele (a Fernandes, Japanese made) is a really really nice guitar. Very alive sounding, and has a wide range of tones possible (the tone knob on a Tele has gives you a big range, from mellow to very bright). My particular Tele happens to have a bit more background buzz/hum than I would like, and least with my amp setup, which bothers me a lot when I play with headphones (but it is not too much of a bother when playing through the amp normally), but it is a darn nice guitar, and a surprisingly nice guitar to play unplugged if I need to be really quiet. This whole guitar resonates when I play it, and the base notes are particularly amazing and alive sounding. I find that this guitar can sound a bit harsh sometimes, but I'm really coming to think that this is more a function of my amp than anything (I probably also should try heavier strings). My jazz-playing friend sounds just amazing on my Tele (playing through his amp, not mine), and he likes my Tele better than his Strat. My particular Strat has a cleaner (but less alive) sound than my Tele (less background hum usually – I guess this background noise issue is probably not a Strat vs. Tele thing really, but more likely just a function of what pickups my particular guitars have (???)), and it can give me some wonderful mellow tones, including some that sound almost like a pipe organ. I know some folks think of Strats as rock guitars, but I love playing Bach on this guitar. The sound is fantastic. My Strat has a narrower neck than my Tele, which I personally tend to like, but that's just me. If you like switching between alternative tunings, a Tele will likely be more to your liking, since the floating bridge arrangement on a Strat can make changing between tunings a bit more of a challenge (you change the tension of one string and the others tend to go out of tune). However, it is possible to set up a Strat (some of them anyway...I actually only have experience with my particular bridge arrangement) to have the bridge more fixed in position if you have no need to use the whammy bar.

April 13th, 2005, 10:19 AM	#8 (permalink)
teletwangler Tele-Meister Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: STL,MO Posts: 152	Re: It is hard to decide between the two. How 'bout a Nash? I've tried playing virtually every type of "out there" music out there Space Rock, Post-Rock, Abstract Jazz, World Beat on my MIM Nashville Tele (emphasis on the word "tried"!). Sweet! Or, If you're more of a Strat fan, you could put in one of those Rio Grande Stelly pickups to get those Tele bridge pup tones that are so perfect for those Codeine/Mogwai/Mono "ice on the tree branches on a winter's day" post-rock licks. __________________ Did you know that the hole's only natural enemy is the pile?