American Standard - why no love? - Page 3

rhinocaster · November 28th, 2007, 06:53 PM

I'm not a fan of the American Standard Tele. I like the vintage specs.

It's the same way that I feel about vintage cars. If I want a '65 Corvette, a 2007 C6 isn't going to scratch that itch!

mjb1967 · November 28th, 2007, 06:54 PM

I guess this may be making a thread in a thread, but what do you guys think about replacing the am std bridge with the vintage 3 brass...how much will the extra holes affect the tone of the guitar, do you fill them? Im beginning to think maybe I should just be grateful for the variety i have and stick with what i have until im a better versed player...thoughts?

Telarkaster · November 28th, 2007, 07:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mjb1967

I guess this may be making a thread in a thread, but what do you guys think about replacing the am std bridge with the vintage 3 brass...how much will the extra holes affect the tone of the guitar, do you fill them? Im beginning to think maybe I should just be grateful for the variety i have and stick with what i have until im a better versed player...thoughts?

I thought about doing it, Glendale offers a bridge just for that job. But it won't look exactly right, the saddles will be too long.

I have yet to find conclusive proof that it would do anything to improve the sound, so my Am Std is staying stock. Others have contrasting opinions but the whole tone argument seems dubious to me. If you do the change it would be mostly for cosmetic reasons. Just be glad you have a bridge that intones easily.

The only mod I did was to flip the control panel so that I could access the knobs easier for volume and tone swells.

Telepatio · November 28th, 2007, 07:15 PM

i don't know....i had a regular six saddle steel bridge on my partscaster....switched to a glendale with three brass.....changed the tone a lot.....immediately.

peteb · November 28th, 2007, 07:21 PM

they play and sound terrific

I love them too

jazztele · November 28th, 2007, 07:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Telarkaster

I thought about doing it, Glendale offers a bridge just for that job. But it won't look exactly right, the saddles will be too long.

I have yet to find conclusive proof that it would do anything to improve the sound, so my Am Std is staying stock. Others have contrasting opinions but the whole tone argument seems dubious to me. If you do the change it would be mostly for cosmetic reasons. Just be glad you have a bridge that intones easily.

i definitely found it a worthwhile mod. and i agree, it did effect the tone, in a positive way.

looks pretty good to me, too.

jazztele · November 28th, 2007, 07:37 PM

whoops! double post...

Telarkaster · November 29th, 2007, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Telepatio

i don't know....i had a regular six saddle steel bridge on my partscaster....switched to a glendale with three brass.....changed the tone a lot.....immediately.

(And Jazztele too)

I will concede that there will be a change in tone if you go from stainless steel saddles to brass. From what I've heard, I'm happy with the ones I have.

However I seriously doubt that the change in tone you heard was due to the fact that they are 3 saddles instead of 6. My own impression of course. If there is a difference due to the design and not the material I wonder if it's worth the price.

In any case, from previous threads (and I've read them!) people seem split on this topic. The most important thing is what you hear with your own ears and if doing the mod makes you happy.

I remain open to the idea, but for now my Am Std will stay stock and I respect your mods!

TG · November 29th, 2007, 05:33 PM

I used to own a 2000 American Series 2-tone sunburst ash tele and it was ace. Light weight and it played and sounded great, especially after I put a set of Fender OV pickups in it.
If I hadn't have damaged the neck and got rid of it (the replacement neck didn't gel with me) I'd have happily kept it.
I generally prefer vintage style teles, but there have been a few US Standard ones I've seen in shops that I've been impressed with. I think they vary from guitar to guitar like any model.

On the original Crossroads concert DVD Vince Gill's co-guitarist plays slide on a red one and there's nuthin' wrong with the sound he gets with it.

frogger · November 29th, 2007, 06:10 PM

I had 2 AS Tele's, never bonded with either. With the powder coated saddles ( tone robbers) and poly finish, six-way bridge, I never should have bought them in the first place. My FSR 52 Kills them both.

Tele Jr · November 29th, 2007, 10:37 PM

Actually there's plenty of love, but we also know that one of the more negative and regrettable things about this otherwise very positive forum is that MIA bashing is like a national pastime here, a sport that's always in season...

This is one dead horse that apparently never tires of taking the same old beating, imho the vintage cork sniffing and snobbery in general is based on fad and fashion as much as the worthiness of one model vs another.

The most current revision, the American Ash Telecaster, AKA 8502, is as sweet as they come and gives no quarter so expect none to be given...

0le FUZZY · November 29th, 2007, 10:47 PM

Quote:

the more negative and regrettable things about this otherwise very positive forum is that MIA bashing is like a national pastime here, a sport that's always in season...

...I been roun these parts quite a spell and never ceen nuttin li kat go on. Its jes that a lot of us like the old pre-83s and reissue wons better.

...Its obb-vee-yuss sum folks like em sew there iss sum luv fer the AS amoung us.

0le FUZZY

Tele Jr · November 29th, 2007, 11:38 PM

Well, don't take my comments the wrong way, I'm by no means not anti-vintage either, in fact strongly prefer the features of the Gibson R9 over the standard production USA models.

But like Captain Beefheart said, you never know another day goes by in the cardboard cutout sundown...

frogger · November 30th, 2007, 05:45 PM

Bashing no, experienced ears and years of playing various models gets my vote. Subjective yes..AS models are well made guitars however everyone has different criteria to base their preferences..so let's all respect others views.

wbm68 · November 30th, 2007, 05:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bglaze

I may be getting the wrong impression, but from my observations of threads that have a "recommend a guitar" type of subject matter, the American Standard Tele seems to get very little love. Why is that? Any ideas?

They are priced too high. For a little bit more you'd get a Deluxe and for a lot less you'd get a whole variety of others.
For $700 with case they'd be a good buy.

Capel · November 30th, 2007, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BootRoots

I've seen people comment about these am stds not being true to Leo's design, but why do people always seem to over look the G&L stuff he designed? If Leo felt like he got everything right in 52, why the changes with the G&Ls?

I agree, Leo didn't play, he designed & manufactured & took advice from working musicians... if the car buyers of today had the same "vintage is better" mindset we'd still be driving model A's

Tele Jr · November 30th, 2007, 08:39 PM

Well, I've read in my copy of the book of Uncle Dude-ronomy all about the Brothers of the 8502, but I guess I missed the chapter and verse from the book of Leo-viticus about where if I bolt a 3 barrel bridge onto my Tele, that Leo would breathe the breath of Tele life into the dead wood, and my Tele would somehow become a living soul!

JohnnyCrash · November 30th, 2007, 08:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bglaze

I may be getting the wrong impression, but from my observations of threads that have a "recommend a guitar" type of subject matter, the American Standard Tele seems to get very little love. Why is that? Any ideas?

This is a forum made up of mostly workin' class stiffs.

We usually just can't afford the extra green on an American Standard, and when it comes to bolt-on Ford style assembly line guitars, a MIM does most of us just fine.

For us non-home jammer, semi-pros - we usually save up extra for a reissue instead of an AM Std.

Great guitars, I think its just economics perhaps. IDK, that's just my impression - which has been known to be extremely "off." Hey, I aint the shiniest tool in the shed.

For me personally, I've got too many MIMs and Partscaster Teles and Esquires... plus I spend all of my real dough on Gibsons.

bglaze · November 30th, 2007, 10:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wbm68

They are priced too high. For a little bit more you'd get a Deluxe and for a lot less you'd get a whole variety of others.
For $700 with case they'd be a good buy.

I got mine for $599 with case. That's maybe why I love mine so much. I was really wondering folks' opinions over the guitar itself, not whether or not its price was right. But I guess price is part of it, so I've got to take the good with the bad.

Not only was mine so cheap, it was one of the guitars that they put way up on the ceiling over the accessories department. So it didn't even have a fingerprint on it. It was and still is flawless. I could've kissed GC that day.

vwtele · November 30th, 2007, 10:36 PM

I've been reading through this thread, hearing lots of good opinions, and wondering if I would jump in. Since I was a kid, I always wanted a Tele (youthful exuberance led me to buy an SG in '74 instead - but the Tele was all I really cared about). So two years ago I finally decided the time was right and I went and played every Tele I could find on the guitar shop wall. I didn't do my "research" I just went by feel and ear - stupid maybe - but it's what I did. 52 RI, MIM, everything they had. I came away with a vintage white MIA tele that I adore. I now have my Tele and I feel good playing it. Maybe I don't know what I'm missing with the vintage stuff but as far as I am concerned, I finally got a "real Tele." And since the only gigs I play are in friends' basements and my basement, I got no problem with that.

It's also why I show up on this forum everyday. Without TDPRI, I wouldn't have known this debate even existed!

beep.click · November 30th, 2007, 10:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vwtele

I went and played every Tele I could find on the guitar shop wall. I didn't do my "research" I just went by feel and ear - stupid maybe - but it's what I did.

Best kind of stupid there is, you ask me. You got a Tele you feel good playing.

What else is there?

Filthy McNasty · December 1st, 2007, 01:51 AM

The only thing that I didn't like about my AS Tele was the feel of the neck. I couldn't get completely comfortable with it. If it doesn't feel right it has got to go. To knit pick, I would have ended up putting vintage style tuners on it eventually, but tuners ar not a deal killer for me.

gtrman911 · December 1st, 2007, 05:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by urizen

I love it fine. I just wish they'd make it in Copper (w/ a blackguard)

+1

Tele Fan · December 1st, 2007, 07:52 AM

I think the opinions in this tread is exactly why so many people build they're on teles. Everybody wants a guitar with a certain set of features that they can't seem to find on any production models. That's why I've been wanting to build my own but I don't have a space where I could finish one without knocking myself out with the fumes and I stopped doing that after high school.

November 28th, 2007, 06:53 PM	#81 (permalink)
rhinocaster Tele-Afflicted Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Oregon Age: 44 Posts: 1,208	I'm not a fan of the American Standard Tele. I like the vintage specs. It's the same way that I feel about vintage cars. If I want a '65 Corvette, a 2007 C6 isn't going to scratch that itch! __________________ Just because I "Don't" get it doesn't mean I "Won't" get it!

November 28th, 2007, 06:54 PM	#82 (permalink)
mjb1967 Tele-Meister Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: orlando florida Age: 41 Posts: 161 7 Photos	I guess this may be making a thread in a thread, but what do you guys think about replacing the am std bridge with the vintage 3 brass...how much will the extra holes affect the tone of the guitar, do you fill them? Im beginning to think maybe I should just be grateful for the variety i have and stick with what i have until im a better versed player...thoughts? __________________ 1985 Chandler Tele.. 1991 Gibson Les Paul... Fender/Warmoth Partscaster Fender Telecoustic FDR-1 into old(er) tweed Blues Jr

November 28th, 2007, 07:15 PM	#84 (permalink)
Telepatio Tele-Meister Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 390	i don't know....i had a regular six saddle steel bridge on my partscaster....switched to a glendale with three brass.....changed the tone a lot.....immediately. __________________ Isn't life a series of images that change as they repeat themselves? - AW

November 28th, 2007, 07:37 PM	#87 (permalink)
jazztele Tele-Afflicted Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: chicago Age: 29 Posts: 1,876	whoops! double post... __________________ “For the guitar is the most unpredictable and least reliable musical instrument in existence...and also the sweetest, the warmest, the most delicate, whose melancholic voice awakes in our soul exquisite reveries.” Andres Segovia

November 29th, 2007, 10:37 PM	#91 (permalink)
Tele Jr Tele-Meister Join Date: May 2004 Location: Minneapolis, MN Posts: 209 9 Photos	No love? Actually there's plenty of love, but we also know that one of the more negative and regrettable things about this otherwise very positive forum is that MIA bashing is like a national pastime here, a sport that's always in season... This is one dead horse that apparently never tires of taking the same old beating, imho the vintage cork sniffing and snobbery in general is based on fad and fashion as much as the worthiness of one model vs another. The most current revision, the American Ash Telecaster, AKA 8502, is as sweet as they come and gives no quarter so expect none to be given...

November 28th, 2007, 07:21 PM	#85 (permalink)
peteb Tele-Meister Join Date: Apr 2003 Posts: 232	they play and sound terrific I love them too

November 29th, 2007, 05:33 PM	#89 (permalink)
TG Friend of Leo's Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Beside a bog in the west of Ireland Age: 46 Posts: 4,427 7 Photos	I used to own a 2000 American Series 2-tone sunburst ash tele and it was ace. Light weight and it played and sounded great, especially after I put a set of Fender OV pickups in it. If I hadn't have damaged the neck and got rid of it (the replacement neck didn't gel with me) I'd have happily kept it. I generally prefer vintage style teles, but there have been a few US Standard ones I've seen in shops that I've been impressed with. I think they vary from guitar to guitar like any model. On the original Crossroads concert DVD Vince Gill's co-guitarist plays slide on a red one and there's nuthin' wrong with the sound he gets with it.

November 29th, 2007, 06:10 PM	#90 (permalink)
frogger Tele-Meister Join Date: May 2003 Location: Lincoln Nebraska Posts: 417	I had 2 AS Tele's, never bonded with either. With the powder coated saddles ( tone robbers) and poly finish, six-way bridge, I never should have bought them in the first place. My FSR 52 Kills them both.

November 29th, 2007, 11:38 PM	#93 (permalink)
Tele Jr Tele-Meister Join Date: May 2004 Location: Minneapolis, MN Posts: 209 9 Photos	Well, don't take my comments the wrong way, I'm by no means not anti-vintage either, in fact strongly prefer the features of the Gibson R9 over the standard production USA models. But like Captain Beefheart said, you never know another day goes by in the cardboard cutout sundown...

November 30th, 2007, 05:45 PM	#94 (permalink)
frogger Tele-Meister Join Date: May 2003 Location: Lincoln Nebraska Posts: 417	Bashing no, experienced ears and years of playing various models gets my vote. Subjective yes..AS models are well made guitars however everyone has different criteria to base their preferences..so let's all respect others views.

November 30th, 2007, 08:39 PM	#97 (permalink)
Tele Jr Tele-Meister Join Date: May 2004 Location: Minneapolis, MN Posts: 209 9 Photos	Is It Written? Well, I've read in my copy of the book of Uncle Dude-ronomy all about the Brothers of the 8502, but I guess I missed the chapter and verse from the book of Leo-viticus about where if I bolt a 3 barrel bridge onto my Tele, that Leo would breathe the breath of Tele life into the dead wood, and my Tele would somehow become a living soul!

November 30th, 2007, 10:36 PM	#100 (permalink)
vwtele Tele-Meister Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: massashussetts Posts: 110	I've been reading through this thread, hearing lots of good opinions, and wondering if I would jump in. Since I was a kid, I always wanted a Tele (youthful exuberance led me to buy an SG in '74 instead - but the Tele was all I really cared about). So two years ago I finally decided the time was right and I went and played every Tele I could find on the guitar shop wall. I didn't do my "research" I just went by feel and ear - stupid maybe - but it's what I did. 52 RI, MIM, everything they had. I came away with a vintage white MIA tele that I adore. I now have my Tele and I feel good playing it. Maybe I don't know what I'm missing with the vintage stuff but as far as I am concerned, I finally got a "real Tele." And since the only gigs I play are in friends' basements and my basement, I got no problem with that. It's also why I show up on this forum everyday. Without TDPRI, I wouldn't have known this debate even existed!

December 1st, 2007, 01:51 AM	#102 (permalink)
Filthy McNasty Tele-Holic Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: upstate N.Y. Age: 38 Posts: 670	The only thing that I didn't like about my AS Tele was the feel of the neck. I couldn't get completely comfortable with it. If it doesn't feel right it has got to go. To knit pick, I would have ended up putting vintage style tuners on it eventually, but tuners ar not a deal killer for me.

December 1st, 2007, 07:52 AM	#104 (permalink)
Tele Fan Tele-Afflicted Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Louisville, Ky Age: 29 Posts: 1,458	I think the opinions in this tread is exactly why so many people build they're on teles. Everybody wants a guitar with a certain set of features that they can't seem to find on any production models. That's why I've been wanting to build my own but I don't have a space where I could finish one without knocking myself out with the fumes and I stopped doing that after high school. __________________ Life is better when you just make it up as you go along.