Acoustic resonance of Telecasters

[tfarny]

Ok just for the record. The electric guitar was designed not to FEEDBACK at high volumes when amplified. That’s not the same as “resonating acoustically” - I suspect Leo and Les would have found the continued discussion on this topic pretty silly.

 

[bottlenecker]

Please, point to them.

Well, this one's pretty good--> https://reverb.com/news/former-gibs...oods-and-the-problems-of-top-heavy-management

 

[bgmacaw]

Well, this one's pretty good--> https://reverb.com/news/former-gibs...oods-and-the-problems-of-top-heavy-management

There's a lot of good stuff in that interview.

My favorite quote when McCarty was asked about Leo Fender.

"I never paid that much attention to him. I just didn’t like Leo’s manner of working with people, treating people, and whatnot. And he was always trying to sue somebody, and I never particularly liked that."

What would McCarty say about modern day Gibson?

 

[Swirling Snow]

Well, this one's pretty good--> https://reverb.com/news/former-gibs...oods-and-the-problems-of-top-heavy-management

I have to assume you didn't read the article, because it ends when Ted left in '65, several years before Les came back.

 

[dreamingtele]

I actually want my solid body guitars to resonate. Well, if I’m playing them acoustically. Lol. I’m not, so, I dont care how resonant it is, I’m playing it through an amp!

Just give me a very light guitar and good voiced pickups and I’ll be a happy camper.

My ES-330 though..

 

[akkermanfan]

Hi, I also strongly doubt if these ideas about pancake body, extra veneer layer under the maple top, 3 piece neck, volute come from Les Paul himself, I would like to read such an article in which this is confirmed by the master....However, I do not claim that these cannot be good guitars, with a bit of luck there were certainly good guitars to be found during that big production in the seventies. Only the quality control was no longer the same as it was under TedMcCarty's policy...

 

[pbenn]

It's real estate, really. Some of us live in smaller and smaller apartments with drywall walls. Practicing repetition for hours could/will annoy a neighbour.

Enter the lighter, more resonant Tele. Play unplugged while watching TV, play in bed, it's about the right volume.

 

[bottlenecker]

I have to assume you didn't read the article, because it ends when Ted left in '65, several years before Les came back.

He didn't "come back". He was never there. Which is well established by the article.

 

[Oxidao]

Does a telecaster have to resonate when played acoustically to be good? If one resonates more than another is the more resonant one better?

Personally, I need it TO SOUND when strumming or picking hard unplugged (which is 1/2 of the time).
I really love this Swamp Ash Deluxe Sound
A bit heavy weighted though.

I guess it is be very close to the same when plugged in, so in my case YES.

edit: it is true that I haven't any other Tele to compare with.

 

[Swirling Snow]

Hi, I also strongly doubt if these ideas about pancake body, extra veneer layer under the maple top, 3 piece neck, volute come from Les Paul himself...

It's wise to doubt that factoid, since you just made it up. I said Les 'approved' of the changes, and I meant in principle. Les was an electrical engineer. He invented multi-track recording. He knew nothing about wood. My gosh, he used a railroad tie for the spine of his instrument!!!

However, I do not claim that these cannot be good guitars, with a bit of luck there were certainly good guitars to be found during that big production in the seventies. Only the quality control was no longer the same as it was under TedMcCarty's policy...

Another fallacy the internet is fond of. If you go back to the earliest posts on the Les Paul forum, you'll find people dissing Norlin Les Pauls because of "quality issues". Then they list specs, not mistakes. This angle, that weight, wrong wire, etc... things that are not "quality control" issues, but design changes. People that only read thread titles conclude that there were QC issues in the seventies, forgetting that the Japanese didn't invent QC until the eighties.

I've owned quite a few '50s Gibsons because they used to be used, not vintage, and they were pretty. I sold Gibsons in the seventies. As an eyewitness to both eras, I can only conclude there was always a whole lot a drinkin' going on. Gibson has never had control of their quality, and they expected the dealers to perform the final inspection. I was told we had to have a luthier on the premises as part of our contract with Gibson. At least the lawyers knew how bad the quality was.

 

[mad dog]

I have three solidbody teles now.

- Alder body partscaster with Don Mare's Joel Foy pickups
- Poplar body Squier CV tele deluxe, WR (humbucker) p/us
- Spanish cedar body partscaster w/Ian Anderson P90s

Of the three, the alder body partscaster is the quietest acoustically. It does ring out unplugged, just not as much as the others. The Squier is next. Has a definite acoustic voice unplugged. The spanish cedar partscaster has the loudest (and prettiest) acoustic voice.

The two partscasters are probably the best sounding (plugged in, that is) teles I've owned. The Squier too has a very pleasing, distinctive sound up loud. No idea how the unplugged sounds of these guitars affect the sound plugged in or not, but it sure does come in handy. All three of these teles have a lively sound and feel - both plugged in and unplugged. Whatever influences what in terms of sound, I've come to prefer such guitars. I don't draw conclusions, just know what I prefer.

 

[Swirling Snow]

He didn't "come back". He was never there. Which is well established by the article.

I feel like we're speaking different languages.

And that's too bad, because I am curious about resonances in Teles. I bet Keith Richards likes the resonant ones.

 

[boris bubbanov]

It's real estate, really. Some of us live in smaller and smaller apartments with drywall walls. Practicing repetition for hours could/will annoy a neighbour.

Enter the lighter, more resonant Tele. Play unplugged while watching TV, play in bed, it's about the right volume.

What I liked about a "loud" unplugged guitar was, you could hear enough to make adjustments to the pitch of each string, over typical background noise. By ear. Now, folks use E-tuners instead. I don't like E-tuners.

My Caveman explanation for why I like a one piece guitar body is, they're IMO far easier to finish with a pleasing result. No grain lines in desperate need of being covered up and none of the dreaded SEAM LINES I see on some multipiece guitar bodies - especially those with really thin finishes. Do they sound better? How in the world would you measure that and if you cannot measure it, of what value are the opinions we arrive at? "I find guitar X sounds better because it is prettier and it makes me smile and I play better when I smile." Huh.