Howdy all, and Happy Father's Day (not one myself, but grateful that I've got one
,
I recently stumbled across what (I think) was a pretty good deal on a Jason Isbell tele, and pulled the trigger. I've also got a 2010 American Special tele w/the Texas Special pups in it. Last night I plugged the JI into my practice amp (Fender Super Champ XD), and had a good time getting a feel for both the guitar/neck-feel, and the different tones available from the guitar. Long story short...I love how that guitar feels! The neck fits my hand perfectly, and the light relic-ing succeeds in giving it a broken-in and fast way; really, really digging it.
I then decided to dust off the 'ol American Special for a bit of comparison. I've had that guitar for a few years now, and have always liked it. Still do. But in terms of this A/B, a couple of things stood out to me. First, I really prefer the overall feel and playability of the JI. Both guitars are really nicely set-up, with action on the lower end of the spectrum (my preference), and strung up with 10's. But the Isbell just fits me a little better. Better neck-feel, and I've already fallen in love with how the broken-in lacqer finish feels vs poly...quite noticeable.
But what I'm wrestling with now is how each guitar sounds, and how best to describe those differences. The first thing that jumped out was how much hotter the Texas Specials are than the JI/Tim Shaw pups. Tonal differences aside, they're just louder. Without touching the knobs, and just swapping the guitars back and forth, the AS is just capable of more volume, everything else being equal. I don't think this is a good or bad thing, just something to note as a real difference between the two guitars. If I were playing out, and swapping between the instruments frequently, it might be a touch annoying? At any rate, interesting (to me).
I feel less qualified to talk about the tonal differences between the two guitars/pickup combinations. I'm primarily a bluegrass flat picker, so my ear isn't terribly "developed" to pick up the subtle (or even not-so-subtle) distinctions between these two. I'll keep moving between these guitars over the coming days and weeks (and months and years, and hope to begin tapping into how these instruments differ tonally, and which one "checks the most boxes" for me.
Sorry for the long-winded ramble...and again, happy Father's Day to all!
,I recently stumbled across what (I think) was a pretty good deal on a Jason Isbell tele, and pulled the trigger. I've also got a 2010 American Special tele w/the Texas Special pups in it. Last night I plugged the JI into my practice amp (Fender Super Champ XD), and had a good time getting a feel for both the guitar/neck-feel, and the different tones available from the guitar. Long story short...I love how that guitar feels! The neck fits my hand perfectly, and the light relic-ing succeeds in giving it a broken-in and fast way; really, really digging it.
I then decided to dust off the 'ol American Special for a bit of comparison. I've had that guitar for a few years now, and have always liked it. Still do. But in terms of this A/B, a couple of things stood out to me. First, I really prefer the overall feel and playability of the JI. Both guitars are really nicely set-up, with action on the lower end of the spectrum (my preference), and strung up with 10's. But the Isbell just fits me a little better. Better neck-feel, and I've already fallen in love with how the broken-in lacqer finish feels vs poly...quite noticeable.
But what I'm wrestling with now is how each guitar sounds, and how best to describe those differences. The first thing that jumped out was how much hotter the Texas Specials are than the JI/Tim Shaw pups. Tonal differences aside, they're just louder. Without touching the knobs, and just swapping the guitars back and forth, the AS is just capable of more volume, everything else being equal. I don't think this is a good or bad thing, just something to note as a real difference between the two guitars. If I were playing out, and swapping between the instruments frequently, it might be a touch annoying? At any rate, interesting (to me).
I feel less qualified to talk about the tonal differences between the two guitars/pickup combinations. I'm primarily a bluegrass flat picker, so my ear isn't terribly "developed" to pick up the subtle (or even not-so-subtle) distinctions between these two. I'll keep moving between these guitars over the coming days and weeks (and months and years
, and hope to begin tapping into how these instruments differ tonally, and which one "checks the most boxes" for me.Sorry for the long-winded ramble...and again, happy Father's Day to all!
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