Telecaster Acoustasonic Opinions

[Guitar Quackery]

I appreciate your insights and opinion. I agree on good conversations.

That's the idea.

As a repair technician, you’re definitely going to see all the problems... The flip side is you don’t see the ones that never have a problem.

It is definitely true that people bring guitars to repair shops, when there's a problem or something to be repaired. I have a certain percentage of customers that bring brand new guitars to ask me if they should keep or return/exchange. Those are typically customers whose guitars I've worked on in the past.

Regarding the Acoustasonics that customers brought in, they basically just wanted setups, then we discovered other issues.

In one of these two cases a replacement neck was sent and in the other case there was a refund. In both cases I was required to scrap the guitars (or just the neck, in the first case).

But I also see quite a few guitars without serious problems. Sometimes guitars just need a good cleaning, fret dress, restring and setup.

But to your point, that repair techs will definitely see a lot of problems, we also develop a mental picture about which guitars have the most problems. A lot of techs agree that Martin guitars are the leader in that domain: soundboard cracks, lifted bridges, overset or underset necks, binding falling off, etc...

With regards to the Acoustasonics that ended up in two of my videos, I guess I just had bad luck with the ones that were brought to me to work on, as it was a relatively high percentage of Acoustasonics that I saw (two in total) that had to be scrapped. To be fair, I think that was just the element of luck.

But I am still curious to know, how will they age?

We'll see.

 

[Old School Pete]

Understand that my point of view can be explained with my avatar. Out of nothing more than curiosity, I picked up one of the Acoustisonic abominations and tried it at a local GC. Acoustically, it was horrid- no balls, thin and anemic sounding. Amplified, it sounded better, but was, at best, meh.

You’d need to try one really. I’ve only heard them played plugged in, and sure they sound OK then.
However I’ve played a Fender “Highway Series” guitar, which is similar construction but without all the models and the electric pickup, and I am afraid I thought that was an expensive way to get a very ugly-sounding acoustic guitar.
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If you want a thin-bodied acoustic there are better ways to get one IMHO.

 

[Old School Pete]

So the Fender Highway guitars are just as bad without an amp also?

 

[AAT65]

So the Fender Highway guitars are just as bad without an amp also?

Well I didn’t like them!

 

[BigPapa-53]

OSP, if you want a guitar that sounds good acoustically, unplugged, you’re going to have to get an acoustic. There’s no way around it. Then, you’re going to get into comparing acoustics and how they sound versus what you want and what you want to pay. Everything’s a compromise.

 

[jpmist]

They sound kinda meh unplugged but they sound killer in a acoustic amp or a P.A. cause thats what they're mean't for. Love mine. Mine are the MIA versions. I prefer the Tele over the Strat.

Thanks for weighing in! Those look lovely having quite a bit of dramatic black on tan contrast highlighting their classic Strat & Tele contours. How did you find the setup for those two out of the box? Do the tall thin frets work ok for you?

I much agree that the acoustasonic's are made for amplification and not unplugged. What I'm curious about now is how you tweak your settings both on the guitar and the amp? Also, what is your style of play? Rock star or singer-songwriter? You use a pic or no?

What I've read about this series is that Fender decided to offer 3 versions covering all price points. The USA has the most flexibility with tweaking it's tone with a body sensor the other two don't have, plus many more preset options. Did you settle on the tone you wanted right off or do you actually switch among the many options often? The day might come that I might upgrade to the MIM or USA but I gotta be convinced it offers a tone I can't get on my MiI. Thanks.

 

[Alaska Mike]

I sold my MIA Acoustasonic Telecaster this morning. I took more of a hit than I wanted, but to be honest it’s a relief to get it off the rack. I will chalk it up to rental fees and move on.

The guy who bought it said keyboards were resonating through his acoustic too much and overwhelming his PA, so this was his solution. Seemed to work. I have always thought it was a busking guitar more than anything else, and this kinda highlights that. I hope he enjoys it.

 

[Old School Pete]

I sold my MIA Acoustasonic Telecaster this morning. I took more of a hit than I wanted, but to be honest it’s a relief to get it off the rack. I will chalk it up to rental fees and move on.

The guy who bought it said keyboards were resonating through his acoustic too much and overwhelming his PA, so this was his solution. Seemed to work. I have always thought it was a busking guitar more than anything else, and this kinda highlights that. I hope he enjoys it.

 

[Old School Pete]

Yeah, I've been enamored but the blond Tele version based on looks and ergonomics. After finally playing and hearing one in a store, I was very disappointed in the dead acoustic only sound. I wanted it in the living room to noodle on, but it wasn't even good for that. It's ashame because I still like its looks and feel. Wasn't much richer sounding than my little Seagull Merlin.

 

[MaxPower93]

The one real advantage to the Indonesian version is that there are no electronics. It’s just pickups wired to the controls. That certainly helps with obsolescence.

I wanted an acoustic that sounded like an acoustic but played like an electric. The Acoustasonic was close in feel with light acoustic strings, but still was very much in between the two.

I doubt Ensenada or Corona are churning out many (if any) these days, now that Indonesia is producing them. They are probably sitting on a decent supply already.

Fender blew out hundreds of the made in Mexico Telecasters last year. They sold them on Reverb for $499.00 new in the box. They sold a pile of them.

 

[Alaska Mike]

Fender blew out hundreds of the made in Mexico Telecasters last year. They sold them on Reverb for $499.00 new in the box. They sold a pile of them.

They still have the black and sunburst ones available on the website, but yeah, at the time it was kinda obvious they were either abandoning the concept or introducing something “new”. In this case it was the Highway and MII Acoustasonics.

The Indonesian version makes a lot of sense for the busking crowd, if the market wasn’t already saturated by the discounted MIM versions. Production-wise, Fender really shot themselves in the foot.

 

[Totally Bored]

Thanks for weighing in! Those look lovely having quite a bit of dramatic black on tan contrast highlighting their classic Strat & Tele contours. How did you find the setup for those two out of the box? Do the tall thin frets work ok for you?

I much agree that the acoustasonic's are made for amplification and not unplugged. What I'm curious about now is how you tweak your settings both on the guitar and the amp? Also, what is your style of play? Rock star or singer-songwriter? You use a pic or no?

What I've read about this series is that Fender decided to offer 3 versions covering all price points. The USA has the most flexibility with tweaking it's tone with a body sensor the other two don't have, plus many more preset options. Did you settle on the tone you wanted right off or do you actually switch among the many options often? The day might come that I might upgrade to the MIM or USA but I gotta be convinced it offers a tone I can't get on my MiI. Thanks.

Oopsie sorry for the delay in posting.

Setup was great. Tall frets are fine.

"Also, what is your style of play? Rock star or singer-songwriter? You use a pic or no?"

I use a pic.

I gig solo and I play to a Beatbuddy ( Backing tracks ). I was doing 100+ gigs a year but I've slowed down to maybe 60 a year. Wife gets lonely when I'm out all the time ...lol

I was using the Acoustasonics exclusively for the past 4 years for gigs but last year I started bringing out an electric Tele using a Joyo JF-14 and a Tube screamer. It's a great sound. I still bring the Tele Acoustasonic to gigs for Acoustic stuff but I find myself rocking out with a Electric Tele more. I thought all the wineries I gig at would reject that but they all seem to love the Electric Tele sounds as well as the Acoustic sounds.

 

[Old School Pete]

Well, after hearing them acoustically in some stores, I have concluded the sound is lame for strumming and singing. Sounds like a big ukulele. I bought an inexpensive acoustic/electric thineline and stick to my Teles and Strat for electric guitar music.
Thank you for all your inputs.

 

[jpmist]

I was using the Acoustasonics exclusively for the past 4 years for gigs but last year I started bringing out an electric Tele using a Joyo JF-14 and a Tube screamer. It's a great sound. I still bring the Tele Acoustasonic to gigs for Acoustic stuff but I find myself rocking out with a Electric Tele more. I thought all the wineries I gig at would reject that but they all seem to love the Electric Tele sounds as well as the Acoustic sounds.

Thanks! Not surprised to read you're gigging with it as that seems to be it's greatest stregth and not surprised that the OP settled on the word "ukulele" to describe it's unplugged tone, then faded on the idea.

Into the 3rd month with toying with mine and am still happy with it. On an AGF recommendation I took a flier on an inexpensive V-Tone EQ box
which helps me get more bottom end the Tele seems to lack.

Compared to my Taylor 322 and Larrivee OO that has a K&K I can get the Tele about 90% of the way to the Taylor's all hog tone and even closer to the spruce topped OO. It will never replace either of the two acoustic's miked, but that's not what the Tele is for. For my fingerstyle riffs using a capo, I'm not missing the low end the acoustics offer so my melodies ring out nicely.

 

[Memphis Soul]

I just saw one of these for sale locally and thought about getting it. It is $500 and is the basic MIM version but I think it would be fun playing it. I have been thinking about doing some busking in downtown Greenville, SC just for fun. I think it would be great for that.

 

[jpmist]

Welp, I may have to climb down a bit on my cheerleading, but be sure to budget an EQ box if you get that MIM Tele. There isn't much low end coming out of these which you can easily tweak.

Lack of low end is not necessarily a disadvantage playing live since your melody is, almost by definition, in the upper midrange of the notes you're playing so with the Acoustasonic you don't have bass competing with your melodies thus muddying them.

 

[Wrighty]

This and one of your electrics.