Anyone own a Fender USA Jerry Donahue Tele?

[Lewguitar]

I've already read the reviews on Harmony Central: one rave, one not!

What's the neck like? Non vintage and flatter 9 1/2" radius...I hope? And taller frets than vintage...I hope?

The body is swamp ash sandwiched between veneered maple...how's that affect the weight and tone? The JD pickup can be a little dark in a dark sounding guitar...I'm thinking the maple might brighten it up a bit.

The neck pickup is a Strat pickups...anyone know what it is? Alnico 2 or alnico 5? DC Reisistance?

Any other opinions or insights?

Thanks, Lew

 

[Falstaff]

Re: Anyone own a Fender USA Jerry Donahue Tele?

I played one for about an hour (only clean) a few years back. It sounded incredibly good, with a nice combination of smoothness and twang. The neck pickup did the "Wind Cries Mary" thing nicely and I remember thinking that a strat pu was the way to go in the neck position of a tele from that experience. I am not sure I can tell one radius from another but IIRC it had a very, very soft V (I might be wrong there) and the frets were a bit bigger than those on the 52 reissue I had at the time. I remember thinking that the neck made it so much more playable than the 52. The neck was satiny smooth.

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Anyone own a Fender USA Jerry Donahue Tele?

You gonna win it Lew?

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Anyone own a Fender USA Jerry Donahue Tele?

Thanks Guys...I'm seriously thinking about it. Lew

 

[Scott Miller]

Re: Anyone own a Fender USA Jerry Donahue Tele?

Hi Lew,

I replaced some PUs for Jerry a couple of years ago when he was here at the factory. The neck PUs he was using were stock APS-2's. Evan tells me that he originally used SSL-2's, but switch over to the alnico II sometime in the lmid/late 90's. The bridge PUs were, of course, his signature PU, and the switch was a super 5-way that was wired to get some cool out-of-phase sounds. The lead PU, while warmer than a standard Tele lead PU, did not sound too dark. Oddly enough, I don't remember much about the necks and bodies---other than they played nicely.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Anyone own a Fender USA Jerry Donahue Tele?

Hi Lew,

I replaced some PUs for Jerry a couple of years ago when he was here at the factory. The neck PUs he was using were stock APS-2's. Evan tells me that he originally used SSL-2's, but switch over to the alnico II sometime in the lmid/late 90's. The bridge PUs were, of course, his signature PU, and the switch was a super 5-way that was wired to get some cool out-of-phase sounds. The lead PU, while warmer than a standard Tele lead PU, did not sound too dark. Oddly enough, I don't remember much about the necks and bodies---other than they played nicely.

Thanks Scott! That's exactly what I suspected that neck pickup is. I have a pair of APS-2's in one of my favorite Strats. The JD and Antquity Tele are two of my favorite Tele pickups...as you may know. You've written up enough orders of those for me! :laugh2: So Jerry's not using the 4 position switch with the series/parrallel option anymore?

 

[BS123]

Re: Anyone own a Fender USA Jerry Donahue Tele?

Lew, make sure it is actually the USA Custom Shop Donahue Tele and not the MIJ JD. The MIJ Tele does not have the APTL-3JD and APS-2. I believe they might be Duncan Designed though. I'm not exactly sure. There's a guy on the TDPRI that is an expert on the USA Donahue Tele. He has owned a bunch including the MIJ JD model. Hi name is Mike Rice and he's a very nice guy. Another thing about the Dincahue Tele, the neck pickup, if you look closely, is set back father from the neck and closer to the bridge than a standard neck pickup position.

TDPRI

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Anyone own a Fender USA Jerry Donahue Tele?

I bid $1300 on it, went mountain climbing, came back late and checked the auction this morning and it went for about $1600. Oh well...$1600's to much. Besides, I'm not into gold plating and a fancy sunburst finish on a Tele. It's to much of a working-class-hero type guitar for that fancy stuff, IMO! :laugh2:

Lew

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Anyone own a Fender USA Jerry Donahue Tele?

Oh well. It's not like you don't have some nice Teles. I was thinking to myself yesterday, that if I wanted it, I would bid $1638, 30 seconds before the auction ended. Jeez, I mighta won it. Unless someone else had a proxy bid of $1700+
If I was going to spend that on a Tele, it would have to be a mid 90's 63 Relic like Robben Ford's.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Anyone own a Fender USA Jerry Donahue Tele?

Oh well. It's not like you don't have some nice Teles. I was thinking to myself yesterday, that if I wanted it, I would bid $1638, 30 seconds before the auction ended. Jeez, I mighta won it. Unless someone else had a proxy bid of $1700+
If I was going to spend that on a Tele, it would have to be a mid 90's 63 Relic like Robben Ford's.

Yeah...I didn't want it enough to spend that kind of money on. I was out climbing yesterday and got home pretty late...couldn't monitor the auction's close if I'd wanted to. I was surprised it went that high tho. I've seen 'em go for not much more than $1000, tho not recently. They seem like one of those guitars that now that they're not being made, have both appreciated in value and grown in appreciation too! Lew

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Anyone own a Fender USA Jerry Donahue Tele?

A few years ago, I didn't even understand the attraction to signature guitars, but now it's becoming more obvious that the golden era of rock'n'roll, including signature guitars will be like gold someday.......well, unless we're trading these things for bottled water someday? Hope not.