What makes a Telecaster a Telecaster?

[solspirit]

What exactly makes it so different, both playing and sounding.

 

[solspirit]

I don't mean how the pickups sound, I mean the attack, full note, the sustain, etc etc

 

[GuitarDoc]

Of course, the type of pup used, it's a bit different than a Strat type single coil. But also how the pup is mounted to the bridge plate instead of a mounting ring or direct mount.

 

[beaubrummels]

IME "the attack, full note, the sustain" is the result of

• pickup construction (metal baseplate on the bridge, metal cover on the neck)
• bridge construction (brass saddles on a metal baseplate, with strings anchored through the body)
• body construction (solid thick plank of wood, minimal routing, not contoured or missing any wood)
• neck construction (solid neck, bolted on, with a longer scale than Gibson types)

 

[GuitarStv]

I have a solid mahogany bodied guitar with maple neck, 24.75" scale and hardtail (with strat style individual string saddles). It's got two low output strat pickups in neck and mid and a tele bridge. I wired the 5 way so that you can get neck and bridge as well as bridge sounds.

Sounds exactly like any other twangy tele I've ever heard.



So I'm going to say that the pickups (particularly the bridge) matter the most, the fixed bridge itself matters a little bit, and the scale/woods used maybe just a tiny hint as far as sound goes.





As far as playing goes though - traditional teles suck donkey balls. Upper fret access isn't good, necks are often too narrow and have too small a radius, intonation with a traditional tele bridge is sketchy, they come with smaller frets, and there's no reason whatsoever to not contour the body other than laziness. Plus they look like crap. This makes sense as it was designed by a guy who couldn't play guitar to be cheap to produce - not an instrument that would be good to play.

 

[ErikH]

The pickup itself and the fact that it is mounted to the bridge is the major factor, IMO. I've played Tele's with half an ashtray bridge or a Strat hardtail and they don't have the same twang.

I have tried many times over the years to get a long with the Tele shape but it doesn't work. I like the idea of a Strat body, Tele bridge and controls, 24.75" scale, Esquire style. All the comfort I like in a Strat, the short scale I like on a Les Paul, and a sweet Tele bridge pickup.

 

[Securb]

Besides being shaped like a Telecaster my Teles have very little "Telecaster" left in them. Both have humbuckers and Babicz bridges. Great sounding players but very far from a Telecaster.

 

[alex1fly]

Depends on what you want it to be. Bridge, body, pickups, tone, saddles, whatever. I have 2 Teles - one with traditional bridge/single coils/humongous neck, one with Strat bridge/WRHBs/tiny neck. Both sound like Telecasters. The response is immediate unlike my Strat where there's a bit of squish.

 

[Erlend_G]

Well :/

It's gotta be hard to make it sound good. It should be stiff, like a plank; and the brigde pickup rather piercing.

hehe.

-E

 

[Mincer]

I think it comes down to the pickups and the bridge. Teles without the traditional pickups and bridge don't sound like Teles. They sound like generic 'Fenders'.

 

[PFDarkside]

I think it comes down to the pickups and the bridge. Teles without the traditional pickups and bridge don't sound like Teles. They sound like generic 'Fenders'.

Yep, swap a Strat’s bridge from the synchronized tremolo to a plate style bridge and swap the pickups and you are there IMO. Add in a the vintage style bridge (over modern) for a little extra spank.

 

[Securb]

I think it comes down to the pickups and the bridge. Teles without the traditional pickups and bridge don't sound like Teles. They sound like generic 'Fenders'.

I have a Super Distortion in my Tele it sounds nothing like a Fender.

 

[GuitarStv]

I have a Super Distortion in my Tele it sounds nothing like a Fender.

Bet it sounds a lot like a superdistortion though.

 

[PFDarkside]

You can do a two-beat pop song with a five-second fill on fiddle, but that doesnt make it country.

Taylor Swift and her Swifties would like a word.

Actually probably not. Maren Morris? Kelsey Ballerini?

 

[Securb]

.

 

[Jeffblue]

How do you infuse tele in a strat?
Add a tele bridge pickup.

I like it much better than a strat bridge pickup.

 

[Mincer]

A Tele was never my thing *because* of the pickups and the bridge (and the weirdo control plate). But other people make it sound great.

 

[Artie]

A Tele was never my thing *because* of the pickups and the bridge (and the weirdo control plate). But other people make it sound great.

Speaking of which . . . it was only a couple hours ago that I watched this video. This guy has some pretty good licks.

 

[JamesPaul]

Hmmmm... So if my Tele has a six saddle bridge, a belly cut, 12" radius fretboard, but traditional Telecaster single coil pickups, is it still a Telecaster? It sounds like a Telecaster to me, but now I am curious.

 

[ErikH]

Hmmmm... So if my Tele has a six saddle bridge, a belly cut, 12" radius fretboard, but traditional Telecaster single coil pickups, is it still a Telecaster? It sounds like a Telecaster to me, but now I am curious.

Since Fender makes them that way now too, yes, it's a Tele...LOL.

And the six-saddle bridge on them has been around since the American Standards were launched in the 80's. I get that the 3 brass saddles lend something to the sound but come on, some get really overly purist when it comes to that. Even Brad Paisley has 6-saddle bridges. Who's gonna tell him his guitars aren't Tele's? LOL