More than one tele?

[Headstock]

Just the one Tele -- but it's a doozy...

Also has a lovely rich, warm Don Mare custom neck pup that was installed before I acquired it.







I really love my Tele. I came to them relatively late (after my Strats and Lesters) but there are certain things it does SO well that a Strat just can't manage.

Overall, compared to my other electrics, I kinda feel like a Tele is a Tele is a Tele, but maybe that would change if I had a different one? I guess some folks say much the same about Strats.

Anyway, I'm a little dubious about "needing" another but I guess my criteria for wanting a second version of any guitar is always "what would it do differently than the one I already have...?"

I use a lot of open tuning and slide, so having a second similar guitar that I can keep in an alternate tuning makes a lot of sense to me -- that's how I fairly quickly ended up with my second Strat (many, many years ago). I do like the '52 I have because it does the "Tele thang" so well but I have to admit that, if I ever get a second one, I'd probably keep this one in open-E and the other would then live in standard tuning.

In an ideal world, then, I'm looking for just one more:
A '62-type Tele with a slab rosewood board, ideally a bound Custom in Lake Placid Blue. A Fender Japan MIJ TL62B would fit the bill perfectly, if only I could find the right one...

 

[mazzolar59]

I have a few Strats but only one tele. I don’t even look at any because I don’t think it would ever see any play time due to the one I have. Strats are Strats, all mine are very similar in specs but all sound/feel and play different I can justify buying more.

I think me being a bass player and searching for a certain tone, finally finding it with my current bass rig, I never look at any basses or bass amps ever. It’s the same with this tele, it’s tone, feel and build quality makes it so I don’t feel the need to look elsewhere because I know it probably won’t get played.

Anyone else have this feeling when it comes to a certain, guitar, bass or amp?

I feel like that when it comes to my LP. Having one is all I'll ever need (although, if I came across a P90 LP Special at a good price I would have to pull the trigger). As for Tele's and Strat's, you can never have enough....lol. Seriously, given the financial flexibility, I would have a room full of strats and teles all day long. I love them in every configuration and color combination you can come up with.

 

[Intune]

I feel like that when it comes to my LP. Having one is all I'll ever need (although, if I came across a P90 LP Special at a good price I would have to pull the trigger). As for Tele's and Strat's, you can never have enough....lol. Seriously, given the financial flexibility, I would have a room full of strats and teles all day long. I love them in every configuration and color combination you can come up with.

Oh yeah if money wasn’t a issue I’d have all kinds of fenders, 3 or 4 of each. Just with this tele it checks all the boxes I need in a tele. I mean a esquire would be cool, a deluxe tele with a couple wide range pickups, yes I’d go for it. Maybe it’s just the 50’s style tele that I have covered.

 

[Uncle Salty]

I had three at one point. Now I have one. It's all I need.

 

[Lone Woof]

5 Teles, but none with a rosewood fretboard and no thin line. Guess I’m not done yet

 

[ThreeChordWonder]

One Fender Player, blue burst top, Fender gen4 Noiseless pickups.

One DIY, black double bound solid body with SD Hotrails.

One DIY barncaster with SD Little 59 bridge and Vintage Stack neck.

One DIY mahogany thinline with SD La Brea pickups.

One DIY solid about to be rebodied as a wine red thinline with SD Quarterpounders.

A third DIY thinline about to be started. It will have P90s.

Correction:

The solidbody (tobacco burst) that was going to be rebodied as a wine red thinline remains.

A wine red double bound bodied with SD Vintage Broadcasters was added, and the DIY thinline with P90s was finished, bringing the count to seven.

 

[felis]

Only one Tele, technically a Breezysound that made my 2007 Fender Baja, 1980s Hohner The Prinz and original1966 Fender Telecaster obsolete!

 

[soulman969]

I have a few Strats but only one tele. I don’t even look at any because I don’t think it would ever see any play time due to the one I have. Strats are Strats, all mine are very similar in specs but all sound/feel and play different I can justify buying more.

I think me being a bass player and searching for a certain tone, finally finding it with my current bass rig, I never look at any basses or bass amps ever. It’s the same with this tele, it’s tone, feel and build quality makes it so I don’t feel the need to look elsewhere because I know it probably won’t get played.

Anyone else have this feeling when it comes to a certain, guitar, bass or amp?

I'm the polar opposite of you. I have 4 Teles and a G&L ASAT Special and only one Strat. A Robert Cray model hardtail which is the only style Strat I said I would ever own. Not a fan of tremolo bridges on Fender guitars.

With me it's a Tele that's my Goldilocks guitar and feels just right ergonomically and tonally. I enjoy the Strat and play it enough to make owning it worthwhile but my preference will nearly always be a Tele whenever I have that choice.

But much like you I'm also primarily a bassist and now having converted mostly from Fenders to G&Ls and having rebuilt my entire bass rig about 3 years ago I'm no longer in the market for any new bass gear at all.

 

[Houdi Elbow]

I'm primarily a Gibson guy, but I have a couple of Strats and one Tele.. Its an AVRI 52. I do play it quite often, but have no plans to buy another Tele.
I agree with those who say it's a real workmanlike guitar, you can play most anything on a Tele, except maybe metal...... or can you??
But for me it fulfils all my Tele requirements, and its definately a keeper.

 

[Jimi Lightning]

Deleted.
I made an awesome post then realized I had already answered so I have deleted this on. Nothing to see here…

P.S Tele’s Rock!

 

[92 Fiesta Red 62]

I have two Telecasters, but to be blunt, they’re not anything alike, period.



Highly modified 1995 MIM Special Tele and a dead-stock 2007 MIM Telecaster Deluxe.

Body material, neck radiuses (radii?), pickup configuration, pickup type, electronics/tone & volume controls/switches, bridges, headstock, model name, even body shape (one slab, one belly-cut) are different…and neither of them are “standard” Telecasters.

I am (very slowly) putting together a Tele-esque partscaster—a pine Tele-style body with routing for a P-90 at the bridge, a Tele-style neck with rosewood fretboard, weird Rutters bridge…it’s gonna be more of a mashup of a Les Paul Junior and an Esquire…but that will be my third T-style guitar, albeit another non-standard one.

On my GAS list is a 1960’s-style Custom Telecaster (rosewood fretboard, bound body…it would have to be a reissue or a partscaster because…poverty) and a 1970’s-style Telecaster Custom (a lá Keef…would also have to be a RI for the same reason) and if a Thinline (‘69- or ‘72-style fell into my lap, I wouldn’t turn away…

So I could easily see myself with up to five more and/or different Telecasters.

But…truth be told, I’d probably end up playing my pinstriped Telecaster (first pic) more than any of them. And would be perfectly happy with just that one…it’s like the perfect pair of boots that works for every thing…the rest would be just for variety.

Having said that, I could only see myself with one other Stratocaster…I love the looks, sound and feel of the Jimmie Vaughan Tex-Mex Stratocaster…I’ve played two or three of them extensively (two of my friends have one) and they’re both super-cool; it also feels different enough from my Fiesta Red ‘62RI that I could justify it in my mind.

 

[Intune]

I'm the polar opposite of you. I have 4 Teles and a G&L ASAT Special and only one Strat. A Robert Cray model hardtail which is the only style Strat I said I would ever own. Not a fan of tremolo bridges on Fender guitars.

With me it's a Tele that's my Goldilocks guitar and feels just right ergonomically and tonally. I enjoy the Strat and play it enough to make owning it worthwhile but my preference will nearly always be a Tele whenever I have that choice.

But much like you I'm also primarily a bassist and now having converted mostly from Fenders to G&Ls and having rebuilt my entire bass rig about 3 years ago I'm no longer in the market for any new bass gear at all.

What’s your bass rig? It took me awhile to find the right set up. I knew the fat Motown bass tone I was after I just couldn’t get it, close but not thumping with lots of control. The control part is mainly my job but sometimes you can keep the overtones under control.

A ampeg svt with the 8x10 cabinet and CS 60 pbass did it for more me. I don’t even look at basses or amps. This set up for me does it all.

 

[soulman969]

What’s your bass rig? It took me awhile to find the right set up. I knew the fat Motown bass tone I was after I just couldn’t get it, close but not thumping with lots of control. The control part is mainly my job but sometimes you can keep the overtones under control.

A ampeg svt with the 8x10 cabinet and CS 60 pbass did it for more me. I don’t even look at basses or amps. This set up for me does it all.

My days of owning an SVT with refrigerator size and weight 8x10 cab have been over for decades although I did once own one for a brief period of time. But I'm still a fan of the Ampeg sound.

The head I found that came closest to that is a TC Electronic RH750 and I have two Epifani cabs. One is a UL Series 2 with two 12" neo speakers. The other is an Epifani 1x12 cab with a ceramic speaker. The 2x12 cab fits the head and old school sound well.

Since the RH750 can't handle a 2 ohm load I also have a Carvin BX500 head I can use with both cabs if I choose to. I sincerely doubt I'll ever need anything quite that big again but it does give me some flexibility and the convenience of leaving one head and a cab at a studio or practice space if I need to. The TC head does Ampeg tonality pretty well. The Carvin is a bit more modern.

As usual I do have a PBass strung with LaBella Flats and two G&L Basses. One is an M2000 active with twin MFD pickups and the other is a Kiloton with a single MFD pickup. I sold my L2500 five string when I felt I wasn't ever gonna use it enough any longer.

After many years of playing Fender Basses along with a few others I switched over to G&L and I actually like them more. In reality they're still Fender inspired basses but more of what Leo would have created at Fender had he never sold the company.

 

[StratUp]

Oh yeah if money wasn’t a issue I’d have all kinds of fenders, 3 or 4 of each. Just with this tele it checks all the boxes I need in a tele. I mean a esquire would be cool, a deluxe tele with a couple wide range pickups, yes I’d go for it. Maybe it’s just the 50’s style tele that I have covered.

I recently played a Squier CV Deluxe Tele. Very nice instrument, nicely built, would help out your GAS problem for just over $400. Not that I'm an enabler.

 

[StratUp]

I have two Telecasters, but to be blunt, they’re not anything alike, period.

View attachment 565018 View attachment 565019

Highly modified 1995 MIM Special Tele and a dead-stock 2007 MIM Telecaster Deluxe.

Body material, neck radiuses (radii?), pickup configuration, pickup type, electronics/tone & volume controls/switches, bridges, headstock, model name, even body shape (one slab, one belly-cut) are different…and neither of them are “standard” Telecasters.

I am (very slowly) putting together a Tele-esque partscaster—a pine Tele-style body with routing for a P-90 at the bridge, a Tele-style neck with rosewood fretboard, weird Rutters bridge…it’s gonna be more of a mashup of a Les Paul Junior and an Esquire…but that will be my third T-style guitar, albeit another non-standard one.

On my GAS list is a 1960’s-style Custom Telecaster (rosewood fretboard, bound body…it would have to be a reissue or a partscaster because…poverty) and a 1970’s-style Telecaster Custom (a lá Keef…would also have to be a RI for the same reason) and if a Thinline (‘69- or ‘72-style fell into my lap, I wouldn’t turn away…

So I could easily see myself with up to five more and/or different Telecasters.

But…truth be told, I’d probably end up playing my pinstriped Telecaster (first pic) more than any of them. And would be perfectly happy with just that one…it’s like the perfect pair of boots that works for every thing…the rest would be just for variety.

Having said that, I could only see myself with one other Stratocaster…I love the looks, sound and feel of the Jimmie Vaughan Tex-Mex Stratocaster…I’ve played two or three of them extensively (two of my friends have one) and they’re both super-cool; it also feels different enough from my Fiesta Red ‘62RI that I could justify it in my mind.

Whoa... that dude is playing with an ashtray in place! They said that was impossible!

 

[Intune]

My days of owning an SVT with refrigerator size and weight 8x10 cab have been over for decades although I did once own one for a brief period of time. But I'm still a fan of the Ampeg sound.

The head I found that came closest to that is a TC Electronic RH750 and I have two Epifani cabs. One is a UL Series 2 with two 12" neo speakers. The other is an Epifani 1x12 cab with a ceramic speaker. The 2x12 cab fits the head and old school sound well.

Since the RH750 can't handle a 2 ohm load I also have a Carvin BX500 head I can use with both cabs if I choose to. I sincerely doubt I'll ever need anything quite that big again but it does give me some flexibility and the convenience of leaving one head and a cab at a studio or practice space if I need to. The TC head does Ampeg tonality pretty well. The Carvin is a bit more modern.

As usual I do have a PBass strung with LaBella Flats and two G&L Basses. One is an M2000 active with twin MFD pickups and the other is a Kiloton with a single MFD pickup. I sold my L2500 five string when I felt I wasn't ever gonna use it enough any longer.

After many years of playing Fender Basses along with a few others I switched over to G&L and I actually like them more. In reality they're still Fender inspired basses but more of what Leo would have created at Fender had he never sold the company.

I’ve always had a Traynor yba300 with the 8x10 cabinet. It was great but was always missing something. So I found this 90’s svt and instantly I knew what the Traynor was missing. Just a fat but controllable bottom end. I too have La Bella flats but the low tension version.

For the style of music we play this amp covers it all very well. It also never leaves the basement, which is where everyone comes over to jam anyway.

 

[Intune]

I recently played a Squier CV Deluxe Tele. Very nice instrument, nicely built, would help out your GAS problem for just over $400. Not that I'm an enabler.

Funny you say that because I’d love to have one of those. Any of the CV series stuff is awesome.

 

[Slacker G]

It just isn't right to own just one Tele. My Strats have several friends to keep them company so they are happy. But Tele's also need friends so they don't feel unloved. And that's all I have to say about it, so don't be cruel. Nuff said.

 

[Intune]

It just isn't right to own just one Tele. My Strats have several friends to keep them company so they are happy. But Tele's also need friends so they don't feel unloved. And that's all I have to say about it, so don't be cruel. Nuff said.

That was kind of my point for this thread. I had more than one tele. The one I have now always got neglected because the newest to the group got the most attention.

Then I’d pick up my broadcaster and play it, I’d quickly forget about the others. Those others slowly got sold off. I just found the others very similar but still this one did what the others could do but just a little better.

I mean if the others were so different then yeah I’m sure I’d still have them. I guess my tele needs gets me very similar guitars so maybe a drastically different tele is what I need?

 

[Mike Manhost67]