@Ben Hackett Amen to that! I have two CV Thinline Teles. Each weights in at 6lb 10oz. Like the look of the 60s CV Custom Tele, believe that is around 8 to 8.5lb - not too bad. Apparently the 50s CV Teles in pine can be heavier/variable. I used to have an Epi Les Paul Standard...9lb10oz! Replaced that boat anchor with a semi-hollow Epi Les Paul ES Pro @ 7lb. Lightest electric I ever owned was a full size hollow body Epi Casino @ 6lb 6oz.
I think the best cheap/affordable teles are any of the Squier Classic Vibe guitars. They go beyond being just a good practice instrument and could easily be a person's main guitar. Although not the least expensive telecaster available, I think they are worth the extra investment, and offer exceptional value :)
+Darrell Braun I'll +1 that I really like my special (now discontinued not the humbucker one) had a JM neck pickup and Duncan designed, looking into the Bill Lawrence pickups hence why I'm looking at your videos.
+Darrell Braun Just fought I'd add I do have upper market guitars to compare to as well and when I said special, I meant a vintage modified telecaster special.
Nice review! You can hear subtle differences. To each his own Tele! For me it's the thinline, it's got a "juicier" tone and the look is so cool. I bought the natural mahogany one, and I love the stock pickups. The neck pickup with tone rolled down can rival any jazz -box guitar out there.
That, and the mahogany body definitely make it overall sound a lot mellower than the other two by far! All great guitars to compare nonetheless! Next up, a Fender American Standard vs Japanese Standard! (Both stock, in order to solve the answers to a lot of other guitarists' burning questions about the comparisons between the two on both quality AND price).
Wow the sound of the thinline in all the contexts you presented is a revelation to me....definitely changed my mind as to which one I want to buy. Thank you so much for this informative, superbly conceptualized and produced video.
+Higgins2001 my wife went grocery shopping,she came home and my 5 best were hanging up in a row on a custom made guitar rack,its made out of pine and cost $20 in materials.there are 3 les pauls also hanging up elsewhere in my little picture
Haha!!!! Look at you in 2015. Quite the progression to 2022 my friend. Bravo and good on you. You never over did it, or tried to be something you're not. You deserve what you've worked for, and I've gleaned some interesting tips even though I've been at it since you were a glint in daddy's eye. Pro tip.......Have beer and play. Relax and see what happens. As weird as this sounds, I've done some of my best, on time, creative playing after a couple of pops. I've recorded it to make sure also.
Your videos are always perfectly made, very informative and with awesome sound. Your playing is amazing and really cleverly organized (talking about phrases and passages). One of my favourite reviewers out there! Congratulations!
I am deleting all my other guitar links on TH-cam and keeping this one. Thanks Darrell for the great videos. So educational, respectful and no nonsense. I appreciate this greatly bro!
I bought a Squire Classic Vibe Custom Tele about 4 years ago. I've played it every Sunday at church and about every day for that time period. It has been a reliable instrument I can count on. I sanded that lacquer off of the back of the neck, and changed the action to make it lower. It plays amazing for the 399 dollars, I paid for it and I'm now looking to put a set of hot rails in it for the time being.
Did you put hot rails in in? How do they compare to the original pickups? I've read that many people prefer originals since it really does have that tele sound. But heavier things should sound better on hot rails.
Just fantastic. Your disciplined apples-to-apples comparisons are fantastic on their own, but I'm continually amazed by your chops across instruments and genres. Thanks for another great video!
I wouldn't call them Cheap. Cheap will mean quality as well and neither of those Teles are Cheap in quality build. I'd call them inexpensive good instruments.
Darrell , I own all three guitars in stock form. Just picked up a new thinline on thursday. I absolutely LOVE all three of these guitars. I own lots of HIGH dollar Fenders , Gibson etc, and I would put these guitars up against any of them. They stay in tune MUCH better than any of my GIbsons , they play and sound as good as my Deluxe American made Tele at a fraction of the cost. Now dont get me wrong , I love my other guitars but these guitars are so damn good that it is very hard to justify the cost difference between these three and the high dollar alternatives. I seriously love my Squires and there should be no doubt in anyones mind about purchasing one of these guitars. I am WAY beyond what it say on the headstock and more about how you make it sound and play. It really blows my mind that fender can make these excellent guitars and sell them for such little money. Are we at the point where an CNC machine is more consistant in making better guitars than a human. I cannot find any fault in either of my squires and as a matter of fact find them sensational to play. I gig out with them and they sound fantastic through a Fender deluxe reverb reissue. I understand the desire to own certain iconic expensive guitars, Ive done that , but make no mistake, these Squires are no joke , they are the real deal and look, and sound and play as good as any of the HIGH dollar guitars that I own. We are very fortunate to be living in a time when you dont have to spend a fortune to get a GREAT guitar. That was not the case 30 years ago.
Great comparison. The thinline has a great sound for sure, but with those pickups you lose that twang sound with the bridge pickup that makes a telecaster what it is. I own that classic vibe custom and I'm so happy with it i dont know why i would pay 3 or 4 times the price just to have "fender" written on the headstock :-P
All three are fine examples of the most basic and most underrated guitar. Great playing as well. It's not just a country guitar! It's a great rock guitar. There's not much that a Tele can't do in my humble opinion.
In my opinion the best was the first Squier. By the sound, and how it looks. I dont think that Mexican Telecaster is really a cheap guitar. I would consider it as medium priced guitar.
Yeah but i though about the word cheap. In my opinion cheap is up to 500 dollars, above is mediocre price till 1200 dollars and above 1200 dollars i consider it expensive...
Joe Shmoe Exactly, I have the cheapest of the cheap, an affinity tele, I put Bare Knuckle Country Boy pickups in it, it is now by far the best sounding of all my tele's, the neck is awesome, now my go to guitar!
@Sanjeet There is a Tele on the market with EMGs on it. I believe it’s the Jim Root Signature. Specter Sound Studios made a video about using Teles for metal.
Now this is a very good comparison, with beautifully played notes. First important point: all these guitars, when the pickups are upgraded, sound pretty decent... The second point is, and I've learned it the expensive way, It is only whe you play with a backing track that you can really appreciate the different tone. The same goes with pedals, Sometimes, the one that sounds the best alone, competes in frequencies with the other instruments, etc. This is a great way to compare instruments. Helpful video. Thank you
Looking to buy my first electric guitar and your channel has been incredibly helpful in having such a variety of different guitars fully reviewed. I appreciate you.
That Bill Lawrence neck sounds amazing, the classic vibe customer bridge sounds the most twangy, more "authentic" and the thinline overall sounds great- Awesome video cheers bud
I think I preferred the 1st sunburst model out of them all. I hated the sound of the Tele Thinline until I heard it in the mix as a lead instrument and then I just loved it. The 3rd white guitar had a bit of the 1st Tele's stringiness (is that a word?), but I think I preferred the 1st sunburst model over all. It sounded more of what I think of when I think Tele. -Thanks!
They sounded so close I'd go with the best player every time vs trying to here a difference I could hear. thanks for the demo. The thinline had the biggest distinction to me. But it was not so big a difference. I would have included a couple of G & L because price wise the tribute is less than the fender MIM and we might hear a bigger difference. Or compare the fender MIA to the Squire and MIM tele.
They're all great sounding and well played. Also beyond my current budget, so I took a different route. I bought one of the newer Squier Affinity Telecasters. Because they can be hit and miss, I made sure to buy one I played in person so that I knew it was the one I was happy with. I spent just a little bit of extra cash to work it up from there and it really is a pretty decent guitar. I actually turned it into a bit of a "nocaster" replica by changing a couple parts to the vintage style and altering the wiring scheme.
that thinline sounded amazing. ive been a snob for years (my #1 guitar is an R8 les paul) but lately i have been getting into cheaper guitars (made in china casino) and classic vibe jazz bass. next up is this squire thinline
Sin sin sinner the MIM does sound best but the Thinline doesn't sound anything like a Strat. I have the thinline as well as 4 Strats, they are totally different. I built a Tele copy that is better than all of these. The thinline sounds like it's overdriven. Mine sounds the same. A cheap cure is a Behringer Tube Modeler in clean mode.
Yeah one is a Fender and the other is a Fender and one has single coil pickups and other has single coil pickups one has a 25.5 scale and the other has a 25.5 how in world could they sound similar maybe its just you tube
Sin sin sinner The Tele sounds like a Strat (well pretty close) when you add a middle pickup and use 7 way switching....it's close just not quite as crisp as a Strat due to the bridge pickup on the Strat not going thru a tone pot. Add a switch to run the bridge pickup thru a tone pot and it sounds pretty much the same as a Tele. I have one of my Strats set up this way.
Sin sin sinner hmm...I don't have a volume drop......I actually adjusted my pickup heights so I don't have one..interesting. maybe it isn't that you bridge pickup is too low but rather the middle and neck are too high....just a thought.
I like all these... i believe that are "multi-use", but i can say: 1)Vibe sunbust: is the perfect balance, i think is very blues, rock blues, country, rock country.. and other styles. 2)Thinline: sweet, good to jazz, also sounds some acoustic (ok, and others rythms also) 3)Sound basic i'm thinking in electric roc'n'roll with some overdrive... "Me quedo con las tres", bur, for me: thinline...(it´s subjetive, maybe not the best, but i like more than others)
The best sounding one is whichever is most comfortable to play. Better playing is more important than better pickups/neck/wood. If one is more inspiring or more comfortable, then you will play better, and that makes it the better guitar. For me it's one with contour carves. Modern Player maybe, or a hard-tail strat with tele pickup config and bridge... But to each their own!
the thinline sounded rounder and fuller, the first and third ones sounded virtually identical, with the MiM maybe just *very slightly* louder. Good deal for Squier. Man, sub-$500 guitars have come such a long way in the last ten years!
The stock Squier had the most chime - the Thin Line bridge sound a little muddy and the MIM sounded maybe the most balanced BUT every player might prefer one over the other. A comprehensive setup and a few mods can turn a cheap guitar into a very nice guitar.
To my ears the Thinline is the best sounding. I don't know how much is due to the Texas Specials but I'm very impressed. What surprises me is the MIM with the Keystones. I've read so many rave reviews of them yet the stock pickups (which are made by Tonerider) on the CVC sound better to me. I have a CVC and I can attest to how well made they are except for the nut which is some odd plasticky material that was crudely made. I replaced it with a Graphtech TUSQ. Also replaced the bridge and saddles with a Rutter bridge and brass saddles. Truth be told, though, I could have lived happily with the guitar bone stock. Really well done comparison and some fine playing. Thank-you.
I preferred the Mexitele - It had more tele sound in all positions. And the bridge had a lot of bite. The middle position was the best position though for me, on all of them.
I love the way you made this video, showing clearly the skills of these nice Teles. I love the sound of the Thin Line, full and rich. Thanks for the great job!
I thought the Fender one would be best in all position, but the Thinline sounds better; pretty and sweet in all positions. The Classic Vibe Custon is pretty good at all. For me, Thinline Wins
I remember thinking that I'd hit the jackpot when I got my first MIM strat in 99. Around 2008 I got a US Standard Strat new, with tags and 'storage patina' and everything. The first time I put my hands on that satin neck with the perfect frets.. plugged it in and damn. The tone was perfect. PERFECT. I felt like Hank freakin Marvin. I vividly remember plugging in to a vintage Vox AC30 and cranking the reverb and playing some surf stuff and then some Rose Chronicles melodic stuff. It just nailed all my mental expectations. I had to admit that at that moment I knew that US made Fender meant real *genuine* quality. Fast forward to 2019.. man how they've diluted and dismantled that proud heritage .. sheesh. Don't get me wrong, Fender still make great stuff, but the prices and the quality.. ugh. Its like that line from Cohen: "Won't be anything you can measure anymore."
another vote for the MIM. That's the only one that really sounds Tele, not worst or better than the others, but definitively Tele (especially noticeable during the solos with backing). Very pedagogic video, well done. Thanks
Thanks for this comparison! Your comparison are far more realistic than the razzle dazzlerippers that believe this offers insight into the strong or bad points of a guitar. Forever searching for that tone..Next guitar.ikeus
Hi. I have the mahogany thinline. I took the terrible pearloid pick guard OFF and put a BLACK one on and it looks fantastic. I screwed the bridge pickup down to be less chimney. I play it a lot. It is comfortable, light weight and practically plays itself. Out of all my guitars, this is the one I go to.
Thanks for posting this Darrell! All the guitars sounded good and so did your playing. The first CV sounded a bit thin in the bridge position. Other than that I would be proud to own any one of these three guitars. The CV thinline sounded really good with the replacement pickups and I am guessing that the first CV would also sound better with a pickup upgrade. Keep up the good work. It was very informative and non-biases. Cheers from Canada.
None of them sound better than the other. Just different from each other. All Three are great. You can take 3 of the exact same American made Fenders and they will sound different from each other. The key is, what sound do you want. Where it is made is inconsequential.
I would take the MIM tele and have Donald Trump pay for it. Classic Player MIM telecaster is the best value Fender makes. Drop in some Porter or Jason Lollar pickups and you've got a custom shop guitar. Stock aren't too bad either. Nice demo.
GREAT video- so helpful. I appreciate that you kept the talk to the minimum and gave us the chance to really soak in the sound. I also appreciate that you did not incorporate pedals or try to compare a "dirty" sound. Using DSP you can make almost any guitar sound like anything. For me, the Thinline is the clear winner. The roundness of the tone without sacrificing much (if any) clarity really speaks to me. What I can't tell is how much of that is attributable to the Texas pickups vs. stock. The MIM is a nice sound too, but even if at the same price I would go for the Thinline sound. To me, the Classic Vibe Squire (1st guitar) sounded tinny compared to the other two.
Nice and informative video. I looked for a thinline#1 and a 60's custom #2, and was lucky enough to find the 60's custom on Craig'slist for 200. It was a hours drive away on the interstate but worth it to me. I had a time frame to make it to the address in an unfamiliar town of an hour and a half. I stopped to get gas and had passenger window rolled 3/4 way down, and when I opened my door to get out, the wind blew my postit note off the dash and out the door, and it was gone with the wind. Only vaugley familiar with the area, I could remember enough from the phone conversation to narrow the house down to a one block area. So I went knocking on doors. No luck, until the last house. I talked to a very grumpy individual that was very tight lipped, and had no guitar for sale. I went back to my car and thought about it, and decided that had to be the house. so I knocked again, and the guy was rude again, I told him I had driven over an hour in a hurry to make it there and I was 10 minutes late, and I was pretty sure this had to be the place. He then said his room mate played guitar, but he didn't know if he had any for sale. I ended up at the library emailing the guy from info off my phone to a PC in a last ditch attempt to contact him. He did respond back and had got called into work, and said he'd come back and make the deal. I bought it and installed a set of Nocaster's in it and a set of wilkinson saddels I had laying around it is a great guitar. And I'm still looknig for that thinline.
I love the Teles! They're all gorgeous guitars with their own unique sound. If I had to pick between the three...I think I'd go with the thin line. It's got such a beautiful finish and I like the semi hollow body...sweet!👍😎🎸🎶
Refrets on rosewood necks (without bindings that is) are much cheaper, when it ever would come to that... You can skip the whole clearcoat sanding and refin. I love the sight and sound of a nice maple neck, but the maintenance is complicated. On unfinished tropical hardwood fretboards you can use some 0000 steelwool and a drop of oil and it will look as new.
I just come from the shop after trying the vibe line, both maple and rosewood neck. Visually I prefer the maple (dang, so clear and somehow easier to play, why??) but the sound is much brighter with the rosewood. I will have to go with the sound.
I bought the Classic Vibe Tele identical to the one in this video. I got it used for $185.00 dollars and it was super clean no nicks or anything. I absolutely love it. I do feel that the vintage style bridge has a lot to do with the real tele sound. I don't think I would change anything. The neck is a bit thin but, no biggie.
Never mind the Tele's - how about those beautiful pocket doors in the background. Wow. I just sold off my Fender Deluxe Player Thinline Tele and upgraded to a MIM Classic Player Baja and couldn't be happier. Great comparison video.
I thought so too but if you have headphones and/or listen very very closely you can hear the kitty meow just as he walks up to the door. My cat does the same thing, whenever she comes to inspect what I am doing she gives off this like greeting meow lol
Oh okay I'm still not sure because of the tail, the way he walke top the door, its tail was in a stiff curl and correct me if I'm wrong but i think cat tails move around in a distinct way and a certain shape lol
Thanks for this video. You do great work -- your videos are a service to guitar players everywhere!
Frank Dempsey IMDb
Instablaster.
That thin line sounds absolutely gorgeous!
+Dom Hudson Agreed. I want one now :)
I bought one for around £380 and it's my favourite guitar for playing clean.
I have the exact one.. it plays just as nice as it sounds
You can’t go wrong with Texas Specials
@@clambert2370 Do you have stock pickups???
My heart say's the Thinline but my ears say the MIM.
Same
Agreed! Trust those ears, John.
@Ben Hackett Amen to that! I have two CV Thinline Teles. Each weights in at 6lb 10oz. Like the look of the 60s CV Custom Tele, believe that is around 8 to 8.5lb - not too bad. Apparently the 50s CV Teles in pine can be heavier/variable. I used to have an Epi Les Paul Standard...9lb10oz! Replaced that boat anchor with a semi-hollow Epi Les Paul ES Pro @ 7lb. Lightest electric I ever owned was a full size hollow body Epi Casino @ 6lb 6oz.
I agree. I'm torn between the two.
I think the best cheap/affordable teles are any of the Squier Classic Vibe guitars. They go beyond being just a good practice instrument and could easily be a person's main guitar. Although not the least expensive telecaster available, I think they are worth the extra investment, and offer exceptional value :)
Nice demo dig the double stops
+shuggy1110 Thanks :)
+Darrell Braun I'll +1 that I really like my special (now discontinued not the humbucker one) had a JM neck pickup and Duncan designed, looking into the Bill Lawrence pickups hence why I'm looking at your videos.
+Darrell Braun Just fought I'd add I do have upper market guitars to compare to as well and when I said special, I meant a vintage modified telecaster special.
+Ashley Smith Thanks! If you want a longer demo of the Bill Lawrence tele pickups, I posted one here: th-cam.com/video/xSkY0VbePGw/w-d-xo.html
Nice review! You can hear subtle differences. To each his own Tele! For me it's the thinline, it's got a "juicier" tone and the look is so cool. I bought the natural mahogany one, and I love the stock pickups. The neck pickup with tone rolled down can rival any jazz -box guitar out there.
great vid. i think the thinline sounds best to my ears by far
Thanks! The Texas Special pickups definitely give it a much darker/bluesier tone.
That, and the mahogany body definitely make it overall sound a lot mellower than the other two by far! All great guitars to compare nonetheless!
Next up, a Fender American Standard vs Japanese Standard! (Both stock, in order to solve the answers to a lot of other guitarists' burning questions about the comparisons between the two on both quality AND price).
Darien Cruz Music I totally agree.
+Darien Cruz Music me too I have a MM tele, but, the thinline just sounds a little better to my ears. Great Playing Darrell
+Darien Cruz Music my fav. would be the white one...in this special case
The cat peeking in at him 7:15 made me laugh.
+Carol Stevens that looked like a cool cat to me ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
+Carol Stevens lol, I think it is a dog
+Vitor Schmaltz Agree. Chihuahua
Your cat barks !?
It's a dog woman!
Wow the sound of the thinline in all the contexts you presented is a revelation to me....definitely changed my mind as to which one I want to buy. Thank you so much for this informative, superbly conceptualized and produced video.
+fueradeljuego Glad to help!
If you could make a video of "how to convince your wife to let you wall mount your guitars," I'd be much obliged
Great playing btw :D
+Higgins2001 Hahaha! Every musician needs a sweet music room :)
+Higgins2001
my wife went grocery shopping,she came home and my 5 best were hanging up in a row on a custom made guitar rack,its made out of pine and cost $20 in materials.there are 3 les pauls also hanging up elsewhere in my little picture
+wayne smith Nice!
+wayne smith And now you are hanging from the same guitar rack. Oops!
Be a man ? Lol need to get your balls back I see
Haha!!!! Look at you in 2015. Quite the progression to 2022 my friend. Bravo and good on you. You never over did it, or tried to be something you're not. You deserve what you've worked for, and I've gleaned some interesting tips even though I've been at it since you were a glint in daddy's eye. Pro tip.......Have beer and play. Relax and see what happens. As weird as this sounds, I've done some of my best, on time, creative playing after a couple of pops. I've recorded it to make sure also.
Your videos are always perfectly made, very informative and with awesome sound.
Your playing is amazing and really cleverly organized (talking about phrases and passages).
One of my favourite reviewers out there!
Congratulations!
+fatal diz Wow thanks! I'm glad you enjoy the videos and I really appreciate the kind words!
I am deleting all my other guitar links on TH-cam and keeping this one. Thanks Darrell for the great videos. So educational, respectful and no nonsense. I appreciate this greatly bro!
ThinLine is all in all a blast in every way,sounds more vintage and warm than other two. I would say ThinLine is winner here.
I bought a Squire Classic Vibe Custom Tele about 4 years ago. I've played it every Sunday at church and about every day for that time period. It has been a reliable instrument I can count on. I sanded that lacquer off of the back of the neck, and changed the action to make it lower. It plays amazing for the 399 dollars, I paid for it and I'm now looking to put a set of hot rails in it for the time being.
Did you put hot rails in in? How do they compare to the original pickups? I've read that many people prefer originals since it really does have that tele sound. But heavier things should sound better on hot rails.
Just fantastic. Your disciplined apples-to-apples comparisons are fantastic on their own, but I'm continually amazed by your chops across instruments and genres. Thanks for another great video!
Thanks for the kind words JH!
Looks like I'm the only one here who prefers the trebly Classic Vibe Custom :o
Hahaha dude I'm right there with you. I thought the samething
+Webster, constructions et jurons me too
+Webster, constructions et jurons Hey I love the Classic Vibe Custom, it is a great guitar
Shit I'm right there with you. Sounded way better and it had a nicer low end I felt too
+Webster, constructions et jurons Oh my. I ***need*** a thinline now!!!
Well the thinline was best , then the Mexican, then the squire, that was for my ears anyway.
Yeah, I'm torn between the Thinking and the MIM.
I wouldn't call them Cheap. Cheap will mean quality as well and neither of those Teles are Cheap in quality build. I'd call them inexpensive good instruments.
classic vibes are great little guitars!
Darrell , I own all three guitars in stock form. Just picked up a new thinline on thursday. I absolutely LOVE all three of these guitars. I own lots of HIGH dollar Fenders , Gibson etc, and I would put these guitars up against any of them. They stay in tune MUCH better than any of my GIbsons , they play and sound as good as my Deluxe American made Tele at a fraction of the cost. Now dont get me wrong , I love my other guitars but these guitars are so damn good that it is very hard to justify the cost difference between these three and the high dollar alternatives. I seriously love my Squires and there should be no doubt in anyones mind about purchasing one of these guitars. I am WAY beyond what it say on the headstock and more about how you make it sound and play. It really blows my mind that fender can make these excellent guitars and sell them for such little money. Are we at the point where an CNC machine is more consistant in making better guitars than a human. I cannot find any fault in either of my squires and as a matter of fact find them sensational to play. I gig out with them and they sound fantastic through a Fender deluxe reverb reissue. I understand the desire to own certain iconic expensive guitars, Ive done that , but make no mistake, these Squires are no joke , they are the real deal and look, and sound and play as good as any of the HIGH dollar guitars that I own. We are very fortunate to be living in a time when you dont have to spend a fortune to get a GREAT guitar. That was not the case 30 years ago.
That thinline is like butter. I want to hear the stock pickups for it, though, for a real comparison between the two CVs.
hi I m an oldie begineer and few months ago I bought the squier cvc and i m very happy.you confirm I made a good choise..thanks for your nice videos
I love the thinline for the neck position and the classic vibe standard for the bridge position
Great demo. I like the Thinline w/ Texas Specials ! Nice playing .
+Mchael Hron Thanks! Glad you found it helpful :)
Great comparison. The thinline has a great sound for sure, but with those pickups you lose that twang sound with the bridge pickup that makes a telecaster what it is. I own that classic vibe custom and I'm so happy with it i dont know why i would pay 3 or 4 times the price just to have "fender" written on the headstock :-P
All three are fine examples of the most basic and most underrated guitar. Great playing as well. It's not just a country guitar! It's a great rock guitar. There's not much that a Tele can't do in my humble opinion.
A№4
the sweet spot on that Thinline...wow.
U do the best comparisons I can find online, thanks a lot
+David Munoz No problem!
Glad you're enjoying the channel 😀👍
In my opinion the best was the first Squier. By the sound, and how it looks. I dont think that Mexican Telecaster is really a cheap guitar. I would consider it as medium priced guitar.
Steve Harrier you have to think in terms of prices teles come at which can be up to $2000
Yeah but i though about the word cheap. In my opinion cheap is up to 500 dollars, above is mediocre price till 1200 dollars and above 1200 dollars i consider it expensive...
Steve Harrier you can get I Mexican telecaster for about $400 and less used
Well, yes but it would be second hand. Im talking about brand new guitars...
UP TO 6000 just played a masterbuilt yesdterday amazing guitar but 6k
really liked the thinline. But the mexican tele had the best balance between warmth and twang. the CV custom sounded kinda thin i think
buy a cheap telecaster and put some nice pickups in it. you need nothing else
Joe Shmoe
Exactly, I have the cheapest of the cheap, an affinity tele, I put Bare Knuckle Country Boy pickups in it, it is now by far the best sounding of all my tele's, the neck is awesome, now my go to guitar!
Well, you'd need an amp, but....
Can tele be used for metal ? If we install humbuckers?
@Sanjeet There is a Tele on the market with EMGs on it. I believe it’s the Jim Root Signature. Specter Sound Studios made a video about using Teles for metal.
Emmanuel Medina thanks a ton there , I saw one cover by Anton Khoff of the song Wrong side of heaven and he used the same guitar for that :)
Now this is a very good comparison, with beautifully played notes.
First important point: all these guitars, when the pickups are upgraded, sound pretty decent...
The second point is, and I've learned it the expensive way, It is only whe you play with a backing track that you can really appreciate the different tone. The same goes with pedals, Sometimes, the one that sounds the best alone, competes in frequencies with the other instruments, etc.
This is a great way to compare instruments. Helpful video.
Thank you
The double bound classic vibe with stock pups sounds the best.
Always fancied a Thinline.Might make it a Squier............
That Fender Thinline with those Texas Special Pickups sounds absolutely delicious 😋
Looking to buy my first electric guitar and your channel has been incredibly helpful in having such a variety of different guitars fully reviewed. I appreciate you.
I liked the MIM tele. I have a MIM strat, it's a high quality guitar with a nice warm sound.
That Bill Lawrence neck sounds amazing, the classic vibe customer bridge sounds the most twangy, more "authentic" and the thinline overall sounds great- Awesome video cheers bud
Thin line sounded best to me. Nice job
+David Wittman Thanks!
The CV Thinline with the TX Specials ..... wow .. must have ! Great vid , bro .
I think I preferred the 1st sunburst model out of them all. I hated the sound of the Tele Thinline until I heard it in the mix as a lead instrument and then I just loved it. The 3rd white guitar had a bit of the 1st Tele's stringiness (is that a word?), but I think I preferred the 1st sunburst model over all. It sounded more of what I think of when I think Tele.
-Thanks!
Thank you Darrell for this very useful demonstration and great guitar playing.
Thanks, glad you liked it!
They sounded so close I'd go with the best player every time vs trying to here a difference I could hear. thanks for the demo. The thinline had the biggest distinction to me. But it was not so big a difference. I would have included a couple of G & L because price wise the tribute is less than the fender MIM and we might hear a bigger difference. Or compare the fender MIA to the Squire and MIM tele.
Sweetest playing you’ve shown us so far, homie. Please, do continue, amigo. Seriously, man. This is very good.
They're all great sounding and well played. Also beyond my current budget, so I took a different route. I bought one of the newer Squier Affinity Telecasters. Because they can be hit and miss, I made sure to buy one I played in person so that I knew it was the one I was happy with. I spent just a little bit of extra cash to work it up from there and it really is a pretty decent guitar. I actually turned it into a bit of a "nocaster" replica by changing a couple parts to the vintage style and altering the wiring scheme.
That was great,for me, the Thinline got my attention slightly more than the other two.
Very helpful video.
Many thanks from the UK.
Thanks! I'm glad you liked it :)
The white tele sounded beautiful, hell they all sounded great!
Best comparison video I've heard. You gave an equal workout for each guitar.
that thinline sounded amazing. ive been a snob for years (my #1 guitar is an R8 les paul) but lately i have been getting into cheaper guitars (made in china casino) and classic vibe jazz bass. next up is this squire thinline
I'll take them all! They're all beautiful sounding in their own way. Thank You! Great wall display.
The thinline sounds more like a strat imo and the MIM sounds best to me
Sin sin sinner the MIM does sound best but the Thinline doesn't sound anything like a Strat. I have the thinline as well as 4 Strats, they are totally different. I built a Tele copy that is better than all of these. The thinline sounds like it's overdriven. Mine sounds the same. A cheap cure is a Behringer Tube Modeler in clean mode.
Yeah one is a Fender and the other is a Fender and one has single coil pickups and other has single coil pickups one has a 25.5 scale and the other has a 25.5 how in world could they sound similar maybe its just you tube
Sin sin sinner The Tele sounds like a Strat (well pretty close) when you add a middle pickup and use 7 way switching....it's close just not quite as crisp as a Strat due to the bridge pickup on the Strat not going thru a tone pot. Add a switch to run the bridge pickup thru a tone pot and it sounds pretty much the same as a Tele. I have one of my Strats set up this way.
the bridge pickup on a tele definitely has its own sound and I find it doesn't have the volume drop like the bridge on a strat
Sin sin sinner hmm...I don't have a volume drop......I actually adjusted my pickup heights so I don't have one..interesting. maybe it isn't that you bridge pickup is too low but rather the middle and neck are too high....just a thought.
Thanks for your time, effort and videos! Always enjoyable and educational!
I like all these... i believe that are "multi-use", but i can say:
1)Vibe sunbust: is the perfect balance, i think is very blues, rock blues, country, rock country.. and other styles.
2)Thinline: sweet, good to jazz, also sounds some acoustic (ok, and others rythms also)
3)Sound basic i'm thinking in electric roc'n'roll with some overdrive...
"Me quedo con las tres", bur, for me: thinline...(it´s subjetive, maybe not the best, but i like more than others)
Same exact opinion here1
same, i like the thinline better tho
A very good demonstration playing the same tunes on each guitar makes makes the comparison very easy unlike most demo's
+roger smith Thanks :)
The best sounding one is whichever is most comfortable to play. Better playing is more important than better pickups/neck/wood. If one is more inspiring or more comfortable, then you will play better, and that makes it the better guitar. For me it's one with contour carves. Modern Player maybe, or a hard-tail strat with tele pickup config and bridge... But to each their own!
That last jam session put me in a nice head space.
Sweet. Peace man!
The thinline sounds the best I think.
Dan Harville k
Real nice work on this comparison Darrell!
+im58woody Thanks!
the thinline sounded rounder and fuller, the first and third ones sounded virtually identical, with the MiM maybe just *very slightly* louder. Good deal for Squier. Man, sub-$500 guitars have come such a long way in the last ten years!
Small animal "photobomb" @ 7:19 was very enjoyable.
Guitar work was amazing!
Cool looking little animal!
+Jimmy Maya Thanks!
That was my little puppy checking out what I was up to :)
Thin line sounds so good!
+B McIsaac 😀👍
+B McIsaac 😀👍
Thanks for comparison!! Have played Thinline and it was beautiful light resonant guitar;-)
The stock Squier had the most chime - the Thin Line bridge sound a little muddy and the MIM sounded maybe the most balanced BUT every player might prefer one over the other. A comprehensive setup and a few mods can turn a cheap guitar into a very nice guitar.
Great comparision video! And great appearence of your red cat at 7:18! Thanks.
The thinline sounds amazing. I was unimpressed with the MIM
To my ears the Thinline is the best sounding. I don't know how much is due to the Texas Specials but I'm very impressed. What surprises me is the MIM with the Keystones. I've read so many rave reviews of them yet the stock pickups (which are made by Tonerider) on the CVC sound better to me.
I have a CVC and I can attest to how well made they are except for the nut which is some odd plasticky material that was crudely made. I replaced it with a Graphtech TUSQ. Also replaced the bridge and saddles with a Rutter bridge and brass saddles. Truth be told, though, I could have lived happily with the guitar bone stock.
Really well done comparison and some fine playing. Thank-you.
Thinline was a breath of fresh air.
Great comparison video. I prefer in this order - Thinline, Rosewood, then White Tele.
+James Gretsch Thanks!
Thank you for your work and uploading. The second guitar sounds like best in my opinion :)
My pleasure, glad you liked it!
I preferred the Mexitele - It had more tele sound in all positions. And the bridge had a lot of bite. The middle position was the best position though for me, on all of them.
I love the way you made this video, showing clearly the skills of these nice Teles. I love the sound of the Thin Line, full and rich. Thanks for the great job!
+WindOnMyWings I'm glad you enjoyed the video :) Teles are such great guitars!
+Darrell Braun Guitar You've got a new subscriber! ;)
+WindOnMyWings Thanks! I hope you enjoy the channel :)
I thought the Fender one would be best in all position, but the Thinline sounds better; pretty and sweet in all positions. The Classic Vibe Custon is pretty good at all. For me, Thinline Wins
I remember thinking that I'd hit the jackpot when I got my first MIM strat in 99.
Around 2008 I got a US Standard Strat new, with tags and 'storage patina' and everything.
The first time I put my hands on that satin neck with the perfect frets.. plugged it in and damn. The tone was perfect. PERFECT. I felt like Hank freakin Marvin. I vividly remember plugging in to a vintage Vox AC30 and cranking the reverb and playing some surf stuff and then some Rose Chronicles melodic stuff. It just nailed all my mental expectations. I had to admit that at that moment I knew that US made Fender meant real *genuine* quality.
Fast forward to 2019.. man how they've diluted and dismantled that proud heritage .. sheesh.
Don't get me wrong, Fender still make great stuff, but the prices and the quality.. ugh.
Its like that line from Cohen: "Won't be anything you can measure anymore."
I like #1 .... all around but the Thinline has some snap to it !!!
another vote for the MIM. That's the only one that really sounds Tele, not worst or better than the others, but definitively Tele (especially noticeable during the solos with backing). Very pedagogic video, well done. Thanks
I really want that thinline...
That Thin line sounds magical!! All are very nice sounding ....I would happily take any of them
Dog walks in at 17:17 and realizes you are jamming and walks away. Love it. Thanks for the video.
CoffeeDrinker71 its a cat lol and it's 7:17
Thanks for this comparison! Your comparison are far more realistic than the razzle dazzlerippers that believe this offers insight into the strong or bad points of a guitar. Forever searching for that tone..Next guitar.ikeus
Put the Bill Lawrence pups in the thinline
Hi. I have the mahogany thinline. I took the terrible pearloid pick guard OFF and put a BLACK one on and it looks fantastic. I screwed the bridge pickup down to be less chimney. I play it a lot. It is comfortable, light weight and practically plays itself. Out of all my guitars, this is the one I go to.
I have that one also but to me the pickguard is not terrible but beautiful.
if i had my way I'd take the classic vibe custom and drop the texas specials in 'er...sweeeet!!
that was fast thank you so much for all the lessons i kinda love you too
+viva america 😀👍
The Thinline sings with the richest harmonic content.
***** Yeah, it has rather dark and mellow tones in all switch positions. Should be just great for jazz and all that Ed Bickert stuff. ))
Thanks for posting this Darrell! All the guitars sounded good and so did your playing. The first CV sounded a bit thin in the bridge position. Other than that I would be proud to own any one of these three guitars. The CV thinline sounded really good with the replacement pickups and I am guessing that the first CV would also sound better with a pickup upgrade.
Keep up the good work. It was very informative and non-biases. Cheers from Canada.
+Jason Pitre Thanks for the kind words! :)
None of them sound better than the other. Just different from each other. All Three are great. You can take 3 of the exact same American made Fenders and they will sound different from each other. The key is, what sound do you want. Where it is made is inconsequential.
Your voice is so relaxing
It's all about pickups at the end.
Montana Marshall weight! Resonance! Appearance! Customizability! String tension! Electronics!
Woods, craftmanship, pots, fretboard quality, paint and laquer material and quality, bridge etc.
thanks for another excellent comparison.
+Dan Gormley 👍😀
I would take the MIM tele and have Donald Trump pay for it. Classic Player MIM telecaster is the best value Fender makes. Drop in some Porter or Jason Lollar pickups and you've got a custom shop guitar. Stock aren't too bad either. Nice demo.
+Jacob Garrison Does he refuse to cut business deals with any corporate entity which does employ them? And if he says that, should we believe it?
Thanks to Senior President Trump all our MIM guitars are going to be worth thousands......love it.
Mr. mips with all the Affordable Healthcare that Barack Obama gave us. You should have plenty of money left over to buy one yourself.
Danny Morrell I that is true then the American would be the way to go, they are just a little nicer. I own a couple of mexies by the way.
Raven James aww man, you shouldn't put politics about guitars. It takes all the fun out of it.
GREAT video- so helpful. I appreciate that you kept the talk to the minimum and gave us the chance to really soak in the sound. I also appreciate that you did not incorporate pedals or try to compare a "dirty" sound. Using DSP you can make almost any guitar sound like anything.
For me, the Thinline is the clear winner. The roundness of the tone without sacrificing much (if any) clarity really speaks to me. What I can't tell is how much of that is attributable to the Texas pickups vs. stock. The MIM is a nice sound too, but even if at the same price I would go for the Thinline sound. To me, the Classic Vibe Squire (1st guitar) sounded tinny compared to the other two.
7.25 mark. Pup peeks at Dad...Oh he's just jamming. All good. Lol
Nice and informative video. I looked for a thinline#1 and a 60's custom #2, and was lucky enough to find the 60's custom on Craig'slist for 200. It was a hours drive away on the interstate but worth it to me. I had a time frame to make it to the address in an unfamiliar town of an hour and a half. I stopped to get gas and had passenger window rolled 3/4 way down, and when I opened my door to get out, the wind blew my postit note off the dash and out the door, and it was gone with the wind. Only vaugley familiar with the area, I could remember enough from the phone conversation to narrow the house down to a one block area. So I went knocking on doors. No luck, until the last house. I talked to a very grumpy individual that was very tight lipped, and had no guitar for sale. I went back to my car and thought about it, and decided that had to be the house. so I knocked again, and the guy was rude again, I told him I had driven over an hour in a hurry to make it there and I was 10 minutes late, and I was pretty sure this had to be the place. He then said his room mate played guitar, but he didn't know if he had any for sale. I ended up at the library emailing the guy from info off my phone to a PC in a last ditch attempt to contact him. He did respond back and had got called into work, and said he'd come back and make the deal. I bought it and installed a set of Nocaster's in it and a set of wilkinson saddels I had laying around it is a great guitar. And I'm still looknig for that thinline.
I would chose the thinline ..... kind of a jangley sound
I love the Teles! They're all gorgeous guitars with their own unique sound. If I had to pick between the three...I think I'd go with the thin line. It's got such a beautiful finish and I like the semi hollow body...sweet!👍😎🎸🎶
Thinline for me
Super helpful demo… The bill Lawrence pick ups were certainly sweeter.
The sunburst squire was the best one
+Karl Beerman In the middle position it is, but in the bridge position it isn't.
Refrets on rosewood necks (without bindings that is) are much cheaper, when it ever would come to that...
You can skip the whole clearcoat sanding and refin. I love the sight and sound of a nice maple neck, but the maintenance is complicated.
On unfinished tropical hardwood fretboards you can use some 0000 steelwool and a drop of oil and it will look as new.
I just come from the shop after trying the vibe line, both maple and rosewood neck. Visually I prefer the maple (dang, so clear and somehow easier to play, why??) but the sound is much brighter with the rosewood. I will have to go with the sound.
The sunburst petered out on the B and high E strings on the bridge pickup; sounded VERY weak.
I bought the Classic Vibe Tele identical to the one in this video. I got it used for $185.00 dollars and it was super clean no nicks or anything. I absolutely love it. I do feel that the vintage style bridge has a lot to do with the real tele sound. I don't think I would change anything. The neck is a bit thin but, no biggie.
Never mind the Tele's - how about those beautiful pocket doors in the background. Wow.
I just sold off my Fender Deluxe Player Thinline Tele and upgraded to a MIM Classic Player Baja and couldn't be happier.
Great comparison video.
I've never encountered a Tele type guitar that I didn't like.
love your videos, and your playing is really, really great in every style. Also, your kitty makes an appearance @ 7:20😉 - very cool!
+Rick Bailey Thanks Rick! I appreciate the encouragement!
i think thats a dog but good observation lol would've never noticed till i read this comment
I thought so too but if you have headphones and/or listen very very closely you can hear the kitty meow just as he walks up to the door. My cat does the same thing, whenever she comes to inspect what I am doing she gives off this like greeting meow lol
Oh okay I'm still not sure because of the tail, the way he walke top the door, its tail was in a stiff curl and correct me if I'm wrong but i think cat tails move around in a distinct way and a certain shape lol
+Christian Gallegos Hi guys! It is a small dog :)