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Coming to grips after 60 cycles around the sun that I may be a Fender guy after all. I cut my teeth on Gibson, and still love them. There are times where's thats the call, but I find myself using my Fender based instruments more. And oddly, it's most often a Tele. Unless I need a whammy bar, a Tele gets the nod.
Anyone else here experienced this change?
Come to think of it Clapton did, Beck did, Walsh did.
Kinda. Sorta.
I was an acoustic guitar player before I got my Gibson ES-225, and I played that (privately) without plugging in more often than not. When I finally got the urge to go electric, Gibson was the brand I turned to first. Ol' Lester had a pull on me, so I went the LP route.
But I bonded with none of them. I had some brief initial dalliances, but the archtop just felt "right" in my hands. Then, I noticed my guitar "heroes" (Clapton, Beck, Trower, et al) all played Stratocasters. So, I figured every guitar player needed a Strat. Then it was the Tele. I now own several of each.
I haven't picked up a Gibson in ages. And since I started performing live, solo, I've pretty much reverted back to acoustic. The two costliest guitars I own today aren't either of the "name" brands we all know: A Stephen Holst custom made archtop, and a Lowden S-35c acoustic made in Ireland.
Took me a long time to get there. I had always preferred the Gibson sound and humbuckers through some sort of Marshall amp until about 25 years ago. Then I got bit by the Tele Bug and haven't been the same since.
It's funny because I more or less started on Fender, unfortunately my first Fender was my '74 Stratocaster I bought new. That damn thing ruined me on maple fingerboards for the next 3 decades, i would only buy rosewood fingerboards after that. After that was an Ibanez les Paul copy, then a real Gibson Les Paul in '89. It got traded towards an amp. In 2000, I really started getting into Les Paul especially the Historics. I had since gotten over my dread of maple fingerboards (it was that stupid '74 with the poly gooped OVER the frets).
I've got the great R0, my '56 RI Strat, and the Squier CV50. It's only flaw if you will, is being a chunky monkey at 8.5 pounds. 7 pounds or less would be my ideal Tele weight.
I?m a bass player and started on it in ?63 with a used Fender Jazz bass. In ?65 I was working with bluesman Bryan Lee and, at his recommendation, purchased a new Fender Precision bass that was the main axe up until moving back to a used ?63 Fender Jazz in 1976 or so. That was the primary bass until wanting to change to a five string bass and at that time Fender didn?t have one so I started playing a Stingray 5 that remained the primary bass until moving on to a Deluxe 55-94 Lakland in 1999. The Lakland, to me, totally surpasses anything offered by Fender so I?ve stayed with that bass since.
For guitars, my first was a ?55 Fender Esquire that was converted to a Tele by adding a Strat pickup and 5 way selector switch. Along the way that was traded fir a new Gibson ES335 (owned a couple since) with my 1959 ES345 the only guitar in the house presently.
If it has strings I'll play it. My real choice I consider when deciding on what guitar to use is scale length. Scale length is really more important than anything else to my ears.
If I want to run on heavy fuel with a fuzz I go for the 24.75 scale, for more zing I'll go for 25.5". That three quarters of an inch makes a world of difference.
I don't consider myself a "brand" guy. I just use what the job requires.
All that said, my desert island guitar would have to be a Les Paul Studio with splits. Not much you can't do with that guitar. Buckers with splits and a phase switch, what else do you really need?
I have also found that a lot of players I know go more Fender as they get into geezerdom because they are losing their hearing. That long scale adds a lot of separation in the mix.
If I'm using a lot of modulation into a Fender blackface, I will almost always use a Stratocaster. If it's going into a cranked tweed, give me the Lester every time.
Marshalls, pffft. All they are is a cheap clone of a '59 Bassman, he he.
Honestly though, I am usually more concerned with my signal chain than I am my guitar. Don't you love it when players who've never heard about a 1073 preamp or (even a ROSS compressor for that matter) get all "tone" about string brands, lol?
But, nuthin' wrong with a Fender. I did two sets with a vintage Stratocaster last week, had a really good time. Definitely the most comfortable guitar for me. My only complaint with Fender is the QC for the instruments I've tested of late has been abysmal. I had to spring for the PRS John Mayer to get a pro-level instrument at a semi-reasonable cost. But fret not! Just because I've bought two PRS guitars I'm not going to wear a man bun, buy a Tesla or go vegan, although I do now have an urge to buy expensive soy lattes and talk about books.
Chuck
Now what you going to do with a LP Studio with splits on a desert island. Ain't no amp or electricity. LOL
Yes, definitely. I played Gibsons primarily for years, & even now I still own a few. But when it comes time to head out the door, I'm always grabbing a Fender (or Fender-style) guitar. I just like the longer scale length better
And added another Fender. Dave Murray Strat. I'm no Iron Maiden fan, but this will serve my hair rock needs for now.
I prefer the Fender 25 1/2" scale so much more that I scratch built 2 Rickenbacker style guitars, a Gibson L6S style guitar, and most recently, an over-size Les Paul style guitar, all with the 25 1/2" scale.
Who says you have to miss out?!
What's the cool Squier they sell, the Supersonic? It's a 24 3/4" scale on a Strat with dual P90's. I wonder if the necks are good enough to put real frets on them and roll the edges.
That would be a fun little hot rod if you can make it playable.
Chuck
I love a variety of guitars, but I've been a Fender guy pretty much from the start. I had a misstep near the beginning (back in 1981) where I didn't know enough about guitars and bought a shiny guitar with humbuckers rather than a ratty Strat that would have suited me better.
My revelation almost 20 years ago was that I'm not the Strat guy that I thought I was, but I'm more of a Tele guy. A good Tele and a Fender-ish 15-20 watt 1x12" combo is the sound of me.
Chasing that one down I find Squier makes what they call the Paranormal Strat-o-Sonic. Is that the one? Contrast that with the Squier Super-Sonic? That's a very tasty looking guitar. I like the 24.75" scale. The Super-Sonic is a 24" scale that looks like an upside-down Jaguar.Quote:
Originally Posted by Offshore Angler
https://www.stars-music.fr/medias/sq...600-199688.jpg
It looks an awful lot like my G&L ASAT Junior II, which has a Tele body; I'd have to get one in the Vintage Blonde or I'd get confused.
https://www.studiogears.com/media/ca...-132r42r23.jpg
Yeah, P90's sound better on the slack string tension of a 24 3/4" scale. I almost bought one until I realized it wasn't 25 1/2" scale.Quote:
Originally Posted by Offshore Angler
Then I bought a Suhr Model that looked just like the Fender but had the longer scale length. It sounded amazing because the bridge pickup was considerably further from the bridge than where Fender placed theirs. Wish I still owned that guitar.