player opinions

Fender ‘72 Telecaster Custom

Fender ‘72 Telecaster Custom

  1. Name: Tom

  2. Price Paid: $529

  3. Performance

  4. At first, I wasn’t too impressed with the ‘72. Maybe it was the stigma that comes with CBS-era Fenders, maybe I wasn’t ready for a “fat” Tele sound, or maybe I didn’t know what I expected. But, after about a week break-in period, the ‘72 rose to the occasion and really performed. The ‘72 didn’t stay in tune at all the first 10 or so times I played it, so I kept going back to my ‘52 Tele. But, after playing the ‘72 a few more times, the initial break-in was complete. Now, I’ve got a Tele with a low end growl that’s great. It also to a while to get used to the larger, bulkier frets. But, that’s no big deal. Overall, this guitar is a great player.

  5. Performance Rating: 9

  6. Sound Quality

  7. The ‘72 has a vintage “wide range” humbucker in the neck position and a standard single coil in the bridge postion. The three-position toggle can be set to neck only, bridge only, or both. The bridge is bright and twangy, just like a Tele should be. The neck delivers a full, rich, warm sound (I sound like a coffee commercial now) with incredible lows; almost too much. I’ve found that the middle position, activating both pickups, is delivers the best sound and balance; just the right amount of low end to sound heavy and/or jazzy, and just enough high end to not sound like a ES 335.

  8. Sound Quality Rating: 10

  9. Construction

  10. Like I said before, this guitar came with a CBS-era stigma, even though it was made in 1999. The cool thing about Fender’s reissues, is that they do a very good job at getting these guitars to look and sound like they did the year they were introduced. Unfortunately, the ‘72 Tele Custom had it’s fair share of shoddy construction. The 3-bolt Micro-Tilt neck, for instance. At first, this thing gave me headaches, but I think they were all in my mind. I’ve seen a few real 70’s Customs that were poorly constructed (neck socket cut WAY too big. I can’t rememeber where, but I read something where an old Fender employee said something like, “it wasn’t the fault of only 3 bolts; you could’ve put 10 bolts in the neck and it’d still move around. The sockets where cut way too big”) Once I got past all that, I’ve discovered this guitar is SOLID. It stays in tune, feels great, and plays well. It’s even a bit lighter than my ‘52 (but that’s no surprise, right? My car is a bit lighter than my ‘52!) Anyway, I’m very pleased with the construction of this guitar.

  11. Construction Rating: 9

links

  1. Average Ratings
  2. Performance: 9
  3. Sound Quality: 10
  4. Construction: 9
  5. Ratings Key
  6. 10: Excellent
  7. 0: Useless
  8. Available At Guitar Center
  9. Fender Classic Series '72 Telecaster Custom Electric Guitar 3-Tone Sunburst Maple Fretboard
  10. Company
  11. Fender

Player Opinion Review Form

Electric Guitar Player Opinion Index

Site Information

Info Links