player opinions
Fender Standard Telecaster
Name: Dean Baker
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Band: -----
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Model Year: 2005
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Price Paid: $300
Performance
Performance is pretty good. I changed out the pickups to the custom shop Texas Specials what a difference that made. I can get about any blues or classic rock sound I want, even Hendrix, SRV. One thing I really like is being able to get some pedal steel slide sounds out of it. That’s really cool, kind of gives the blues a different ring, but cool.
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Performance Rating: 8
Sound Quality
Excellent through a Peavey Classic 50 amp. You know a lot of guys complain that the classic 50 is too clean or that the overdrive channel doesn’t sound good, but you know I had the same problem until I changed those pickups out. What a difference The pickups will overdrive the clean channel a little bit on this amp when turned up loud. My stock pickups wouldn’t do that. This Tele sounds beautiful though this amp with this setup classic Fender tone period.
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Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
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Construction is OK but setup was a little off. Stays in tune awesomely. Fender hit home here. Not bad.
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Construction Rating: 9
Name: Ron Terborg
Band: None at the Moment
Model Year: 1990?
Price Paid: $249 with case!
Performance
I’ve played blues for lots of years now, but had never owned a Tele before this year. Yeah, I’m a little older than most string benders now — played with my ‘61 Strat when it was only 3 years old. This Mexican Tele is a real smoothie. “Effortless” is probably the best word to describe it. I picked this baby up with a vintage tweed case from my local guitar shop. Now my other guitars sit in the closet and sulk because this is the only goonie I play, except for my Regal resonator, of course. Exceeds all expectations.
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Performance Rating: 9
Sound Quality
Growl, honk, bam. That’s how the three switch positions sound. Oh, this is a for-real Tele sound. Remember, it’s American components assembled in Mexico. The sound is pure on both clean and dirty settings. I play through an early 80’s Peavy 212 Chorus which combines the best of solid state and tube. I pop my Tele into the neck pickup and swing out with a little “Sleepwalk” ala Ventures/Santo & Johnnie style and people weep. Not that my playing is that extraordinary, but the Tele sounds that good. A pure blues machine!
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Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
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My Tele is Olympic White, maple neck, and over ten years old, but there is not a ding, chip, gnarl, dent, or hiccup on the entire thing. That says a lot about the previous owner(s), but it also says this baby is put together the way the old ones were. That means it’s gonna last. The tweed case has seen better days — I’m even thinking about writing a blues song about the Fender Tweed’s life on the road. Probably not too much sillier than some of the themes out there. “Oh, woke up dis mo’nin’, found anudder ding in mah Fender Tweed. The gitbox got no scratches, but the case be all broke and ready to bleed. Hmmmm hmmm hmm” Sorry, I lost track. Alder body(?), maple neck, paint finish, all fit this guitar to a tee. Frets are like new, but they are originals. Smooth as butter. Buy one before Fender catches on they should be charging a whole lot more for the Mexi-Tele.
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Construction Rating: 9
Name: Tim L.
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Band: -----
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Model Year: 2001
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Price Paid: $350
Performance
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Literally from the first moment I heard it and played it, I knew Fender was doing things right at the Mexico factory. The quality of the tobacco sunburst is so good as to be amazing. I can not fault the workmanship on any component. The neck — solid maple — is attractive and the fretwork is absolutely clean. Action goes down to a standard Gibson setup without unusual buzz for my hard picking style. The way this guitar holds a tuning should be a model for ALL guitars, regardless of price. Chroming on the metal parts looks even, all the way to the edges. The action is nice for both chording and fast runs. Getting good intonation was a breeze. I give it 9 because I’ve never yet found the perfect guitar.
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Performance Rating: 9
Sound Quality
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I wanted a single-coil guitar, and that’s just what I got — superb twang and growl. I was more than happy with the sizzle of the stock pickups for the first year of owning the guitar. Unfortunately, the ol’ single-coil hum got to be too much for me, so I’ve ordered some Bill Lawrence noise cancelling pickups and will do a quick copper shielding job in the routings before putting them in. Once that is done, this guitar is going to be the best money I ever spent on a guitar, and I have owned a few in my life. If the stock pickups were quieter, I’d give them a 9.
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Sound Quality Rating: 8
Construction
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I tell you, if you were to sand off the decal on the headstock, you’d never be able to say which factory this guitar came from. A year later, I almost never pick up my Kramer 650 Artist anymore, much less the others in my collection. I would seriously consider buying a MIM Standard Strat for my next treat. I can not see how any guitarist would be unhappy with the value of the Standard Tele. Sorry if I sound like a Fender ad, but I have to give them their due for making a solid, even pretty guitar for a very fair price. One last comment: when I went to the store and told the sales guy I had only $400 to spend, I fully expected that I’d be ushered to the used section, which would have been okay for me. Instead, the guy took this Tele off the wall, sat on a well-used tube amp, and started tearing off some Johnny Winter-style licks easy as you please. I think my jaw dropped at the sheer tone. Enough said.
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Construction Rating: 10
Name: Scott Meli
Band: My Girl Bill
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Model Year: -----
Price Paid: $329
Performance
Fender’s Mexican made Standard Telecaster is a joy to play! While the factory setup was comfortable I was able to lower the action and “customize” the Tele for my own style and needs. Fender’s beautiful sunburst makes it look like a classic Tele of the past. The Telecaster has a wider neck than the Strats that I’ve owned which makes it very easy to chord and solo on. The Telecaster has nice low frets that play very fast in all positions. After playing a Strat with jumbo frets (for the past nine years) I really find the lower frets on the Tele to be very “user friendly.”
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Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
The Telecaster sounds great through both amps that I’m using now. Through my VOX PATHFINDER and my FENDER POWER CHORUS the Tele shines. The Tele’s stock pickups perform very well on clean or overdriven settings. The clean tones are bright yet full... think classic James Burton tone! With a slightly overdrive tone you can find Danny Gatton tones also. With the wider neck and some downward string pulling you get some cool Clarence White country-steel sounds! Wow! The guitar is equally impressive clean or dirty!
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Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
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The Telecaster (with its single cutaway) feels very solid and sturdy. The poplar body and maple neck seem to be a good combination of strength and good tone! The fret work is smooth and consistent all the way up the neck. The sunburst finish has just the right amount of wood grain in the center (yellow area) that gives it a classy look. This guitar looks great with a fresh coat of polish on it. I am looking forward to many years of reliable service from this simple looking yet impressive sounding guitar!
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Construction Rating: 10
Name: Paul Richard
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Band: SUX
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Model Year: -----
Price Paid: $150 used
Performance
It’s like the guitar was made for me. I liked the new one I bought, and snatched up a used one, as well. This guitar makes me better. It is as basic as you get. Two pickups, one volume, one tone, three way switch. You can get just about any sound you want out of it.
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Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
It sounds beautiful clean. It is also the first guitar I’ve owned that the neck pickup actually sounds good with full on distortion. You do have to fiddle with the midrange on your amp to get a good sound with heavy overdrive, but once you find it, this guitar growls.
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Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
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If anyone has doubts about buying a Mexican Fender, forget about it. I’ve heard from salesmen that have toured both the California and Mexico factories, the only difference between the American Standard line and the Mexican Standards is that the Mexican ones are painted and assembled in Mexico. That’s it. The same parts are shipped down from California. But $200 less. They are the best bargain out there.
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Construction Rating: 10
Name: Ben
Band: The Jericohst
Model Year: 2007
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Price Paid: $300
Performance
The Telecaster is a very simple guitar. Three way switching between the two pickups. One volume knob, one tone knob. Beautiful, simple. Great, fast playing neck. This is the best guitar I have ever played, and I have played other guitars that cost three times as much.
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Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
Beautiful. Great tone. It can be used for any style of music imaginable, from rockabilly to country to psychedelic rock to hard rock/metal (hey, Metallica uses one sometimes), to blues to punk to “alternative” as the marketing machine calls/called it, to whatever else you’re playing. Great chunky kind of tone when clean. Stays in tune better than any guitar I’ve played too, even when going all out on the Jimi Hendrix soloing. And in my opinion, it beats the Fender Stratocaster hands down.
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Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
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I’ve had it for over a year now, with never a problem. Mine is black with a white pick guard, but I kind of did a modern art kind of thing on the pick guard with some blue/green car touch up paint, and so now it looks really cool. Well built. Probably not as well built as the American made Teles, but a lot cheaper and really just as good.
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Construction Rating: 10
links
Average Ratings
- Performance: 9.4
- Sound Quality: 9.6
- Construction: 9.4
Ratings Key
- 10: Excellent
- 0: Useless
Company
- Fender