I like it, I Don't like it....

1moreguitar · June 25th, 2009, 08:59 PM

any other new Strat owners have this "problem"???

I'm more of Tele player, know that the Strat should sound different but sometimes I just don't like the sound/tone of it.. It's not a clear, clean, bright tone.....it makes me contemplate getting rid of it for a MIM Tele and doing some modifications instead of keeping the Strat.

anybody else go through this and what did you do to finally decide to keep the Strat? are there some secret Strat tricks I'm not aware of?

2003 MIM Strat, stock, through a Blues Junior with a Seymour Duncan Twin Tube Classic pedal

sarNz · June 25th, 2009, 09:02 PM

i ordered a strat off ebay because i liked the color. got it, put on a black pickguard and some schaller lockers. came with a seymour duncan JB Junior in the bridge.

i don't know much about this whole 'tone' thing. then again i don't really play blues. i'm not sure but maybe you would be happier with some american pickups? or even though you're a tele guy, maybe get some tele-type electronics and throw em in a strat!

dhb2000usa · June 25th, 2009, 09:03 PM

I think a lot of it depends on the type of music you're playing. I played country on a tele for years. Even though the strat does a fine job, I always grab the tele cause it gives me the twang I'm after. When I feel the blues coming on I grab the strat because the tele doesn't give me what I want.

orcslayer · June 25th, 2009, 10:57 PM

Tele or Strat, Tele or Strat...the endless debate. I've had both, both have their appeal. Finally settled on Strat because I kept coming back to it - love those "in-between" sounds!

Helped decide by Jeff Beck who once said they were two different animals & you had to decide to stick with one to become really comfortable with it. So I picked the Strat.

I suggest you replace the MIM pups. In 2003 they were ceramic I believe. You need Alnico pups to bring our the nuances of a Strat's sound more so than a Tele (which is a more straight ahead country twang machine/rocker).

Axis29 · June 26th, 2009, 05:28 AM

Funny, I'm the other way... Strat is what I gravitate towards and I keep trying to like Teles to no avail.

I just sold a nice Nashville Tele cause I just never quite bonded with it the way I do my Strats... And it's the third Tele Ive let go like that.

Geezer · June 26th, 2009, 05:48 AM

I had the opposite experience...although I like the neck PUP Tele tone , I'm not into "Twang."
I've owned three Teles but could never set one up to my liking, action too high and the neck was not a good fit fit my sausage fingers. I also think a Strat has more tonal range than a Tele. It all comes down to individual tastes. Out of five guitars my current favorite is a forty dollar Bullet Strat, go figure!

Strat-Man-Do · June 26th, 2009, 06:05 AM

IF its coming down to the Tone being produced by the electronics? Then do a seach with differnt pups to see what you do like. Transplanting them [pick-ups] in a Strat will make somewhat of a difference depending on other factors such as wood, hardware, neck/headstock style etc. But you'll be in the ballpark.

A Strat could be set up very similiar to a Tele. Could be set up similiar to a LP. You won't be "IDENTICLE" but you could get in the Ballpark. Take a hardtail Strat and use a Tele bridge and pick-up on it and you have a very similiar bridge Tone. The neck pup could be matched up easily also.

I've seen many players do just this or play a Strat with dual tapped humbuckers like the Big Apple? Though not a LP, it will share many characteristics.

Anyway just a thought, or to look at it in reverse. I have seen Tele's set up with a Strat pick-up configuration?

For me I have become very comfortable with Strats. They feel the BEST hanging from my neck and against my body. LPs and Teles feel uncomfortable for me but I like their EQ possibilities. So I use the Strat and just put a pick-guard w/electronics together differently. For example I built a Strat with a humbucker bridge sc-middle and a P-90 neck. I'm working on a HH Strat set-up now with a set of Split Schecter USA humbuckers which cop a great PAF Tone and also sound excellent when split for Single-Coil Tones.

But I have seen many many many players who have become comfortable with other electrics like a LP, Tele, or whatever. The decide to buy a US Fender Standard Strat. They play it and compare and A/B it with their other electrics and decide they like the Tone of their other guitars better? A Strat is a usable tool of the trade just like a Tele or LP. But its not designed to sound the same, it does have its own characteristics. Many become disillusioned with this and give up on Strats. My suggestion is exactly what I mentioned above. First change the electronics and get it EQ'd to your liking. I'm 99.9% positive from this point you'll find it usefull.

Astro1176 · June 26th, 2009, 07:22 AM

1moreguitar, I went through exactly that experience. I come from a background of years of humbucker guitars, so my first Tele was a revelation and love at first twang. Especially for clean tones which I am exploring at the moment. It is so responsive, it is rewarding to dig in, everything you want to do on the Tele just jumps out. It Chimes in spades - absolutely glorious, never had a guitaring experience like it.

So I thought maybe I should give a strat a go to, people say it sounds different but hey its almost identical to the Tele, it will be different yet have all the qualities I love about the Tele...

WRONG!

It was different alright, but gone was the brilliant chime and sheen of the Tele, gone was the thick sugary tone, and gone was the touch responsiveness. Ask me to describe the Strat during that first week, and the best word I could give you would be 'bland'. I wondered if I had a bad strat or if it was strats in general - having tried it in the shop against other strats (and loved it when it was on its own and not played next to my Tele) I was pretty sure it was at least a good sounding strat, maybe great.

However - the guitar has grown on me. The thing for me is that I found I had to learn to appreciate it on its own terms and by its own standards, not judge it using the rules of a Telecaster. My first impressions were right - it is a terrible Telecaster! But I have been discovering it is a great Strat and what that means, over time, and now I love playing it, I also pick it up in preference to the Tele depending on my mood and the song. Clapton is said to have called the Strat more 'compressed' than a Tele - I don't think it sounds like it has a compressor on, but it seems to have a lot less dynamics and the individual notes are less stocatto for me , making it a more lyrical (and forgiving) instrument to play.

I recommend playing it a lot for a month and listening out for what the guitar can do, instead of judging it by what it can't do. You may find you end up loving the differences.

Giant · June 26th, 2009, 09:54 AM

my first real guitar was a 94 MIM tele that i still play to this day. its loaded with humbuckers, a three way switch, and an extra coil cut switch that i installed. it sounds better than anything i have owned to date. my strat (and any other strat ive played) just sounds like a strat. thats not a bad thing, but you have to know that going into it. they only sound similar on the neck pickup. aside from that, its night and day to me. i REALLY wanna try a nashville tele just to see whats up with em....

still_fiddlin · June 26th, 2009, 10:05 AM

Don't want to start a battle, but Blues Junior is probably not the best amp to make Strat "sparkle," IMO. It's a good amp for some things, but if you want "clear, clean, bright tone" then I'd go plug into a Twin, Deluxe or Princeton Reverb and give it a chance. Also, MIM tends to be wound a bit hot for my tastes, so you're not going to get the best Strat-Tele comparison if it's got the stock pickups.

Shades of Blue · June 26th, 2009, 10:16 AM

well, I'm just the opposite. I am a Strat guy and I just can't get into the Tele. I don't think that they Tele does blues justice like the neck position on a strat. I love to hear a good player play country on a Tele, but I just can't play it myself.

When I play country I go to my PRS believe it or not. Everything else is a strat.

ultraeconomike · June 26th, 2009, 03:54 PM

I also play tele. I've got a tele custom and it was my only electric for years. I have two humuckers in it and it's almost like a les paul kind of sound. Lately I'm getting into the strat more. It's a less heavy, lighter sound but there are a wider number of tonal variations because of the 5 pos phase switch which is more important to me now. That and the whammy bar.

fenderman2009 · June 26th, 2009, 04:40 PM

Strats and Teles are different animals, however, there are certain things you can do to a MIM Strat that will at least let you see what the guitar can sound like. Some possibilities: rewire the guitar so you can get the neck/bridge sound.This can be closer to a Tele's sound. Or: if you don't like the sound of the MIM pups, CHANGE THEM. There are many nice Strat pups on the market, and you can often hear video clips by searching for them on Youtube.

casualofender · June 26th, 2009, 05:03 PM

Where do you like the tone of your Teles the most? I think they compare best in the two-pickup positions (2 for the Tele, 2 & 4 for the Strat). The neck pickups are very different, but both sound good to me (I prefer the Tele). If you try to compare the bridge Pickups, I think everyone will end up having a strong preference. If you're used to the neck of a Tele, the Strat just won't satisfy(IMHO).

1moreguitar · June 27th, 2009, 02:54 PM

thanks for all the responses..

a little less volume out of the pick ups and a little more amp volume instead seems to help quite a bit..I'm guessing the Strat pickups are a little hotter than the Tele's

I know the amp makes a difference but won't be getting a new one anytime soon

the Dimarzio pick up finder recommended the true velvet pickups...anyone try these?

I'll give it some time and maybe ti will grow on me

thanks again all!

Astro1176 · June 27th, 2009, 03:17 PM

I forgot about that but yes - I had a few amp settings that were optimised for the Tele and the Strat sounded really bad on them, it helped a lot to dial in the amp specifically for the strat. In my case, the Tele is hotter than my strat.

Frogger · June 27th, 2009, 05:27 PM

I use Tele's, Strat's, PRS like painting different sonic colors. Each has a voice, a personality. I still haven't found the "perfect" Strat and I doubt if I ever will ( temperamental critters). I have found the "perfect" Tele and along with my beloved PRS they will always be with me. Word to the wise: Never ever sell or trade a Tele......unless it's for a better one

Donovan · June 27th, 2009, 10:56 PM

I'm probably the only one who will say this, but I don't think I could tell the difference in a blind test. Maybe it's because I've never played a tele other than a very low end model, but I really can't name one song that I could say "yep, it's a tele and not a strat." What's the sonic clue?

Scott L · June 28th, 2009, 07:13 AM

Before you start spending a lot of money or getting rid of your guitar, try to see if can borrow someone else Strat and see if you find a big difference that may suggest you would want to try to change out the PUPs or get a different Strat.

A good idea would be to take your guitar to a store and try out some other amps to see if you find a big difference and the sound you are after, at least you will know if you can get the sound you want without spending any money at the moment.

Working with what you now have - consider adding an active EQ to your set up. It may let you dial in the tone you are looking for and you can pick up one for $75 to $100. If it does not do the job - return it. I like the Boss GE-7. Decent Demo on YouTube:

boss ge-7 - Google Videos

In the end you may find that your a " Tele Player " nothing wrong with that.

Astro1176 · June 28th, 2009, 09:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donovan

I'm probably the only one who will say this, but I don't think I could tell the difference in a blind test. Maybe it's because I've never played a tele other than a very low end model, but I really can't name one song that I could say "yep, it's a tele and not a strat." What's the sonic clue?

To me the difference is often clear, even on youtube/computer speaker clips, certainly for clean and crunchy guitars, although on heavily distorted guitars the difference is usually lost.

Ear training is difficult, and language is not really up to describing the subtleties of sound. To me the difference is both subtle and small, and at the same time enormous. Like the difference whether a person is male or female - the difference is really slight anatomically and neurally, but its also all the difference in the world.

Listen to lots of clips play teles and strats. I didn't really go looking for the difference, it hit me across the face when I got a strat. At the end of the day, if you cant distinguish them, it doesn't really matter, most of the audience can't either.

The sonic things I hear in a Tele is mainly to do with the envelope and dynamics of the instrument. It seems to respond much more to digging in, both in volume and tone. Generally there seems to be a lot more energy at the start of the note after the attack - almost a staccato quality although the note continues to sustain afterwards.

Tonally, the sound of a Tele seems to be thicker or fatter to me, and a strat seems 'lighter'. I don't think this is a pickup issue, but who knows. Obviously the Strat quack positions are very distinctive, but even in the bridge or neck positions there seems to be a characteristically identifiable quality.

If you want to learn to hear this, then I hope the above clues will help. I don't know what use it is to be able to hear this difference though.

Strat-Man-Do · June 28th, 2009, 10:20 AM

For me the Bridge pick-up on a Tele has a noticable difference in Tone. I don't dislike Teles, I do find Teles much more uncomfortable to play than my Strats though.

The amp [Blues Jr] is a good pick-up by those who mentioned that above. Without a doubt a Fender amp thats known for its Clear/Clean Sparkle [Like a Twin Reverb] will no-doubt also make a hugh difference.

1moreguitar · June 28th, 2009, 10:28 PM

before I'll do anything, I'll take the guitars/amp to the local shop. The guy seems to know his stuff, they have a few other Strats with different pick ups. i'll find what sounds good to me.

I'm not sure how much of a difference the amp (blues Jr. makes) as the Tele sounds fine with it.

Donovan · June 29th, 2009, 08:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Astro1176

If you want to learn to hear this, then I hope the above clues will help. I don't know what use it is to be able to hear this difference though.

They do, thx.

1moreguitar · July 3rd, 2009, 11:31 AM

The pendulum has swung more to the "like it" side

backing off on the volume from the guitar and turning up the treble controls, guitar, amp, pedal gives me a better sound so for now...

can't do anything as I spent my upgrade funds at the GC last eve..got a great deal on a Tama Iron Cobra peal for the v-drums and a case for the P-Bass ( just not a gig bag fan)

Namelyguitar · July 3rd, 2009, 02:13 PM

That must be why people change the pickups?

Yesterday, I tested an amp with a new Tele. Bought the Fender amp, and maybe shoulda' bought the Tele?

beep.click · July 3rd, 2009, 07:55 PM

If you start on a Tele and get a Strat, it feels weird for awhile. And vice versa.

The poster who said that you have to approach each instrument on ITS terms hit the nail on the head.

Bangbang · July 3rd, 2009, 10:24 PM

I just change pickups and use different amps. I really have to play with my amps sometimes to get the sound I wanted. I was playing my SG the other day using my Vox VT30 AD ...I set my bass down to one...middle 3 and treble to 3 using the UK setting. almost blue my ears out.

1moreguitar · August 8th, 2009, 04:29 PM

dropped off the Strat at the local guitar shop today, I put it on consignment. Guess I'm a Tele guy...

tonyw · August 8th, 2009, 05:00 PM

I played a G&L ASAT(tele) for the last 13yrs and loved everything about this guitar and then i decided to put my strat together. At 1st i couldnt settle into the strat but a year on and its my go to guitar. Not saying the ASAT is a downer because it aint, but i now have it permenantly tuned to open A for cutting slide tone.

Tafmutt · August 8th, 2009, 09:05 PM

I really and truly want to like the Tele. Every time I try one with the intention of buying, I back away. This has been going on for 40 years.

It just never feels as good as a Strat...not the sound (which I like), just the feel.

Great instrument, just not for me. I hear the same from Tele die-hards regarding the Strat.

TM

1moreguitar · August 24th, 2009, 10:11 PM

The Strat sold on consignment...

The new guitar (Black Dove Tele) will probably be with me until the estate sale....hopefully MANY years from now

SDStrat · August 24th, 2009, 11:20 PM

This is a really interesting thread. I've always favored the strat mainly due to weight/feel against the body and the feel and playability of the neck. I've briefly tried tele's from time to time and always found them to be heavier, more clunky in general, bigger neck/flatter fingerboard, and generally less comfortable than the strat. Recently I tried out a tele while at the local evil empire (GC) and had a change of heart. Happened to be one of those 50's Road Worn tele's and it felt and played great. So I picked up a MIM tele on ebay last week and the other posters are correct - each instrument has its own feel and I think I will have to adjust my mindset when playing each one. I'm liking the tele in the bridge position with some light distortion. But nothing beats the bluesy sound of the strat in the neck position.

Lobotomy Boy · August 25th, 2009, 09:19 AM

I've discovered I prefer a bigger, flatter neck and haven't been playing my Strat much lately. But I have no intention of ever getting rid of it. It's just a 1987 Japanese version and I didn't pay much for it, and I love the guitar (though I really need to do something about the stock ceramic pickups...). Unless prices of Japanese Strats go completely crazy and someone offers me an obscene amount of money for it, I intend to keep it until someone unloads it at my estate sale.

fatstratdeluxed · August 25th, 2009, 10:19 AM

style of music is def a big deal. i like my strat... wait no... i LOVE my strat!

Namelyguitar · August 25th, 2009, 02:31 PM

Having no problem bonding with Strat or Tele. There's so many different possibilities with the Strat's 5 switch settings/Tele's 3 settings...

Also-have not chosen either as a 'go to' axe. BTW, my MIM Strat weighs less than either my MIM Tele or MIM P Bass.

Enjoy the Strat Quack!

TSims1 · August 25th, 2009, 04:45 PM

I've come from the exact same place. I've been a tele guy for 15yrs[although I have owned the occasional Strat along the way]and have loved everything about those guitars. Never could really "connect" with the Strat, but then again, I never really gave it a fair shake. Then, suddenly a few weeks ago, I walked into a local music shop and saw a Squier Classic Vibe 60's Strat hanging on the wall, picked it up, and fell head-over-heels. Don't ask me why, but this guitar feels like it was MADE for me. Now, I have Strat fever and am anxiously considering another one. I guess maybe, in some small way, I was just ready for a change. And that's what it's all about - Tele's and Strat's just don't have much in common, so know that going in. You have to respect each for it's unique design, and for the amazing tools they are...

1moreguitar · August 25th, 2009, 11:24 PM

A guy I know from work bought my Strat, he's thrilled with it. He's thinking of changing the pickups.....glad somebody got that guitar and loves it.