Comments on: Fender Introduces Dual Humbucker Spalted Maple Custom Telecaster

By: Aart Mastebroek

Aart Mastebroek — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 09:53:27 +0000

Almost forgot this: don’t buy one from the internet because every Tele body looks different and you might be disappointed in how your tele looks. Go to the shop and pick one with the spalted maple veneer you like.

By: Aart Mastebroek

Aart Mastebroek — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 09:45:14 +0000

I bought this Tele because it looked so beautiful! Set up out of the box was very, very good. I had my doubts, because it’s ‘crafted in Indonesia’, but no worries: they’ve done a pretty good job. Very toneful pick-ups, great sustain and also a, in my modest opinion, Tele-like-twang when you use the coil tap.
My other Fender is a 50th Anniversary Strat American Standard, also plays like heaven. I don’t know which one I should choose if I had to make a choice and that fact tells a lot about the quality of the Tele, doesn’t it!
Just go out and play. The price of the Tele won’t stop you..in Europe only a bit over 700 euro’s! I almost couldn’t believe that.

By: Anybody have a.... - My Les Paul Forums

Anybody have a.... - My Les Paul Forums — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 20:11:00 +0000

[...] a…. I saw them at MF a few months ago, they look pretty cool, but I haven't played one… Fender Introduces Dual Humbucker Spalted Maple Custom Telecaster|Electric Guitar Review __________________ "Get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please." [...]

By: John

John — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 13:23:36 +0000

To get the natural feel on the neck, rub the with 400 then to 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper lubricated with mineral oil. Be gentle and take your time, result will be beautiful, could go up to 800 grit to get a very polished but natural feel. Get the mineral oil from any drug store, and paper from a hardware store.

By: Greg

Greg — Thu, 29 May 2008 18:43:22 +0000

I picked one up. A great combination of features. Sustain is nearly as solid as a neck through I have. The pickups are toneful, but coil tapped less than a tele or strat for that matter. Very useful but not tele-jangly. The flat neck radius and jumbo pickups remind me of a Schecter or a Dean. If you can imagine that type neck, but telecaster thin with rolled edges and a nice fret job. The spalt is book matched and of course will be a different pattern with each one. Think snowflake one of a kind. It is sort of country, sort of metal, very well QA/QCed. It is close to having the best asortment of features of several guitars I have. Arch top, set neck Fender tele with Humbuckers. Wow, who would of thought?

By: pauly

pauly — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 00:07:15 +0000

I got one today and i love it

By: JTX

JTX — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 14:45:59 +0000

well. today i tried one.
well i liked the way it sound, it ballsy, but still retains a a certain clear “voice”. well forgive my bad english…the pu are very nice, ‘though they sound a little weak when tapped (but it’s normal).i thinking seriously to get one.
since the back of the nec is polyurethane finisched, can you tell me if a luthier can make it natural, without any finish(i like this way)???

By: Jamie

Jamie — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 16:56:04 +0000

I own one – it’s a beaut. Spalted Maple is a topical disease in the wood from being on the ground for a length of time, insects, etc… but when it’s treated, it stops that “discoloring/streaking” and is locked in. I’ve seen 4 of this model and every one of them looked very different.

Tonally – my goodness. Does everything a SG does except better with the sustain of a Les Paul (set neck in this puppy). Controls work well, the split coil is a nice touch to get you in the bacllpark of Fende twang and has a voice all it’s own. I spent 740 for mine and then tossed on some locking tuners as the tuning heads were blech. Do that, and this is a seriously nice guitar for the money.

By: Cary

Cary — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 00:26:10 +0000

Nice! Make sure and let us know what you think… looks like a beauty :)

By: Woody

Woody — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 23:55:33 +0000

Looks like a winner….Ordered mine today!

By: Don M

Don M — Sun, 01 Apr 2007 13:15:48 +0000

Cary, I’m with you. I thought it was gorgeous. I also like the double humbucker – definitely makes it a more verstile guitar. If you are already a tele player and want a different kind of tele for more sounds this is the one.

I do agree with the guy that this is an attempt to keep Fender players from defecting to PRS. Good move IMO.

Don

By: : PLUG INTO AMP :

: PLUG INTO AMP : — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 12:40:27 +0000

[...] Electric Guitar Review: Fender Introduces Dual Humbucker Spalted Maple Custom Telecaster Usually, I’m not that big a Fender fan. I mean sure, there are some Fender that I really love, but they’re pretty rare. Nonetheless, this Tele kicks my ass. The maple (although just veneer) is really cool, and the Duncan ‘59 RP and Peraly Gates plus humbuckers are tone monsters. You can also check out Fender’s spec page for more info. [...]

By: Mike

Mike — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 12:34:43 +0000

I agree that the spalted top is phenomenally beautiful. Dean also makes some awesome spalted tops, as do smaller companies like Swing. However, that top and the SD humbuckers make me love this Tele. I mean that in a dirty, swamp-rock kind of way. Not so sure about the fact that it’s veneer, though. Spalted wood is created by damage (basically), so veneer seems like it’d crack easily. I guess they laminate the hell out of it for strength. Anyway, I still love it.

By: Theguitarist

Theguitarist — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 18:15:51 +0000

I like it! I’m not going to get one, but I like it. Basically it’s a Fender Showmaster line made with spalted maple. The showmaster, however, was only 400-700 bucks. I have a feeling this will break the 1000 range.

By: Cary

Cary — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 18:08:54 +0000

Wow… goes to show how different taste can be, ‘cuz I think that top is gorgeous : )

Of course, as soon as you add humbuckers to a Tele it really morphs the guitar into something else entirely.

Funny, I was watching Ausin City Limits last night, and Coldplay was performing––the guitarist used a couple of different Telecasters with HBs (a Thinline & a ‘72 Deluxe I believe,) and yeah, they didn’t sound anything like a traditional Tele, but they still sounded great.

By: Rick

Rick — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 17:58:07 +0000

Is it me….or that finish uggggly?

Also, without a single coil in the bridge pickup…. it will never twang like a real tele.

This seems to be an attempt to go after the PRS market. I have seen similar models (although not maple) with the more attractive tiger stripe sunburst on them. Still not a “real” tele though….. I’ve seen these discounted at below $600 a year after their release (although those models were Mexican).

I’d rather see a thinline or chambered model with humbuckers to try and get more of a hollow body sound.