Not very good

[MrBuster]

Hello - I am not a musician, nor do I play guitar very well, but I do like guitars, and I do like them loud. About a year and a half ago, I bought a custom FMT HH. Am I crazy, or is this guitar the easiest to play guitar ever made? I have some background as a violinist, a very long time ago, but that's it. I love this guitar. It sounds so good. The Positive grid modeling amp certainly helps, but it sounds great through the fender also. The neck is so fast, and I never have to tune this. Are they all like this? I have been a gibson lover for ever, all my guitar hero's played them. I bought this guitar because of the bucker's, and I like the sound better than a normal tele. It's nice to have that choice also. Well, tell me what you think.

[OldStrummer]

Welcome to TFF (The Fender Forum), @MrBuster!

For many years I was a long-distance runner. I worked part-time at a running store, mostly for the discount, but also because I liked talking to other runners. I learned a lot from the experience. One thing I heard a lot from customers was, "I'm not a runner." My reply was almost always along the same line: You put one foot in front of the other, don't you? You're a runner!

Same thing with guitar playing. In my mind there are simply different levels. Some people (and beginners) play only basic chords and complain that their fingers hurt. Others, like the late Jeff Beck, who Deep Purple guitarist Richie Blackmore said of him, "He plays notes I don't even have on my fretboard!"

It took me a long time to realize that I would never be another Jeff Beck or Eric Clapton (both of who have inspired me). When I finally realized that nobody -- absolutely nobody -- would sound like me, I began to settle down and play guitar for my enjoyment. That has opened up a world of pleasure every time I pick up a guitar.

By the way, the Positive Grid SPARK and Spark MINI are terrific amps! I have the MINI, which I bought after learning my "regular" modeling/portable amp, a LINE6 AMPLIFi 30 had been discontinued. My larger amps go unused, for the most part.

Not a fan of humbuckers on a Fender guitar, but I get it. So does Fender too, I gather, as I see more and more models with them.

Keep playing. If you do, you're both a musician and a guitar player!

[Tele-Bob]

Welcome!
I was a hardcore Gibson guy for many years before I heard the "call of the Tele." I'll never forget it!

All these great songs kept coming up on the radio with blazing guitar solos that had a certain clarity and bite I had never noticed before. After research the songs a little bit, a clear pattern began to emerge. They players were all using Telecasters!

When I finally learned that Jimmy Paige used a Telecaster for the solo in Stairway to Heaven, and Joe Walsh cut his Hotel California tracks on a Tele, I was all in!

Nothing else like it!

[phantomman]

Joe Walsh laid down quite a few James Gang tracks using a Telecaster and a '64 Vibroverb, primarily on their first two albums.

[OldStrummer]

Anyone who is anyone has played a Tele at some point in their career. Hendrix used one for his iconic "Purple Haze." Clapton has been photographed playing Teles many times over the years. So has Pete Townshend. David Gilmour's first guitar was a Telecaster, and he used it (and others) repeatedly during his early years.

As I said, anyone who is anyone. Heck I'm not anyone, and even I have a Telecaster!

[MrBuster]

hey thanks for that, I like it. I plan on keeping along with this, again, when I "find" the time. It is always right here next to the desk, always plugged in, always ready to go. I hear things, so I try things. The quality of these guitars these days is really nice. I like my older ones, but I do like the new fresh ones as well. I too like the spark yes. Studio one is great with bias fx. I run the xsonic pedal with the spark, it works very well. This fender tele plays better than my strat, and it's old. They both sound great, just different that's all.

[Offshore Angler]

Welcome!
I was a hardcore Gibson guy for many years before I heard the "call of the Tele." I'll never forget it!

All these great songs kept coming up on the radio with blazing guitar solos that had a certain clarity and bite I had never noticed before. After research the songs a little bit, a clear pattern began to emerge. They players were all using Telecasters!

When I finally learned that Jimmy Paige used a Telecaster for the solo in Stairway to Heaven, and Joe Walsh cut his Hotel California tracks on a Tele, I was all in!

Nothing else like it!

Les Paul Jr. notwithstanding. :)

[ch willie]

When I played gigs, the Tele was my go-to. I’ve gotten some nice recordings with it too.

I love Gibsons, Rics, and Strats. But the workhorse for me is a Tele.

it’s a muscular guitar—see the vid where Keef stops the stage intruder with a good pop of his Tele. It doesn’t take shit from anyone. Strats have finesse. Teles will take on a gang of horse thieves and then go all sensitive with a version of Moonlight Serenade. It’ll jump off a twenty foot tower, killing the drummer before continuing with a Clash melody. Little known facts: 1) a Tele was used to execute Mussolini. 2) a Tele invented Ivory Soap and the combustible engine.

[phantomman]

Little known facts: 1) a Tele was used to execute Mussolini. 2) a Tele invented Ivory Soap and the combustible engine.

You forgot that the Tele (and its companion Super Reverb Amp) remain the only musical equipment to ever journey to the moon and back.

[Offshore Angler]

Teles? Pffft. Real men play Esquires.

[OldStrummer]

Teles? Pffft. Real men play Esquires.

My nickname in high school was "Esquire." But not because I played one. Rather, I used to like to argue like a Philadelphia Lawyer (my mom's term for me).

[ch willie]

You forgot that the Tele (and its companion Super Reverb Amp) remain the only musical equipment to ever journey to the moon and back.

And planted a Fender flag while they were there.