OK folks, a few of you might have heard me harp on about my MIM Fender Standard Telecaster.
It was bought in January 2004 so it's likely to be a 2003 model - in black, with white scratchplate and all standard parts etc.
The neck has a fairly thin gloss.
I upgraded the pickups to Samarium Cobalt Noiseless in probably 2007-2008 (I didn't know much about pickups at the time so it was a case of price and limited research, but apparently that's what the American Standards were fitted with at the time).
I can remember trying a few guitars just before buying it, including a similar MIM Standard Tele in the local music shop, but the neck felt almost chunkier at the time.
The neck on my MIM Tele is the best I've ever played/felt on a guitar (subjective, of course) - and every MIM Tele I've tried since just doesn't have the same feel on the neck - they either feel chunkier or less smooth. There's no fighting, no compromise required, it just feels like I can glide anywhere on the fingerboard and, even with my short, stubby fingers, I can shape most chords and scales easily. It's like butter, as the cliche goes.
When I had those pickups changed around 07/08/whenever it was, the guys in the shop couldn't stop playing the guitar, and said it felt amazing. They couldn't believe it was a 'standard' Tele because it felt better than so many other guitars in the shop (which varied between your Squiers and your top-end Fenders).
Now, I appreciate that I've had this guitar for over 14 years, I'm a bit biased, and it's aged wonderfully - the once pale maple has become a warmer colour, and the frets are a bit more 'played in' - but is it likely that Fender would have changed the neck profiles at all? Even within the same run of Teles (hence me finding the ones in shops at the same time felt different)? Was I lucky and did I get a 'good one' of the batch?
I know there's the adage that every guitar is different, even in the same run, but would the difference really be that tangible?
Let me know your thoughts - there are wiser folk than I on here who can probably answer, but also interested in hearing about your 'perfect neck' guitar experiences.
Comments
Oh, I'd agree there, too - I had an LG P90 from the 90s and an old Artisan TC and both of them had fantastic necks despite being very different guitars. The Artisan came alive when I tried it out in the shop before buying. I just didn't love the pickups in the Artisan and never got round to switching them for something else. The LG P90 had lovely SD pickups but I just found I wasn't playing it that often, so sadly it went as part of the big guitar sell off.
Anyway, it got moved on when I bought an American Std Tele (I foolishly thought at the time that the Affinity wasn’t a real Tele since it lacked the skunk stripe and through-body stringing). Certainly the US Std is a better guitar in almost every way, but it is no more ‘Telecaster’ than the Affinity. In fact the Affinity’s basic simplicity probably makes it truer to Leo’s plank than Fender’s higher-end offerings.
The Affinity is the only guitar I’ve ever regretted selling but I suspect there’s a bit of the rose-tinteds going on here since the hardware was generally on the cheap and cheerful side. Nonetheless, the neck was way better than you’d expect from a budget instrument.
Thankfully the one on my current Partscaster is just as good- nice profile, 14” radius, medium jumbo frets and satin finish. It’s lovely.
I believe they used to be fatter, like the Jeff Beck necks on his first round of signature Strats (Lace Sensors etc) and more of a baseball but over the years, they've made them slightly thinner. It's full and much fuller than a regular MIM neck, but not really that "fat" or like a "baseball bat"
I'd love to replicate this one and it's perfect and comfortable for rhythm and great on lead.
I think it's inevitable when the material is something as variable as wood and there's some degree of human intervention, no matter how little, in the manufacturing process.
Afterwards everything else feels weird.
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Glad to know it's not just me and that I'm not insane for thinking it...I honestly feel like I was lucky with this one - it was ordered online after trying them in shops because the online store had them for £299 - and I guess I got a good one! It's a very thin neck but very comfortable and sublimely easy to play. I've only ever used 9s on it for strings, as the bends are immense.
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It's hard to describe why.
Silver Series Squier!
Yes. Really.
I still have the neck. It's just not attached to anything anymore. 7.25 radius and tiny frets but it's lovely.
I can't help about the shape I'm in, I can't sing I ain't pretty and my legs are thin
But don't ask me what I think of you, I might not give the answer that you want me to
I bought it used in the late 80s for the same price as a new Fender as it simply blew them away.
I was always a bit afraid of trying a Nocaster neck, because I thought if I liked it I'd find the necks on all my other guitars too skinny.
And it turned out to be true, to an extent. I can adjust, like you say, but I do wish things like PRS wide-fats, for example, were just a bit wide-fatter. And I won't be buying anything with less than a "50s" neck profile in future.
But the 64 P bass neck I have is, well... I’ll never put a better bit of bass neck on me P
Second place probably goes to my DeArmond Starfire Special, despite it having a rather flat fretboard (not a big fan of flat boards).