jefhatfield's Full Review: Fender American Deluxe Ash Telecaster Electric Gui...
While I have always loved my old Fender Telecasters, there have been a few issues which made them less than their best. With Fender's American Deluxe Ash Telecaster, Fender has addressed those issues.
Faster neck, extra fret:
Being primarily a Fender player my whole life, I have sometimes been jealous of Gibson/Jackson/Ibanez players who most often had flatter radius necks and 22 frets as opposed to the 21 frets and round radius my 60s and 70s Fender Telecasters had.
The American Deluxe not only has 22 frets, but employs an extra fast satin finish on the neck, a very flat 9.5" inch radius which feels more like a 12" inch radius, fatter frets, and improves on the tuning by getting rid of the string trees and having die-cast, graduated tuners.
No more ashtray bridge or 3 saddle design:
Going from 3 saddles on a bridge with tall ridges (called the ashtray bridge) to six saddles on the flat bridge, Fender has improved the ability to intonate the Telecaster properly. The American Deluxe also adds sustain by using chrome plated brass saddles to add a darker sound. This helps pop out the midrange older Telecasters have lacked.
S-1 switching and Cobalt Samarium Noiseless pickups:
The new pickups on the American Deluxe Telecasters have less string pull allowing for the string to have a longer natural vibration changing the sound from a Telecaster twang to one that is a cross between that twang and a fuller sounding humbucker.
The S-1 switch which is a push pull design built into the knob itself also allows for more gain and yet an even fuller sound making it go from a hopped up Telecaster actually to a guitar that can sound like a Gibson with full sized humbuckers.
What used to be an underpowered model in Fender's line now has a powerful enough single coil sound and a Gibson like humbucker sound. What Fender has done with this model has been to effectively make a louder and fatter Telecaster minus the typical single coil hum of less expensive Telecaster models in the product line or of vintage Telecasters. The hum is eliminated using the new design, low pull Cobalt magnets in conjunction with more traditional magnets which use the more common ceramic and alnico formulations.
Vintage Look:
Without trying to look like a new guitar, the butterscotch ash body with a simple black pickguard on the American Deluxe Ash model makes this look like an old 1950s Fender Telecaster even though it sounds like a modern, hotter midrange based guitar, sans hum, with the feel of a very fast neck. Fender also makes this guitar in a traditional brown sunburst finish.
Who will like this guitar:
The ultra shiny bridge, flat and fast neck, jumbo frets, and warmer and louder pickups (due to the new S-1 switching system invented by Bill Lawrence) may not be suitable to vintage Telecaster fanatics, but any hard rock player or instrumental pyrotechnic guitar god who wants a power guitar, but with a humble, Telecaster "look" that won't deviate from the feel of their Jacksons and Ibanezes will love this guitar.
Just imagine the look of the crowd if you are in a Norwegian Death Metal band and pull out this puppy and play it through a Marshall with the same confidence and authority any superstrat can employ. And you don't have to rout out the body and toss in full sized humbuckers.
I can also see a Nashville studio player who wants to have the approximate Telecaster sound but with an extra little bite and midrange without having to use too many fancy pedals or tweak too many knobs on the amp. This guitar can go from subtle to screaming with just the controls Fender put on this particular model.
The top-of-the-line Fender American Deluxe Ash Telecaster Electric Guitar exudes Fender craftsmanship. You get vintage tone with a solid ash body, S-1...More at Musician's Friend
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