Pros: Great price; build quality is great on mine; sounds like a Telecaster
Cons: Rumors of build quality problems; no "rosewood neck" option
The Bottom Line: I'm stunned at how much guitar you get for the money with this one. Still, I'd play it before I bought it due to reports of build quality problems.
HawgWyld's Full Review: New Fender Squier Affinity Telecaster In Metallic ...
Actually, the Squire by Fender Affinity Telecaster is a fantastic guitar for just about anyone who loves that classic, single-coil, nasaly sound for which the Telecaster is known. I've heard of some build problems with these things and that could be true -- the one we picked up, however, is an exceptional bargain for the money.
Let me explain why I'd say such a thing. Back in 1988 I got one of the famed (and rightfully so!) Japanese Fender Telecasters. I bought that guitar because the neck just felt right, it was affordable at $280, it looked very cool (hey, the Clash's Joe Strummer and Bruce Springsteen were both associated with their Telecasters early in their careers) and it sounded great. I loved that guitar and eventually replaced the original pickups a higher-output set made by Schaller, flipped the control panel around so I wouldn't keep bumping into the pickup selecter switch while strumming, shielded the electronics and made some other modifications.
I had to pawn the guitar when I was in my 20s to pay rent one month and have regretted that move ever since. Yes, I've got a considerably more expensive Fender Stratocaster Deluxe but it's just not the same as the old Telecaster.
Is there a point to this rambling? There sure it. That Affinity Telecaster reminds me a lot of my beloved Japanese Tele. The reason I bought the Affinity Telecaster is that my son wants to learn to play guitar -- he's 12-years-old and he's been pestering me about learning to play since he was three-years-old. I figure that you want to get a kid a decent guitar when he's learning to play so as not to discourage him, but you don't want to spend too much money because he might not take to the instrument and you'll feel like a sucker for plunking down a lot of cash. The Affinity, then, is perfect for my kid -- it's a truly great guitar but it only cost $180.
There are some cost-cutting measures used in the Affinity series that should be addressed. For one thing, Telecasters have traditionally been made of alder, ash or poplar. The Affinity is made with poplar, the least expensive of the three. The sound resonates fine in that alder, so no real problems there. Also, the two-piece, rosewood fretboard isn't available on this model (from what I understand). You get a one-piece, maple neck that is very-lightly varnished and feels a bit "rougher" than the highly-polished, thickly-varnished Fender necks I've grown accustomed to over the years.
Fortunately, I prefer the one-piece necks on Telecasters and the frets on this Affinity are even, set well in the neck and there are no rough (or dangerous!) bits of metal sticking out here and there. The neck is perhaps the most surprising thing on the guitar, in fact. It was set up very well at the guitar store where we bought it and you've got no "buzzing string" problems at all or the calamity that comes with a cheap, nut that allows too much string play or isn't set well. The action is great on this guitar and I can zip up and down the neck with ease.
The pickups sound, well, like Telecaster pickups should. In other words, the bridge pickup is a lot louder than the neck one the guitar simply throws out that bright, snappy twang that made this line famous. The sound is a bit more harsh and brassy that I what I remember, but it sure as heck sounds like a Telecaster, you know?
You also get six saddles (one for each string) that can be adjusted, the trussrod in the neck as you'd expect and a set of tuners that do their job well (i.e., keeping the guitar in tune for long periods of time). You don't get a floating bridge, of course, because there's no tremelo arm to fool with. That means the guitar stays in tune longer than those floating-bridge things and you get more sustain, to boot. The finish on the guitar is flawless -- bright and shiny with no sign of flaws anywhere. So, the finish is great, the guitar feels and sounds fantastic and the thing comes across as a rock-solid Telecaster that will last for years.
If this guitar is so good then why is it so inexpensive? The ultimate cost-cutting move that Fender used with this line was to have them manufactured in China. The fact this was churned out of a Chinese factory raises red flags all over the place. I've heard spotty reports about build quality and that may have to do with where they are manufactured.
To that end, I'd certainly suggest heading to a music store to pick up one of these rather than simply buying one online and hoping for the best. You can play the guitar before you buy it to see if the build quality is up to snuff. Also, it's a long way from China to here and I'm fairly certain that any guitar store that gets a shipment of these things has a lot to do in the "setting up" department -- you don't ship an instrument that far without some problems creeping up, right?
One thing that I do feel compelled to say is that this guitar is not the right choice looking for someone playing screaming metal or anything with a lot of distortion. The single-coil pickups simply don't drive distortion like one with dual-coil (humbucking) pickups. Simply put, look more toward the excellent line of Gibson guitars or some dual-coil Fender models if you're wanting an instrument that will handle those "chunk-chunk-chunk" riffs with ease. The telecaster is great for country, rockabilly and a lot of rock genres, but it just doesn't handle heavy distortion terribly well.
Also, bear in mind that this is a very simple guitar. You don't get a tremelo bar or the wild variety in tones that are available on a lot of guitars -- you get a three-way, pickup selector switch; an immobile bridge; and a guitar that screams "classic" all the way. In my book that's good enough.
Once again, you get a lot of bang for the buck with this Affinity. Still, exercise some caution and make sure you can play it before you buy it to make sure there aren't any problems with the build quality or set up.
One final thing -- my son is lucky I don't swipe this from him. I like his Tele better than my Deluxe Strat and that's saying something.
The Squier Affinity Series Telecaster Electric Guitar is the quintessential rockabilly, blues, and country solidbody. This is a modern Telecaster with...More at Musician's Friend
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The Affinity Series Tele guitar features two single-coil pickups, three-way switching and truly classic Telecaster guitar style.More at J&R Music and Computer World
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