Guitar Chico Posted December 12, 2008 Author Share Posted December 12, 2008 Here's a short list of some guy's who have played Tele's Terry Kath Jimmy Page Danny Gatton Pat Travers Kieth Richards Roy Buchanan George Harrison Steve Cropper Duane Allman Prince Vince Gill Will Ray Jerry Donahue John Jorgenson James Burton That's just off the top of my head.......not a versatile guitar? You might want to re-think that one! [/quote'] I think Chrissy Hynde from the Pretenders played one. Bruce Springsteen Brad Paisley Tom Morello (from rage against the machine. not really a fav of mine but it shows tele versatility) Andy Summers Steve Croppers Albert Collins Susan Tedeschi Quite honestly I don't know who a lot of those people are I just got it from my guitar book. Btw its called Guitar Heaven: The Most Famous Guitars to Electrify Our World by Neville Martin. I would totally recommend it. It has a lot of guitar stuff in it and its a good read to boot. GC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
layboomo Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 I think Chrissy Hynde from the Pretenders played one. Bruce Springsteen Brad Paisley Tom Morello (from rage against the machine. not really a fav of mine but it shows tele versatility) Andy Summers Steve Croppers Albert Collins Susan Tedeschi Quite honestly I don't know who a lot of those people are I just got it from my guitar book. Btw its called Guitar Heaven: The Most Famous Guitars to Electrify Our World by Neville Martin. I would totally recommend it. It has a lot of guitar stuff in it and its a good read to boot. GC Excellent additions GC! I can't believe I forgot the boss and the "iceman"(albert collins) too! ......Muddy Waters someone also pointed out as well as Bloomfield too! Blues guys seem to really like Tele's too Buddy Whitington plays one sometimes as well. The list really does go on and on.......and for those of you who think a tele is just a twang machine try it through a cranked up marshall sometime and try not to smile! :D/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generation zero Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 Excellent additions GC! I can't believe I forgot the boss and the "iceman"(albert collins) too! ......Muddy Waters someone also pointed out as well as Bloomfield too! Blues guys seem to really like Tele's too Buddy Whitington plays one sometimes as well. The list really does go on and on.......and for those of you who think a tele is just a twang machine try it through a cranked up marshall sometime and try not to smile! :D/ Doesn't Jim Root from Slipknot actually have a new signature model Fender Tele out? Also, both James Black and Rick Jackett from Finger Eleven have been known to use Teles... James actually swore by one for a while during the Tip - Greyest of Blue Skies era. I know Dave Gilmour has one he plays on tour these days... I'm trying to think of some other more modern examples in hard rock, I know there are plenty... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pohatu771 Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 I was just reading an interview with John 5 in an older issue of Premier Guitar... if you don't believe it's a versatile guitar, look at what that guy does... Marilyn Manson, Chet Atkins... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wedgeSG Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 Yes there is a Jim Root signature and lets not forget John 5 for both his metal and bluegarss uses. One of my favorite tele whackers though is Roy Buchannan. Wedgie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midiman56 Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 How about John 5 of Rob Zombie fame? He has a signature tele that is ALL about the crunch. Triple 'buckers and more chrome than a 50's caddy! http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/Fender-John-J5-Telecaster-HHH-Electric-Guitar?sku=512571 MIDI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin134 Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 Maybe I missed it, but where is Jeff Beck? another tele player, though his most famous one is actually a Esquire. His '05 tour pics show a Tele in his lineup though I don't remember seeing him play it..LOL.. I think the Boss's might be a Esquire too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marcelo1281734115 Posted December 14, 2008 Share Posted December 14, 2008 Hello BigNorm, Generation Zero and WedgeSG,...the guys that have installed Epi humbuckers on a Strat. I have a Peavey Strat clone with pickups that have absolutely no life in them. I have a couple of amps and I have been playing with the settings and I cannot get this guitar to sound like a rock guitar. I like the humbucker sound that I get on my Epi LEs Paul Standard and I like the very low action of this Strat. In the future, I might upgrade the Epi Les Paul Standard's pickups to P-90 or some nice Gibsons, then, I would have the spare Epi pickups that I remove from the Les Paul that I can try out and install on the Strat. This way, I can give more life to 2 guitars at the same time and save some money too. I have a few questions though: 1. The Epi Les Paul pickups have dog ears that are installed so that the dog ears lie to the outsides of the pickup (ie. on the neck side at the neck pup, and on the bridge side on the bridge pup). Do I keep them this way on the Strat, or do I need to reverse them so the dog ears are towards the center of the guitar's body? 2. Do I need to remove the pickup covers? The Epi chrome soapbar-type cover may not look good on a Strat, but this is cosmetic. 3. How did you guys wire this thing up? The Epi LP is wired with 2-Vol pots and 2-Tone pots and a 3-way switch. The Strat has 1-Vol and 2-Tone pots and a 5-way switch. What vol/tone pot and switch configuration do you need to do to the Strat to make this work? and where can I get a schematic so that I can do this wiring myself? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stan 58 Posted December 14, 2008 Share Posted December 14, 2008 For 30 some $ I'd buy a wired two humbucker pickguard from GFS and put my own PUs in it. But i would try the PUs that come with it first, because the ones i got rock. Stan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nic Posted December 14, 2008 Share Posted December 14, 2008 Here's a few jazz guys you can add to the list Bill Frisell Scotty Anderson Ted Greene I'm down to two guitars now and one of them is a Telecaster. I wouldn't call it versatile but the two pick ups offer up completely different tones. I use the neck pick up to get a fat warm sparkling tone that is perfect for jazz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marcelo1281734115 Posted December 15, 2008 Share Posted December 15, 2008 Wow Stan, that guitar looks great! You even managed to find a red perloid pickguard too. I was ready to buy the parts and build this myself. Your method is a lot easier to do. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stan 58 Posted December 15, 2008 Share Posted December 15, 2008 Thanks Marcello, why do it the hard way when you don't have to!!Good Luck. Stan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generation zero Posted December 15, 2008 Share Posted December 15, 2008 Hello BigNorm' date=' Generation Zero and WedgeSG,...the guys that have installed Epi humbuckers on a Strat. I have a Peavey Strat clone with pickups that have absolutely no life in them. I have a couple of amps and I have been playing with the settings and I cannot get this guitar to sound like a rock guitar. I like the humbucker sound that I get on my Epi LEs Paul Standard and I like the very low action of this Strat. In the future, I might upgrade the Epi Les Paul Standard's pickups to P-90 or some nice Gibsons, then, I would have the spare Epi pickups that I remove from the Les Paul that I can try out and install on the Strat. This way, I can give more life to 2 guitars at the same time and save some money too. I have a few questions though: 1. The Epi Les Paul pickups have dog ears that are installed so that the dog ears lie to the outsides of the pickup (ie. on the neck side at the neck pup, and on the bridge side on the bridge pup). Do I keep them this way on the Strat, or do I need to reverse them so the dog ears are towards the center of the guitar's body? 2. Do I need to remove the pickup covers? The Epi chrome soapbar-type cover may not look good on a Strat, but this is cosmetic. 3. How did you guys wire this thing up? The Epi LP is wired with 2-Vol pots and 2-Tone pots and a 3-way switch. The Strat has 1-Vol and 2-Tone pots and a 5-way switch. What vol/tone pot and switch configuration do you need to do to the Strat to make this work? and where can I get a schematic so that I can do this wiring myself? Thanks.[/quote'] I'll address your questions one at a time... 1. - No, for no reason should you have to reverse the dog ears, nor do I even know how you would do that without ruining the pickup, LOL! The first thing you'll need to do is remove the pickguard and make sure the body is routed out to acommodate a humbucker sized pickup. If it is, you're in business. If the holes are single coil sized, you'll need to tag in a professional to rerout the body to accept the buckers. For mine, I bought a 2 humbucker replacement pickguard, I think it was allparts brand, but it might have been a fender... Anyway, the screw holes lined up for the most part, but I had to predrill a few new ones that were a bit off. Also, being for a fender, this guard had one mounting hole on one side of the pickup, and two on the other, for fender style pups. I had to drill a third hole centered between the two to make the epi mounting holes work. At this point, we get to the next question... 2. - to remove the covers or not? In my case, it wasn't an issue for the bridge pickup, as I used the uncovered pickup from my baritone Paul. The uncovered epi pickup just barely fit the hole in the guard, with no modification. At the neck, however, I wanted to use the covered neck pickup from my standard, for a darker sound. (Which is a side note... Covers are not just cosmetic... A covered pickup will generally sound noticably darker than the same model pickup in an uncovered model. Not tremendously different, but noticable.) the covered pickup wouldn't quite fit through the hole, so I had to square the corners out with a file, and shave one side of the hole ever so slightly to widen it just a hair, for a perfect fit. I personally like the look of one covered and one uncovered pup on this guitar, but that's up to you on yours. I will let you know that removing the covers can be a pain. You have to know how to desolder them properly, plus you'll have to deal with the wax after you get them off. It's not just a simple matter of popping it off... Let me know if you decide to go that route, I'll find a link to an article on Stew-Mac that details the process. 3. - Wiring. The short answer here is however you want it... I recommend a three position blade switch like on a tele. As for wiring the pups, they'll be 2 conductor, so that limits any tricks like coil tapping that would make it more difficult for a novice... Basically you can wire them as you would a single coil. For the knobs, you could opt for individual volumes with a master tone for more of a Les Paul like configuration, or stay fendery with a master volume and two tone controls. That's a little easier to wire, because odds are you could use most of the existing wiring at that point. I went a little goofy on mine and wired in a trick circuit I came up with called a reverse kill switch (patent pending, LOL) where I add a mini toggle, and replace one of the tone knobs with a momentary-on pushbutton wired in parallel to the mini toggle. This trick rig goes between the final hot lead to the jack and the jack itself, so that when the mini toggle is in the on position the guitar functions normally, but with it off, you only get output from the guitar while the button is depressed. The effect sounds like the toggle switch trick on a Paul where you turn one pickups' volume all the way off and switch back and forth between the two, but the button allows a little more speed and also saves wear on the switch, LOL. I'll draw up a schematic for that later when I'm at home, I'm posting this from my blackberry at work, LOL! I'll post some pics of the guitar too. Hope this post helps, cause I've killed my thumbs! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wedgeSG Posted December 18, 2008 Share Posted December 18, 2008 I'll add this for clarification: We threw a pair of Epi humbuckers in a Squire Telecaster Custom. This took about an hour start to finish. The pickguard was already housing humbuckers (not dog-ear versions of any- thing). The Squire and the Epi were both two wire pickups so it was simply one pickup off and replaced with another similar in mounting and wiring...repete for other pickup. TOOOO EASY for the tone and output im- provement. I doubt we'd have gotten as involved as Gen.Zero did since it required addtional clearancing. I'm certain it would be worth the effort but that's more of a project than we had time to undertake when we did the swap. Sorry for any confusion I may have caused. Wedgie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generation zero Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 As promised, here's pics of my beater Squier with the two epi buckers and the trick wiring scheme. It started out as an experiment really, to see if my "reverse killswitch" idea worked like I thought it would. Yeah, that's silver spraypaint. On part of the body. Just for the heck of it. In other areas, I took a propane torch to it, sandpaper, a screwdriver to gouge out a few spots... I wanted it to be really ugly. You should see the original white pickguard... A close up of the controls... the toggle activates the kill feature. (Flipping the toggle turns the guitar off, and pressing the button down turns it on while the button is pressed only.) Blade selector switch is a three way, set up like a Paul. (Bridge, Both, or Neck) The headstock... complete with matching "silverburp" finish. Close up of my nut repair job, LOL. I tried putting baritone strings on it for down-tuning at one point, and the nut didn't like it. Popped the edge off... :D I didn't want to spend $30 for a new nut on a guitar I at that point had $20 invested in, so I just MacGyvered it. Surprisingly, it plays fine, and stays in tune perfectly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MelodyMaker1 Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 Generation Zero As promised, here's pics of my beater Squier with the two epi buckers and the trick wiring scheme. Yeah, that's silver spraypaint. On part of the body. Just for the heck of it. In other areas, I took a propane torch to it, sandpaper, a screwdriver to gouge out a few spots... I wanted it to be really ugly. +1. You succeeded more than you'll ever know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generation zero Posted December 19, 2008 Share Posted December 19, 2008 Generation ZeroAs promised' date=' here's pics of my beater Squier with the two epi buckers and the trick wiring scheme. Yeah, that's silver spraypaint. On part of the body. Just for the heck of it. In other areas, I took a propane torch to it, sandpaper, a screwdriver to gouge out a few spots... [b']I wanted it to be really ugly. [/b] +1. You succeeded more than you'll ever know. But... but... it SOUNDS great... well, for a Squier anyway. I bought it for $20 off a mechanic that probably bought it in the early '90s and then left it out in his garage without strings for 15 years. It looked neglected, rusted up, too bad to clean up properly, but not beat up enough to have any charachter. So I gave it the "relic" treatment, in the worst way... LOL. I only really bought it at first because I hadn't owned a strat since high school. Once I realized I didn't hate strats as bad as I thought I did, I went out and got the cream Squier so I had one that was at least halfway decent. Eventually, I may pick up a real Fender, but these two are plenty for me at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canine Posted December 20, 2008 Share Posted December 20, 2008 Many years ago, I was in town ready to purchase another Les Paul, finally be able to afford a new one. Walked into that guitar store, and decided to test drive a tele they had laying around.... Walked out of the store with that thing, and only recently got rid of it in favor of a brand new Vintage '52! I'm a hardcore Gibson/Epi fan, and can tell you I hate Strats with every fiber in my body! I own the SRV Strat and hate the thing. However, there's something about that Telecaster, even the new one I got, super sweet and plays like magic! A Tele is the only Fender I would buy again.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generation zero Posted December 20, 2008 Share Posted December 20, 2008 Many years ago' date=' I was in town ready to purchase another Les Paul, finally be able to afford a new one. Walked into that guitar store, and decided to test drive a tele they had laying around.... Walked out of the store with that thing, and only recently got rid of it in favor of a brand new Vintage '52! I'm a hardcore Gibson/Epi fan, and can tell you I hate Strats with every fiber in my body! I own the SRV Strat and hate the thing. However, there's something about that Telecaster, even the new one I got, super sweet and plays like magic! A Tele is the only Fender I would buy again.... [/quote'] My local guitar center has one of the SRV strats on the wall for like 17,000 dollars. Unless there are more than one version like the Slash Les Pauls, I would understand that you have a VERY valuable instrument that you hate? Why not sell it and buy something you love instead? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canine Posted December 20, 2008 Share Posted December 20, 2008 I don't know about the price, mine was about 1.3K and they sell today for 1.5K or so... The SRV Strat is still a production model by Fender. Maybe that one the store has for sale was actually played by SRV or maybe signed by him? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generation zero Posted December 20, 2008 Share Posted December 20, 2008 Possibly... I never cared enough about it to ask. I will next time I'm there... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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