saturn Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 My friend/band-mate just bought one and I played it at practice yesterday. Now I've seen some cheap, crappy Chinese made stuff, but this guitar isn't one of those! If he hadn't told me, or if i didn't look at the "Squire" on the headstock, I would have guessed that it was an American made Fender! I know a Tele is a simple instrument and there's not a lot to mess up, but I could not find a single flaw. The neck was one of the nicest I've ever played and the finish is perfect. It's actually a pine body, and painted white, but you can just see some of the grain showing through the paint. A very cool effect. I don't know the specifics of the two single coil pups, but they sounded great to my ears. The neck pup is one of those lipstick looking things and the bridge looks to be the basic Fender single coil. Maybe the Chinese are starting to actually build things that can compete in quality, not just price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artie Owl Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 I've been involving myself in Chinese debates because I studied China, but I try to limit it now. All I'll say here is that China doesn't want mass manufacturing jobs and cheap products, they only did that because after Mao's "reforms" they had no choice. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw cheap manufacturing go into S.E Asia or Africa and China resumes making quality products like Japan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duende Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 I love jalapenos Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duende Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 Maybe the Chinese are starting to actually build things that can compete in quality, not just price. They certainly are. Two brands that come to mind in the jazz guitar world are Gitane and Eastman. The Eastman archtops are not cheap and retail from about £1200 upwards. But they are handmade (and feel genuinely handmade too) of outstanding quality -and yes I would go as far as saying they are of a similar quality to of an established brand such as Gibson although at about half the price! Gitane guitars are being endorsed by several big names in the gypsy jazz world too and receiving rave reviews... John Jorgenson playing his signature Gitane http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Tm5Ikl1AXw Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfpup Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 A good friend of mine has one of those Chinese-made Classic Vibe Teles and it is a really good guitar. Unbelievable for the money. In fact a lot of guys on the Tele forum (TDPRI) are raving madly about them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Versatile Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 Eastman archtops are really good hand carved instruments with one of the best ringing tones I have experienced And they come in the cutest 'cello' moulded hard cases Echoing Eastmans' grounding in quality stringed instruments Including top rated mandolins..... V Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MojoRedFoot Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 My friend/band-mate just bought one and I played it at practice yesterday. Now I've seen some cheap, crappy Chinese made stuff, but this guitar isn't one of those! If he hadn't told me, or if i didn't look at the "Squire" on the headstock, I would have guessed that it was an American made Fender! I know a Tele is a simple instrument and there's not a lot to mess up, but I could not find a single flaw. The neck was one of the nicest I've ever played and the finish is perfect. It's actually a pine body, and painted white, but you can just see some of the grain showing through the paint. A very cool effect. I don't know the specifics of the two single coil pups, but they sounded great to my ears. The neck pup is one of those lipstick looking things and the bridge looks to be the basic Fender single coil. Maybe the Chinese are starting to actually build things that can compete in quality, not just price. Not gonna lie, I played 4 different Squier vintage vibe teles. The blonde 50s was actually really nice. The necks on the 60s did not play so well. The look great but not fun to play. If I had $300 to throw away, I'd pick up the 50s one for fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Plains Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 I think a lot of Fender Squires are good/great guitars for the money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 I was given (yes, really) a Chinese-made Squier Tele and the biggest real difference (i.e. not just cosmetic) between that and the bound-neck Custom re-issue I owned in the '80s was the lower output of the neck p-up in the newer guitar. It's an astonishing thing for the asking price. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfpup Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 The only thing I don't really like about them Custom Vintage Tele is the lack of finish choices. I hope they do well enough that more options are available. My buddy has the CV 50's model which has a "blonde" finish. It's nice. But if they issue a "butterscotch" finish I will probably have to hook up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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