![]() The vintage stylings are carried through to the six-in-line button key tuning pegs, of which tuning accuracy and robustness are incredibly impressive. Onto the headstock, which adorns the golden border ‘70s CBS-style logo and is a satisfying nod that vintage aficionados will appreciate. We must admit, the bold look is right up our street, but if it’s a bit too much for you, there is a more muted Natural and 3-Tone Sunburst variation available. The monochrome combination is catapulted into rock ‘n’ roll hedonism by the swagger of black block inlays and matching binding. So we’ve established that the Classic Vibe Thinline sounds and plays great, but how does it look? Let us say, our model isn’t for the faint of heart. There is an acoustic resonance and breathy quality to the guitar’s sound, a hallmark of semi-hollow guitars. If the Wide Range humbuckers are the heart of the Thinline, its semi-hollow body is the soul. This is perhaps due to the pickups being mounted to the pickguard, as opposed to a traditional Tele bridge plate, losing a little bit of that metallic zing in the process. However, compared with our Player Plus Telecaster’s bridge pickup, there is a lot less bite, producing a very rounded, dare we say, mellow tone. We achieved a pleasing chicken pickin’ tone by introducing an MXR Dyna Comp compressor and dialing our Deluxe’s treble to 8. Throw overdrive into the mix and it can cover everything from glassy cleans to gritty hard rock crunch.Ĭycling through to the bridge pickup and some Telecaster twang starts to shine through. Dialing back the treble transforms this Squier to a sound more akin to a traditional ‘bucker. Bargain.Those familiar with the clarity of a single coil will feel right at home with this Classic Vibe, although there is a little extra humbucker oomph if you need it. It has timeless looks and modern playability and tone, and if you shop around enough you'll find one for less than £300. ![]() That's exactly what it's done with the Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster. ![]() All the company can hope to do is tweak the design just enough to entice new players to buy one, without buggering it up. Fender will always struggle to better the Telecaster, because Leo got the design so right in the first place. Either a) Fender has run out of fresh ideas, or b) the Telecaster is so good it's stood the test of time. There's something a bit bonkers about reviewing a 'new' guitar that was designed more than 60 years ago. Remember, the Telecaster is Excalibur to guitarists as disparate as Keith Richards, bluesman Muddy Waters and late great rockabilly legend Danny Gatton. It also has that legendary Tele tonal versatility in its DNA, which covers anything from jazz to classic rock. The combination of the lively pine body and hotter pickups means this guitar cuts through a mix just as a great Telecaster should. The latter offer more output and grunt than the Alnico IIIs, which makes them a smarter choice if you thrive on overdrive. SoundsĪs mentioned, you can choose between the vintage-voiced Alnico III pickups of the Vintage Blonde Classic Vibe, or the new Butterscotch Blonde's ballsier Alnico Vs. The flatter 9.5-inch radius equates to a comfortable, if not mindblowing, action throughout the whole fingerboard and easy string bending above the 12th fret. ![]() Leo's original guitar had a mega fat neck with a 7.25-inch radius fingerboard, while the Classic Vibe has a slim neck with a 9.5-inch radius 'board fitted with 21 medium jumbo frets. The Classic Vibe might be cleverly disguised to look like an early 50s Blackguard Telecaster, but its playability is bang up to date.
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