Best Country Guitar?

Ian Finlay · Post by **Ian Finlay** » 27 Dec 2004 4:04 am

I'm fortunate enough to have acquired a bunch of Rockabilly oriented stuff over the years - for me (from my collection), the #1 combination is my '52 ES-295, through an Echoplex, into my '57 4x10 Bassman. #2 (very close) is my '55 Duo Jet with a fixed arm Bigsby. It's MUCH better than the moveable arm or none at all - when it was put on the difference was so noticeable it was unbelievable. #3 (and way good for country too) is my Warmoth Tele with 3 Harmonic Designs pickups. I recommend these so highly - they kill the Bardens and everything else I tried stone dead. I have the Vintage 54s, two Tele ones and a Strat one on a push-push switch.

If I could choose any guitar I'd pick a blonde Switchmaster with no Bigsby and Alnico pickups. I have an ES5 (non Switchmaster) which can sound like a Tele, Strat, Super 400 etc. but it misses the switch!

Ian

Dan Sawyer · Post by **Dan Sawyer** » 27 Dec 2004 1:16 pm

Ian, why do you think the fixed arm Bigsby is so much better? Could the movable arm be robbing the guitar of tone and sustain?

I like the Harmonic Design pickups too. I've got a vintage plus in the neck position on a tele. But, i think the mini-humbucking like Brent Mason uses is the best neck pickup for a tele. Full size humbucking pickups always sound mushy in a tele.

Jim Phelps · Post by **Jim Phelps** » 27 Dec 2004 3:46 pm

Full size humbucking pickups always sound mushy in a tele.

The original Fender humbucker on my '72 Fender Telecaster Custom (neck humbucker, standard single-coil bridge p.u.) sure doesn't.

Rick McDuffie · Post by **Rick McDuffie** » 27 Dec 2004 6:05 pm

Thanks for mentioning that, Dan Sawyer. I had heard it from someone, although I didn't notice the guitar back then.

In "American Guitars," Tom Wheeler makes the point that the Sheraton was the fanciest thinline electric Gibson ever built.

Hmmm... Brent's not only got the mini-bucker in there, but also the LP Deluxe trim ring. And check out the thumb pick... that's surely part of his sound, ain't it? Maximum twang. I'd be very interested in getting 'hold of that guitar for a few minutes. Now I may have to put a mini-bucker on my Tele, too! I wonder....[This message was edited by Rick McDuffie on 27 December 2004 at 07:13 PM.]

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 28 Dec 2004 4:05 am

Is it possible that when Brents Guitar was being "altered" that the mini HB was used for space considerations? I too have a full size HB on one of my Tele's in the neck position, clearly it does NOT sound muddy..but it is loud and it does take up a bunch of space and it took a bunch of trial and error to get it to sit right in the cavity and not be too close to the strings.It is also my understanding that Joe Glaser does all of the work on Brents guitars.Brent also wears fake finger nails on 2 fingers which are part of HIS unique style as well.

here is my MIJ Squire..stripped ..great player but a tad too bright. I have tried a few different bridge PUPS and have just purchased yet another bargain 96' Delta Tone which I'll stick in at some point. One thing is for certain, the neck HB'er is killer on the non twang tunes..

t

<img src=http://www.bprior.com/MIJ_tele.jpg>[This message was edited by Tony Prior on 31 December 2004 at 01:26 AM.]

Bill C. Buntin · Post by **Bill C. Buntin** » 2 Jan 2005 6:06 am

Gibson, Gretsch of old.
But I'd give the Tele the #1 spot of ALL TIME.

Toby Rider · Post by **Toby Rider** » 5 Sep 2005 11:54 am

Teles, Strats, Gretsches, 335's, big jazz boxes, they all have good useful sounds for country. That's why it helps to own at least one of each, and decide what to play based on the feel of the song

You can get a very good solid jazz sound out of the neck position on a Tele as well, especially with a humbucker/mini-hum or filtertron installed into that neck position.[This message was edited by Toby Rider on 05 September 2005 at 12:55 PM.]

Terry Sneed · Post by **Terry Sneed** » 5 Sep 2005 12:55 pm

I vote Tele, and would love to have one, but I can't sell my Strat for scatt!! Had it on Ebay 3 times, and have had it on this forum 2 times, and still can't sell it. And I don't think $450 is to much to ask for a 2004 american made strat. one of the purtiest I've ever seen.

Funny how some people can sell anything, and others can't sell squat!

Terry

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Mullen D10 /8x5 / session 500rd/ American Strat Highway 1 model
steelin for my Lord

Bob Smith · Post by **Bob Smith** » 5 Sep 2005 2:07 pm

G&L Asat ranks right up there with anything. Maybe a little more versatile, if you play other music styles, with your" country" band. They really have a nice bark .IMHO Happy Labor Day!![This message was edited by Bob Smith on 05 September 2005 at 03:08 PM.]

LARRY COLE · Post by **LARRY COLE** » 5 Sep 2005 8:40 pm

Carvin Tele, 3 s/c pickups. Neck through body with ebony fingerboard, 25" scale, 24 frets. 5 way and mini toggle switch so you can get any p/u combination, even neck and bridge only.
Carvin Nomad Vintage series tweed, 1-12, 50 watts all tube(EL-84 power tubes).

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Playing For JESUS,LC. WILLIAMS U12,SHO-BUD PRO1,CARVIN TL60,GIBSON LES PAUL CUSTOM,YAMAHA L-10A ACOUSTIC,ROLAND JW-50 KEYBOARD,G&L AND BC RICH BASS'S

Bob Martin · Post by **Bob Martin** » 7 Sep 2005 2:08 pm

I have played a strat since 1972, but in 1982 I had it rewired so that I could control the tone on the bridge PUP. Since that rewire I spend as much time on the bridge PUP as I do all of the rest.

I do a little eq'ing when I'm on the bridge PUP thru my effects and I get a very satisfactory TeleWacker tone.

I also know folks that have done the same to a Tele by adding the middle PUP so in complete honesty I would say that no one guitar is ever the perfect guitar for all applications. If Tele pickers add a middle PUP then they are saying that the Tele stock is not enough to make them happy and I am saying the same thing by modifying my strat as to make it sound like a tele.

Thats just about objective as I can be. I'll bet others will see it differently

Bob

Stephen Gambrell · Post by **Stephen Gambrell** » 8 Sep 2005 4:15 am

I've got 'em all, with another Tele on the way, BUT---If I had to whittle it down to just one, desert island guitar, it'd be a Strat, just for versatility.

Bob Martin · Post by **Bob Martin** » 8 Sep 2005 4:37 am

I agree with you steve they are much more versatile right out of the box than most other guitars.

Bob

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 8 Sep 2005 5:04 am

Objectivity?
Personality?
My moonburst Danelectro, the only one of its kind. See them buttons? Duane Eddy slap-back, vibrato, with chorus and another button which I wish said 'Tele.' [This message was edited by Charlie McDonald on 11 September 2005 at 05:34 AM.]

James Morehead · Post by **James Morehead** » 8 Sep 2005 6:11 am

Whats the perfect country guitar? Tele. That's the choice of Redd Volkaert. Works for me. I have a Tele, '91 sunburst/maple neck, stock fender pickups. Plug into a Fender twin, and I still am a lousy player! HA HA HA!!!

Jay Fagerlie · Post by **Jay Fagerlie** » 8 Sep 2005 7:25 am

Hey Charlie,
I have a Dano in Blueburst, mine is the baritone model.
It is an awsome axe. The fx can get a little cheezy, but running it into two amps (it has separate dry and FX outputs, of course)is really fun.
I have 4 Danos and love 'em all. In the belly dance band I play in, all I use is Danos....the baritone, an electric 12 with hammers (to simulate a hammered dulcimer) and an original '69 baby sitar.

A very underrated line of guitars, in my opinion.
Jay

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 8 Sep 2005 9:41 am

Hey, Jay,
A bari would be great. I love the idea of a twelve-string hammered.
The effects are really quite good, and quiet. I use them for recording.

No, it doesn't bite like a Tele, but I've heard mine compared to Mark Knopfler's Schecter for sweetness, and I agree.
Very underrated, and don't cost a bundle.

I think it would work very well for country.

Jeremy Steele · Post by **Jeremy Steele** » 8 Sep 2005 10:03 am

I have one of those Danos, and I agree that the effects are cool, but I have a hard time keeping the thing in tune...plus, the pickup selector switch is in an awkward place (right where I strum).

Charles Turpin · Post by **Charles Turpin** » 10 Sep 2005 3:23 pm

For about ten years i fell in love witha Peavy T-27.It had the perfect neck for me. It had wide frets but a slim neck built just right for speed. Then My second guitar for the old fashion country and rock was a Chariton Epiphone loaded down with gibson 740L strings something you can't even buy anymore.Then strings give you a different sound from anybody else yet i don't know I think it was in the gauges of the strings. They gave you that good thick sound when you needed it and done away with that twang. That was a big secret. But I also had a Gretch country gentlemen and I also had a Gretch Super Chet that i realy thought a lot about. Playing finger style like we did back in thoses days you realy needed that sound. But the Gretch Strings we put on them where the same sets that Chet offered hisself through there company.

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Jim Walker · Post by **Jim Walker** » 11 Sep 2005 1:14 pm

Wow, this thread is almost a year old. How did I miss it? I'm a Tele picker from way back. (15 Yrs) Well that's a long time ago to me. I've played many brands but I always go back to the Tele. In fact my x-wife claimed I loved my Candy Apple Red B-bender Telecaster more than her. She was quite right. What can I say? My Tele screams for me, not at me.

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Tele-Bender-Blaster-Caster
Line 6 Amps
www.jimwalkeronline.com

Billy Henderson · Post by **Billy Henderson** » 11 Sep 2005 2:07 pm

Gosh I hope you tele guys are right. I found a solid piece of swamp ash from a southern swamp, big enough for a body. Took it to a custom shop where they planed it down and painted it a blue burst color. The grain shows through very nicely, it is beautiful! Now to find a neck and all the other parts. I am going with a maple neck I think, not sure about the pups yet. The body is very light and I am sure it will be the best country guitar ever built! Now we can lay this one to rest! Thanks to all

Clyde Mattocks · Post by **Clyde Mattocks** » 13 Sep 2005 9:37 pm

I think for a lot of us who play steel, we're addicted to the brilliance and sustain of a Tele. On most of the guitar jobs I'm
called for I take a stock 73 Tele. When I
play with a Gospel group I take a Gibson 335
and with a swing group I jam with I take a
stock Strat, playing mostly on the neck pickup with a lot of mud applied. Always,
always an older Fender tube amp. The thing
I love about Fender amps, especially Deluxe
and Vibrolux is if you don't get a chance to
check out the room or stage sound and have to hit it cold, just set bass and treble on
5 and go for it. You may have to tweak it
after the first song but the amp is going to
sound decent from the gitgo.

Kenny Burford · Post by **Kenny Burford** » 26 Sep 2005 10:13 pm

Tele and a Fender Twin my tools of choice. Second favorite country guitar early 1960s 335 Gibsons. It has a sound as warm as a mother's milk. Flat tops, D-35 Martin. If person owns all three of those guitars and a Fender Twin he's livin' the high life.

Mark Eaton · Post by **Mark Eaton** » 2 Oct 2005 9:22 pm

My son's guitar teacher, who is one incredible picker, has an American Tele that he modified with Lace pickups designed for the Tele.

That is one of the best sounding electric guitars I have ever heard, period.

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Mark
[This message was edited by Mark Eaton on 02 October 2005 at 10:23 PM.]

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 3 Oct 2005 2:23 am

the real issue , is not which Guitar but rather..

Which Telecaster do I choose ?

here's poor Matt, he just can't figure out which one to play, and even worse, theres 3 Tele's missing from the picture !

<img src=http://www.bprior.com/4_tele.JPG>

ya just can't have enough good Tele's....

[This message was edited by Tony Prior on 03 October 2005 at 03:36 AM.]