I am considering an electric guitar for learning to play the blues. I really like the Fender sound but do not have the money at present for the American made Fender. I will have to settle with a beginner Squire model and was wondering which might work out best for playing the blues. I am considering a stratocaster or a telecaster. Can anyone tell me what they think about either of these two guitars? I think the telecaster has a good sound and a probably more comfortable shape but also like the sound of the stratocaster. Any advice?








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FRANKO

Well you have to go and play them to see which feels more comfortable. The main difference from the fender and Squires are the pick ups and hardware. you can replace the pick ups and they could be a very good guitar. Both will work for blues. Remember when buying a guitar you need to make sure neck is straight and if the strings are a little high you can get a tech or maybe the place you buy it from can lower them to your liking








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Actually, the strat is a more comfortable guitar. Here is a bit of Fender history for you, and it might help you choose.

Good old Leo first designed the Broadcaster guitar, which then became the Telecaster. The telecaster hasn't changed much in it's design at all, and is renowned for its bright and cutting tone. Later, Leo decided to enhance his guitars to be more modern and "futuristic", and thus the Stratocaster was born. The strat came with three pick-ups instead of two, and later by consumer request, had a 5-way switch to get a variety of tones. Stratocasters are famous for their "bell-like" tone. Strats are designed with a contour on the body so that it doesn't dig into your ribs, and was designed with a double cutaway for easier playability.

Hope that helps your decision making. For blues, you can't go wrong with either (or both).








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You'll just have to play them and see which you prefer. Most people who try them out gravitate to one or the other. There are lots of blues artists using both Strats and Teles, so it's really a personal preference.

Most people find Strats more comfortable, but slab bodies like Teles have do not bother me. I went through a Strat phase early on but now have a preference for Teles. Ideally, everyone should have at least one of both!

If you decide on a Strat, you may want to look into getting a used Peavey Predator. These are USA guitars you can find on ebay for around $100, and are every bit as good as Mexican-made Fender Strats (in fact, when I sold my MIM Fender to raise cash for a deal, I replaced the Fender with a Predator). Here's my Predator:



Peavey also made a sister to the Predator called a Reactor, which was their US-made Tele clone:



These usually run a little more than the Predators, but are quite affordable for a US-made guitar. If you consider these, make sure they are the US-made ones from the '90's because Peavey later imported models with similar names.

Good luck!








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My first guitar was a peavey predator. An early 90s one. It had great Strat tone, and plenty of output on the bridge pickup for heavier stuff. I sold it in a moment of weakness. They are extremely light. I've been watching ebay for one for my daughter. I would recommend it highly.

I never tried out the Reactor, but if the predator is any indication of it's quality, it should be a great axe.








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7StringSam wrote:

My first guitar was a peavey predator. An early 90s one. It had great Strat tone, and plenty of output on the bridge pickup for heavier stuff. I sold it in a moment of weakness. They are extremely light. I've been watching ebay for one for my daughter. I would recommend it highly.

I never tried out the Reactor, but if the predator is any indication of it's quality, it should be a great axe.

Likewise, I've only played Predators. But several online buddies of mine, whose opinions I trust, have Reactors and the concensus is that they're equally solid. I've seen pics of them gigging them, and I've played my Predator for church gigs and stuff and wouldn't hesitate to use it for my rock band gigs either.








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Brian Krashpad wrote:

You'll just have to play them and see which you prefer. Most people who try them out gravitate to one or the other. There are lots of blues artists using both Strats and Teles, so it's really a personal preference.

Most people find Strats more comfortable, but slab bodies like Teles have do not bother me. I went through a Strat phase early on but now have a preference for Teles. Ideally, everyone should have at least one of both!

If you decide on a Strat, you may want to look into getting a used Peavey Predator. These are USA guitars you can find on ebay for around $100, and are every bit as good as Mexican-made Fender Strats (in fact, when I sold my MIM Fender to raise cash for a deal, I replaced the Fender with a Predator). Here's my Predator:



Peavey also made a sister to the Predator called a Reactor, which was their US-made Tele clone:



These usually run a little more than the Predators, but are quite affordable for a US-made guitar. If you consider these, make sure they are the US-made ones from the '90's because Peavey later imported models with similar names.

Good luck!

The predators I see being sold at Musician's friend and Music123.com have two humbucking type pickups. I am just wondering just what type of sound they have since no one in my area sells them. I would not think they would sound like the f.statocaster at all, but I could be mistakened. Any advice is welcome.
thanks,,,,,franko








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franko wrote:

The predators I see being sold at Musician's friend and Music123.com have two humbucking type pickups. I am just wondering just what type of sound they have since no one in my area sells them. I would not think they would sound like the f.statocaster at all, but I could be mistakened. Any advice is welcome.
thanks,,,,,franko

I would stay away from the current Predators for a couple reasons. First, unlike the '90's Predators, the current ones are imports. Nothing wrong with that in itself, I have plenty of imports myself, but if you're going to buy an inexpensive Peavey you might as well get a used USA one for the same amount of dosh (if not less). Second, you are right, a 2-humbucker Strat (the generic term for these is a Double Fat Strat-- "Fat" for humbucker as opposed to skinnier single coils) is not going to sound like a Strat. It will sound more like a bright Les Paul.








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