Any G&L Tele users?

[cragginshred]

Looking hard at getting one

 

[itchyfingers]

I had a nice one for a bit. Even though it's got Leo Fender's initial on it, it didn't really have a Fender feel to it, imho. I wasn't a fan of the headstock, but mine had the only bridge design that I've liked outside of the classic 3 brass barrels. A buddy of mine played it and fell in love, whereas I was just thinking of it as another Tele, so I quickly moved it to him. Try before you buy, and always buy G&L used, as the resale value is usually crappy compared to other American made instruments.

 

[la szum]

I have had a few. Great guitars. Any specific model you looking at? Just the standard ASAT?

I'd own another in an heartbeat. Yes, headstock is a little odd and wonky. They are great
guitars with excellent fit and finish. The MFD Pickups can be a little hotter and more stout
than you would find on a Traditional Telecaster, in my experience. Some like that. Others
not as much.

 

[Jarick]

I had two ASAT Specials, not the traditional Tele but the one with MFD pickups.

The first one was a basically brand new (but sold as used) USA made guitar with a mahogany body and jumbo frets. Really great quality but I never bonded with it. The pickups were way too bright. I even had new pickups custom made for the guitar, P90 style, and didn't like those either. And I tried some Rio Grande pickups more like traditional Tele, still not right. The guitar just didn't sound great plugged in, so I traded it.

Second one was a little older model that had a little more wear and tear on it. That one was I think a semi-hollow with an ash body maybe? Anyways it wasn't as nice as the first one I had, but it sounded better plugged in. Still, I didn't love the guitar and ended up trading it for a real USA Fender that I still have today.

I would own another G&L but I would get the more traditional Fullerton model so I could use traditional pickups. Don't like the MFD's.

 

[la szum]

Leo was like "Everyone wants hotter pickups."

Makes hotter pickups.

Everyone's like, "Man, weren't those traditional Fender Single coils great!"

 

[cragginshred]

I had two ASAT Specials, not the traditional Tele but the one with MFD pickups.

The first one was a basically brand new (but sold as used) USA made guitar with a mahogany body and jumbo frets. Really great quality but I never bonded with it. The pickups were way too bright. I even had new pickups custom made for the guitar, P90 style, and didn't like those either. And I tried some Rio Grande pickups more like traditional Tele, still not right. The guitar just didn't sound great plugged in, so I traded it.

Second one was a little older model that had a little more wear and tear on it. That one was I think a semi-hollow with an ash body maybe? Anyways it wasn't as nice as the first one I had, but it sounded better plugged in. Still, I didn't love the guitar and ended up trading it for a real USA Fender that I still have today.

I would own another G&L but I would get the more traditional Fullerton model so I could use traditional pickups. Don't like the MFD's.

The one I was looking at was the Fullerton and it had the MFD. But the pup rabbit hole you described I have experienced and am not psyched to do again

I have had a few. Great guitars. Any specific model you looking at? Just the standard ASAT?

I'd own another in an heartbeat. Yes, headstock is a little odd and wonky. They are great
guitars with excellent fit and finish. The MFD Pickups can be a little hotter and more stout
than you would find on a Traditional Telecaster, in my experience. Some like that. Others
not as much.

I like hot and run a lot of gain with my Anderson T icon and love the string clarity of the single coils but am not sold yet and I think finding a killer used one would be best
There is a blue one I would grab but am not a swamp ash guy at all

100% Alder guy

This is what I was looking at and it has the MFD pup it looks like

G&L Fullerton Deluxe ASAT Classic Bluesboy 2022 - Matcha | Reverb

Brand New Fullerton Deluxe ASAT Classic Bluesboy in Matcha Green! Deluxe G&L Gigbag Included! Free Shipping! Alder Body 8.3 Pounds Rear Contour Hard-Rock Maple Neck with a Caribbean Rosewood Fretboard Satin Vintage Tint Neck Finish Modern Classic Neck Profile 1 11/16" Nut Width 1 5/8" String

reverb.com

 

[Jarick]

I had an old Korean one with the small MFD pickups that sounded killer. I would check one of those out for sure. Everyone said the bigger pickups were hotter and fatter but to me they sounded brighter and harsher. Maybe just the old ones were better?

anyways I wouldnt pay much more than $1k used for one as the resale sucks. I got mine for 800 mint pre Covid.

 

[Jarick]

Leo was like "Everyone wants hotter pickups."

Makes hotter pickups.

Everyone's like, "Man, weren't those traditional Fender Single coils great!"

They weren’t really hotter though, brighter and sharper sounding sure. Lacked any kind of warmth or character. Cool for middle position 80s cleans though. More like hifi jazzmaster pickups.

edit, here’s what the issue was I had to think about it. The neck pickup was too hot and bassy and the bridge too weak and bright. I could never balance them out. The bridge sounded good with tone and volume rolled off a touch but then the neck was dark. If the neck sounded good the bridge was nails on a chalkboard.

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

I had two ASAT Specials, not the traditional Tele but the one with MFD pickups.

The first one was a basically brand new (but sold as used) USA made guitar with a mahogany body and jumbo frets. Really great quality but I never bonded with it. The pickups were way too bright. I even had new pickups custom made for the guitar, P90 style, and didn't like those either. And I tried some Rio Grande pickups more like traditional Tele, still not right. The guitar just didn't sound great plugged in, so I traded it.

Second one was a little older model that had a little more wear and tear on it. That one was I think a semi-hollow with an ash body maybe? Anyways it wasn't as nice as the first one I had, but it sounded better plugged in. Still, I didn't love the guitar and ended up trading it for a real USA Fender that I still have today.

I would own another G&L but I would get the more traditional Fullerton model so I could use traditional pickups. Don't like the MFD's.

The pickups in the traditional Fullerton sound a lot more Strat-like than tele-like to me.

 

[la szum]

None of the G & L Pickups sound/feel like Fender PUs to my ears. My understanding is
Leo was deeply intent on not repeating himself and was very intent on breaking new
ground with G & L.

 

[Eagle]

Hate the pickups but the rest is good.

 

[la szum]

 

[laxu]

None of the G & L Pickups sound/feel like Fender PUs to my ears. My understanding is
Leo was deeply intent on not repeating himself and was very intent on breaking new
ground with G & L.

I don't know the Tele lineup, but the original G&L Legacy (Strat) models came with Seymour Duncan pickups and they then moved to G&L's own pickups. They aren't particularly "out there" in voicing.

I have used a 1996 G&L Legacy (with G&L branded pickups) for ages as my "Strat" and the key difference is really the control system. G&L uses 1M pots for its controls and the control layout on the Legacy is volume, high cut and low cut. To make it sound more like a traditional Strat, you have to roll down the high cut to about 5 or below. Gives it a lot of range and the low cut can be useful when you have more gain in use.

The MFD pickups are way more experimental for sure. No experience with them.