Fender American Acoustasonic Telecaster Update #3

[@jimmydunn8517]

Thank you for the updates. Your reviews are some of the best and most honest online. Very refreshing to hear real useable insights!

[@reverenddoctor]

Thanks! I'm tying to put out information that I as a musician was looking for while I was buying and using my gear. Looking for places where there isn't as much content--early adoption, ongoing usage, and the daily grind. There are plenty of online retailers that make videos showing the stuff, but I don't want to know how it works on a show floor. I want to know how it works after years of beating on it, lol.

[@joetunon]

Wow, that pickup issue is a pretty serious quality control issue because of the repeated occurrences. No guitar is impervious to the need for maintenance when you gig with it frequently enough. After about a year of gigging with my own hybrid (a Crowdster, which is a tank of a build), the contacts on the battery had to be adjusted to reinforce a loosened connection. Not as serious or as frequent as your issue, but I can definitely feel your pain as it disrupted one gig before I fixed it. Out of love for the model I even saved up and bought a backup guitar (when I had my day job ;-) but ended up selling one (after giving up said day job!). If I can save up enough again, I do plan on buying another backup. I finally played an Acoustasonic today for the first time (hence my search and find of your video). The feel and sound of the Acoustasonic absolutely exceeded my expectations, and holy moly is it light! Lighter than my Crowdster (which is already light)! If you can muster up the cash, I would suggest you get yourself a backup Acoustasonic. I know. Serious dough. But the peace of mind at the gig is priceless. Thanks again for a great video! Content makers like you are an inspiration to me. I have, as I alluded to earlier, given up my day job and plan to start making my own videos (maybe some Crowdster reviews), and your style is something I hope I can emulate. Your honesty and eloquence are an inspiration. Subscribed! And rock on, Reverend!

[@reverenddoctor]

Thanks for the thorough feedback! Had never heard of Crowdster until I posted this video and I’m certainly interested! I do need to get a backup acoustasonic simply because it’s still my go-to guitar for the kinds of hybrid gigs I do as a live-looper. I do bring a back up acoustic: right now it’s that mini Maton (Australian brand) which I dig, but the guitar itself just has too many intonation problems and is just not fun to play (no truss rod for easy neck adjustments). I previously owned and just re-purchased a Takamine TAN-16C. It’s not a light, portable (travel) guitar like I prefer, but the intonation is rock-solid and the cool tube preamp is nice and punchy for my percussive, rhythmic style. Thanks again for the words and best of luck on your search and career!

[@littleblackdressduo]

Good stuff! Thanks. I love the real world application and insight. We play around the same number of gigs a year...knowing whether a piece of gear holds up is super important. I am interested in the guitar but have been waiting for meaningful reviews like yours.

[@reverenddoctor]

SAME! There aren't enough reviews by us working people out there. Glad this helped. Guitar is still going strong. I play this thing as my primary guitar at every show. Always sounds good. Case sucks. I actually replaced it with a Mono Case. I'll have more on this on my next update.

[@aliciafranco5704]

I love your detailed reviews so much, I actually bought the same finish and model with string trees ! Thx Reverend Doctor☆☆☆☆☆ KEEP ON INSPIRING🎸🤘💘💘💘💘💘

[@anthonyrexhouse5858]

Hey Rev, great videos. I'm looking to get one of these and I'm hoping that can happen soon. I have a couple of suggestions for you: As far as the string trees go, you should be able to by high quality Fender string trees online for probably $10 or less. Since it is a Telecaster headstock, I would look for images of Teles with the string trees on them so you can get the placement right. But other than that, it's just a matter of screwing the string tree into the headstock. As to your charging issue, I would consider getting a power brick. Something that you can charge up and throw in your case. When the guitar needs recharging, just run a cable from the guitar to the power brick and voila. You can leave the power brick in the case. Of course, you should try to get a good one and not some cheap junk that might overheat. But any overheating would likely occur when you are charging the power brick itself. Just something to keep an eye on. These can be had for reasonable prices. You probably want as high a capacity in milliamps as you can afford so that it can charge the guitar at least a couple of times before the brick needs to be recharged. Peace and good fortune to you my man!

[@reverenddoctor]

Thanks for your positive words! I've committed myself to a string tree. I'm in the middle of a move but hope to have time to get one of these installed before a slew of shows in Nov. I did get a power brick! I even keep it in the case. The problem is I can't just plug it into the brick while it's in the case. The cable would get pinched or I would damage the USB port on the guitar itself. I suppose I could try modifying the case (cut a hole) to have the adapter go from the case to the pocket where I keep the power brick. Still wouldn't change the break-angle. I would just need to store it horizontally rather than vertically I suppose...

[@Fee9999]

I love this guitar too. Awesome feel to play it. ☺️

[@reverenddoctor]

No doubt! Do love the sound of this guitar plugged in- nothing like it.

[@BGP_yt]

Reverend Doctor Does your b string sound a little loud on the piezo pickup?

[@reverenddoctor]

@@BGP_yt mine doesn't, but I hear of people's high E being quiet. My guitar doesn't have that problem, either.

[@BGP_yt]

Reverend Doctor Cool. Yea still fine tuning this thing. I’ve already replaced the electric pickup with a Lollar for some improved tone. And had the high e slotted by the bridge to add a little pressure to it, also shims. So fixed the high e but now having a b problem. Haha

[@NickBright6]

Thanks man. Interesting to get your perspective. I’ve gigged mine a bunch now and working out the subtleties. Gotta say I love it and am having a ton of fun during the gig. Good to know about the pickup buzz. I have noticed some intermittent buzzing that doesn’t come through the amp so it might be that. Check out my loop from the test drive at the shop before buying it - if you interested. 😊

[@RLK94]

I love the honesty of your reviews! I’m currently on the market for a hybrid guitar and I have question about the Acoustasonic; you mentioned that the battery is attached to the backplate. By that, do you mean that it’s permanently attached like on some cellphones or could I replace it with another one should something happen to it? I remember reading a comment by a user saying that the battery is non removable and just wanted to verify if this is true or not as it’s the only thing keeping me from pulling the trigger. Thanks!

[@reverenddoctor]

This is absolutely true. The batter is adhered to the back plate. If Fender needed to replace it I’m certain they have some kind of solvent to remove the adhesive from the battery, but near as I can tell the actual Li Ion pack is connected directly to the back plate. Thanks for the comment! Glad you’re enjoying the reviews. Hope this helps

[@alvalatka4075]

Very nice review! I bought the same model used. It sounded great but had the worst action I'd ever felt. A couple of cranks on the truss rod and it plays like butter now. The point being... don't be afraid of setting up your own guitar. Luthiers want you to think it's rocket science. It's not.

[@stevebleetstein79]

did you contact Fender warranty service to check on advice for the loose screw issues. just curious....

[@reverenddoctor]

I didn't. I ended up tightening the screws on the bridge plate and the buzz went away!

[@TheRealBrentRasmussen]

Interesting about your electric pickup becoming loose. I bought my Acoustasonic in March the same time you bought yours, and in 5 months I have gigged with it a comparable number of times - around 60. Last weekend I got a terrible buzz in all positions that use the under-saddle transducer. Positions 2, 3, 4, and 5 buzzed like crazy, and position 1 - the electric pickup - was fine. No buzz. I put it away and played my backup. Then, the next day I plugged it into my bedroom amp and sure enough the buzz was still there. I was filling out a Fender pre-service form with the guitar still plugged into my amp when I heard a very loud POP. I tried the guitar and all UST positions were completely dead. No sound at all. The electric pickup (position 1) still worked fine, but it seems that the UST died completely. I am going to take it to my local authorized Fender service center and see if they can resurrect it, but I suspect Fender will probably just replace the whole guitar. I still love the guitar and I can't wait until I get mine repaired, or a new one so I can continue to gig with it. It's a little concerning that it failed catastrophically after only 5 months, but, we'll see what they say.

[@reverenddoctor]

Holy crap. That sucks! I've yet to hear another case of this happening, but I'm sure it's happened to someone else. That's the thing about using guitars with computer brains in them--there's really nothing stopping you from being a moment away from a repair that only the dealer, in this case Fender, can repair. And those repairs aren't quick or convenient (or if you're out of warranty, cheap). Keep me apprised of the situation! Good luck!

[@TheRealBrentRasmussen]

@@reverenddoctor Well, my Acoustasonic has been at Bronson Guitars in Scottsdale, AZ for about 6 weeks now. The part to repair it was "back-ordered". Interestingly, it took me contacting my Fender Customer service rep direct to basically beg for the part to be sent out to Bronson's. They just today assured me that the part would be expedited and sent out quickly. Fingers crossed that my Acoustasonic will be repaired and shipped home soon. I love my backup guitars, but they just aren't the same as playing my Acoustasonic at gigs! :)

[@TheRealBrentRasmussen]

Howdy Rev! I finally got my Acoustasonic back on Jan 2, 2020. Bronson's told me that they had to "replace everything". All three pickups, the main board, wiring, the works. I went to gig with it on Jan 5, 2020, and when I went to sound check - no sound. Again. Just these sad chirping noises. Thank god I always bring a backup. The next day I called the same Fender rep I dealt with earlier, and instead of having me send it back to Bronson's, they had me send it directly to the Fender repair shop. He just called me today and told me that the new main board that Bronson replaced my old bad one was *also* bad, and that they have to replace it again - but they are "waiting on the part from Corona, CA". Sigh. I really love my Acoustasonic when it is working, and when I am playing it. However, I am seriously gunshy at this point. It's just such a massively complex, computerized, engineered musical instrument that there's just so more to go wrong compared to a basic electric/acoustic guitar with a active peizo pickup stuffed under the bridge. About the only thing that EVER goes wrong with my backup (a Fender Kingman "Jimmy Dale" signature edition acoustic/electric) is a dead 9V battery, or a broken string. It's just a rock-solid, simple guitar. I am really interested to find out just how long my Acoustasonic lasts. I mean, we still see old Martins from the 30s, and old Telecasters from the 50s that are still playable and in some cases excellent and expensive. Will we ever see a "vintage" Acoustasonic on reverb.com 70 years from now? I seriously doubt it. In the meanwhile I'll play mine until it goes sideways again, and have Fender fix it up again. :) Happy New Year Rev!

[@reverenddoctor]

Brent Rasmussen thanks for keeping me updated! This is a bummer. I’m so happy you travel with a backup! I don’t blame you at all for being gun-shy. Supply-chain, manufacturing, and logistics are tough for just about every every electronics manufacture. I’m not in that industry but it looks like a nightmare from the outside. But honestly, the more things you introduce into your signal-chain the more points of failure you have. If you skipped the acoustasonic, I wouldn’t blame you. Your personal relationship is pretty ruined. I will say that it’s encouraging to hear Fender’s customer service. They could just as easily claim that it’s gotta be something you’re doing, but it sounds like you haven’t spent a dime. These days I feel we’re doing great when a company offers a discount. I’m surprised, given the age of the product that they didn’t ask to keep it and send you a different one. Keep rocking and keep me in the loop