Strat? Tele? Les Paul? Does It Matter Which One You Choose?

[@tobiasz6613]

Every time I think about buying another guitar a voice inside me says "you'll still suck" - don't buy things, play better, practice your instrument.

[@JDStone20]

YES!!!

[@iam.miikey]

Yeah, that's me. Make Do what you got. So, I’ve upgraded the electronics on my 2011 Squire Standard Strat. I recently learned how to set up the guitar, i.e., adjust the truss rod, intonate, string height, properly set up the tremolo, etc. Now, I'm updating the pick-ups. Now it feels and sounds like a new 🎸.

[@thomasmulvaney5386]

Sorry John, but my G.A.S. addiction won't allow me to accept that I could get by with only one guitar! 😊 Your side by side instant sound comparison at the end was extremely useful. I hope you'll use that format again in future guitar comparisons. Great video!

[@Reeldin58]

Hi John, I'm definitely a one guitar person. For the longest time it had to be a Tele but I changed to a Strat because the last band I was in wanted me to get a Roland GK synth gizmo when I joined because the guitarist I replaced used one and it was quite an integral part of how the band sounded. I went down the Les Paul path mainly because I was after an affordable guitar and you introduced me to Harley Benton and I was hooked on a single cut. I now have my first ever Gibson and quite honestly I don't want to pick up anything else. It does great clean tones and adding a bit of gain is a joy. My Les Paul has mini humbuckers and more or less sounds like a tele that ate three Weetabix and it suits me just fine. I'll play that guitar on everything.

[@GitarrenimNetz]

Hi John, for a long time of my musicians ride (1995 - 2005) i was with my beloved Strat (splittable HB in the bridge) and my LP Studio with P90 on a lot of gigs. I always tokk 2 guitars with me for secure - may one fails or a string, and i always could play every song with both of them. Yes i preffered one for the most of the songs - but i was always able to have a backup. To say it it was no cover stuff - all self written songs - so the audience had no reference. Greetings from GermNY Thomas - Grat content and strff as always John. Thank you so much

[@cylonhibrid]

A interesting vid, my thoughts we buy guitars first for their looks then we say it is the sound but we often go to the one that feels right. Then as fools we put that aside to buy another. Nice playing John.

[@calbrockocat8728]

As a very very amateur song writer, I find myelf looking for a tone that fits the idea that is hopefully growing in my head. Sometimes, my CV Strat fits, or it's my Gretsch or my Epiphone or my HB35plus. Mind you, what I find works best is usually a combination of 2 or 3 guitars in sync.

[@skasteve6528]

I agree that Steve Cassidy is great. He's given me ideas to consider for my six-year old's first guitar. Which as a non guitar player myself, was invaluable. He's also entertaining. My boy want's to learn guitar and he's set his heart on a strat style (specifically a red one). We watched videos of lots of different types of music and the decider was watching Hank Marvin. My point is that it doesn't really matter what type of guitar you play, it's the one that you want to play that is more important.

[@RobbieF]

Excellent video! I look at the problem in a slightly different way. I want single coil, humbucker and P90 sounds. So I have an SSS Strat, an LP w/ humbuckers, and a Mustang w/ P90s.

[@XieYie-d2b]

I have 28 guitars (been playing blues, rock, pop, classic, jazz, fusion for 40 years) and when I write that it seems a lot. But it is what I need/want, among them are 5 strats, 4 teles, 3 LPs, 1 ES335, 1 SG, Jazzmaster, Jaguar, Mustang. Then all kind of acoustics, gypsy jazz, jazzbox, bass guitars, spanish classic etc. If I have more than one of the same model it's different specs eg necks, pups, electronics, treble bleeds, capacitors to change the resonance peak of a pup to tailor them exactly to my liking (very timeconsuming rabbithole), setups to my liking etc. It took me many years to make my guitars perfectly fitt me and my style. Setups and keeping them in perfect condition takes a lot of time. And all of a sudden my GAS was gone. Sometimes I see a guitar I like and maybe want, but then I realise that it will take me months to set it up to my liking and to endlessly finetune and I have everything covered already. I did all the setups and changes to my guitars myself (I'm a pro woodworker/furniture maker) I have 8 amps but mostly play a Helix floor and I feel blessed. I play everyday and my guitars are part of me. I can't imagine a world without guitars. If I could only have one, it absolutely would be a tele.

[@johnmac8084]

That Squier Strat certainly sounds like it has an HB in the bridge, fantastic!

[@peterhall4852]

Just a SG, 335, and Jazz box to go... And the Ricky 12. And a P90 Junior...

[@kjneese]

John, thx for this comparison. I too have found myself comparing all three of these guitars and came to the same conclusion (recorded thru a tube amp, in a live setting). It mattered more how each guitar made me play it, and NOT the pickups/tone. And yes, I also found their tones to be almost identical with high gain (other mileage/experience may vary). Basically, it's great to have your video to confirm my own experience, and yours was a much more accurate side-by-side test! Always a pleasure and thx again. Cheers!

[@Nizodizo]

I own six guitars. They all sound different but they all sound like me playing the guitar.

[@MotttheHoople2010]

I'm trying to avoid confirmation bias by listening rather than watching first off.... Having watched over, John, there's an obvious and predictable difference between the '3 Kings'... But they all sounded great, just different. I love a tele... but to play Knopfler, Floyd etc, you definitely need a Strat imho. Cracking comparison m8!

[@shadowminister4090]

My son (who has a Jazz Bass KZbin channel, under the name Jared Plane) has a number of basses for different tonal reasons. 1. Yamaha 5 string (for that low B note). 2. Upright bass, because of the more accoustic sound) 3. Fretless Ibanez (Upright substituted - easy to cart around. It also has some special boosts and circuit wizardry). 4. 4 string Squier Affinity (easier for students to visualise what's being played, in comparison the 5 string). He plays that through a Sansamp pre-amp pedal and gets amazing tones). For gigging, it depends on music being played, but being a Jazz player its mostly the Upright or the 5 string Yamaha.

[@strumminronin]

Thanks, John. I must admit I start to enjoy what I am listening to soon enough that the guitar is no longer that much of an issue within a short time, especially it's not me that's trying to play! The "messy-uppiness" of seeing a different guitar being played vs what is heard, is what I like the most about these videos.

[@strumminronin]

So no, I am fine with if someone wants to pull off some Joe Pass stuff on a Floyd-equipped RG, or play Sultan Of Swing on a baritone 7-string with active pickups. Kudos to those players who break the mould.

[@peteharman5009]

From 1982 my only guitar was an '81 Les Paul Standard, through a '76 Fender Vibrolux. I played the clubs around Hull for getting on for 15 years, and my LP served me very well for all styles of music. I then 'retired' from playing, but a couple of years ago I traded the amp for a modelling amp and two CV Squiers - a 60s Tele and a 50s Strat. Both are excellent instruments, but they are far more similar in sound to each other, whereas my Gibson has a much more distinctive sound. Just my ten penn'orth, John 😀

[@fretworkband3204]

Good, useful comparison. I am amazed at the bridge pup tone on the Squier too. Eye opening. To my ears, on some clean parts, the Gibson sounds fuller. But the other two sound fine nonetheless. I would like to see a 335 style thrown into the mix and maybe a shootout between an LP and an SG.

[@peterhall4852]

SG for me and a Fazley Maverick. I do want a Tele though... The more you have, the less you play each one.

[@davidjames7778]

Once you up the gain it doesn't seem to matter, clean tone are another matter.

[@martinclayton7260]

I have quite a few guitars, but I tend to end up using one of my Strat's.

[@drawfastdieyoung]

It’s really about dreaming of playing like your idols isn’t it ? Or at least owning the guitars which are associated to your favorite genre. I’m still a beginner but already own three guitars. 😅 but none of the big three. Instead a Gretsch streamliner, Squier CV Jaguar and Gretsch Jim Dandy with pickup. The Gretsches for Blues to rockabilly and the jaguar for surf.

[@DavidButcher007]

Seem to recall a KZbin video from Rhett, Tim Pierce and Rick (?) basically saying if you want one guitar type to sound similar to another, just add an equaliser pedal to your board. Might be worth trying that out on another video?

[@shadowminister4090]

Beato is probably the surname you're looking for. Think I might have seen the same video?

[@BrentAdams]

It does matter...to me! Some types of guitars "sound" better to me when doing some things. Power Chords=dual humbucker for my tastes. "Texas Blues"= Strat. Yes...any guitar can play almost anything. They can do a "fine job", BUT......I chose the one that does it better!

[@craigsanderson3722]

Just started watching your channel and it just goes to show how great you can sound with a limited budget. Great job my friend and playing as well from the other side of the pond. 👍🎶

[@cylonhibrid]

On a last thought, The strat sounded much better through my sound system. In the middle of the 3

[@JDStone20]

Great video!

[@tripledistilled2822]

I'm very jealous of your Nashville tele

[@FRCMoto]

I agree, they can all be pretty versatile and cover the necessary ground. A tweak of the amp here, the volume knob there, and some rolling around on the tone knob, and you can do a lot with any of those 3 guitars. With my own guitars and my own amps, sure I can tell the difference and even have preferences, but most casual listeners wouldn't care.

[@stephenhedger5178]

As a life long Strat player, I always wire my Strats so that the tone control works on the bridge pickup. I also have a couple of Strats wired so that I can blend the neck and bridge pickups with a master tone control for all pickups.

[@michaelcole3018]

Hi John, if you’re playing a small gig do the punters care? my local has some good bands on a weekend, in my experience by the time they have set up and ready to play, most of said punters are Carling and Shots out of it, I had a friend a few years ago who bought a Variax guitar for certain gigs, no amp, plugged straight into the venues pa got paid, thank you very much…

[@eckyevans965]

I often say to people 'just about any guitar can do just about any genre' and that it's as much down to the amp and pedals you use with it But being someone who's been playing over 40 years on and off and builds guitars I do have a silly amount of them, different kinds, examples of the same kind with different pickup configurations, different wirings few of which are the basic standard wirings for that sort of guitar etc I never think something like 'tonight I'm gonna be playing blah music so I need a [insert some guitar here]' though, I just take whatever I feel like playing and know I'll get a decent sound for whatever gets thrown at me, I don't use a vast array of pedals with them either, did a show on Friday night and took a small home-made board with three analog amp sim pedals on it with boost and reverb pedals, the boost set up to increase volume and give a tiny bit extra treble and gain, the amp pedals were all made by Joyo, their British Sound [Marshall] set up clean, ACTone [AC30] on the drive channel and Californian Sound [Mesa Boogie] on the drive channel Played a tele with the board going into a solid state pedlaboard size poweramp into a Celestion V30 1x12 so a pretty basic setup, songs ranged from the Levellers to the Scissor Sisters to hi-gain rock stuff, managed just fine, the audience were certainly happy enough with my sound going on the comments I got from people So yeah I agree with everything you said, just know your gear and how to get the sounds you want from it with whatever guitar(s) you have and use live

[@HandyL]

Best guitars in order: baby blue Telecaster, pastel green Telecaster, natural wood Telecaster, sunburst Telecaster, cream Telecaster, gray Telecaster, black Telecaster, off white Telecaster

[@malcolmspillett8172]

As you know John, I have many guitars and I play them in order so that they all get played. That said. I do use each for specific songs. The "guitar for the song" philosophy is more relevant to my acoustic playing, especially as I have different acoustics in different tunings and I use a 12 string for some of my songs.

[@bruceburton3515]

G.A.S. affects all of us, but I'm with you on this topic: Reach for the guitar that floats your boat on the day. I have a LP copy and a Strat, both with pickup mods to broaden the sound spectrum and I have come to the conclusion that when I need to use a solid body guitar, I could and do use either. Most of my playing is in jazz big bands, so the guitar of choice is my "jazz box" (Eastman AR810-CE), but I look to the other two if feedback or the environment is an issue.

[@jimbrennanguitar]

I really like your Telecaster!! I'd probably grab that one most often for all around monster tones. The other two for specific parts. Your tool shed is well stocked haha!! Nice video 👍👍

[@MegaLochgelly]

There needs to be a part 2 of the is video. Get a loan of a 335 and SG. Best of 5.Winner gets champagne poured over it;-)

[@johnlawson3909]

I used to take a Shecter PT and a Japanese Strat out to covers gigs, but the main reason was incase of string breakage. I used to alternate them any, both guitars could be used for any of the songs

[@halbertking2683]

ONE OF EACH .

[@GaryonWheels]

I find that i pick up the Telecaster more often. Have a Japan made hybrid ii in natural finish and it just feels right to me =) feel is 99% of it!

[@StratsRUs]

One of my faves is an SG Tribute with P90's.

[@aminahmed2220]

I have to say the Fender Telecaster to the honesty and also I have a cold hoohn John ❤😊😥🤧

[@tommyd5238]

Some people just like collecting guitars even though they can barely manage four chords, if any, kept in pristine condition, never leaving their cases !

[@southhams]

In my ti e I have owned high end Strats and LP's, nothing else would do, until a friend lent me a tele. I now have all types of teles all over the house. I have also found out that Vintage brand teles are even better than their Fender countaparts! I implore you John to try out the Vintage V58Jerry Donahue, a steal for the money I paid!! 😊

[@JRobsonGuitar]

I reviewed a Jerry Donahue Vintage guitar a few years back. Lovely guitar. Got a V75 review coming up next month 👍

[@southhams]

@@JRobsonGuitar Damn, I somehow missed that one, I shall dig it out tomorrow John, thanks (y)

[@ardisbubba]

Every guitar has its own voice it can talk nice or it can talk dirty as far as playability it’s in your fingers how you play that matters I like semi low action that’s just me Stevie ray Vaughn’s action was very high barbed wire for strings love watching all your post from across the pond thank you😊

[@TomClarkSouthLondon]

🎸👍

[@robinbow7493]

For me, it's how it feels. The better it feels, the better I play.

[@berrykrautboy5368]

During my active gigging my main guitar was a Gibson SG Standard, but sometimes I played a Squire Strat or a Fender Tele - why? Because I owned them and guitars need to be played. I am pretty sure nobody in the audience cared - except one or two guitar nerds😅...my conclusion: If there are 3 guitars but you just can afford one, then the feel of the neck will make the difference... From Germany with best regards...

[@cylonhibrid]

John have you done a vid on how you connect that up

[@4stevio]

Telecaster all the way. I think it’s a Rossi/Parfitt thing from my teenage years, but it is also to my eyes, just a beautiful looking workhorse of a guitar.

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Oh you've got to love a bit of Quo 👍

[@MAPIOH]

🏆🏆🏆 Very informative for those who are confused about choosing Guitar..👍🏻 John, the Squier Strat is made in which country? 😊

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Indonesia 👍

[@MAPIOH]

@JRobsonGuitar Thanks John, for the info..🤝🏻🤝🏻🤝🏻

[@leftypick4854]

Obviously a LH 1996 Fender acoustic guitar with 5 pegs and dust. And when I say dust I mean dust.

[@MegaLochgelly]

Oh well, Strat wins again, must be the whammy bar. Or is it the shape fits the body and it's lighter?

[@MrMoneyHelper]

I doubt that there is a perfect guitar. There is one that I believe is REALLY great. Take a Telecaster with a solid maple neck and fretboard, then use two humbucker pickups. Use a six saddle bridge. That combination has the brightness of the maple neck combined with the fullness of humbuckers. The easily adjustable intonation with that style bridge, which I think transfers vibrations the best, make this the best design for a solid body electric guitar. The success of this design depends on the pickups. Some humbuckers are dull. The ones used must be capable of reproducing a big range of frequencies.

[@robertblair-uk4ph]

It doesn't matter to other people what guitar I choose, but I would say it matters to me. I've always loved the sound of a Tele in other people's hands, but they just don't work for me. A Les Paul, however sounds good in my hands. If anyone said to me "You should play a Tele", they'd be wrong. Teles are great, but not for me they're not. I get on ok with Strats but I don't find they work for everything. LP and a Strat as a pair do everything I need though.

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Don't give up on the Tele, mate. It took me 30 years but I eventually found a Les Paul that I bonded with 👍

[@unasinnott5709]

Hi John, for a few years, (mostly through out the pandemic.) I found myself getting drawn down the collectors Rabbit Hole, and ended up with about 10 varied guitars, but then I also found that I was sitting and admiring them, more than actually playing them, so I took the drastic move to sell several of them, and just keep a few, and I`ve not regretted that decision so far, so I now just have 4 good ones, 2 great acoustics, and 2 electrics, (a Squier C.V 60`s Tele, and a cheap ES.335 copy.) and now I`m playing them regularly again, So I suppose you could say that "Less is actually More." after all, as I`m doing so much "More." practice, with "Less" gear. 😎🎸🎸

[@dw7704]

I feel no need or compulsion to match the original. Sometimes I do,often I don’t, but it has to sound good on its own. Even the original musicians often use different gear.

[@SarahAndreaRoycesChannel]

Your conclusion is a bit irritating. They are cornerstones, you have at least two excellent all rounders in the background (the PRS and it's HB brethren)

[@Marsupilami-b7h]

PRS

[@JRobsonGuitar]

Wise choice. Every time I play my CE24 I realise it can do pretty much everything the other three can do.

[@Graham_Reeves]

Oh John...you've just blown all my excuses for getting yet another guitar out of the water. Just hoping my wife doesnt see this video! 🙄🤣