Fender's UGLY New Guitar is AWESOME! | 2020 Fender Parallel Universe II Uptown Strat | Review + Demo

[@Trog]

I'm really glad I tried this one out! I didn't think much of it at launch, but these pickups are wonderful. Out of the 3 we've reviewed from this series, it is the first one I would ultimately recommend owning 🔴Reverb: reverb.com/item/36191590-video-2020-fender-uptown-strat-parallel-universe-ii?_aid=growsumo&gs_partner=Trogly 🍭Shop Sweetwater + Support the Show ➡️ imp.i114863.net/trogly 💰New to Reverb? Get $10 on Me ➡️ reverb.grsm.io/earn10 ❓Private Help Sessions: troglysguitarshow.com/help-appraisals/ 🎸New Guitar Day Program: troglysguitarshow.com/ngd/

[@hkguitar1984]

The Trogly's Guitar Show Great review, thank you. It is very possible the pickup coils are unbalanced (wound differently), you would still be splitting the coils, however the effect would be similar to a tapped coil. The Gibson Burstbucker Pickups utilize an unbalanced coil design which results in a pickup that has a honk/nasal character to their output. Thank goodness Tim Shaw is at Fender, so many great designs/changes.

[@rocknrollguitar]

I really like it, but then again im into weird Guitars! I recently found an old (1973) jolana iris thinline telecaster from the Czech republic Thats a funky one, Check it out here kzbin.info/www/bejne/aJTJYp5qpLeAb5Y

[@liys540]

for me , it's not ugly. It got style

[@samharris8520]

William Li facts it’s sick

[@liys540]

if this guitar have floyd rose bridge or floating , I'm loving it

[@wolfthemagnificent2966]

So much style

[@seb5542]

@P. Taylor and to sell a Les Paul like thing to people that want one, but don't want to buy one because of the headstock angle, the typically thought as less comfortable body shape compared to the strat, and without it being as thick and heavy (I think it's less thick anyway? Probably not having watched this video anyway, and I haven't looked at the specs weight wise so I could be wrong).

[@AlanIsTrying]

@P. Taylor gay

[@adi-yf3vs]

I wish they did more experimental guitars like this one with squier. The paranormals were cool but making the more experimental guitars more accessible just makes more sense to me. It would inspire so many more people to find their own style

[@jeremybaker195]

They had the Mexican made Alternate reality series. They also had a Squier series that was similar named. The MIM series had the 66 smaller jazz bass with 6 strings and 2 tele pickups and a humbucker

[@TheTruth70777]

I think they will.

[@joshpointoh]

Paranormal...they did it, I hope you liked them. They made a few good ones

[@ThorneyedWT]

This one is infinitely better looking than Telecaster Deluxe. And sounds great. And will age great. And is fairly priced for what it is. 5/5

[@kaoe145]

Me too

[@januszczech4290]

tele delux is a killing guitare man

[@bobmorris5386]

I feel like this model is definitely one of the least popular ones, but it has kind of its own charm. I always love the wide range humbuckers though it makes it more original I feel like.

[@hkguitar1984]

I agree with you, however those are not real WRHB pickups. The WRHB are only available on a couple of the high end Telecaster models. Also, the Pickups in this guitar can be split/tapped, it is my understanding the real WRHB Pickups are not designed to be split/tapped.

[@Jay-st6sl]

😍😍😍Im not huge into white strats but that thing is bea-u-ti-ful. The dark tortoise-like pickguard on the white body looks really nice IMO.

[@joshpointoh]

Wow, i love the sound of the tapped neck pickup

[@user-jy3jm9jh3t]

Those teal cases are really cool

[@ZitherBeast]

I'd be willing to call then mint versus teal. I kinda hate them and like them at the same damn time.

[@banditkeithkingofduelmonsters]

@@ZitherBeast I'd call them mint too. Maybe hospital green.

[@STeve-bv1uk]

ZitherBeast Could be wrong but, maybe more of a surf green I’d say. Might just be the camera tho. Either way it’s a wicked color.

[@hkguitar1984]

I believe the official name for that color is Sea Foam Green. Surf Green is a lighter pastel color.

[@kylehallman1283]

"People want to watch the videos but not own the guitars." Nah man, Troublemaker Teles are beautiful and I really want to own one. The only reason I don't is that I'm poor.

[@WilhelmWilder]

Bruh same

[@WilhelmWilder]

I wanna get either a tele or strat parallel, and custom it out. Cosmetic wise

[@deathbydeviceable]

Gotta love that attitude. Wouldn't have viewers is no one was interested. Watching these videos is more like looking at a catalog doing wishful thinking while keeping up with what's new

[@Jay-st6sl]

@@deathbydeviceable this is how I window shop😅

[@gordonpenny1842]

deathbydevice well said! So true

[@nasher931]

Double tap means it's both splitting and tapping the pickup. When it's in the humbucking setting, one of the coils is tapped at a lower output. When you split the humbucker to a single coil, it untaps to get hotter so you don't get that huge loss of output like you get with most splittable humbuckers

[@jonathanhudak2059]

My name and also some numbers, Tnx on that pickup info, cool. I didn't know how that worked. Love your username too! LOL! :-)

[@Eagle_eye__]

Just picked this up and it’s likely my new #1. The neck is unbelievable.. Im a lifelong fender guy and this scale/radius is my new me.

[@jwhite1016aol]

This is one of the best I've heard in months on this channel. Sounds like you can really dig in and it has that "feel benneth the fingers" attack to it.

[@Tensen01]

Man who thinks the Buckethead guitars are gorgeous and the best guitars ever thinks THIS is Ugly... Okay man.

[@joelcabida]

Like really dude... Never been a fan of white strats but This guitar is killer!!!

[@izzytalkington9735]

I know right! He definitely doesn’t have my taste in guitars that’s for sure but at least he rarely unboxes metal guitars l’m definitely not a fan of those lol

[@joelcabida]

Bella T same here... Superstrats for me are the ones befitting of the word "ugly"... Except.for the Ibanez Pia... That' guitar is gorgeous!

[@Jay-st6sl]

@@izzytalkington9735 There's some for real beautiful instruments made by companies like Ormsby

[@emptychair3932]

imagine that, different people have different tastes

[@d-mack7053]

I'm really liking the "Cookies and Cream" finish and pickup tones.

[@kirkscobey3031]

Agree on the stop tail as well as all the plates on back! I’ve made this guitar in my head so many x over the years! Great review thanks

[@therednoizeproject]

I own one, have recorded with it, done a live stream playing multiple styles and I love it. I love its aesthetics and the sound is incredible.

[@davidburke2132]

To explain what the Double Tap pickups actually do Trogly: They are BOTH tapping and splitting in different modes. In each pickup one of the coils is significantly overwound but has a coil tap part way through the coil. In the “normal” humbucking mode that coil tap IS activated, so that it matches better with the other coil in the pickup and doesn’t result in an even more crazy hot humbucker pickup. When you activate the switch the “normally” wound coil in the pickup gets dumped to ground (i.e. the pickup genuinely “splits”) but the tap in the coil which remains active is released, voicing the whole coil now so that you get a more usual single coil kind of quantity of winds. This is why your DC resistances don’t even close to halve when you flip the switch... it’s not because it’s still a tapped humbucker, it’s because the remaining single coil is now hotter, with more winds, than it was when it was part of the full humbucker. Fender introduced this concept first on the American Performer Series a couple of years ago and I believe applied for a patent for the idea, as although it uses two pickup switching methodologies that have existed for a long time the way they have incorporated the two together on the same pickup and especially the switching logic (with the tap active in normal mode) is new. The idea behind the design is to maximise the true single coil sound of the switched setting (which is still not truly possible because of other inherent design characteristics of course) whilst minimising the level differential between humbucker and single coil sounds.

[@macgibbon]

Just hanging out for the Black Beauty Telecaster, and the Jazzmaster Firebird

[@SvenArnvic]

I'd be content with a reverse Jag and matching bass...black with white pearl pickguard.

[@IanOPadrick]

I'm gonna be honest, I will always love a guitar that looks like someone threw leftovers from other guitar projects together. I adore guitars that match this vibe

[@spartan8390]

The sustain, the neck, the range in tones, the bass, and boom from this guitar is a perfection. Comfortable, WARM. This guitar blew my mind! When it comes to pickups, I have an affinity for Lollar. That said, these pickups are staying. I also prefer this over the Ultra Strat. Locking tuners as well as SS frets and she'll be complete.

[@johncravalho8812]

Just bought this guitar the other week. Love the sound! I agree that it would be nice to have a comfort cut on the back but the resonance of this guitar is quite nice unplugged. Thanks Trogly for your review 👍🏻

[@MrTooter007]

I think this is one of the coolest guitars Fender has put out in a long time. Fricking refreshing to see some new ideas instead of the same old. Great job Fender!

[@half-arsedmusic]

I haven't watched your videos for about 6 months, but I have to say, your playing has really come along. Nice job.

[@MaksymLazirko]

That looks like the silver fox finish! The pickguard on the finish with chrome hardware just looks right. Looks modern and classic at the same time.

[@TruckinSongster]

Honestly, I find that to be the nicest new "strat" I've seen so far... I typically don't really enjoy the strat aesthetic but the "funky" vibe makes it really attractive to me.

[@Karlgolden]

I like it man! 🎸🤘🔥

[@bolillo5013]

Same!

[@bipbipletucha]

Likewise

[@justjack4884]

it’s beautiful and im broke

[@tonydardi332]

Join the club.... I’m the CEO.

[@4034miguel]

Sigh...exactly my thoughts :-(

[@pdbordelon]

I actually like the way it looks! Always cool to have something different too! Nice review!

[@boydbc]

I kind of like the looks on this guitar. Nice sounding guitar as well. A guitar that keeps you playing is the right guitar, regardless of looks. Very tempting.

[@islander4986]

I would wager that are not "one piece" bodies. I think they're laminated from 2 or 3 boards. The grain on them does match well, especially on the second guitar you unboxed. Though I see a pretty sharp line of dark to light about 3/4's of the way across the bridge on the body of the second guitar, I'm pretty sure I can see clearer variations on the first guitar's grain. If the builder selects his wood before the glue-up carefully, evidence of the laminations can be minimized. A 2 or 3 piece body is not a drawback IMO because a stable block of wood wide enough to make a guitar body that won't warp is not easy to find, and using glue-laminated bodies wastes less wood and fewer trees.

[@TheDrunkenScoundrel]

I've watched a bunch of your videos, you enjoyed playing this more than any other guitar I've seen you play yet.

[@josealbertomendeztorres514]

I would rock that guitar tbh. My big problem with strats is that theyre too thin for my comfort. But with that thick piece of wood I would play that no problem. Plus its unique and the look is fire in my opinion. Nice one Troggly

[@lynnfrancesanderson1829]

I don’t know why you think it’s ugly. I think it’s awesome! And Uptown/Downtown is hilarious! The shortened scale makes it even COOLER! A single slab of mahogany is a very nice aspect - likely contributing to its weightiness. So, it seems a lot like Fender’s version of a Les Paul - the mahogany body, the controls are placed where LP controls are (volume,tone,toggle) and they added a whammy bar. Has the flat back of a Tele with the contour on the front.

[@thechrisdotcom2839]

I don’t know a lot about guitars. I’ve always thought the Strat and Tele are both sexy guitars in themselves. But these are pretty unique and pretty cool.

[@jonathanhudak2059]

I like it a lot. It's like a Strat infused with Les Paul dna! I love the rosewood fretboard with the block inlays and the binding for one. I also like the three-way Gibson style toggle switch. The headstock looks great as does the neck. Interesting how it's got the input jack on the side like a Les Paul as well. And the fact that they throw two humbuckers in it and keep a fender style bridge and tremolo unit, very cool and unique. Even though I probably won't get one it's still very cool. 2 Grand isn't the end of the world but it's not cheap either. But I guess good things don't always come cheap. Excellent video and very thorough and well laid-out, well done!

[@MrStoneheart65]

I find the layout quite interesting ! a fixed bridge and a more pleasing finish, and this would be killer !

[@millmoormichael6630]

Cheers! Even as a vintage dude I really like the new CS Ltd Broadcaster, Exotic Wood Series (Malaysian blackwood hello!!), Troublemaker Teles, the Meteora and the Thinline Super Deluxe. A 51’ Nocaster U-neck really blew me away. Kudos!

[@WhoDaF0ok1sThatGuy]

16:08 what you played at this point was absolutely beautiful. I think you should piece together those licks for something!

[@johnhenfrey5936]

Initially I didn’t like this guitar straight away, but ended up a fan of it. Thanks for the review Austin.

[@joetheman74]

Can always tell when you like a guitar because you really go to town and your playing seems way better. Nice! You may not like the look but you really like playing it for sure.

[@paulj0557tonehead]

As a guitarist / organist I have two WURLITZER BRASS HORN SET-UPS (each has a literal TROMBONE BELL AND A TRUMPET BELL. Since I don't use both footswitches I took the very cool brass labeled footsw. ring and put it on my black Guild Bluesbird guitars 3-way pickup selector switch. In large black letters it says WurliTzer at the top, and BRASS HORN at the bottom with all letters following the curve of the ring. I can put a spare pick behind the edge of the ring.

[@-CLASSIFIED-]

i like the poker chip lol "uptown , downtown"

[@victorramsey5575]

yeah, I want one on my LP now!

[@nathanduff2728]

That's weird and freaky but I like it,it looks like it went threw a blender with other scrap parts off other guitars and came up this.

[@dufferjuice]

I enjoy all your reviews but there is something very cool about a review where you are surprised by the guitar. Great job!

[@JamnThang]

Tremolo looks and sounds like it plays and stays in tune just fine. Thanks for this demo. Once you found your way around it, you pulled out some very cool tones, including overtones and harmonics. Schweet!! I believe it's going to grow on you... yes I do.

[@paulj0557tonehead]

I love it! Looks like the old limed oak furniture. Like my (google images, the only one) all tube *1958 CONN CLASSIC 815 ORGAN* . The Conn is more antique yellow from its inception. 62 years just warmed it up a little, got slightly darker.

[@maykolllopez1585]

I love your channel man it's my absolute favorite. I literally fall asleep to your show.

[@chrislathwell3653]

Great vid!!, for me the finish looks great the only thing I don’t like is the pick guard and the cream pickup rings, is it me or did the bridge pickup sounded great?

[@rettc4030]

Being torn between a les paul and strat, and someone who enjoys oddities, I love this a lot

[@peterdeweerd6047]

Yep I did it!! I pulled the pick ups out and put the active EMG's in ....Sounds Glorious

[@av.punk.801]

This guitar has a Charvel-esque finish, LP neck and wires, Cabernita pick guard, troublemaker pups, strat contours (mostly) and trem, and a tele output jack and knobs. Its an everything guitar and it scares me.

[@jjulch]

If you like the fretboard style, the new Kenny Wayne Shepard Stratocaster is similar, but with more traditional Stratocaster layout.

[@charlesbolton8471]

My preference has always been for maple fretboards which is one of the reasons I’ve never owned a Les Paul. However, I think this guitar and the new Kenny Wayne Shepard model look amazing.

[@renodavid]

That’s a pretty slick-looking guitar to my eyes. The only thing thing that concerns me is the location of the pickup selector switch. It looks like it could be moved away from the strumming area a little more, but it didn’t seem to be a problem in the demo here. And, as far as the tremolo arm getting in the way of the tone and volume knobs - isn’t that a problem with every guitar with a tremolo arm? It just seems to come with the territory. It would be fun to see this guitar with an all-mahogany natural finish. I bet that would look gorgeous, but the paint job on these guitars looks great too. Nice work, Fender!

[@playersteven007]

It has a Strat body but reminds me of my Les Paul a lot,I always enjoy your guitar clips and learn a lot.Thanks.

[@rettc4030]

Inaccurate title. Most beautiful guitar I've seen and keep coming back to see it in your vid

[@JoseSanchez-bp5pu]

I think it’s a Beautiful guitar, would have preferred a different color but it’s beautiful as it is

[@Tunkkis]

I was not expecting to hear you play Asuka Strikes, you're just full of surprises. I do rather like the look, though I would've actually preferred the larger CBS-style headstock.

[@dannystewart9482]

That's not ugly, I like it. Except for the block inlays.

[@soyborne.bornmadeandundone1342]

Thanks for showing it off. No tummy cut turned it off to me. Other than that I love it! And would never call it ugly : ) Beauty in the eye of the beholder : )

[@Bliggick]

Beautiful. I'd put locking tuners on any Strat trem guitar though and it would help with tuning issues and check nut slots.

[@KreatorOfDeath1985]

I would loovvee to own one they're just expensive :( Meteora is by far my favorite

[@vladv5126]

I would argue that Hybrid Theory was better but to each their own.

[@KreatorOfDeath1985]

@@vladv5126 You'd argue that my favorite is actually Hybrid Theory? Bold move from someone who doesn't know me haha!

[@WalkenDead]

I'm fixing to give some guitar company a huge idea. I'm sure someone has already done it, but why not use wood inlays? Ebony on a maple fret board. purple heart on damn near anything. I think we've been stuck in the pearloid/abalone/whatever for to long

[@Whydoyoureadme]

Different woods, different temperatures for expansion. They would crack and fall out more than perloid, I think.

[@harry_mair]

Using different species of wood means they react to weather and climate differently. A potential issue would be the inlay contracting or retracting and potentially harming the integrity of the fretboard. Though the threat could be negated by using a roasted variant or something similar

[@jeffleecust]

Roast everything

[@Jay-st6sl]

@@jeffleecust roast your lame ass Boi✋ nah im jk

[@Riverdeepnwide]

There's already some stained wood neck inlays in the PRS line for one. Luthier's have been doing this for a long time. Woods have a generally more similar coefficient of expansion than other decorative materials, got to avoid freezing or overheating your guitar.

[@telecastersRthebest]

Ugly is subjective. I like all their parallel universe models but I especially would want to own a troublemaker Tele.

[@RobertKeeleyTV]

I didn't like it first, but I love mine now! Plays like a dream. It's a great conversation piece too.

[@totoelpro123]

I love the look of this one, and those pickups sound really good too. Glad u made the review

[@JamnThang]

Hey, I love it!! But then I also l love Cookies and Cream ice cream. I'm especially glad you added the Uptown - Downtown Switch sleeve.

[@RoboNarples-et6ky]

I absolutely love this guitar, I would definitely buy one if I had the money.

[@Buffrt66]

My parents bought a bed room set, living room set and a dining room set with that finish in 1958. It was called "Limed oak" and yes it turns yellow with age.

[@purplecats1642]

I love the look of this guitar. The creamy white with tortoise pickgaurd is beautiful. The mahogony body and nice darker neck, I think it looks amazing! I want my next guitar to have humbuckers, I was thinking classic Gibson, but after seeing and hearing this one, I just might seek it out.

[@yes-qi8ng]

I think its one of the best super strats ive ever seen

[@nateemory3994]

I used to have a fender blacktop strat and a Marshall valvestate amp and it sounded similar to that. While the guitar and amp are long gone, It's a tone I have always had a soft spot for, and makes me really like the uptown strat

[@TheSpyromilas]

Hey Trogly I enjoy your show. I just wanted to chime in here because I have seen a lot of people say that this new fender is a cross between a strat and a Les Paul and I think that might be true BUT... I think this guitar is actually a direct rip of the early 80s ibanez model the Dyuke (almost exact) and the deluxe roadstars. Those guitars were meant to be a cross between a strat and les paul. If you Google those models you will see exactly what I mean. Anyway thanks for the great content.

[@nitroxylictv]

I think it would look better with a Bigsby

[@ericklinger9983]

Picked this guitar up on Oct 9, first thing I did was search this channel for a video and was bummed when I didn't find one... but when it came out the next day, I took it as a sign ;-). Loooong time Gibson player, owner of several high end Gibsons. Having said that, this guitar is part of "the inner circle" along with an R9, and R6, and a LP Custom. Fits right in and sounds KILLER. BUT but but, while the pickup DC reading is rather high (18k if I remember), it doesn't have all of the output one might expect - giving weight to the fact that DC resistance can not be used to gauge a pickups "hotness". One thing the high DC value does do to this (bridge) pickup however is gives it a lower than usual low pass frequency cutoff. I haven't done any scientific testing, but it seems that in *some* amps, it ends up sounding a bit like a cocked wah. For example, this guitar sounds great in a super lead type NMV Marshall... but in a 1969 Laney amp of a similar circuit (but darker) it was unusable. In bright amps, this guitar will sound amazing.

[@Kami_81]

Not exactly what I would define as ugly, really like it's style, wish Fender could make more guitar like this.

[@alanshewitt]

During quarantine I ordered two identical (brand new) rickenbacker 4003s mapleglo basses. From two different dealers from different parts of the country, on Reverb, planning to return one (since trying out in person was still not an option). I figured if they sounded the same, I’d keep the one with nicer figuring (amazing flame on the neck on one of them). But since I play professionally, if the other one sounded better, I’d sacrifice the aesthetics and go with the more plain-looking one. I was shocked at how different from each other they actually sounded. One was 0.2 lbs heavier than the other. To my delight, the better-sounding one also had the nicer-looking wood. (It was also the slightly heavier one.) The real kicker though? The serial numbers were only one number apart! There was literally only one other of these off the line between these two. They both definitely had “that Ric sound”, each in their own way, but there was also absolutely a big difference. It would have been interesting to hear if there was any difference in sound between these two identical guitars.

[@raoul_duke7253]

I had to get one after I saw this and the Andertons videos… Like Pete, Lee and many others but unlike Trog, I find this guitar stunning. There aren’t many available, at least here in US… and the ones I did see were well above $2k… even one on reverb for $2800. Well, the very next day, I was scrolling through Guitar Center and BOOM 💥!!! Not only was it right there, but they had it listed for $1700…. 3 Days later and I can confirm that this thing is an absolute BEAST. The whole thing is incredible, but in 35 years of playing… many professional… in this guitar, these are the BEST and most unique humbuckers I’ve ever played… An absolutely ridiculous value. I now see why people are charging what they are… Unless they make this is a more ‘regular’ model, these will be serious collectors items one day… Not that I care as I will be buried with it ;)

[@phillippitts6294]

That is beyond awesome

[@UsTheMusicTVOfficial]

It's Jimi Hendrix, and Jimi Page in one guitar! I've always preferred to have my Strats with a humbucker at the bridge ;)

[@Grayjacket11]

I LOVE it when doublecut guitars have the toggle switch on the upper bout

[@ericolsen67vw]

Oddly I like it. You're guitar playing is better also. Nice work smallz

[@tolvajakos]

i'm loving that the finish is showing off that it is mahogany.

[@Atttuner]

Nice review man you know what would be cool to see? Even better than a great trade or a rare reverb bird? The strength, expression, and professional pride you will experience if you worked 30min a day of legato scale, arpeggio, or technique exercises in. You've got a great base of chord knowledge and a few licks but you need to stitch some band or click track timing and hand strength onto the quilt of your genius ;-) I get you may not think you're destined to be a pro muso but you're a leader in this community and I think you'd be amazed how big the impact w be on you and the audience if you took a few small steps forward on this.

[@paulj0557tonehead]

BEAUTIFUL!! Just need a water glass condensation ring on the back somewhere of this 'night stand' finished keeper! I so want it.

[@benmorris955]

Kinda getting used to it - nice sound. I have a question...Do any neck makers fit tapered frets, i.e. lower at the bass strings, and what would be the good/bad points in your opinion?

[@darrensoria3014]

This is exactly what I wanted as a teenager.

[@camilo1455]

Yea I like it - more of a Tele than a Strat, like a double-cut offset Tele.

[@PastelComGini]

The tapped neck tone is really sweet.

[@GetStabby]

I like these guitars! I like it that Fender is experimenting and having some fun with the electronics and finishes. This sure beats the run of the mill sunburst finish, 3-pickup Strats that you normally see and are worshiped by traditionalists.

[@monstrok]

Freaky Fender Friday! It needs .... something to complete its looks and tie it all together. Maybe a silver or gold patina instead of the creamy white? The weight is not surprising with the mahogany body and no belly cut. I am surprised and pleased to hear such unique jangly tones out of this one.

[@toadetteremotewithwiimotio3330]

Uptown Cat and Uptown Strat. Damn, Fender plays with Fire and I LIKE IT

[@ArA12459]

Oh God, I love the Parallel Universe series!

[@knedy]

Definitely black plastics on that and it's a killer! I wish they went all the way with the Gibsonesque parallell universe models and give them pearl inlayed Fender logos instead of the standard silkscreens.

[@guitfidle]

I actually really like that thinner finish. I wonder if that will age more to a TV yellow color...

[@ziggylayneable]

I love the way it looks I think it's awesome.I love a Stratocaster body with a bound fingerboard on the neck. After watching the video? When you put a mild overdrive to it it sounds absolutely incredibly good.I want one.

[@boogerz]

These are really interesting looking guitars. Not sure if I would own one myself though. If you like gibson-y teles - Have you ever tried out the Fender Telecaster FMT? They have been out for a while but are a pretty good value for the money for "les paul" style teles and have seymour duncans. I like the amber FMT since it shows off the wood grain on the headstock, neck, and back of the body pretty well.

[@bmjames]

To me the weirdest part of this guitar's appearance is not that they made it look like a Gibson (which it doesn't very much), it's that they mixed a Strat and a Tele. It's almost playing tricks with my mind, because when I look at the cutaway with the pickguard my brain says Tele, but when I look at the other side it says (chunky) Strat.

[@sylaswojciechowski6895]

The finish reminds me of one of those plastic benches, where they try to make the plastic have a grain texture, but it just ends up getting full of dirt.

[@pentaquill983]

I absolutely love the sound of him playing funk

[@jcoulter43]

Visually it's not great in my opinion. But, once you started playing it, I wanted up to it. You are right, the pickups and different tones you can get out of it are really nice. God bless and rock on 😎👍🎸