Thinking of exchanging my Tele Deluxe for an American Standard

[voxylady]

I have had a deluxe tele with the samarium cobalt pups for about a year, and just cannot strike up a bond with it. The pups seem a little harsh and sterile and don't really bond with my dirt pedals. I'm thinking about selling it to get an american standard but I was wanting opinions from people regarding the difference in tone between the SC and stock standard pups. I'm looking for my tele to get a bit hairier, and bond a bit better with my dirt pedals. Will an american standard do this for me? Or am I trying to push the guitar in a direction that tele's just don't go?

[Guitar Josh]

Why not just swap the pups? Bardens might get you where you want to go.

[Jess 1971]

Yes, this. The Deluxe is otherwise a really great guitar, but those pickups are lame. Upgrade ti something better and you'll have an awesome Tele rock & roll machine.

Originally Posted by Guitar Josh

Why not just swap the pups? Bardens might get you where you want to go.

[kleydj13]

Personally I would try a pickup swap. If you like the way it plays, looks, and feels - but dislike the tone - try new pickups. If it is more than just the tone you dislike then try something else. Pickups aren't everything when it comes to tone, but they can make a difference.

[voxylady]

The thing is, I really don't like the way it looks. At all. The only reason I bought the guitar in the first place is I was getting an amazing deal on a price I couldn't pass up, and I wanted a tele. It is the cherry burst with the sparkle pick guard and I really don't like the aesthetics of it. And I really don't care for the other features of the deluxe. The back cutaway is of no importance to me, and neither is the mother of pearl inlays. I also never use the S-1 switching so I could get rid of that as well. I bought the guitar used, and could get a new Standard for the price I'm selling it for. But the pups are the main reason for a possible sale, so I was wondering about the difference between the samarium cobalts, and the standards.

[JB Eckl]

Yup, sell it. Get the color scheme, pickups and features you'll actually love - and therefore play. These are guitars, not toilet seats. We have to be excited about them!

[tamader74]

voxylady,...I know RIGHT WHERE your coming from..I own the exact same Tele. (If you want to call them that by their look's..LOL)...and forget trying to "Normalizing" the look with a P-Guard change, and the SCN P-ups and S-1 system they are MIC and like everything else from there..are hit and miss (returned a V-neck Strat. because of bad electronics..Loved the feel and looks, and found out later about the SCN's and S-1 being bad). The reason I keep mine is I've got good SCN P-UP's in it...But, Mostly the neck I love it's feel. But, If you've a chance to trade even for an Amstd. to your liking DO IT, When I was at GC recently ALL the deluxes were..meh, But, the Standards were really quite nice. There was a White w/ Maple 'board Strat. and I would have thrown my Minty Deluxe Tele. at them for that "Lowly" Amstd. (LOL). Tom

[GA20T]

I'm a long time Nocaster owner, and recently got my hands on an older Am. Dlx Tele (last series). I agree re the pickups. No shame in trading "down" for better pups and the features/aesthetic you want. I've got a MIM Jazzmaster that I also prefer to both of them, though I've upgraded the pickups in that guitar. As far as sound/playability/aesthetic alone, I'm not seeing any justification for the price difference in these models.

[mountain blues]

Originally Posted by voxylady

The thing is, I really don't like the way it looks. At all. The only reason I bought the guitar in the first place is I was getting an amazing deal on a price I couldn't pass up, and I wanted a tele. It is the cherry burst with the sparkle pick guard and I really don't like the aesthetics of it. And I really don't care for the other features of the deluxe. The back cutaway is of no importance to me, and neither is the mother of pearl inlays. I also never use the S-1 switching so I could get rid of that as well. I bought the guitar used, and could get a new Standard for the price I'm selling it for. But the pups are the main reason for a possible sale, so I was wondering about the difference between the samarium cobalts, and the standards.

After going through a bunch of Teles to find the ones I really love – find one you really love. I had a number of Teles like yours: okay, but no romance, and I can say without any hesitation that if you are in doubt, that isn't your Tele. The Teles that are my lifelong guitars rock my heart every time I play them.

I don't think a pickup switch is the answer in this case.

[rabbuhl]

I have both a Fender Strat Deluxe Plus and a Strat Deluxe. Both are great guitars!!

It does take some work to remove features from a Deluxe which make it less attractive than a standard (like the pups and pickguard). You can end up with a guitar which is better than a standard because of the locking tuners, LSR nut, and the cutaway.

My Strat Deluxe came with Fender SCN Samarium Cobalt Noiseless pickups and a Fender Humbucker which I could not bond with. I put a whole new pickguard with Fralin Blues Specials and an Unbucker. The S1 switch now controls the split of the Unbucker.

My Deluxe Plus came with a White Pearl Pickguard (yuck), Lace Sensors, and a Fender DLX Locking Tremolo. I put in a whole new Parchment pickguard with DiMarzio Areas, a Fender American Standard Strat bridge (the one with vintage style saddles).

Keep your Tele. Change the pickguard and try putting some Fralins, Don Mares, Lollars, etc. in it.

[straycat113]

Well what kind of music do you play? If you want a heavier sound go with DiMarzio Fast Tracks or something from SD like a JB or Hot Rails in the Bridge and a Lil 59 in the neck.

I weeded out just about all my Fenders that had single coils after 30 years and could not be happier. For one I am not a purist and hate 60 cycle hum and look for a tone that is me not what others expect it should be. You go with a Standard you will be dealing with a lot of 60 cycle hum and will more than likely be swapping them out anyway.

[voxylady]

I play a lot of genres, so I'm really going for versatility, but mainly just plain ol rock. And I appreciate all the comments and opinions, but I still haven't had anybody give me the descriptive differences between the stock standard pups and the Samarium Cobalts. I know I can switch out the pups if I want, I was just curious if anybody had tried both pups and what they thought of the comparison.

[Stormin]

I would not downgrade to an American Standard. It's the same guitar as the Deluxe, but the body wood on the Deluxes is typically of better quality. You're really only changing the aesthetics with that trade. FWIW, the American Standard pickups are nothing to get excited about.

I would, however, consider trading your Deluxe for something more "traditional" in the Tele sense, like a '52 Reissue, '52 Hot Rod, or a Nocaster. This way, you'd be able to leverage the higher value of the Deluxe on a better trade.

If you do decide to try upgrading the electronics in your Deluxe, the Harmonic Design Super-90 pickup will get you all of the "hair" you need. I have one in mine, and it cost about $85. It's a straight up rock pickup.

If you're willing to consider it, you can upgrade both pickups, the pickguard, and all of the other electronics for about $250 total cost.

Here'a pic of how I've upgraded mine...

[tamader74]

Hey voxylady,...re-visited my "pickguard" issue to make this Tele. look more normal..with the binding being so white, a parchment ain't gonna' get it..Then I saw a Tobacco 'burst, They came with the old W/B/W 'guards, and I think I'm going that route, with mine being like new and me LOVING the neck and having "good" SCN'S, It may be a problem solver as far as the looks go (or at least take away the damn sparkle).Tom

[shane88]

Originally Posted by voxylady

I play a lot of genres, so I'm really going for versatility, but mainly just plain ol rock. And I appreciate all the comments and opinions, but I still haven't had anybody give me the descriptive differences between the stock standard pups and the Samarium Cobalts. I know I can switch out the pups if I want, I was just curious if anybody had tried both pups and what they thought of the comparison.

well u could go play a std tele & make up ur own mind - if i was u i'd find a nice standard and sell the stock deluxe