Hard-tail Strat vs Tele

[darkandrew]

I've been hankering after a hard-tail Strat for some time now but they seem very hard to find, it would seem that Fender's marketing strategy is that if you want a Strat without a trem then you buy a Tele. So, I was wondering - apart from the obvious lack of a middle pickup, what are the similarities and differences in sound between a hard-tail Strat and a Tele?

[littleredguitars2]

i have 2 hardtail strats and i love them both but i'm going to be honest, if you properly (key word here) block the tremolo of a strat, you honestly have yourself a hardtail. yes the hardtails are hard to find. you can find a used tom delonge strat or even a robert cray sig strat. both are hardtails. fender made a few other hardtails that werent signature models but good luck finding one at an okay price. you can also custom order a body from warmoth. all are good suggestions but i do definitely suggest just blocking the trem. sonically, i dont notice much difference between a hardtail strat and a tele. teles are just usually a big brick and strats are more contoured. but you can find some that are contoured and light. i'm actually trying to sell an HH tele if you're interested ;)

[38thBeatle]

I too have a hardtail Strat and I also have a Tele.

They obviously feel different to play and they sound different though both being single coil guitars they are not a million miles from one another. The neck pickups do sound quite similar admittedly but the bridge pickups are more polite on a Strat - . Not a lot of help but I've just got in from a gig and I am a bit knackered. I'll try and elaborate soon.

[Philly Q]

I think a hardtail Strat is a lot more like a Strat than a Tele, although it does lose that "reverby" quality you get from a Strat's tremolo springs.

To me, the really significant difference is the Tele's bridge, especially if it's a vintage-style model - that large thin, bent-steel plate really has a fundamental effect on the tone (it's a lot less noticeable on a modern Tele with a thicker, more rigid bridge plate).

I like hardtails because I simply don't like tremolos, on the whole.  Then again, I personally prefer Teles because I find guitars, like Strats, with extended upper horns a bit awkward to play.

If you do want a hardtail, I agree with littleredguitars2 - the Robert Cray Strat is (I think) still being made and certainly quite readily available on eBay.  It's a really nice Strat too, with a nice chunky "fat C" neck.

[gwEm]

you can always buy a conventional strat and swap the body for a hardtail one.

i don't really like the "reverb" effect of the tremolo springs even with a blocked trem, but if you dampen them I can't pretend I notice a sonic difference vs a hardtail.

i prefer hardtail strats just since i just 'feel' it should be better.. this is not borne out by any actual testing or noticed difference.

a hardtail strat is very much still a strat and sounds like one.

telecasters do sound alot difference to either type of strat. since the telecaster bridge pickup has a baseplate and is different dimensions it sounds more meaty and rawk. many say the neck telecaster is weaker though. overall, a few people put strat neck pickups in telecasters and telecaster bridge pickups in strats - best of both worlds.

[Telerocker]

you can always buy a conventional strat and swap the body for a hardtail one.

i don't really like the "reverb" effect of the tremolo springs even with a blocked trem, but if you dampen them I can't pretend I notice a sonic difference vs a hardtail.

i prefer hardtail strats just since i just 'feel' it should be better.. this is not borne out by any actual testing or noticed difference.

a hardtail strat is very much still a strat and sounds like one.

telecasters do sound alot difference to either type of strat. since the telecaster bridge pickup has a baseplate and is different dimensions it sounds more meaty and rawk. many say the neck telecaster is weaker though. overall, a few people put strat neck pickups in telecasters and telecaster bridge pickups in strats - best of both worlds.

I agree with most of it. My HSS-strat has a trem, but I don't use it that much and trems cause tuningproblems most of the time. A few vintagestyle trems like PRS installs, work fine. though.
About swapping pickups: the Blackguard 52-neckpickup is great to strat up your tele.

[Philly Q]

I can never understand why people don't like Tele neck pickups, I think they sound great.

[MrBump]

I can never understand why people don't like Tele neck pickups, I think they sound great.

I love a tele neck.  Kinda squidgy sounding.

[Telerocker]

I can never understand why people don't like Tele neck pickups, I think they sound great.

Me too, but they have less topend zing than stratneckpickups and sound a bit mellower overall. I can imagine that stratplayers in their tele-defloration want something more stratty.

[gwEm]

I can never understand why people don't like Tele neck pickups, I think they sound great.

Me too, but they have less topend zing than stratneckpickups and sound a bit mellower overall. I can imagine that stratplayers in their tele-defloration want something more stratty.

something like this would be hot:



i've a hardtail strat with a BG52 bridge and an Irish Tour neck and love the way it sounds. I like the Springsteen black guard look and could imagine me playing one of those. Or maybe an all black tele with white binding. edit: and in a weird way i like the Paisley tele as well.

[Philly Q]

^
I think if I was going for that approach I'd add a Strat middle pickup as well.  It looks a bit weird to me with a Strat pickup in the neck position.

Must admit this thread comes at a time when I'm in a very Tele-minded phase....

[gwEm]

^
I think if I was going for that approach I'd add a Strat middle pickup as well.  It looks a bit weird to me with a Strat pickup in the neck position.

Must admit this thread comes at a time when I'm in a very Tele-minded phase....

Likewise - i've been browsing eBay for teles all week. Theres a nice Jerry Donahue on there right now, but I don't like the colour..

[Philly Q]

I always liked the look of the JD Teles, but I'd forgotten all about them.  I've got a wiring diagram somewhere, I think.

It's the (discontinued) Vintage Hot Rod '52 model, with neck minibucker, which has been attracting my attention.

[gwEm]

It's the (discontinued) Vintage Hot Rod '52 model, with neck minibucker, which has been attracting my attention.

Looks good that, very cool..

[Dave Sloven]

The other guitarist in my band has entrusted me with fitting a SD Quarter Pound pickup to the bridge of his early '90s MIJ Tele.  Definitely a good candidate for full cavity shielding.  It was noisy before and I don't think doubling the output will help! It has a toploading bridge with six adjustable bridge pieces.  Apparently it came from the factory with that.  As you can see in this photo, the factory pickup is all bent and clapped out.