School me on Squier Standard Tele's please?

robgilmo

I remember years ago Squier was something cheap and people tended to avoid them, is that the case or are they worth a punt?

starwarsnosebleed

Classic vibe

Modellista

Squier have been a lot of things over the years. I had a boggo Indonesian Tele and it was ok, but nowt special. Kept breaking strings too. If you can pick up a 90s Korean one, either Cort or Samick made, that would be pretty decent, or even a Japanese one which would be Fender quality IMHO.

Jack_

Classic Vibe or Vintage Modified are usually better made, with better hardware etc.

cbilly22

I'd bypass the Standard and get an Affinity. Surprisingly good guitar, you'll save a few quid and a great choice of colours now.

Andyjr1515

The early Japanese Squiers are widely believed to be every much as good as a Fender equivalent.

The modern Squiers are outstandingly good guitars for the money.  A Squier Classic Vibe will be tangibly different to an equivalent Fender in many subtle ways....but at 1/2 to a 1/3 of the price???  Audiences at a gig certainly won't hear the difference.  Many players won't hear or feel it either.  But some will, and to them, it would have to be a Fender because of those very subtleties and I fully understand why.  But in absolute terms, Squiers are very, very good value.

Well, that's my view, anyway

gavin_axecaster

The Indonesian Standard Squiers are good guitars - I've had a couple. The Classic Vibe have certainly surpassed them these days but they also now cost considerably more.
Bodies are agathis (at least they were) and necks are made in the same factory that makes Mighty Mite and the Indonesian Fenders.
The Affinity is now also a very good guitar - alder full thickness bodies (used to be 1.5" instead of 1.75") *string-through  and the necks are good but thin. If you can put up with the narrow nut and shallow depth of the neck it is certainly worth considering.
* At least I am pretty sure the rosewood fingerboard models with the gold logo are - the maple board models with black logo may be the old spec.

robgilmo

Thanks guys, I cant push my budget any further than a Standard and even then I will need permission from the boss.
Thin necks, in what way are they thin? Does that mean the strings are closer together? I play a Yamaha APX500 and I find that the strings are a little close together on that, I always thought it was because I just don't play as often as I should and I'm a little out of practice but now I'm not so sure.
Is it worth the extra for a standard over the Affinity?

paul_c2

The main issue with a Classic Vibe is that its going to lose its value once it becomes secondhand, because (rightly or wrongly) it has "Squier" on the headstock, rather than Fender. An equivalent MIM Fender isn't that much more new, but is likely to keep its value better long term. Having said that, if you're buying to keep it for ever, then secondhand value is unimportant, and I've only heard good things about them.

If you're after an Affinity series, I'd seriously suggest going secondhand - there's loads of them out there at seriously good value for money, loads of people buy it as a first guitar then give up, so there's lots to choose from on eBay, Gumtree etc. Some of them will have had very little use.

RandallFlagg

Can we ban the expression 'school me' from FB? 

robgilmo

I'm afraid I can only buy new, long story. I'm not sure about the Affinity, the slim neck is putting me off and having played an acoustic for the last 15 or 20 years I might struggle with a thin neck.  

stimpsonslostson

Squiers are fairly ubiquitous. Virtually any reasonably sized guitar store will have a range of them- almost certainly including the Affinity, Standard and (more expensive, but excellent) Classic Vibe models. 

The best thing to do is to go to a shop & try then out- you mentioned that you play already, so you will know when you try a guitar whether you like the feel.

 If you have a Yamaha already it's worth trying a Pacifica- Yamahas range, they've been the gold standard for cheap guitars for years.
 I'd go so far a to credit them with causing the improvement in the quality of "budget" from the days of Encore & Kay planks bought from a catalogue.

If you've got your heart set on a tele Squier is a good start: Many pro musicians choose to gig with Squiers. 

martinw

I've just bought a 2006 Squier Standard Tele and can't fault it.
Excellent build quality, good solid feel and the neck is quite full, not skinny. The pickups sound good, and the electronics are decent quality, even if lacking in mojo points!
The fretwork is good and playability is excellent.
Overall I'm really pleasantly surprised. I paid  £120 for it on eBay.
I think the basic quality is as good as the CVs but much cheaper as it doesn't have their hype effect.

Modellista

Strangely enough, Guitar Guitar don't seem to stock the Standards, they go straight from Affinity to Classic Vibe at more than twice the price.

If you can get to a shop that stocks both the Affinity and Standard, it would be worth a play to see which you like the best.

A shame you can't get onto the used market, you could get something a lot more interesting for you £200.  Or save a big chunk on the price of a Standard as per @martinw above.

victorludorum

robgilmo said:

I'm afraid I can only buy new, long story. I'm not sure about the Affinity, the slim neck is putting me off and having played an acoustic for the last 15 or 20 years I might struggle with a thin neck.  

Are you worried about the width of the neck or its thickness? As far as I know, the nut width on Squiers is quite often narrower than Fenders and this might be a problem for you, but I'd doubt it. I have played acoustic guitar since I began and I don't have any problem with the typically narrower neck of an electric guitar. They are very different instruments really and require a different style of playing as far as i'm concerned, it's just a case of getting used to it.

The only way for you to be sure is to try some in the shops :-)

robgilmo

Before I took up the acoustic I never had a problem playing electric guitars, perhaps my fingers have got fatter over the years or I've just not been playing as much as I used to.
I've taken the plunge and bought this one, http://www.pmtonline.co.uk/squier-standard-telecaster-electric-guitar-in-vintage-blonde , it should arrive on Monday. I know its wise to go and play the guitars before buying but I work 6 days a week most weeks and live out in the sticks so finding the time to do stuff can be difficult, and I've wanted a Tele since I was a kid so I'm pretty sure I'll learn to get along with it.