I have a 8lb '52 Tele Reissue which I like okay, but I've always heard that the lighter ones (7 lbs and under) sound better.
I've made hundreds of Tele bodies and the very lightest were around 4 pounds, just the body. The complete guitars run more like 7-8 pounds minimum. If it's actually less than that, something's missing, or the body is so light it'll sound like balsa wood. Most solid bodies have a strong upper midrange emphasis. As lighter woods are used, that emphasis moves to a lower frequency. When you start to get into semi-hollow bodies, the emphasis moves even closer to the bass. They have none of the 'crisp' tone we expect from a solidbody. Very lightweight solid bodies start to sound more like hollow-bodies, no hi-midrange crunch. Some players also feel that really lightweight guitars are 'slow' to respond, no crisp attack and kinda mellow, but that's the same thing I'm saying in a different way. Ultra lightweight Teles don't sound like actual Teles to me, more like semi-solid Teles. |