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>(had guests from out of town with us, so I didn't get a chance to put
>it through the ringer yet...take this review with a grain of salt).
>
>Picked up the guitar last Thursday:
>
>http://store.guitarfetish.com/xvsoashtrrof.html
>
>I know, how can I get a tele-style guitar without a maple
>fingerboard...truth is, I can't stand maple fingerboards. Don't like
>how they look or feel. I've always been a rosewood/ebony guy.
>
>Real quickly:
>
>Grade: B
>The guitar looks and feels very nice. Mine came a little darker, more
>"woody" than "honey", and the grain on mine is definitely more
>pronounced. I like that. It makes it look gritter, for what it's
>worth.
>
>Pros:
>-The neck (my main concern on any guitar), is very nice. The
>fingerboard is smooth, and all the frets checked out for evenness with
>my fret checker. The frets could use a polishing/buffing, but are
>playable as is. No fret ends sticking out. Able to do nice deep
>bends very easily.
>-Nice graphite nut, smooth nut slots (see Cons)
>-Very good fit/finish/construction, doesn't look/feel *noticeably*
>inferior to a Fender Strat. Purists may differ. I'm not a purist.
>-Bridge pickup: I'm guessing they plunked in their standard GFS Tele
>pup set (alnicos), but the bridge pup was a revelation to me; it does
>SC tele pops & quacks nicely, but it overdrives and distorts as well
>when pushed without getting muddy. Very articulate but ballsy.
>
>Cons:
>-G string buzzes up & down the entire fretboard when you dig in; when
>you look at the nut, the G slot is visibly cut too deep. The nut will
>have to be replaced.
>-The tone control is a little on the useless side; highs roll off only
>at the very end. Basically, either on or off. But neither the volume
>or tone pots are scratchy.
>-The neck could use a little tilt backwards; while the nut is cut nice
>& low (the way I like it, G-slot notwithstanding), action around the
>upper frets is a little too high for my taste. Not by much.
>
>Sound:
>Can't really comment too much yet because I haven't really spent too
>much time with it. Like I mentioned above, the bridge pup can do
>country to metal (yup...) without breaking a sweat. I haven't noticed
>a lot of noise (out of the ordinary) or microphonics yet. The neck
>pup's output is noticeably lower than the bridge pup. The sound
>is...what you'd expect from a tele lipstick neck pup.
>
>Overall, mine's well worth the $170, from what I can tell. After I
>replace the nut & shim the neck, I suspect it'll be a gem.
>
>-d