Shoot Out III

Welcome to the Shoot Out III

I compared 5 different Telecaster / Cobra style guitars, here they are lined up.

Triple Row Top to Bottom (first picture)

Mayes Model C (1st ever)

Fender 68 Telecaster Daphne Blue Refin, Maple Slab board

Langcaster Dark Kaori Cobra (1st ever)

Dual Row Top to Bottom (first picture)

Fender 66 Telecaster Natural Refin, Brazilian Rosewood Slab board

Fender NHL Flyers Telecaster #6/100

Following are their specifications:

Model	Mayes	68 Tele	Langcaster	66 Tele	NHL
Body	Mahogany	Ash	Dark Kaori	Ash	Ash or Basswood
Chambered	Yes	No	No	No	No
Neck	Flamed maple, Skunk stripe	Maple	Rock Maple	Maple	Maple, Skunk stripe
Fingerboard	Brazilian Rosewood	Maple Slab Board	Ebony	Brazilian Rosewood Slab Board	Maple Slab Board
Top	Quilted Maple Top	None	None	None	None
Color	Red	Daphne Blue	Natural	Natural	Flyers Graphic
Frets	22	22	22	22	22
Tuners	Gotoh	Kluson	Locking Schallers	Kluson	Gotoh
Stringing Style	String Thru	String Thru	Bridge Style	String Thru	String Thru
Bridge	Vintage Gold plated 3 Saddles	Vintage 3 Saddles	Schaller 3D bridge	Vintage 3 Saddles	Modern 6 Saddles
Hardware	Gold Hardware, Vintage Telecaster	Nickel Chrome Hardware, Vintage Telecaster	Nickel Chrome Hardware, Vintage Telecaster	Nickel Chrome Hardware Langcaster	Nickel Chrome Hardware, Modern Telecaster
Pick Ups	Lollar	Fender	Langcaster Ultimate Lo	Fender	Fender
Neck Shape	Fat U	Narrow U	Flat U	Narrow U	Narrow U
Weight	Light	Medium	Heavy	Light	Medium
Special Feature	Hollow Body	None	Low Impedance Pickups, Build in Overdrive	None	None

Looks:

When you think of Telecasters, looks don't often come to mind, however the Mayes makes for a stunner and the Langcaster blows the mind in looks. Top marks for the Langcaster

Playability:

These are all very easy to play guitars. The neck shapes are all somewhat different. The Langcaster has a flatter and wider U shape with an Ebony fretboard. The Mayes has the thickest U with a rosewood fretboard. These present the two ends of the spectrum. The NHL has a medium C and the 60's Tele's have a more narrow C shape. Depending on style and hand size any could be the favorite. Personally I've been playing the Mayes a lot and really like the neck.

Sound - Flexibility:

Flexibility sounds strange for a Tele. So I will adjust this a little bit.

First of all the Langcaster has build in overdrive so automatically it is the most flexible. None have a Humbucker. All have the same 3 positions. The widest tonal range and sound difference is found in the Mayes, next the Langcaster and then the Fender's. The 66 has the most power of the Fenders, just behind the Langcaster and up to par with the Mayes. The 68 has the least power and is slightly microphonic. The NHL is between the 66 and 68.

Sound - Tone:

Volume at 10: As already mentioned in power, Langcaster, Mayes and 66 Tele, NHL and 68 Tele.

Sustain: Tele's with their string thru bodies tend to have great sustain. All of these guitars have excellent sustain, however the best of them all is the one without the string thru body! The Langcaster can sustain for an incredibly long time, truly amazing wood!

Neck position: The neck position on a Tele is usually defined by a "growly" sound. I'd like to comment more on the tone in general then just neck position, so I wont say to much here.

Bridge position: The bridge position is famous for it's "Twang". All these guitars have this sound to a certain extent. The Mayes has the nicest.

Neck + Bridge position: I just want to comment on how they mix. The Mayes and Langcaster have very different and unique mixed sounds which both are very pleasing. The Mayes favors the Neck and comes in with a very dark sound. The Langcaster favors the Bridge and has a very sparkling Twang come through.

Overall Tone: The Langcaster is really the most amazing here. Super clean and super well defined. This guitar is for the accurate player, mistakes stand out. Very sparkling and bright sound, but can get down and dirty (especially with the overdrive). The Mayes goes a different round, in general a more darker and diffused sound, very full sounding and very pleasing. The 66 is all balls, high power and cuts through the mix, awesome to play on with its Rosewood Board. The 68 is a lot sharper in sound, but I believe the pick ups are wearing out because power is lacking. If this has the same power as the 66, it would be an incredibly mean guitar! The NHL sounds very sterile compared to these others and lacks Vibe.

Final Comments

The 60's Tele's put out incredible Vibe and feel very comfy and have that played in feel. The NHL hasn't been played much and it shows, very sterile sounding and somewhat sluggish to play. The Mayes truly redefines the Tele sound into a new spectrum, with its more diffused sound it gives a very full sound that can go from bright to dark. The Langcaster with all its modern aspects has a super super clean Tele sound and a superb overdrive crunch. The Langcaster makes you feel that this is what Vintage ringing Fender clean should sound like!

The Winner is ....

I feel bad to pick a winner! All these guitars have something very special. The NHL although in the dog house on tone and playability, has my Favorite team on it (in NHL that is) the Flyers!

The Langcaster is my favorite in wood and has incredible clean tone, also it was custom made for me, first one ever. The Lo pickups are really something special.

The 68 Tele has a beautiful Daphne Blue finish, I am a real sucker for this color, makes it look so vintage, besides that a nice feeling Maple board.

The Mayes is gorgeous with its quilt top and maple neck. Playability is superb and the sound is a whole new dimension of Tele.

The 66 Tele is really what I feel a Vintage Tele should sound like. It is powerful, cuts through the mix, it can get downright mean. Truly a Vintage guitar you can still play on and keep up with anything.