Fender '72 Telecaster Deluxe Reissue

This is the black version. See other reviews for the configuration, 'cause there's only one for the Deluxe. I was never a Fender guy, but the features of the '72 Deluxe were exactly what I was looking for, and I have big hands and LOVE the super-chunky neck and the heft of this beast.

This is a MEAN axe. It's got a dirty, fat tone that's great for rock rhythm playing, and I like to play the occasional bluesy solo with that low-tone Les Paul sound, and with the tone cranked down and the neck pickup on, you can get that tone perfectly with this git. I must admit it's a little noisy/buzzy when I do direct recording into my Mac/Logic Express setup (with an M-Audio MobilePre input device), but through my Tech 21 TM60 amp, it sounds freaking awesome. Two points off for the noise, but tone-wise it's a 10 all the way.

The setup was fair out of the box, but a little buzzy. The finish was great. The knobs were seated a little weird (and it was huge pain to get all the plastic coating off the pickguard and out from around the knob posts). The neck was beautiful. Unfortunately, the high-E tuning peg was completely screwed up, but I must be honest and admit I let the axe slip and fall over the day I bought it, so I don't know if it was already broken or if I did it. In any case, I wasn't a big fan of the vintage-style open Fender tuners, so I took it to good old Subway Guitars in Berkeley and had them replace the tuners and set it up. Now it's solid as a rock, but I do have to deduct a few points for the knobs and tuners.

This thing is a tank. I would have no qualms about using it without a backup. I did put strap-locks on it, but to be honest I didn't even pay attention to whether the original strap buttons were good or not. In any case, super dependable.

I've been playing for 22-23 years, mostly music on the harder side of rock n roll. This axe isn't exactly a lead guitarist's dream (I do confess I've always been bugged by Fender's continued use of 21-fret necks), but for rhythm work and the occasional fatassed solo, this thing is just what the doctor ordered. If you want a solid, pro-level axe that will last for a jillion years, you should keep this one in mind.

mexican 72 reissue. pretty standard fender neck, wide board and thin in the back, skunk stripe. 2 really unique humbuckers - 2 volume 2 tone switches one 3-position switch (b, bn, n)

volumes on this thing are f'd. on the bridge+neck setting, if you turn one volume to the "almost off" range is starts cutting both pickups off. but why do you really need to do that anyway? Just hit the switch

everything else is just as you need

i am a bass player and producer. i got a guitar to learn chord and help my band write songs, improve my versatility. But my guitar player keeps trying to steal this one (he plays a mid 90's les paul and a newer telecaster usa deluxe). It ends up on more recordings than the other guitars in the studio.

The sound, as cliche as it may seem, is just right. Both pickups on its a les paul with a tele bite. A perfect blend of the two. Bridge pickups only through a deep solid state and you're lee ritenour. neck pickup is nasty with a little grit.

This is not a lead players guitar though. To me, it doesn't have a great singing lead tone. No Trey, no SRV here. It is 70's Keith richards if you want it to be, depends on the amp/setting. If you're into that thin, twangy "early" lead style -- you can get it.

As a rhythm guitar you can seemlessly do americana rock, funk, jazz (maybe..but.. if you're serious you probably should get a gibson hollow), etc. but WITH CHARACTER too.

I set up my own stuff and i got it how i like it. I can't remember how the factory setup was but who cares.

In terms of small details. I would ask that they do a little bit better in fret dressing; it doesn't really matter sonically but the rough edges make the guy look cheap. And, how much more would it cost to do a satin neck finish?? I just think that a thinner satin neck finish is such a nicer feel but poly must be a cost cutter ... so that's what i get for the price

small contruction details i would change but its sturdy.

i haven't dealt with them for this particular instrument ... but fender customer support is okay. They are helpful to a point. They are just really protective of replacing big parts. Headstock got snapped in the van door? You're waiting about 8 months and going through a lot of hassle to get a new one. I think they are smart -- they are not in the business of selling necks, bodies, and pickups to people who are making custom guitars --- its a little annoying and accusatory --- it kind of makes you understand how allparts and warmoth came-to-be

I knock it on some other ratings but: new for around $700? ... its really a great allround guitar and i strongly recommend checking it out. The guitar plays well and sounds great.

This is an amendment to my review immediately below, in which I said that the neck on the '72 Telecaster Deluxe Reissue is very wide.

Actually, it is not. I compared it with the necks of my other electric guitars, and it's not the narrowest, but it's not appreciably wider than any of the others either (three Fenders, two Gibsons, and a couple of other beasties). The girth is in the neck PROFILE. I don't know what constitutes a C-shape, U-shape, or any of the others, but the "chunkiness" is either side of the skunk stripe, between it and the edges of the fretboard. So, if the neck has a bit too much chunk for your tastes, that's where you'd need to ask your favourite luthier to shave it down for you (hey, Jimmy Page has done it...).

Walnut finish (a classy dark brown, not as reddish as the Fender promo photos would have you believe), black scratchplate, four ugly amp-type vol and tone knobs that I'd like to replace with "proper" metal Tele-style knobs, two humbuckers, a really wide fretboard on a chunky neck - so beware! - and the ugly 70s-style Strat headstock.

In other words, the only feature this guitar shares with other Telecasters is its body shape. It really is not a Tele, either in feel or tone. I gather Fender originally wanted to produce a guitar that would compete with the Gibson Les Paul; well, it bears the two required humbuckers, but it ain't a Les Paul either. It really does stand alone, so I recommend you approach it with no preconceptions.

Mine is a 2006 Mexican Deluxe, and I had to replace the initial one I bought from my local Git Centre after a week or two, as the Gibson-style p/u selector switch kept cutting out (it's not a high-quality switch, feels a bit flimsy, really) and the action was high because Fender hadn't cut the nut notches deep enough. Come on, muchachos! The replacement is nice, though. No probs so far.

I play worship music at church, and also blues, for which the Tele Deluxe is fine.

The humbuckers are reasonably powerful without being muddy, but power is not as important to me as tone. On the worship team at my church, I find that this guitar is best deployed in a set in which I won't need to switch guitars, as an amp tweaked for the Deluxe sounds too bright if I then plug in a Strat or other Tele. I usually turn up the amp's treble to compensate for the relatively dark tone of the Deluxe's p/u's, compared with bright single coils.

At church I use a 112 Fender Blues Jr, and at home I use a Twin, 410 Blues DeVille or 212 MusicMan Sixty-Five. It sounds yummy through them all, and the 'buckers still have a certain twang and delicacy of tone if I set the gain for not too much grit. As with traditional Telecasters, using both p/u's at once gives a sweet jangly tone, one of my favourite Tele features.

The p/u's are much less noisy than single-coils, obviously, and will yield some richness and yet some twang, depending on what you want. They are versatile, and I actually can not fault them. As I said above, you can't compare the tone with another guitar, it does stand alone, so you'd have to try one out to see if you like it.

What really did astound me was playing slide on it. What an amazing sound! I use a glass slide, and didn't turn up the amp's gain too much, but the Deluxe really SANG. Completely beautiful, and something I'll definitely explore further with this beastie.

The set-up is good (better than the other Deluxe this one replaced) and the p/u's are decently blended. Nice bridge, different from other Teles. No dangerous screws sticking up to rip your flesh!
The only thing I'd want to replace at some point (beside the vol/tone knobs) is the period-specific tuners, but they are adequate right now.

Somewhere around the 9th/10th frets, there's the tiniest bit of fret-buzz on all strings, but a luthier friend of mine can fix that, and I can't hear it through an amp.

It's a good guitar for the blues I play, but I don't have the longest fingers, so the fretboard width prevents me from really FLYING on it, as opposed to my other two Teles with "normal" necks. I don't mind the neck's chunkiness, but I could live without its width. Other reviewers here say the neck is the guitar's best feature, but for me it's the only drawback. If you have small hands, it is not for you.

Like all Telecasters, the Deluxe is built like a brick outhouse, so it will indeed last. Beware of the p/u selector switch and the tuners, though, the only sub-standard hardware on the guitar. Some people don't like the three-screw neckplate on the back of the instrument, but it doesn't bother me.

The plastic sheet covering the scratchplate comes off easily when you first buy it, but leaves unsightly shreds of itself under the knobs, hanging off the screws, etc, a pain in the neck.

The strap buttons are good, and I have to struggle to attach the new, stiff, strap! So I doubt the guitar will fall off my shoulder while I'm playing it.

I always use a backup guitar when gigging, either at church or when playing the blues (I have a Christian blues ministry). However, this Tele Deluxe really is a dependable instrument.

I think Fender warranties last five years. I only ever called the company once, years ago, and they were not friendly, so I take any problems to my luthier pal. When I needed to replace the Deluxe I bought first, I returned it to my local Git Centre, and they were decent enough to give me another that they had in stock, so kudos goes to them, rather than to Fender.

I've been playing for over thirty years, since I was a kid, and own several other Fender guitars, and amps. This Deluxe really is an oddity in my small collection, with a personality of its own, particularly in its feel. I tried a few Deluxes for several months before buying this one, comparing it with its sister, the '72 Reissue Tele Thinline (also two humbuckers) whose frets were too shallow for my tastes. I do feel ambivalent about this one. It's a guitar for certain applications, not quite as versatile as either of my other Teles (a mid-'90s American Standard and a late-'90s Fat Tele).

I did want a two-humbucker Telecaster, and wonder now if I might have been better off with one of the new FMT (or is it QMT?) Teles, with a "normal" narrower fretboard, and two 'buckers. They don't have this guitar's personality, though.

Things I love: the full, complex tone; the lovely dark walnut colour.
Things I hate: the big ugly headstock and unnecessary four knobs.
Things I neither love nor hate but am learning to live with: the really wide neck. If you play rhythm, it won't matter to you, but I play a lot of lead, so it's quite an adjustment for me.

It will never be my number one guitar (that is my Fat Tele) but it's enjoyable to play. If it was stolen, I'd look for a different two-hum Tele rather than another Deluxe.

Fender '72 Telecaster Deluxe Reissue, 2 humbuckers, nice black finish. Bascially see the fender site for spec... its what comes as standard with the deluxe.

I have a Gretsch Electromatic & Fender Jagstang already. Both seemed to get lost when we were at practice under the noise my friends Gibson Les Paul made. Not only that he's had some new chunky pick ups put on it, which basically drowns me out. This fender is special. The sound is immense. If you are looking for that choppy sound of The Jam or Indie rock bands look no further. Not just a one trick pony it can also give you beautifully warm tones & sounds great with lots of distortion through it.

Tele's are great anyway, this one the head stock on it reminds me of the Strat which is unusual. The action of the strings is perfect, really low making it easy to play & chord changes or lead a pleasure to play. The pick ups are as the factory set them up, from this ive found them good, maybe i might take it in soon and have it set up. They can sound a little bit muddy at some settings, but don't be put off at all! This guitar is great.
The way i play (badly) i keep catching the pick up selecter switch, im not sure if this is because i'm crap at guitar or whetehr it's slightly lower than im used to. Either way it doesnt matter....

Mines pretty new but i imagine this guitar will last. Tele's tend to. Joe Strummer was still using the same guitar from his clash days until his untily death, these guitars last. The actual feel of the guitar is great, feels really robust and the weight is fine. If you dropped it you wouldn't expect to damage it too much. Infact i have seen a guitarist throw his deluxe during a gig, and use it again the gig after.... robust!

Not had to deal with Fender as yet, hopefully i never will!

For it to be a 10 it would have to be perfect, but this guitar to me is the guitar ive been looking for. After frustrating sessions with others which didnt have that cutting sound i wanted, Fender Deluxe does it all.

I love this guitar, for the price ithink it's great!

this is the Mexico manufactured re-issue of the 72 deluxe - 2 humbuckers, strat body carve, large strat headstock, etc. - alder - walnut color

cover band mostly - all the goofy stuff peole dance to - mostly like strats + tweed - but wanted to try this particular tele. Very quiet - more punch than typical tele for sure. It didn't work out for me - I missed that strat out of phase sound big-time sfter a while - this was generic sounding.

Nothing good to say here - particularly don't like the neck - don't get me wrong - a 12" radius can be great ( it is divine on my EJ strat ) but it doesn't work for me on this one. Also ( and this is the clincher ) I could not get this to intonate properly after much tedious trying ( I'm good with guitar set-up ) . For me another problem was that the large headstock got in the way of reaching for behind - the - nut bends ( I realize most wouldn't care about this - but I do )

I only kept it 1 week - store took it back without question. It seemed solid

?

have played 40 yrs

other gear I own - everything you can imagine

bottom line ( this might sound dumb I know ) - a guitar either wants to be picked up and played or it doesn't. My strat and my old 64 tele keep me up late this way - they want to be touched and played with ( like my wife )

this thing never told me to pick it up and play it.

Check Fender's website-- it's a reissue of the '72 Telecaster Deluxe. Cosmetically, it looks the same as the original. However, the electronics, specifically the pickups, are not accurate reproductions of the original Seth Lover designed Wide Range humbuckers. But I could care less because I'm not much of a gear snob.

Unplugged, this is a bright sounding guitar, as all Teles are. It also resonates very well, which means it will sound even better through a good tube amp.

The stock Wide Range humbuckers add a definite fatness to the tone, making this guitar a perfect candidate for jazz, blues, and rock, especially. After about two months of playing around, I concluded that the stock neck pup was too muddy for my tastes, while the bridge pup was simply lacking balls. I decided to ditch the stock pups in favor of some hotter output Seymour Duncans: a PG-n and a Custom-b. However, I've finally come to the conclusion that most humbuckers will sound like crap in the neck position of a Tele. Way too muddy. I'm gonna try to get one of those hum-sized P90s and see how those work in the neck.

The main things that impress me about this guitar are its sexy looks and awesome feel. This guitar is just so damn comfortable to play, I can actually justify spending a ton of time (and money) experimenting with different pickups (see above). The maple neck is nice and smooth, ergonomic is the key word here. The medium-jumbo frets are perfect for bends, and chording is a breeze.

I was a little dissapointed with some of the hardware, namely the pickup selector switch, which had a flimsy feel to it and has since been replaced. The stock bridge saddles, although true to the original, make palm muting tricky. The saddle screws also do not hold intonation very well. You better believe that I'll be putting some GraphTechs on this in the near future.

This guitar is very solidly built. I'm sure not all of these guitars have the hardware flaws that mine did, but again, it's not like these can't be upgraded. I would definitely gig with this guitar, if not for the risk of it being stolen. But I'd still gig with it anyway, because its playability is unsurpassed compared to all the other guitars I've ever played.

This is probably one of the best guitars in its price range. If I had to do it all over again, I would physically go to a music store so I could actually inspect the guitar I was planning on buying. But I would still buy this guitar regardless, because it is awesome.

This is a reissue guitar and all specs are to match a 1972 tele deluxe.

This guitar has mojo, especially for gigs! Dual hb's make it quiet however it still has some tele characteristics, like the bite. Honestly I never wanted a tele until I saw and played this one. Neck pu has god bass with clarity, middle pu is a good phased type of sound w/ some bass and bite, and bridge pu cuts thru the mix and has some good bite without piercing. I use this guitar with a Mesa Boogie DC-5 and a fender musicmaster bass amp. BTW this is not your typical tele neck, very similar to my 78 LP Deluxe.

This guitar needs a set up (pu's and action) and some .10's right out of the box. My setup wasn't bad but I have certain preferences.

The workmanship on this guitar is excellent, not custom shop excellent, but it rivals my usa made strats. The neck joint is tight and there were zero flaws in the finish.

This is simple guitar and should stand the test of time. I always bring a backup guitar.

The walnut color rocks, especially with the large black pickguard! Mojo!

Arctic White polyester finish
Telecaster shape
2 humbuckers
2 volume and 2 tone knobs (retro, BIG numbers)
3-way switch on top horn
Strat style fixed tail (6 saddles) with through-body string holes
Fender tuners
12-inch radius maple neck
Strat style headstock
Fender gig bag
Hecho en Mexico

I play through a Blues Junior and get great breakup, you know that kind of dark, crunchy texture from the 2 humbuckers. The tone is way darker than my bandmate's standard '71 Tele (vintage). Basically this shares a body shape with other Teles and nothing else. I personally like the dual humbucker, Les Paul-like sound that goes great with my not-so-technical (read: sloppy) style.

Set-up is very good. Especially in comparison to the Gretsch Pro Jet I bought last year. A couple of things, though: #1 E gave off a lot less volume than the other 5 strings, easily fixed with a little adjustment. Also, moreso than any guitar I've ever played, the fingerboard is very finicky about finger placement. I've noticed that each of my guitars plays truest when my fingers are in a specific place and it always takes a little practice to get that perfect sounding chord when you're playing clean, but this one takes a bit more care and precision. Might be just this guitar.

The neck joint is perfect and the paint and chrome look great. Love that smooth, wide maple neck and fretboard. Factory action is low.

Only had this one for one weekend, but it seems to live up to Fender's quality. It's solid and very heavy (it IS a Tele after all). I replaced the strap buttons immediately with locking buttons. I'd never gig without a backup because strings and I have a rocky relationship at best, but I'll say this one seems reliable.

I bought at a reputable store and got a 1-year warranty. Haven't had to repair it yet.

I've been playing for about 14 years now and have owned quite a few guitars. Most of them have been cheap but effective. I love this Tele. It is really the first mid-range guitar I've owned that I feel can stand up in quality to a higher priced model.

I got the limited arctic white model with a black pickguard and it is quite striking. It has a fat Strat-style headstock that looks cool. The fat neck suits my style of playing.

I had been looking at Strats (even though I don't like the look) and Les Pauls for a couple of weeks before the salesman suggested this guitar. The sound is perfectly individual, and suits my style.

pretty basic: dual humbuckers, two tone controls, two volume controls, alder body, maple neck and fretboard with polyurethane finish, 70s strat neck, fender deluxe gig bag

This guitar is AWESOME! It sounds great for rock, blues, and jazz. Although it's not as beefy as a Les Paul, it has terrific warm and distorted sounds. Its sound is between a Les Paul and Strat.

Great! I played the floor model and took it home. It has great action. My only complaint would be that it is a little heavy, but at least it's not a brick like a Les Paul. Also, I switched out the .009s for .010s.

No problems.

Awesome guitar. No wonder it's gaining in popularity. At this price, it's unbeatable. And, you don't have to dish out two to three grand for a vintage one.