Fender Highway 1 Telecaster

Well I quess you allready know all the specs but I'll list them anyway.

Alder body with Daphen Blue finish
Maple neck and fingerboard with 22 frets
"hot" tele pickups in bridge and neck position
3 way picku selector
1 volume and 1 tone

just the way it should be...

The sound? GOOD GOLLY! Whne I plugged into my small 15w Vox valvetronix I was just amazed! The sound was just what I was looking for a classic tele sound with a little extra punch. I mostly use the bridge and middle positions on the selector but neck PU works also alone just fine.

I play blues, classic rock and sixties "pop" and this is just the sound for that. And if you want to go to the extreme put o a Dunlop Fuzz Face and rock on!

I bought this one mostly becose the finish. I never really liked the "all-shiny-finy-fender-gloss" finishes. Ok the finish is thin and it gets beaten up pretty fast but it doesn't change the sound and that is what truly counts.

The action was good right off the wall I just restrung it and woila!

well it's a Tele. You can hammer it with an axe and the axe braks sooner tahn the guitar. It's a true journymans guitar-

It's a classic like tele with a touch of modern influces.

2006 Hwy-1 60th Anniversary Model with some mods. Satin Tri-color sunburst Alder body, Rosewood fret board, black pick guard, Wilkinson compensated vintage style bridge, Fender Standard neck pickup, Duncan Vintage Lead Stack on the bridge, push-pull pot for single / humbucker on bridge, Fender Locking tuners, Fender tolex HS case.

With the new compensated bridge and both the new Fender and Duncan pickup, I can get the sound I was looking for. A most definite Telecaster sound. Quite a bit of RFI interference, so I lined all the cavities with copper tape and that eliminated most the hum in single coil positions. For amps I use a Hughes and Kettner Zenamp and a Fender Blues Jr. The guitar sounds great through both. Again, IMHO the pickups made a tremendous difference in the overall sound.

Initially, the factory job was "OK". Didn't come near to my US Strat or PRS, which I use as a basis. After three minor fret dressings, and a good polish, I finally came up with action like the Strat. Not quite as good as the PRS, but far better than Fender factory specs. Because Fender offers this guitar as the low end USA made model, I will give it a 9 due to the ability this guitar is capable of with a little attention to detail. The neck to body fit is perhaps some of the best I have seen for a bolt on neck. The resonance transfer from the neck to body is extremely good.

The guitar is very well built with quality components. There was nothing wrong with the hardware I replaced. Simply a matter of personal preference. The nitro body finish is thin, but it seams to have a positive effect on the body resonance. I think Fender did the right thing with the thin nitro as apposed to a poly finish. I don't "gig" anymore, especially frogs, haven't in 20 years, but it is a solid guitar that should be able to withstand any average playing style.

In my 36 years of playing, I have never had to contact Fender for any customer support. So I don't have a clue how good they are on a one-to-one basis.

In the time I have been playing, I have bought and sold a number of higher end guitars. I have owned this unit for about a year now, and it remains one of my favorites to play. It's the simplicity and how it forces you back to your roots that I like.

Three color sunburst with unpolished nitrocellulose lacquer, satin finish maple neck, Fender Hot Tele pickups with three way switch. Fitted with a vintage style Tele bridge sporting three chrome finish barrel type saddles. Machine heads are standard sealed Fender units with chrome finish.

Excellent biting tone in high gain or clean mode. Pickups are noisy with the gain set high but the middle switch position eliminates most of the crackle. The guitar maintains its' bite even with the tone control rolled completely off, which helps compensate for the noise in the single pickup positions. Played through a clean amplifier this guitar sounds as good as it's more expensive brothers, although the pickups are hotter than the classic models. They're also better balanced, providing near equal volume as compared to the '52 Reissue and vintage models. That's a plus in my book.

The maple neck with satin finish is this guitars' best feature, smooth as glass with no friction, and the fret finish is outstanding. Every bit as good as most of the Custom Shop Tele's I've played. The switch tip fell off within days after purchase - so what's new? - one tiny drop of Bondini on the very tip of the switching arm has held it in place for months now. The matt finish body is unusual and very attractive in sunburst, not so hot in Daphne, Honey Blond, or Wine. The black position dots are good enough but are less attractive than the abalone inlays on my Strat 50, they look slightly out of place on the maple fretboard.

The bridge pickup routing is slightly off center and the cavity is visible peeking out from under the bridge plate on the control plate side. I didn't notice this when I bought it but apparently it's not the first time Fender shipped one with this problem. It's a minor flaw and totally inconsequential in the overall picture - there's no apparent effect on the tone and I have yet to hear a microphonic feedback squeal even at club volume. Anyone who thinks exposed cavities are a big problem hasn't yet taken a good look at the new EVH Frankenstein Strat - say what?

The guitar was quite playable right off the rack but I've done some hardware changes and had a complete professional setup job done at Evans Music City in Houston, TX. Guitar tech Mike Juarez did the work and I highly recommend him for anybody in the area. This guitar now has perfect intonation and balance to compliment it's gut wrenching tone. Amazing work - thanks Mike!

As mentioned the switch tip problem was easily solved. Controls feel smooth and solid. Stock tuners are too loose for my taste but easily replaced as detailed below. Some say the nitro finish won't last but who cares? This guitar is easily driven into feedback/sustain with sound pressure and I believe that's due to the light finish. It's a light weight instrument and very well balanced, makes a Les Paul feel like a quad cab truck, with two flat tires... :)

Know what you're buying and you'll never have to call the Geek Squad in Corona. As long as they keep producing guitars like this I won't bother them. For that reason I'll give Fender a 10 in this category. They're an American icon and hope they'll be here a century from now.

A good guitar tech is a great investment - find a good one and get to know him. The payoff is the best instrument you could ask for. Shipping charges alone could cost you more than a complete setup in a good guitar shop.

This is a great guitar at a great price. With some well chosen modifications it can be a totally professional platform. I installed a Glendale bridge with the Aluminum/Brass saddle set. This allows perfect intonation with increased sustain. A major improvement over the stock Fender set.
I prefer the vintage Kluson in-line tuners as found on the Custom Shop guitars from Corona. But I settled on the Schaller locking set sold by Fender. They are highly effective and again a major improvement over the stock sealed units. And they're a drop in replacement that won't require any drilling on that wonderful neck.

The bridge set and tuners are finished in brushed stainless steel which really sets off the matte finish nitro paint job on my guitar.
So I now have a perfect neck, perfect intonation, great tone, and an unusual and handsome finish on a $700 guitar. Cost of the upgrades with installation and setup was about $200.

I played a Custom Shop Tele last week at the GC on Westheimer in Houston. It was priced at $4999 (they're proud of those CS Tele's, even more so than the Strats!). It had really good tone but played like a dog. I'm sure a setup job at Evans Music would help, but the point is - that guitar is priced at $5000! Fender shouldn't let them out of the house in that condition. At all.

I visited Charley's Guitar Shop in Dallas last April during the Dallas Guitar Show weekend. They've got a great setup man working there named Clay. I asked him if they had the new '52 Hot Rod Tele and he told me they had received one and sold it in 24 hours. And he told me this... "I called the factory in Corona and asked them why am I paying three to five grand for these CS Tele's when your shipping guitars like the Hot Rod at $1500? " Good point. And I must say that my Highway One plays and sounds every bit as good as the '52 Hot Rod.

3 tone sunburst. Came with a gig bag. Otherwise like the other stock specs listed in these reviews.

It's got a little attitude and I like it. I'm big on the chiminess of a Strat. I have a 50th anni. American deluxe Strat which I absolutely love and thought I needed a Tele to cover country sessions. I thought that was all that a Tele was good for. Man was I wrong, this baby will funk, will rock, will Jazz with attitude. The sound is still bright and chimey in a way I like, but it also has a bite to it - that's the attitude.

I bought mine at Guitar Center. It was sitting by the door with one other sporting a markdown tag because it was a store demo model and had a slight scratch/ding by the jack. I took it home and checked the intonation and it was very close. I love the feel of the neck; it's just like my Strat which I love so much.

I know a lot of players feel that a guitar should be a sculpture of art and I respect that, so I'll say that the fit and finish on mine is excellent (other than the minor ding). For all my years as a musician I've never been up on all the different finishes. My guitar is not glossy/shinny like the Strat, and I really like it. Its finish matches its raw attitude.

All the controls work perfectly and have a solid feel. I especially like the selector. Why does the selector switch on a Paul always feel flimsy?

I gave it a 10, because its not Fender's fault that store customers can't find the jack without dinging the finish.

You know Tele's and Strat's last forever even with reasonable abuse. If you didn't, now you do. Every session player's 20 year old one I've ever saw looked used, abused, cared for, and still sounded sweet and functioned perfectly.

I put Schaller strap locks on it. I do it on all my electrics - I like the accessibility of them, they are great quality, and they are an easy mod for anyone. They are certainly not necessary for this guitar, because it's relatively light.

Gig on to your heart's content.

Yes, I'd buy it again.
I love the neck.
I hate that I waited so long to buy one.
Favorite feature is that it's a great compliment to my Strat.

It's another great tool in the studio with a great sound and excellent playability. I got mine at a great price and it's made in the good 'ol USA which is somewhat rare for the price I paid.

USA Made
Most recent Highway 1 Tele with nitrocell finish/ Alnico-3 pups, 70's headstock and logo, jumbo frets, three-saddle bridge. Mine is Honey Blonde with a rosewood fretboard. I replaced stock white-ish pickguard with a thick slab of tortoise-shell Italian celluoid. No turtles were harmed. I also replaced the stock bridgeplate-saddlles with a Glenrose model. More about that later. Fairly feature-free, it's a Tele, you can't make frozen Pina Coladas with it.

Sweet, sweet, sweet. Two pups and a 3-way switch provides (1) bridge only for Hair-Splitting Treble, (2) neck only for Warm Sweet Pocket and (3) neck and bridge joined to form a More Perfect Deep Well of Shimmer. If I were marooned on a desert island and I could only have one electric guitar, a Tele would be my choice. Oh yeah, and my '66 Blackface Princeton Reverb , electricity, a well-stocked beer fridge and some wimmens. For those that want to remain convinced that a Telecaster is for Twang only, don't search YouTube for Booker T or Sam and Dave footage 'cause it seems that Cropper performed and recorded through his Tele a whole lot (and through tiny amps in the studio). And then there's Roy Buchanan, Robbie Robertson etc. etc. It might look a little weird on stage with a metal band, but blinfold the audience and it would probably sound fine.

I installed the Glenrose bridgeplate/brass saddle and A-B'ed it with the stock setup under strict Laboratory Conditions. Played the stock version plugged directly into a Red-Knob Twin for an hour, while pulling on a beer, then loosened the strings, removed the Fender
unit and installed the Glenrose in about 20 minutes, tightened strings, performed expert field intonation adjustments(OK, within a couple %) and played for another hour, no changes made to guitar or amp settings. And I didn't drink another beer. (Taking notes?) A noticeable increase in sustain, the sound is just...beefier. Yet brighter. Great unit. Glemrose. They have a website. Not a cheap mod, but with as little as the guitar costs, it's a winner.

Guitar was put together very well at the factory , and Sweetwater provides their own pro setup if when purchased through them.They used round 10s. It was very good, but Gary Gilbert at King Bee Guitars in the Nashville area dressed the frets, set it up with Chrome 11s, cut and installed the pickguard, made a new nut and shielded the entire guitar's electronics. He's the absolute best and a great guy to boot. I give the stock version a "9" only because there was a bit of visible glue in the skunk stripe laminate on the neck near the body. Not really visible to most people but when viewed under an electron microscope...

If the Cossacks had a band they would have played Teles. Very durable slab of wood that gets the job done night after night, and also handy as a weapon when you're retreating back to the van, surrounded by a ragged mob of alchohol-fueled Arkansans who've taken umbrage because you've only played "Freebird" three times a freakin' set.

Backup guitar ? You won't need no stinkin' backup.

I've never used Fender's customer support, then again, this is only the second new guitar I've owned, and I've owned way too many to clearly remember them all. Most problems with instruments seem to arise out of design and expectation, not poor manufacturing. So far, so good.

Hello, my name is _______ and I've been a guitar addict for more that 40 years. (At this point you reply, in unison, " Hi _________, join the club".) Over twenty years fulltime in the Music Industry as a player, performer and finally ( to the collective relief of the session players who recorded with this Mel Bay One-Finger Guitar Chords Institute graduate) producer. What styles? A veritable smorgasbord of styles.

What would I do if it were stolen? I would hire Dog the Bounty Hunter and together we would search the four corners of the World and hunt to ground those responsible for this Unspeakable Crime. And I would probably have to braid Dog's hair some along the way.
But it would be worth it. Really.

The features are all the already mentioned, mine is a 3 tone sunburst with a rosewood fretboard. I actually wanted a maple one but ordered this one because the picture in the store web page did not match the description. No big deal though. It has all the features a tele shoudl, so I give it a 10.

Well, this guitar suits my current music style (reggae, funk, jazz) better than any other I have. I use it with a Tonelab LE, also have a Marshall 6101 (which is nearly worthless for the types of music I'm doing). It has that classic fender sound. Bright spanky, tons of attack, mellow if you roll the volume or tone off. The greasebucket circuit is a very significant even if subtle addition. It does bring a whole tonal rannge to the guitar that few guitars can do. I am totally happy with it. If you want smooth, clear, non piercing cutting clean sounds a Telecaster is the guitar for you. The only thing I don't like is the 3 saddle bridge. It has 6 strings damn it!!! I may leave it as it is though, it depends if I get intonation problems or not.

Well, it came with the usual banjo strings electric guitar ship with and after I put some 11's on it there3 was a great improvement. The volume pot is the only real flaw on this particular guitar. It only works from 80-100%, and it's silent anywhere else. No big deal replacing it but I am giving this guitar a 5 here because of that.

Well, the finish is very thin. If you bang it against anything it will get damaged. For a bedroom/studio guitar I think it's fine though.

Don't know.

I have been playing for 17 years. Own a ESP 901 (from the metal days, it's now my MIDI synth guitar), a epiphone sheraton with SD phat Cats and a stock Epi 56 Goldtop. I Own a Marshall 6101, a Tonelab LE, and a home studio with more stuff I can be bothered to mention. This Highway one is my favorite guitar ever.

It's your standard american tele stripped down. love it though, 2 single coils of course. Standard as far as this category goes.

The really great thing about this guitar is the grease bucket system they use. It won't overdrive quite as easily as a standard tele, but when you push it hard enough it gets a nice muddy, vintage sort of tone to it.

Set up was great right out of the box. I adjusted the intonation to suit a .10 gauge set. Stock is a 3 saddle bridge which I replaced with a G&L brass 6 saddle bridge. (world of difference, trust me)

If you don't want to scuff/scratch it don't buy it. The finish on it is very thin. But then again, it is a tele...they're only more badass if you beat the living hell out of them. Rarely needs any TLC other than a little fast fret, all bolt-on necks need that every couple weeks or so, in my opinion. Even with the 3 saddle bridge you'll have no problem with strings breaking. Unless you play straight up punk rock as fast and hard as you possibly can. In which case, go buy an SG.

I worked for guitar center at the time...I was my own support.

This is the only Fender I own. For good reason. The only other fender I would want is a closet classic tele. Not saying I wouldn't snatch up a vintage tele/esquire if I had the money...but you know how it is being broke. After all, everyone that reads this IS a musician right?

For the price, you CAN NOT beat it for an american made instrument.

Love this Tele. I've been looking for the right Tele for quite a while now and I think I finally found it. Mine is a Daphne Blue model with a rosewood fingerboard. I was considering getting an American Deluxe Tele but this particular guitar has such a good vibe to it and so bought it instead. I did end up switching out the pick guard for something else but past that I love the looks. I am considering putting a set of locking tuners on it down the road, but this thing stays n tune very well as is so I'm still trying to decide whether or not locking tuners would be worth it or not. Past that, this is a pretty straightforward set-up.

Rowdy, rowdy, rowdy. Yet smooth and refined. It all just depends on where you put the volume and tone knobs. This thing sounds great with whatever I throw at it. Heavy tones. Smooth lead tones. Dirt tones. Clean. I wouldn't go to this guitar for metal, but it seems to suit everything else if needed, including hard rock. I've never liked single-coils much, but lately I've been starting to see the light. The bridge pick-up reminds me very much of my vibey Gibson Melody Maker's P-90 (in a good way) yet it isn't noisy like most single-coils. The neck pick-up is very traditional late 50's Tele sounding and very warm and smooth with just the right amount of top-end and chunk. The Greasebucket circuit is extremely cool and I find that I rarely leave my tone knob wide open any more. I like the Greasebucket idea so much that I even modded my American Roadhouse Strat with the Greasebucket. I'm getting tones ranging from Billy Gibbons to Jeff Beck, David Gilmour to Eric Johnson, and recent Buddy Guy to recent Andy Timmons. It is like I found several Holy Grail tones all in one guitar. Would've been cool to have the old style of pick-up switching like an old 50's Tele, but I'm not complaining.

The high E string had a lousy buzz to it once winter started changing to spring. Turns out that the neck had taken on quite a bit of moisture at the local music store where I bought it and the neck just needed a little truss rod relief. A little adjustment there and a fresh set of strings and all was as it should be again. The fret polishing is excellent but not quite in the same league as my Gibson Les Paul Classic or my American Deluxe V-Neck Strat, but the price wasn't nearly as much either. But this Tele practically plays itself as is. Great string bending. Great sustain. Very dynamic response to pick attack and easy to work a one channel amp with. No real glaring faults, especially for the money. Possibly the only thing I would have preferred differently on this guitar would be to have a V-neck instead of the C. I just really like those V-Necks these days, but honestly the neck on this guitar is very comfortable and I can't justify knocking it too much. Again....no complaints.

The finish is thin (as advertised) but it feels broken in as a result of that. A gloss finish on this guitar just wouldn't feel right to me. I'm sure there will be some wearing out of the paint and wood showing through eventually, but I'm actually excited about that. the satin finish sets up the vibe of this great guitar and I wouldn't change the finish for anything else. I'd definitely gig without a back-up. It's a Tele for crying out loud. If I bust a string then I'll just keep playing Keefer style. taking a back-up would be a slap in the face to this particular instrument. Some guitars you just choose to rely on without a safety net. This is that sort of guitar.

I like them OK. I've met the regional Fender rep on several occasions and he is always quite nice and he asks lots of questions about what I like feature-wise, etc (and I'm not a dealer or store employee). Seems to know his stuff forwards and backwards. Past that I've never needed any Fender support, which says something in itself.

Overall this is a great Tele. It does what it does, and it always makes you want to keep playing on it even after you put it down. This strikes me as a guitar that I won't eventually trade off or part with. Well worth the money and what a great vibe!

Its a tele, so everything you would expect- great looks from its satin finsh that wears away a treat- it is thin and knocks easily, but it makes it look like a classic blues machine- which is wat i use it for, that and some classic rock.
In terms of features though, its a tele so it wont get a 10

great sounds from both pups, especially the front one which to me sounds very woody like a strat and the middle position just adds a little extra bite to the sounds which distorts nicely too. The bridge pup was great for a lot of stuff but i took it out on mine and fitted it with a dimarzio chopper t- something id recommend for you rockers that want extra bite.
This tele also comes loaded with the "greasebucket" circuit, which apparently allows you to roll off the highs w/out adding lows- this works very well and is exactly what is needed on a guitar with as much highs as a tele does.
With my chopper t in place, sound definately gets a 10

everything great from the box- people are complaining about sharp frets but on mine they are fine

the finish wont last but everything else will - thats the idea of the highway one, its a workhorse.
everything is solid and works like ir should, sept the switch nob always comes loose, but that was easy enough to fix.

N/A

Unfortunately, fender dont make my version of the highway 1 anymore but its upgrade, which i would have thought would be better as its an upgrade, but still this guitar rocks for blues, rock, country, and pretty much anything except metal- it can handle high gain but you'd look an idiot in a metal band with a tele

Pretty guitar, maple neck, nice matte finish. Classic tele bridge.

Terrible, won't play in tune anywhere on the neck. Had it in the shop twice. I guess its possible the luthier was clueless.

I believe the nut is too high. Otherwise the neck feels fast.

One of the pickups died two weeks after I bought it. The place where I bought it couldn't even tell me where to get it fixed.

The fender website was good. I was able to locate a place to get it repaired under warranty there.

If somebody stole it, I wouldn't miss it. I only play it when I feel sorry for it.