Squier Vintage Modified Thinline Telecaster

Puchased in October of '07. See the features listed below, but for the record, mine is Shoreline Gold. I DO wish this was offered in more than just Shoreline Gold and black...otherwise, it's a Tele, what else does it need? ;)

First of all, these come with Duncan Designed pickups, which generally seem to get a bad rap. I LOVE the neck pickup on this - it is so clear and defined through a clean channel, and not too muddy with added dirt. The bridge pickup? Well, it can get a bit icepick-ey, but that's part of the Tele sound, ain't it? Just dial down the tone knob, and it is a bit less shrill. Both pickups together, and you're almost to humbuckersville. Has the typical Tele sound variety. Does get a bit of hum, which is par for single-coils, but as previous reviewers have stated, there is also the annoying "static through the pickguard when rubbing it" issue, which I have yet to attempt to correct (gives you an idea of just how imporatant it is to me at this point :D ).

Breaking it down:

Action - 9; it never ceases to amaze me when I read reviews here on Harmony Central that give action a poor review because "it wasn't set up right from the factory"...oh, Boo-frickin' Hoo!!! However, it just SO happens that THIS one was set up pretty well from the factory, so there! This pointless rant does NOT figure into my review...I did tweak the intonation and truss rod ever SO slightly to my liking, and it plays like butter.

Fit - 8; again, smooth as all hell. I LOVE the satin neck finish, and the frets were perfect. I also prefer rosewood over maple on my Fender-style guitar fretboards, so sue me. This may be the most comfortable guitar I have ever owned out of the 25 or so I have had the last 30 years. Only issue was a couple of the tuners were loose; tightened those up fairly easily.

Finish - 7; OK, this is where I'm going to ding it a bit. There were some white flecks of ... something on the fretboard - maybe the inlay material? - that needed to be scraped off. Also, the F-hole finish around the edge was rather sloppy, and there is also some paint funkiness around the neck pocket. All in all, the weakest part of this guitar, but minor at worst, and definitely not a deal breaker.

So far, it has had a few minor accidental bumps - and I normally take very good care of my guitars - but no lasting blemishes. It as traveled with me a couple of times in a standard Fender gig bag without issue. Very solid, and should be able to take a beating. Only annoying hardware issue is that the hex screws on the bridge saddles have the dreaded "screw float" disease - seems that the threads do slip on occasion. Not something that can't be cured with a bit of Loctite, but still...I also occasionally get irritated by the screw height in the "short" saddles...maybe new saddles are in order.

Would have no issues gigging with it, although I would probably get another couple of them at this price for backup purposes.

Not dealt with Fender, but they got a good rep, no???

Summed it up pretty well above, but I've been playing on and off for 30 years, and very ON a lot the last year. Just before I got this guitar, I had a new LP Studio, and a MIM Fender Strat, which had just been purchased new about two months before. I had actually sold the Strat, which just did not do it for me (and I generally LOVE Strats!) to buy this. I picked up the Squier VM thinline Tele on a whim and initial good reviews, from Sweetwater (at the time, they were the only retailer within 200 miles that had them in stock, online or otherwise). I played this one so much, that I ended up selling the Les Paul...I won't say what I picked up to replace it ;)

Again, this is the smoothest playing guitar I've ever had, and it sounds good. It would be a good buy at $400.00; at the current going rate ($279), it's a steal. It's not perfect, but for what I do, it fits me perfectly. A great platform to mod, if one wishes.

Don't let my overall "8" rating fool you - it's the logical average of what the category ratings are above, and I don't give 10s very liberally (yes, I'm anal)...

Lastly, I would highly advise that anyone on the fence about buying this should do so quickly - Fender has a rep for not keeping current model Squiers in production for very long (see the '51), so don't miss out. If there's any consolation, the current Squier VM line is getting rave reviews across the board - I may have to add another one of these, plus the new Strats to my collection.

A telecaster simple setup two Duncan designed single coils. Thinline body which makes for a light guitar. 24 and 3/4 inch scale rosewood fingerboard. (which is a change from the usual fender 25 and 1/2 inch) All you really need I like locking tuners because the amount of hassle they save and noiseless pickups but in this price range you can't expect that. It has a 6 saddle thru the body tele bridge. A personal not if the bridge is not string thru the body it is not a tele to me.

Really like the sound of this guitar has the crisp Tele attack it seems to be dialed down a bit on the bridge pickup but in the middle position I get a not so much a Tele sound but a Rickenbacker jangle which is nice.(possibly because of the shorter scale) I would have liked a weak humbucker in the neck position for jazzy stuff but the neck pickup is nice sounding a bit more focused than a humbucker. The thinline body gives a bit of a woody overtone which makes for a great sound that you can't get with a solid body either.
I play a variety of stuff but a lot of old school progressive rock (Yes, King Crimson,Pink Floyd). Also do some fingerstyle stuff too. This guitar is well suited for everything but maybe scooped mids metal but for lead it is great and can sit in the right spot in a mix.

Nice fit and finish on this overall. The bridge pickup was a bit too far from the strings and the action was a bit high and had to tweak the intonation a bit nothing you really don't do for most other guitars. I got it dialed in now so it plays well. I think the finish is a bit too thick I prefer a thinner finish that you can see the wood through.

Only time will tell. I had a squier tele back in the 80's was a great guitar but the finish on the knobs flaked off and the bridge rusted in place these are things I can't tell until the passing of time right now it seems solid and would gig without a backup call me in 10 years.

Have not dealt with customer support, hope I don't have to.

Well this is an excellent guitar for the money is better than the tele I bought in the 80s and is much cheaper too. This is a great guitar for those on a budget who want to sound and look good and have a light great sounding guitar. For the money can't be beat this is a real giant killer. I have been playing close to 30 years I have had many guitars over the years from a Fender Strat plus to Gibson Chet Atkins Tennesean, Es 125, Les Paul Deluxe, Rickenbacker 360\12 and 620, Charvel Fusion.
It his one were lost or stolen I would get another. One of those guitars that seems to be too good for the money spent.

-Model Name: Vintage Modified Telecaster?? Thinline
-Body: Alder
-Neck: Maple, C-Shape, (Gloss Polyurethane Finish)
-Fingerboard: Rosewood, 7.25" Radius (184mm)
-No. of Frets: 22 Medium Jumbo Frets
-Pickups: 1 Duncan Designed??? TE-101N (Neck), 1 Duncan Designed??? TE-101B (Bridge)
-Controls : Master Volume, Master Tone
-Pickup Switching: 3-Position Blade: Position 1. Bridge Pickup, Position 2. Bridge and Neck Pickups, Position 3. Neck Pickup
-Bridge: 6-Saddle Strings-Thru-Body Tele Bridge
-Machine Heads: Die-cast
-Hardware: Chrome
-Pickguard: 3-Ply Parchment
-Scale Length: 24.75" (648 mm)
-Width at Nut: 1.650" (42 mm)
-Unique Features: Distinctive "F" Hole, "Top-Hat" Blade Switch-Tip, Semi-Acoustic Construction, 24.75" Scale Length
-Strings: Fender Super 250L, Nickel Plated Steel, Gauges: (.009, .011, .016, .024, .032, .042), p/n 073-0250-003
-Introduced: 4/2007

I have a standard USA Tele and bought this as a back up. The sound is very lively. The hollow body produces unusual jangle and chime. The tone is bright like a regular Tele but it has a woody jangle that sounds great with a compressor. I have an old 76 Silverface Champ and a newer Pro Junior and Hot Rod Deluxe. The warmth of the guitar with a nice tube amp is fantastic. This is the nicest sounding cheap guitar that I've played. I've played Tele's for just over 33 years and I'm loving the Thinline Squier.

The satin finish on the back of the neck is great. I'm giving this a 9 because of a couple minor details.

1. The allen wrench studs stick up very high into your right hand off the saddles on the bridge when the string height is properly adjusted. The studs poke you hand. They should be shorter.
2. The hollow cavity could be shielded better, you hear electric scratching at times if your right hand sweeps over certain parts of the pick guard. I may pay a luthier to copper shield the pickguard....the guitar is worth it.
3. There are slight michrophonics that you can hear from the pickups if you are close to a loud amp

I'm being really fussy about a $299 guitar here.

Great little guitar. Solid.

I assume great supprt on any Fender product. I had bad tube sockets on my Pro Junior at the one year mark. Fender paid to have a technician replace the sockets and they gave me new/better tubes....it cost me nothing. Great support.

From chicken pickin to rock and roll; this is a neat guitar. I'm 44. I've played a Tele since I was 10. I've always had at least one Tele since I was 10. This is a great guitar. The jazz and rock or fusion tones through a nice tube amp are great. I love the import Duncan design pickups. I paid $249 at the Milwaukee Guitar Center Presidents Day sale and I'm thrilled. The intonation is perfect. I love the tone and shorter scale....it's an easy Tele to play.

Made or rather Crafted in China
Usual tele features as regards pickups ect
Body Alder, Slightly lighter because of the hollowed out section Classic F hole feature
Neck Maple with Rosewood Board
Usual tele controls but mounted on the Scratch plate
Finished in Shoreline Gold

Got this because I have always fancied a Tele and liked the look of the thinline. Used mostly for playing around with at home but played through a Pod XT it gives a range of very satisfing sounds from Country Twang to Heavy Rock.

She came from the music shop set up with nines which were a bit tired, however intonation was spot on and the setup was very good nice action. I changed to my perfered D'Dario 10's and afer neck and intonatation adjustment she sounds great.

The one thing that has realy stood out is the overall finish, the paintwork, neck finish is all to a very high standard in fact I'd go so far as the say that you woudn't think twice if it had Fender as opposed to the Squier on the headstock.

Don't see any reason why it shoudn't be giged it's a very solid bit of kit a great tribute to the origional design and when I start playing gigs next year it will be there.

No idea about Squier customer support, but I deal with a great music shop and always get well looked after. That having been said I do all my own setups.

Been playing for 5 or so years and own a varity of Fender/Squier products all of which are execelent. If anyone nicked it I would buy another.

Overall the standard of workmanship in this guitar is above what you should expect for the price.

This is a Chinese Tele... with reasonably vintage specs, such as the 7.25" neck radius. Mine is the Shoreline Gold. Traditional thinline design. The hardware is good quality, but with a 6 piece bridge set up.
The overall standard is very high for an inexpensive guitar, with a nice
matt finish on the neck. Frets + neck are well finished.
Two S/C pickups.

Maple neck/rosewood board, ...and is a vague copy of a '69...dunno what the body wood is.

Sound is very good (actual tone of the wood) but the "Duncan Design" pickups are going to be experimented with! To be fair, the neck pickup sounds pretty good, but the bridge is less convincing. For the price of the guitar, the pickups ARE good, but I think the guitar has more going on tonally that will come out with better pickups.

It sounds like a good Tele with twang and sparkle, and quite a good sustain on the higher frets.

Not much to dislike, but better pickups will be investigated, no complaints at the price.

For the very cheap asking price, this guitar is very well put together, I would say at least on par with the average Mexican Tele.

The neck is lovely and fast. I like the smaller neck that this model features, and I am a stickler for the 7.25" radius. Other players might prefer a flatter board. It set up very quickly with no vices.
Even across the board. Great straight neck .. the quality control from the China manufacturing is of a high standard.


I bought mine second-hand with a few dents and scratches, so I paid less than the new price.Th frets are great, many new guitars have frets that need a few years playing before they get comfortable, these are lovely "out of the box."

This one should scrub up as well as any other Fender Tele.

no reason

Okay. I was in the local music shop tinkering with a few Tele's to pass the time. I played the Squier next to some of the more expensive models, including the USA Customs. Just on looks alone, the Shoreline Gold Tele had a certain charm...and I liked both the tone (unplugged) and the feel. The light weight makes it a strummer as well as a serious player.

I actually might have bought this model on the spot in preference to the more expensive ones hanging on the wall. Went home and bought a used one off Ebay. I wouldn't have bought any of the more expensive new models in the shop.

I have been playing for 45 years, and own far too many guitars to mention, including classic 50's models. I have a few Teles and Strats in the collection, and just for sheer ease of playing this model is great. I am going to experiment with pickups but really at the price, I would say this another Fender model that makes it very hard to justify spending big money on anything "better".

A friend owns a really early mahogany thinline and this one has a similar vibe..lightweight, and twangy, with a good depth of tone.

Would I replace it? Well, easy to get them now, but don't be surprised if they become a bit of a legend if they are discontinued, maybe like the Pro Tone Tele has become.

I would recommend this model to anyone from a pro player to a beginner, and for that Tele style of guitar, it may be the only one you ever need. Get one now!