Fender Special Edition Spalted Maple HH Telecaster Guitar Review

From personal experience, I can tell you there is a nearly endless array of guitars to choose from, especially within the Fender brand. They go all the way from the low end Squiers to remakes of legends' actual guitars priced in the several thousands of dollars. Along the way up this line, there is literally a niche for everyone. One unique point in the line is the Special Edition Spalted Maple HH Telecaster. Let's take a closer look to see what makes this guitar "Special Edition".

Features: At first glance, it's obvious that this is not your ordinary Telecaster. The Spalted Maple HH Tele has a mahogany body with a bound maple top. This is just about the only genuine Fender brand Telecaster you'll see with this material combination. There is one finish available, and it's a natural grain polish with no pickguard. If you were to chainsaw a tree and then wax and polish the stump, it would look a little bit like it. (Okay, that's an exaggeration.) The neck, again unlike most other Fenders, is set into the body of the Spalted Maple HH Telecaster. It is made of mahogany wood, and has a rosewood fretboard with twenty two jumbo frets and pearloid dot inlays. The dark fretboard, in my opinion, looks great with the natural finish despite the fact that the headstock is the usual maple. The hardware of the Spalted Maple HH Tele is all chrome. This includes the tuning heads, bridge, and control knobs. I'm a big fan of the chrome control knobs as opposed to the plastic ones on other Fenders. Electronically, this Telecaster has two Seymour Duncan humbuckers. That's right, they're humbuckers.

Playability: The Spalted Maple HH Telecaster has all of the essential features that have made Tele's legendary in performance over the decades. Out of the factory, users generally agree the setup, including string height and intonation, is near perfect. The deep cutaway and thin neck mean high fret access and complicated runs can be accomplished with this guitar. For many who pick it up for the first time, it will play like a dream.

Sound: As you could guess from the downright out of place pickup configuration, the Spalted Maple HH Telecaster sounds very different from most other Tele's. It has a much deeper, throatier tone. So, if you are going to be playing country or slide guitar, this one may have to be skipped over.

Overall: The Spalted Maple HH Telecaster, all in all, is a very unique combination. For those who are big on the playability of standard Telecasters but don't much like their tone, this guitar is an absolutely perfect solution. In the right niche of music, it easily stands out. You can find the Spalted Maple HH Telecaster in music stores for about $800.