If you hear someone say that Squier only makes guitars that are good for beginners, kindly draw their attention to this puppy right here – the Classic Vibe Thinline Telecaster.
As one of our picks for the best blues guitar under 500 dollars that you can find on the market today, this things boasts some serious components and quality performance. We took it our for a little test run, our thoughts await in the review below.
Body & Neck
This guitar essentially combines the power of the Tele with a semi-hollow body, combining the punchy thin rock vibe with the natural resonance of the hollow models.
The guitar is crafted from mahogany, and also utilizes a single piece maple neck, a pack of 21 medium jumbo frets, a bright maple fingerboard and a set of standard black dot inlays.
You'll of course instantly notice the charming F-hole, as well as the classic Tele headstock. Available in four colors, this guitar does not only look gorgeous, but features some top-quality components that secure the sound is bright, punchy, but still booming on all fronts.
Hardware
The instrument utilizes a thru-body bridge with a set of three chrome-barrel saddles. Also included in the mix are vintage style tuning pegs and a gorgeous pick-guard stretching across almost half of the frontal side. The only drawback of this beauty is that while it looks great, replacing that pick-guard in case of breakage can be an arduous and pricey task (by pick-guard standards, that is).
Apart from that, the guitar stays in tune just fine and the fret job is more than decent. Some sharp edges, bits of minor fret buzz, but that's about it.
Electronics
As expected, we are looking at a pair of standard Tele single-coil pickups packed with AlNiCo V magnets and routed to single Tone and Volume control knobs. For additional tonal control, the company threw in another standard – a three-way pickup selector.
This seems like a fairly basic mix, but combined with the previously listed features it does the job magically.
Sound
So, the mixture of bright Telecaster pickups, the rather booming nature of the mahogany tonewood and extra resonance that a semi-hollow body brings turned out to be a match made in heaven. In a natural way, this guitar takes that gorgeous punchy and clear sound of the Tele and gives it an extra mahogany punch and mellow vibe. When you add the semi-hollow organic resonance the final result is one of the best guitars for blues under 500 bucks, hands down.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNa7GAX3LsQ
Value/Conclusion
Objectively, this is a pretty good six-string, but when the value for money factor is taken into consideration it becomes an amazing guitar. This is not a beginner guitar, it's even more than an intermediate one – this is an item that jazz and blues professionals can use when combined with a proper amp. For the listed price within the given niche, it's a living proof that Squier can make pro-level items too. Good stuff!
For more info about the Squier Classic Vibe Thinline Telecaster, click here.
For more Blues electric guitars,
click here.