Do Thinline Tele® bodies sound as good as solid or chambered?

[mattbrown]

Honestly the most impressive/useful part of this for me was to see how the body weights change from thinline to chambered to solid. It was honestly a bigger difference than I expected.

[stephenleung]

I am a rhythm guitarist playing in a band for pop and rock music, the Thinline is my choice, I have 4of them with varies pickups. My main reason to choose it is the weight, 6lbs 4 oz is hard to beat for this 73 years old man.

[jackp]

Appreciate all the effort you put into this!

[crimson]

A test 1: 3:37
B test 1: 4:00
C test 1: 4:23

A test 2: 4:50
B test 2: 5:22
C test 2: 5:54

A test 3: 6:29
B test 3: 6:46
C test 3: 7:03

A test 4: 7:24
B test 4: 7:40
C test 4: 7:59

[GabrielSayeghJr]

I know I'm a bit late watching this one, but I recognize just how much effort this takes (times three...), and it means the world to have you answering questions like this because it's exactly what I ponder when considering buying custom parts from you guys. Thank you for this!!

[AvnerRosenstein-ULTRA-LXV]

I honestly thought A was the Solid. Couldn't believe it wasn't lol. I thought A actually sounded the best over the other two. That volume drop with B over A/C was very noticeable. Great video and comparison.

[narvul]

I think the Tele is by far the most versatile electric guitar regardless of the wood used. You just keep doing what you're doing Aaron!

[Sperzel]

I think your point at around 10:00 about acoustic tone vs amplified tone is spot on. Unless you’re playing with closed headphones or at really loud levels the acoustic sound will influence what you hear.

[chrishyde]

If the sound is close, and the guitar is a noticeable lighter weight, then that's the guitar for me. Sound can be shaped with pedals, but you can't easily make a guitar more comfortable.

[geoboggs]

I was just talking to a friend about T bodies. Mine (solid) is sooo heavy. Now thinking the thinline is the way to go. Thanks for all yoir effort.

[russellzauner]

Dang. That's hard core. I love so much that you included the shot of them all sketched out on the same slab.
We appreciate some good wood and woodcraft here in Orygone lol

[evankolpack]

The solidbody sounded more defined, tight, thumpy bass, clear ringing notes and string definition. The thinline sounded warmer, flatter, more "jazzy", less tight. I thought I was going to prefer the thinline, but ended up being the exact opposite on every test. THANK YOU for taking the time to make this. I came out to your shop in Puyallup about 30 years ago and bought a B-stock neck for a strat I built when I was 14 years old. That thing is still my #1 guitar....never finished the neck (despite your warnings) and it's been rock solid! Pau ferro on maple. You guys rock!

[BrianBrazilHarmonica]

The Thin Line model sounded the best in all positions. There wasn't much of a difference between the other 2. As you said most of any difference can be changed by turning the controls on the guitar, the amp or effect pedal. What's the most important to me is the profile of the neck, the radius of the fretboard, the comfort contours of the body, the balance of the guitar and the weight. I have one of your 1972 Thin Line models with 2 Humbuckers that weighs a little under 5 pounds when it was completed. It was given to me buy a very good friend. I won't ever let it go.

[jameswalker]

The fact that they don't sound noticably different will never stop endless debates among those who think they can tell a

[copperaudio]

Aaron - thank you! Almost nobody else does these kinds of comparisons and explanations. Really helpful and interesting stuff.

[Dorachagi]

I think the difference is noticeable when clean, but throw in some pedals and it's almost imperceptible. All sound good, but in every one of your videos comparing different bodies, after listening through fully blind it always turns out that my favorite was the chambered. This was very educational, thank you!

[sunn_bass]

Nice comparison. I couldn't tell any significant tonal difference between the 3 except a very slight difference in the clean middle position for the thinline. Might be more of a slight difference in playing than the body.
I notice that when I play, how the body feels, the weight and shape all tend to affect how I play the guitar. This for me has more impact on my sound than the wood, at least for me.
Great video as always.

[HBSuccess]

I got it. I'd say the solid was very noticable in the low-mids (more thump as you said) also shocked at how much volume was lost w the f-hole. Great demo and shootout - good job!

[JosephGallagher]

OMG, I thought the chambered was the solid 😮 On the cleans the Thinline really drops all bass, but it makes no difference once the dirt comes on. Amazing comparison, Aaron ❤

[Spaceman-jomz]

Agree with your observations 💯
And to my ears the C had a minuscule bit more snap than A & B