Squiers vs Fenders: my observations

peskypesky · 08-25-2010, 02:44 PM

ok, as many of you know, i'm a Squier nut. i think they make fantastic guitars for the price. but i'm constantly reading people's comments that Fenders are so superior to Squiers.

so i decided to head over to a guitar boutique and play a bunch of MIM, MIA and Custom Shop strats to see if i noticed this big difference in "feel".

and that's what i did yesterday. i tried out a bunch of different strats. and you know what? i think i play just as well on my Squiers as I do on the Fenders. i did not notice ANY improvement in my playing when i played the MIMs, MIAs or CS's.

i did notice the fat neck on a couple of the CS's. one was a closet classic, the other a heavy relic. the closet classic was both fat and sticky, so i didn't care for it. the heavy relic was much smoother because of the worn-down finish. i preferred the relic.

but with the MIMs and MIAs, i'm happy to say that i honestly did not think they played any better than my Bullets and my CV50s and my other Squiers.

i did not play faster. i did not play more smoothly. i did not play better licks.

i'm at the point in my life where i have the cash to buy myself an expensive Strat, IF its actually going to make a difference in my playing. seeing as Fenders do pretty good at holding their value, i have no financial reason to stop me from buying a MIM, MIA or signature strat.

but the fact is, IMO, a well-set-up Squier will get the job done, at a fraction of the cost.

nomadh · 08-25-2010, 03:48 PM

Yup. a lot of the time its pass /fail. They may be "different" but mostly they either play well or not. The ratio of good to bad guitars is nearly the same it seems now between fender and squier. And a good squier it just as fun to play as a geed fender. But for the same price I can have 4 good squiers.

jimbojo · 08-25-2010, 04:32 PM

Hey Pesky from what I hear you can make any guitar sound good

....But, I agree, I recently bought and imediately sold an MIM Tele, 'cuz it was not better than my Indo Standard Tele. The only real difference was the electronics and I am not talking pups, just the swich and pots. That was a $20 upgrade. Now, I do have my eye on a used '52 RI, which is just beautifull and also very light, but if I do go for it it is not because I think it plays any better. I figure, like Rick Nielsen once said, "I can make pretty much any guitar sound crappy", so why spend the extra to make a more expensive guitar sound bad? Hey, the way I see it I can blame my sound on the guitar and most people will buy it, so win win for me. buwhahhahahaha!!!!

edandis · 08-25-2010, 09:25 PM

From what I hear from the salesman who sold me my Squier Std. is that a lot of musicians are starting to buy and gig with the Squiers, that is, after modding them to their liking.This has been done because of the damage their guitars take on the road and not to mention equipment theft. This makes sense, now they can save their precious relic'd Fenders at home and beat the Squiers to death.

After all, what self respecting guitarist wants a guitar with Squier on the headstock. I also wonder if the same is happening with the Gibson/Epiphone camp?

Sparkfire · 08-26-2010, 01:57 AM

I love my Squier so much I can't think of a reason to want to trade it for a more expensive guitar. I played the more expensive ones too but my Squier is good as the best of all I tried.It is better than most.

Strat-Daddy · 08-26-2010, 04:39 AM

It pains me to say it in a way, but both of my Squier Strats, a cherryburst Standard and a Bullet, play better than my standard Fender Stratocaster.
Sound wise though, it does beat the Squiers out, because it has some wicked mojo.

GukkanGwnarkill · 08-26-2010, 05:50 AM

I agree with yall, I got the cheap BSB Affinity Tele last year and was AMAZED. I barely had to set it up @ all. I dunno about the Gibson/Epiphone camp, but I've been wanting to try out a Epi Les Paul or DOT. Being as I live in the middle of nowhere Mississippi that isn't happening any time soon. From what I've read they are pretty good guitars, do any of you guys have any experience with them?

softwarejanitor · 08-26-2010, 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GukkanGwnarkill

I agree with yall, I got the cheap BSB Affinity Tele last year and was AMAZED. I barely had to set it up @ all. I dunno about the Gibson/Epiphone camp, but I've been wanting to try out a Epi Les Paul or DOT. Being as I live in the middle of nowhere Mississippi that isn't happening any time soon. From what I've read they are pretty good guitars, do any of you guys have any experience with them?

I have an Epiphone Les Paul Studio. Its a decent guitar that plays well and sounds good. Definitely a good value for the $$$, as it was around $350 brand new. The only disappointment I have with it is that it is not nearly as nice as my Epiphone SG-400. The SG plays faster, has better tone and wicked easy access to the frets all the way to the 22nd.

nomadh · 08-26-2010, 01:44 PM

My bsb tele is also amazing. The cheapness is mostly in the pots i think also. The thing sounds great but when you turn down more than 20% the pots do turn the tone ugly. Like you said A $20 fix. Also recently I have the neck pickup going into feedback. Thats probably the looser QC thats expected. I already had a pick up to put in it but the stocks sounded so good till now I never bothered putting it in. But remember this is an affinity. Standards may not even need pots.

GukkanGwnarkill · 08-26-2010, 01:53 PM

I haven't had any trouble out of my neck pickup or bridge(bridge is aftermarket). I've had zero problems from it and it's the guitar I play the most by far.