Tell me the difference between a Tele and a Les Paul

StuffnJunk
StuffnJunk Posts: 897
edited September 2005 in Musicians and Gearheads
Well my trusty Strat may be on its last legs (no thanks to the nasty toss i gave it 2 years ago i guess)

anyhow i 've been looking around and there are 2 guitars that caught my eye: an American Standard Tele ($1,000) and a Gibson Les Paul ($1,700)

What is the main difference in sound between them? What is the difference between a tele and a strat? I know that most soloists use strats (clapton, hendrix, vaughn, mcready) and the tele is "twangy" and les pauls are "chunky", but can someone elaborate please?
"I'll tell you what: If all I had was Pearl Jam, and I didn't have another band in the world, I would not be worried. Because in there is the essence of making great music. You don't have to use it all at once, but it's there." - Neil Young
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Comments

  • MissYouAllDay
    MissYouAllDay Posts: 939
    Les Paul is higher out put pickups. Because of this it is louder. Les Paul is a heavier guitar I believe.

    Les Paul is "thicker" sounding. This is hard to describe cause we always describe it in terms that don't mean anything to someone that hasn't heard. The Tele is "thinner sounding"

    Tele will sound similar to your strat in many ways.

    tele has a bolt on neck (like ur strat) so it does not have the same sustain as a les Paul. Les Pauls have a set neck.
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  • drumsinstereo
    drumsinstereo Posts: 1
    Dude get the Les Paul, but then buy a Tele & f'n slide later... but what do I know... I'm just a drummer.

    drumsinstereo

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  • Dirty_Frank
    Dirty_Frank Posts: 957
    StuffnJunk wrote:
    Well my trusty Strat may be on its last legs (no thanks to the nasty toss i gave it 2 years ago i guess)

    anyhow i 've been looking around and there are 2 guitars that caught my eye: an American Standard Tele ($1,000) and a Gibson Les Paul ($1,700)

    What is the main difference in sound between them? What is the difference between a tele and a strat? I know that most soloists use strats (clapton, hendrix, vaughn, mcready) and the tele is "twangy" and les pauls are "chunky", but can someone elaborate please?

    Just about everything is different between the two. Lots of famous lead players use a Les Paul too. I'd say just about as many as a strat (think Page, Townsend, Slash, Zakk Wylde).

    I'd elaborate more, but I say just go to a store and try out a tele and a les paul and see for yourself :)
  • Oh, Jimmy
    Oh, Jimmy Posts: 957
    I would say Les Paul. But if you arent into the right kind of music it could be too thick soundin. Tele's have slightly thinner strat sound in my experience. Almost opposites when it comes to natural sound.
  • Pearl Jam and toast
    Pearl Jam and toast Posts: 4,475
    MissYouAllDay wrote:
    Les Paul is higher out put pickups. Because of this it is louder. Les Paul is a heavier guitar I believe.

    Les Paul is "thicker" sounding. This is hard to describe cause we always describe it in terms that don't mean anything to someone that hasn't heard. The Tele is "thinner sounding"

    Tele will sound similar to your strat in many ways.

    tele has a bolt on neck (like ur strat) so it does not have the same sustain as a les Paul. Les Pauls have a set neck.
    les paul is definetly heavier.

    tele's are twangy.. compared to les paul with is full, warm, and mellow.

    generally i'd say les paul is better for lead, and tele's tend to sound clearer playing rhythm... or has been my experience.
    Come on pilgrim you know he loves you..

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  • StuffnJunk
    StuffnJunk Posts: 897
    well neil young is a famous les paul user, and i like to play electric his style (as does pearl jam)...........also PJ are my favorite band and stone is all about the les paul (although he uses strats and teles alot now) so les pauls do fit the kind of music i wanna play
    "I'll tell you what: If all I had was Pearl Jam, and I didn't have another band in the world, I would not be worried. Because in there is the essence of making great music. You don't have to use it all at once, but it's there." - Neil Young
  • BlindMelonade
    BlindMelonade Posts: 327
    Please don't tell me that you're going to buy a guitar online without even playing a guitar of the same style...

    That would be bad.
    When this just feels like spinning plates.
  • StuffnJunk
    StuffnJunk Posts: 897
    BlindMelonade wrote:
    Please don't tell me that you're going to buy a guitar online without even playing a guitar of the same style...

    That would be bad.
    no, i have seen them in person at stores, i just didn't get around to actually playing them......
    "I'll tell you what: If all I had was Pearl Jam, and I didn't have another band in the world, I would not be worried. Because in there is the essence of making great music. You don't have to use it all at once, but it's there." - Neil Young
  • Pearl Jam and toast
    Pearl Jam and toast Posts: 4,475
    BlindMelonade wrote:
    Please don't tell me that you're going to buy a guitar online without even playing a guitar of the same style...

    That would be bad.
    i'm with him.

    try it out first.

    then pick the individual guitar.
    Come on pilgrim you know he loves you..

    http://www.wishlistfoundation.org

    Oh my, they dropped the leash.



    Morgan Freeman/Clint Eastwood 08' for President!

    "Make our day"
  • Blanche
    Blanche Posts: 247
    You play the guitar and have to ask what is the difference between a Telecaster and a Les Paul??
    Sorry for sounding harsh, but that is a terribly surprising question.
  • StuffnJunk
    StuffnJunk Posts: 897
    Blanche wrote:
    You play the guitar and have to ask what is the difference between a Telecaster and a Les Paul??
    Sorry for sounding harsh, but that is a terribly surprising question.
    i've been playing guitar for 10 years, and that guitar has been a strat.....i'm not too familiar with guitars i've never played
    "I'll tell you what: If all I had was Pearl Jam, and I didn't have another band in the world, I would not be worried. Because in there is the essence of making great music. You don't have to use it all at once, but it's there." - Neil Young
  • Blanche
    Blanche Posts: 247
    StuffnJunk wrote:
    i've been playing guitar for 10 years, and that guitar has been a strat.....i'm not too familiar with guitars i've never played
    I don't play the guitar at all, but I listen a lot...
  • ThreeSadSemesters
    ThreeSadSemesters Posts: 60
    If youve been playing ten years and dont know the difference between a tele and a les paul, you really dont need either...seriously...a thousand dollar guitar clearly shouldnt be your top priority if you dont have enough interest in the subject to learn the fundamentals over the course of a decade
    "Many of Pearl Jam's most loyal fans are teenagers who do not have the money to pay the $50 or more that is often charged today for tickets to a popular concert...we have made a conscious decision that we do not want to put the price of our concerts out of the reach of many of our fans." 6/94
  • Oh, Jimmy
    Oh, Jimmy Posts: 957
    ThreeSadSemesters wrote:
    If youve been playing ten years and dont know the difference between a tele and a les paul, you really dont need either...seriously...a thousand dollar guitar clearly shouldnt be your top priority if you dont have enough interest in the subject to learn the fundamentals over the course of a decade

    I agree. How is it possible to never run into someone with a les paul style guitar or tele style guitar. The music store close to me that sells shit has copies strats, pauls and teles mostly. They don't have as good of a sound but the basic sound is still there. As a person who has only played guitar for a few years I find it quite incomprehensible that you dont know the basic sound of 2 of the most iconic guitars ever.
  • StuffnJunk
    StuffnJunk Posts: 897
    if you read the first post in the thread, i know the basic difference between them, i was looking for details.....most of my guitar playing friends that i've been in bands with have played acoustics or have had shitty electrics, i've never gotten a taste of expensive guitars beyond my strat.......now that i have some income going i can spend a grand on a guitar for the first time in my life without it killing me........i like that a guy who doesn't even play guitar thinks i'm a fool........talk about an armchair quarterback
    "I'll tell you what: If all I had was Pearl Jam, and I didn't have another band in the world, I would not be worried. Because in there is the essence of making great music. You don't have to use it all at once, but it's there." - Neil Young
  • brain of c
    brain of c Posts: 5,213
    one's a fender and the other is a gibson.


    you're welcome.
    d'oh!!!!!!

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  • Squidge
    Squidge Posts: 145
    Mate, i have been playing for three years...i haven't fully understood the difference between them either..........i guess it is hard to explain in words.

    Go and try them out dude, you'll find the one you prefer in a matter of minutes. Especially if you been playing for so long. I think that Blanche should go learn how many strings are on a guitar before casting judgements. :D

    peace
  • Shwn
    Shwn Posts: 37
    In general Les Pauls have a lot more balls than teles do. If you're into metal/hardcore/hard rock go for the Les Paul, if you like Country/rock/pop go for the tele. If you ever want to detune below dropped D, the tele is not for you.
    "One day we will all be in the soil with no gods to slave to, and no heroes to kill for"
    -Between the Buried and Me
  • DirtLikeMe
    DirtLikeMe Posts: 91
    Some of the main differences are:

    (1) Wood: Not the kind you get from playing your favorite guitar, but the wood that they actually use to construct the guitar. Les Pauls are, for the most part, made of mahogany, which is very heavy and transmits a deeper tone to the pickups of your guitar. The Tele is usually going to be made of a wood that is a lot lighter, like Ash or Alder body, which results in a brighter sound. It should be noted that Les Pauls have a mahogany body and then usually have a wood cap over the body that is made of maple which gives the Les Paul a little bit of the bright sound to go along with deeper mahogany tones. At any rate, it might be a good idea for you to find out about the different types of wood that are used in guitar construction and their different acoustical properties. The wood is a HUGE part in the tone.

    (2) Neck: like one guy already said, the Tele has a bolt-on neck and the Les Paul has a set-in neck. What this means, is that the Les Paul has more sustain than a Tele. In other words, when you play a note on Les Paul it will diminish at a slower rate then that same note being played on a Tele. For a guitar to be able to maintain sustain, it has to minimize places were the energy (vibration) can be lost. A bolt on neck tends to lose the energy (for obvious reasons) much faster than a set-in neck. It's like the difference b/w a strap on and the real thing.

    (3) Pickups: However, I am no expert on pickups, but I do know, just like another guy said, that the pickups run a lot hotter. They are louder and usually can't get quite as clean a sound as single coil pickups, which are the pickups usually on a Tele.

    Hope this helps.
    And if hope could grow from dirt like me, it can be done
  • ThreeSadSemesters
    ThreeSadSemesters Posts: 60
    StuffnJunk wrote:
    if you read the first post in the thread, i know the basic difference between them
    I read that post. It explained that you've (I assume recently) read brief descriptions on a website.
    StuffnJunk wrote:
    most of my guitar playing friends that i've been in bands with have played acoustics or have had shitty electrics, i've never gotten a taste of expensive guitars beyond my strat.......
    Regardless. When I was 12 years old, I hadnt played even so much as a les paul copy...but I could tell you the difference

    StuffnJunk wrote:
    now that i have some income going i can spend a grand on a guitar for the first time in my life without it killing me........
    get the les paul then...theyre heavier and more expensive. Youll never know the difference anyway, so just buy the one thats twice as expensive.
    StuffnJunk wrote:
    i like that a guy who doesn't even play guitar thinks i'm a fool........
    me too. thats my favorite part. and it should be the most telling and embarrassing for you.
    "Many of Pearl Jam's most loyal fans are teenagers who do not have the money to pay the $50 or more that is often charged today for tickets to a popular concert...we have made a conscious decision that we do not want to put the price of our concerts out of the reach of many of our fans." 6/94

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