Playing guitar in E flat does more than just save your wrists
Not only does playing in E flat put less strain on your hands and wrists, but it also opens up a sonic palette that sounds very different from E standard.
E flat, also spelled as Eb, is when you tune lower by one-half step. Eb tuning is also known as D sharp (also spelled as D#) tuning.
If tuning Eb, the characters for each string is Eb-Ab-Db-Gb-Bb-Eb. If tuning D#, the characters are D#-G#-C#-F#-A#-D#. Are both these sets of characters the same notes? Yes. Which you use directly depends on what your digital guitar tuner displays.
The easiest way to tune to E flat is to use a digital tuner with a flat switch for stupidly easy and fast Eb tuning, which of course is the Korg GA-1. You'll see the "FLAT" button right on the front; it doesn't get any easier than that.
I may tune my Telecaster to Eb permanently
The strings in standard tuning felt too tight on my Tele, so I pitched it down to Eb. When I did that, the guitar felt much better, so I just left it that way.
Now that I've been playing in Eb, I actually quite like it. It's distinctively different compared to E standard.
The looser feel of the strings makes string bending much easier, and snapback (a finger pull on a string where you pull, let go and let the string purposely strike the frets) has greater attack.
Bass frequencies are heard more clearly, certain chords sound fuller and the guitar seems to stay in tune much better when a capo is attached.
Who uses Eb tuning?
The most famous Stratocaster player I know of that used Eb tuning pretty much always was Stevie Ray Vaughan. Fans of his tone who study it believe his tuning preference was a huge reason his guitar sounded the way it did.
Other players and bands who use Eb regularly are Jimi Hendrix, Guns N' Roses, B.B. King, Danzig, Disturbed, Extreme, Green Day, Journey, Slayer, The Smithereens and many others.
Does Eb tuning work on all guitars?
Your #1 enemy with Eb tuning is string flop. Flop means "to fall heavily due to lack of energy." When tuned a half-step down, string tension is lessened and your strings may literally flop around in an unwanted way.
The general rule of thumb is that the shorter the scale, the more you have to accommodate for string flop when tuned to Eb.
On 25.5" scale guitars (ex: Stratocasters and Telecasters), you can usually get away with Eb tuning without having to adjust anything.
On 24.75" scale guitars (ex: Les Pauls and SGs), a bump up in string gauge is usually necessary (such as increasing from 10-46 to 11-49 or a "bottom heavy" set such as 10-52) and possibly a small truss rod adjustment.
On 24" short scale guitars (ex: Jaguars and Mustangs), this is where you would have to put in the most effort to get rid of string flop. Short scale guitars already have string flop even in E standard tuning, so when tuned to Eb, a bump up in string gauge, reintonation, adjustment of string saddle heights and truss rod adjustment is pretty much mandatory.
On any guitar that uses a vibrato system, that absolutely has to be set up again for use with Eb tuning. Whether it's a Stratocaster "tremolo" system, Jazzmaster or Jaguar vibrato system or whatever you have, the tension set either by screw(s) and/or claw springs will have to be tightened slightly.
How will you know for sure if your guitar needs adjustment or not in Eb tuning?
Tune to Eb and check for buzzy frets, fretted out notes (i.e. when the string "squeaks" on a note bend), strings that go out-of-tune easily from your fret hand grip (thicker strings usually fixes that), and so on. Also check your vibrato system to make sure that's working the same as before.
Believe me, it will be very easy and obvious to recognize if your guitar needs adjustment while in Eb tuning.
If however you tune to Eb, play the guitar for a while and think to yourself, "this guitar pretty much plays and sounds the same in this tuning, just with slightly looser strings," then you probably don't need to adjust anything. But I'd still check the neck relief to be on the safe side.
Does Eb tuning affect songwriting?
Yes.
The entire tonal character of your guitar changes when tuned to Eb. It may be only a half-step lower than usual, but it makes a huge difference when coming up with guitar riffs.
Think of when you first tried drop D tuning. That only required the detuning of a single string from E to D, and it made a big difference of how things sounded on the low end.
Think of when you first tried a capo (and if you haven't used one yet, get one). Your guitar sounds like a completely different instrument when using one of them.
I consider Eb tuning the same as using a "capo in reverse," so to speak. In Eb, you will play things differently and riffs will sound different. It does affect how you write songs.
Eb tuning does save your wrists
There are many guitar players who detune to Eb simply for ergonomic reasons. Easier to hold chords in Eb? Yes. Easier to solo in Eb? Also a yes.
Lastly, if you've been bouncing around string gauges where one gauge set feels too thin, the other set too thick and you can never seem to find that happy medium, sometimes a thicker gauge set tuned to Eb is just the thing you need. But mind that scale length. If you own multiple guitars of varying scale lengths, Eb may work fine on your Strat but feel awful on your Les Paul. Fortunately, it's easy to try, so give it a go and see how it feels. You may like it.
Incoming Casio watches, MQ24 and W213
Two cheap Casio watches are inbound.
Neither of these have arrived yet, but I'll explain why I purchased each.
Casio MQ24-7B
I wanted the MQ24-7B because I sometimes like to wear a minimalist watch that only tells the time. I only spent 7 bucks on it. The price usually bounces around from $9 to $12, but I saw one for $7 and jumped on it because it's probably true I'll never see the price for one new that low ever again.
The Casio MQ24 is a minimalist runner that's simple, analog, cheap and super-legible. It's a 35mm timepiece that comes in many styles. The bigger 43mm version is the MW240.
Casio W213
The W213 (which cost me $16) is intended to be my new daily wearer.
Right now what I do every day is put on the G-SHOCK DW9052 (which does have a timer auto-repeat function) for my morning workout use, then switch to the AE1000 for the day, then switch back to the DW9052 again for my evening workout.
Basically, the W213 is the AE1000 without the "world time" stuff, which is fine. The face shows time, weekday, month and day, it has 5 alarms (one with snooze,) timer with auto-repeat, stopwatch and dual time. It should, hopefully, eliminate the need to switch watches just to get the specific functions I need.
Do either of these score style points?
Not really, as these are just cheap watches.
I suppose the MQ24 being a minimalist timepiece has a little bit of style to it, but not much. And as for the W213, that's obviously a tool watch i.e. a sports watch, so style isn't the concern for that one.
In my experience, you can't have tool + style at the same time with a watch. You have to go with one or the other. I already have a few fashion watches and don't need any more of those, so both of these were bought just for function. One for simplicity and the other for functionality.
The final word on Stratocaster vs. Telecaster
This is my take on the rather old argument of Stratocaster vs. Telecaster and which I personally think is the better guitar.
Back in my teens, I wouldn't think of even touching a Telecaster. I saw that guitar as something only country guys played, and at the time that was largely true. Music videos of the day on MTV almost never showed that guitar. In fact, one of the very few instances I can distinctly remember seeing a Telecaster just because it stuck out so much is one that Elliot Easton was playing in the video for the song Magic by The Cars. That is genuinely the only instance I can remember seeing a Telecaster on MTV. It stuck out, because seriously, how often do you see a hot pink Tele?
I'm telling you this so you know that it took me a very long time to come around to even thinking about trying a Telecaster guitar, much less actually buying one.
Now that I have a genuinely good Tele guitar I can finally talk about Strat vs. Tele and discuss the positives and negatives of each.
Output jack plate
Strat wins here.
Often overlooked but nonetheless a very cool thing is the top-mounted Stratocaster output jack plate. This is sometimes referred to as the "football" or "teardrop" plate. Much easier to get to compared to the side mount output jack of the Telecaster.
Volume knob
Tele wins here.
Arguably, the most annoying and most infuriating thing about a Strat is its volume knob position. It will get hit during play and the volume will get knocked down accidentally. This is the reason so many Strat owners purposely rewire the guitar so it is one-volume/one-tone for the two lower knobs and either take the top knob out completely or leave it there unwired as a dummy knob just for appearance.
The Tele volume knob position is exactly correct. You won't hit it. Maybe with super-aggressive play you'll hit the pickup selector blade, but not the knob.
Rear (bridge) pickup tone control
Tele wins here.
Traditional Stratocaster wiring has no tone control wired in when only the rear pickup is selected, and yes that is by design.
Telecaster wiring has always had tone control for the rear pickup.
Pickup selector blade
Strat wins here.
The 5-way Strat pickup selector is easier to use because it's smaller and angled towards the player. The 3-way Tele blade selector isn't angled at all and is 100% horizontal, proving to be slightly more difficult to get along with.
Playability ease from pickup configuration
Tele wins here.
With a Strat, it's very common that players will bash their picks into the middle and front (neck) pickups, which is why some Strat players will lower the top half of those two pickups almost flush to the pick guard just to get them the hell out of the way.
The Tele doesn't have a middle pickup, which for playability is a plus. And being the front pickup is a mini-single with a cover that has smoothed edges, even if you do whack that pickup from time to time, it's easier to recover since you're not hitting a sharp edge. And of course you can lower the top half of the pickup just like you would on a Strat.
String installation
Tele wins here.
The reason most Strat players leave the back cover removed is to make for easier string changes.
Even to this day, such as seen on the Fender American Professional Stratocaster, the rear cover somewhat blocks the 6 string hole.
Thousands of players over the years have tried to get along with installing strings through that plate, only to just remove the thing out of frustration and leave it off.
I've never quite understood why Fender doesn't just make the hole cutout slightly larger. Absolutely nobody would complain if they did that. Seriously, how difficult would it be to enlarge that plastic cutout by a few millimeters?
And if you think getting a more expensive Strat like the Elite Stratocaster gives you a better rear plate cutout, you'd be wrong. You get the same not-quite-big-enough cutout crapola whether it's a cheap Squier or top of the line Fender.
The Fender American Professional Telecaster, of course, has easy access to every string from the rear.
The majority of Telecasters made by Fender and Squier are thru-body where the strings are installed from the rear. My Squier Bullet Telecaster is a thru-body. However, the Affinity Tele is a top-loader, but that's really not an issue since the top-loader is by far the easiest of the easy where string changes are concerned.
Knob material
Tele wins here.
Tele knobs are metal and are easy to clean. Strat knobs are plastic, get stained easily and are never easy to clean.
Gig bag fit
Tele wins here.
How well a guitar fits in a gig bag is something a lot of guitarists don't take into consideration.
A Telecaster is one of the few guitars that I can say with absolute certainty will easily fit into any standard electric guitar gig bag.
Stratocasters do not fit all gig bags and I'll tell you exactly why. It's not the length of the guitar that's the problem. It's the top horn where the strap button is. On some gig bags, you will not be able to zip it up past that point. The Telecaster has a smoothed curve where the top strap button is while the Strat has a horn that sticks out.
Body contact
Strat wins here.
On the back of every Stratocaster guitar is a rear contour cut so the guitar feels more comfortable to play seated or standing. The Telecaster, traditionally, does not have a rear contour cut.
I say "traditionally" because some Teles do have the contour cut. The American Elite Telecaster does have the rear contour. The more affordable Fender Modern Player Telecaster Plus and Squier Deluxe Telecaster models also have the contour.
Many Tele players consider the contour cut heresy on the Telecaster guitar, saying that it makes it too Strat-like. I have to admit that yes, I consider Teles with the contour cut to feel weird just because I totally expect that plank-of-wood body style. So even though the Strat is the more comfortable body shape, I do agree with Tele purists that a rear contour cut breaks too far away from what a Telecaster is supposed to be.
Usable tone
Tele wins here.
The Telecaster has tone control when the rear pickup alone is selected. As said above, traditional Stratocaster wiring does not have this. Not having tone control on the rear-alone setting makes the Strat unusable for a lot of players.
Staying in tune
Tele wins here.
The Tele doesn't win by much here, but the fact it has no vibrato system is what makes it keep its tune better. Yes, you can "deck" or "block" a Strat vibrato system (which Fender calls a tremolo system), but unless you specifically know to do that, the guitar will lose its tuning fairly easily.
Least weird noises
Tele wins here.
A thing that happens on Strats is jokingly called "Stratocaster reverb". It's the unwanted noise heard when the rear springs ring on the back of the guitar. Telecasters don't do this because there are no rear springs to ring.
Cool factor
Strat wins here.
For most guitar players, one or more of their guitar heroes played a Strat so the star power of the instrument can't be denied. It is that star power that give a Strat its cool factor more than anything else.
At the time I write this, Fender has 15 different Artist series Strats with the Eric Clapton Stratocaster being the most recognized. The Telecaster only has 6, with the James Burton model arguably being the most popular.
Which is the better of the two guitars?
Telecaster.
The Stratocaster isn't a bad guitar by any means, but the modifications most players make to it is to specifically make it operate like a Telecaster more often than not.
What makes a Telecaster great is its simplicity. Two knobs and one switch is all you have to work with.
I've also owned a few Stratocaster guitars and still do, but the Telecaster is simply the better player's guitar. There's no worries about knocking the volume knob. Maintenance of a Telecaster is stupidly easy. And there's no need to rewire anything to get the control you want over the sound. Set it up, plug in and go. It pretty much doesn't get any better than that.
Yeah, I own Jazzmaster guitars which are very complicated, quirky instruments. But it is oh-so nice to put the Jazzmaster down and pick up a Telecaster sometimes. Telecasters don't get "moody". They just work.
Bullet Telecaster might be the best Tele for the money
Take the Squier Bullet Telecaster. You'd be hard pressed to find more value for the money where a Telecaster is concerned.
Before I get deeper into that, an update on the Squier Bullet Telecaster I own. I found that the neck had a high fret on it, so I took it in to a local Fender authorized service center (which in my area is a Sam Ash store) and dropped off the guitar. The next day I got a phone call saying yes, there was a high fret, it was repaired and that I could come pick it up, which I did. No charge. I was only without the guitar for a day, so it was no big deal.
The guitar is okay now and everything works as it should. I've not found anything else wrong with it.
So how does the Bullet Tele compare to more expensive models?
Let's talk about that.
Things the Bullet Telecaster has that are important to Tele players
Players of the Telecaster guitar look for certain construction features that deem some Teles "good" and others "bad".
There is only one thing Tele players would consider "bad" about the Bullet. The guitar has a rosewood fingerboard. Telecaster purists believe that a "true" Tele must have a one-piece maple neck. These same purists also consider any Telecaster model that uses any other species of wood for the neck or fingerboard to be heresy even if it's a Fender USA model. This means a Tele purist would consider the LPB American Special with rosewood board to not be a true Telecaster. I wish I was kidding.
Aside from that, the Bullet Tele ticks all the right boxes that Telecaster players look for.
- Thru-body string mount, as opposed to top-load.
- 21 frets, as opposed to 22.
- Round recessed "cup" output jack, as opposed to a squared-off flush mount jack.
- 3-ply pick guard, as opposed to single ply.
- Single string tree, as opposed to two.
- "Barrel" switch tip, as opposed to "top hat".
Imagine a Fender Standard Telecaster with a basswood body and a maple neck with a rosewood fingerboard instead of the 1-piece maple neck. That's the Squier Bullet Telecaster. Same thru-body string mount, same 21 frets, same cup output jack, same 3-ply guard, same single string guide, same barrel switch tip.
I would argue there are only three reasons to buy the Fender Standard Telecaster over the Bullet. Fender logo on the headstock, one-piece maple neck and slightly smoother operating tuning machines. You pay $450 more over the Bullet Tele just to get that stuff.
Comparing the Bullet Telecaster to other Tele models
When I went to Sam Ash to drop off my Bullet for repair, I decided to try out a few other Telecasters just to see how they compared to my $150 model.
Guitar #1: Squier Vintage Modified Telecaster Deluxe
It really isn't a fair comparison to compare a "normal" Telecaster to this one since the Deluxe is so different. But I'll talk about it anyway.
Neck felt great but the pickups were set really low to the guard from the factory for some odd reason. The guitar sounded good but nowhere near as bright as single-coil pickups do. Then again, the fact the pickups were set so low was a factor here. They probably would have sounded better at a proper height.
Guitar #2: Fender Classic Series '69 Telecaster Thinline
This is a great Tele for those concerned about guitar weight since this is a semi-hollow. However, I was unimpressed with the tone.
The '69 is a good model but it's got that oddball U-shape neck with the very round 7.25" fingerboard radius, meaning it will fret out easily with bent notes. I would argue that the Squier version of this guitar is superior simply for the fact it has a modernized C-shape neck with 9.5" fingerboard radius and medium jumbo frets. Same light weight, better neck.
Guitar #3: Fender American Vintage '52 Telecaster
This was, as crazy as this sounds, the worst of the Telecasters I tried out. I was expecting it to be a dreamy, perfect-playing Tele. It was anything but that. The action was set high and the feel of the nitro finish on the neck was terrible. This also has a U-shape neck along with the 7.25" radius fingerboard and period correct tiny frets.
Hanging on the wall, the guitar looked perfect. Butterscotch blonde looks best with a nitro finish over it. But that was the only good thing about the guitar.
Guitar #4: Fender Standard Telecaster
I noticed almost immediately that this guitar had a bad neck pickup, strongly indicating the guitar had been dropped on its butt at one point. I did tell one of the sales guys about it. Other than that, this was the best feeling, best playing Telecaster I tried out.
Bullet delivers
There's no question the Bullet Telecaster delivers. It's got everything that makes a Telecaster a Telecaster.
However, my Bullet is a special run model that may not be available where you are, and if you're looking to buy a Telecaster, this is what I recommend if staying within Fender brands:
Squier Standard Telecaster. This costs $50 more than the Affinity model but it's worth it because it has everything my Bullet does plus the addition of an alnico magnet pickup in the neck position.
Squier Classic Vibe Telecaster Thinline. The specific reason I recommend this one over the Classic Vibe Telecaster is weight. The regular CV for some reason is a physically heavy guitar while the CV Thinline is not because it has semi-hollow construction.
Fender Standard Telecaster. Even though the one I tried out had a bad neck pickup, I'm certain it was because some idiot dropped the guitar while trying it out in the store. Otherwise it is a genuinely good Telecaster, with its best feature being the neck.
What about more expensive models?
There are only two higher priced models I'd consider good purchases.
Fender Classic Player Baja Telecaster. This is a model that was originally only available from the Fender Custom Shop that worked its way into regular production as a Mexico build. It actually has a 4-way pickup switch instead of 3-way that allows for the addition of both pickups in series or parallel, and also has S-1 switching as well. It's a hot-rodded Tele that gives you genuinely good bang for the buck.
Fender American Special Telecaster. This is the only USA model worth buying at the moment. Instead of the fancy electronics of the Baja you get standard electronics, Texas Special pickups, vintage style bridge with saddles, and it's a good all-around "workhorse" guitar. Everything you need and nothing you don't. If you absolutely gotta have an American Telecaster, this is the best of the lot.
Yes, a Tele can surf
Lastly, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that yes, I can wrangle a good surf tone out of a Telecaster. It took some tweaking but I made it work.
This is good since I like to play surf guitar.
An argument for the Les Paul over the Stratocaster
I don't speak about the positives of the Les Paul guitar, so I figured it was time to do it.
When I say "Les Paul", this can mean something like the Gibson Les Paul Standard Faded T, or the Epiphone Custom PRO, the cheap Epiphone Les Paul 100, or the original, the Gibson USA Les Paul Standard. I'm referring to any Les Paul guitar that follows the traditional Gibson design.
I am not a fan of Les Paul guitars for a variety of reasons, but there are three things that make it a guitar worth owning. And those three things are a 24.75" scale length, a D shape neck and a 12" fretboard radius.
The #1 thing that makes a guitar good or not is its neck. If the neck is crap, the guitar is crap. And where comfort and feel are concerned, there are many guitar players who stick with Gibson specifically because of how the neck plays.
A Fender Stratocaster 25.5" scale is generally better where tuning stability is concerned, but the tradeoff to that is that the length can make the strings feel too tight in standard tuning (if you ever wanted to know why there are so many Strat players that tune to E flat, there's your reason.) But even if you tune down, there's still the fret spacing to deal with. Many players consider the frets are spaced too widely apart on the Strat, whereas on the Les Paul you have closer spacing. It's only by a little, but it counts.
The Gibson D shape to many feels better than Fender's C, and I'm referring to one-shape necks here, meaning not a neck that was carved to change shape as you go up the fretboard. Whether the neck is thick or thin, the more pronounced shoulders of D is something many find to fit the fret hand palm better.
A modern Fender Strat has a 9.5" fretboard radius while the Gibson has 12". And like the shape I just spoke of above, I'm referring to single radius necks and not compound radius. If you like to bend strings as many guitarists do, a flatter fingerboard is what you want. But there's also another advantage with the Gibson. The shorter scale length also makes string bending easier, so the combination of shorter scale + flatter fingerboard is a good one.
Does anyone build a Strat with a Gibson style neck?
Fender actually does build a Strat with the D shape neck, the American Vintage '59 Stratocaster. Not cheap, but they do make it. However, the scale is still 25.5" and the fingerboard radius is the vintage spec 7.25" which is as round as it gets and not flat at all.
Fender also builds the Eric Johnson Stratocaster which features a 12" fingerboard radius. But again, the scale is still 25.5".
I personally do not know of any guitar maker that make a Strat style guitar that specifically has a 24.75" scale length, a D shape neck and has a 12" fingerboard radius. In fact, the only way I know to get that kind of neck on a full size Strat body is to have Warmoth make one for you with their "conversion" neck. And that's only if you think it's worth it.
So in other words, no, nobody builds a Strat with a Gibson style neck.
The Epiphone Wilshire Phant-O-Matic is pretty much the closest you can get to a Strat-style body with Gibson style electronics and neck.
You get the double-cutaway shape like a Strat but everything else on this Wilshire is Gibson style electronics, which on this one includes a cool 6-position Vari-Tone switch.
Where Strat-like body shape + Gibson electronics and neck is concerned, the Wilshire is the guitar you want. Otherwise, just get yourself a regular Les Paul guitar to get that Gibson 24.75" scale neck with D shape and 12" fingerboard radius.