Show Full Spec Comparison
| LTD TL-6 | Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel | |
|---|---|---|
| General | ||
| Brand: | ESP LTD | Fender |
| Year: | 2024 | 2020 |
| Strings: | 6 | 6 |
| Made in: | Indonesia | China |
| Series: | Thinline | Fender Alternative |
| Colors: | Burst | Black |
| Left-Handed Version: | Yes | No |
| Body | ||
| Type: | Semi-Hollow | Hollowbody |
| Body Material: | Mahogany | Laminated Agathis |
| Sides Material: | Mahogany | Sapele |
| Back Material: | Mahogany | Sapele |
| Bridge: | Jatoba w/ Graphtech XB | Walnut |
| Neck | ||
| Neck Joint: | Set | Set |
| Tuners: | Grover | Die-Cast |
| Fretboard: | Rosewood | Walnut |
| Neck Material: | 3Pc Mahogany | Nato |
| Decoration: | Dots | White Dot |
| Scale Size: | 25" | 23.3" |
| Shape: | Acoustic Thin U | Acoustic C Shape |
| Frets: | 22 Jumbo Nickel Silver | 18 Vintage Nickel Silver |
| Fretboard Radius: | 13.78" | 11.81" |
| Nut: | Ivory Tusq | Synthetic Bone |
| Nut Width: | 43mm (1.693'') | 42.9mm (1.688'') |
| Electronics | ||
| Pickups: | Fishman S-Core Pickup, Fishman TL-3 Preamp w/ Onboard Tuner (Preamp / Active) | |
| Hardware | ||
| Strap Lock: | No | No |
| Hardware Color: | Black | Chrome |
Reasons to Get
LTD TL-6 over Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel
Reasons to Get
Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel over ESP LTD TL-6
Other Key Differences
LTD TL-6 vs Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel
Shared Features
LTD TL-6 vs Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel
Common Strengths
- High-Quality Nut
Common Weaknesses
- Solid Top Wood
- Solid Side Wood
- Solid Back Wood
- Pickup Alter Switch/Knob
- Locking Tuners
- High-Quality Frets
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Luminescent Sidedots
- Strap Lock
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Price History Comparison
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Hand Size Comfortability
And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the ESP LTD TL-6 favors large hands more than the Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel.
ESP LTD TL-6:
Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel:
Beginner Friendliness
Both meet 4 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players. If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, you can't go wrong with either of them.
New Player Friendliness
ESP LTD TL-6- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Soft Strings
- Locking tuners
New Player Friendliness
Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Short scale
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Soft Strings
- Locking tuners
Sound Quality Comparison
The most important thing that will determine the tone of an acoustic guitar is the wood. Let's take a look at the differences between both .
Woods Used in the ESP LTD TL-6
Mahogany is a fairly rare wood nowadays. It's used mostly for bodies due to its relatively lightweight. Gibson popularized it with their Les Paul guitars during their golden years, so this wood has a lot of good reputation behind it. The most expensive type comes from South America and it's still used by Gibson even today. Find out more about Mahogany.
Rosewood is an almost purple-looking wood that is used mainly for fretboards since it's heavy, rare, and expensive. It's sometimes used on acoustic guitar bodies to create stronger warm tones. Find out more about Rosewood.
Woods Used in the Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel
Nato a hard and dense wood similar to Mahogany, but cheaper and not quite as hard. Tone-wise, it's also similar, but it doesn't have quite the same attack as Mahogany.
It's a hard wood with a chocolate color that is often used to give an elegant finish. Since it's quite expensive and rare, it's mostly used for guitar tops. Find out more about Walnut.
Agathis is a softwood similar to Mahogany. It's more affordable, which makes it popular as a way to reduce production costs. People believe it to produce a warm tone with good punch and sustain.
It's similar to Mahogany in both color and tone. It can produce warm tones, and it's known for its beautiful figured grain patterns. Find out more about Sapele.
Winner: ESP LTD TL-6.
Electronics
The ESP LTD TL-6 comes with a preamp that allows you to connect it to an amp, unlike its competitor. This allows it to have more versatility and sound quality if you want to record with it or play live.
Winner:ESP LTD TL-6.
Final Sound Quality Scores
Build Quality Comparison
When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the ESP LTD TL-6 compares to the Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The ESP LTD TL-6 is built in Indonesia while the Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel is made in China.
Indonesia is becoming the most popular country for guitar building because they can make good instruments for a low price. Some people think that they're 'the new China' when it comes to build quality. But the truth is that Indonesian guitars are more consistent, although Chinese quality has improved a lot in the last few years.
China has a bad reputation when it comes to building quality. However, times have changed and now respectable brands use China's cheap labor to build good instruments for a lower price. Don't discount a guitar only because it was built in China, but also expect more quality from countries like Korea.
Winner: ESP LTD TL-6
Nut Material
If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.
The ESP LTD TL-6 has a Ivory Tusq nut. Ivory used to be considered the best material for guitar nuts due to its beauty, durability, and the rich harmonics and sustain you could get from a guitar with it. However, the way to obtain it is simply unethical. Enter TUSQ ivory nuts, which are made synthetically to imitate ivory. Technically, it's better than ivory because it is consistent piece-to-piece, while natural materials can vary a lot, even if they're made from the same.
On the other hand, the Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel comes with a Synthetic Bone nut. Bone is the best natural material for guitar nuts. However, its tonal properties can be inconsistent. That's the problem that synthetic bone fixes. This is much better than using a plastic nut because the nut is more slippery—which helps with tuning stability—, and it gives your open strings rich harmonics.
Winner: Tie.
Fret Material
Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.
Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.
Winner: Tie.
Tuners
Both come with regular tuners. The ESP LTD TL-6's are Grover while the Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel's are Die-Cast
Winner: Tie.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
ESP LTD TL-6
- Expensive Wood
- Ivory Tusq Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Electronics
- NuBone Saddle
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in Indonesia
- Laminated Top Wood
- Laminated Side Wood
- Laminated Back Wood
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel
- Synthetic Bone Nut
- Synthetic Bone Saddle
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Expensive Woods
- No Top Brand Pickups
- No Electronics
- Laminated Top Wood
- Laminated Side Wood
- Laminated Back Wood
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Final Build Quality Scores
Playability Comparison
Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.
Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.
Nut Width
The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, the ESP LTD TL-6 has the wider nut with 43mm (1.693'') vs 42.9mm (1.688''). This is a 0.1mm (0.0050000000000001'') difference
This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the ESP LTD TL-6, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.
Scale Length
The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.
The ESP LTD TL-6 has the longest scale: 25". The Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel is only 23.3" long. This is a 1.7'' (43.2mm) scale length difference.
This longer scale means that the strings need more tension to get in tune. This is good if you want to avoid fret buzz, which can happen when the strings are too loose and touch the frets while vibrating. This is especially important when playing in lower tunings. This will also let you reduce the gap between fretboard and strings (low action) to make them easier to press down. However, this higher tension will also make it harder to perform bends and vibratos as the strings will feel stiffer.
This also means that the frets have a longer separation between each other, so this will make it harder for people with smaller hands when playing some chord positions.
Another characteristic of a longer scale is that it makes the guitar sound 'snappier' or brighter. This is due to the extra separation between harmonics and overtones produced by the tension. This influences tone more than any other factor (except the pickups).
Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.
Neck Profile
No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.
In this case, both have different neck shapes:
The ESP LTD TL-6 has a U type of neck. This is also referred to as ''baseball neck'' because of its shape. It's usually thick, which is why some people with big hands like it. However, they can also be thin, similar to a C shape, but with more shoulders for a better grip.
The Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel, on the other hand, has a C neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.
Fretboard Radius
Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.
In this case, the Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the ESP LTD TL-6's. This extra arc will make playing chords easier in this model. You won't be as likely to mute the strings, especially if you have big hands. However, playing single notes and bending will be easier on the ESP LTD TL-6.
Fret Size
The ESP LTD TL-6 has Jumbo frets, which should be taller than the Fender FA-15 3/4 Steel's Vintage frets.
Some people prefer taller frets because they result in more sustain since the strings get pressed cleanly without interference from the fretboard. However, if they're too tall—like Jumbo frets—, you might change the pitch of the strings accidentally if you press too hard because you won't be touching the fretboard with your fingers. This is also why some guitarists with a heavy grip prefer smaller frets. They like to feel the fingerboard to avoid pressing down too hard and getting out of pitch.
