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Fender Brad Paisley Esquire
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster
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Playability
72
Sound
72
Build
60
Value
63
Score
68
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Playability
72
Sound
65
Build
54
Value
74
Score
64
FIND IT ON:
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Fender Brad Paisley Esquire vs Squier Affinity Series Starcaster Specs Comparison
Fender Brad Paisley Esquire Squier Affinity Series Starcaster
General
Brand: Fender Fender Squier
Year: 2021 2019
Configuration: SS HH
Strings: 6 6
Made in: Mexico Indonesia
Series: Artist Affinity Series
Colors: Blue White, Black, Red, 3-Color Sunburst
Left-Handed Version: No No
Body
Type: Solid Body Semi-Hollow
Body Material: Spruce/Paulownia/Spruce Laminated Maple
Bridge: 3-Saddle Vintage-Style Strings Through Body Tele with Compensated Brass Barrel Saddles 6-Saddle Adjustable Bridge Fixed
Neck
Neck Joint: Bolt-On Bolt-On
Tuners: Vintage-Style Die-Cast
Fretboard: Maple Maple
Neck Material: Maple Maple
Decoration: Black Dot Black Dot
Scale Size: 25.5" 25.5"
Shape: Enhanced V Modern C
Thickness: 1st Fret: 0.91'' (23.1mm) - 12th Fret: 1'' (25.4mm) 1st Fret: - 12th Fret:
Frets: 21 Medium Jumbo Nickel Silver 22 Narrow Tall Nickel Silver
Fretboard Radius: 9.5" 9.5"
Nut: Synthetic Bone Plastic
Nut Width: 42mm (1.654'') 42mm (1.654'')
Electronics
Bridge Pickups: Custom Brad Paisley Spec Vintage-Style Telecaster (Single Coil / Passive) Standard Humbucking (Humbucker / Passive)
Middle Pickup:
Neck Pickup: Seymour Duncan Custom Shop Brad Paisley Secret Agent (Single Coil / Passive) Standard Humbucking (Humbucker / Passive)
Switch: 3 Way 3 Way
Knobs: Dome Bell
Pickup Mods: None None
Volume Controls: 1 1
Tone Controls: 1 1
Hardware
Strap Lock: No No
Hardware Color: Chrome Chrome
Show Diagrams Comparison
Fender Brad Paisley Esquire pickups switch and push knobs diagram
Fender Brad Paisley Esquire's switch options
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster pickups switch and push knobs diagram
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster's switch options

Reasons to Get
Fender Brad Paisley Esquire over Squier Affinity Series Starcaster

Release Year
2021 vs 2019
From a more recent year
Type of Frets
Medium Jumbo vs Narrow Tall
You'll feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings
Neck Profile
Enhanced V vs Modern C
Combines vintage and modern feeling
Pickups Brand
Seymour Duncan vs None
Pickups from a renown brand
Nut Material
Synthetic Bone vs Plastic
Good quality nut with rich tone
Body Type
Solid Body vs Semi-Hollow
Feedback free
Pickups
SS vs HH
Beautiful cleans

Reasons to Get
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster over Fender Brad Paisley Esquire

Frets Height
Taller vs Shorter
Easier to press down strings and bend them
Type of Frets
Narrow Tall vs Medium Jumbo
You won't feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings
Neck Profile
Modern C vs Enhanced V
Comfortable neck that works for most people
Body Type
Semi-Hollow vs Solid Body
Lighter and allows more gain than a hollowbody
Pickups
HH vs SS
High output without hum
Number of Frets
22 vs 21
Allows to reach higher notes
Value Score
74 vs 63
Better price/quality relationship

Other Key Differences
Fender Brad Paisley Esquire vs Squier Affinity Series Starcaster

Bridge Pickup
Custom Brad Paisley Spec Vintage-Style Telecaster vs Standard Humbucking
Different Bridge Pickup
Neck Pickup
Seymour Duncan Custom Shop Brad Paisley Secret Agent vs Standard Humbucking
Different Neck Pickup
Body Wood
Spruce vs Maple
Different Body Wood
Nut Material
Synthetic Bone vs Plastic
Different Nut Material

Shared Features
Fender Brad Paisley Esquire vs Squier Affinity Series Starcaster

Neck Wood
Maple
Same Neck Wood
Fretboard Wood
Maple
Same Fretboard Wood
Headstock
6
Same Headstock
Strings
6
Same playing style
Switch Positions
3
Same pickups versatility
Volume Knobs
1
Same volume control
Tone Knobs
1
Same tone control
Nut Width
1.654'' (42mm)
Same string separation at the nut
Paint Finish
Poly
Resistant paint that ages well
Bridge
Fixed
Good sustain and needs no set-up
Scale Length
25.5'' (647.7mm)
Same string tension and fret separation
Fretboard Radius
9.5'' (241.3mm)
Same fretboard comfortability
Pickups Power
Passive
Cleaner sound and no battery needed
Neck Joint
Bolt-On
Allows you to detach and swap the neck

Common Weaknesses

  • Neck-Through Build
  • Pickup Alter Switch/Knob
  • Locking Tuners
  • Stays in Tune (Evertune)
  • High-Quality Frets
  • Compound Radius Fretboard
  • From a High-Quality-Standards Country
  • Luminescent Sidedots
  • Strap Lock
  • Expensive Wood
  • 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • Active/Passive Preamp

Price History Comparison

SET PRICE ALERT

Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster Prices

SET PRICE ALERT

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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 Fender Brad Paisley Esquire favors large hands more than the Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster.

Fender Brad Paisley Esquire:
Big Hands
Small Hands
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster:
Big Hands
Small Hands

Beginner Friendliness

Both meet 6 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

Fender Brad Paisley Esquire
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Tall frets
  • Narrow nut
  • Comfortable neck
  • Short scale
  • Locking tuners

New Player Friendliness

Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Tall frets
  • Narrow nut
  • Comfortable neck
  • Short scale
  • Locking tuners

Sound Quality Comparison

The wood used in an electric guitar or bass is not as important to determine the final tone. However, some people prefer specific wood types, so we'll take a look at those first. Then, we'll take a look at the electronics to determine the versatility and sound quality of each instrument.

Woods Used in Both

Maple wood pattern used for guitar building
Maple

Maple is one of the most popular necks for good reasons. It is a strong wood that is relatively cheap to make and looks beautiful. The highest quality maple is the hardest that comes from North America. Find out more about Maple.

Woods Used in the Fender Brad Paisley Esquire

Spruce wood pattern used for guitar building
Spruce

Spruce has a light color with tight grain patterns. It's very stiff but relatively light. It's known for producing a well-rounded tone with a broad dynamic range. Find out more about Spruce.

Winner: Tie.

Pickup Configuration

The Fender Brad Paisley Esquire has an SS configuration while the Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster has HH pickups.

SS is the classic Telecaster configuration. It's used mainly for playing clean or with low-gain distortion, and it's very popular for the country genre because of their brightness. It doesn't give you as much versatility as a Strat SSS configuration, but you might like the cleaner look of a guitar body with fewer pickups.

On the other hand, Double Humbucker (HH) is the choice for people who want a fuller, more round sound with tons of mids and lows. Humbuckers also get rid of the hum noise that plague single-coil pickups. They can work out for almost any genre going from Djent to even Jazz.

Pickups Quality

The Fender Brad Paisley Esquire has pickups from a more specialized brand than the Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster. Its pickups should simply give you a better, fuller sound, although it all depends on what type of music you're going to play. We recommend these pickups for Country and similar genres.

Both use Passive pickups. This is what's used for most music genres. They have a regular output and will serve you for both high-gain and clean tones. The alternative (Active pickups) offer a higher output that is mostly used for heavy music.

Winner: Fender Brad Paisley Esquire.

Versatility Comparison

Some instruments offer you more ways to explore your creativity than others. Below you'll find how both compare when it comes to versatility.

Switch Options

Both are equal when it comes to the pickup switching option.

Neither of them come with some kind of coil split or pickup mod option. This makes both lacking in terms of versatility.

When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.

Winner: Tie.

Final Sound Quality Scores

Fender Brad Paisley Esquire
Pickups 100
Sustain 65
Versatility 54
Tuning Stability 70
Sound 72
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster
Pickups 60
Sustain 80
Versatility 54
Tuning Stability 65
Sound 65

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 Fender Brad Paisley Esquire compares to the Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster.

Country of Origin

The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Fender Brad Paisley Esquire is built in Mexico while the Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster is made in Indonesia.

Mexico has been for a long time where Fender has built their semi-premium series. If you don't want to overpay for a wellp-built instrument, a guitar built in this country by a good brand always offers good value for the money.

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.

Winner: Tie

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 Fender Brad Paisley Esquire has 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.

On the other hand, the Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster comes with a Plastic nut. This is a low-quality nut that you might want to consider upgrading soon. Bone and TUSQ nuts are the best for guitars with a fixed or simple tremolo bridge.

Winner: Fender Brad Paisley Esquire.

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.

Bridge

The perfect bridge for you will depend on your playstyle because they all have advantages and disadvantages. However, some bridges are more expensive—like Floyd Roses and Evertunes—and thus add more value to a guitar.

Both come with a similar bridge: Fixed. It's a simple bridge that is very beginner-friendly since it doesn't require any set-up. You can swap strings easily. It might also give more sustain since it doesn't have complex moving parts that make the strings lose vibration. However, it doesn't have the same versatility as a tremolo bridge.

Since we need to be objective, the most expensive type of bridge will be the winner of this section. In the end, this doesn't matter if you're not going to use the bridge for its original purpose, so choose the bridge that fits your playing style better.

Winner: Tie.

Tuners

Both come with regular tuners. The Fender Brad Paisley Esquire's are Vintage-Style while the Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster's are Die-Cast

Winner: Tie.

Neck Joint

Contrary to popular belief, the difference in sustain and tone that some neck joints give to a guitar is simply unperceivable—if they're all well built. However, some of them do have advantages over the others.

Both have a Bolt-On neck joint. This neck is joined to the body by 4 bolts that you can simply unscrew. This allows you to replace the neck or take it off for travel. It's the most common and cheapest way to build a guitar.

Winner: Tie.

Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:

Strengths & Weaknesses
Fender Brad Paisley Esquire
  • Synthetic Bone Nut
  • Top Brand Pickups
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • Made in Mexico
  • No Expensive Woods
  • No Neck-Through Build
  • No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
  • No Weight Relief
  • No Luminescent Inlay
  • No Tremolo
  • No Compound Radius Fretboard
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock
Strengths & Weaknesses
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • Made in Indonesia
  • No Expensive Woods
  • No High-Quality Nut
  • No Top Brand Pickups
  • No Neck-Through Build
  • No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
  • No Luminescent Inlay
  • No Tremolo
  • No Compound Radius Fretboard
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock

Final Build Quality Scores

Fender Brad Paisley Esquire
Quality of materials 51
Features 50
Quality Control 80
Build Quality 60
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster
Quality of materials 41
Features 55
Quality Control 65
Build Quality 54

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

Fender Brad Paisley Esquire Nut Width
Both Guitars Have The Same Nut Width

The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, both have a nut width of 42mm (1.654'').

This is considered a narrow width for a 6-string guitar. This means that this guitar will have a narrower string separation at the nut, which will affect your fretting hand.

If you are a player with big hands, you might find it difficult to play chords without muting strings. However, this is good for players who have smaller hands, as it will allow them to reach each string more easily at the nut.

Scale Length

Fender Brad Paisley Esquire and Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster's Scale Length
Both have the same 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.

In this case, both have a scale length of 25.5".

This is the scale used in most Stratocasters. It's slightly longer than the typical 24.75'' size found in Les Pauls, and it's one of the main reasons why Stratocasters have such a bright sound in general. A longer scale also means that the strings will have higher tension. This will help you get lower action without suffering fret buzz, which will also be helpful when playing in lower tunings without having to increase your string gauge.

However, this also means that there will be more separation between frets, which can make it more difficult to play. Also, bending the strings will require more strengths due to the increased tension, but remember that a tremolo guitar will offset this difficulty.

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

Fender Brad Paisley Esquire Neck Profile
Fender Brad Paisley Esquire's neck profile
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster Neck Profile
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster's 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 Fender Brad Paisley Esquire has a Soft V to C type of neck. This neck is also called boat neck because it resembles the shape of the bottom of a boat. It combines the Soft V many people like for playing chords for the first frets, and it transitions to a rounder shape as you get closer to the highest frets. It's a neck that takes a while to get used to, and it's not as popular as a simple C shape.

The Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster, 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

Fender Brad Paisley Esquire Fingerboard Radius
Both Guitars Have The Same 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.

Both the Fender Brad Paisley Esquire and the Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster have the same fretboard radius of 9.5". This is the most common radius for Stratocaster guitars. It's considered curved when compared to most other models. This allows you to play chords very easily without muting strings accidentally and gives you more space between strings for fingerpicking. However, this curve also gives the guitar less allowance for lower action. If you bend too hard at the high frets, some of your notes might get muted because the curve will make the string fret out.

Fret Size

Fender Brad Paisley Esquire Frets Size
Fender Brad Paisley Esquire's Frets Size
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster Frets Size
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster's Frets Size

The Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster has Narrow Tall frets, which should be taller than the Fender Brad Paisley Esquire's Medium Jumbo 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.

Final Playability Scores

Fender Brad Paisley Esquire
Bending & Vibrato Ease 65
Chord Playability 90
Solo Playability 60
Playability 72
Fender Squier Affinity Series Starcaster
Bending & Vibrato Ease 75
Chord Playability 70
Solo Playability 70
Playability 72