Fender James Burton Telecaster vs Schecter Banshee Mach-7
Reasons to Get
Fender James Burton Telecaster over Schecter Banshee Mach-7
Reasons to Get
Schecter Banshee Mach-7 over Fender James Burton Telecaster
Other Key Differences
Fender James Burton Telecaster vs Schecter Banshee Mach-7
Shared Features
Fender James Burton Telecaster vs Schecter Banshee Mach-7
Common Strengths
- High-Quality Nut
- High-Quality Frets
Common Weaknesses
- Weight Relief
- Stays in Tune (Evertune)
- Strap Lock
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Table of Contents
Price History Comparison
These are affiliate links. We may earn a fee if you purchase after clicking. These prices are prone to error. Make sure you're buying the right product after clicking on a link from our site. We are not liable if you buy the wrong product after following these links. As an Amazon Associate site we earn from qualifying purchases.
Which One is Better Overall?
After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 is probably the better product overall with its final score of 79 compared to the Fender James Burton Telecaster's 68 score, which is a significant difference.
The Schecter Banshee Mach-7 wins when it comes to sound, playability, build quality, value for the money. This means that it wins over the Fender James Burton Telecaster in every aspect.
However, there's still a reason to choose the Fender James Burton Telecaster instead. If you got small hands, you'll probably feel that the Fender James Burton Telecaster is easier to play.
Which One is Better for Beginners?
If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 is the better choice.
The Schecter Banshee Mach-7 meets 6 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Fender James Burton Telecaster meets only 5. 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.
New Player Friendliness
Fender James Burton Telecaster- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Comfortable neck
- Tall frets
- Short scale
- Locking tuners
New Player Friendliness
Schecter Banshee Mach-7- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Locking tuners
- Comfortable fretboard
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
Nevertheless, when it comes to choosing an instrument, you should pick the one more compatible with your personal style. Still, below we'll try you to give you our results as objectively as it's possible to help you decide.
Fender James Burton Telecaster Overview
- From Fender's 2006 Artist series
- James Burton Signature
- Made in United States
- 6 strings
- 25.5"'' scale
- 9.5" Fretboard Radius
- Basswood body
- Maple neck
- Maple fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Fender Specially Designed James Burton (Single Coil/Passive)
- Middle pickup: Fender Specially Designed James Burton (Single Coil/Passive)
- Neck pickup: Fender Specially Designed James Burton (Single Coil/Passive)
- 1 volume and 1 tone Dome knobs
- 5-way Switch
- 6-Saddle American Series Strings-Thru-Body Strat with Block-Style Saddles bridge
- James Burton U Bolt-On neck
- 21 Vintage frets
- Deluxe Cast/Sealed with Pearl Buttons tuners
- Compare Specs >
Schecter Banshee Mach-7 Overview
- From Schecter's 2020 Banshee Mach series
- Made in South Korea
- 7 strings
- 26.5"'' scale
- 12" to 16" Fretboard Radius
- Flamed Maple top
- Swamp Ash body
- Roasted Maple/Purpleheart Multi-ply with Carbon Fiber Reinforcement Rods neck
- Ebony fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Lundgren M7 (Humbucker/Passive)
- Neck pickup: Lundgren M7 (Humbucker/Passive)
- 1 volume and 1 tone Dome knobs
- 3-way Switch
- Hipshot Ibby HM Guitar Bridge bridge
- Ultra Thin U Neck-Through neck
- 24 XL Jumbo Stainless Steel frets
- Schecter Locking tuners
- Weight between 8lbs (3.6kgs) and 8.25lbs (3.7kgs)
- Compare Specs >
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 the Fender James Burton Telecaster
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.
Basswood is a lightweight type of wood that isn't as expensive as other popular choices for guitar building. It gives more power to the mid-range frequencies. Its color can vary from pale white to light brown. Find out more about Basswood.
Woods Used in the Schecter Banshee Mach-7
Roasted Maple is just maple without a finish. It's technically cheaper than regular maple, but it doesn't have any extra disadvantages because of this. The color is darker, and it's lighter weight and very stable even when there's a lot of humidity.
Ebony is a high-end wood, so it is not cheap. It's only used for fretboards because it's also very heavy. It does an excellent job as a durable material while looking elegant. Find out more about Ebony.
Ash is a type of wood that Fender used almost exclusively in the 50s, and it's still used by many brands. It's a dense wood with a light color that works well for a transparent, natural finish because of its beautiful patterns. In terms of sound, it's known for emphasizing the mid and high frequencies, but with strong low end. Find out more about Ash.
Winner: Schecter Banshee Mach-7.
Pickup Configuration
The Fender James Burton Telecaster has an SSS configuration while the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 has HH pickups.
SSS is perfect for players who like to play clean. The definition you get between notes and the crispiness is unmatched by most other configurations. You can still use it for distortion, but you won't get the same kind of output and power compared to a humbucker, and the hum they produce also makes them less adequate for high gain.
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 Schecter Banshee Mach-7 pickups from a more specialized brand than the Fender James Burton Telecaster. Its pickups should give you a fuller, richer sound, although it all depends on what type of music you're going to play. We recommend these pickups for Heavy Metal 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: Schecter Banshee Mach-7.
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
The Fender James Burton Telecaster gives you 5 switch options while the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 gives you 3. This means that the Fender James Burton Telecaster gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve
Both give you different pickup mod options.
The Fender James Burton Telecaster offers Series Split.
The Series Split feature allows it to split and connect some of the pickups in series. When wired in series, the resulting tone is similar to a Humbucker's. The pickups will work together and produce a fuller tone with more output than single-coils, but less than Humbuckers.
On the other hand, the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 comes with the following: Coil Split.
Coil Split lets you disconnect one of the pickup coils. When used with humbuckers, it turns them into single-coil with lower output and cleaner tone.
When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.
Winner: Fender James Burton Telecaster.
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 Fender James Burton Telecaster compares to the Schecter Banshee Mach-7.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Fender James Burton Telecaster is built in United States while the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 is made in South Korea.
The United States is considered one of the best electric guitar manufacturers in the world. A guitar made in this country is supposed to have world-class quality control. Nowadays, guitars made in other countries can beat some of the ones made in the US, but most of the time, this country offers the best you can get. Of course, that comes at a price.
South Korea was for many years the number one choice for mass-producing semi-premium guitars. They can build excellent guitars for a cheap price. Now, it's less common to find Korean guitars because Indonesia has proved capable of building guitars just as well, but likely for cheaper.
Winner: Fender James Burton Telecaster
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 James Burton Telecaster 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 Schecter Banshee Mach-7 comes with a Compensated nut. Each hole where the string sits at the nut is cut at a different distance from the bridge, which compensates for the different amount of tension that each string is subject to. This fixes most intonation issues across the fretboard, so it gives great tuning stability.
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.
In this comparison, the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 is the only one that has stainless steel frets. These frets will basically last for the entire life of the guitar. They will never need polishing nor replacement. And not only that, but some people also notice that bending and vibratos are much easier to perform when they upgrade to stainless steel.
Winner: Schecter Banshee Mach-7.
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
The Schecter Banshee Mach-7 has the best tuners of the two because they are locking tuners. They'll help to keep your guitar in tune because they allow you to tune it without wrapping the strings around the posts. This avoids variations in the tuning due to the strings changing position at the post after a bend. They come at the disadvantage of being slightly heavier than regular tuners. Also, it makes it a lot easier to restring.
Winner: Schecter Banshee Mach-7.
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.
The Fender James Burton Telecaster has 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.
On the other hand, the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 comes with Neck-Through neck joint. This neck is a lot more resistant and lets builders give the neck joint a more comfortable shape for soloing at the upper frets. The disadvantage is that they're more expensive and that if you damage your neck, you can't simply replace it like with bolt-on necks.
Winner: Schecter Banshee Mach-7.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Fender James Burton Telecaster
- Made in United States
- Synthetic Bone Nut
- Series Split Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- No Expensive Woods
- No Top Brand Pickups
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Schecter Banshee Mach-7
- Stainless Steel Frets
- Locking Tuners
- Expensive Wood
- Compensated Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Neck-Through Build
- Coil Split Pickups
- Luminescent Inlay
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Made in South Korea
- No Weight Relief
- No Tremolo
- 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 Schecter Banshee Mach-7 has the wider nut with 48mm (1.89'') vs 42mm (1.654''). This is a 6mm (0.236'') difference
This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Schecter Banshee Mach-7, 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 Schecter Banshee Mach-7 has the longest scale: 26.5". The Fender James Burton Telecaster is only 25.5" long. This is a 1'' (25.4mm) 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.
Both the Fender James Burton Telecaster and the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 have a U-shaped 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.
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 Schecter Banshee Mach-7 is the only one with a compound radius. This is a huge win because it will give you the best of both worlds: a more curved radius in the first few frets for chords, and flatter as you come closer to the body for soloing.
Hand Size Comfortability
Everyone has a different hand size, and that's why it's recommended to try a guitar before buying, even if others tell you that it's comfortable to play. However, we can know whether a guitar favors small or large hands just by knowing its exact measurements.
And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the Schecter Banshee Mach-7 favors large hands more than the Fender James Burton Telecaster.
Fender James Burton Telecaster:
Schecter Banshee Mach-7:
Fret Size
The Schecter Banshee Mach-7 has XL Jumbo frets, which should be taller than the Fender James Burton Telecaster'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.
