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Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster
Fender American Performer Stratocaster
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Playability
72
Sound
67
Build
57
Value
75
Score
65
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Playability
70
Sound
79
Build
70
Value
73
Score
73
FIND IT ON:
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Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster vs Fender American Performer Stratocaster Specs Comparison
Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster Fender American Performer Stratocaster
General
Brand: Fender Squier Fender
Year: 2019 2019
Configuration: SS SSS
Strings: 6 6
Made in: Indonesia United States
Series: Classic Vibe American Performer
Colors: White, Yellow White, Blue, Brown Burst
Left-Handed Version: Yes No
Body
Type: Solid Body Solid Body
Body Material: Pine Alder
Bridge: 3-Saddle Vintage-Style Strings-Through-Body Tele with Chrome Barrel Saddles 6-Saddle Vintage-Style Synchronized Tremolo
Neck
Neck Joint: Bolt-On Bolt-On
Tuners: Vintage-Style Fender ClassicGear
Fretboard: Maple Rosewood
Neck Material: Maple Maple
Decoration: Black Dot White Dot
Scale Size: 25.5" 25.5"
Shape: Modern C Modern C
Frets: 21 Narrow Tall Nickel Silver 22 Jumbo Nickel Silver
Fretboard Radius: 9.5" 9.5"
Nut: Bone Synthetic Bone
Nut Width: 42mm (1.654'') 42.8mm (1.685'')
Electronics
Bridge Pickups: Fender Designed Alnico Single-Coil (Single Coil / Passive) Fender Yosemite Single-Coil Stratocaster (Single Coil / Passive)
Middle Pickup: Fender Yosemite Single-Coil Stratocaster (Single Coil / Passive)
Neck Pickup: Fender Designed Alnico Single-Coil (Single Coil / Passive) Fender Yosemite Single-Coil Stratocaster (Single Coil / Passive)
Switch: 3 Way 5 Way
Knobs: Dome Bell
Pickup Mods: None S-1 Switch
Volume Controls: 1 1
Tone Controls: 1 2
Hardware
Strap Lock: No No
Hardware Color: Nickel Chrome
Show Diagrams Comparison
Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster pickups switch and push knobs diagram
Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster's switch options
Fender American Performer Stratocaster pickups switch selector and push knobs diagram
Fender American Performer Stratocaster's switch options

Reasons to Get
Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster over Fender American Performer Stratocaster

Number of Frets
21 vs 22
Warmer neck pickup
Pickups
SS vs SSS
Beautiful cleans
Nut Width
1.654'' (42mm) vs 1.685'' (42.8mm)
Favors small hands, easier bar chords and other shapes
Bridge
Fixed vs Tremolo
Good sustain and needs no set-up
Value Score
75 vs 73
Better price/quality relationship

Reasons to Get
Fender American Performer Stratocaster over Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster

Country of Manufacturing
United States vs Indonesia
Built with higher quality standards
Pickups Brand
Fender vs None
Pickups from a renown brand
Pickup Mods
S-1 Switch vs None
Modifies the pickups
Switch Positions
5 vs 3
More tone options
Tone Knobs
2 vs 1
More tone control
Pickups
SSS vs SS
Beautiful cleans and good tone versatility
Number of Frets
22 vs 21
Allows to reach higher notes
Nut Width
1.685'' (42.8mm) vs 1.654'' (42mm)
Less likely to mute strings by accident and more space for fingerstyle
Bridge
Tremolo vs Fixed
Simple vibratos without too much maintenance
Avg. Weight
7.875lbs (3.6kgs) vs 9lbs (4.1kgs)
Tends to be lighter

Other Key Differences
Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster vs Fender American Performer Stratocaster

Bridge Pickup
Fender Designed Alnico Single-Coil vs Fender Yosemite Single-Coil Stratocaster
Different Bridge Pickup
Neck Pickup
Fender Designed Alnico Single-Coil vs Fender Yosemite Single-Coil Stratocaster
Different Neck Pickup
Body Wood
Pine vs Alder
Different Body Wood
Fretboard Wood
Maple vs Rosewood
Different Fretboard Wood
Nut Material
Bone vs Synthetic Bone
Different Nut Material

Shared Features
Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster vs Fender American Performer Stratocaster

Neck Wood
Maple
Same Neck Wood
Headstock
6
Same Headstock
Strings
6
Same playing style
Body Type
Solid Body
Feedback free
Volume Knobs
1
Same volume control
Paint Finish
Poly
Resistant paint that ages well
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 Profile Type
C
Comfortable neck that works for most people
Neck Joint
Bolt-On
Allows you to detach and swap the neck
Type of Frets
Narrow Tall vs Jumbo
You won't feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings

Common Strengths

  • High-Quality Nut

Common Weaknesses

  • Neck-Through Build
  • Weight Relief
  • Locking Tuners
  • Stays in Tune (Evertune)
  • High-Quality Frets
  • Compound Radius Fretboard
  • Luminescent Sidedots
  • Strap Lock
  • 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • Active/Passive Preamp

Price History Comparison

SET PRICE ALERT
SET PRICE ALERT

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Hand Size Comfortability

After taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that both favor small hands .

Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster:
Big Hands
Small Hands
Fender American Performer Stratocaster:
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 Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Tall frets
  • Narrow nut
  • Comfortable neck
  • Short scale
  • Locking tuners

New Player Friendliness

Fender American Performer Stratocaster
  • 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 Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster

Pine wood pattern used for guitar building
Pine

Some guitarists don't like Pine because they think it's too soft and dents easily. However, there are many types of pines, and the hardest pine is the one used for guitar building. The general opinion is that it tends to give a nice round and balanced sound.

Woods Used in the Fender American Performer Stratocaster

Rosewood wood pattern used for guitar building
Rosewood
Alder wood pattern used for guitar building
Alder

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.

Alder is the most popular wood that Fender uses in most of their guitars nowadays. Even though they say it's because of its balanced tone with an emphasis in the upper midrange, it probably is because it isn't too expensive, and it's also pretty lightweight—more than Mahogany. Find out more about Alder.

Winner: Fender American Performer Stratocaster.

Pickup Configuration

The Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster has an SS configuration while the Fender American Performer Stratocaster has SSS 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, 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.

Pickups Quality

The Fender American Performer Stratocaster pickups from a more specialized brand than the Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s 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 Funk and similar genres.

We found the same or similar pickups to the Fender American Performer Stratocaster's online:

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 American Performer Stratocaster.

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 American Performer Stratocaster gives you 5 switch options while the Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster gives you 3. This means that the Fender American Performer Stratocaster gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve

Only the Fender American Performer Stratocaster comes with some kind of pickup modification: S-1 Switch.

An S-1 switch can do a lot of different pickup combinations. It can split them, connect them in series, parallel, add more pickups to each position, and more. Check out the diagram to know how it affects this model.

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 American Performer Stratocaster.

Final Sound Quality Scores

Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster
Pickups 70
Sustain 75
Versatility 54
Tuning Stability 70
Sound 67
Fender American Performer Stratocaster
Pickups 100
Sustain 70
Versatility 82
Tuning Stability 65
Sound 79

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 Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster compares to the Fender American Performer Stratocaster.

Country of Origin

The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster is built in Indonesia while the Fender American Performer Stratocaster is made in United States.

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.

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.

Winner: Fender American Performer Stratocaster

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 Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster has a Bone nut. It's a type of nut found in high-quality instruments. They sound similar to Ivory since they give a lot of sustain and a bright sound (at least when striking open strings). The only problem they can run into is that you may get a bone piece that simply doesn't sound as well as others because that's just how natural materials are.

On the other hand, the Fender American Performer Stratocaster 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.

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.

The Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster's brige is a 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.

On the other hand, the Fender American Performer Stratocaster's is a Tremolo. Tremolo bridges give you more versatility than fixed bridges. They let you perform the intense vibrato effects that would be impossible with a fixed bridge. However, since the bridge floats and there's less contact with the body, the strings lose sustain slightly faster. They can also be a bit harder to restring and set up correctly than fixed bridges.

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 Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster's are Vintage-Style while the Fender American Performer Stratocaster's are Fender ClassicGear

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 Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster
  • Bone Nut
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • Made in Indonesia
  • No Expensive Woods
  • No Top Brand Pickups
  • 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 American Performer Stratocaster
  • Made in United States
  • Expensive Wood
  • Synthetic Bone Nut
  • Top Brand Pickups
  • S-1 Switch Pickups
  • Tremolo
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • No Neck-Through Build
  • No Weight Relief
  • No Luminescent Inlay
  • No Compound Radius Fretboard
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock

Final Build Quality Scores

Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster
Quality of materials 56
Features 50
Quality Control 65
Build Quality 57
Fender American Performer Stratocaster
Quality of materials 66
Features 60
Quality Control 85
Build Quality 70

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 Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster Nut Width
Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster Nut Width
Fender American Performer Stratocaster Nut Width
Fender American Performer Stratocaster Nut Width

The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, the Fender American Performer Stratocaster has the wider nut with 42.8mm (1.685'') vs 42mm (1.654''). This is a 0.8mm (0.031'') difference

This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Fender American Performer Stratocaster, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.

Scale Length

Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster and Fender American Performer Stratocaster'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 Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster Neck Profile
Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster's neck profile
Fender American Performer Stratocaster Neck Profile
Fender American Performer Stratocaster'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.

Both the Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster and the Fender American Performer Stratocaster have a C-shaped 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 Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster 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 Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster and the Fender American Performer Stratocaster 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 Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster and Fender American Performer Stratocaster Frets Size
Both have a similar Narrow Tall fret size

Both have a Narrow Tall fret size. Their height is very similar to Jumbo frets, but they have a narrower crown. They won't let you feel the fretboard when playing, which will make it easier to get clean notes. However, if you press down too hard you might get the notes out of pitch.

Final Playability Scores

Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50s Telecaster
Bending & Vibrato Ease 75
Chord Playability 70
Solo Playability 70
Playability 72
Fender American Performer Stratocaster
Bending & Vibrato Ease 70
Chord Playability 70
Solo Playability 70
Playability 70