Best Basswood Body Telecaster Style Guitars in 2024
Here you'll find the best Basswood body Telecaster style guitars. This is a soft type of wood that is very light and easy to work with. It's cheaper than many other kinds of wood used for guitar building, but it doesn't mean it's low quality. In terms of sound, it accentuates the mid-range, which matches the frequencies that a Humbucker produces.
After comparing the 2000+ guitars in our database, these are the best scoring ones with these characteristics. You can use our filters to the left to narrow down these results, or click on "Compare" to get a deep comparison between them. Our automated scoring system takes into account the ratings from ours users who own the guitar, and dozens of parameters to determine the build quality, playability, pickups quality, value for money, and more.
There are affiliate links on this page that may earn us a commission if you purchase after clicking. We are members of the Amazon Associates Program, and many others. However, we compare each guitar against each other under the same parameters, so this doesn't influence our scoring.
After comparing the 2000+ guitars in our database, these are the best scoring ones with these characteristics. You can use our filters to the left to narrow down these results, or click on "Compare" to get a deep comparison between them. Our automated scoring system takes into account the ratings from ours users who own the guitar, and dozens of parameters to determine the build quality, playability, pickups quality, value for money, and more.
There are affiliate links on this page that may earn us a commission if you purchase after clicking. We are members of the Amazon Associates Program, and many others. However, we compare each guitar against each other under the same parameters, so this doesn't influence our scoring.
1. Chapman ML3 Pro Modern
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What our users think
- Neck access to high frets: Easy (1 vote)
- Fret edges: Smooth (1 vote)
- Tuning stability: Holds tune well (1 vote)
- Weight: Lightweight (1 vote)
- Neck profile shape: C (8 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (6 votes)
- Pickups noise: Noiseless (7 votes)
- Pickups power: Slightly Hot (7 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Chapman ML3 Pro Modern
Chapman ML3 Pro Modern
- Stainless Steel Frets
- Locking Tuners
- Black Tusq XL Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Neck-Through Build
- Luminescent Inlay
- Strap Lock
- Made in South Korea
- No Expensive Woods
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Weight Relief
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
All Prices
2. Cort MBM-2 Sustainiac
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What our users think
- Neck profile shape: V (2 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (2 votes)
- Pickups noise: Slightly Noisy (2 votes)
- Pickups power: Slightly Hot (2 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Cort MBM-2 Sustainiac
Cort MBM-2 Sustainiac
- Locking Tuners
- Top Brand Pickups
- Killswitch, Sustainer Pickups
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- Made in Indonesia
- No Expensive Woods
- No High-Quality Nut
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
3. Dean NashVegas Select Floyd
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What our users think
- Neck profile shape: C (2 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (3 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Dean NashVegas Select Floyd
Dean NashVegas Select Floyd
- Expensive Wood
- Locking Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Tremolo
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in Indonesia
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Retainer Bar
- No Strap Lock
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4. Fender JV Modified '50s Telecaster
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What our users think
- Neck access to high frets: Normal (2 votes)
- Fret edges: Smooth (2 votes)
- Tuning stability: Holds tune well (1 vote)
- Weight: Lightweight (2 votes)
- Neck profile shape: V (5 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (5 votes)
- Pickups noise: Slightly Noisy (2 votes)
- Pickups power: Clean (2 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Fender JV Modified '50s Telecaster
Fender JV Modified '50s Telecaster
- Locking Tuners
- Made in Japan
- Bone Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Phase Out Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Expensive Woods
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
5. Harley Benton TE-40
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What our users think
- Neck access to high frets: Normal (1 vote)
- Fret edges: Slightly sharp (1 vote)
- Tuning stability: Holds tune well (3 votes)
- Weight: Lightweight (1 vote)
- Neck profile shape: C (20 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (17 votes)
- Pickups noise: Slightly Noisy (2 votes)
- Pickups power: Slightly Hot (2 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Harley Benton TE-40
Harley Benton TE-40
- Top Brand Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Expensive Woods
- No High-Quality Nut
- 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
All Prices
6. Fender JV Modified '60s Custom Telecaster
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What our users think
- Neck profile shape: V (5 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (5 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Fender JV Modified '60s Custom Telecaster
Fender JV Modified '60s Custom Telecaster
- Locking Tuners
- Made in Japan
- Expensive Wood
- Bone Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Phase Out Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
All Prices
7. Fender Made in Japan Limited International Color Telecaster
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What our users think
- Pickups noise: Slightly Noisy (2 votes)
- Pickups power: Clean (2 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Fender Made in Japan Limited International Color Telecaster
Fender Made in Japan Limited International Color Telecaster
- Made in Japan
- Bone Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- 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
All Prices
8. Fender Aerodyne Special Telecaster
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What our users think
- Neck profile shape: C (36 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (35 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Fender Aerodyne Special Telecaster
Fender Aerodyne Special Telecaster
- Locking Tuners
- Made in Japan
- Synthetic Bone Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- 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
All Prices
9. Dean NashVegas Select
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What our users think
- Neck profile shape: C (2 votes)
- Neck speed (thickness): Balanced (3 votes)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Dean NashVegas Select
Dean NashVegas Select
- Expensive Wood
- Top Brand Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in Indonesia
- No High-Quality Nut
- 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
All Prices
10. Fender James Burton Telecaster
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What our users think
- Neck access to high frets: Normal (1 vote)
- Fret edges: Smooth (1 vote)
- Tuning stability: Holds tune well (2 votes)
- Weight: Heavy (1 vote)
- Neck profile shape: Baseball / U (1 vote)
- Neck speed (thickness): Chunky (1 vote)
- Pickups noise: Noiseless (1 vote)
- Pickups power: Clean (1 vote)
Strengths & Weaknesses
Fender James Burton Telecaster
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