Danocaster Talks Telecaster Tone - Ask Zac 183 

I literally love when Dan is on the show. Both of my Dano's were end game Fender type guitars for me. The only thing missing is a blackguard...

It’s great to hear someone talk shop who really knows his stuff like Dan. Great video.

The middle setting on the tele is the most important sound for me! I learned to play guitar listening to Al Green, Steve Cropper, etc. and all the old funk stuff from people like Jimmy Nolan and Prince, and that stuff is all middle position tele! Steve Cropper himself has said that every single session of his career was both pickups, volume all the way up, tone all the way up. For me, I find that the middle position is the best for rhythm, and then I get two different types of lead sounds, one cutting and one warm.

Dan's the coolest. He was gracious enough to build me a double cut when he was winding down in '19 after I had been on the list for well over a year. It was right after I moved to Nashville so I got to go over to his "shop" to pick it up and plug it into his Deluxe Reverb. He's a great hang who just happens to make some of the best guitars out there!! Glad you got a Dano back in your arsenal 😏👌

Simple honest conversation about great timeless simple things. Cant be beat

This is an insightful conversation to be a fly on the wall and listen to. All the surprising nuances being discussed. Thanks.

the way you guys described middle position is exactly the truth. thats exactly how my guitar is setup and sounds. love it, have an evans custom guitars tele with a rosewood neck. love it. best instrument ive ever owned and ive had a LOT of good old shit

Loved the talk. Just nerding out about teles, nothing better.

That’s a fascinating conversation right there.

My '63 Danocaster double cut is far and away my favorite guitar overall after playing for 49 years and owning countless guitars.

Love this episode with Dan. Glad you have a Danocaster back in the arsenal!

Great interview!

So much fun to geek out over the details! Many of those details may not make differences that most of us recognize, but it’s still very cool to listen to the science and the mystical magic behind cool guitars! Thanks for sharing!

I was lucky enough to have discovered Danocasters a number of years back when you could still make individual orders. They are great guitars that I still own and can’t imagine selling. I am happy to see he is still making great instruments-if you are in the market for a guitar or just curious, you definitely should check the Danocasters out.

outstanding. Thank you both

This is great. I literally didn't want it to end. Thank you!

GREAT VIDEO ZAC!!! Thanks for posting man!!! Really enjoyed it!!

A lot of interesting tidbits throughout. Wonderful video. Thank you

Absolutely love these videos. Just an amazing educational treat each time. Thank you for sharing.

Oh, man! I can’t wait to watch this. You and Dan are two of my favorite people in the guitar world!! Thanks, Zac!

Thanks for this video. Always a pleasure to see Dan talking guitars. Still very happy with my Danocaster Single Cut ✌🏻

Wonderful talk-through 👍

Outstanding ! ! !

I LOVE THESE ZAC! THANKS SO MUCH!

Almost 50k subscribers!!! Congrats, Zac!

Fascinating and informative interview! And that guitar has lovely tone; sounds like a million bucks. Thank you and Merry Christmas to you and yours!

That was a thoroughly enjoyable and interesting interview. Thanks Dan for sharing your experience and insights. Zac, I hope you do a string top loading, rear loading, and mixed loading bridge test. How it can affect tone and string tension/stiffness is an interesting topic.

so nice to see that beautiful smile of dear mr. strain......its been too long. lovely video boys....really enjoyed it

Hi Zac, love your channel. Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas and a fabulous New Year filled with lots of fun and laughter. Gordon from Australia.

You guys talked about a lot of points I discovered over the years. A guitar's parts, shape, size, materials, weights etc all contribute to its personality & how they respond & feel to players.

Loved it Zac! I have a set of Budz pickups from when he was still dealing with the public. Don't think I drove him out - I just paid and said thank you! Merry Christmas!

The guitar sounds incredible!

Your demo of that red guitar was really nice. and it sounds very lively. I like what Dan says about the string tree and a slinky feel, and I have strung 2 of my Teles as "top loaded" through the back of the bridge for the same reason. They definintely feel more fluid to me and I'm already using 9's and tuned down to D, so I'm used to a soft touch. My 80 yr old arthritic hands need all the relief they can get.

Dano has nailed it. I want one!

I like the A tuner placement of the butterfly string tree which began around late '56. The 'informativity' of this video is so on point, especially when he mentions the twangy bridge and warm neck pickups which describes my Legacy Tele dead-on when I got the twang just right and a beefier neck PU was definitely as i said of the video... so on point!

That was very good and to the point. Thanks Z

You have outdone yourself.

Personal favorite neck is the Fender October 1956 soft V. Great episode. Thank you.

Congrats on your new addition! Being a guitar& amp tinkerer myself, I would love to see a more detailed video regarding neck depth, tension, etc… Happy Holidays, Zac!

From Leo: Nice interview, I always enjoy your work. I have a telecaster style guitar that I think of as a Danocaster. Mine is wearing an old Danelectro lipstick pickup in the neck. Glassy clean with subtle lower end.

That was great.

Thank you Zac- a great video for the Tele nerd in all of us! Re: tension lowering- you can use a thicker bridge plate to lower the saddle height- which has it’s on effect- but less work than lowering the neck pocket.

Fantastic interview. Lots of good Tele knowledge

Dan is more well known than some realize, I bid on a used Dano on an auction site and the guitar sold for over $2600 plus auction fees.

Love seeing "Bop 'Til You Drop" and JJ Cale on your shelf of records!

Thanks for another great video, Zac!

Quite possibly one of the best sounding Teles I’ve ever heard.

Best episode yet!

Two guys just nattering on about Telecasters- brilliant! Thanks Zac I really loved this. And Dakota Red looks pretty good doesn’t it? Now you’ve got me thinking!

Thanks for your videos Zac!

I love my Danocaster.

I figured it was gonna be James Burton 52 specs, good looking and sounding guitar Zac! Can’t wait to hear more of it!

great video. love info about mods to release string tension. I always asking me about why my teles have differents string tension and how it change the feel to play it.

All that is missing from my life is a Dano Single Cut... my Double Cut is the only guitar I had played in the 2 years since I got it. Dan makes the absolute best guitars on the planet, they just feel like an old, familiar friend; and they're STABLE! Most amazing necks in the business. My praise can go on and on and on. Sorry, all my other boutique guitars!!!

Nice looking guitar and an excellent episode.

This red is right up my alley.

So much in information here. Really good stuff !! Zac....maybe you have done a Tele-Gib video before but just for fun it would be so cool to see this man assemble a Tele with Les Paul body and neck woods with one of those Warmoth 24 3/4" conversion necks. That is kind of a dream of mine...with a humbucker at the neck for jazz and a single coil at the bridge for some twangilicious country flavors. Plus a Bigsby!! As for the both pickups on Tele sound, I never use it...seems like having 2 volume controls (+ tone), instead of a 3-way switch, would be the ultimate way to fine tune the sound to one's own preference.

Conversion bushings are my friend. Thanks for the field trip, Zac. For my middle pickup tone, I get the most out of the neck pickup in height, then I lower the bridge pickup for equal output.

Love to have one! Maybe one day

Great timing. I just put together a 60s style slab board Tele and it needs a setup

Nice vid Zac and Dan! I want a Dano so bad! Saving up for one. Really nice playing Zac! Happy holidays to you both.

Aloha Zak! I got a Fender CS 1958 Telecaster that is sold as a Top Load. That model is still on their website. Mine also came with a second loaded control plate. Haven't tried it yet.

It'll be fun to compare these insights to the tips you gave us in an older video, about the Desert Sand Esquire, I think.

I love that tele trivia!

Dude, you sound so good -- I wish you played on every video. I just love to hear the sound of the guitar.

What a fantastic video have a wonderful day also have a happy holiday season also a fantastic new year Zac ❤😊💚🧡💙🇨🇦🎸🌲🍪🍶🍰🎂🧁

Great sounding and looking guitar! Reminds me of one I played for many years and later sold to Ricky Skaggs. Thanks for the video!

Excellent. And….middle position stuff!

Sweet playing on "Nightlife" type changes

Merry Christmas Zac (and Dan), thanks for an excellent and fascinating interview. I’ve got a question though, what are the DC resistance readings of those Budz neck and bridge pickups? since you mentioned the two pickup sound is great on your guitar. I’m just curious what the relative difference is between the DC readings on those if you’ve ever measured them. This was a very cool video filled with details that I hadn’t paid as much attention to in my 48 years of playing guitar but it was very interesting to hear Dan’s take on what the effect on sound and feel the different parts of the guitar have (or the way it’s strung, or saddle width and angle etc). Thanks to you both.

Wow 🤩 that was great! Can you do an other one with Les Paul…and an other with Strat. Keep up the good work 👍

Good one. Taking notes….

I see “Bop Till You Drop” on the shelf there. That’s a pretty special record!

I totally get it that us Americans don’t really do the metric system, and I also understand that there are standards for discourse regarding guitar nut sizes like 1 5/8 or 1.65. Still, it might have made the conversation a little easier to follow if there was something superimposed on the screen to tell the viewer that you and Dan are talking about the difference between 1.625 and 1.650 inch nut sizes. BTW, how cool would it be to view a conversation between, say, Dan Strain and Bill Crook, or either of those two guys and Nacho!

Budz did shut down his website back in May of 2022. He might have continued to make OEM pickups, but stopped selling direct to the public back in 2022 - according to some quick research.

I see that Roy B. album behind you, nice. But I also see Ry Cooder's "Bop 'Till You Drop", that's the one I loved in college, still do. Always wondered why Ry was more into Strats than Tele's?

Learned a lot, found out how much I don't know

Been using Budz pickups for years. Dave is a great guy, so is Dan. You and Dan need to start a fishing show. Haha

It's tricky to grade colors using photos in print. You're looking at inks vs paints. Some ink can match its paint counterparts close enough while others can be off a few shades. I'm a retired graphic designer and have dealt with this issue over 30 years.

Shout out to the everything is terrible shirt- hilarious videos

Great stuff, Zac!! Thank you for sharing. Would you mind also sharing the opening signal chain with that glorious sounding guitar?! Every position on that selector switch sounded perfect!! I should add, what do you set the slap back delay to specifically? Anyway, thanks again!!

do the subtle raiud 7.25 to 9.5! Or even 9.5 to 12 with an asmetrical maple shaped C with a shoulder on the top. around .840" to "9.0 12th fret.

A vid with you and Dan is a holiday gift for sure. Did Dan ever say whose 5/16” steel saddles those are ? Maybe they’re from Rutters also?

Now you got me thinking of the two guitars he made for Neil Schon

Very enjoyable and just about everything you might want to know - especially if you ever went Tele hunting in guitar stores to pick it up and it sounds like broken milk bottles and squeals like a pig. It's "that kind" of guitar - if it's "wrong" it's REALLY wrong. Here's what I did and it's easy as pie. Move the volume knob away from the top-hat p/up switch. Just take off the control plate, strip off all the stuff and drill another hole beside the original. No soldering or anything like that, put it back together and now you can do all-sorts and all kinds with the volume and change p/ups on the "real quick" without suddenly and inadvertently knocking the volume to somewhere else. There's no room between the top hat on the treble selection and the volume knob - it makes no sense at all. When you drill, use a centre punch, slow speed and a bit of WD40. Quite easy with an ordinary cordless drill, you don't a workshop or a pillar drill for that. If you want to screw the plate down, use the screw holes that attach it to the body - just to make sure the drill doesn't "catch" and start spinning stuff all over the place but if you don't go too fast or push to make it do its work faster than it wants to do it - no trouble at all, done in seconds anyway. Some folks reverse the plate and maybe swap the position of the two pots for the same reason. So you get the selector at the far end of the guitar if that's OK with you. Nice video, good fun. Thanks, guys!

I'm going to put a 1951 Planet Tone bridge pickup in my Tele.

I didn't even know about the difference and my tele allows for both top loader and through. I've been unconsciously restringing broken strings on top because I'm used to Gibsons and lazy. Consequently half the strings are through, half top.

Have you ever used a 4 way switch on one of your guitars? I really love the tone options. Nice channel.

Dan. Please write a book.

Super interesting how small details can affect so widely the sound of a Telecster ! Thanks for sharing. BTW did you ever play a Nash Telecaster ? I have a beloved TL-52

Great video. Have you guys ever played any Nunley Wade pickups? I used to have a set that I really liked.

When I top load the end of the wind cuts my hand so i have to put a little tape on it. Any suggestions? I like top loading.

awesomeness ...

Is there a way to measure the frequency of the neck and body? I've tried striking the wood and guesing at the note. I bought a few strats and interchanged the necks and bodies. Some dead ones came alive and all had the optimal match up. My hypothesis is that the frequency of the neck wood and body wood either enhance each other or detract from each other. One combination increases vibration or produce harmony, and the other can put the "brakes" on. I'm thinking that frequency matching to produces harmony could enable the builder to consistently produce good sounding instruments. Does this make sense to you?

6-6.5 lbs is about perfect. I have a 5.5 lb one and it starts to get a little neck heavy.

I literally focus on the 2 position... The combination that makes that doesnt necessarily mean great pickup sound in the 1 and 3. I still go for that 2 sound.

After looking at the prices I determined that all my builds are worth about $68,000 dollars in tele builds alone. Great day in the morning.

Zack, I have a 63 that I ask you some questions about one of the pickups being a little weak, and the red finish is interesting, that I would love for you to look at and tell me what you think. It's the same shade of red as yours in the video, only on the worn places, has apparently white sealer on the bottom? plus the top coat of red appears a little darker than what's below it, but I've owned the guitar for many years, and knew the original owner, and I'm 99.9% sure everything on this guitar is original! Thoughts? Thanks for the very informative videos!

Great info there. Are the Frets Stainless or Nickel ? custom shop nocasters necks can be over the top size wise.

please forgive me, but what piece of music goes with the guitar solo mr. Zac played at the beginning of the video? thanks.