Schecter PT Special Review

Features:

– Swamp Ash Body
– Maple Neck
– Rosewood Fretboard
– Bound Body and Fretboard
– Mother of Pearl Dot Inlays
– Extra Jumbo Frets
– Grover Vintage Tuners
– Vintage Ashtray Bridge with Staggered Brass Saddles
– Schecter Diamond Pickups
– 3-way Pickup Selector
– 1x Volume, 1x Tone

Tone:

The best description for this guitar’s tone is “fat Telecaster.” It has all the twang and snap you’d expect from a Tele but with a bit of added low-end punch. This is most noticeable with the neck P90-style pickup. It has the spank and clarity of a single coil Tele, but the benefit of the P90 is an added thickness that doesn’t sound remotely muddy. For a stock pickup, this is pretty impressive.

The more traditional bridge pickup sounds are everything you could want out of a Telecaster. Although this guitar carries a Rosewood fretboard instead of the standard Maple board, there’s no loss of high end or attack. This is likely due in part to the brass saddles compensating for any loss of brightness that the Rosewood board might have by comparison.

When using both pickups we go back to that wonderful “fat Telecaster” sound we mentioned earlier. The “quacky” character is complete, and the nice harp-like plucked attack is really well rounded in the middle pickup position. This is a fantastic pickup combination for both rhythms and solos. If two humbuckers are more your style, check out its brother: the PT Custom.

Build Quality:

At this price point, a guitar tends to be either good quality or bad quality, there’s not much of a middle ground. We can safely say that this guitar has thoroughly impressed us with its overall feel, playability, and build quality. It’s safe to say this is one of the best Telecaster copies we’ve had the privilege of reviewing, and definitely the best one at this price.

The binding was flawless all around the entire guitar, with no discoloration or poor handiwork to be seen. Sharp fret ends aren’t surprising at this price, but this particular unit didn’t have much to speak of in that department, thankfully.

There are two noticeable downsides to this instrument. The first is that – while a traditional design is commendable – most players agree that traditional Telecaster saddles are quite a piece of ancient history. Intonating with traditional saddles can be a pain and can often be a trade-off, especially with cheaper instruments. Brass saddles are a great tonal plus, but they don’t quite make up for the inconvenience.

The other design flaw we experienced is the vertical pickup selector. Rather than the selector switch being parallel to the neck (like a traditional Telecaster), it’s oriented vertically. While most pickup selectors are oriented this way it’s illogical and cumbersome due to its position on the guitar. A vertical switch works great when close to your hand, as you’re typically moving your hand vertically to begin with, so it’s an easy move. With this guitar you have to move your hand way to the back of the instrument, and then down or up. It’s a bit of an awkward move. It’s far from make-or-break, but it’s certainly something that we can’t help scratching our heads over.

Final Thoughts:

Despite its flaws, the classy look and great build quality equate to an instrument that we would have no problem having in our arsenal. What it lacks in features it makes up for in dependability. Consistently good tone and impressive playability make what could’ve been a flop into a decent contender in the Telecaster market. If you love the Tele design but aren’t so in love with the price tag, this may just be your best option under $1,000.