Squier Affinity Series Deluxe Telecaster Electric Guitar, with 2-Year Warranty, Charcoal Frost Metallic, Laurel Fingerboard

Full disclosure: at the time of writing this review I still have not received an amp to ensure all electronics are in working order, meaning that I also have not been able to hear how the stock pickups perform. I will be writing this review from the viewpoint of how the guitar feels in the hand, how it sounds acoustically, and how it is setup from the point of arrival. I will update soon with further information, as my Orange combo arrives tomorrow. The guitar arrived with all strings flattened by about the same amount (about 3-4 half steps), a shipping choice that is appreciated due to keeping even tension across the neck while simultaneously keeping it from receiving too much tension from being applied due to temperature and elevation fluctuations throughout transit. The action feels good. Slightly high but not too bad. This is more or less preference anyways, the average new player should not be bothered by it and it can easily be remedied by an intermediate player who understands their instrument. Slight truss rod/bridge adjustment soon to come, but nothing major. The overall intonation out of the box was pretty surprising. Once tuned up to standard tuning it was quite in tune with itself across the fretboard with a few exceptions. The nut is set too high, leading to really sharp notes across the first 2 frets on most strings. It's upwards of 25-35 cents above where it should be on the low E and A. This guitar obviously does not have a true temperament fretboard, so perfect tuning across the neck is not to be expected, and there are a few troubled frets outside of the first 2, but for the price it's honestly surprising how few and far between I have found intonation issues... The overall intonation is fantastic. Better than any sub $300 fretted stringed instrument I have ever purchased. I imagine that with minimal nut, bridge, and neck adjustment this guitar will be far beyond the quality of what is expected for the price range. With some further upgrades I imagine this guitar will perform above the next price tier. I plan on upgrading the pickups regardless of stock performance and will more than likely replace the pots, knobs, and output jack before they become an issue just because I know this price tier will eventually run into issues on 2/3rd of those components and the other 1/3rd will just be quality of life improvements. Biggest complaint: NUT HEIGHT. You would think that all these companies would know better by now... When you can't play a proper low F/F# you think that you would take notice and pop that baby down a bit... But this is not enough to knock this down to a 4 star review due to price and ease of resolution. I just hope that beginners don't blame themself when playing around there and it sounds like garbage.

Using a vanilla Squier Tele and a Squier Starcaster as a frame of reference, this Deluxe is by far the nicest and most solid of the three. It feels more like an actual Fender to me. Build quality, initial setup and fretwork are much better than expected from this price point. The pickups sound nice, the nut doesn't catch, it stays in tune, and the tuners are great. I've been playing it nonstop for two days and no upgrades or mods have crossed my mind. It's really good the way it is. I've played guitars triple this price that don't feel nearly as nice. In all, I have 16 guitars ranging from $180 to $4000. Although this is among my cheapest guitars, it's one I would keep if I had to reduce my collection down to 5.

Squire is really stepping up their game. This Telecaster Deluxe really is way better than the price might suggest. I am not a beginner, and have been playing for many years, and have owned the best and still own several premium guitars. But, there is something about this guitar that make me pick it up before the others in my collection. It sounds great, plays great, stays in tune, and looks good too. There are a lot of guitars out there for under $300.00, but this Squire Telecaster Deluxe is a fine example of great value for your money.

As the proud owner of a 1971 Fender telecaster I think I can say this is actually a fairly decent representation. The one I received is actually playable out of the box, not great but decent, with a little action work and intonation adjustments I would take it out to a gig without reservations and the price was right.

I bought this as a backup for my custom Squier bullet strat and turns out this guitar is so good it’s now a part of my main guitar line up. I am not very fawn of expensive guitar when what people call “beginner” guitar can do the same with a little modification. This guitar sounds great out of the box with a punchy humbucker at the bridge and a soft humbucker at the neck. Tuning is amazing, neck feels amazing with the satin finish, and overall it’s light weight with no neck dive. I plan to put the EMG Het set and tortoise shell pick guard to truly make it my own. Over all you can’t go wrong with this Squier.

I’ve been a casual guitar player for about 6 years now and I’ve gone in and out of it and had different gear over the years but this one has won my heart, I wanted a tele but didn’t have genuine tele money and this knocked it out of the park for me, it’s a great guitar for an amazing price, neck and body feels good in the hands and has a good tone, and actually changed me off of the Les Paul styles I use find myself gravitating towards, definitely a tele person from now on.

I'm a USA made guitar guy, with saying that I was amazed at the quality and sound. I got my tele fix and don't have to take my American made tele out for funky gigs. I cranked the neck trust a 1/4 turn and lowered the strings and wala, it stays in great tune. Totally thrilled, wow a cheapy guitar that stands up to my American made one. Don't hesitate if you need a guitar that gives you variety. Couldn't be happier!

This is a great guitar. It's not super heavy. The neck is raw maple and feels great and sounds wonderful. The guitar has a ton of natural resonance and is set up well out of the box. I can tell already that this is going to be one of my favorite guitars, and I own many. This is a real gem.