So - after trying the Semi-Hollow Tele, I was thinking...Sounds like a Tele. But then I think...Well..If it sounds like a Tele, but isn't as heavy - that's ideal? And then I think...But my Teles aren't heavy anyway....So I dunno. But - I've also just tried a Les Paul and Sire Es335 type into a Mesa at just above bedroom volumes - you can push the ES335 to octave above harmonics WAY easier than the Les Paul - so that would potentially be the sort of thing that could either be REALLY handy live - or....Not so handy?

@ksharpe10

Жыл бұрын

Yes it is handy, i started on a Gretsch Blawkhawk 1968, I used to use that to an advantage in small clubs. If we got louder I used a borrowed SG, on occasion. I have a semi hollow gretsch now and it will feedback easier and quicker than the Lazarus les paul on the same preset at the same volume, and you can have a conversation with someone as you do it, that is why I LOVE modellers, get Loud without being LOUD, if that makes Sense. We used to call it being an Electric guitar player who not only plays the Guitar/he plays the Amplifier as well.

@IamMusicNerd

Жыл бұрын

I love semi-hollows. Lighter than solid body, not as much feedback as full hollow, same great tones.

@kyran4238

Жыл бұрын

A 335 makes a moderate stage feel like a loud one. I hate going to bed with ringing ears and a sore back so I gigged a 335 exclusively for years.

@alien4422

Жыл бұрын

😂😂😂

@ksharpe10

Жыл бұрын

@@alien4422 Uh oh, we been invaded by the Alien LOVE CHILD.

i have a semi hollow PRS Se and this according o me is the point: if you dont have the guitar volume at 10, but instead keep it half wah or lower and increase the volume on your amp, the acoustic qualities become pronounced and the point of the semi hollow guitar becomes quite apparent.

@cbaten2

Жыл бұрын

I can confirm that from experience with prs SE semi P90s (one rickenbacker style hole, 2011) . We all probably agree that with lots of overdrive compression etc and some EQ we can make them all sound the same,..

Love it. Best advice I ever got was to ask a non-guitarist if they hear a difference.

Pickups are definitely the most important factor. Currently I only have two electric 6 strings - a Les Paul and an ES-335 (both Gibson Custom Shop models) - and they sound very similar when recorded (when using the same gauge strings; currently I use 9.5s on the LP and 10s on the 335 and the LP is slightly brighter with less low end than the 335). With the same gauge strings, I don't think anyone would be able to pick them apart in a blind test, except through sheer luck. Both have stock Custombuckers in them.

Note choices are incredible.

@tonystartup3817

Жыл бұрын

Pfft, I choose all the same notes easily - just not necessarily in the same order!!

@yarbzag

25 күн бұрын

My thoughts exactly: Note choices are incredible

I enjoy a nice semi hollow especially for quiet practicing without an amp. I feel like they give a bit more headspace to the overtones in relationship to the size of the resonance chamber. A lot of what it gives can be exceeded with reverb and other pedal effects in your signal chain.

It honestly depends! There's always going to be some small difference tonally but not enough in some cases. But in reality whatever feels best in your hands is what works! My workhorse guitar was an offset with humbuckers, to me that was THE sound. I picked up an ES-335 since it's been my dream guitar since childhood but noticed it sounded different even after swapping to the same pickups I run on the offset. That could be because of the different scale length and some other contributing factors, but what I noticed was that the semi-hollow body has a really rounded sound.

@ksharpe10

Жыл бұрын

I call the rounded sound WOODY tone.

The sound from that thinline tele at the 1:50 mark when you kick in the overdrive is probably the best sound I've heard you play, and you play some great sounds!

Great video! I do play the EJ thinline and having owned and played both versions I do think the thinline has a smidge more warmth especially with gain and it does feedback in certain frequencies a little bit easier. Cheers!

I love mine it had p-90s .. as a rhythm player it allows me to cover a lot of ground especially when I need an acoustic type sound into full on rage sound ! Not too mention being articulate.. mine is a Novo Miris J

My Strat has a swimming pool route due to my pickup placement experiments, so it is sort of semi-hollow. Pickup mounting on the pickguard vs to the body makes them sound a little brighter and thicker. But, with all the tone shaping and tone matching tools we now have now, weight relief is more important.

@thekramer1097

Жыл бұрын

The buzzwords brighter and thicker aren't kind of opposites?

@forester057

2 ай бұрын

Or stop being weak and eat a steak and worrying about 2 lbs on your frail vegan back.

I would love to see you do some videos teaching some of those amazing riffs and runs!

I want to say this in the politest way possible, but I think when you use a very compressed high gain lead tone, you can’t tell which guitars which anyways. So best would be to try them against each other, clean without a bunch of processing.

I've played solid bodies and steel string and nylon string acoustics for 40 years but recently bought a Casino and put some Lollar P90s in, and also a Duesenberg Starplayer, which has a nice P90 Neck & Mini Humbucker Bridge and enjoying both - a new experience and they tend to nudge me in a new direction for writing. Never too late to try something a bit different, eh? Enjoyed the playing, as usual! 😀

@johnnathancordy

Жыл бұрын

Nice - the Casino is a full hollow init - I tried one on the channel a few months ago (again for Keith!) - those tend to have different pickups too which I think is a massive part of why they sound different - but the Casino did seem to have a bit more going on than ES335s that I've played

Nice playing in the intro. Beautiful tone and phrasing.

What I’ve generally found is that the semi-hollow guitars sound slightly warmer and don’t have quite the high end that their solid body siblings do.

@compucorder64

Ай бұрын

That's exactly what I'm hearing here. I think they have a slightly more vocal, quacky tone too, because of the cavity resonance. The solid-body Telecasters, and Les Paul's too, have much more pick sound. Feed it into a Plexi and those pick sounds peck you in the ears. Whereas the semi-hollowbody sound a bit more like the human singing voice, or even a viola, with more sustain which you can grab with vibrato, rather than the sparkly, bright picking thing. The Casino, 335, and even this thinline, to a much lesser extent all have that less bright, more sing song vowely tone. But the chambering on this (or a Gretsch Duo), is less than on the 335, which is less than on a Casino, which is less than a Gretsch Country Gentleman or big body Ibanez or similar - which are much darker.

It always comes down to how it's constructed. I have ES-335 style guitars that don't sound much different than les Paul's, but I also have had and do have those that are entirely different. Vintage correct 335 has a unique midrange quality and brightness. Shape can play a part in sound, but not enough to make someone want one guitar over another typically.

Totally. Same thing with the Strandberg Sälen NX Jazz i had for a while… any tonal difference comes from its specific pickups

I think that's my favourite intro that you've done so far. Really beautiful and melodic. I'm not really in to the legato shredding type stuff but probably would be if I could do it 😂.

I have a semi-hollow body Heritage with Seymour Duncan 59s and a Gibson Slash Les Paul. I find the attack in the hollow body is very different (softer) to the attack in the solid body. There's also a different sustain and different pitch in the feedback. The pickups are similar enough that I'm pretty sure it's the body of the guitar creating the different tonal qualities.

Super tasteful intro. Lovely phrasing and note choice.

Really like that tune you do at the end of video...beautiful!

I have a full hollow body electric and a semi hollow body with a 2x4 inside or whatever as well. I love them both and I am okay with that. My two pence.

My thinline don't sound like that! hehe Beautiful playing, as always!

Beautiful melodic playing.

Totally agree.....loads of chambering in my Epi LP which makes it lovely and light but still with Les Paul sound. Love the Jim Lill videos.

I think your tone sounds absolutely gorgeous here. It always sounds pretty outstanding. There is just something in this tone that is special to my ears.

@rsmallfield

Жыл бұрын

I think that’s my favourite Jonathan tone so far.

Thanks for a very enjoyable video.

Despite the cloud shimmer reverb, it's clearly evident that the thinline sounds quite different and unique. Try test again without effects.

Wow, I really loved that outro! Very EJ-ish, anthemic progression and lead lines. Re: Semi-hollows, Yamaha claims the Revstar chambering was done for tonal reasons, with the chamber design being based on physical modeling of the guitar's response. I think your hypothesis about the centerline being the dominant factor makes sense, and your experience that the main impact of chambering is on feedback also makes sense-the free top "wings" sort of act like a large mic diaphragm that's coupled to the solid part of the guitar. So I'd be really curious to know what Yamaha's modeling indicated should be the measurable difference due to their chambering, if it's not feedback-related acoustic coupling to the amplified sound. -Tom

I agree with you to a point, because we're talking about very small differences in sound which many people hear at only a subconscious level, but having owned a Tele thinline , maple board and Fender humbuckers (magnets on each set of six strings) and though most of the sound did come from pickups next to solid wood, there was to my ear a slight softening of the sound,as if it were going into soft focus. The harsher edges of the sound were sort of damped, probably with the hollow section helping to disperse the dynamics by absorbing and delaying more high frequency vibrations before they had a chance to reach the attack. Hair splitting maybe, but in my case I liked what was to me a smoothing out of the sound. I now have a Tele copy that has two slightly different humbuckers and is all solid, and to me it sounds a lot crisper, which I like better in some ways, but Oh my does it weigh a ton (not quite) but it is the heaviest guitar I've ever played, including some pretty solid Les Pauls.The old thinline was a perfect all round instrument though because it could sound like a Les Paul on the bridge pickup, but still have a bolt on snap to it, but softer and smoother through a TS808 into any amp and sound more woody and gentle than your average Tele spank. Small differences, but satifying to the perception of the person playing.

I have owned both and I completely agree. I don't think thinline changes the tonality but it does feel slightly different due to acoustic sound and resonating body. Tonal difference to my opinion is probably because it is designed to sound that way. There're too many elements that will affect the tone of an electric guitar to a subtle degrees and thinline is only one of them. It does not drive the tone.

The weight would be the only thing that i see logically would be the difference with a semi hollow electric guitar. The regular guitar pickups are pretty much magnets with a field that changes if the string vibrates. You could probably get the same magnetic signal if u played your electric guitar in vacuum (for science?) Maybe if the body of the guitar is more solid you could get a longer lasting vibration from your strings and therefor more sustain in your tone? But probably not tonal difference eh? Thanks for the video.

Lovley guitar! Wonderful playing!

My experience is quite different. My LP sounds way different than my ES345. If the semi hollow body’s top is light enough it will definitely resonate and effect the tone. My 345 will also feedback quite easily, but that might be non potted T type pickups.

Thanks for the shoutout lad - John Mayer dresses like me, not the other way around, obviously?

I used to own a G&L ASAT Classic which was a semi follow tele with a Seymour Duncan humbucker neck pickup. The guitar was very warm but lacked any attack. Beautifully built, but I traded it on some other equipment. No regrets.

I purchased an off brand thinline tele for a custom project I wanted to try… I added a piezo to it. I can switch and blend acoustic and electric sounds. I attempted the same thing with a solid body tele… have a lot better acoustic tone with the thinline.

For a brief time I had a custom shop made to measure 56 reissue that was fully chambered rather than weight relieved. It only weight like 6 lbs. but it sounded kind of whimpy compared to a regular non chambered les Paul’s that I have. Included others with p90s for direct comparison. I returned it and got a regular R6. But I could tell a big difference in the chambered one. It was just brighter, and generally thinner sounding. It looked good though and was the lightest les Paul I ever touched. But it just seemed to not have a good les Paulness. My thin line tele I think does sound very slightly different than my other teles but it’s also pine. And I would say the difference in a thin line and regular tele are likely less than a chambered and non chambered les Paul

I had a chambered guitar from Reverend and it made an annoying hum sound when I stopped playing on a certain note. sort of like trem springs. I sold it.

i dunno either - always wondered about this. Is it maybe more to do with harmonic feedback resonance with higher amp volumes? Thats all i can think of.

I don't know if being semi-hollow makes any change tonally or not, but what i know from experience is that i like resonnant guitars, not just having great sustain but feeling the body's vibration itself. I think that that, added to a great feeling neck (and of course, great sounding pickups) makes the experience way more ''total''...or ''connected'' to the music being played. But experience is really relative to each one's preference. 🙃

@keithb5612

Жыл бұрын

My semi hollow seems to be far more resonant than my thinline or solid body guitars. Even more so with Reverb added. A different sonic texture for me anyway.

@c.j.robert5350

Жыл бұрын

@@keithb5612 Same with my Gretsch. But different body material can be also very resonnant...like my Ibanez QX 527; very thin, small body that vibrates like crazy. I love it!

@keithb5612

Жыл бұрын

@@c.j.robert5350 Interesting... The resonant Semi hollow I mentioned is also a Gretsch. I can tell the difference in my recordings with that guitar. Enjoy the tones.

@c.j.robert5350

Жыл бұрын

Same to you @@keithb5612!

Semi with a loud amp. I saw the jam last night, and Russell Hastings with a loud plexi and a rickenbacker. It was alive. Very cool.

Incredible player John!!!!

I have a 2000 American ASAT Classic Semi-hollow (has 2 single coil mfd pups) and noticed more mids compared with my buddy's solid body Tele. I noticed this more so when playing clean (through my 1983 Fender Twin Reverb II) , however, I noticed the most tonal difference when I played acoustically (not plugged into an amp). I agree that much of tone comes from the pups, including pup height. MFD pups have adjustable pole pieces which makes the tonal qualities quite customizable.

@johnnathancordy

Жыл бұрын

I had a tribute one of those AGES ago! Quite a cool guitar!

My semi-hollow has a natural over driven tone in my opinion over my solid body guitars, I hear it unplugged, acoustically. play them without an amp to hear the difference of the tone. it does carry over to the amp once you understand what to listen for.,

I have a SemiHollow limited PRS Singlecut 594 from the 2018 ExpreiencePRS event, i find the Semi-Holkow tightens up the bass more than a fully solid 594.

I love semi-hollow, of course my 335 is my favourite of the type, but i also have a USA G&L ASAT semi-hollow that is a superb instrument. Just how different it is tonally from a solid body ASAT is debatable, but it looks great 😊

I've had a Les Paul custom, have played a bunch of them, and I have a 335 I've had for a long long time. To me there is a huge difference between a 335 and a Les Paul, a sonic difference, and I don't have, and will never have again a Les Paul. Also have an old 330 which is completely hollow and that guitar is totally different from any of the above.. it sounds like it's hollow, almost like a big jazz box like a es-175. To me a 335 sounds like it's a "little bit" hollow. Compared to a Les Paul it sounds warmer, thicker, like the pickups are surrounded by something with some acoustics rather than a solid block of wood. Then again it could all be in my head.

Love my hollowbody Gretsch. There's something to those guitars, a woodiness in the tone that you can't get otherwise

That is fantastic

wow amazing playing

Beautiful tone and playing! Which preset did you use at the beginning of the intro?

@johnnathancordy

Жыл бұрын

DumbTone I think it's called!

It seems that it's mostly about the air, which would even be true for a hollow body electric. A lot of people talk about the vibration of the top, but if it's a pressed laminate it's difficult to argue for its real tonal benefit, as laminates are generally tone suckers/deadeners (a fact which is VERY noticeable on old solid body, plywood import electrics). The air adds a dimension which is noticeable, maybe a little more than when swapping to a different bridge saddle material, or to a different nut.

Very nice solo!

To my experience, a hollowbody cut some frequencies in low medium (between 250k and 400k) and resonnates different.

If you were to divide all the factors of tone (wood type, pickups, wiring, design, etc) they all contrbute to the overall sound, however, not equally. I own tele, strat, LP, and an ibanez semi-hollow. Like my own children, i know the voice of each one, tho most couldnt distinguish the difference. I most certainly can tell the ibanez had the "woodiest" tone of them compared to the neck PU of any other guitar. How much of that comes from primarily the PU? Probably most, but 10% different is still different.

Ill take the lighter guitar that looks cool with the F hole with no tonal deficiencies and potentially some slightly added depth and fullness to the sound. Sounds like no negatives to me!

I really can’t tell a practical difference between semi hollow vs solid body. Maybe it’s because I compensate when I dial in the sound I like, but if I can do that i guess I really don’t need one. I can definitely tell a full hollow for that old school big band jazz though!

Really nice playing, reminds me of Eric Johnson

I think the warmoth KZread channel have the best tonal comparison videos if people want to hear the differences. To my ear there is a difference, but it is very slight. And once you start stacking effects, the difference goes away.

IMO the sound of semi-hollow are not distinct enough from solid body to be like "that's the semi-hollow sound" unless you do A/B testing. At Least for me I can't separate them in a recording.

I've started from the semi-hollow side of the spectrum and will add solid bodies thru time. I guess one thing i gravitate towards is that semi-hollow's typically have bigger bodies. I'm 6'2" and prefer to have more real estate. I don't notice much feedback issues when i play live... I have a thinline tele, Novo Miris, Gretsch Broadkaster and Gibson memphis 275 thinline and I am happy with what they can do. I also prefer gibson scale length personally for bends and such. the lighter weight is always an added bonus! Thanks John, love the content!

The point is… f-holes look cool. However, I do think that semi-hollow you played sounded absolutely fantastic and a little better than your solid body. Playing was fantastic on either one as always.

@johnnathancordy

Жыл бұрын

I thought it sounded better too, not sure if that was partly to do with the Handwound specials on it? But yeh - I think experimenting with this the semi-hollow doesn't really have any disadvantages that I can tell?

@Jeb_binch

Жыл бұрын

@@johnnathancordy I suspect any differences are 90% or more pickup and 10% or less everything else. I personally prefer semi-hollow teles but it’s an aesthetic/feel thing and likely has little to do with tone, more with vibe.

The mids definitely ring through more on the semi-hollow that's what makes these great blues guitars. They are also great if you're looking for a unique fuzz sound.

It doesn’t make any difference other than comfort and minor tonal differences with a modeler. With an amp they begin acting differently feedbacking sooner, resonating with the frequencies in the room

@johnnathancordy

Жыл бұрын

kzread.info/dash/bejne/oq1rtrR7g9WdnKg.html like this?

Really nice Andy Timmons vibes from the intro solo 😌🤌🏻!!

with an f-hole and a cavity under it, I believe there is a difference in how easy it is to get and use feedback.

I have a Harley Benton TE52, removed rubber poly paint, sprayed thin layer of nitro it made a difference in sound already. Then routed it under the pickguard and that modification changed the sound significantly, added wooden pickguard and this guitar is unique now. Love the acoustic qualities of my guitar.

I have no idea what the tonal difference is between solid and semi hollow, but I think you’re right that the difference is probably marginal and that the pickups are likely making the biggest difference.

See where your coming from on the Explorer/V thing, but I’m guessing you probably haven’t played them back to back. When I did so at the Gibson Garage in Nashville, it blew my mind. Same pickups, same wood, same everything … except the sound. Wasn’t miles apart in single note stuff, but playing rhythm with gain would definitely make you choose one over another for recording a track. Give it a try if you get a chance. It’s pretty cool.

Bukovac actually said the 335 allows you to use and control feedback

The 335 feeds back really a lot earlier than an PL on a loud stage. I hate loud stages so I gigged a 335 exclusively for years.

Yeah, I've often wondered about semi hollow bodies and if they'd add anything to my playing, seeing as I started out exclusively as an acoustic player, and still probably my forte given the superior sense of rhythm, time, and finger picking required, but sadly I don't think so. I also wonder if these semi and complete hollow bodies suffer from neck dive. I once played a horrible 12 string violin hollow body that sounded like crap and dove as if it's life depended on it, but attributed it to the larger headstock, so I don't know if that reflects on 6 string semi hollows or complete hollows.

I want those fingers! Where can I buy them?

Maybe a 335 verses a solid body 335 or a guitar with more acoustic real estate would be a better tone check than a two teles. For this guitar, the point is weight reduction. This is conjecture, but i figure the bigger the box, the more appreciable the difference is when it is solid or hollow. Im learning to, though. Theres this pawn shop Gretsch that Im waiting to lowball and see it every 3 months, big enough to sleep inside, and that thing makes noise when a stiff breeze passes by it.

A lot of people say the chambered sides add resonance. But a guitar is a passive instrument. There’s no adding anything-just subtracting. A more hollow guitar is absorbing string energy and converting it into acoustic volume. So it’s acoustically louder at the expense of shorter sustain. A solid guitar sustains longer because less string energy is absorbed. But it has less acoustic volume. Semi hollows tend to absorb high frequencies more than lows. So it’s perceived as warmer. But it’s not adding lows, it’s absorbing highs away from the pickups.

A solid piece of wood that is hollowed out (like a thinline telecaster) is different than laminated maple back, sides and top like a 335. Your telecaster is still just a solid chambered body electric in my opinion (not a semi-hollow) and won't sound hardly any different than a regular solidbody. I wouldn't expect much tone difference like I would vs a 335 style.

@compucorder64

Ай бұрын

It does sound a bit different, mainly being less bright, but that could be the pickups or other factors. But yeah, it's definitely more obvious with a 335, even more with a Casino, even more with a Country Gentleman / big-body hollowbody Ibanez / Guild or whatever. I wasn't thinking so much about the laminated maple, but it's true. I mean, classical guitars made from different woods sound vastly different - and so do my Sire H7 & Epiphone Casino. Unplugged, the Casino sounds a bit like a high strung acoustic guitar - loads of bell-like sustain.

Nice nod to Whitney 1:44 🤙

I think thin lines are made to play unplugged as well as plugged. I own Epiphone 335. there is some difference between as les Paul style body. semi- hollow bodies are jack of all trades guitar.

Personally I don’t believe in Tonewood for solid or semihollow electric guitars but I absolutely do believe in FEELwood. It matters in your hands and that’s way more important than whether the wood is actually doing anything to the sound.

I’ve never liked thinlines, they sound kind of gutless. I am however a big fan of 335 and Gretch style semis. When the amp is driven and moving some air, the semis come alive. My ultimate semi would have a PAG in the bridge and a filtertron in the neck.

Intro jam might be your best yet!

Ibanez makes the best sounding ES-335-type guitars. You should try one with the Super 58 pickups.

and of course there's the non-obvious feedback, where the feedback is at a level where it's simply reinforcing your tone but not going wild -- this is part of the semihollow experience.

I have a chambered LP. It's the best one I've ever heard!

fuck me that was some choice playing bro,,,so good

Whilst I am largely in agreement, nonethelss there are a few chambered body electric guitars which IMO sound not quite the same as their solid body equivalents. For example: *1) Yamaha Revstar* - This seems to have its' own sound due to the way the body is chambered. *2) Gretsch G5655t* - Somehow Gretsch seem to have kept a typical 'Gretsch' sound with this guitar, which sounds very similar to the hollow-body G5420 equivalent. For me, the main advantage the G5655 has over the G5420 is the smaller body size. And the G5655t is a better guitar than the G5220. *3) Godin Radiator* this to me doesn't sound quite like ANY of the Godin solid body guitars.

Good lord you are a phenomenal player. I would hardly count a thinline tele as "semi" hollow, more of a "barely" hollow 😂 the magic happens on the 335 style guitars. The thing about semi hollows is that they're not usually main production models for company's so some of them can be kind of crap on arrival cause you're buying something that's not really a mainstay, they don't always get the same love and care during production as solid body guitars of similar value. For me the ibanez asv73 is one of my favorite semi hollows I've ever played. And if you want to hear the biggest secret to make an amazing semi hollowbody tone the answer is a set of humbucker sized p90s. They really open up some of that mud semi hollows have innately and give you great clarity while retainimg lovely bottom end.

This is an interesting question. It may be an unpopular opinion, but I don't get the point of semis, except fully hollow electrics such as 330 / Casino and Falcons. I went on a journey of convincing myself that 335 style guitars were amazing and bought a few (including a Players Edition Gretch Falcon and a Historic Reissue Gibson 335), tried them for recording and live, but I have now sold them all except for two fully hollow Gretsches with trestle bracing. I just don't get the point of a centre block. To my ears, the 335 did not add anything significant compared to any other good solid body guitars. The 330 / Casino which is fully hollow is a different beast. The difference there is really noticeable tone wise.

@NoCoverCharge

Жыл бұрын

I have a falcon and it’s amazing my semi hollow novo let’s me cover a lot of ground especially with songs I use to play my acoustic on .. now I can play the semi hollow

@mortonwilson795

Жыл бұрын

Similar experience - could never 'bond' with 335s but my new Casino has become my flavour of the month - partly the slim neck, but also the Lollars and new wiring which have got a nice 60's jingle jangle thing. I play a lot just acoustically for noodling ideas - lovely guitar!

Teles can get heavy. There are some pushing upper end of les Paul weight. Over 9 pounds easy.

“The lick” 1:26

Ok, so my takeaways are that ash is heavy, so Fender have added an ashhole to their Tele. The ashhole doesn't effect the sound.

@tylerdurden5122

Жыл бұрын

My ashhole is very resonant but can get sloppy at higher volumes. That feedback is not pretty

@bgrierofficial

Жыл бұрын

@@tylerdurden5122 🤣🤣🤣

I’ve loaded the same pickups (PRails) in several guitars. My Ibanez AS 120 semi hollow is actually brighter than my solid body guitars (despite having a shorter scale). Probably because the neck, center block and top, back and sides are all maple. BTW, that Nashville guy proved absolutely nothing (except that he is energetic) with those popular videos. Any one who actually works with a wide variety of instruments, and puts the same pickups in them learns quickly that wood makes a LOT of difference to tone - especially on the neck pickup. His biggest mistake was testing the bridge pickup position, where wood has the least effect.

Very tasty, understated playing. I hear a lot of Holdsworth influences. The older I get the lighter I want my guitar. That said, a poorly balanced, neck heavy guitar is unplayable for me. One of my favorite instruments is a 7.5 lb 1999 Ash Strat. Not because it's the lightest guitar I own but because it's the best balanced and causes the least fatigue. To each his own!

My Strat sounds like needle but my Semi Hollow sounds like you get hit by a brickwall. It has so much more headroom.

To me personally, semi electrics feel more like guitars to me. You have the resonant body vibrating as you play, it's a wonderful experience that solid body electrics don't do well

A 335 sounds different from a 339 even though the centre block is the same…

Some proper cheese on toast, sipping a cup of tea playing there chap. Very nice. You’ve landed me in a bit of a quandary otherwise. More in the midi mad scientist club. Bugger !

Considering the tiny amount of wood lost in a Thinline Fender, I wouldn't call it semi-hollow with anything but the token f-hole, which is more a cosmetic appointment than anything else, as its claim to the title. Compared with a true semi, like the ES335, the differences in tone, feel, attack and response, taking into account differences in construction, are huge. Played live, and giving it some beans, you can feel the air pumping out of the f-holes of a 335, suggesting a more acoustic response; won't happen with a Thinline Tele, which may as well be all-solid for the difference it makes. Disclaimer; I have owned/own both styles. Nice playing.