If you haven’t played a Thinline in a while, Fender’s Custom Shop is delivering pure magic with these.

Thinline Telecasters have always been one of our favorite Tele models. Lightweight, incredibly responsive, and with a fatter, punchier tone than their solid-body counterparts (which, of course, we also love).

This particular LTD NAMM 2020 Custom Shop Thinline features a stunning, hollow 2-piece ash body and a 3A flame maple neck with a rosewood fingerboard. The 60s Oval neck carve is slightly chunky (in a great way), with comfortable shoulders—not too wide—making it feel instantly familiar and perfect for a range of players.

Plugged into a cranked Victoria Club Deluxe (with a little too much reverb we admit), we were floored by its throaty, punchy growl paired with a sweet top-end. It’s like a cross between a solid-body, P90-equipped guitar and a classic Tele. Clean tones are beautiful, but when we turned up the amp a little (okay, a lot), the overdriven tones were incredible. It’s the kind of tone that makes you forget you even own a set-neck mahogany guitar. Fantastic stuff.