Are you sure they didn't send you a prepped ringer? The strings and the shim is the big tell.

Wish we woulda had stuff like this 40 years ago

I bet they did all the necessary fret work, intonated it, set it up, shimmed it for proper neck angle, then shipped it to you! And now they are of course $179! It's amazing what these companys will do to move product!

The shim is a good thing,It shows they cared enough to make correct ajustments ,A shim is part of the guitar ajustment ,and probably works better than fenders micro tilt.Leo use to shim alot to get proper neck angle ,I do too .Your upper string action will be as good at the 15th fret as it is at the 10th fret, and all the way to the last fret.Shim is part of the guitar.

I bought my Fender Squier for $179 and it sounds awesome enough to me. 😊

What a time for beginning guitar players..you get a decent guitar now for very little money ...

I love the reviews I found you recently but I've been playing for well over 10 years thank you so much for everything you do!

Great review Sean . I;m impressed .

oommg... i wasnt expecting this... SOO SOLID SOUND !!! okay i am buying

I taught guitar for decades & I always said ‘if it doesn’t stay in tune it’s useless…doesn’t matter what it looks like or how it sounds if it doesn’t stay in tune’ amen

My experience with the Leo Jaymz I bought, the flag fender looking thing, was not very good. You got one that HAD to be pre setup. I had to do everything to mine to get it to play even close to others I have. Shimed neck, reduced neck thickness, replaced tuners & 2 pickups. Neck was raw wood & ruff as a cactus. Radius is 14, flat as a pankake. Glad yours was free. No more of those for me.

I picked up a Leo Jaymz Les Paul copy. 200 bucks and it plays and sounds excellent. Looks pretty sharp too. For the price point, you can't beat it!

Hey if you're here watching my video, hit the like button or a little monkey is gonna run up your body and do bad things to your ears!!

The best thing about budget guitars . Modding them . Thanks for the video.

Thanks for the review!

I loved the moment when you first started playing plugged in, heard the tone and looked confused before you even said anything as if to say "this can't be, it sounds beautiful!" :p thank you for a great video :)

I recently got the same one in the brown/tobacco type flame and I haven't found a reason to change anything about it except the knobs which I changed to zebra wood to match the body. You simply can not beat this for the price! Drooling over another one. Subbed!

WTF? How did I just find this channel!! Had to subscribe.

I was waiting for some shredding 🎉🎉🎉

Great review, man! Thanks for being honest about it…

Nice demo brother...thanks! Liked and Subscribed!!!!

Thanks for the video. I just ordered the same for $139. Arrives Tuesday before my first lesson!!!

They said they were gonna "change your mind", translation, we are gonna take a bunch of extra time on the neck so it feels really good and hope you talk about how nice it plays, so we can sell pieces of shit to everyone else

I’m gonna start ranting about cheap lambo kit cars!! Someone might send me one yo wreck… er I mean test drive! ✌🏽🤨✌🏽

That sounds correct. I want a great Telecaster so bad. Thanks for the video! Subbed

🤘🔥🔥🤘just subbed glad i came aross this channel

The body is made of Philippine Mahogany not Honduras "real" Mahogany. It's a much lighter less dense wood that's easy to machine and is stable. A good choice when cost is important.

Great video, great channel. I got my son a LTD Phoenix, and I could not believe how great the machining is these days. It's no handmade Firebird, but it is very sweet.

How you can tell if you have a "photo-finish" vs. a real wood veneer is to look for what is known as "chatoyance". What that means is the natural shimmer of the woodgrain under strong light. The fibers of the wood are whatever color the wood is, but the connective tissue (think gristle) that binds the fibers together is clear, so when you look at the guitar under strong (or sun) light and you tilt the guitar back and forth, the woodgrain glows prettily and seems to move a little bit under the clear finish as you tilt the guitar back and forth. Any flamey Gibson will show tons of this. If you do this and the light doesn't dance with the woodgrain and seems very static and unchanging, it's a photo-finish. Which isn't necessarily bad - I've seen some photo-finishes that were damned attractive. Some early photo-finishes from the late 90s when they came up with the idea are now turning to crap as either the paper or the adhesive deteriorates due to age. I imagine they have better methods now, but I don't have data on it.

My favorite neck is the MIM classic 50' vintage soft V shape lacquered. It's beautiful. Stratocaster.

Been wanting a tele for a while now. Definitely take one like that .

Hi Shane,I absolutely love watching you play guitar. You really get into it! I myself own several budget axes. I play left handed so I'm limited to market. I own a lot of epi and older jay turser. Got a firefly 335 style. So lefties are more available, than the were in the 60s 70s and 80s thank to CNC machines. Thanks shone for all the great reviews! Jim K. Las Vegas Nev.

For a first guitar, it's pretty impressive. I'll still cast a skeptical eye because of the parts' durability over time. If nothing else, it's a nice starting platform for modifications.

I love your show man. I've been playing for few decades and I've just Dalles in love with Harley Benton. The JA22 jazzmaster is my newest favorite guitar for under 150

Ahh Blueburst, a man of fine taste. Recently subscribed. Love your videos. Greetings from Japan! I have a blueburst Epiphone Japan Les Paul. I've been meaning to upload a video for a while. Might need to add this Tele to my collection 😁

Cool vid. I dig these guitars. Maybe they sent you one that was plecked, since they know you are a reviewer. Maybe not. But they sure as he11 don't know who I am.... and I've bought 4 Leos. All 4 were at least "Very good," with a couple being damm near perfect... right slam out of the box. I absolutely love what Leo Jaymz has been doing the last couplea' years. Awesome guitars, for the cash they ask.

I don’t know what budget guitars you’ve tried before, but there are some really nice budget guitars out there, like, EART,Jet, Amuse, and FireFly, just to name a few! These guitars have roasted maple necks, stainless steel frets, full size pots, and the list of specs goes on! I know there are some really bad ones out there, but, if you try some of the ones I listed, you won’t be disappointed! Now, I’ve tried Leo Jaymez also and in my opinion, they don’t hold a match to the ones I’ve named! Give ‘em try, if you dare!

Thank you for sharing. Boy that sure looked pretty and sounds good too.

I like your enthusiasm and humour and of course your knowledge. That's a great guitar for the money from what I can and certainly hear. I like your playing do you have vid of you playing anywhere?

Really engaging review, thanks. Beauty! I really like the Leo Jaymz lime green metal flake sparkle tele - gorgeous. But not available in the UK as far as I can see.

Just found your channel, I like it!

I own two Leo Jaymz tele models and they came hot like this one right out of the box. If I had a hankering, I might drop some Fender pickups in one of them, but truth be told, they sound and play fantastic!

great axe man! looks and sounds great for the $$$$$'s cheers for the demo... NZ

Thanks for the informative video. However, I noticed your Fender Frontman 212R in the background. I have a 2007 Model, but loaded with one WGS ET-65, and one WGS Retro 30. Hence, the sound went from below average with the original Fender Design Speakers, to just killer tones with incredible headroom straight in, no matter the genre. In short, it can sound as sweet as Carlos Santana, to as roaring as EVH. No problem.

They sent you the best example of what they have. I'm sure they spent more time on it than they would normally.

Really good, fun review dude

Man you do one fun reiew. You might have even sucked me into buying one just for curiosity. Hell if the guitar seriously underwhelms me at least it's a good piece of wall art.

I really love your videos dude.

Just shows how much markup there is on brand name guitars made in china. It's a shame the quality isn't this good on some of them.

Larry your are amazing. That Tele sounds great. Keep up the good work. I enjoy watching your videos. You are a master at what you do.

I didn't say anything, but did have an idea that any guitar sent out for review would be prepped. Anyway, I ordered one - even with the price markup to $179 it's would still be a deal according to your review. The guitar just arrived today. Yep; double boxed with a nice gray gig bag, but not inside the bag as if that matters. Tools are taped to the neck (though the smaller allen fits nothing on the guitar), same inner packing as yours. Mine is clearly a hard maple neck, but not a flicker of flame in it - no skunk stripe either. I didn't examine the electronic guts since the stuff couldn't be any different than yours; didn't bother looking for a neck shim either. The bridge pickup is actually labeled "Alnico V" (not a brand name but a claim of the strongest possible alloy magnet). Nut is well cut - no whittling needed. Frets ends are remarkably well-manicured and the frets are level and polished. Low action - a bit too low as there's some fret buzzing, but after tuning tension is applied there's still a bit of back bowing; can fix that in a jiffy. The intonation on mine is quite a bit off... all strings note flat one-octave higher (12th fret for you country folks :) ). All that said, I've bought new Fenders that needed the same touching up. Your review is outstanding and the guitar is a bargain even with the recently elevated price!

that is a alot of guitar for 139 bucks wow nice review man

Good review great for someone just starting out, do you have the matching strat hanging on the wall behind you lol?

I got one a week ago, mine is very satisfactory . I did do a fret level,crown and polish . Most novice owners probably wouldn't have the knowledge to tackle that and in reality it was playable out of the box. I commonly do this to most all my guitars to get the best possible action. I also rolled the fingerboard edges. I did replace the crappy plastic nut , however it was cut well and useable. To me the pickups are fine ,the electronics are quiet and work smoothly. Very happy with it and the price is more than fair. Very good job on packing.I recommend it without a doubt.

It even has that Tele chime that sets it apart from other guitars! Lot of budget Tele's don't chime so well.

Really enjoy your videos, thanks so much!

I was going to change some things on my Classic Vibe Squier but maybe I'll buy something like this instead for a modding platform. It would be nice to have a vintage appointment and a more modern appointment Tele. Two things kinda bug me about it though. Not sure about the clear guard. I guess they wanted to show off that flame top and it does look fantastic but it leaves the truss rod access hole to be seen and that's second gripe I'd have as I prefer access to the truss rod up by the nut. Still though like you said for 139 bills can't expect perfect. Thx for sharing.

Just found this love it. Thanks and its $179 now they were really kissin up to you for $139 good deal

I have been hearing alot about this company. I have seen multiple videos on different models and it seems they are a good value. That tele looks pretty sweet.

Honestly without seeing and hearing before I can't believe the price for a playable guitar . Sounds and looks great . I'd play it on a gig ..well a few songs . I have a Fisher handmade in Coalport , Pa by an ex dentist who decided to make guitars . Half the good players in town own at least one .24 fret neck , one piece neck thru and some have 24 frets . I think you'd love them ! Nice review ! Still unreal for the price .

Hello from your old time viewer Sean, hope you doin fine 🙏 That guitar neck is my fav part of the guitar, because for me, the neck determine how good the guitar will feel in your hands. So, a perfect fret job and a flame maple neck is perfect for me. I would prefer a string through Tele. GBU Sean

What a fantastic video have a good weekend

Wow. Guitar renaissance at the moment. You make beautiful guitars but what’s coming out of the east right now is astonishing. As an amateur home luthier why even build your own if you don’t have a proper shop. Just upgrade and do the simple things. I like the clear pick guard.

The pickups sound great .... You rock much love

Great nice thank for sharing 😊

It looks gorgeous. How good are the tuners? The pickups sound pretty good for cheap ceramics too. I agree, a pickup and electronics upgrade is all it needs to be super sweet.

Those pups sound almost as good as the Seymour Duncan pickups I bought for about $130...each!!

First time I seen your channel and I've watched her do the guitar so I followed the link they jacked the price on you it's 179 on sale for 159. I was looking through it I was thinking about getting that green one the same style that you had and then there's an American flag That one's 119

Love the look of the neck on this..reminds me of my old 80s guitars. Lol

Nice guitar, I checked with the link you supplied, unfortunately, this model is not there, the only ones I found are $400 and dont look as good as this one. Thanks for the demo.

I hope to play as good as you some day and I bought one of those guitas and I love it.

After your detailed inspection and plugging it in ... descent sound for the money!

There's a shim in the neck pocket, so it's been through some kind of setup / QC. That's a good thing. The body and neck looks really nice, and for that price I'd just pop some of my own choice pups in there and maybe a new set of tuners. And I'd still be under budget. The guitar also came with a gig bag and D'Addarios, which are not free, so the cost of the guitar itself is just about $100. I'm surprisingly positive about this guitar...

I've never seen a $150 Chinese guitar with perfect fret levelling. They definitely sent you a "special" on for review lol

I am not crazy about the pickups,but as a beginner instrument, it’s great. Intonation and tuning are key.

Hi - nice guitar for the money! Two things - #1 the hole in the neck pocket is a registration hole for the CNC milling machine and #2 I didn't see a ground wire going from the bridge plate to the back of one of the pots.

Your personality sold your channel, I subscribed :)

Harmony used to "stripe" their (birch) guitar backs with a fine-pointed spraypaint gun, and I have an old factory-made fiddle with a flamed maple back which was actually laid down with a needle-point torch (the flame figure was evident on the purfling, which should have been intact). In 1978, Hondo II LP copies rolled out the "roto" manufacturing method of printing a photo of figured wood on a plain top, since adopted by nearly everybody since. Manufacturers have clever ways to make inexpensive guitars look amazing. Given the price of raw stripe maple, this may well be a combination of some of these methods. Having said that, if a guitar feels good and plays good, IT IS GOOD. High or low, price be damned.

Leave the stock pickups, spend time adjusting their height and bass/treble tip by ear for the best tone, and swap the pots, switch, and jack. That's it.

I think you need to check out the firefly tele style guitar . I just purchased one and it’s awesome. Full size pots stainless steel lockers. I know you don’t like them. But they’re just like the fenders made of stainless steel. Just know F on the lockers. I got the HH model and of course budget guitar need a little work but all the components are high-end stainless steel rounded frets excellent tremolo two-point. Give it a look at Qatar garden $169. Have a great day Shawn love your channel. Keep up the good work .

That looked like a pretty thick shim.

Sean to my ear it's not full tele twang, but it's smartly made! Great neck and Mahogany body. Cheers 😎

i've bought a few of the Les Paul style guitars from them. i just swap the pickups and pots usually. upgrading the cheap guitars is more fun and cost effective. but out of the box the value is pretty wild.

Out Skirts Of Montreal Canada Happy New Year G.

Ok your video got me to buy one.....

try a EART, before they became a popular cheap option and the price went up they were $150-$250. the headless i got was nice, the bridge meh $60 bridge, the rest holy crap! the strat i grabbed for my buddy is better than any other cheap guitar i've had.

that toggle switch noise is a cow bell affect comes in handy

I ordered one because of this video. It arrived today in a single small triangle shaped box. Instead of a gig bag, it was in a white plastic sack. The action looked good, but only because of a severe back bow. Every string fretted out when using open chords. The fret tops were as rough as a fingernail file and the ends were very sharp to snag my fingers. No flame on the neck and no skunk stripe on the back. They scammed us with this ringer.

Yeah and the neck is different when you look on the back You got that stripe up the side of that neck but the one in in the link doesn't have that dark stripe up the middle

It has a microphonic bridge pup and/or bridge. A buddy bought a Glarry Tele for my birthday. Bridge and Bridge pickup so microphonic you could hear my eyeballs thru the amp if I even looked at it. Guitar was good after 2 hours work and shopping carefully for $80.00 in parts.

I lost my sheet at 3:14 spit my coffee out laughing🤣🤣🤣

A political/economic tactic that some countries use is to export and sell products in other countries for a price that is actually below the cost of manufacturing. The manufacturers are subsidized by their government, in other words that foreign government absorbs some of the cost of manufacturing the products (s.g., that foreign government may cover the cost of labor or may provide manufacturing facilities or cover the cost f energy, etc). This is done to undermine foreign economies and/or obtain US currency. If a country does what is described above it is typically or often a violation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) rules - if that country of origin is a member of the WTO, which most countries are.

Sure agree with badhands wish I'd had one like this when I was learning, instead of all the radio shack, harmony etc..pex

Plug that hole with a hardwood dowel. Just before you glue the dowel in, check how it sounds by dry fitting the dowel.

That looks like a good platform for some mods...I.E. pickups, pots & switch for sure. That top doesn't look like a photo...too much movement in the flame. 👍👍 Damn sure beats the 1k x 2k price of some of the leading makers.

I just happened on this channel - this guy is interesting, down to earth - someone I could crack a beer and hang out with. I like his approach, at one point he had me laughing so hard I spilled my coffee! Nice tele, some of these deals are amazing, and a lot of the work you can do yourself if you're mechanically inclined. Think I'll be back... 😏

Sean, maybe I'll get one of these to play with before I cut that big slab of Walnut I have...

Thanks!

I can’t buy the parts for that price! Wonder what they feed the labor?

If I’m not. Is taken that bridge pickup looked like it probably has alnico pole pieces, pretty good for a cheep guitar