I bought my squier affinity telecaster in february 2007 from cranes in cardiff for just 120 pounds! I had my eye on it for a while and had heard good things about it, for my second guitar it was great, no cheap and nasty finishes it was made from alder and the gleam off the metallic blue body just instantly attracted me. The sound was equally pleasing but i must stress that the quality of sound is really all down to the amplifier that you have. I started using my new tele on a 20w Peavey amp and the sound was ok but then i bought a laney linebacker with more than double the power of the peavey. The linebacker is such a good amplifier its unbelievable and i've even posted a review about that as well! So more about the sound. There are two knobs on the body: Volume and Tone. Accompanied by a three way selector switch. This guitar can really do it all. Whether you're into blues, rock, or country and light pop it has a style for everybody. Personally i am a status quo rocker and the tele can give enough distortion and plenty of tone to give that real quo sound! It comes with fender 9's already strung on to the neck and the metal is very high quality indeed, nothing cheap and tacky. Its just utterly gorgeous and really suitable for a first time - intermediate guitarist, it really is just superb! As i mentioned earlier, plug it into a low powered starter amp and it will sound rubbish. Plug it into a larger, better quality amp and the sound is staggering! Overall i am giving this guitar the rating of 8/10, for the quality, sound and price you simply cannot go wrong.