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Post subject: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 10:50 am
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I've read horror stories about setting up the bridges in these guitars. I have my eye on a Jazzmaster, but if it's going to be a bunch of hassle I'll have to pass. Am I going to be constantly fiddling with the guitar or will I get to play and enjoy it?


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 1:37 pm
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I used to have a 62' American Vintage Reissue and I never had too much trouble. The only reason I got rid of it is because it sounded too Similar to my Strat. Still A great Guitar with awesome Vibe!


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 5:07 pm
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I like the J Mascis Jazzmaster because it's a "real" Jazzmaster. It has the tremolo, it has Jazzmaster pickups, and it has the complex switching with the wheels above the neck pickup of the original Jazzmaster.


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 5:52 pm
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Really depends on your style of playing.

Pass on it if you play metal.

Art


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 6:22 pm
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My style is heavily influenced by metal, and I play a Telecaster among other guitars. It gets just as heavy and nasty as I want it through with the right effects and amp. I played the Jazzmaster through my amp and pedal, and it did just fine on my high distortion sound. I like that single coil through heavy distortion sound. That was Billy Corgan's early sound. And I am also a Dinosaur Jr fan and I like J Mascis' tone. I don't use one type of tone, so I like to have a variety of guitars (even though I have 6 Strats) with a variety of diverse sounds. That's the main reason I'm buying a Fender Marauder in a few days. It is offset, and it has a 5 way switch with 5 completely different tones. Palm muting sounds better with a humbucker, but other than that I am perfectly happy playing metal sounds through a single coil pickup.


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 6:41 pm
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Then, unless you "must have" the vintage bridge, I would do one of two things, get the Classic Player, alder body, (half the price, Tuno-O-matic bridge.) Or, get one of the vintage reissues and slap a modified mustang bridge on it.

The J Mascis isn't that expensive and has the TOM bridge. I haven't had any problem with my jags. And jaguars seem happier when you feed them heavier strings.

Art


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 6:57 pm
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Art1 wrote:
Then, unless you "must have" the vintage bridge, I would do one of two things, get the Classic Player, alder body, (half the price, Tuno-O-matic bridge.) Or, get one of the vintage reissues and slap a modified mustang bridge on it.

The J Mascis isn't that expensive and has the TOM bridge. I haven't had any problem with my jags. And jaguars seem happier when you feed them heavier strings.

Art


The Squier is an offwhite color with a gold pickguard. Very nice guitar. It has jumbo frets, which will take some getting used to because I slide a lot. Or maybe I'll play in a different style without as much sliding on this guitar. I like for guitars to challenge me.

And the Squier version is about $400. I could have gotten this one for $300 if I had had the money. The sale ended today.

I want the vintage bridge. I want the full Jazzmaster owner's experience. I want the authentic Jazzmaster feel.


Last edited by bugo on Wed Feb 08, 2012 11:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 7:48 pm
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J Mascis has the tuneo-matic or adjustomatic style bridge (like a Gibson) with traditional jag/jazz trem which, like its Classic Player cousin, appears to be mounted closer to the bridge than the vintage trem. It does not have the vintage bridge which had threaded saddles, each individually height adjustable. That is where people have issues because the strings would pop out of the "threads" when played hard. You won't have that problem on either of your guitars.

I believe your JMascis bridge is like this:
Image

The J Mascis uses the same vintage trem mechanism (minus the Trem-o-loc).

It's hard to lump Jags and Jazzes into a single category now days because of the difference in the type of bridge used (even though the Trem may be the same.)

Best thing to do, you have already done. Go to the store and play 'em. I have a Classic Player Jag and a 62 reissue(CS 62 NOS) and I love them both. (two different style bridges, same trem.) 50th Anniversary LPB Jag is on order. I played both Jags and JMs in the 60s and learned to treat them kindly. With the TOM/AOM bridge, you can get more aggressive.

Edit:
For reference, this is the original style bridge: (from fenderjaguar.net)
Image

Art


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Mon Feb 06, 2012 2:34 pm
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If you ask the diehard jag/jazz fans like the ones you'll find at offsetguitars.com, they will flat out deny there is any issue with the these guitars. Funny though that if you do a Google search there are many many sites dealing with the same setup issues; strings jumping out of the saddles, tuning instability, etc. It seems like the fixes for these issues have been around almost as long as the models themselves (mustang bridge, buzz stop bar, etc). I love the jag and jazz but can't deal with the fussiness. I built myself a Warmoth jazzer with a hardtail TOM bridge and was stoked when F came out with the 50th Jag that seems address some of the typical issues. IMO the standard vintage jag/jazz trem system is a pain in the $@!. I'd at least go with a CP Jag or Jazzer if you suspect the vintage model will annoy you. My $0.02.


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Mon Feb 06, 2012 3:26 pm
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Except the Classic Players use the very same Trem system as the vintage (different collett for the trem arm.)

The Adjustomatic bridge is what really sets them apart. And, if you are into bending strings, the 9 1/2 neck radius is a blessing. (ok, the neck pocket is a little different and Trem is closer to the bridge.)

Tuning was never a problem, or staying in tune.

I kind of like the looks of the 50th anniversary model. Bits of Jaguars from throughout the 50 years. Some vintage, some Classic Player, and even routings for the mute which is absent, since many people removed them anyhow.

Art


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2012 9:25 am
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I have a '89 American Series strat (with jumbo frets and maple neck) and a '62 AVRI Jazzmaster. They both sound quite different and play different, but neither is 'bad' in my book. I love both of them. (FWIW I haven't had any problems with the bridge on the JM (yet), and I can manage whole tone bends on the fretboard. If you can afford to get the AVRI JM then I'd say go for it - they are beautiful geetars.)


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Fri Feb 10, 2012 9:18 pm
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There is no "trouble" with Jazzmasters and Jaguars. They are designed and constructed well and performed splendidly on much important music, for decades.

That said, the JM was designed to be a solidbody contender for the traditional Jazzbox market.

The Jaguar was a short scale, upmarket instrument intended to flagship the Fender line, lure Gibson players.

Both JM and Jag fulfill their design well, being eloquent, playable, superb quality instruments with gobs of slightly-off-the-beaten-path vibe.

However, as stated above, to be conservative, "...are not ideally suited for metal." (Get something pointy with overwound humbuckers....)


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Sat Feb 11, 2012 8:26 am
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JSJH wrote:
There is no "trouble" with Jazzmasters and Jaguars. They are designed and constructed well and performed splendidly on much important music, for decades.

That said, the JM was designed to be a solidbody contender for the traditional Jazzbox market.

The Jaguar was a short scale, upmarket instrument intended to flagship the Fender line, lure Gibson players.

Both JM and Jag fulfill their design well, being eloquent, playable, superb quality instruments with gobs of slightly-off-the-beaten-path vibe.

However, as stated above, to be conservative, "...are not ideally suited for metal." (Get something pointy with overwound humbuckers....)


+1

Different guitars for different music/playing styles. I have two Jags (another on its way) a Epi Les Paul, and a Peavey Reactor w/maple fretboard (tele clone.) The Jags are the best of the bunch in my opinion and I can bend quite easily on all of them.

As far as tuning issues that people complain about, if you aren't using the trem, lock it. If you break a string, lock the trem. Your tuning will be back to normal. ANY guitar with a tremelo will go out of tune when a string breaks due to the reduced string tension.

JMO

Art


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Sat Feb 18, 2012 4:55 pm
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Most of the so-called "trouble" was invented on the internet. The bridges are different than the bridges in a strat or tele. Once you understand how they work, they are no trouble at all.


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Post subject: Re: Are Jazzmasters and Jaguars worth the trouble?
Posted: Sat Feb 18, 2012 7:30 pm
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I just got rid of my BT Jazzy and the Bridge was one of the main reasons. No matter what I did, I couldn't get it right. That said, I wouldn't let something as easily fixable the bridge keep you from buying a Jag or Jazzmaster. I played a AVRI with Mustang Saddles and it was absolutely perfect.

My local shop actually replaces all of their Jags and JMs with Mustang saddles because they were getting so many returns. They throw the old saddles in a ziploc and throw it in the case, in case the buyer is a purist.


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