drumuitar
Joined: Feb 28, 2006
Posts: 813
Boise, ID
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Posted on Mar 18 2011 01:29 PM
I sold some unused gear (parts mostly) and decided to get one of the new Guitar Fetish Xaviere offsets. I only had a few minutes to check it out yesterday but these guitars are seriously a steal for 200 and change. The body is slightly smaller than a Jazzmaster, which I actually like. I bought the vintage cream one and I can find no flaws in the finish and everything is smooth. I was really surprised at the Fender floating Jazz trem clone...in that it is a very close copy, unlike the junky ones that Eastwood has on their Mosrite clones. It has a pop-in arm that actually works, feels pretty close to a Jazz trem, although it doesn't have a trem lock. The bridge is also a good copy of the Jazz/Jag bridge.
I already had planned on swapping out the neck for a Strat neck, cuz the headstock is so fugly. That being said, the neck and frets are finished well, altho the neck is a little chunky for my taste. I haven't opened it up to look inside, but I have heard from other Xaviere owners that there's no shielding on the pickquard and the wiring will probably need to be upgraded. All-in-all, these are really nice guitars even if they were priced a couple hundred more. With some upgrades it will be even better.
— Shawn Martin
http://www.drummerman.net
http://www.youtube.com/GKacedrummerman
http://www.facebook.com/drumuitar
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surferXmatt
Joined: Aug 27, 2008
Posts: 1570
New York
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Posted on Mar 18 2011 02:04 PM
Please post a in depth review and some sound clips if you get a chance, or video would be cool. I was considering buying one of these for "cheap thrills". I think I would go for the cream or surf green. How yellow is that vintage cream color?
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Rob_J
Joined: Sep 29, 2007
Posts: 500
Sacto, CA
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Posted on Mar 18 2011 02:50 PM
Not a bad looking JM clone. I could live with the headstock, although it certainly doesn't look as classy as a Fender, but then again - it's NOT a Fender. Would a Fender neck even fit?
For the price it is a nice looking alternative to the real deal. Hope it feels and plays good.
Last edited: Mar 18, 2011 14:51:56
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drumuitar
Joined: Feb 28, 2006
Posts: 813
Boise, ID
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Posted on Mar 18 2011 04:22 PM
Rob_J wrote:
Not a bad looking JM clone. I could live with the
headstock, although it certainly doesn't look as classy
as a Fender, but then again - it's NOT a Fender. Would
a Fender neck even fit?
For the price it is a nice looking alternative to the
real deal. Hope it feels and plays good.
Yeah, it has the same heel size as a Strat. It obviously doesn't have the switching system but I honestly wouldn't even use them. If I get a chance, I'll make some audio clips. The cream finish looks pretty much like it does in the pics on the GFS website. I was thinking about the surf green but already have a surf green Strat. The shade on the Xaviere doesn't look quite the same and I don't like dark pickguards with surf or seafoam green.
— Shawn Martin
http://www.drummerman.net
http://www.youtube.com/GKacedrummerman
http://www.facebook.com/drumuitar
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ravcon
Joined: Feb 20, 2010
Posts: 727
Charlotte, NC
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Posted on Mar 18 2011 08:50 PM
I was interested in those but have read some pretty bad reports on their customer service. They look very nice though, and the color choices are pretty sweet.
— Mike
manfromravcon.com
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bodysnatcher1
Joined: Mar 16, 2010
Posts: 215
Norwalk Ca
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Posted on Mar 18 2011 09:34 PM
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surferXmatt
Joined: Aug 27, 2008
Posts: 1570
New York
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Posted on Mar 18 2011 10:18 PM
Yeah... I have a Sonic Blue Jag-Stang.. don't really use it anymore however, I wouldn't want two guitars with too similar color. Cream it is. I am in the same boat.. I wouldn't use the additional JM controls really. If I get one, I will swap out the neck, tuners and rewire it most likely. Seems like a decent way to achieve the Jazzmaster vibe on a budget. Also, eyeballing their Telemasters.. hmmm.
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kick_the_reverb
Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 1339
Escondido, CA
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Posted on Mar 19 2011 03:16 AM
I just got one of those as a backup guitar. Just came back from set up. I had them replace the tremolo with an AVRI one, mainly for the heavier spring (I run 65-15 D-D).
BTW the "stock" tremolo arm that came with the Xaviere kept falling out.
Plays nice, sounds good, I still need to try it in rehearsal, to see how it works in a band context.
I did notice a tiny amount of buzz when not touching it (probaly ground issue), others have reported similar stuff.
I found a tiny blem on the bottom of the guitar, wrote to them and they gave me $15 refund.
If you're the modding type, you can buy their JT-40 which has the right size of body and location of the tremolo cavity (in the JT-100 it's closer to the bride like a JM CP for example), and then change out the pickups for JM type (you'll need to route for the JM pickups and mod the pickguard or get a new one made).
Ran
— The Scimitars
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drumuitar
Joined: Feb 28, 2006
Posts: 813
Boise, ID
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Posted on Mar 19 2011 09:31 AM
Maybe I lucked out because the trem arm on mine popped right in and seems to be staying locked. It actually fits better than the arm in the CIJ Jaguar I had several years ago.
I haven't swapped the neck yet but all of the Strat, Tele, and Jazzmaster clones that GFS has specifically say that they use the same heel route as a standard 4-hole Strat.
— Shawn Martin
http://www.drummerman.net
http://www.youtube.com/GKacedrummerman
http://www.facebook.com/drumuitar
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drumuitar
Joined: Feb 28, 2006
Posts: 813
Boise, ID
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Posted on Mar 19 2011 09:35 AM
ravcon wrote:
I was interested in those but have read some pretty bad
reports on their customer service. They look very nice
though, and the color choices are pretty sweet.
I've bought several pickups from GFS over the last 3-4 years, and now the Xaviere. I've never had problems with any of what I've bought and don't know what the "service after the sale" is like. They've always been pretty quick to respond to questions and shipping is fast though...
— Shawn Martin
http://www.drummerman.net
http://www.youtube.com/GKacedrummerman
http://www.facebook.com/drumuitar
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drumuitar
Joined: Feb 28, 2006
Posts: 813
Boise, ID
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Posted on Mar 29 2011 05:45 PM
I got my Strat neck in yesterday and put it on my Xaviere JT100. Just to confirm, it does have the same heel specs as a standard Strat and will fit fine. Note that the stock Xaviere neck has a fretboard that extends a little bit over the pickguard, so putting a Strat neck on it will reveal a bit of a gap between the pickguard and neck pocket. I don't know if the Xaviere Strat and Tele copies have the same neck design but I imagine they do.
Here is a pic of the gap with a real Strat neck installed
image
— Shawn Martin
http://www.drummerman.net
http://www.youtube.com/GKacedrummerman
http://www.facebook.com/drumuitar
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