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Having owned both guitars (MIJ versions), I would just add that the tone of
the Jazzmaster was very, very nice (with Seymour-Duncans), but not nearly as
flexible as the Jaguar. I did prefer the longer Jazzmaster scale (being a
Strat-Nazi...oops, sorry!) to the shorter Jaguar (my marginal fingering
skills got even worse in the higher registers), but the appearance of the
Jaguar was certainly more impressive. I would say go with the guitar that
you feel most comfortable in playing, and has the tone you are after. The
bridge arrangement is definitely the weak point of both instruments; still,
a little of regular attention to alignment will overcome that limitation.
Hope some of this helps!
Best regards, Dana Vincent
----- Original Message -----
From: "ohsyrus" <>
To: <>
Sent: Saturday, June 01, 2002 11:10 AM
Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Advice needed
Played one of the MIA Jaguar reissues the other day. Been thinking
about it ever since. One of the things I really liked about it was
the shorter scale. I also really liked the tone. I thought the neck
had an overly glossy finish, and I prefer satin, however, thats a
niggle. One of the things I didn't like about it was the mute, and
another was the bridge, which seemed like some kind of frankenstein
contraption. Other than that, I loved the way it played and sounded.
So, I'm thinking about getting one, but I wonder, I've never played
one of the Jazzmaster RI, and I am not sure whether I would prefer
the sound of the Jazzmaster to the Jaguar. I have never run across
one in the local music stores. I know alot of you guys are really
familiar with the differences in playablility and tonality, and I
would like to know what you think. If you were going to get a MIA RI,
and you could only pick one, which would you get, and why?
Thanx!
I've been a Jaguar player for a number of years and
recently picked up a MIA Jazzmaster. Both guitars are
pretty flexible as far as tone and sounds. IMO, the
JM is a little "darker" and the Jaguar a little
"brighter." They are definitely two different beast
each with tonal qualities and sounds of their own. It
just depends on which scale you were more comfortable
with (I'm pretty comfortable with the scales of both)
and with the looks and tones of each. They're both
fine guitars in my opinion. I replaced the stock
bridges of my Jag and JM with mustang bridges. And as
far as the gloss neck, I took one of those 3M green
pads to JM neck and it took that sticky nitro off in
no time ANd if it were me, I'd get one now and the
other later!
Hope this helps...
~Mike
--- Dana and Roberta Vincent <>
wrote:
> Having owned both guitars (MIJ versions), I would
> just add that the tone of
> the Jazzmaster was very, very nice (with
> Seymour-Duncans), but not nearly as
> flexible as the Jaguar. I did prefer the longer
> Jazzmaster scale (being a
> Strat-Nazi...oops, sorry!) to the shorter Jaguar (my
> marginal fingering
> skills got even worse in the higher registers), but
> the appearance of the
> Jaguar was certainly more impressive. I would say
> go with the guitar that
> you feel most comfortable in playing, and has the
> tone you are after. The
> bridge arrangement is definitely the weak point of
> both instruments; still,
> a little of regular attention to alignment will
> overcome that limitation.
> Hope some of this helps!
>
> Best regards, Dana Vincent
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "ohsyrus" <>
> To: <>
> Sent: Saturday, June 01, 2002 11:10 AM
> Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Advice needed
>
>
> Played one of the MIA Jaguar reissues the other day.
> Been thinking
> about it ever since. One of the things I really
> liked about it was
> the shorter scale. I also really liked the tone. I
> thought the neck
> had an overly glossy finish, and I prefer satin,
> however, thats a
> niggle. One of the things I didn't like about it was
> the mute, and
> another was the bridge, which seemed like some kind
> of frankenstein
> contraption. Other than that, I loved the way it
> played and sounded.
>
> So, I'm thinking about getting one, but I wonder,
> I've never played
> one of the Jazzmaster RI, and I am not sure whether
> I would prefer
> the sound of the Jazzmaster to the Jaguar. I have
> never run across
> one in the local music stores. I know alot of you
> guys are really
> familiar with the differences in playablility and
> tonality, and I
> would like to know what you think. If you were going
> to get a MIA RI,
> and you could only pick one, which would you get,
> and why?
>
> Thanx!
>
>
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! - Official partner of 2002 FIFA World Cup
It is definitely helpful to hear other peoples views. The strat I am
pretty much used to, and comfortable with the scale. I understand
that the Jag and JM are different beasts, but since they both have
such a prominent place in surf music, that is the reason I was
looking at them in terms of either or. Yeah, it would be nice to have
one of these and one of those, but...eating is also nice.
So another thing I am wondering about with both the Jag and JM is how
they resond to an overdrive pedal. I am pretty familiar with the
sound of a strat with an overdrive pedal, and I think the Surf Kings
use that sound alot. Also, the Mermen. So what happens when you throw
an OD pedal in front of a Jag or JM? As for trying them both out--I
wish. The Jag I ran across had been on the rack for a couple of
years. They had lost the trem arm. It was a special order and the guy
never claimed it. The sales guy said it was the only Jag they had
ever had in the store. Sad. He said they sell tons of strats and
teles.
Again, thanx for the opinions
--- In SurfGuitar101@y..., "Dana and Roberta Vincent" <splashbk@d...>
wrote:
> Having owned both guitars (MIJ versions), I would just add that the
tone of
> the Jazzmaster was very, very nice (with Seymour-Duncans), but not
nearly as
> flexible as the Jaguar. I did prefer the longer Jazzmaster scale
(being a
> Strat-Nazi...oops, sorry!) to the shorter Jaguar (my marginal
fingering
> skills got even worse in the higher registers), but the appearance
of the
> Jaguar was certainly more impressive. I would say go with the
guitar that
> you feel most comfortable in playing, and has the tone you are
after. The
> bridge arrangement is definitely the weak point of both
instruments; still,
> a little of regular attention to alignment will overcome that
limitation.
> Hope some of this helps!
>
> Best regards, Dana Vincent
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ohsyrus [mailto:]
> Sent: Saturday, June 01, 2002 7:40 PM
> To:
> Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Re: Jaguars and Jazzmasters
>
[...]
> As for trying them both out--I
> wish. The Jag I ran across had been on the rack for a couple of
> years. They had lost the trem arm. It was a special order and the guy
> never claimed it. The sales guy said it was the only Jag they had
> ever had in the store. Sad. He said they sell tons of strats and
> teles.
I hear you. I once tried to convince an area guitar store to get a Jag or JM
in. He said they were too expensive. He had a couple of high end guitars,
and guess what, they were Strats and Teles. They were all either American
Vintage series and a couple of custom shop relics and closet classics. He
was convinced a Jag or JM would not sell and would sit in the store forever.
Maybe he was right. Too bad.
Musician's Friend does have a 30 day guarantee though....
BN
In my experience, the Jaguar and Jazzmasters responded pretty well to very
light overdrive; anything more (like what you would typically apply to a
Strat) sounded very harsh to me, and produced some pretty nasty feedback
(not the nice musical kind).
Best regards, Dana Vincent
----- Original Message -----
From: "ohsyrus" <>
To: <>
Sent: Saturday, June 01, 2002 5:39 PM
Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Re: Jaguars and Jazzmasters
So another thing I am wondering about with both the Jag and JM is how
they resond to an overdrive pedal. I am pretty familiar with the
sound of a strat with an overdrive pedal, and I think the Surf Kings
use that sound alot. Also, the Mermen. So what happens when you throw
an OD pedal in front of a Jag or JM?
On Sun, 2 Jun 2002, ohsyrus wrote:
> So another thing I am wondering about with both the Jag and JM is how
> they resond to an overdrive pedal. I am pretty familiar with the
> sound of a strat with an overdrive pedal, and I think the Surf Kings
> use that sound alot. Also, the Mermen. So what happens when you throw
> an OD pedal in front of a Jag or JM?
THEE undisputed king of extreme distortion Kevin Shields of My Bloody
Valentine only uses Jaguars and Jazzmasters, and his sound is a thing of
beauty. May not exactly be what you'd want to use for surf, but
nevertheless... The guitars can do massive distortion. Also remember
that both Sonic Youth and Nirvana rely/ied on Jags and JMs, and they
are/were no slooches when it comes to distortion. What you can't really
do as well on Jags/JMs is the soaring Hendrix/David Gilmour Strat leads,
just because they don't sustain as well, and sound different. But the
distorted tones will sound nice and ragged.
Ivan
Thanx Ivan, you make some interesting observations. I wouldn't want
to make distortion the basis of my tone, but I really like the sound
that the Surf Coasters get on Rumble off their Surf is Dead CD.
But this brings me to another question. I heard somewhere that the JM
pups in the RI are not the original low/wide windings, but some wide
covers over more modern single coils. Is this true? Should they be
replaced with the Seymour Duncan version?
--- In SurfGuitar101@y..., IVAN PONGRACIC <ipongrac@g...> wrote:
> THEE undisputed king of extreme distortion Kevin Shields of My
Bloody
> Valentine only uses Jaguars and Jazzmasters, and his sound is a
thing of
> beauty. May not exactly be what you'd want to use for surf, but
> nevertheless... The guitars can do massive distortion. Also
remember
> that both Sonic Youth and Nirvana rely/ied on Jags and JMs, and they
> are/were no slooches when it comes to distortion. What you can't
really
> do as well on Jags/JMs is the soaring Hendrix/David Gilmour Strat
leads,
> just because they don't sustain as well, and sound different. But
the
> distorted tones will sound nice and ragged.
>
> Ivan
I don't know much about MBV or Sonic Youth (didn't these guys put pickups
BEHIND the bridge?), but Mr. Cobain had humbuckers in his Jag. Davie Allan
(King Fuzz) gets massive amounts of grunge from his Jazzmaster (it sounds
like a Harley Davidson!), but he too, I think, has humbuckers in his guitar.
The Japanese Jazzmasters from the mid-80's to early 90's supposedly have
strat like pickups in them underneath the wide pickup cover. A lot of people
seem to replace them. Over at The Fender Forum, there is news that Fender
Japan is making Jaguars and Jazzmasters again, this time with much better
components and maybe even better pickups (everyone is wondering about this
since the first Japanese reissues were pretty poor). They offer lots of
color choices and even some non-standard options like a hard tail bridge and
humbuckers. They are not importing them to the US though, although some
dealers in Europe are individually scooping some up. There are also a few
people who are buying directly from Fender Japan.
Davie Allan and The Arrows:
Fender Forum:
BN
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ohsyrus [mailto:]
> Sent: Sunday, June 02, 2002 9:10 AM
> To:
> Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Re: Jaguars and Jazzmasters
>
>
> Thanx Ivan, you make some interesting observations. I wouldn't want
> to make distortion the basis of my tone, but I really like the sound
> that the Surf Coasters get on Rumble off their Surf is Dead CD.
>
> But this brings me to another question. I heard somewhere that the JM
> pups in the RI are not the original low/wide windings, but some wide
> covers over more modern single coils. Is this true? Should they be
> replaced with the Seymour Duncan version?
>
>
> --- In SurfGuitar101@y..., IVAN PONGRACIC <ipongrac@g...> wrote:
> > THEE undisputed king of extreme distortion Kevin Shields of My
> Bloody
> > Valentine only uses Jaguars and Jazzmasters, and his sound is a
> thing of
> > beauty. May not exactly be what you'd want to use for surf, but
> > nevertheless... The guitars can do massive distortion. Also
> remember
> > that both Sonic Youth and Nirvana rely/ied on Jags and JMs, and they
> > are/were no slooches when it comes to distortion. What you can't
> really
> > do as well on Jags/JMs is the soaring Hendrix/David Gilmour Strat
> leads,
> > just because they don't sustain as well, and sound different. But
> the
> > distorted tones will sound nice and ragged.
> >
> > Ivan
I want to extend my appreciation to all who responding to my request
for advice and I thought you might be curious as to the outcome.
The Jag I had a chance to play, so I know pretty much what it is
(although without the proper strings), however, I've never had the
privilege to try out a JM. So that's what I ordered, sight unseen,
from one of these web outfits with a 30 day happy, happy, joy, joy
policy. I wanted to get both, frankly, but SWMBO said, what, do you
have 4 arms? The argument that swayed me the most came from Ivan's
list of 3rd wave JM players. I love everyone on that list.
So now, final question--how do the Seymour Duncan JM pups compare
with the AV stock pups? Any advantage to SD's souped up versions like
the "hot" JM, or the 1/4 lb JM? Opinions?
thanx!
--- In SurfGuitar101@y..., "Brian Neal" <bneal@z...> wrote:
> I don't know much about MBV or Sonic Youth (didn't these guys put
pickups
> BEHIND the bridge?), but Mr. Cobain had humbuckers in his Jag.
Davie Allan
> (King Fuzz) gets massive amounts of grunge from his Jazzmaster (it
sounds
> like a Harley Davidson!), but he too, I think, has humbuckers in
his guitar.
>
> The Japanese Jazzmasters from the mid-80's to early 90's supposedly
have
> strat like pickups in them underneath the wide pickup cover. A lot
of people
> seem to replace them. Over at The Fender Forum, there is news that
Fender
> Japan is making Jaguars and Jazzmasters again, this time with much
better
> components and maybe even better pickups (everyone is wondering
about this
> since the first Japanese reissues were pretty poor). They offer
lots of
> color choices and even some non-standard options like a hard tail
bridge and
> humbuckers. They are not importing them to the US though, although
some
> dealers in Europe are individually scooping some up. There are also
a few
> people who are buying directly from Fender Japan.
>
> Davie Allan and The Arrows:
> Fender Forum:
>
> BN
Cool!!! What color? Give us a review when you get it. Did you go with
Musician's Friend?
As for the Seymour Duncan replacements....give your AV stock pickups a
chance. A lot of people like them just fine. You can even buy them from
Fender USA to put into the Japanese reissues. They aren't as expensive as
Seymour Duncans.
BN
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ohsyrus [mailto:]
> Sent: Monday, June 03, 2002 9:57 AM
> To:
> Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Re: Jaguars and Jazzmasters
>
>
> I want to extend my appreciation to all who responding to my request
> for advice and I thought you might be curious as to the outcome.
>
> The Jag I had a chance to play, so I know pretty much what it is
> (although without the proper strings), however, I've never had the
> privilege to try out a JM. So that's what I ordered, sight unseen,
> from one of these web outfits with a 30 day happy, happy, joy, joy
> policy. I wanted to get both, frankly, but SWMBO said, what, do you
> have 4 arms? The argument that swayed me the most came from Ivan's
> list of 3rd wave JM players. I love everyone on that list.
>
> So now, final question--how do the Seymour Duncan JM pups compare
> with the AV stock pups? Any advantage to SD's souped up versions like
> the "hot" JM, or the 1/4 lb JM? Opinions?
>
> thanx!
>
I went with Music123.com I've dealt with them before, for small
things, and they seem pretty committed to customer service. They had
a JM, (Dakota Red) that had been returned on their 30 day plan and
was greatly discounted--as long as the neck and the fret work is
good, I'll probably keep it. This is the first time I have ever
bought a guitar without playing it first. But I went back and studied
The Huntington Cads and Fathoms cd's and decided that if I had to
pick ONE single tone--the JM HAD to be it. When I compare it to
groups which feature a Jag, like, Satan's Pilgrims, fr'instance, the
JM sounds more, hollow and woody. The Jag sounds spicier, more sizzle
and snap. I like the cool, smooth feeling of the JM sound. I kept
thinking the difference in tone between the JM and Jag is sort of
like the difference between a long board and a short board. Think
I'll start saving my pennies for a Jag. Anyway, the JM I ordered is
sposed to be an AV. I'll let you know what I think. I'm pretty
stoked...
--- In SurfGuitar101@y..., "Brian Neal" <bneal@z...> wrote:
> Cool!!! What color? Give us a review when you get it. Did you go
with
> Musician's Friend?
>
> As for the Seymour Duncan replacements....give your AV stock
pickups a
> chance. A lot of people like them just fine. You can even buy them
from
> Fender USA to put into the Japanese reissues. They aren't as
expensive as
> Seymour Duncans.
>
> BN
