Half hour Rhett Shull video about jazzmasters? Heck yeah

Rhett going shoegazey. I like the noise.

I'm betting if you shim the neck and raise the bridge - for more downpressure - on any JM, you'll eliminate that little bazz/rattle you kept finding. It's basic part of a good JM setup. They were designed for big heavy jazz strings (flatwound even) and that works better with the lower bridge setting.

@evolasme

2 ай бұрын

thanks for mentioning the break angle on the bridge regardless SHIM THE NECK 1degree raise the bridge and get more break angle on the bridge (creating more down force on the bridge) you will have the same action better tunability more resonance ^ a better playing guitar and no rattle!!!! i wish he would have mentioned this mod in the story it helps so much

@jeremysiron9622

2 ай бұрын

Yep for me I got a classic vibe Squier I had to shim the neck, there was no other option…and then when I started asking around I found out that pretty much any Jazzmaster after the 1980s factory switch most of them you need to shim the neck

@sgd5k292

2 ай бұрын

The JM American Pro II solves most if not all of the vintage Jazzmasters problems including a different bridge, an easy to adjust neck angle system built in, and the Panorama tremolo system. They come with 9s and I have 8s on mine and no problem at all. However, if you want to go with 11's or heavier strings, you will need to pick up a different spring which is easy to install.

@darkMeluca

2 ай бұрын

@@evolasme definitely agree. I bought an American Original 60's and even with a bridge replacement (liked the Mastery love the Staytrem) was still buzzing and felt off. Added a 1 degree shim and it plays like a different guitar. Wish I would have tried that first!

@drewnorth3816

2 ай бұрын

I've shimmed the neck on all of my JM's, except for the J Mascis. Even on the one's that shouldn't require it, such as the AM Pro II and AM Vintage II. If it's an offset, I shim, 95% of the time. Works wonders

Thank you so much for that intro. When you see Jazzmaster demos on KZread, they play bluesy licks on it, and it just isn't playing to the guitar's strengths. It's an alt-rock/indie BEAST, and IMO, it's more of a rhythm guitarist's guitar. It *wants* to play big, chunky chords. Mine's a 2016 MIM Classic Player, modded with Curtis Novak JM-V and JM-FAT pickups. Basic signal chain is that, through an EarthQuaker Devices Westwood, into an AC30. It's fucking amazing.

@seedyv1

Ай бұрын

You might want to check out @Puisheen if you haven't already. He has some very tasty shoegazey jm, as well as other offset demos.

@CakeorDeath1989

Ай бұрын

@seedyv1 that's where I learned about Curtis Novak pickups, haha. 😄

My wife wanted to play guitar so we got her a CV Jag, and the tremolo on hers is rock solid *after* we set it up. I shimmed the neck, put 11s on the guitar, used loctite on the bridge height screws, and used a sanding sponge to even out the connection point on the tremolo plate. The whole deal took maybe an hour and all the materials cost about $25, but now the guitar stays beautifully in tune, has zero buzz behind the bridge, and plays beautifully with super low action. What I’m saying is, if you’re willing to do the work, there’s nothing wrong with the Squier offsets, cheap tremolo included.

@janzelf

2 ай бұрын

True! I got a few too, did the setup according to premier guitar. Did it myself, because the luthiers kept fucking my guitars up and told me to get a Strat. But I declined, I just wanted an offset, these are not only bigger, but they suit my body better, better access to the higher fret register than a Strat. It's just a better guitar to me. But nowadays it seems everybody knows these are better, because it used to be cheap second hand guitars. These days they became even more expensive secundaire hand than new and the Strats are deadcheap nowadays. 😅

@deanmccaskill5495

2 ай бұрын

I’m no expert on offsets but I totally agree about 11s (12s even) and locktite. Those things made my little Classic Vibe pretty good. It’s the only Squier I have.

Man I really wish you could have put the J Mascis in to this. Truly the best guitar for the price of any guitar period.

@lukeparsons4965

2 ай бұрын

My thoughts exactly

@grizelda4526

2 ай бұрын

First thing I thought of. Love mine.

@Cyndaquills

2 ай бұрын

This is the only guitar I have ever bought twice. I used to do a lot of buying and selling. Had a rarities flame koa strat worth around 2k and the squier J mascis at the same time and the necks felt almost the exact same. Sold both because I needed the money but bought the J Mascis again a year later.

@jmeakin4

2 ай бұрын

As superior as the J Mascis is said to be, Chris Buck asserts that the 40th Anniversary model is an even better JM and has one as his #1 instrument.

@christophervincent8420

2 ай бұрын

The 40th anniversary Vintage is also an excellent choice. I actually preferred that over the J Mascis.

Please do another video on the Squire J Mascis Jazzmaster. It has a cult following and I’d love to hear your input on it.

The classic vibe stuff really is impressive

@CatmanJimbo

2 ай бұрын

That's been my experience as well! I don't own any currently but after selling my CV 60's Jazzmaster to a friend I've been thinking about picking up another CV of some kind. The name could have been a meme but they really did nail the vintage vibe.

@laranjiinha77

2 ай бұрын

indeed

@taylornutt

2 ай бұрын

I bought a CV Jaguar FSR in Silver Sparkle. After swapping the vibrato, pickguard and pickups, it plays as good as my AVRI Jaguar.

@kentuckywindage222

2 ай бұрын

​@@danielgallardo7249 I own a 50's Classic Vibe Tele and Strat both play like butter and sound great. I'm considering the Mexican Tele with dual humbuckers and coil split. I played one and really liked it but the volume knob shaft was bent and they wouldn't knock-off any on the price. I like 24¾ scale better and Stat body contours best. Humbuckers for rock but a Tele and Marshall sound really good to my ear. I have never played a Jazzmaster in my 40 years of learning guitar...... and still learning.

@tompoynton

2 ай бұрын

I’ve got the 70s Classic Vibe P-Bass in walnut and it’s awesome

Have you played the J Mascis squier Jazzmaster? On one of my favourite albums of all time, "Peripheral Vision" by Turnover, the rhythm guitar is all this guitar, and for a squier, it's just bonkers mate. Also, Chris Buck recorded a video where he said he absolutely loves it!

@jmeakin4

2 ай бұрын

Chris Buck later tried a 40th Anniversary JM and says it's even better. It's now his #1.

@taylornutt

2 ай бұрын

I wish the J Mascis Squier had the vibrato in the traditional location. I have the CIJ J Mascis Jazzmaster and it's in the normal location.

@effectosis742

2 ай бұрын

It is probably the most popular Squier jazzmaster among artists : guys from Tame Impala , Kevin Shields , Joe Duplontier , Frank Iero , the man himself... the list goes on...

My desert island guitar! The first trick to jazzmasters is to put the volume on 9 if it's always ice-picky. I setup my amp and guitar like a gibson: neck pickup volume and tone on 10, middle maybe 9 and tone on 6/7, bridge volume on 9/10 and tone on 6/7. If you've got issues with the setup, shim the neck. The squier classic vibe series is very great value (you probably have to shim the neck), but I've got a expensive 59-like version on the way because these guitars are my absolute favorite!

GREAT mixing of the audio rhett! I noticed the dynamics of the mix and space IMMEDITLY. Simply outstanding

Hi Rhett! Loved the video as always, awesome to hear you talk about Jazzmasters! Just one note: When you explain about the rhythm circuit at 8:00, it's correct that the vintage rhythm circuit isolates the neck pickup, BUT, when you showcase it at 8:40, you are using an AmPro II, whose rhythm circuit's is set with both pickups in series. Just wanted to add the note :)

@jannytyler

2 ай бұрын

You are correct.

Right on point Rhett! Pretty much everything I've touched MiM are fantastic... Guess I'm going to have to check out the Jazzmaster now... Thanks for a great review!

Rhett your videos are so cinematic and well lit, and the cuts and whatever else (I dont know the terminology) are superb. The production quality is absolutely top notch, and I don't think anything else out there is getting the quality youre achieving here. I commented a little while back agreeing with someone on how excellent the drums sounded on a track you made, and I needed to follow up here to comment on your visuals work, too. Also, were I a fender guy, I'd take a jazzmaster. Love your work, man. Thank you for what you do.

I got myself a MIM JM with the 3 P90's (Jazz Master P90) When I brought it home, I felt like I made a mistake buying it. I just couldn't make a connection with the guitar. I thought I had while playing it in the store but things changed when I came home and plugged it in. My ignorance led me to think this. Watching your channel has opened my eyes to understanding how to hone in my sound with the amps that I have, and that I have done. I now really enjoy my JM.

Nice job comparing the various Jazzmasters! I didn't know much about them & now I have a better understanding of what a Jazzmaster is all about & what the guitar can play.

Squier CV and Fender American Pro II sounded the best for me with distortion. Clean, I liked Squier the most, the American pro was too dark for me, and the others aren't dark enough. That's good, because the Squier CV has been on my list these last couple of years.

Love your videos. You come from an approach that many of us forget when looking at gear. The key point you always make is that this is what you hear and feel when playing the guitar. Unfortunately, depending on where you live, it is hard to find a store close by that has the selection of guitars you might want to try in the right colors, pickups, etc. A video on buying a guitar online and the process you would go through might be great. Also, ordering a custom guitar might be cool. I ordered a custom mandolin and its not always a guarantee you will get the sound and feel you wanted. Thanks!

Great vid! I have the American Pro II and I love it. It was kind of a childhood guitar for me so I was super happy to cross that one off the list. Also I just noticed you have a Big Six! I loooove my Big Six and it's the main console/mixer for my studio.

Love this video. Great rankings at the end ✌ Very level-headed reasoning.

dude i have ALWAYS wanted you to make one of these videos on the jazzmaster. i got the 40th anniversary squier one and i love it. bodysnatchers sounded sick too

Great video, I especially loved the jam at the beginning! As someone who actually owns both the Vintera and the Classic Vibe JMs shown in this video, I mostly agree with your rankings. I have modded just about every part of my Vintera by now, and at this point I wish I would have just saved the money because I could have done just about all the same mods on the Squier and still spent less than the ticket price of the Vintera. Another thing to note, the buzzing you are hearing is coming from the bridge and not the vibrato. As others have pointed out, this is common on those stock bridges and luckily can be corrected with a few setup steps that are specific to Jazzmasters.

Great playing in the opening. Great video.

Just when I thought man where is Rhett this week?! No uploads! And then you drop this great 5 guitar jazzmaster review! I had a vintage modified squier with the Duncan design pick ups , it looked great and played great, ultimately sold it on just cause how finicky the bridge was (even after following the puisheen jazzmaster set up neck shim videos) but I did love it and miss it for its “fidelity” clean sounds !

I dig that intro tune man. Alot of different colors sharing the space

Great video! I love the Jazzmaster and I agree with all of your rankings so, of course, I have a MIM Jazzmaster.

Hey, huge M fan over here - but can we just acknowledge how wicked the bass lines and drum grooves are in this? My gosh they were laying in DOWN. Love the channel Rhett, thanks for all you (and your team if you have one) put out there for us. 🤘🏻🤙🏻

Great video - thanks for doing this, Rhett. I love my MIM Fender Classic Player Jazzmaster, which is a lot like the Vintera you liked, and for the same reasons. I wish it didn't have the screw-in trem arm, but teflon tape mostly takes care of that.. By the way, "set up out of the box" is Sweetwater, not anything to do with the Fender models. They do their 55 point inspection, which includes a basic setup.

I was lucky and got the Desert Sand 40th Anniversary Squier on a Black Friday deal for $360! Got it for a fun mod job and to play at the beach with our battery powered surf band jams. I really liked the specs of the desert sand satin finish, satin neck, and gold anodized pick guard. Aesthetics I could invest in. It played pretty good stock, except for the trem. Put in new wiring, Fralin Jazzmaster pickups, Staytrem bridge and a Descendant vibrato (which is AWESOME!). The stock tuners are good 👍🏽. After polishing & rolling the fretboard, polishing & filing the frets and doing a setup, it’s a really nice guitar (admittedly more than a beach banger!). $1,275 all in now, and with the Squier logo on the headstock, I’m thinking it won’t be as much of a target for theft.

On the buzzing: my Mexican Fender Jaguar has a similar vibrato that buzzes, too. The tiny saddle height screws will vibrate, buzz, and rattle their way out of the saddles. I haven’t lost any (yet) but I bought a Mustang bridge which has saddles made of different sized solid barrels that match the fretboard radius. 😊

Excellent, thanks Rhett. To me the Jazzmaster is a perfect morphing of a Tele and Strat. Nothing feels more luscious and sensual than a Strat but I can’t get the lovely clean both pup sounds of the Tele from it. Enter the Jazzy. And I just love what the tone circuitry does to the neck pickup. Best of both worlds, although I must give a nod to Strats on the neck pup for Blues. But it’s a rather indiscreet nod. I’m the 2nd owner of a 7 year old American Vintage ReIssue Thin Skin ‘65 Jazzmaster I snagged 5 years ago. Stayed with 11’s, installed a Mastery bridge and locking vintage tuners and Holy Toledo. Killer guitar. These were Wildwood specials and were available I think in a few different year models. Gave $2100 for it then, listed and verified in Mint condition. Now they’re going for $31-35 hundy. This guitar does everything including Setzer and is my all time favorite for Surf. If I had to pick one guitar to do everything…that’d be tough but it would be between this and my White Falcon. The JM does Setzer a little better than the Falcon does surf. So glad I don’t have to choose.

O M G this is hands down the best sounding intro i’ve heard in a while. You are a magician, Rhett

Just saw your vid pop up after buying a the Vintera II literally this afternoon. I was blown away by the sound and quality of the guitar, especially at its price point

Anyone else watching Rhett's videos after being subbed for 5+ years? It's like keeping up with an old friend at this point. Keep it up Rhett, you rock.

Funny true story, I love JMs...tried an Ultra but did not buy - for EXACTLY the same reasons you mentioned (and it sounded dead acoustically), bought an American Pro II, after some qc issues (Fender replaced the first one) found that I liked the guitar, great neck, but the push push was not to my liking. Ended up selling in and grabbed a Troy Van Leeuwin JM on the used market. Far better than the other two, I wish you had included it in the vid. Pickups and electronics are much better - it plays great. All that said I would love a Custom Shop but thats a lot of dough! Thanks Rhett for another great video!

Im looking forward to getting one of those, so thanks for that Vid. Man

I bought a Squier 40th anniversary JM new and it needed a good setup and I added a treble bleed circuit to it (the amount of high end that dropped off going from volume 10 to volume 9 was kinda ridiculous) but now I love it. It does have the sinking bridge issue which is a problem with a lot of JMs, not just Squiers, but I couldn't believe how good it feels and how FAST it feels too, I was shocked. I shot it out against a few other JMs at the shop, including the Vintera II and the Classic Vibe and I actually liked the 40th anniversary the best. Looks amazing too.

@PianoDentist

2 ай бұрын

Interesting to hear what you've done to yours. I have a Squier 40th anniversary too. I was ready to shim and had some spare for the job, but then found out the pocket is pre-shimmed at the factory on these models, given that most players will do this anyway. I can get low enough action whilst preserving the break angle over the bridge. Personalty, I have not had bridge sinking issues and it stays in tune well. I like thinner gauge strings, so I use 10's on my JM - which I believe is the lowest gauge one should use.

@TJKoch91

2 ай бұрын

@@PianoDentist I'm using 10s as well. I pretty much have to raise the bridge back up every time I pick it up. I think I'll just end up putting Loctite on the bridge poles like a lot of people do.

great video Rhett! i love Jazzmasters. i have a G&L Tribute Doheny. a sort of Jazzmaster in it’s own. pickup sound has more midrange and less twang but a great guitar to rock with.

Damn man. As a bassist, I appreciate the bass appreciation in the intro with the bass solo! Nice video!

Having wider pickups gives you a broader "aperture" over the string which gives you a more complete representation of the longer- wavelength bass frequencies. Jazzmaster pickups are really flat in shape though, so they're usually pretty mild in output, retaining a lot of that top end shimmer. I think that's where the rhythm circuit came in, to add extra darkness. They were trying to compete directly with the dark sound of the Gibson scale length because that was the thing to compete with. ETA: I have the ampro ii with the panorama and my rattle is in the arm. Doesn't translate into the signal but it can be annoying when playing unplugged, I just give it a light smack and it usually settles down for a bit

I recently bought a 60s Vintera II and I am so glad you also chose it - it sounds so good.

Loved this. My '65 pure vintage Fender pickups arrived 3 days ago to put in my lefty Squier Jazzmaster. This is my current weekend project. The Squier neck was shite. Replaced it with a block-inlayed neck I bought from Warmoth 22 years ago (cost more than the guitar itself). It's a total parts-caster at this point, but it plays great and the new pickups will send it over the moon.

My favourite guitar

Great review. I completely agree with your final ratings.

you never disappoint with the intro!

I think the Mastery bridge is a must have, you WILL knock the strings out of the grooves on the traditional bridge. I would also recommend seeing if you can get a MIJ JazzMaster second hand online.

Solid reviews, good work brother 👍

Neat comparison Rhett. And agree with your high ranking the Squier CV. I own the same one, only changed the stock PU's for Fender Pure Vintage Jazzmaster PU's. This definitely upgraded the sound. I made the neck feel siky smooth with a Scotsch Brite pad and then finishing this with steelwool. Made the fret ends feel better and give the edges a more semi-rolled fretboard feel with endless rubbing the frets with rubbers while watching video\s like your's. Did'nt evn feel the need to change the Trem system yet. The guitar stays intonated and in tune mostly. It sounds awsome and i am amazed that everytime i visit a guitar dealer , while waiting for my turn when buying something, i try out different more. sometimes a lot more costing jazzmasters i still haven't found one that feels better then my ol' Squier CV. ( some might sound even better but don't try that out becourse mine sounds great). Thanks again

I bought an American professional 1 JM a couple of years ago and it's been my main guitar ever since. The pickups are fantastic and sound great through many different styles of amp. And I like that it doesn't have the rhythm circuit and they moved the pickup selector to the top so it doesn't get in the way when playing heavy. Not to mention the absolute tank you get for a case!

On the Am Pro II, "the rhythm circuit puts both pickups in series for a thicker tone with increased output, controlled by independent volume and tone roller pots" (from Fender's website).

@aaronburns9538

2 ай бұрын

Yup. My first guitar in 20 years, I'm obviously a newbie but the quality of my Ampro2 is awesome. The action is incredible. I've had zero problems with it.

I 've had my TVL Jazzmaster Copper (MIM) for over two years now. I know some would say that I overpaid for what is essentially a MIM but I love it and would recomend it to anyone - the key mods make it really playable and the quality is immaculate! Thank you Troy and Fender!

This was awesome! Great video.

very honest review!!! i love my j mascis squier jazzmaster...did it need some upgrades? yeah.. but still made it worth it picking it up used for $280 with a little negotiation. swapped the trem with a used vintage american reissue for $50 and i would say thats a must have upgrade even if you buy it new for $100. the bridge is getting replaced soon with a roller style. the pickups are ok, ive decided to live with them but some folks may want to swap them out. other then that great playing guitar and awesome feeling satin neck. its thick though compared to other jazzmasters with a wider nut width. plays great though.

Love this video! Would have loved to see the Performer Jazzmaster in this lineup for the mere sake of uniqueness and affordability and how it compares to the rest of these, but totally understand the decision to stick to the traditional JMs. Great video!

You do a great job on these videos. Thanks for providing your honest opinions. They can really help the novice consumer as well as more advance players!

This intro track gave me Mark Johnston vibes, amazing playing as always Rhett!

@kller324

2 ай бұрын

I got Mars Volta vibes lol

I like to refer to them as "Jazzcasters," for consistency, and they are the third brother. I love the way JMs play and sound, they're killer.

@AM2PMReviews

2 ай бұрын

That does seem to be a better name

Squier, thank you for making a lefty CV Jazzmaster a few years ago. Needed some work (neck shim, vibrato tweaked, wiring tidied, body buffed polished - a lot of bits on the finish - and new tuners, high e was damaged). I love the guitar. I dont have £1200+ for a US model. But you only made it for year or two. Now it's to give us a lefty CV Mustang Bass.

Great review!

Good video, Rhett. Regarding the custom shop bridge: when I went down the JM bridge rabbit hole last year, it was only available on custom shop models. Not aftermarket, they popped up second hand for hundreds of $ on Reverb occasionally. I got on the Staytrem wait list and received it in about 3 months for under $120. It's a drop-in product that is a massive upgrade: better sustain and excellent tuning stability for my Squier Vintage Modified JM.

Awesome video. Nice two tone sub!

Thank You Rhett , you've helped me narrow down my decision on getting a Jazzmaster , its funny cuz the Vintera was the one I was considering anyway , I love the Desert Sand finish and the price is not a gouge in my bank account...what is that white pedal you were fiddling with ? Love the intro music ( dig your playing ) Thanks again !

Great video - the JM deserves more love. The Squier J Mascis is my choice, anything below say the Troy Von Leeuwen Jazzmaster. I know if differs from the traditional Jazzmaster. But, especially for this kind of music, it sounds, and plays better than the Squier CV JM or the nice similar looking to the J Mascis Squier Anniversary ones. The Mascis neck is great. And for driven tones, I prefer it to the Vintera II. The true standout of the affordable Jazzmaster world. Looks beautiful too, you see people playing them all over the place - for good reason. Above that, a great fresh modern take is the Baum Wingman - plays and sounds great and I think a modern classic design. Which would be my choice in the 1-2k range (the Troy one is nice too though, love it's style too). I do like the more traditional Vintera II though, the J Mascis and Vintera are two very different takes on the Jazzmaster. I also love the Vintera II 50s Nocaster, also my favourite Tele. Would have to spend 400 more on the Jason Isbell for anything similarly good.

I bought a Squier cv Jazzmaster a year ago to be a fun thing to mod up. The more I modded, the more I loved it. Mastery trem and bridge, new pickups. Now it’s my main. Had a lot of fun bonding with it along the way

Great job man, always appreciate your videos. As far as your ranking goes, I think im right there w you on that- I am a big fan of the Vintera stuff in general. I think if I ever pull the trigger on a JM, I would probably stick w that Vintera and slap an american made bridge on there- good to go. Thx!

Nice video, I would have loved to have the American Vintage 2 reviewed here though.

Yay squire CV! I own one and it's my only electric now. I went a bit crazy and put a mastery bridge on it but it's sooooo good now.

Hi Rhett, have you considered making a shoot out video on the Fender Jaguar? It’s a unique instrument just like the Jazzmaster. I have a mid 2000’s US made 62’ reissue that I was given as a graduation gift when I graduated from university. I absolutely love it! I did upgrade the pickups with a set of vintage pickups.

@andrewtesta3850

2 ай бұрын

I’m surprised you switched! Always thought ‘62-‘65 AVRI pickups were the most sought after since they’re discontinued. What did you end up putting in instead?

@General_Ethos

2 ай бұрын

@@andrewtesta3850 I still have the original pickups that came with the guitar. I thought about getting a pair of Seymour Duncan Antiquity Jaguar pickups, but they are the same as their Vintage Jaguar pickups and have just been aged. I went with the SD Vintage Jaguar pickups. I played the guitar for a while before swapping them out for the Duncan’s and the guitar sounded okay but after the swap sounded smoother and more like an original ‘65 I played in a store.

Great overview man! Would love to see J Mascis JM in it as well. Regarding the "buzz" from tremolo I experienced the same with my J Mascis and I've found what it is: it's the tremolo arm sitting in the holder you have to push it really hard until you hear the click and then it sits tigth and solid with no buzz otherwise it's a little bit loose and will resonate with the strings hope that helps!

I got the Classic Vibe Jaguar and Jazzmasters a couple years ago, because I couldn't decide which I wanted. As soon as I played the Jazzmaster, the Jaguar just sat collecting dust. I sold it, and imported a Japanese Traditional 60s Jazzmaster, and it's AMAZING! I did have to change pickups and the bridge, but even with that, it still cost less than the Vintera. I now have three Jazzmasters, and all my other guitars just sit there, unplayed. I gotta sell them at some point, I guess.

I really liked this video. Thanks! Jazzmasters are great guitars and too often overlooked. Beecause of the shape it’s a great couch guitar too! Two things: 1) that string buzz is because of the Jazzmaster bridge. It’s an inherent problem with these than can be overcome. You can shim the neck and raise the bridge to increase the break angle over the bridge. This will increase the downward force on the bridge and eliminate the buzz. It will also help the bridge stay in place better and work in tandem with the tremolo as intended. 2) the Jazzmaster pickups can be noisy as they are single coils. This can be somewhat alleviated with cavity shielding. I would love to see a video with your friend Dave the guitar tech where he goes through these issues and shows how to deal with them and make these guitars play at their absolute best. Thanks again!

Hey Rhett, there are specific Jazzmaster bridge mutes than can get rid of that buzzing. Loved the video, my favorite guitar ❤

Great video with excellent info… Have you had a chance to play the Squier Paranormal Cabronita Tele? A hidden gem… A Thinline Tele with Jazzmaster pickups… so much fun and the sound is amazing!

great video, Rhett. The tremolo systems may feel loose because they may not be set up. The tension on the trim arm can actually be adjusted I believe with a screw inside the tremolo unit.

1 Riff. The neck pickup, on speakers, I couldn't tell the difference between them until you hit the Custom at 5,900k. And then it wasn't by much. When you got to the bridge pickup, was where there were differences. Squier ( jangly and sharp) Vintera (a more compressed jangly and sharp) Pro ( a muffled jangly and sharp) Ultra ( an improved Squier) Custom ( a more expensive jangly and sharp) Thanks for doing these videos, I shall subscribe. You were a help when choosing to buy an Epiphone Les Paul Custom. ;)

That buzzing sound on my Vintera II went away when I raised the break angle . I thought originally that it was coming for the vibrato unit . Then it needed a shim . The thing I didn't appreciate on the more expensive Fenders was the angled neck pocket and the non traditional rhythm circuit . Great video Buddy . Totally agree with your pecking order ...

@elmud

Ай бұрын

You don't appreciate the factory angled neck pocket yet you shimmed your guitar's neck... wtf?

I bought a new Jazzmaster AmPro II last January, I also did not like the pickups, so I dropped in some Novak's, JM 180 (br) and JM90 (nk), and swapped in a Mastery Bridge and String Tree. I LOVE this guitar. I've never owned a Strat, Tele or JM, been a Les Paul guy since the I started playing serious in the mid 80's, so its been a challenge to learn new hand placement and strum through technique (so I don't constantly turn my volume down) but that has also lead to new ideas because the sounds I get are so different than my Les Paul, its been pretty cool.

I 100% agree with this. I've played all of these and owned 2/5 of them (squier, and am pro II, along with some older models like the Classic Player and American Original). I *hated* the Am Pro II, it actually went back to Sweetwater this morning. For the price, the electronics being as awful as they are was a no-go, and I also had two slipping tuning pegs. I'm really wanting to get my hands on a vintera II JM and Mustang, but they haven't popped up locally yet and I'm not sure about the vintage radius until I've played it in-hand.

I’m a Vintera (first series) player myself, so I wasn’t surprised at this result. I play a 60s Vintera Modified Tele, and picked it out of a very similar lineup at our local shop. It was- for me- head and shoulders above an Ultra, two American Player IIs, a couple Japanese killers… among all those more expensive axes, mine absolutely sang. It’s the best neck I’ve ever played, and the body is as resonant as a hollowbody I just sold. Soooo good. Granted that it does have some modern bells and whistles (S1 switch, 4-way toggle), which I actually love, it remains a solidly vintage-feeling and -sounding instrument.

I have been looking at these for quite some time. I wound up going with the Gold Foil Jazzmaster in the end. It was too unique to pass up on, and while I don't have that cool rhythm circuit to play with, I'm extremely happy with the triple mini humbuckers. I got mine from Sweetwater as well, and had them PLEK it. It's easily the best playing guitar I've ever had. Definitely recommend playing around with one if you ever get the chance.

Rhett, you really need to check out a Squire Thinlline Cabronita Telecaster. You really do. It's a semi hollow body with Jazzmaster pickups. Sounds like nothing else and it sounds amazing!

Thank you Rhett. I like the look of the Ultra. If you had to keep and use it what would you change? tremelo, bridge, pickups, how would you wire it? Thanks

Man nice round-up. I agree with you on the Ultra, not my cup of jazz either. My jazzmaster is the best one for me because I made it out of parts that I 100% wanted. White Squire body, 1996 fender mexico strat neck, gold pickguard, fender vintage pickups, mastery bridge & a fender locking trem system. Also locking gotoh tuners that are gold with pearl tuning heads. I was looking at so many jazzmasters and just not happy with anything I played or the specs with ones online. DIY / modding a squire is the best route if you don't have custom shop $$$.

Dude, your bass sounds so good!!Reminds me of Less I Know The Better, and Elephant, which always sounds like John Lennon and The Beatles Tame Impala hook by Kevin Parker!!

I have one to one of these since I was a kid and saw someone playing it in a gospel quartet at church. Just to see how they are I might grab one of those Squires. Appreciate the in depth examination.

Yup! I’m getting a Squier CVJM in a few weeks! I agree with some of the comments about the string buzz! If these were designed for the jazz market, they would have been designed with heavy flatwound strings! Modern players don’t like those and switch to light wound strings. Well that allows issues to appear that weren’t apparent in the design process. I read comments all the time about how Les Pauls have faulty tuning and intonation on their third string! Put on a wound third and all those problems disappear! I play modern strings too, you just have to accept the drawbacks if that’s what you want to use. It’s ok, like you said, it’s part of the charm! All those 60s and 70s Classic Rock songs probably used a plain third string too and were not complaining! Haha! I can’t afford a $6000 custom shop for what will be undoubtably a novelty instrument for me. I’ll get the Squier and upgrade what it needs, then with what I learn, I will build my own from scratch! That’s part of my charm! Hahaha! Thanks Rhett!

I’ve only played the Pro II (at Fanny’s last year) and really liked it. Then again I have a Pro II strat so maybe I am a bit partial...Great review. I almost pulled the trigger on the Squire.

I gotta say that Pro 2 and Ultra has brass saddles too :) (BRASS MUSTANG SADDLES ). Loved the video

Really nice intro tune Rhatt

I have a classic vibe 70's Jaguar, cleaned up the pivot edge on the tremolo with a file and it made a huge difference. No more buzz and buttery smooth. I wish they did a similar CV 70's Jazzmaster with the block inlays and neck binding.

Such a great intro track. Would love to see these all on Spotify one day. Still listen to the Baritone intro track pretty regularly. 😂

I always love these comparison videos

This may be semi-off topic but in a nod to the CV's, I needed a tele for a small project ordered a CV from Sweetwater figuring I could get the tones I wanted and sell it right away. The guitar killed me. I couldn't put it down. And I love the alnico 5 (I think) tones. Put 10's on it (shipped w 9's) added compensated brass saddles and I have to say it is incredible...and btw I got the CV idea from your tele shootout....thanks dude!

thank you Sir, useful review

Nicely done. Love your stuff, seriously. I think when it comes to these guitars, there's a lot of room - the sounds of all of these are not quite as Iconic as strats or teles (not that there's no JM voice, just that it is not nailed down in the public consciousness the way these others are). In 2017 I bought a Squier Vintage Modified Jazzmaster which did have slightly nicer pickups than the classic vibe - they were Seymour Duncan engineered, but I did pull those and the wiring and replaced it with a vintage American wiring harness (a little bit of work to fit since dimensions of the "Jazz" pot rollers were a little wider, Kinman Surfmaster/Fatmaster pickups (Noiseless - these pickups sound great), a post bridge tensioner and just recently a Goldo Vibrato, which is a really interesting take on a Jazzmaster vibrato - a re-design and shorter arm. The guitar plays and sounds great - and as you suggest, was a great platform for modding. after the upgrades, it's about $1000 and every bit as enjoyable to play as the custom shops I've been able to play.

Love my American Pro Il. I find the pickups incredibly inspiring!! 10/10 in my book.

@chrisegg7936

2 ай бұрын

I thought those pickups sounded the best out of all the JMs in this shootout. I could see myself vibing with that sound a lot more than the more vintage-sounding ones.

As a new guitarist I love these shootouts, it really shows what you’re getting for the price. Great playing!

Very interesting video bud!

Consider maybe also J Mascis Signature. It is one hell of a guitar.

@stiffmata

2 ай бұрын

Absolutely! was about to write the same comment! Had to let go of mine a while back and will forever regret it. Not only one of the best JM's i' ever played but one of the best guitar i ever owned period. There is definitely something special about that one. Great job Squier!!!

@erikberg8352

2 ай бұрын

Is that the one with the shorter trem to bridge distance? That seemed like a major improvement over the other Squier models. I think the pickups are slightly different as well.

Great comparison! My first memory of a Jazzmaster is Elvis Costello on the cover of “My Aim Is True”.