BlockInlay
Octavate.band
What model jaguar do you have, which pickups do you prefer, pros and cons of your jag?
I've been GASing for a jag lately.
I've been GASing for a jag lately.
Question: jaguar owners!
- Thread starter BlockInlay
- Start date
Peen Simmons
Let’s Get Obtuse!
If you're in the market, I recently played the Classic Series nitro finished MIM jag that fender introduced a year or so ago.
The example I played was very nice. Easy to play. Good tones. Would've bought it if I at all could have justified it given the glut of solid bodies I had at the time.
The example I played was very nice. Easy to play. Good tones. Would've bought it if I at all could have justified it given the glut of solid bodies I had at the time.
Grant Gross
Kick Henry Jackassowski
I had a Blacktop Jag HH for awhile. It was ok. I like my Pawnshop Mustang better.
Beyer160
Vagabond Of The Western World
Squier VM Jag here, 100% stock except for the Pyramid flats. I had a 2008 Japanese Jazzmaster that I never liked, the Squier VMs (I've owned two Jazzmasters and two Jaguars, currently own one of each) blow it out of the water. The VMs have hot bridge pickups, but in an offset with 1M tone and volume pots it actually works. Yeah, Jazzmasters and Jags are quirky and you have to learn how to set them up properly and work with their quirkiness, but once you wrap your head around it they're not any harder to deal with than a Strat.
Danhedonia
Noted duckfat enthusiast
MIM Classic Player. This is a 'front room' guitar (meaning main rotation).
It is a very solid instrument; not overly heavy, but sometimes you hoist a Fender and you're just like "yeah, that thing is built." Like that.
Looks amazing.
I went too crazy setting it up, and have shimmed/unshimmed it several times. Of course I'm the problem. It has always played wonderfully, and I adore it for that.
It's a Jaguar. (meaning: has all the attributes of the vintage ones, of which I've played several. Strong attack, not a lotta sustain, etc.)
The hardware on it is surprisingly good.
The pickups on it are shockingly good (stock). However, they do not sound vintage, but hot-ish.
The electronics on it are really good. Good rolloff on the tone, switches take a licking and keep on ticking, etc.
It sounds fucking amazing through an Egnater Rebel 30 with a boost and a Vox 212 cab. I mean AMAZING.
Has smallish frets I dig.
I like a lot of 'classic alternative' bands that have very percussive/arpeggiated guitar parts (Spacemen 3, Smiths, Cure, R.E.M.) and it's perfect for that type of sound.
Wish to hell it wasn't a short scale.
But to be honest, the thing about the Jag I like the most is the way it makes me feel. It looks great, it 'fits' me well, and sounds fucking great.
It is a very solid instrument; not overly heavy, but sometimes you hoist a Fender and you're just like "yeah, that thing is built." Like that.
Looks amazing.
I went too crazy setting it up, and have shimmed/unshimmed it several times. Of course I'm the problem. It has always played wonderfully, and I adore it for that.
It's a Jaguar. (meaning: has all the attributes of the vintage ones, of which I've played several. Strong attack, not a lotta sustain, etc.)
The hardware on it is surprisingly good.
The pickups on it are shockingly good (stock). However, they do not sound vintage, but hot-ish.
The electronics on it are really good. Good rolloff on the tone, switches take a licking and keep on ticking, etc.
It sounds fucking amazing through an Egnater Rebel 30 with a boost and a Vox 212 cab. I mean AMAZING.
Has smallish frets I dig.
I like a lot of 'classic alternative' bands that have very percussive/arpeggiated guitar parts (Spacemen 3, Smiths, Cure, R.E.M.) and it's perfect for that type of sound.
Wish to hell it wasn't a short scale.
But to be honest, the thing about the Jag I like the most is the way it makes me feel. It looks great, it 'fits' me well, and sounds fucking great.
speakerjones
my hat is all
1997 CIJ 62 reissue. I swapped the stock bridge for a Mustang bridge and gutted the wiring, installing all new electronics and SD Antiquities. I love the Antiquities, but I only have the pickups that were in it to compare to (which I understand are just cheapo Strat pickups). The Mustang bridge does a fine job of being a bridge and not being wonky as the original bridge is prone to be. If I end up hanging on to it, it may get a Mastery or Staytrem bridge, which are both supposed to improve tone and sustain. I think if I used the whammy bar a lot, I might consider an upgraded tremolo, but I only do occasional warbles on it. Mine's pretty damn heavy. Like Les Paul heavy. I've never weighed it, but it's got to be 10 lbs or more. I currently have it set up with 11's and on this guitar, they feel like 10's.
I put it up for sale when I bought my Jazzmaster, as I figured it would get no love. I ended up using it as my backup on a recent gig though, and spent some time with it. It does a different thing than the JM. I dig the short scale too. Pretty sure I'm keeping it. It's fun to play, and it looks cool as hell with all the chrome and switches. When I go for long periods of not playing it I forget what all the switches do, lol.
BlockInlay
Octavate.band
What's the difference between a mustang and a mastery bridge? Maybe I should investigate a mustang. My friend had one in high school.
Guess I need to play some!
Guess I need to play some!
smurfco
Meatus McPrepuce
About $150
Chad
Slender Hobbit
The Mastery sounds awesome. I have one on my Tele too. I don't think I have ever played a Mustang bridge.
speakerjones
my hat is all
The Mustang bridge corrects two things most people don't like about the Jag/JM bridge which is strings jumping out of the grooves when played hard, and a mechanical buzz inherent with those bridges (there is also a product called a buzz stop, which I've never explored. I don't have a Mastery bridge (yet), but from what I understand, it alleviates all those problems, plus is easier to intonate, and transfers more string energy to the body of the guitar, increasing tone and sustain. It also makes the string spacing a little tighter, so the E strings don't roll off the fretboard. It's pretty universally loved by offset guitar players. There's another product on the market now, called a Staytrem bridge. This is supposed to do most of the stuff the Mastery does, but looks a little more traditional, and might match the aesthetic of a vintage guitar a little better. It's also cheaper, so easier to swallow when upgrading a Japanese Fender or Squier.
Mustang guitars are a whole other animal. I have only really liked the vintage USA ones (I know, what a snob). They come in a few different flavors - both 22.5 and 24" scales and A (narrow) or B (wider) width necks. My favorite is 24" scale with a B neck, but there's something to be said for the A neck, especially if you have small hands. A widths are pretty fun to solo on, because all the notes are close together. If you find a good one, they sound great and are a lot of fun to play. They're nice and light too, which is a bonus to me these days. The trems are a little wonky and not much good but for the occasional little bend. Unlike the Jag, the switching is reasonably simple. A switch for each pickup. In the same direction, they're in phase, opposite directions, they're out. Also, unlike the Jag, all options are very usable tones. The drag here is that nice examples usually go for between $1200-1500 depending on color and condition. For what was essentially a student model guitar. Thanks Kurt Cobain.
Mustang guitars are a whole other animal. I have only really liked the vintage USA ones (I know, what a snob). They come in a few different flavors - both 22.5 and 24" scales and A (narrow) or B (wider) width necks. My favorite is 24" scale with a B neck, but there's something to be said for the A neck, especially if you have small hands. A widths are pretty fun to solo on, because all the notes are close together. If you find a good one, they sound great and are a lot of fun to play. They're nice and light too, which is a bonus to me these days. The trems are a little wonky and not much good but for the occasional little bend. Unlike the Jag, the switching is reasonably simple. A switch for each pickup. In the same direction, they're in phase, opposite directions, they're out. Also, unlike the Jag, all options are very usable tones. The drag here is that nice examples usually go for between $1200-1500 depending on color and condition. For what was essentially a student model guitar. Thanks Kurt Cobain.
speakerjones
my hat is all
I like Fender's vintage series pickups. They probably sound very similar to the SD's. Rewiring that thing was a huge pain in the ass. Took me a few tries to get everything in the right place and grounded right.
Stratguy
Coffee Junky
Like Beyer160, I have the Squier VM Jag. The only thing I have done to it is to put 11's on it. I read that it improved the tone, and were better for keeping the strings in place on the saddles. It's fun to play, especially with surf music, and after getting used to the controls, it's a pretty versatile guitar, and it's easy on the fingers with the shorter scale. The only drawback would be the skinnier Squier neck, but since I don't like beefy necks, I got used to the Squier neck size pretty quick.
Tweedledee
The middle
Jaguars and Teles are my favorite guitars. My Jag is one that I put together myself. It consists of a Cobain Jag body I finished in charcoal gray, AllParts Jag neck with a matching headstock, Fender AV65 pickups, AVRI trem, and a Mustang bridge.
I love the Fender AV65 pickups. They nail the standard Jag sound and they're reasonably priced: about $80 shipped new, and that includes the covers and claws. I wired mine up without the rhythm circuit because I never use it. I've considered doing something else with those controls - maybe add a series wiring option. I also went with 500k pots rather than the standard 1meg pots. I've done this with a lot of Jags but I'm not sure how much of a difference it really makes in the end. It seems to tame the top end a bit when the volume and tone controls are dimed (as you would expect), but that has never been much of an issue for me with the standard setup anyway as I've simply dialed that out by backing off the tone control a bit.
The Mustang bridge is okay. I had a Mastery on another Jag a few years ago and I was impressed with that piece of hardware. I haven't tried the Staytrem, but I would like to. For now, the Mustang bridge does the job.
I love the Fender AV65 pickups. They nail the standard Jag sound and they're reasonably priced: about $80 shipped new, and that includes the covers and claws. I wired mine up without the rhythm circuit because I never use it. I've considered doing something else with those controls - maybe add a series wiring option. I also went with 500k pots rather than the standard 1meg pots. I've done this with a lot of Jags but I'm not sure how much of a difference it really makes in the end. It seems to tame the top end a bit when the volume and tone controls are dimed (as you would expect), but that has never been much of an issue for me with the standard setup anyway as I've simply dialed that out by backing off the tone control a bit.
The Mustang bridge is okay. I had a Mastery on another Jag a few years ago and I was impressed with that piece of hardware. I haven't tried the Staytrem, but I would like to. For now, the Mustang bridge does the job.
