Fender '62 Reissue Jaguar

I have Japanese Jaguar ( Crafted In Japan ) in Antigua color. Some say strange color, some beautiful. I think there are other Fender guitars in that color like Strats and Teles. I like it.
It looks like regular Jaguar with all the switches, knobs, pots and pickups. I think its alder instead of basswood.

Now to the sound. For me, when I bought it, it sounded really nice. It has two single coil pick ups. Neck pickup is amasing for me, it has that jazz sound that I like a lot, deep, fat and clean. Bridge pickup is really bright, at some settings is too bright but that can be cool as well, possibly for some heavy distrotion noise. I played it so far with digitech delay ( digidelay), marshall distortion, flanger and reverb ( mostly on fender hot rod deluxe tube amp ) and it sounds amazing. People usually advise to change pickups to Seymore Duncan and that might be a good idea, depending on your style. I like this jazz warm tone of the neck pickup, but I am thinking to change the bridge pick up to humbacker (JB Junior or the other one ) to get also high output pickup for distortion parts and controlled feedback, because I like mixing jazz with sonic assaults. I think this guitar can make it, with a little setting.
One problem though, and I know people mentioned it before. Its the bridge and its buzz. Strings are falling off of it if you don't set it properly and there is a lot of buzz when you play. Buzz, in my case, is coming from the bridge, as strings vibrate on the metal and make that buzz sound. There is a solution fortunatelly, to change the bridge and there's even a buzz stop accessory specially made for this problem.

Action is really nice and fit for playing. Directly out of the box looks nice and sounds good ( beside this aforementioned problem with the bridge and buzz ). Pickups are nice, especially the neck pickup, i wouldn't change.
Pots and switches are really nice and working and I think even with some heavy use can stand it.
Bridge should be replaced and I think everyone should remember that and do it since its not done properly. Buzz stop is also a suggestion.

This guitar will withstand live playing a lot LOT. Its made for playing live. People played it million times before and I think there's a lot of variety in sound so if you like experimenting with sound, get this guitar. Jazzmaster is also nice guitar but I only played Jaguar so far.
Also, some musicians abused it a lot, with screwdrivers and drumsticks ( mentioning Thurston Moore? Right : ) so I think there's a little fashion to it as when it looks abused, its more sexy. But I keep it new as this antigua color just overwhelms me.

Had none from Fender. From shop where I bought this guitar ( Belgrade, Serbia ) was really nice.

When I bought this guitar, my dream came true, sort of. Ok, I always wished for original one, like USA from 60's. There is always a discussion about differences between original and Japanese, and I can't comment on that since I played original once and it was nice, but this Japanese I bought is better for me. That doesn't mean its better than all USA Jags, no no way. Every guitar is different, even guitars from the same year, same editions and same manufacturer. But, every guitar you set the way you like to so its the same with this guitar.

My '62 AVRI Jag is 9 months old, time for a review. Prior to purchase, I was set on getting a Jazzmaster when a buddy loaned me his '66 Jag. I was hooked, but he wouldn't sell for cheap. I got the 3TSB option. Gorgeous. Weight: 8.6 lbs.

Jags are a bright sounding guitar. Forunately, most of my amps are on the dark side. On my Teles and strats, I rarely use the tone knob. I like the response from dailing down on the Jag. The "rhythm" sound from upper "Lead/Rhythm" switch is mostly a joke, but I have used it few times.

Just awesome. It could've easily passed as a Custom Shop model.

I strung it with 12's almost immediately and adjusted the truss rod (clockwise) for the fatter strings and that's the way its staying.

A bit of a learning curve with bridge and trem system, but worth the effort! First I replaced both E saddles with two spares that come with a '52 AVRI Tele. They each have one string slot and spacing-wise, match up perfectly. Under hard picking/strumming, strings have never popped out.

The trem-lock was a great feature years ago when strings breakage was a problem but I havn't broken a string in ten years or more. So I wrapped some dental floss between the tremlock button and plate, in the unlocked position so it stays put during bends. Fixed.

Heavier strings seem to provide enough tension on the saddles, eliminating the need for readjusting saddle height.

Finally, I Iowered both pups to taste.

The center pup slide switch was DOA. Rather than trust it with a repair shop, I got one off ebay and replaced it myself.

Otherwise, N/A

First, I wanna agree with others who've said this guitar ain't for everyone. Don't buy if you're at all squeemish about doing setups/adjustments. Find a tech. Out of the box, you might not like it at all. Its a jaguar and not domestic at first. Gotta be tamed. Leo WAS a visionary!

I'm 57. The shorter scale makes for a great geezer's guitar, lol. I go back to full scale w/o problems. Coming off my P Bass, though...whoa! Takes a few moments to adjust! I use the Jag for instro/surf. Recording/Hobbyist here.

I love the clean sound of a Jag thru a '63 Reverb. They were (obviously) made for one another. The 24" scale seems to have less sustain than other Fenders and the results effect the tones in a good way.

I like the fact that most people would never consider owning a Jaguar. My other guitars, especially teles, have become dust collectors.

American Vintage '62 reissue Jaguar. Ocean Turquoise finish. 3-ply mint green pickguard. Vintage style floating tremolo, C-shaped maple neck with rosewood fingerboard. 22 frets.Fender/Gotoh vintage style tunnig machines. Came with a brown hardcase, a strap (which I don't really like), cables and some mist and wipe kit.

It suits my music style almost perfectly. Way better than Japanese Jaguars. I wanted to get a MIJ Jaguar or a second hand MIA vintage reissue'62 Jaguar, but there was a sale where this guitar was selling at 50% off. I got the last and only Jaguar on sale. I play a wide range of music,mainly grunge,alternative rock,hard rock,rock,metal and some mainstream rock. This guitar was definitely not meant for metal, I knew from the start, so I am okay with that. The neck pickup has a really fat sound that can produce a great Chili Peppers sound. The bridge pickup alone sounds really thin and crunchy with my BOSS DS-2 on Remote II. The single coils sound great, better than a lot of guitar with humbuckers that I've tried.

In Singapore, the cost of guitars are way higher than in most countries like USA. The 50% off the "first hand" Jaguar made me get this guitar and I am glad I did. I like guitars with low action, like my MIM strat. The Jag has a higher action than my strat but I am still okay with it, as long as the tension is not hurting my fingers. I am used to playing low, nearer the bridge pickup and hard, and the jaguar is forcing me to play a little higher, towards the neck, but I have no problems with that. The bridge is a little iritating for my playing style. I strum really hard and the strings (particularly the low E string) keeps moving out of the saddle, causing buzz. I'm playing more lightly now, and in the future I'm planning to change the bridge to a Mustang bridge, as I heard it is the best solution. No flaws apart from the bridge problem. The ocean turquoise finish looks amazing.

I think this guitar will withstand live playing. It's the bridge and the type of music that I play that worries me. I play quite a lot of heavy music and the bridge is a little unreliable. The hardware will last, as long as the guitar is kept in the hardcase. The finish should be good to last and looks amazing. I am planning on switching the strap buttons to strap locks in the future. I am confident that I can depend on it and will gig without a backup.

The Jaguar is under a lifetime warranty and nothing wrong happened to it so far, so I cannot comment about this section.

I have a MIM Fender Standard Strat HSS, and that guitar has 21 frets. I like the 22nd fret. There are more songs I can play with the jaguar and it has a different feel than the strat. The single-coil pickups in the jaguar are comparable to humbuckers too. I love the finish and colour. Action a little high but I'm ok with it. I wished it had high output humbuckers though, but it would not be a jaguar that way. I would leave the humbucker jobs to my strat. The tone on the guitar is amazing too. Considering the price cut I got, I think this guitar deserves a 10. Fantastic value, since in Singapore, all guitars have to be imported, hence the insanely high price. The three-hour queue for this guitar paid off well in my opinion.

American Vintage RI made in 2003.Ice blue metallic finish...
All the bells & wistles a guitarist might ever need.AMAZING tonal capabilities.Of course the BEST tremolo system ever made..

Sound KILLER ,in fact better than any MIJ ones I've ever palyed & better than many original 60s Jaguars too.
If you have a working brain there is no limit to what this axe can do...

The best made guitar Fender currently offers.
I don't know why (maybe cause they don't make too many of those as oposed to strats & teles?)
Tremendous attn to detail & finish.

Many people complain about rattles & bridge problems...get a grip of yourself...LEARN HOW TO SET THIS THING UP & you will have no problems.
Shim the neck & match the bridge saddles to the fretboard radius..

It is a Fender....

An amazing guitar!

I have nothing to add here that hasn't been mentioned elsewhere.

Don't judge 8 as bad just cos it's not a 10! This guitar has a great twangy jangly sound on the treble circuit which fills out well on the rythm. I don't use a heavily distorted sound. I play through a fender twin reverb, using a proco RAT 2 for light distortion when needed. The jag has a great slightly-thin-yet-edgy sound when used with light distortion on the treble. The treble circuit filter is a great way of backing off a bit on the distortion, cos using the volume darkens the sound hugely. I also use a maxon ad-999 analogue delay and a fulltone clyde deluxe wah. While not quite a one-trick pony, you'd really have to have played one lots with all the gear you're gonna use and decided that you were comfortable with the range of sounds it makes before deciding to buy it as the only electric guitar you're gonna buy. It will not produce the output to drive your amp the way humbuckers do. Just accept that the sound you make is okay with this.You won't have much fun running it through a pod! I use a Gibson 335 as well, which provides a completely different (fatter) distorted tone. The music I play ranges from the smiths, suede, elliott smith, pulp, velvet underground, the auteurs, rem, franz ferdinand and it suits me fine. While it may be slightly noisier than the 335, that's just down to using single coils. All my pedals have true bypass and are powered by a voodoo labs pedal power 2, and so have a well regulated and grounded power supply. My cables are all planet waves. You owe it to your setup to have something similar. I played a bunch of Jap Jags in music shops and the quality of the pickups in them were awful. The US Jags were miles ahead both in the quality of the pickups and the general feel of the guitar. This is just my own experience though.

I live in Ireland where the cost of US Jags is extortionate. I saved a grand by holidaying in the US and ordering one from musicians friend. It was setup reasonably, but after my luthier got his hands on it it was absolutely beautiful. The Jaguar is not a perfect guitar design. The bridge saddles are absolute muck. There is no way they can fail to annoy you, either with the rattle they make or the way the screws can fall out. The mustang saddles are a must. The fender mute is as useful as a sleep button on a smoke alarm. When setting it up, my luthier called me to say that the mute button apparatus were raising the action on the higher end of the fretboard and I haven't regretted telling him to get rid of it. I got a bone nut fitted and it helped the sustain and tone a lot. My Luthier wrapped copper wire around the bridge supports to stop the bridge "floating" - in my opinion, the "floating" creates more problems than it solves. Don't even get me started on the tremolo arm. It just won't stay in place! From what I've read, I'm not the only one that thinks this. Proper locking strap locks are a must on any guitar - get them fitted! I tried out the flatwound strings and found them a bit dead. D'addario '10s suit me fine. I don't think it needs '11s, but again, that's just my opinion. I've gotta say, the paint job (ice blue metallic) is beautiful. The frets were fine - i didn't see any flaws in the way it was made - the mods to the bridge, nut, action and mute were down to my personal taste. I mightn't like their spec but the guitar the factory turned out was perfectly put together. For that I give a 10.

I'm quite easy on my guitars & don't gig them more than once a month. This guitar hasn't let me down yet and I have it about 18 months. The buttons and knobs are all tight and won't be going anywhere they shouldn't be going. As I've said, I play a 335 as well. I'd never gig without a backup. Period.

Have had no contact with them. I have a great luthier who sets guitars up exactly as I want them. I haven't needed to talk to Fender. I've probably got no warranty in Europe, having bought in the US.

I've been playing 8 years, owned a Gibson Les Paul Standard, own a Gibson 335 and a Martin HD-28 acoustic. I've played all sorts of gear and am very happy with my current setup. I would not buy this guitar without owning another electric that can handle the sounds that this one can't, but the Jaguar is a beautiful-sounding and looking guitar. I don't know another guitar that makes the same sound - especially when given a little overdrive. I would never sell it. I have big hands but find the shorter scale neck extremely comfortable and easy to get around. The shape of the body suits me best of all the guitars I've owned. It's perfectly weighted - not too heavy & not too light. If you're comfortable with it's range of sounds, then don't hesitate to get one, but the American model is worth the extra cost.

Usa made reissue. I think it was made in 2002. you know the features from the other user. I can say that the controls are not easy to undertand, but after one day of playn you enjoy the guitar sounds, moore sounds that tele or stat.

I was searching a good sound, from Campilongo to Frisell. I like blues, country, folk, swing.
Now I can play what I like, really. Tha short scale is not a problem, but the best sound comes from 011 strings.
I had to raise the bridge pickup to hear a good blues sound and now the guitar has clear sound as well as dirty (I think the sound is on your hand...). Big noise when you cvlose all pickups.
If you select the upper switch (rithm) I have a fantastic jazz sound, as a serious arch top. But I like the other sounds with treble switch. I don't know if this may be the one and only guitar. But if you want swing, blues and 50' vibe this is the machine.

I don't like the old tremolo or the bolt on system. but theese are not a problems.
the finish on the neck and body is amazing

hardware is really solid.

I like Jaguar for the old vibe and special sound I have not found on tele or strat.
This my be a strnage guitar for the short scale or for the not simple controls.
But the sound you ear is amazing. Just raise the pickups and play with the switches.

Fender 62 Reissue Jaguar
made in USA
date : 2005 August
Ocean Turquoise finish with Mint Green pickguard
comes with brown Fender deluxe hard case and accessorys.
Good overview for pickups, knobs, tuners etc. you get in other reviews or Fender website.

My music style reminds something from The Seeds, Velvet Underground and The Smiths and Jaguar is extremely right guitar to play this kind of stuff.
Jaguar is more known as bright sound guitar.
But at this moment, it seems to me that my Jaguar
sounds almost like bass guitar: previously, I played six months with a Squier Telecaster and got used with its extremely bright sound. Jaguar is a VERY versatile guitar with many totally different (but all useful) settings and a cool tremolo. The only suspicious feature is Fender Mute as when one puts it on, the guitar goes a bit out of tune. However, played alone it produces nice muted sound. As to switches, I tend to use solo position more. Solo position gives more combinations, because three switches below strings worked only in solo system. Solo is on when single switch above strings is underside position. Rythm position (switch up) sound is quieter and foggy, but works better with an overdriven wah. Depending on the pedal usage, you will get aggressive and powerful sound, which, at the same time, is fully under your control. Many guitars with humbuckers go muddy before you get something really good out of them. My pedal gear consists of a Vintage ProCo Rat, Boss Blues Driver, Shin Ei Companion Fuzz(FY-2), Colorsound Tremolo (reissue), Dod FX-17 Volume/Wah and Toadwork Meat Booster. There is one thing I can promise: if you have ben playing a no-name cheap guitar for a long time, you won't believe how good a Jaguar can be.

Factory setup was not fully perfect and needs professional overadjustment. String action was too high and guitar?s tuning was incorrect. Ok, you will forget these problems immediately when you start to play, but for $1100 you probably want a best. Pickups and bridge adjustment was ok. The neck is very comfortable. The neck is not as straight as an arrow but don't be scared: as the manual says, it is necessary to get a lower action. All in all, forgiven little set up problems the guitar is flawless.

All features of the guitar are very classy; at the same time, the guitar is strongly and well made. The lifetime warranty is not a big overstatement. The reissue side is felicitous body-pickguard-pickup colour combinations, tuners feel, harsh sound and smell of nitrocellulouse laquer finish - all stuff is real 1962. The guitar is not noisy at all, no feedback, stays in tune with using tremolo and sounds excellent with different amps and pedals. Guitar and case (case is cool and well made!!) is balanced very well. OK, low E had a very little fretbuzz compared with other guitars, but its just Fender Jaguar's individuality and that's it. You won't hear it from an amp at all. I was playn' maybe 1000 lives and never had a backup guitar why I should now?

I have been playing guitar for 15 years. Right now I dont have any other gear, because I sold everything to buy this Jaguar. I must say one thing: I never put them on mustang bridge or saddles and I don't like 011 flatwounds at all. Don't underrate Jaguar's bridge, it is an
important part, on which the Jag's unconventional sound (clean with a bit of spice in it). Every little modification change sound. I tried 011 flatwound strings and the sound was boring. According to my taste a Jaguar with 010 roundwounds sounds much better. The lesser sustain of pickups is good because it gives you better control over the sound. But it is, of course, a question of individual taste. I must say that I love my Jaguar.

Review for a CIJ Jag, sunburst finish, dark shell pickguard.

So many more features and almost all of them useful. I won't go into detail because it's listed on the Fender site and other reviews. Suffice to say I use every setting on this. Not all in one song, mind you.

Now this is a modified Jaguar. I've got the Buzz Stop, Mustang saddles and I removed the pickup claws, which increases hum around monitors and TV sets but cuts down on excessive feedback. I also have it strung with Ernie Ball Power Slinkies (011s). If you are planning to use these guitars for anything other than what they were designed for (surf/ambient) these are ESSENTIAL upgrades. They're easy to fit and fairly cost effective, plus they increase sustain. The guitars stock, strung up with 009s, just won't cut it. I might upgrade the pickups for a set of vintage repros made by Curtis Novak.

It suits most everything I like to play. The clean sound on the bridge PU is sometimes a bit weedy, but with EQ this is balanced out well enough. The neck PU is a thing of beauty... really smooth and well-defined, definately my favourite neck PU sound on any guitar (close second is a Les Paul with tone rolled all the way down).

I use the bridge PU mostly, and I use a fair amount of heavy overdrive for rock-orientated stuff. The tone is pretty unique... I think gradually these instruments are coming back, partly because they give you a great sound on any setting, with lots of attack. Even with a lot of gain the character of the instrument is preserved rather well; you can still hear the Fender single coil snap and bite, and twang (if you have it EQ'd that way).

I've used this with two Laney amps (VC50 combo and GH100L halfstack, both of which I've gigged out with) and currently a Gallien-Krueger SS backline bass amp for home practice. Sounds great on all of these as long as I EQ right... I can't stress this enough, especially with the Japanese models, you have to work with the pickups to balance out the sound. Compared to the AVRI Jags I've played, which do have more balanced pickups.

I record with this a lot. It's a joy having a guitar I can use for almost anything, due to all the switching combinations. It layers upon itself well. The 'strangle' switch is especially good for those times when you need a solo to really cut through the mix.

God alone knows how this was setup from the factory, but when I got it it was appaling. I had to put in serious work. The bridge was a complete nightmare, the saddle threads were loose, rattling and sinking, as did the bridge itself. You can use loctite or wrap the parts in blu-tack, either works well. I replaced the bridge threads with screws from an old Squier Strat and now it never sinks. It does mean you have to slacken the strings and pull the bridge out to adjust, but once you have it set this is a rare occasion.

After doing this and adjusting the neck to give me a low action with minimal choking and buzzing, plus heavier strings, moving the PUs closer to the strings for more signal, it is very well adjusted.

The finish is flawless, or at least it was. It has some dings and scratches from playing live.

Now I have it set up to my preferance, it rarely goes out of tune and is as solid as any other Fender instrument. The hardware is good enough to last, sure, the electronics are a bit cheap but no problems as yet. The finish is poly I believe, and is harder than the standard Fender nitro finishes.

Strap buttons are average. I always fit those plastic straplocks just to be sure, more so as this guitar weighs a tonne (got to be made of basswood).

I do use it at gigs without a backup, as it's more or less the only guitar I've owned that fits me like a glove.

My experience with Fender has been complete crap. I asked for some information on their crappy serial number system and that was months ago... still waiting for a reply. Still waiting.

I have my own preferred luthiers for more complex jobs like levelling the frets.

I've been playing solidly since March 1996. I play other instruments including mandolin and harmonica. I've owned enough good Gibsons, Marshalls, Fenders, Voxes etc to know what I like.

I should hope it'll never get thieved. I keep a close eye on my stuff at all times.

This guitar is still for a select few ready to wrestle with the poorly executed designs present (or to change them). It's still unique looking and sounding, for the time being.

I wish Fender would devise a way to get four single coils on there, arranged like two humbuckers. Then they could make a switching system to move from standard Jag config to dual humbuckers, but all done with single coils. I also wish they'd start selling these with Buzz Stops and Mustang saddles as standard, maybe then they'd sell more of them.

My fender CAR CIJ.
22 fret,
S/S,
24" Scale,
Alder Body,
Maple Neck,
"Vintage" Pickups,
Chrome Hardwear,
Floating tremelo.
And of course the pickup selecting system is something special.
2 Circuits, along the bottom of the Jag we have 3 switches set in a chrome hexagonal plate, The Strangle, Bridge Pickup, Neck Pickup. 1 Volume, and 1 Tone knob besides that. The seperate circuit, on the upper switch plate; the rythym circuit, on the once activated, only the neck pickup is engaged, and volume/tone can only be controlled by the scrollers by the circuit switch, perfect for presetting so you can switch between two totally different sounds, just by flicking a switch.

I play anything from blues-classic rock.
Suits perfectly. I'm using an MG Marshall amp, not the greatest, but it still sounds amazing.
On high volumes/gain you can get some pretty annoying feedback if you're too near the amp.
It handles distortion wonderfully, will handle metal.
The neck pickup is very warm, it sounds as though the strings have melted together, sometimes a good thing, sometimes a bad thing.
Bridge pickup is beautifull, rich, full, bright, all of it. Creates a bit of twang on clean.

Apart from the bridge, it's fantastic quality and perfect.
But then, this is where the Jaguar quite famously lets itself down, the bridge. More specifaclly, the saddles. The screws fall out, low E slips out of place, it buzzes a hell of a lot, (Probably due to the loose screws.) of course, it's fixable, fitting mustang saddles and 12's should fix it right up. And people have mentioned putting grease on the bridge screws to give the thread more hold.
You're deffinately going to spend a few days getting the bridge sorted.
And the trem isn't too good, if the trem is falling out, you havent pushed it in far enough, it needs quite a bit of force to get it to lock in. It tends to knock strings out of tune every now and then, but I don't usually use it.
But how amazingly assembled the rest of the guitar is, makes up for the faults.

I think if you spent a few good weeks on fixing up the bridge, it will withstand live playing and be fit to gig without backup, hardware will last, finish will last, seems to take quite alot of knocking into things, strap buttons have never failed me.
I wouldn't quite depend on mine yet, once I modify it, it should be perfect.

Never dealt with them.

Wonderfull guitar, you're going to need a hell-of-alot of patience if you need this. No way a begginer guitar.

But I love it,

Like most of the others described here, this is a Japanese '62 Reissue Jag (not sure of manufacturing date). Therefore, it has all the features except the useless string mute (I tried one on a Jazzmaster and hated how it 'tuned' the guitar up -- it isn't even an accurate 'palm-mute' sound!). The color on the body is Lake Placid Blue (a kind of sparkly royal blue), although I am not sure of the wood used. I am sure that the neck is maple with a rosewood fretboard. And don't forget, this is the short-scale 24" neck -- perfect for those with small fingers (like myself). Although it can be harder to play past the 12th fret for some people (due to the short scale), the thin neck is one of the easiest I have ever played. The pickups are definately and acquired taste, although I was able to master them in about 5 minutes in the store. 3 on/off selectors below the strings (neck, bridge, treble boost, which all correspond to 1 volume and 1 tone knob near the output), 1 active/passive selector (with 1 volume and 1 tone roller above the strings). The two single coil pickups even look cool, with the metal "teeth" alongside of each of them. Like the pickups, the body shape is one-of-a-kind. I recall reading that some Fender honcho in the early 60's said it looked like a pregnant goose or something...who the hell cares it looks completely different and original, something that drew me to it(more on that later). The strap buttons are the tightest out of all the guitars I usually play with (Korean Epiphone ES-335, Mexican Squire Strat, Korean Danelectro 12-string). The bridge/tremolo system, while interesting and somewhat inovative, is also somewhat flawed and could have been improved on. I've noticed most people who have posted here have changed it to something different, but they just don't know how to 'work' it, I guess. The tremolo arm is definately a disappointment. With no threading on the arm, it just sits in its hole, meaning that if you lean forward even the tiniest bit, it falls out! Not good when playing high-energy shows. The only other drawback to the guitar is the tuning heads. The other problem with the bridge is that the screws sometimes come loose from the string saddles, occasionally falling out and making the saddle crooked. The crooked saddle in turn allows the string to slide out of its proper groove (this is deinately a problem with the low-E). The only solution I can find, which works fine, is to keep a set of those screws and a corresponding allen wrench in my case. I just make sure everything is set before a show, and I'm golden. You can get these screws from a Fender dealer (I got a set at the place where I originally bought my Jag...more on that later). While the knobs are perfectly fine, I've always had trouble with the heads where the string has to go down into a hole in the center (like bass guitar tuners). This makes for string changing a quite tedious and frustrating task for me. Based on how the guitar's features work for my purposes and the distractions from the last three features I mentioned, this Jag rates a 8.

I first became fully aware of Jaguars and Jazzmasters when I got into Television nearly 2 years ago. Tom Verlaine's sound was so unique (and he looked so cool with those guitars), that my interest was piqued, and barely 2 months later I bought the Jag, after trying out that and Jazzmasters. I believe I chose the Jag over the Jazz because its sound was closer to a Strat. Besides, my ES-335 could handle the sounds I got out of the Jazz. I started off playing it through my Fender Princeton Chorus amp, which in conjunction with the Jaguar makes beautiful ringing bell-like sounds (the distortion sounds best with the amp gain low). With the chorus sound, I can get some tones similar to that of Peter Buck's Rickenbacker on early REM records. At the time I bought the guitar, my band was playing a hybrid of Beach Boys-esque songs and more Strokes-like stuff (check out our website at www.thedemos.net). (It was also cool to know that Carl Wilson played a Jaguar too...which cemented my decision in purchasing it!) I have found the guitar works great for pretty much everything we've played and recorded, especially in conjunction with our rhythm guitarist playing my ES-335. When I started playing through a Vox Cambridge 30 amp 8 months ago, the Jag easily made the transision with me. The Vox amp is tube driven, and allows me to play more vintage overdriven sounds, and with the amp tremolo it is just as unique (but still unique from) the Jag-Princeton sound. (I have since switched back to the Princeton, but both sounds work great for different situations). The pickup choices also give the guitar a versatility within a single amp. There are 7 combinations of pickups on the Jag. Both the neck and bridge pickups work great for cutting leads. I never use the treble boost, however. Depending on which amp I am using, it just creates a thin, hollow, banjo-like sound. Both pickups have a great thick, but cutting, sound when both engaged. The real gem is the other pickup circuit, which gives a nice, mellow, jazzier sound. Really warm sounding! This comes quite in handy when I'm playing in jazz bands (At a competetion once, I got acknowledged my a judge for being able to so easily switch between a funk song and a jazz ballad. I neglected to tell them that one flick of a switch on the Jaguar made that possible!) I now play in a Velvet Underground-esque art-rock band too. When I run the guitar through my Behringer Blues Overdrive pedal, I get ridiculously squeeling bursts of feedback which are completely unpleasent to my other band's ears and the ears of most people. However, it works great for our noisier songs! It is also hard to get sustaining feedback, which would be nice to use on some more melodic leads. Since this works with pretty much all the sounds and situations I need (besides using the 12-string, which is obviously different, I switch to the Squire Strat for a thicker lead on a couple tunes), I'd rate this a 8, seeing as that 'banjo' sound and lack of sustaining distortion detracts!

The guitar itself and pickups seemed to be set-up fine when I bought it...but I don't recall much about buying it, other than the shop also did a set-up of it after I purchased it. I had to have them re-set it a couple weeks later when I found the problem with the screws on the string saddles (which I then found out doesn't happen too often...at most a couple months can go buy without me needing to do some major fixing). The guitar has worked like a charm since then. As I've stated, the neck is so easy to play. There's just no other way to say it! Those with larger hands may find it difficult, but it fits mine like a glove (pun not intended). Since the output jack is on the face of the guitar, I've found it's smartest to use an elbow shaped patch cable here, and feed the cable through my strap. This prevents the cable from wiggling around and loosening the jack (common sense solves all problems, and you can't fix stupid!) There were some flaws in the finish when I bought it, however. But if you know anything about the House of Guitars in Rochester, NY (where I bought it), you'll understand. Even between the day I purchased it and when I picked it up less than a week later, there were noticable dings and scratches on the body and head, including some mindless scratching on the pickguard, as if some 5 year old came in to try out a guitar for the first time and beat the hell out of it (which I am sure is the case!)!! This is not the fault of Fender though, so this will not affect my rating on a 10.

This guitar must be built like a tank! As much as I cherish it, I do play very heavily on it onstage. This is where I used to have a problem with the low-E string sliding out of its saddle, but like I also mentioned, I was able to easily remedy the problem. I've fallen over onstage many a time, and the guitar didn't sustain any damage at all (what a trooper!). The finish is thick and I don't have to worry about scratches or dings (unless it's inside that claustrophobic fire-hazard House of Guitars). Unfortunately, I've never been able to get those pickguard scratches off. Thankfully since the pickguard is white, it's only noticible when the light is angled correctly. The strap buttons are the most solid I've come across (as I've mentioned before). Also as I've stated, I've been able to solve most problems I've encountered, probably due to my love of this guitar and determination to keep it going! I've been through quite a lot with this guitar.

I've never dealt with Fender, and I've only had the guitar re-set up once. I don't recall if it was even under warranty...

I had been playing electric guitar for about 4 years when I got Rhonda (named so after the Beach Boys tune, since this guitar seems to be identified with surf music by my friends). This guitar is my best friend - I get frustrated with her occasionally, but she always pulls through for me! (Fortunately I never get that Kurt Cobain crap - I bought this because of Tom Verlaine and Carl Wilson - I hate Nirvana!!) This will probably be my main guitar for quite a while, until I can get enough money to buy a vintage hollow-body Vox Mark VI. I definately like how unique the guitar is -- I've yet to encounter another band on the Rochester circuit with a Jag or a Jazz -- it's allowed my own voice to come out. I'd recommend the guitar to anyone who digs clean tones, classic Fenders, Television, or indie rock. And I'd make sure to find another if it ever got stolen...after of course smashing the guitars of the band who stole it over their own heads...if any band ever steals it I know which one it will be...