Fender '62 Reissue Jazzmaster

2003 Made in Japan Fender Jazzzmaster. The rest of this section has been written down a thousand times.

One thing everybody must know is that the jazzzmaster sounds like crap. But it is some kind of crap you end loving. I love that crap. Holy crap. This precious guitar doesn't have any sustain, and it definately sounds WAY better with clean sounds, or some crunch, but don't try to distort its sound too much.

There are a lot of possibilities with the jazzmaster. In the "normal position", the 2 pickups offer a good amount of sounds you'll like and dislike. The neck position sounds warm, somewhat bluesy. That's what I use most of the time. The bridge position is too much trebly for my taste, I'm not saying it does sound bad but you must adjust the tone control to use it.

Now on the mid position. Here's where the jazzmaster shines. You can NEVER get this sound from any other guitar... it is definately the sweetest guitar sound out there.

The sound of my band is something like Radiohead, Luna, the Cure, Pavement and this kind. The jazzmaster fits it perfectly. But it can perform many other sounds... I LOVE to play surf with this guitar, this is definately what it was built for and it's what it does better.

One thing I stringly recommend is putting heavy gauge strings (.11 or .12) This solves the bridge problem everyone mentions and greatly improves the sound of the guitar, though you lose some playability (bends get really hard to accomplish with heavy gauge strings) Anyway, that doesn't bother me, that isn't my style.

Mine came very well adjusted through a long trip, so I guess this is a good guitar.

The action is very comfortable, no problem here.

One thing that I must point here is that my jazzmaster NEVER gets out of tune because of the tremolo bridge, wich is perfect for me, sonce I use it constantly.

Mmmm... not very good here. Switches are cheap plastic, but for the price it's still a great guitar.

The question of backups during gigs... even if your guitar is the most perfect guitar ever made, you must always have a backup during gigs, because sometimes strings break and so ;)

Never had to deal with fender

I've been playing in bands since was 13. Now I'm 22. I've been using a tele-like guitar for several years, and bought the jazzmaster recently. Teles are great guitars for my taste, but if you are looking for an unique sound, then the jazzmaster is your guitar.

One important message. I've known many people that uses jazzmasters and jaguars only because of their alternative look, but then they get disapointed with the sound. This isn't a guitar for distortion, unless you want to sound like Mudhoney or Sonic Youth.

Of course, there's no need to say that if you like metal you can forget this treasure and buy some of those ugly Ibanez guitars with digital crappy multieffects.

This guitar is for people who likes sensitive music. And the most important of all, the jazzmaster is so so beautiful that you'll have WAY much more success with girls with it on the stage. Trust me ;D

This review is of the most recent "CIJ" Jazzmaster Reissue series. This guitar has been very faithfully rendered to replicate the feel and dynamics of the original 62-65 L-series. It features the original 24.25" scale with 21 frets. The neck feels reminiscent of the "B" neck on my old 64 L-series Jazzmaster.

The series was a limited run of 350 each in Candy Apple Red and Lake Placid Blue, and was originally intended for the Japanese and European markets, NOT for US export. It is spec'd slightly different from the US export MIJ and CIJ Jazzmasters of the recent past.

What makes this guitar special is (I hate to say this!) a far higher standard of quality than the previous US export guitars showed. Although Fender of Japan has been making terrific world-class guitars since the 1970's, the simple fact is that they were not in the class of the best of the US Custom Shop reissues, nor were the export models quite as nice as the ones the Japanese factory produced for the Japanese home market. The Japanese are not immune to a bit of old fashioned ethnocentricity, and when producing for their own, they feel bound to do their very best in every respect.

On the two 2003 Japan Jazzmasters I have purchased, this REALLY shows! First of all, the hardware appears to have been upgraded from early MIJ and CIJ models. Perhaps the rumor I've heard is true, that they used US reissue hardware. Second, the quality of the finishes is superior. Their rendition of the Candy Apple Red is faithful to the original multi-stage CAR finishes that Leo insisted be used back in the day. This is probably the nicest metallic finish on any Fender product ever.

Under that beautiful finish, is NOT BASSWOOD, but alder, the original wood used on non-Sunburst Jazzmasters. It goes a long way to recreate the authentic feel and vibe of the early American J/M's.

As opposed to the 70's and 80's Japanese efforts, the switchgear and electronics on these seem on a par with the US-made guitars.

The tuning keys are excellent Gotoh reproductions of the original Kluson top-loading tuners that I grew up with and loved. I don't know about factory set-up; both guitars, a CAR and LPB were set up and fine-tuned by a Fender Gold-Certified technician at the dealer who sold me the two guitars. Intonation is dead-on, the best I've yet encountered in a factory-made Fender. String action, a little on the high side, easily tweaked with a bridge that allows individual saddle-height adjustment or, adjustment of bridge height at each end using the same Allen wrench as on the saddles.

In the course of getting familiar with these guitars, I've experimented with putting a "buzz-stop" on one, and noticed an incerase of down-force of strings over saddles, which definitely is a worthwhile improvement, now keeping the strings in the threaded grooves I selected, to maintin comfortable and even string distance,
and a better sustain quality, although, that's not a big issue with these latest Jazzmasters. Let me digress slightly:

In the early 1970's when I was first learning to play, I scored a 64 L-series Jazzmaster for $110.00 used from a local dealer! I was in 7th heaven as at the time, and today too, The Ventures are one of my favorite bands of all time, and they made the Jazzmaster famous between 1960 and 1964 when they started endorsing and playing the Ventures Mosrites.

However, the 64 Jazzmaster was far from perfect. My number-one complaint was LACK OF SUSTAIN. Number two was that the guitar needed an EQ in order to produce decent, aggressive tones, EVEN for playing traditional SURF music, which is my style. In the 80's I finally sold the 64 Jazzmaster and took to playing Strats for the duration, because they had the range of tonality, the sustain and the aggressive attack I wanted.

Okay - back to the subject of this review: This 2003 Jazzmaster feels so much more alive and delivers a tremendous amount more natural sustain, I have to

This will be brief as I've already covered some of this topic in the features paragraph.

The neck pickup is bassy and boomy, NOT my style. The bridge pickup does not seem equal to the neck pickup, and produces a shrill, trebly tone, which you have to roll the tone knob down to 3 or under to modulate. My favorite position is middle, with both pickups. To address the imbalance of pickup output, I've lowered the neck pickup about 1/2 inch, and raised the bridge to about 1/16th inch under the strings. This makes a very noticeable difference, and renders a sound and tone quite suitable for surf/rockabilly, etc.

I have not noticed any higher level of noise than with any other Fender I've played. Because the neck and bridge pickups are wired reverse of each other, in the middle position you get a humbucking effect.

With an auxiliary EQ the tone can be shaped to get a lot more versatility out of the Jazzmaster - it all comes down to taste.

The only dislike is the bridge, as stated above, an easy inexpensive fix.

I found no flaws in fit, finish or electronics. Guitar was set-up at dealer, therefore, I can't comment about factory set-up job.

Everything suggests a very maximal level of attention to detail and quality - I have no unresolved complaints with this guitar, I would gig with it and bring the other 2003 along for backup.

Compared against my old 64 L-series Jazzmaster, this guitar feels every bit as well-put-together and durable as the original. Other MIJ Fenders I've recently encountered, have displayed MINT condition finishes, even the 15-20 year olds, if they were cared for and not abused, so I would expect the finish on this one to perform similarly.

Strap buttons are solid, show no sign of looseness.

I feel comfortable depending on this guitar. If I had to take only ONE guitar with me to a gig, I wouldn't hesitate to take this one!

I'm hanging onto these fine examples, and perhaps in 15-20 years will consider selling them.

Have never dealt with Fender Customer Service, although their Parts Service is horrible - ordered pickup height adjusting screws to replace a couple of ones with stripped heads, and was sent entirely wrong screw!

I'm 51, been playing since age 15, first electric was 58 Fender Duo-Sonic, have played and loved Fenders to the exclusion of anything else I've tried, except the occasional Gretsch.

I would not only buy another just like them if either were stolen, I'm considering buying and having more of them just because they are soooo gooood!!

Get your hands on one of these ASAP. They are quickly vanishing and once they're gone, you'll be hard-pressed to find an owner willing to part with one. By the way, these comments pertain ONLY to the 2003 Japan reissues, on which the Serial Number begins with "Q".

You may well ask yourself, with all 9 ratings above, how I come to the 10 that I'm giving the guitar overall. To me, as a musician, there are intangibles that make a world of difference between one guitar and another.

Even after dissecting and anally analyzing each picayune detail, we still have to come down to the question of How I Like This Guitar When Taken as a Whole Entity. In the case of the 2003 Q series Japanese Jazzmaster reissue, THE WHOLE IS DEFINITELY GREATER THAN THE SUM OF THE PARTS. This guitar has SOUL. When I received the first one, I plugged it right into my Zoom GFX-4 and '66 Fender Reverb unit, going into a silverface Fender Deluxe Reverb amp.

I proceeded at a loud, clean volume of 4 to play a whole lengthy list of classic, traditional instro-songs. Both my wife and my next-door neighbor commented, "That sound is so beautiful!" whereas I've never gotten that comment from playing any Strat, or other guitar.

Those comments tell me these Jazzmaster reissues are WINNERS!!!!!!!

I have a USA '62 Reissue Jazzmaster that I received from a trade about two months ago. I LOVE THIS GUITAR!!! I recently went through a period where I was exclusively playing 70s Fenders, I had a '77 Telecaster Deluxe and a '73 Thinline Telecaster -- I loved these guitars, however, they never felt really solid/stable considering their age, and was never quite satisfied with their sound. I would up selling both of these guitars after receiving huge cash offers for both, so I decided to pickup a jazzmaster. I spoke with a local pro-guitarist in NYC who exclusively played jazzmasters, and he raved at the quality of the USA reissues. So rather than plunking down the ridiculous amounts of money people are paying for vintage guitars these days, I decided to pick me up an American '62 reissue.

Many people complain about the bridge saddles and how the strings either keep popping out or buzzing issues. I did experience this and tried a buzzstop (which I hated). It solved the problem, but really impeded the cool harmonic type effects you can get with the extended strings behind the bridge. After speaking with a guitar tech, he suggested swapping out the jazzmaster bridge saddles, for Fender Mustang saddles. POOOF! that solved the problem. It's really that simple.

Much like many contemporary guitarists who use the Jazzmaster, I play more experimental rock (more textures and atmospherics) along the lines of Mogwai, MBV, Radiohead, flaming lips, electronica stuff, to the cure, jellyfish, police, joy division, and the lot. This guitar is so flexible tonally that you can do so much with it. It is definitely not a METAL guitar, it's much more subtle and dynamic.

My Current Rig:
Jazzmaster (w/ ebow +) --> Boss TU-2 --> Analogman SD-1 (808) --> Boss HM-2 --> Analogman Clone Chorus --> Digitech Whammy I (reissue) --> EH Deluxe Memory Man --> Fender Hot Rod Deluxe.

I swear, this guitar has really inspired me, and I am writing more on this guitar then I have on any of my other guitars. I have always loved fender guitars, and was a devote Tele player until I picked up my Jazzmaster.

The factory setup was your typical factory setup. Action was a bit too high. I brought it in to my guitar guy in NYC and he did wonders with it. He secured the bridge a bit more to keep it from sliding about too much, raised the neck a hair and lowered the action. Now it is perfectly ready to rock.

Right now, I'm not playing with a back-up guitar -- this is my main axe, and I don't have any fears in terms of it letting me down. I replaced the strap buttons with strap locks, so outside of the setup, the strap locks, and replaced bridge saddles (w/ Mustang saddles), the guitar is as I bought it. Mine is a sunburst, and eventually I would like to swap the pickguard for a black one, I've never been a big fan of the tortise design.

The guitar is friggin' solid. So no complaints. Again, I really suggest installing Mustang saddles -- this really does make a huge difference.

Haven't had to deal with Fender.

I have been playing for about 12 years, and have had a host of guitars -- 90s american Telecaster Plus, 77 Telecaster Deluxe, 73 Telecaster Thinline, Epiphone Sheraton and Joe Pass Emperor, Gibson L6-S, and a few others, and this is by far my favorite of the bunch! If it were stolen or lost I would not hesitate in buying another one. I have played vintage jazzmasters before, and none hold a candle to my 62 Reissue. People have completely gone off the deep end for "Vintage" guitars, and though vintage guitars look pretty and are worn in nicely, the prices people are willing to pay for them is absolutely ridiculous!!! Do your self a favor and save a couple thousand bucks and buy an American Reissue -- though i hear the Japanese Reissues are quite nice as well.

CIJ JAZZMASTER REISSUE. YEAR? 2 FENDER P 90'S, LAKE PLACID BLUE. TONS OF FEATURES FOR A GUITAR. HAS THE THREE WAY SWITCH AND THE TOP RHYTHYM SWITCH THING. PLUS A VERY SUBTLE WHAMMY BAR.

I PLAY GARAGISH RNR. I PLAY IT THROUGH A MODDED (BLACKFACE W/EL 34'S)'71 FENDER TWIN, ANALOGMAN TS9 AND AN ORIGINAL MAESTRO FUZZTONE. IT HAS THE HUM VIA THE P90'S. IT CAN GET RAW AND IT CAN GET SMOOTH. ITS ALL THERE FOR ME. AS FAR AS STOCK SOUND IT SUCKED. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND PUTTING IN THE SEYMOUR DUNCAN QUARTER POUNDERS AT BOTH NECK AND BRIDGE - A COMPLETE WORLD OF DIFFERENCE. THERE WAS ABSOLUTELY NO BOTTOM END WITH THE STOCK P/U'S AND THEY HAD NO CHARACTER AT ALL. FLAT TINNY SONDING PILES OF POOP.
STOCK SOUND WAS A 4
NEW P/U SOUND IS A 8 OR 9

SET UP WAS WAY OFF. NECK NEEDED TO BE STRAIGHTENED AND THE ACTION WAS TOO HIGH. MY BIGGEST COMPLAINT RIGHT NEXT TO THE CRAPPY PICKUPS IS THE GAWDAWFUL BRIDGE. I TOOK THE ORIGINAL AND PUT A MUSTANG ONE IN INSTEAD. 100% BETTER. THE STOCK ONE WAS LITERALLY FALLING APART. NO WAY I COULD HAVE FINISHED A GIG WITHOUT PIECES FALLING ON THE GROUND... NO LIE.

THIS THING WILL BE JUST FINE. I BOUGHT IT FOR THE DURABILITY FACTOR AND FOR HOW MANY DIFFERENT TONES IT CAN PRODUCE. VERY HAPPY I BOUGHT IT.

N/A

I GIVE IT A 9 AFTER THE NEW BRIDGE AND PICKUPS. IT PLAYS LIKE A CHAMP AND SOUNDS GREAT NOW. NOTHING I HATE ABOUT THIS GUITAR, VERY VERSITAL AND SOLID. ONE OF THE BEST BUYS OUT THERE FOR THE $$$. REALLY WISH THEY WOULD USE THE MUSTANG BRIDGES INSTEAD AND USE BETTER PICKUPS... I WOULD BUY ANOTHER IF IT WAS STOLEN.

2003 standard CIJ jazzmaster, vintage white, tortoise pickguard.
badly designed bridge that doesn't keep the strings in place very good.

the sound of this guitar suits my music style like a glove, since it's highly inlfuenced by bands such as my bloody valentine, sonic youth, dinosaur jr, grandaddy and flaming lips, all of whom are wellknown jazzmaster users.
i bought the guitar quite recently, and at the first rehearsal i felt like, for the first time, everything fell into place as far as guitar sound goes.
it's pretty noisy, (except when you use both pickups in the lead circuit) but not to such a degree that it bothers me. the pickups have a much fuller sound than your regular single coils. to me the sound is more balanced, the wound strings cut through better and the plain strings are a bit more mellow if you compare to a telecaster for instance. i know the japanese stock pickups are wound narrower and taller than the originals but i think they sound great.
i use a silverface twin reverb amp and a mxr micro amp (boost pedal), a rat (distorion pedal), and a deluxe memory man (analog delay pedal). i play VERY LOUD (much too loud if you ask my amp), and i haven't had any problems with feedback (unwanted feedback, that is).
i think it's a pretty versatile guitar, i seem to be able to get a large variety of sounds that all sound good.
my main dislike is the bridge (of course). the wound strings keep popping out of place when i get a little rough. but i'm planning to get a mustang bridge and a buzz stop to solve that problem.
another thing that bothers me a bit is that there's quite little sustain in the plain strings, while for some reason the wound strings have tremendous sustain.

the guitar was very badly set up at the factory, the neck was curved like a banana, it buzzed like hell, and the pickups were set too near the strings. but it took me about five minutes to fix it all. the buzz disappeared when i tightened the tremolo spring, and i tightened the truss rod, and lowered the pickups. after that it was tip top.
the finish, electronics and hardware are without flaws.

again, the bridge is a big problem, but as i mentioned i'm going to take care of it and i doubt that i will have any problems with it after that. the tuners are very reliable, i hardly ever need to re-tune. and the rest of the guitar seems reliable too.
i don't use the strapbuttons, i use a dimarzio clip-lock strap that's attached with screws directly into the body.
i would never do a gig without a backup, but that has nothing to do with the guitar itself, it's just that have a tendency to break a lot of strings. my playing style is pretty violent. but if it weren't for the string issue i would definitely use it without backup.

one year warranty

i've been playing for about 10 years, and have had a lot of guitars. i currently own (appart from the jazzmaster) a telecaster and a hagstrom HIIN OT. soundwise, the jazzmaster is the best one i've had so far. playability-wise, the best i've had was a -74 telecaster deluxe (i deeply regret selling it).

i think the jazzmaster is a really great guitar, apart from the crappy bridge and the poor sustain of the plain strings.

2003, Japanese made Jazzmaster reissue. Standard Fender scale, frets etc. Solid body (alder is my guess judging by the feel), lack placid blue finish (pleasantly unique color in my book), 2 large Japanese Jazzmaster single coils (American vintage uses a differently constructed JM single coil from the Japanese ones), passive electronics, dual circuit (rhythm and lead circuitry exchange via switch), maple neck, slab rosewood finger board with plasticy dot markers (perhaps made to cheaply simulate the old clay dots), floating tremolo with trem lock (eccentric unit, get to know it well if you're into Jaguars and Jazzmasters), non-locking Gotoh-made Kluson replica tuning machines, standard fender neck width. Tools included: reissue term arm (remember the reissues and vintage models use different arms, the vintage ones having a ridge at the base of the arm), small hex key to adjust saddle heights (i.e. action)

This Fender is unique among Fender models, even Jazzmasters. Jazzmasters are known as warmer Fenders than teles and strats, possessing perhaps a little less sustain and a unique sound not unlike playing an electric guitar inside of a giant tube. The Japanese (as opposed to their American cousins) remakes have a brighter sound than the American ones, owing to a taller and narrower winding of the pickup. Nevertheless, these are by no means strat pickups, they are indeed warmer than your average Fender single coil found in the Big 2 models they make. Like all Jazzmaster pickups, they are prone to picking up the pesky hum that comes with electro-magnetic fields. My guess is that the pickguard is not shielded, ot at least adequately enough to stop the humming. Despite this, the humming can be gotten rid by carefully positioning yourself. Neck pickup alone is fairly warm, a nice rhythm sound on botht he lead circuit and the rhythm circuit. Both pickups engaged gives a "plunky" sound, classicly exemplified by artists like the Ventures. Bridge alone is beefier than a strat bridge, but still not quite a p-90 or a humbucker fullness. Still, it is quite good for leads. The guitar has a decent amount of variety in the sounds, but if you're looking for the classic 60s Jazzmaster sound, you may have to roll back the tone knob and volume wheel a bit. I personally find the sound to be wonderful, it is unique, but not too thin or thick. I play surf, rock, and some new wave-esque music, so the guitar suits these styles quite well.

The workmanship is solid all-around, not quite American made, but still pretty good for the money I paid. The pickups came somewhat out of adjustment, I raised one, lowered the other and balanced them. An easy job... Pickup controls, knobs, switches all silent of unwanted noise- a must in a new guitar of decent quality.

The Jazzmaster, is both robust and fragile. I hate to make such a paradox, but the truth it that with a bolt-on neck, a solid body, and good construction the guitar is robust. Yet, the floating trem with trem lock is fragile as bridges go, often needing adjustment. The trem is feather light in operation, so handle with care. Despite that, the guitar will last with proper care. Thrashing on the bridge unit and dive-bombing won't go well. Strap buttons, all other basic hardware is solid. Gigging without a backup of somekind is not particularly wise, but if I had to do it with this I would.

I haven't dealth with Fender, I've heard they're either very good or very bad.

This is a solid guitar, and a good value buy. For $600-800 ranges, this guitar performs quite well, although it is out ranked in quality by more expensive Fenders, Gibsons, G&L, etc. If you're looking for a Jazzmaster in that price range and have a choice between this and a knockoff imitation, by all means this is a good instrument to choose. If you can afford the American version, I would honestly choose that simply because it's better overall. I compared this guitar to the American version, vinatge examples, no-name knockoffs, and this guitar did better than any of the knockoffs. Still, the American and Vintage guitars were better (but of course the price is a factor there). My only complaint is a tendancy to buzz at the floating bridge (a result of a low downforce due to a rather small string angle). If lost or stolen, I would be displeased and try to get it back. I would buy a new one if I had to. The guitar is fairly complete as is, if I had to add anything I might replace the pickups with American Vintage models or Seymour Duncans. A mute like the old Jags would be interesting too, though they can be more trouble than they're worth sometimes.
An additional note: many Strat and Tele players see this model as a "warm fender" that they can jump right into. If you're in this category, try before you buy. This is a model, that while being a Fender, has features and eccentricities that make it very unique. You may well like it, but don't go on blind faith due to the Fender name. This is a very different guitar.

Mine is the Japanese '62 reissuse. It is very bear in terms of the Features the Floating Tremolo Lock mechanism is missing from the Jap version for instance. However what's there works fine there are two P90 type Pickups which are quite noisey but do produce a quite Bold tone the neck ppickup especially. However because of the shape of the Jazzmaster body, the bridge pickup is further away from the strings and therefore seems underpowered in comparision, raising this and lowering the neck one seems to compensate to a degree.

The tone from the neck pickup is bold and beautiful whereas the bridge one gives out a much more crunchy feel. The tremolo works well except that the trem arm doesn't screw in like on my strat which isn't ideal for jumping around on stage with. However if you've bought or thinking about buying a Jazzmaster Jumping around should be the least of your priorities as the guitar is not meant for heavey metal and such. I use mine primarily for a sort of bluesy funk which i play alot of and it suits me a treat. However overall this guitar is capable of little tonal variation in comparison to my strat and other such guitars and so would not be ideal for a recording artist.

Here's where my jazzmaster fails to some extent. The wiring on the pickup selector was a bit dodgy at first as was the buzzing bridge (somthing you'll find on any Japanese jazzmaster/Jaguar). However i managed to fix both of these. The bridge problem took me about a day to irradicate as as well as the action needing to be raised, the itonation and truss rod needed adjusting afterwards.

The Finish is very durable, i dropped the guitar from standing onto the corner of my pedal board but this only resulted in a minor chip. The Machine heads are excellent, after playing the guitar for three hours and leaving it over night, it was still in tune!!!

I've been playing guitar for going on three years and this guitar alothough won't be ideal for MOST PEOPLE it's certainly a durable and great looking companion. The offset body is fantastic looking. In comparison to my USA Stratocaster, the Jazzmaster is quite pathetic but hey there's over #100 difference.

2002 U.S. made '62 Reissue Jazzmaster in surf green with all of the standard Jazzmaster controls. I installed a buzz-stop and it removed the bridge-buzz (as opposed to fret-buzz) occuring at the lower frets but added bridge-buzz to some upper frets. I'm keeping the buzz-stop on because I prefer the significantly improved sustain and that it keeps the strings from falling out of the bridge saddles. The bridge-buzz can only be heard acoustically and not when the guitar is amplified.
I like the extra controls for the more mellow (aka Jazzier) tone. It's a nice sound for Chet-style thumb-pick playing.

I really like the sound of the larger single coils pick-ups, especially the neck pick-up. I use strictly Fender amps including Twin Reverbs, Custom Vibrolux, and a Super. I favor a full bottom in the tone and I use strings guaged 13, 17, 20, 36, 46, 56. I don't do distortion. I play fingerstyles and instrumental-surf.

It was set up well at the factory for light gage strings.
The neck is fairly low profile as they were in the '60's and it feels as if there is a bit more space between strings as compared to a Strat. I consider that extra space a luxury.

The volume control for the alternate "jazzier" controls is not functioning and is set to full gallop so it's ok but I should get that fixed. All of the other workmanship is good. For heavier strings I needed to tighten the truss. I notice that Fender had to shim the neck so I take a couple of points off for that and one off for the bad volume control.

This guitar will not withstand live playing for anyone who plays with a bit of gusto UNLESS such a player installs the buzz-stop. I have personally experinced the strings jumping out of the bridge saddles prior to installing the buzz-stop and I am not mister thrash. The trem bar sort of snaps into place as opposed to screwing into place as it does on a strat. This means it can fall out with out unexpectedly. Everything else about the '62 U.S. Jazzmaster in terms of finish and strap buttons and hardware is fine.

I've been playing with dedication for over thirty years. I own mostly Fenders and Fender amps and prefer Strats for everything but I do like the Jazzmaster for the better pick-ups and the extra room on the fretboard.

USA Fender '62 Reissue Jazzmaster

First of all, I'm influenced by indie bands like Yo La Tengo, Luna, and Sonic Youth (who all use this guitar,... I've seen them live). I'm also very interested in classic rock, blues and surf. As my guitar heroes use this guitar, I was looking at a Japanese version several years back. The one I looked at felt like a cheap guitar, and sounded ok but I was skeptical on its authenticity (to tell the truth, it was probably a good deal for its price, however I wanted a professional level fender, so I purchased a USA Nashvile Fat Tele (humbucker in neck, like Keith Richards). When I found out that they started making USA Jazzmasters, I was very interested, so I took the chance, and ordered one (store only had green, I wanted sunburst).

The lowdown is this: the finish is beautiful, and is very sturdily built. I personally love the whammy, however it should be noted that I use 11 gauge (they sound better than 10 on this guitar and won't slip). I play with a Fender Super Reverb and a Fender Champ (1970s all tube) and the guitar sounds incredible, and is very comfortable to play. It also nails the original Jazzmaster sound perfectly (keep in mind I haven't a/b an original, this is based of recordings by bands who use originals and live shows, including my friends band who has an original). In fact, this is now my favorite guitar (especially the bass strings, they stand out so good). The guitar definitely stands up and may even surpass my $1300 tele. Please keep one thing in mind... I still have my tele as it is better for a multi styles of guitar (classic rock, blues, indie rock, indie country)... only owning a Jazzmaster would be limiting and not recommended. However, if you like the Jazzmaster sound are are looking for a second Fender, you will blow people's minds, as the sound of this guitar stands greatly on its own, providing an amzing amount of character.

Sunburst finish is a work or art... trust me its woth the extre $50. You must use 11 strings of higher. The guitar is contoured, making it very comfortable to play. Amazing feel for lead guitar, but prefer my tele if I want ot hammer out noisy chords. I love all 3 pickup settings (neck is warm, middle humbucks with a nice middle road, and bridge provides a nice surfy twang).

As long as you take care of it, it will last (I think I could be rougher on my tele, however).

Like I mentioned before, I have my Tele for versatility, however every single notes sings with this guitar through my Fender Tube amps. It makes me smile every time I play it, and would be the exact same guitar if it were stolen.

1994 MIJ Fender Jazzmaster , 21 frets, standard Jazzmaster controls, three-colour sunburst finish with a tortoise-shell pickguard.
The tremolo arm that originally came with it had a ridge at the base which allowed the arm to snap securelt into its socket. Unfortunately I lost it and the replacement did not have the same feature!
I find it rather amusing that the price of Jazmmasters, Jaguars, etc. have risen steadily over the years and now dramatically with the appearance of the American-made re-issues. People originally bought Jazzmasters for one of two reasons: unique sound and CHEAPNESS! That is likely the real reason most early-90s grungies played them. This way they could still have a genuine Fender guitar without paying a lot of money. Sadly, far too many guitarists are interested in how "cool" a guitar looks (i.e. whatever is trendy at the moment? and do not consider what the guitar is useful for. Most people perform so many modifications to Jazzmasters that they would likely be better off buying something else. Indeed, I have noticed that they have the highest re-sale rate of probably any Fender guitar. If you want a good utility all purpose guitar get a Stratocaster!
Love the JM as she comes, boys and girls, don't try to make her into something she isn't.

My guitar playing was heavily influenced by Robert Smith of The Cure and Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine. Eventually I learned that both used the Fender Jazzmaster (Robert Smith used one exclusively from 1979-1983 and Kevin Shields only used Jazzmasters and Jaguars). Naturally I wanted to recreate this sound. It produces the sounds I like though I would not recommend it for heavier, precise sounding music.

The finish is quite good and very shiny. I have heard some people claim that the wood grain is actually a decal underneath the varnish. Who cares! I've never understood this pompous attitude of many guitarists who complain that their instrument is not some magically transported piece of equipment from the 1960s. It wouldn't care if the damn thing was made of plastic! Its the sound I'm interested in, not whether it looks like a good piece of furniture!

I have had some of the problems other people have mentioned. So what? As I said before take the good with the bad. I knew the Jazzmaster would be tempermental. Anyone who expects otherwise is a fool. To my mind this is part of the charm. I replaced the strap buttons with Schaller straplocks. I do this for any Fender guitar as their strap buttons often come loose.
I grow tired of people complaining of the quality of the Japanese guitars. So they're made of slightly cheaper materials. Big deal. You get what you pay for. Personally I believe the Japanese have a better work ethic than some fat guy wearing a too-small shirt, eating a burger and asking for a break every fifteen minutes! I'm not saying this to be anti-American we Canadians are just as bad. In essence, who gives a crap where it's made, even if its Bangladesh!

I've owned American Fenders and had the misfortune of trying to deal with the corporation. They sell you an instrument and then boot you in the ass on the way out the door. They're almost like an insurance company: trying to get anything out of them is like getting blood from a stone. Good old Fender (poor Leo must be spinning in his grave).

I love Jazzmasters I play it as my main guitar (My back-up is a Danelectro DC-59, but that's another review). I would probably buy another as a back-up, since the Dano is not so much a back-up as an alternate sounding guitar.