Fender '62 Reissue Jazzmaster

Japanese 'CIJ' Jazzmaster. Candy Apple Red, 200? manufacture I think. Mine's hardly been played, think it has the factory set-up (shocking, in case you were wondering).

Features are all there - tremelo arm is very loose fitting, perhaps that's what these guitars are like though, I've no prior experience of them so I've no idea.

I like playing all sorts, from jazz & soul to styles bordering on metal. I bought this with the intention to replace the Strat I normally use as an all rounder - that has Lace Sensors at neck and middle and Kent Armstrong at the bridge, meaning it's good for most styles apart from trad jazz and very heavy stuff. Although the Jazzmaster is nice acoustically, when amplified it sounds MUCH thinner in all positions than my Strat, leading me to deem it - at present - a below par Strat in tone ad this I blame on the pickups, which some internet research leads me to believe are pretty much cheap Strat pickups in a large casing. So, I'm going to replace them with Seymour Duncan Antiquity II models for which I hold out high hopes. The guitar sounds great acoustically, so I'm sure with the decent pickups it'll sort itself out. It certainly feels as if it has potential there.

Seems like very good quality build. Nut wasn't amazingly well cut, and of course the stock bridge is a waste of space. Mine has a Mustang bridge on there so it's much better. I'd say it's a very well made guitar with a rubbish factory setup, but I'm very confident my guitar tech friend will sort it out easily so don't let that put you off.

Seems very solid all round, though I've not used it on gigs much so I don't really know how it'll perform. Treat the switches with respect and it should be fine I think, since in all other respects it's pretty much like an oversized Strat with an 'interesting' tremelo. I'm confident that with my Hiscox case it'll travel the world with me with minimal complaints, so thumbs up.

Dunno...

I've been playing over 20 years, professionally for about the last 5 of those. I do studio and live stuff of various different styles. As a touring electric guitar I mainly use my Strat since I know that it's likely to come off an airplane in one piece, and if it doesn't then it's relatively easily fixed/replaced. However I'm a bit bored with it and I plan on using the Jazzmaster as a more quirky replacement.

I've got loads of guitars: Strat for all styles, 80s Yamaha AE1200 for jazz, 78 Yamaha SA 2000S as alternative all rounder (comes in handy for everything including heavy styles because of the weird combination of insanely powerful yet very versatile pickups - if you ever get the chance then buy one!). The Jazzmaster seems like it'll work well for multiple styles when given a good set up and some decent pickups. Without these it's not up to too much, apart from looking fantastic...

So overall, it's a well made and lovely looking guitar that has - with a bit of attention - the potential to be extremely good.

This guitar is a left-handed japanese reissue from the 90's that I bought used in new condition.
21 frets - I wish it had 22 but I love the way the neck sounds.
I had installed Seymour Duncan Hot Neck and Quarter Pound Bridge pickups ASAP, filed a groove in the center of each saddle, and drilled a small hole into the end of the tremelo arm to place a clip through the end so it wouldn't fall out of the trem.

This is the best clean guitar ever, in my opinion. I use it to play Ventures-style instumentals, punk-new wave, etc.

I use a silverface Fender Princeton Reverb for recording, or a Super Twin Reverb with the Boss Deluxe Reverb(bridge pickup)/Bassman(neck pickup) pedals - I can get just about any 50's/60's rock n roll, surf, or garage sound I can imagine. And it seems easy to play any other style of music in this fashion.

I also use the Boss Overdrive/Distortion pedal set on distortion mode with the gain level turned all the way down using the bridge pickup for a very fierce fuzz sound. Not much sustain, but Two-note chords, double-stops, and Randy Rhoads-style legatos sound pretty damned good like this.

However, without a humbucker, larger levels of overdrive or distortion sound like ****e.

I don't really use any effects with this guitar other than reverb (sometimes tremelo).

On a Fender Guitar, I like two different types of action, each with their own advatages and flaws;

Low action - the strings produce an awesome twangy slap (like The Ventures' Fugitive) and fretting any chord, triple stop, etc. is very easy, but the b and high e strings fret out when bending anywhere on the fretboard.

High Action - solves the string bending problem for me, but it usually messes up the intonation to where bar chords sound out of tune, so I have to resort to power chords with added thirds, etc. instead.

The alder body and maple neck seem very durable.

The hardware needs to be replaced; the vol & tone knobs aren't working, the rhytmn circuit switch broke, the frets are worn out (heavy downstrokes on bar chords and too much lead will do that to a guitar in over 5 years) - I'm thinking about replacing the nickel frets with stainless steel.

N/A

I've been playing for over 20 years.
I also have a Fender Jaguar with humbuckers.
If someone tried to steal this guitar, I'd use it to beat them senseless.
This is my favourite clean/dirty guitar ever - for overdriven & marshall type sounds I use said other guitar.

Jazzmaster CIJ in Vintge White color.
The guitar is wonderful but the white pickups covers and the white knobs are horrible...I have replaced these with 2 USA Jazzmaster pickups covers in vintage white color and 2 knobs in vintage whte color.
Now is 10!!!

The suond is good...but is very different from the true Jazzmaster. I have replaced the stock pickups with 2 Seymour Duncan Vintage SJM-1: these pickups are made as in 1957.
Attention: if you want put in you japanese jazzmaster some duncan's pickups, you must change your covers because the 6 holes of japanese models don't fit in duncan's pick ups...
I'm lucky: I bought 2 american covers because the stock covers are horribly white...
Anyway we have 2 different sounds...

STOCK SOUND: really good...but is something like a Strato...
In the pickups there isn't more copper and it sound with no more expression...Vote 7 with stock situation.

SJM-1 VINTAGE: Now is amazing. You can find a thin and bright sound and at the same time a muddy jazzy sound. With distortion you have a sound look like Sonic Youth/dinosaur Jr
Vote 10

The shape of the guitar is wonderful....The bridge, the headstock and color is very beautiful...
The only problem is the bridge: I have replaced it with a mustang bridge and a buzzstop...now you can play from soft to hard!

The guitar is very solid. All the buttons are perfect and everything works perfectly.

3 years warranty

I have a Gibson SG and with this Jazzmaster now I can play every kind of music.
Great distortion from Gibson and great Fender sound.
If you love Sonic Youth, Velvet Underground and everything indie this guitar is what you are searching for.
Japanese model is better than American model because if make these little changes (bridge, pickups and covers) with 900??? you have a guitar better than the American (1600???)

Purchased a used, tort on Black, Stock '62 American Jazzmaster Reissue, which includes the stock Tailpiece/Bridge (that for me and many other internet jazzmaster players consider a bit difficult to work with when it comes to harder playing). With a bridge alteration/and a stable vibrato tailpiece, the factory vintage Fender Tuners hold the strings in tune very well. Im not sure if the neck is an A, B, or C, curve, but its maple/rosewood combination with an overdose of vintage tinted nitro-laq that called for a brillo massage. Since this guitar was purchased used in 2006, the guitar came with its stock "Fender" stapled case without its case candy (strap, short cable, tail bar, polish cloth, etc...) supplied if purchased new. I'm not sure of the year of its birth, but I know its called an "American Reissue". Its' equipped with a three way toggle, for pick-up, selection/combos, 1 volume and tone knob for the bridge pickup, while the neck pick up kind of has its' own roller system when it comes to tonal combos. The guitar came with its' stock pickups (American Vintage Reissue), but I decided I would replace the bridge with a S. Duncan Quarter-pound. Maple wood for the neck, roserwood for the fretboard, alder for the body, smothered with Nitro- Laquery goodness. Overall this guitar looks delicious. Yum.

After a few weeks of playing the stock bridge pickup, I decided that It lacked sustain when it came to being distorted by a Marshall TSL 100. So I did a little bit of pick-up research and found a few possible choices...Curtis Novaks Pickups that people seem to really enjoy, Jason Lollars replacement model, a Seym. Duncan model of a dozen to choose from, or if I wanted to shell out the cash, have a custom wound one.... So I decided on the Quarter-Pound by S. Duncan at a price of about $60 and I'm very pleased with this decision. In addition to the new pickup, I added a buzz-stop tail piece and a mustang bridge and had it set up at a local shop. The results added a significant amount of sustain and playability that made this guitar an instant favorite that is arguablely the most sonically versatile guitar that I own..I like the neck, but as I mentioned above, the nitro is a tad over kill on the neck and headstock and required an equal scrub on the back of the neck to tame the elmers' stickiness.....The guitar before the pickup change sounded great as well...just a little too sharp for me when at high volumes on a distorted Marshall.

I dont know about factory Questions..but the local shop did a great job with the setup. No flaws that I care of....The Fender logo was a little off it's headstock....... which could have been the previous owner, who knows, I dont care, It's used and works! ....

This guitar seems like a pritty tuff dude/dudess. It seems like everything should last, but who am I to know its future?.....I would certainly gig with it no problem...I break less strings on this guitar then a Les Paul I have..so I guess this may be good for gigs in that respect?

No warranty, bought used w/out one....If I need support I go to a local shop not a corporate chain for support (take too long, bad service department...etc.) besides, I bought it at a local shop.....So if you can, support your community... support your local shop.

I have been playing since '96, and have owned too much equipment over the years....It is my most played guitar (over a Les Paul that costs twice as much). It would be silly for me to say this is a better or worse guitar then so and so....So I think the Jazzmaster is its own thing, and I would bite the person in the face really hard if it were lost and stolen because.... I love this thing, modded or un modded!

Fender 1962 Jazzmaster. A reissue, of course. The colour you ask? Ocean Turquoise.

The sound of this guitar is exactly what I had been hearing in my head for the past few years. I was just coming off of a MIM Fender Strat, so it took a little time to re-tweak the Jazzmaster with my current rig. First of all a Jazzmaster can stay in tune. When I first bought this I was abusing the trem like no tomorrow. Guess what? It stayed in tune very well. The trem system is very nice, and great for nice subtle tremelo nonsense, but not for divebombs. Played clean with a fender hot rod deluxe is a beaut. Crystal clear cleans with lots of "kick". The guitar istelf had a very rich and phat sound that I never did get out of my strat. I play with distortion. Fuzz to be exact. The Jazz rips with a skreddy mayo. THe Jazzmaster can be a tad noisey but only with gain. Using the Neck pickup or the bridge pickup with distortion can cause uncontrollable feedback. Solution? Use both the neck and the bridge pickups with the toggle switch in the middle. You can manipulate the feedback much easier and playing is not; how I would say, Sonic Youth sounding. The Lead switch IMO totally outshines the Rtyhm side. The Rthym switch's downside would be that it is too woody sounding and not as versatile. You can play pop, shoegaze, grunge, punk, and perhaps metal with the amp/pedal. I haven't tried the last, so don't quote me on that. I play a mix of Smashing Pumpkins/Nirvana/Swervedriver, so this guitar suits me to the T.

The guitar came from the factory pretty well set-up. I of course adjusted the pickups and the bridge for personal reasons. The only drawback is the bridge. Perhaps with 11 gauge strings or up you will be fine. But I play 10's with a half step down tuning and after about a week and a half the bridge flaw became present. It was a struggle but I soon decided to throw on..........a mustang bridge and the guitar has not given me any problems since then. Strings only jumped out of the saddles once for me with the original bridge. And that was due to excessively hard strumming on my part. Didn't happen again though.

I have had this bad boy since April and with only one problem withstanding, that being the bridge, I would gig with it and would like to think it will stand the test of time. It's truely a solid guitar.

I have yet to deal with the company. So I wouldn't really know, now would I?

Let's say it like this: If Jazzmasters were banned all across the world I would either quit playing guitar or get a Jaguar. Not much else to say, play the guitar and you will see for yourself.

I hope the Jazzmaster misconception continues to grow so us Indie-rock Geeks can continue to have "our" guitar and sound.

"Architecture, nature, alcohol
Space travel, rock n roll"

It's a '62 Fender American vintage Jazzmaster Ice Blue Metallic. It is a standerd model

It has a great sound, nice clean, rock, jazzy and pop. With the different switches you can create manny sounds on 2 pick-ups.

The finishing could be better. It played great but it need some adjustment. On the other hand, the rest was perfect!

This guitar is meant to last forever. The older it will be the better it wil play...

It's the best guitar ever!

1996 MIJ burst with red tortise shell pickguard. SEXY. Same options and features as the ones listed below.

The most beautiful sounding guitar i own. I had an american strat prior to this and this definetly sounds better. Clean, warm and very retro sounding. I would give it a ten but nothings a ten.

Japan workmanship. Perfect. No flaws anywhere on this guitar. I am considering a getting a second one. The american reissues are nice but the you get hung up easily on the neck due to the proper finish for that era. The japanese re-issues are every bit as nice as the americans but with the modern satin finish Fender is now using on there necks.

The bridges on these guitars have to go. Prob the worst bridge ever put on a guitar. Replace it with a mustang bridge or better yet get the Warmoth.
With the exception of the bridge i have no other complaints.

Great.

If it were stolen i would have to get another. These guitars sound amazing. There clean sound is just unreal. Dont expect to play heavy metal or hard rock, this isnt your guitar (unless your J Mascis).

-2003 MIJ jazmaster. Limited edition one of 350.
Japan all the way.
-p-90(ish) pickups. Look like soapbars from the top, but underneath, thecoils aren't much wider than normal single coils. Sounds different than a strat though.
Candy apple red. gloss gloss gloss!
-3 way toggle, rhythym circuit with volume/tone roller circuits, cruddy main volume/ tone knobs.
-standard crappy jag/jazz bridge. Ordered a mustang bridge. It's in the mail. "ALL PARTS" offers replacement mustang saddles pretty cheap too.
-guitar came with an allen wrench to adjust the crappy bridge.

aesthetically this guitar is freaking sex. It looks so hot. Mechanically, the bridge and volume/tone pots have to go.

this guitar is perfect for my style. I play danceable throw-back indie-pop. A little abrasive, but melodic as well (think Gang of four, Strokes, Pixies, Sonic Youth, Wire, XTC, Cure, Pavement, Kinks, Elvis Costello).
I've been using a 1968 silvertone twin, but I'm looking for a fender twin reverb. The thing about fender gutiars is they usually sound great through most any amp, but they hit their stride when paired up with a fender amp.
-I use two delay units, an mxr booster, and a jekyll & hyde overdrive (sparingly).
-The sound is warm and rich, slightly abrasive at times which is perfect. AS a lead instrument, the gutiar is lacking. It's tough to break through for a solo with this guitar. It just lacks that little bit of "oomph" ti needs. I think I could fix this with some aftermarket p-90's. Gibson makes a good hybrid, the p-94.

-the action was a little high, and the tremolo was not adjusted. With a minor tweaking, I had it set up great.
-THe pick-ups are even sounding, neither one really dominates the other in volume.
-The one flaw with these japanese jazz/jags is the bridge. The saddles are horrible. They buzz all the time. You gotta use like 13's to keep it on. I put 13's opn it and the low e still popped off the saddle on every song. It really became a major problem at each show. I'd have to adjust the strings and retune after each song.
The screws vibrate out and the strings slip off the saddles all the time. This can be fixed by replacing the saddles with fender mustang saddles. (18.99 online).
-The volume/tone pots are bad. Volume hums at 1-5, then builds at 7-10, tone just takes away volume. This guitar will get new pots.

I've had it 8 months and besides the bridge issues, it's a keeper.
here are current and future mods:
-reissue mustang bridge/mustang saddles
-chrome strap-locks
-new volume/ tone pots
-fender p-90 pickups

Guitar is great, I do gig with a backup as this one is out of tune constantly. Chalk that up to my style I suppose. I always finish with a bloody right hand.
hardware should be okay, except for the bridge and pots.
finish looks good.

called musicians friend, they had no idea how to adjust the trem.

I've been playing for 5 years. I've owned 18 different guitar in that span. I own an early 70's epiphone coronet, a 2001 taylor big baby acoustic, 1968 silvertone twin twelve, 1960's lindell combo, 1960's teisco bass, various other instruments: accordion, synths, keys...

I give this guitar a 7 because of it's cool factor. The tone is great, and it feels so good in my hands. Seriously, girls want to have sex with it. I've had several offers, but turned them all down.
The saddles and pots WILL be replaced soon. Other than that problem, it's a great guitar, much beter than my jaguar reissue I bought

Mine is a metallic placid blue MIJ Jazzmaster. I has those wide p90-esque pickups, standard pickup switch, and "revolutionary" rhythm switch. Ditto for the rest.

Played clean, this guitar still retains the fender snap despite the "warm" sounding p90 like pickups. I would say that the bridge pickup is quite even without sounding sharping or ice-pickish. The neck oup is quite fat and still retains some nice definition across chords. In combination, you have a nice hum-cancelling sound that is more acoustic sounding than you would expect. This guitar excels at clean or slight overdriven sounds.

With some distortion this guitar reveals itself to me more of rhythm guitar than lead. The pickups do not lend themselves to soloing when distorted as it sounds a little strained. However, if you want a nice wall fuzz or white noise (think mbv) this guitar does it well.

The neck is nick and sleek although not as slinking as a tele. The tremolo is quite effective and considering it is non-lcoking, is a great unit, particularly suited to the "surf" sound. Finish is nice and even.

My biggest grip is the quality of the tone circuits and pots. Treble controls rolls of very quickly so you can really on play with treble all the way on or off.

When you engage the rhythm circuit the guitar (at least mine) seems to roll off post of the treble, which is too much even for the most timid of rhythm guitarist. I am planning on getting a guitar tech to install nicer treble circuits the roll off evenly, ditto for the volume too.

As for the bridge...well it just plain sucks....put on a mustang bridge..problem solved. Definately worth doing as it is a non destructive change.

Quite a heavy guitar...wouldn't like to get hit with one.

In my opinion, the Jazzmaster is the coolest guitar ever. I have coveted one ever since first caught sight of one. Not quite that most practical of guitars, and it certainly is not a jack of all trades.
Nonetheless, pure class.

Japanese reissue Jazzmaster, Lake Placid Blue (unique color, especially since most Jazzes found in stores now are sunburst), pretty much stock equipment (though mine was shipped without the trem-bar and mute).

I just recently picked up this guitar, and knew it mostly from the artists I've seen using it (Radiohead, Sonic Youth, Nirvana). I've been playing a Strat for about four years now so basically everything I have to say about the Jazz is in comparison to it. This is a very versatile guitar. It has a rhythm/lead switch (at least that's what I've been calling it) and seperate volume and tone controls for each (indicative of how old this particular guitar design is, but you get used to it after playing for a while). When in "rhythm mode" the guitar has a very strong midrange, and the tone slider causes the guitar to go from a fairly biting attack to almost not attack at all (a sound similar to the "between-pickup" settings on the Strat). When switched to lead, this guitar is extremely bright. The pickup selector has a similar effect to that of the Strat, accentuating bass, midrange, or treble depending on the pickup. The selector on mine only seems to work on the lead setting, however. I'm not sure if this is intentional, but I'm perfectly happy with the tones I can already get from the rhythm circuit so it isn't a big deal. This is a great guitar for both rhythm and lead playing.
I've read some complaints about the Jazzmaster's performance with distortion, and to a certain extent this is a fairly messy-sounding guitar when the gain is cranked. However, I found the sound to be an interesting alternative to the tighter distortion I get from my Strat. This is not the messy sound of a cheap knock-off, but Nirvana-style controlled chaos. Roll the tone all the way up on the rhythm circuit and you get a chimey, harmonic distortion. Roll it all the way down and (much to my surprise) you get a Smashing Pumpkins-esque hum (think most of the heavier tracks from "Siamese Dream"). This is a sound I've been trying to get out of my Strat for a while now. The lead circuit is well-suited for it's name. This guitar doesn't sustain very long, but it is well-suited for quick, mellow solos.
Regarding the buzz from the bridge; this is apparently a common problem for the Jazz, as mine has it too. I've read about others replacing their bridges with Mustang bridges and whatnot, but I've noticed that normal ball-end strings don't seem to fit well in the string-holes, so I'm going to try putting some Fender Bullets on this guitar and see if it makes a difference before I try anything drastic.

According to the description of this guitar on good-ol' Ebay, this particular Jazzmaster had been a display piece before I got my grubby little hands on it. It shows. The guitar still had the plastic wrap on the pickguard when it came in, and the finish shows no sign of wear. The action of this guitar is pretty standard Fender action and will be comfortable for anyone who owns a Strat or Tele. That said, the neck has a noticably longer scale length than that of a Strat, though this didn't take as much getting used-to as I thought it would. The tuners are very effective; I have yet to knock this guitar out of tune. They did, however, need a little oil. As I said before, the guitar came missing the trem-bar, but there are a whole mess of them available seperately on Ebay, and the absense of the mute wasn't a big deal as most guitarists seem to consider it more of a conversation piece than a useful accessory.

As with most Fenders, the Jazz has a bolt-on neck and a solidly constructed body. I haven't owned this one long enough to put it through the gauntlet, but I have faith from my good experience with the Strat. The strap buttons are solid and the finish is of good quality (not to mention a very nice color). My one gripe is that the strings it shipped with feel pretty old, but I plan on restringing it soon anyway. I would feel confident playing a gig with this is my only guitar, but it's always good common sense to have a backup in case strings break or some other disaster happens.

I've never had to deal with Fender directly, but I'm quickly becoming addicted to their guitars.

I've been playing for about five years now, and my other guitars are a venerable old Harmony acoustic and a Fender Standard Strat. I run my electrics through a Marshall AVT50 and spice things up with an Electro-Harmonix Small Clone Chorus. The Jazzmaster works beautifully with the Marshall, as this amp adds some nice crunch to what is normally a fairly mellow guitar. Will the Jazz replace my faithful Strat? No, because the Strat can do things the Jazz cannot, and vice-versa. These two guitars fill the holes in each other's sounds very well, so I intend to keep using them both. Overall, the Fender Jazzmaster is an easy-playing, versatile guitar. This is not a metal axe, but it suit my alt-rock and surf tastes just fine.

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.

My '62 reissue Jazzmaster was made in June of 2002 according to the date on the neck. It has all the standard Jazzmaster features with the two sets of volume and tone controls and the lousy bridge design featuring deliberately reduced sustain and probably not so deliberate shallow saddles from which the strings like to slip. It also buzzes, so I installed a "Buss Stop". It still buzzes, although less so, but the sustain has been improved and the strings don't fall easily off the saddles.
The nicest feature of the guitar is the tone and the seemingly wider distance between strings (in comparison to a Strat). On tone alone, the guitar would get a 10 in this category BUT the bridge, the bridge, the bridge.

I love the sound of this guitar. The large single coils sound better than the smaller strat single coils. I play it through various Fender amps including a Twin, a Super and a Vibrosonic.
I even use the often ignored Jazz tone setting (via switches on the upper pickguard).

Mine was not set up well so I tightened the truss, lowered the bridge and set the neck angle. It still doesn't have the greatest action but it's not bad. The rest of the guitar is without flaws.

It's dependable.

I've been playing for 30 years. I would probably replace the guitar if stolen.

I'll just say that the jazzmaster,along with the jaguar has the greatest line up of pickup controls you can immagine.full stop.
mine is an early 90's sunburst 'crafted in japan' model.

this guitar has tone,not much power if you're used to gibsons or american tele's and strats,but it has got incredible tone.
The problem with my particular guitar is that the bridge pickup had a much lower output than the neck one,so i just bought a seimour duncan 'hot' pickup....now it's fine!
I play psychedelic/noise/alternative rock, i play through various pedals:ds1/big muff/rat/polyflange/dano delay....into an Orange ad140tc...for my personal taste,way of playing and genre this guitar is a must...

Sorry to put an 8 here,but the pickup problem and the way the guitar was set up just dissapointed me a bit...
other than that,i have to say that this guitar has the BEST neck i've ever played,and i've played quite a few guitars...
about the strings slipping off the bridge saddles: just file the saddle to make a deeper groove!about 2 minutes worth of work...

The finish looks pretty well done,the hardware seems solid enough...i would take it around the world without backup...

never dealt with them

Okay,i explain the ten: with the pickup change,the bridge set up and the saddle filed(really not an enourmous amount of work)i've ended up with an absolutely perfect guitar.
On top of the sound and playability,this guitar is hands down the sexiest,most beautiful guitar ever made.

This is a late 90's (?) "crafted in japan" model jazzmaster. not to be confused with the basswood mid 90's basswood model, and, instead, the alder designed jm. it is not a snobby thing, but only a clarification for some that need to know. two soapbar, p90 size single coil pickups, and mine is in sunburst color. it has rhythm and lead switching function, with volume sliders and pickup selection from a toggle switch. this is really pretty standard if you are familiar with the jazzmaster/jaguar design. for me, i think the sound options presented are almost limitless; therefore, i pleasantly rate the features at a sound 10.

this is so subjective, but let me take a crack at it. first, the sound can go anywhere from lush, thick chordal and melodic tone to brighter, jangly tones. i changed the stock bridge pickup to a custom p90, and left the neck stock. the sound is extremely full and not at all without low end. my setup is a '65 fender deluxe reverb w/jensen p12n and my effects are: a fulltone new custom mini deja vibe, boss tu-2, ibanez ts9/808, ts9/808, ibanez cp-835 ii compressor, and an eb volume pedal. with both ovedrives on and the compressor working it can be a bit noisey; however, it is not at all obtrusive to your playing. when i turn those pedals off, specifically the overdrive, the noise level is almost zero (i use both pu's nearly always). i play music from emo light rock to blues and this guitar has never let me down. i do not do covers, but if you want a good reference, listen to My Bloody Valentine for an intro to the guitar's potential. i think it goes way beyond that frontier, but that is the point: i have nearly limitless sound opportunities with this guitar. again, therefore, i rate this pleasantly at a 10 for my needs and expectations.

many users in the past have complained about this part of the jazzmaster/jaguar experience. i couldn't disagree with them, but i must have lucked out. my setup is exactly what i needed when i bought it. just make sure you choose your string guage before you setup the guitar. otherwise you'll have intonation problems. i use roundwound pyramids 11-52, so if you do lead/rhythm guitar these will not at all inhibit your playing. i really can't rate my finish as perfect, as i'm sure a tech had to do some stock clumsiness adjusting, but i have not had any problems with buzzing or strings slipping out the saddles. try deepening the grooves if you suffer from this, it is known remedy for many users.

this is a pretty sturdy guitar, but not something you should beat up for fun. i would recommend something cheaper and less classy for that type of fun. no problems thus far, but it is a bit too early to give a perfect rating; therefore, i will give it the best feedback i can give with such a new guitar (3-4 years).

never dealt with fender, so can't say much. i bought this through a music store, --chambers guitars in tenessee. great people!! they would get a 10 if it was there production guitar.

I have been playing nearly 9 years now, and I have tried on a lot of different guitars during those years. From a G&L ASAT tele classic to a pre-cbs fender mustang. This guitar has met my expectations for nearly any musical style i could think of performing/writing. I dearly love the G&L, but my jazzmaster is the prettiest/sexiest, and by far, the most versatile in my lineup. So many people will say how this guitar is a surf, clean-only instrument, but that is BS, and you should ignore that type of ignorance. It does not love heavy gobs of distortion, but i have twin ts9/808's and it has never farted out on me before. People have stereotyped this guitar, along with the jaguar because they did not give it a fair chance, or could not think of a solution to a problem within thier setup. Trust me, you can do hard rock and lighter music with this guitar. It lies in your pickups and your gear setup. GEt a good base, and build from there. If this guitar were ever lost, stolen, or destroyed, I would promptly replace it within days. It is my must have piece of equipment. I think the sound options are pretty generous, so I have no preference to add any more controls to it. Remember, I'm only a subjective voice, so go out and buy the guitar with your ears, and not your eyes while watching ebay. YOu really need to hear this instrument first, and then you'll know what to expect. Only I say this will be vague to a degree, because the sound options are expansive when you have time to tweak them. If it buzzes, pops, or does anything else out of the ordinary, then simply take it to the store you bought it from and have it fixed. It is most likely not a lemon, and is only in need of a setup. Most (generalized, i know) people would be happy if they tried these simple tasks before giving up. So be patient with these babies, because they are by far, one of the most unique guitars any maker has to offer.

I bought the Jazzmaster re-issue in 1997. I foolishly had let a guy talk me into selling my original '62 Jazzmaster. I had owned three Jazzmasters since the late 60's. Hell you could buy one for $200.00 used at any music store or hock shop. After I sold my Jazzmaster, I started looking around an discovered to my dismay, there aren't any $200.00 Jazzmasters out there anymore! So I ended up buying this one new from a friend of mine who has his own Fender dealership for a really good price! It was a stock cherry red re-issue Jazzmaster.

It played OK. after I've been playing guitar since 1952. I play all types of music as a saloon singer! I played it through a Peavey Bandit. I use an Ibanez digital echo and a Dunlap "Crybaby."

I wouldn't say the action was set up too good at the factory! I messed with the adjustments for several months. I did notice the "lock down" button on the tremelo had no function at all! I have had 3 other American Jazzmasters as I stated. I took this one apart to fix the "lock down" feature, but the button had no mechanism to fix! It was just there so it would look like a real Jazzmaster! The finish was nice, but the back of the neck had a "sticky" feel to it? I also HATE "slot in the top" tuners! But more about this later.

It was a sturdy guitar. Had trouble finding a case to fit it? It stayed in tune fairly well. It seemed as it had a "decal" covering the body? At least that's what another music store told me? I played it a lot without a backup. No problems.

I have dealt with the music store I bought it from for over 20 years. It's Alan Atkins Discount Music in Birmingham, AL. I've always had the best support from his store! No questions, he just stands rock solid behind his products!

I was trying to install some Grover tuners in it and I split the headstock! It would have cost me more than the guitar was worth to put another neck on it. I didn't have a computer for E-bay to buy a neck at the time. The manager of the local Fender dealship had a US made Jazzmaster neck. But, he wouldn't sell it to me? He wanted to build his OWN Jazzmaster. So I traded straight across for an Ibanez "Art Star 80" in pristine shape. I won't spend money for a re-issue again. You're just buying a name. The difference between the MIJ and the "made in the good ol' USA," is quite noticeable. Especially to me as I cut my teeth on American made Fenders! I'm gonna keep my eyes open for a Fender Jazzmaster that's made right here. Maybe I'll find someone who is as dumb as I was to sell mine?

?Crafted in Japan? in 1997 (I don?t think that MIJ or CIJ makes any difference) with 21 frets and more selector switches than anything this side of a sixties Vox Guitar Organ. Looks pretty ? classic sunburst. I had the stock tone and volume knobs and three-way selector switch replaced with custom American-made hardware (not Switchcraft, they?ve lost it quality-wise recently) because the Japanese ?ware gave you on and off with the knobs and the selector switch was giving out after a few years? use. I also replaced the stock pickups ? although the neck one sounded great, the bridge was completely underpowered and noisy, and no amount of adjusting would change that ? with Seymour Duncan Hot for Jazzmaster pickups (darker tone than the Ventures had in mind, but still not a complete change of mood like the Quarterpounders will do). I also had a shim put in the neck in order to fix intonation troubles. I DID NOT REPLACE THE BRIDGE. People that play too hard not only will have a problem keeping the strings in the bridge, they will also sound like crap in the recording studio. If you replace the bridge with a tune-o-matic you lose the whole floating tremolo concept. You still have one of the coolest-looking guitars ever made, but hey, the floating tremolo was an attraction for me at any rate.

My review score is an average - before I fixed it up, it was a 5, afterwards, a 10. The neck pickup was great, but that was all you could work with; with the SD's in there, a whole range of sounds is available. I play indie pop, some Django-esque jazz, and some more experimental but melodic stuff and this is a great platform for all three. The sound is not like any other guitar - and I don't know anyone who hasn't liked it. Not thin or too sparkly bright, dark and deep but not muddy for the neck and sharp and solid with the bridge, and with effects all sorts of neat stuff can happen, especially with the tremolo arm. E-Bow works very well with this - I like the sound better than what I've gotten from humbucker-equipped seventies Les Paul and SG models I've played.

Not well set up at all when newly bought - major rehab was necessary, although there was nothing structurally or fatally wrong with the guitar. It did travel a long way from Japan to get here, after all, maybe she was just tired (yes, her name is "Kyoko"). I put in new pickups, knobs and switches and had shims put in as described above. The neck however, saves this one rating-wise - best I have ever played, and the action was perfect. I have medium-sized hands but longish fingers and it is absolutely the best.

This guitar is built to last - now that I fixed it up. I played a number of Jazzmasters, both American and Japanese, before buying this one and I realized that whatever Jazzmaster I bought, I would have to lay down some cash to fix it up in any case, so why not buy a less expensive one? The sixties JM's will all be needing new pickups very soon (yes folks, old pickups do die, and the golden era JM's are all pushing 40+) and are not a consistently high quality lot (whether through player misuse or bad days at the factory we can argue), and the reissue Japanese and American ones are a very mixed bag (great parts, poor assembly).

I never gigged without a few guitars, but this is my main axe.

Never dealt with them - SONY/Fender/Fender Japan are megamonster corporations without souls, so who cares? Get a good guitar tech and you don't need customer service.

I have played for about 20 years. I play the Jazzmaster through a Marshall JCM900 live and through old Sears and Magnatones to record. I own a lot of effects - stereo reverb, tape echo, fuzz, analog delay - but don't use them all the time or all at once that often. I would not buy another one; for the money I spent in total ($700 new cost + $250 fix ups and new hardware and pickups = $950) I would have one made for me by Warmoth or via Ebay parts shopping and assembled by my guitar tech. It would absolutely have to have the exact specs as the Jap reissue (especially the neck specs, dang it's great). As I indicated above, I think finding the perfect Jazzmaster is a lost cause - you're better off making your own. Or stealing mine ...

1984 Made in Japan 62 re-issue Alder body White finish (try and find one) vintage style tuners solid as a rock stays in tune for weeks on end. 21 frets, vintage tremelo when set up correctly this will not let you down. Tone circuts you've read about above.
no case included had to find one -part of the fun!

Sounds great if you work on it. Suits my style fine, Listen to Roy Lanam, or any early 60's session player these guys are using JM's
Not for metal unless you have a room full of boxes and like to go Rzzzzzzzzz. great punch, nice deep sounds rich and filling.
if not careful has the tendency to go "bink" again get it set up.

I had it set up by a professional and have only had to raise the saddles every once in a while since they vibrate. I have read about people putting tape, glue you name it on the bridge - The bridge is susposed to float. This guitar is very nice and I can't find any flaws the inside wiring was very neat and solid.
Pickup are ok with the re-issues but I changed mine to SD vintage to get it as close to spec as you can with a re-issue

Have played it with groups of friends without a backup. too lazy to bring other guitars. This guitar has been around since 1984 and nothing on it has failed. I depend on it, I love it. The finish is looking more vintage the more I blow cigarette smoke on it.

Have not dealt with the company

YOU MUST BUY THIS PRODUCT NOW!

I've got a '99 reissue Jazzmaster, crafted in Japan. The last Japanese one that Musician's friend will ever have in stock. I love this guitar! The dual circuits are a great feature, and Don Randall should be given saint status for designing this great successor to the Strat.

The pickups are awesome for what I play most times, like Jazz (go figure) or blues. However, my '99 American Standard Strat still gets the nod for best pickups... I think I can solve this problem with a little help from my pal Seymore Duncan though... haha.. but honestly, the sound is great nice and warm, and when played through my '69 Super Bassman head, it is AWESOME. nuff said.

This guitar (no joke) was more playable, and better set up from the factory than my Strat... no joke, plus it has that great vintage 7.25 neck profile that I adore... no flaws, just perfect.

I'vee dropped it... scratched it, and the only things that I ever need fixed are the seasonal neck adjustements, and the occaisional pots will slip loose... I have always depended on this guitar, and I'm more afrain to use my Strat without backup. This guitar's durable finish is sunburst, never a problem... good hard paint.

I've called Fender about my Strat before, and the guy and I had a converstaion about my Japanese Jazzmaster.. haha.. gotta love it.

I love this guitar! Wouldn't change it!

i bought this guitar through good old ebay. i'm a lefty, which i'm proud of, and finding the right guitar is always troublesome. so when i randomly looked on ebay and saw a left handed Japan Reissue Jazzmaster, i had to buy it. i was actually looking for a Jaguar but this is just as good, in my opinion. i love this guitar. it's the exact same as all the other reissued Jazzmasters, just left handed.

i play emo, post-hardcore, alternative, which are in a way the same thing, but i was looking for a distinctive sound other than the classic strat or tele sound. i use a Peavey Classic 30 and a Mesa Boogie Subway Rocket. anyone who knows amps knows that these are some sweet sounding ones. i primarily use the Classic 30 cause i like the distortion better. i don't turn up the gain too much, but when i do it still sounds good. people may say that these Jazzmasters are for a certain style of music, but they're wrong! you can just as easily use a cello in hard rock or a trumpet in Rap to get people's attention with a new sound. anyway, i'm done with that.
there is some noise with a lot of gain in the bridge setting but i record all the time and i get get by this problem fairly easy. email me and i'll tell you how. if you don't know what this guitar sounds like, go to a music store and play it through a twin reverb or something and you'll hear how unique it is. crap, i ended in a preposition.

the action was pretty low when i received it, but i had to put heavier stings on it anyway. i tune down to weird tunings anyway. there was some dirtiness to the connection that i just had to solder the jack to fix the problem. this guitar plays so sweet and clear. and the bridge problem everyone's talked about? mine came with a Mustang bridge already fitted on it so i didn't have to worry about that.

i primarily use this guitar for recording along with a cheap lefty epiphone with Gibson pickups in it with that Subway Rocket, so it's held up and probably will hold up for a long time. this is a guitar i'll probably have the rest of my life. this is my faithful guitar.

i've been playing for a good 7 years and this is the one guitar that i've shelled out more than $300 for. all my other guitars are cheap $300 guitars that still sound good and i'm never really shopping for looks, but this Jazzmaster looks and sounds great. i use to record with a Line 6 POD but now that i have some nice sounding amps, i use them and the recordings sound sweet.
AND HEY, IF YOU'RE IN THE COLUMBUS AREA AND WANT TO RECORD, I HAVE A COMPUTER BASED RECORDING STUDIO IN MY BASEMENT. i'm pretty much a wienie about this so just email me with any questions.

This is '62 reissue made in Japan, and I got got it straight from the shop for 920 Euro's.
It is a long scale arm with 22 frets, it has a wolume and tone knobs and a three way selector on the main circuit, but there is also a second circuit which is controled by two wheel rolling control knobs for volume and tone. But I don't use this circuit often.
There are two soapbar pickups, but unlike the the original U.S. pick they sound not very good.
I imidiately replaced the Jazzmaster bridge with a Mustang bridge. The bridge is defintely the worst part on this guitar. It sucks!!
The tailpiece has the floating tremolo, one of Feders trademarks and it is fine.
The tuners are quiet ok. Also not as good as U.S. made but certainly not bad. The neck has a rosewood fingerboard (I think) and plays very good.

I play surf music, so this guitar suits my style perfectly and I got it hooked up on a Electro Harmonics Holy Grail and a Dinasour Digital Delay on a sovtek MiG 100.
The guitar plays pretty clean but the sound of the MIJ pick ups is too thin. They sound very bad when played thru a distortioned channel. So that is why I will replace them by Seymour Duncan Pick ups.

The guitar was nicey set up at the factory, I only lowered the bridge pick, but this was very easy.
I double checked the guitar on any kind of flaws, but I couldn't find any.

This guitar behaves very good at live gigs, only the whammy bar fell out once, but this is due my fast playing and jumping around. The problem was also easely cured afterwads. I can take this guitar to a gig without backup for sure.
The overall quality of this instrument is very good and reliable.

Fender has a very good customer support (In Europe that is) They where very helpfull and answered all my questions via e-mail. Thumbs up for Fender Germany.

The warranty lasts one year.

I play guitar for about 12 years and played a lot of guitars and different styles of music. I owe a Ibanez 440 SST and a Bellwood SG, a Melody maker guitar (very kitch disco guitar) and an Applause semi acoustic guitar + a very old Vox cello body Bass guitar.
Thanks to Fender I knew everything I wanted to know before purchasing this guitar.
If it where stolen, I would hunt the thief down and beat him with my melody Guitar to get my Jazzmaster back!! or I would replace it.
Since a U.S. made Jazzmaster was out of financial range I setled for the MIJ JAzzmaster. But it was a good choice.
I would only wish they would replace the horrible bridge at the factory and replace it with a Mustang one. It would saved me a lot of trouble.

1998 MIJ '62 Reissue Jazzmaster

Standard JM scale

Two tone circuits -- Lead circuit (neck & bridge pu's available): master volume, master tone, 3-pos toggle. Rhythm cirucit (neck pu only w/ preset tone upon activation): activated by 2-pos slide sw, separate roller controls for volume and tone.

Basswood body

Candy Apple Red w/ matching headstock

Jazzmaster/Jaguar floating bridge

Kluson (the BEST)

Tolex covered case

Two stock Fender single coil soap bar pickups -- some hum when activated by themselves, hum-cancelling when activated at same time.

I'm strictly a chord-playing rhythm guitarist schooled in "grunge" and early 90's "alternative" rock. Since I'll never weave sonic tapestries like David Gilmour or shred like Billy Corgan (not really much of a soloist), it suits my style just fine! Sounds best when played through 45 Watt Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. Full single coil sound w/ the right amount of bass and treble response when played clean. I mainly use the neck pu in the lead circuit for clean parts and use rhythm circuit for distorted parts (kind of a mid-range "boost", it seems, when this circuit is activated). I can get some pretty good "metal" crunch using Boss MT-2 Metal Zone.... I find the bridge design somewhat comfortable for palm muting. No problems w/ unwanted ringing from behind the bridge when chording. Get pretty good harmonics when playing distorted power chords. Get great "psychedelic" noises when purposely strumming behind the bridge (a la Sonic Youth). I don't solo much, but when I do, lack of sustain bothers me

Factory set up was great... instantly comfortable and pleasing to the ear...

Have had major problems w/ stock bridge, but it IS a Jazzmaster after all.... Just purchased Mustang replacement bridge and looking for free time to install it... When intonation is not acting up, the tuning on this thing is solid as a rock! Finish and hardware seem durable.... Because of bridge problems, can't say that I don't keep a backup... If the Mustang bridge pans out, you can bet I'll go solo w/ the JM!!

Been playing for about 10 years (lots of improvement needed, though)... Own '93 Lake Placid Blue Mexican Strat w/ two Gold Fender Lace Sensors in neck and Middle and Seymour Duncan Hot Rails in Bridge, Black Mexican Telecast w/ DiMarzio Noiseless single coils in neck and bridge and '99 Natural Finish '72 Reissue Fender Telecaster Thinline (all stock)... Dunlop Univibe (the red one), Boss OD-2r overdrive, Boss PH-2 phaser, Boss MT-2 Metal Zone, Boss BF-2 Flanger, Boss DD-3 Digital Delay, Boss CH-1 Super Chorus, Boss floor tuner all wired on a Furman SPB-8 Stereo Pedal board... Play through Fender Hot Rod Deluxe (45 Watt, all tube) or Peavey Studio Pro 112 (60 Watt, tube emulation circuitry)...

Would I by another Jazzmaster if lost or stolen? Yes! And I'd replace the bridge instantly!

I love the styling, and I love the comfort of the neck.... I have big hands, and it's the comfortable playing guitar I've got...

I wish Fender would make Vintage Noiseless JM pickups; I'd put them in in a heart beat, but only if Fender produced the necessary electronics to keep both the lead and rhythm circuits intact...

2002 Jazzmaster reissue, Crafted in Japan
21 frets
solid top
volume tone 3 way selector, other switches
two soapbar pickups
s/s
passive
vintage white
alder body, maple neck, rosewood fingerboard
nitrocellulose finish

I play different styles of music, straight rock, jazzy blues, bluesrock, countryrock. I play my Jazzmaster over a MusicMan 110 RD ('Fifty') amp. Clean and with overdrive the sound is warm and bright (both pickups), a bit mean (bridge) and mellow (neck). I like that crystal clear sound that is full at the same time. You won't ever get that with a humbucker.

I would pick it up from the store, walk on to the stage and play a gig just like that. Perfectly set up. The bridge is the only small flaw: strings can easily jump out of it and the little screws in the bridge tend to vibrate. I'm considering to replace it with a Mustang bridge (which some Jazzmaster affecionados do almost automatically when they buy a Jazzmaster, MIA or CIJ). The bridge is responsible for the 9-rating.

This sure feels like a solid piece of gear. I bought it just five days ago, but it feels very familiar already. It's dependable, I'm sure, and I would certainly on a gig without a backup. I bring one of my Teles though, but it's not because I don't trust the JM.

As I said, I bought it five days ago. So no customer support needed. Warranty is 12 months.

I play guitar for more than twenty years and bought my first electric guitar twenty years ago. I currently own a '82 Telecaster '52 RI (Japan), a '97 Telecaster (USA, a '95 Telecaster (Japan). I was always abusing the neck to get some sort of tremolo effect. With the JM I leave the neck alone and use the tremolo. For some songs the bite of the Tele is perfect, for others the massive and more heavy sound with lots of high is more suitable. If it were stolen I would try to find one again. I was a bit afraid that the JM would go out of tune easily because of the tremolo, but I'm very happy that's not the case. I'm very excited about this fine piece of work, they do a perfect job in Japan, I can say. I think even citizens of the USA would agree if they were honest. At least the Japanese make me very happy.

I just recently bought a '62 Jazzmaster American Reissue. Three-tone sunburst, soapbar pick-ups, and tremolo. I am not a surf-orientated guitarist, but rather a chord driven guitarrorist. This guitar has a clean, crisp, chop-sound when the toggle switch is set for the bridge pick-up. I love the sound of this guitar played through any amp set with the volume cranked, especially practice amps set on full volume witht the treble cranked! I bought this off the internet, warranty and all. I used to own a '68 Jazzmaster and I must admit that the older guitars have more warmth, but as I am told by a trusty guitar-tech whose handled his share of JM's, they will ripen with age. I have one complaint and one only, and this is why I rate it a 9, other wise it would be a ten. Jazzmaster's have a major problem's with the bridge. As others have mentioned, there is no sustain, so if your looking for that ringing, searing long note, this guitar is not for you. Second, a new jazzmaster bridge sinks over time, lowering the strings onto the bridge so that you have to reset it all the time, especially if you have an aggresive style of attack. The answer to this problem is to coat the screw posts that hold the bridge up with either lock-tight or nail polish. This will work relatively well but you may have to coat it more than once to get it to work long term.
This is the coolest guitar of all time, and if I had more cash I'd buy one of every color.

2002 USA 62' jazzmaster reissue
21 frets
solid top
volume tone 3 way selector other switches
two soapbar pickups
s/s
passive, pretty sure
transparent sunburst

It suits my musical style perfectly, i plkay grunge and punk rock and new wave and indie and alternative. it goes perfectly with all of these things.
My amps is a fender reverb adn sometimes i use a morley wah and a dod distortion
No it isnt noisy, at moderate volumes it is noisless and perfect tones, it can be completely dostorted and still has a certain level of clarity
Has a full sound, warm bluesy tones, bright sound, perfect on distortion, perfect on clean
great versatility with this guitar, can do all musical styles well
i love the sound, gets great tones

great, action was great
great
good routed bridge
no flaws

yes it will withstand playing live
hardware will last
finish is good enough to last
strap buttons are solid
i can depend on it
i would gig with it without a backup

never had to deal with fender, lifetime warranty

I have been playing for two and a half years
there is nothing i would have asked before buying this guitar
If it were stolen or lost and i had the money to i'd replace it in a heartbeat
I love the versatility and the feel of it, i love the soapbar pickups
I love this guitar so much, it feels great and sounds great and looks great and is great, i give a perfect 10 for everything, this is the perfect guitar, no questions, i love it, if i could change anything about it i wouldn't, it's great, it's like fender made a custom guitar for me, if you're considering buying this, DO IT!!!!! you want it, trust me, its better than gibsons and rickenbackers and anything else fender makes, its way better than PRS. and i am not from fender either, its just a fantastic versatile great guitar, have fun!

Hi there, I have a 62 JazzMaster Made in USA By Fender in 1962 all original in Olympic white... I have played all of the reissue's and all of the American and Japan guitars made! This is the "real deal" you can't copy the sound of the original. Don't get me wrong the reissue's are cool guitars however, the real Fenders of old are "GREAT!" You can get them for just a little more then a reissue...

Sound of the guitar is very smooth and clean "great for blues and killer for surf" I use a TOP HAT club deluxe with 2x12's also I have a 62 Fender blond Twin Amp with JBL D120's

The finish is nitro and is getting very yellowed over the years what can I say, "It's got the vibe!" the neck is a B neck kinda small but very playable. The frets a small as well but all and all the guitar juat kicks ass!

The guitar is bomb proof! The guitar is almost 40 years old a still plays great, the action is low and the bridge is working fine. I have to fine tune the guitar about every 6 months that's it!

I have been playing for 40 years, if the guitar got stolen I would would first, get real pissed off! Then I would get my act together a go find a great vintage Jazzmaster Made in USA (OLD SCHOOL)

Before ever playing one of these, I knew I wanted one. It was destiny.

So I've finally bought one, an American made reissue. Beautiful 3 tone sunburst finish and Tortoise shell pickguard.

The body is made of Alder, the neck of maple and the fretboard of rosewood.

Vintage tuners, vintage frets, vintage bridge and vintage tremelo.
All of which I have tuning issues with except the frets.

As for the electrics I have no problem with the vintage aspect. The 2 single coils give great sound and are hum cancelling when both used. Now for my favorite bit, the twin circuits. There is a lead and rhythm circuit allowing. The lead circuit allows the choice of either or both pickups and has its own volume and tone controls. Then the Rhythm circuit only uses the neck pickup, but has seperate volume and tone controls. I use the neck pickup alot and I love the ability to drastically change it's settings at the flick of a switch.

The guitar came with a plastic 'vintage' case (shouldn't it have a tweed cloth covering if it is vintage?), a vintage lead(???? WHY VINTAGE???? I'd rather a nice new reliable lead.), tremelo arm and a cloth.

I play alot of different style of music and it fits them all, but I'm also without exception a rhythm guitarist, I don't play lead although I am somewhat able to do so, I just don;t get off on it.

This guitar is just a beautiful guitar for any rhythm guitarist. It has a full tone on the neck pickup, both on the standard single coil it came with and now with the dimarzio 'breed' I installed. (Although I do really need to add a 500k volume pot to the lead circuit.) The reason I changed it was because the old pickup had a almost gibson crunch to it or rather it had a gibson crunch to it, just not quite the same quality, but close. I changed to the 'breed' to lower the treble and remove the crunch and also raise the output and rid the hum. I play in a punk band among others and with this pickup change it now sounds deep, it still has crunch but now only in the bass. Most probably won't like this sound but I do.

The bridge pickup can go from bright to hollow, sounding good all the way. I like to use it for a bright reggae sound. On distortion this pickup has real kick to it, but it is a little broken, it is not smooth.

This is a RHYTHM GUITAR

Best I've every found a new guitar, it was setup perfectly.

So I had to go and change it. It had tuning issues but this is to do with the vintage parts rather than a poor setup. So I had a few things done about. Now the tuning is not

japanese made, bought in '94 or '95
standard equipment all around, with the dark sunburst finish, tortoise-shell pickguard and natural headstock. like those standard vintage tuners. they work very well.

the jazzmaster has a very unique sound, but it's a unique-ness that can be made to work for you in a number of different ways. It was originally conceived as fender's high-end model, and was meant to emphasize a hi-fi approach to guitars. The more irony, then, that the j.m. has been adopted most enthusiastically by predominently lo-fi artists like sonic youth, nirvana, and other early nineties alterna-rockers. But, it's also a popular guitar with people like Robert Smith from the Cure and Kevin Shields from My Bloody Valentine. I know that the time came for me to find a jazzmaster of my own after seeing MBV's 'loomer' video on mtv.
Anyway, enough philosophizing about the uniqueness of this guitar. what actually makes it unique? first and foremost, the bridge. that bridge is one of the the weirdest designs ever, and in its stock form cuts WAAAAAAY down on the jazzmaster's sustain. The tremelo is a bit wacky as well, but much closer to to rest of the worlds designs than the bridge. The lack of sustain can really be a good thing, too. Instead of using compression to create an attack for each note, the lack of sustain does that for you. You will never get power chords to ring on and on on a jazzmaster like you can on a les paul, but try to play a melodic solo with lots of delay and distortion on a les paul and all you get is a big mushy mess. With the jazzmaster, you get one crazy solo. trust me, my other guitar is a les paul standard.

action from the factory, if i remember correctly, wasn't great but wasn't horrible, either. The jazzmaster needs constant attention to play it's best. i get mine re set up about every third set of strings. So, about every 2 to 3 months i take it in to get aligned and whatnot. That's life in the jazzmaster lane. and make sure you take it to someone who knows what they're doing with a jazzmaster specifically.

well, i've been playing shows with my band salome in chicago and new york for the past few years with this guitar, so it definitely does withstand live playing. i've dropped it, kicked it, sat on it, smacked sam the bass player in his head with it, and its survived it all, albeit with frequent trips to the shop for alignments Hardware has lasted well, the tuners are jsut as good now as they were new. only visible hardware wear is cracks on the plastic pickups around the pole pieces. the cracks fill with gunk and stand out very noticeably against the white plastic. finish seems thick- i've scratched the hell out of the corner underneath the 1/4" jack, but there always seems to be more finish underneath . . .
lord help me, i've almost always gigged without backups. for my amp or guitar! and my amp is a marshall jtm 60! i'm insane!!!!!!! and for some reason, i've never had anything fail at a show. just luck, i guess, 'cause i've had lots of stuff die. anyway, don't gig without a backup. unless you have to.

never have dealt with fender directly in any way whatsoever

i've been playing guitar for about 12 years. i also own a gibson les paul standard (not sure what year), marshall jtm-60, dr.z prescription head, groove tubes 4x20 cab, e-h memory man deluxe, 2 boss dd-5's, line 6 pod, line 6 modulation modeller, e-h small stone, budda phatman, vox reissue wah, arbiter-england fuzz face, and a whole bunch of recording equip.. if my jazzmaster was stolen, i'd go out immediately and get another. if you play with lots of delay and whatnot ( you cure, MBV, and slowdive fans know who you are) then a jazzmaster can do things for you that other guitars just can't. one thing to keep in mind, though, is that the jazzmaster will not do everything. it has almost no sustain, and that can limit it's reach occasionally. Also, the new ones now are much more expensive than mine was when i bought it new, but they're definitely still worth it. one of my bandmates has one of the american made copies, and the only real difference we can find is a little smoother output from the pickups . . . . .

2001 Dakota Red '62 RI Jazzmaster, made in Corona, CA. USA

Current model (c Sept. '01)
Solid alder body.

21 vintage frets on rosewood fretboard; Neck adjustment on body end; Medium "C" shape.

Nitro-cellulose finish.

Excellent reproduction from what I've seen (I've had a couple old ones).

Single coils are hum-cancelling when both on.

Metal keyed vintage style tuners.

Came with Deluxe G&G brown Tolex rectangle case; trem handle; strap; cord; and a set of Stainless flatwounds, though it was perfectly setup with Fender 250's in 10 - 46.

Is what it is: an anachronism, but has THE '60's Rock Instrumental tone!

It actually is much more versatile sounding than I remember previous models from the 1960's being. Great Blues tone on the neck pickup!

With the roundwound strings that it came with, it approached some Telecaster tones, and sustained better than I remember these things having. A unexpected pleasure!

With 0.11" - 0.50" flatwounds (with a plain 0.20" third string, versus the wound string usually found in 11 - 50 Stainless Flatwound sets), it retains good brightness at the same time it takes on that "Ventures" tone.

I use a Fender '65 RI Twin-Reverb with the tone controls mostly above the middle "5" zone, for clean twangy "surf" tones.

Also gets a great overdriven sound with both pu's on through a Tech 21 TM 10 amp set up to sound "Vox" -like.

Unremarkable through an old Vibro Champ.

Bit noisy in some environments with one pu on. Cutting treble helps a little.

Is what it is: a Jazzmaster! They're quirky.
I find it OK for general guitar duties, and GREAT for vintage Jazzmaster sounds.

I've owned old American Jazzmasters before, and thought the Made-in-Japan reissues of the eighties were pretty looking, but I didn't think they felt very good to play.

My old US ones were ornery and had little problems like the strings jumping out of the saddles; thin, "goinky" sound; and hardly any sustain.
I was prepared to instantly modify this guitar in the usual manner: shim the neck to increase angle (and downforce) over the bridge; change the bridge to a tune-o-matic and/or "stuff" the bridge pits (holes that allow the bridge to move with the trem); maybe even convert to a stud tailpiece!

Happily, I haven't even bothered to shim the neck angle! All the nagging little warts about Jazzmasters seem to have been fixed by an excellent setup and execution of what Leo Fender must've had in mind when he designed it!
The store had two others, and they played and sounded good too. I just picked the color I wanted.

Excellent vintage feel, vibe, and overall setup and look.

Feels great, plays great, sounds better than I expected!

I'm not much of a "trem" guy, but it can be wiggled a little without going out of tune.
Sometimes a string hangs up or "creaks" and requires an up-pull when you're done wiggling the trem to "creak" it back the other way. No biggie.
I don't care about that stuff much.
At least it doesn't seem to collapse when bending single strings or doing "G" bends (faux steel guitar sounding move).

Solid bolt-neck plank with passive circuits, like most other Fenders.
I'd have to be very negligent to hurt it.

Spare amps, yes.

This guitar is trustworthy. Not hard to restring in a hurry, if need be. Long time since THAT happened to me "live" anyway.

I dunno.

I like to develop relationships with DEALERS. Let THEM lean on the manufacturer if needed.

Limited lifetime. Not worried in the least.

I've had lots of Fender stuff. Never needed anything from Fender. Don't expect to (I do my own work, but like I said it came perfectly set up [maybe by the local shop?]).

Playing since 1960.
Love the Dakota Red color, but would have held out for three-color sunburst if they actually looked like the originals (they don't use the yellow Fullerplast sealer anymore, so the present s/b JM's look almost two-color). Though the s/b Jaguar looks "ginchy."

I'd replace it in kind if lost somehow.

Wanted one ever since "The Ventures" first album cover, but was mightily and consistently disappointed by the old used sixties versions I'd run across. The ones I actually owned were TERRIBLE!

I think the current Corona-made '62 reissue Jazzmasters are the best ever!

Jazzmasters are hard to find.Ever since i played an old Japanese Reissue I decided that i needed a Jazzmaster. My Jazzmaster is a Japanese Reissue (1998) and it is Candy Apple Red (With -
-Matching Headstock). It has a three ply white pickguard, two fat Jazzmaster pickups, Floating tremelo and bridge with trem lock features.It has the fattest neck i ever felt (lon scale) with slight flame, birdseye, and wonderful grain. Rosewood fretboard, twenty one frets and basswood body. Normal vintage tuners and hardshell case and a vibrato arm and bridge cover from a real 1962 Jazzmaster since i dont believe Japanese ones came with them. What Can I Say?! The pichups are beefy and loud and are ideal for distortion. The trem lock is very handy and all of the pickup selectors and switches create so many tones its unreal. It has more features than any guitar Ive ever seen. Japanese reissues are the best playing Jazzmasters and are the closest to a 1962 you can get.

I play a range of variety, mostly alternative and rock, (Stp, Collective Soul, and even older bands).It suits my style (through a Marshall half stack) idealy because of the fat pickup and the closest to humbucking sound i can get. It has muddy sounds with the treble end which is great for blues and with the switches and all you can get a hollowbody, jazz guitar, and much more. I cant specify all the sounds you can get. If you want a les paul sound almost but with a little more roar and bass this is what you want for Almost any style.

Well the guitar was set up when i got it not too bad, luckily my father can set up a guitar great so now its perfect for me. The pickups were adjusted well enough that i didnt even need to touch them with a screwdriver. The finish is like a candy apple mirror which may be due to its great care. there are no real flaws (that i know of!) I give it a 9 soley because it neede a little of a setup.

This guitar can stand a live play because these have thick finishes (gibons have thin) it shows no real signs of wearing thin not for a few decades to come, i use straplocks but always keep the originals in the case for safekeeping. I wouldnt use it without a backup soley because i would but i have a strat and mustang and i love playing those (they help for very different tones) but if i had only one it would need no backup. Very Dependable.

Dont need repairs or have had any so i dont know.

I have a strat for the classic sound of Jimi Hendrix and a Mustang for Grunge sounds. I wish one thing about this guitar... could i have more! If it would ever be stolen (which i wont let it) i would terribbly miss it enough to buy another one the moment i find out. I just hate how Japanese Reissues came with a gig bag because have a tkl case and am going to buy a 1962 american reissue CASE.
I CHOSE IT BECAUSE JAZZMASTERS ARE BEAUTY AND TONE COMBINED
I wish more people would use jazzmasters ( less hatred would be put into music). a great guitar for the price (which is rising)
thank you for reading

Sunburst japanese reissue with an ALDER body and the usual specs.Very well made like all Japanese Fenders.

The guitar sounds and plays wonaderfully.I changed the original strat like pickups with american JM pickups but I went back to the Japanese again cause I simply liked their tone better!More clarity,twang and output.I agree these Japanese pups may don't sound EXACTLY like vintage jm pups but they sure sound GREAT!

After installing the MANDATORY BUZZ STOP,the guitar not only plays very well but also SUSTAINS 100% more.Action and nut were pour,I installed a bone nut,much better now.You can't really have a Jazzmaster play like butter cause it designed for higher action and heavy strings.This one plays great though.You have to use HEAVY strings ,I use 011's or 012's

That's a great jazzmaster.Better than my original 1974 one.Japanese Fenders are the best.PERIOD!!

This guitar was made in Japan, I'm assuming at some point during the 90's. I bought it from a Music Loft in Raleigh, NC in Fall 1999 (if I remember correctly). These guitars are quite hard to find. In fact, the Music Loft in Durham--the town where I lived--didn't have any! I was looking for Jazzmasters specifically, since Robert Smith of the Cure played on during the 80's. But when I saw that they had a guitar that looked quite like the Jazzmaster I was looking for, I bought it without paying much attention to how it sounded. When I took it home, I realized that it was a piece of crap. The guitar was a Squir JAGmaster--NEVER, EVER buy anything by Squier. It's just a cheap attempt by Fender to reach teens who want to buy a guitar just because "it's cool to play the guitar" but can't afford a "real" guitar because their parents don't give them enough allowance or because they don't make much money at their part-time jobs. So I went to another Music Loft in Raleigh, which is quite close to Durham, and saw that they actually had a JAZZmaster in stock, and instantly asked them if I could trade in my Jagmaster for the sunburst Jazzmaster that they had, and they said yes! After I got my first Jazzmaster, I messed around with the bridge and tremolo unit, and ended up causing the whammy bar to make a loud clanky noise every time I used it. So I took it back to the Music Loft for a repair job, but saw that now they had a Candy Apple Red Jazzmaster in perfect condition--a beauty! I asked if I could just get the red Jazzmaster in place of the Sunburst one (the sunbursts are too common, and I have a thing for obscure, unique, and rare stuff). They were nice enough to let me take the Candy Apple Red Jazzmaster home. But after taking it home, I noticed that it was missing a barrel on the bridge and took it back to the same place. And this time I saw an Olympic White Jazzmaster--just like the one that Robert Smith had!!! I just *had* to get that and asked the dealer if he'd let me exchange the candy apple red one for the olympic white one, and he said: "This is the last time I'm going to do it for you." And that was, indeed the last time, that I ever traded in my Jazzmaster for another Jazzmaster. (Also, I noticed that the olympic white Jazzmaster had a fatter sound than the candy apple red one when I plugged it into an amp in the store--a sound I preferred. Obviously, a lot of Jazzmasters differ from one another in terms of tone and overall sound.)

Also, it MUST be said that the Jazzmaster is the BEST-looking guitar EVER made, and the features only compliment its looks.

After having the guitar for about a year, I realized that it was a Japan re-issue. Initially I was under the mistaken impression that it was an original Jazzmaster at a great price. But when I realized that it was a Japanese re-issue, I also noticed how I never really got the famous "mellow" Jazzmaster tone out of my guitar. And that is why? That's because Fender Japan are CHEATING people by installing SO-CALLED "JAZZMASTER" pick-ups that are, in reality, STRAT PICKUPS (I have NO fascination with the twangy strat sound) under W-I-D-E, "soapbar" covers. That really infuriated me, and I ordered two Seymour Duncan "Vintage" Jazzmaster pickups (neck and bridge) from gtrheaven.com and received them in 1 day! These pickups are AWESOME! They give me the unique Jazzmaster sound that sets me apart from the millions of Strat-players out there. The bridge pickup is not as trebly as a lot of people complain. It just has a cutting sound to it that's good for playing with distortion or playing string patterns/pop rhythms withotu distortion. The neck pickup sounds very warm and sweet, displaying how the Jazzmaster is such a classy guitar. The two pickups sound HEAVENLY together! Play them through a chorus pedal, and *without* distortion, and you'll have the most lovely sound imaginable!

As for the second, "Jazz/Rhythm" circuit--I never liked the sound of it. True, it has a warm and jazzy sound, but the sound is so devoid of all treble that it vibrated the speakers of small amps whenever I switched to it, and you could barely hear any crispness in the chords. I solved the problem by having the circuit re-wired to use the bridge pickup instead of the neck pickup (a trick I learned from the JAZZMASTER AND JAGUAR PAGE), and now it has the PERFECT sound for playing rhythm! Again, play through a chorus pedal, and you'll realize how lush and ethereal sound is evoked by the BRIDGE pickup which, in the lead circuit, makes a twangy sound (that's because without the treble, all you have is a cutting, and yet smooth, sound).

My advice to ALL of you out there with re-issue Jazzmasters: DITCH the stock pickups IMMEDIATELY and replace them with either "vintage" or "hot" Jazzmaster pickups by Seymour Duncan if you care about the vintage tone AT ALL (and if you take pride in possessing a Jazzmaster and HATE for it to sound like a Strat). Also, have the rhythm circuit re-wired, that way, instead of avoiding it altogether, you'll find yourself flipping back and forth between the two circuits on stage! All of this can be done for around $130, and it is definitely worth it. Your re-issue will sound almost exactly like a vintage jazzmaster after you do these things (well, except for the re-wiring of the rhythm circuit, of course, which I think is a weakness in vintage Jazzmasters as well).

This guitar is NOT for heavy-metal, like so many others have said. It's for *tasteful* music. Listen to The Cure's 17 Seconds and Faith to appreciate the sound of this guitar.

The bridge sucks. You know why it does (read all the other reveiws), so I'm not going to try to explain. The solution to this is *very* easy. Buy a Mustang bridge. They have single, wider grooves on barrels that don't have any screws for hight-adjustment. Instead, they are each of a slightly different diameter, and thus, different height (appropriate to the string in concern).

DO NOT, DO NOT, DO NOT INSTALL A BUZZ-STOP!!! IT'S THE BIGGEST RIP-OFF IMAGINABLE! $49 FOR A PIECE OF CRAP IS RIDICULOUS! I, after hearing a lot of good feedback, ordered one, but when I installed it, I realized that I couldn't use the tremolo arm anywhere near the bridge because the buzz-stop is so high that it got in the way!!! Besides, buzz-stops don't look too nice anyway. You can easily eliminate string buzz by installing a Mustang bridge and switching to 11 gauge strings. 12's or 13's would be too much for the guitar to handle, and I think they are not suitable for the kind of music I make anyway.

I like to have medium action on my guitar. I despise having very low action so that I can show off my lead guitar skills. A medium action brings out all the tonal beauty of the guitar and is perfect for strumming and picking as well as well-crafted leads.

SUMMARY: You can solve ALL of your problems (as far as bridge/string rattle is concerned) by getting a Mustang bridge and switching to .11 gauge strings.

This guitar is *very* reliable once you make the modifications I suggested above. A mustang bridge is like very solid, so you don't have to worry about anything. If you have gripes about your tremolo arm falling out, just take the tremolo face-plate out and pull in the "claws" that hold the whammy bar in place with a pair of pliers, that way, your whammy bar will *always* stay in place, and feel solid too. I'm sure US made Jazzmasters have better hardware, and I'm planning on buying on as soon as I have enough money. :)

I've never dealt with Fender.

The Fender Jazzmaster is the greatest guitar EVER produced, and you can make it even better!

I bought my American made '62 Reissue Jazzmaster about 3 months ago. It has 2 soapbox pickups. The rythme and lead channels are separate so that the tone and volume can be preset. That's a really nice feature to have. This guitar doesn't do well with flat wound strings if the gauge is higher than .010-.048. The tune-0-matic bridge is difficult to work with because its treaded. I have a 3 tone sunburst with a shell pickguard. 1 volume and 1 tone per channel with a 3-way toggle on the lead channel. This guitar has a lot of options

It has an overall warm tone and can sound really hollow when toned out on the lead channel. The soapbox pickups sound like humbuckers on the lead channel and have a warm and full single coil tone on the rythme channel. This guitar however is not as versital as I hoped it would be and frankly a good quality strat could out perform it any day. However, it does have good tone.

If this guitar was lost or stolen, I would replace it with something else. It would be a Fender, but not this one. Its a good guitar with a cool sound, just not what i'm looking for.

This is a 1995 '62 Jazzmaster Reissue from Japan. I have always felt that the Japanese, given the right tooling, can beautifully recreate classic guitars. This model has a slighly thin solid body with more switches and dials than anybody would ever need. I don't mess with them much, using the amp to shape my sound. It has 2 big "soapbar" pickups designed to attract jazz players of the 50's and 60's but they weren't swayed. It has a cool offset body, much different from the Strat. The vintage tuners worked in the 60's and they work now. Beautifully finished candy apple red body and headstock. That combination seems like the Japanese standard on this guitar.

I've tried a lot of guitars and I've liked them all but the Jazzmaster has become my main guitar. Sound is the main reason. This one, I can really hear a difference. I play a lot of surf music and this guitar's tone and Fender's reverb go well together. It sounds equally as well when playing blues.

The guitar wasn't well set up when I got it new but I enjoyed going completey through it, tweaking it just the way I like it. I love the red finish and it is a quality paint job. The 3-way selector switch was noisy from the begining and a little tuner cleaner fixed that right away. I can set the action fairly low without any fret buzz. I started out with a set of 9 strings but I would recommend at least 10's with the Jazzmaster. I was resistant at first to the glossy finished maple neck but soon found it can be as fast as satin.

I'm sure this guitar would do well as a regualr gigging guitar, You just have to take care of it. I haven't experienced the same bridge problems that others have. Must have something to do with playing style. The fitting for the tremelo bar came apart after a short period of time which was easily re-assembled. (Though we shouldn't have to be doing that on any guiitar). This is a dependable guitar, although I don't think I would play any gig without a backup guitar.

I do my own set ups and repairs so customer support would not be an issue.

I've been playing for 35 years and own 2 Fender Strats that I really like but the Jazzmaster gets the most use. If I was to replace this guitar it would be with an American-made Jazzmaster or Jaguar. Probably not finished in red, since so many red ones are out there. I like the thin neck because I have small hands. Overall good balance. It's a great fit for me. I'm sure with closer 60's matched pickups the tone would improve but this guitar has great tone as it is. I bought this guitar for resale but it didn't take long to decide it's a keeper.

My 96 Jazzmaster is Candy apple red with matching headstock, white/black/white scratchplate and vintage machine heads.It has the usual floating trem , 21 nickel silver frets, the body is alder and the neck is maple with rosewood fingerboard . it has 2 volume controls and 2 tone controls with a 3 way toggle switch

I play alternatave/ punk rock and the jazzmaster is ideal, the only pproblems i have are that it buzzes quite alot and i keep picking up mobile phone calls. apart from that the sound is great, im using a marshall valvestate vs100r and you can get sounds ranging from crispy clean to harmonic laden sounds at the flick of the rythm/lead switch

i could not find many faults allthough the bridge is fiddly and hard to get the intonation spot on and the 3 way switch is quite noisy

this guitar is very durably but during a gig 2 of the bridge height screws wiggled their way out ,, witch was not good. and scratches on the paint are very visible as the metallic paint is very reflective of light

ive been playing for 8 years now, i had strats , ive had jagstangs and a mustang, and i can honestly say my jazzmaster is the nicest sounding guitar ive ever played, from the sexpistols to hendrix this guitar has the widest range of sounds imaginable

Made in Japan... I've been told that it's Basswood, by some, Alder by others. Maple neck, Rosewood fretboard. Candy apple metalic red, nice glassey finish.

the sound is good, and versitile, with the added circuit, for the jazzier tone.

This is an update on a review I wrote about 2 years ago for this guitar, now that I'm not so enchanted by the newness of this guitar I can be more critical... If you want to read my origional, scroll down to the bottom (email at the time was DAgrunt@webtv). I have several major problems, which have delegated this guitar to underneath my bed. The main and seemingly unrepairable problem is with the crummy bridge, which, I have since replaced the saddle piece with a Les Paul saddle, to keep the strings in place, when you bend notes, the strings flop out of the screw-type saddles, I've read the different remedies (i.e. washers, filing, et.al.) and decided the Les Paul would work, and it did, fairly well, but a few mods were made in the process. If you want to keep your origional bridge saddle piece, I recommend a few winds of black electrical tape around the poles, next time you change the strings... this will keep the saddle from moving laterally, and it will stay in tune better. Another big problem is the fact that, beyond the 12th fret, any bending of any string results in the string fretting out and choking... unless the action is above an acceptable level. Another: The bottom "E" string dominates over all others, just washing out the sound of the others.... Another.... The tremolo bar sits very loosley in the hole for it, causing flutter in the tremolo action, and a little grounding scratchey noise, I wrapped one width of clear packing tape around it, to fix this. Again with the tape???? Another... The frets seem real super-duper cheap!!!! I don't play out, and I don't even play that much, and the frets, especially around open D, A, E, etc. chords are showing substantial wear. Other than these... the finish , and all other components seem to be holding their own, quite nicely.

..... The tuning pegs are much better than my origional feeling. Very smooth, and reliable feelikng. I don't plat out, but I would NEVER, under ANY circumstances, go to a gig, with this guitar, without a backup, or at least a good battery in the tuner!

If this guitar wound up missing, can't say I would replace it... Except for an origional '60's model, I still love the looks and the sound is great, but the I can't see the reissue enduring like the origional. In retrospect, I wish I had bought an origional, for a few more bucks, or a decent Stratocaster. If somebody has some suggestions, please email.

This guitar was apparently made in 1998 or 1999 in Japan. It's got a solid top, I suppose...1 volume, one tone on each channel...3 way selector on the lead channel. It has two single coils, they aren't P-90s but they are similar in appearance to them. It has a Fotoflame maple top finish, and of course, the Jazzmaster contoured body shape. The bridge is weird, you traditionally don't see these on Fender guitars, normally they are on Gibsons...the tuners are vintage, and the neck is thin and fast, although the laquer coating on it got in my way...so I shaved it off.

I play mostly metal, punk, and the like...this guitar sounds like shit for that kind of music, but ya gotta learn to play stuff with soft dynamics sometime =). I use this guitar with a Marshall JTM 60, and the guitar's pickups have a normal amount of single coil buzz on the 1 and 3 positions, but nothing out of the ordinary...vintage strat pickups have more buzz than these. It has a very bright, treble-y sound most of the time, but if the tone is rolled all the way down, I can get a very rich crunch...
If you don't turn the volume knob down to about 8 when the tone is on full, you will get an unpleasant amount of microphonic feedback...it would be a good idea to only turn the guitar's volume to 10 when you need a cutting sound for solos.
I just wish that the guitar could get a slight more amount of crunch and bottom end, and had a bit less treble...

The bridge wobbles...
At least mine DID. To fix this problem, buy some black electrical tape, and wrap some around the bottom part the bridge the next time you change the strings...the bridge will pull right out. Wrap the electrical tape around those two little poles, the tape will fit them perfectly. Wrap as needed, then put the bridge back. No more wobble.
Other than that, this guitar was damn near perfect...the strings sometimes go out of place if I bend too hard, but then again, that's having to bend pretty far...

I'd think it would withstand live playing as long as you played with care...you don't have to be TOO careful, it's durable all right, but I wouldn't try to destroy it. The finish will definitely last. I changed the strap buttons. Stock strap buttons are gay, you should change them no matter what to locking ones. I could depend on this guitar, and I would use it on a gig AS a backup...probably, this would be my soft song guitar, or my alternately tuned guitar...but not my number one.

This is an awesome guitar for blues rock and stuff from the 60's. It sound damn good playing Iggy Pop and the Stooges. It shines when I play Hendrix songs as well. If you like Sonic Youth, you'll probably want to make some modifications to this guitar, such as adding a humbucker and possibly installing a Gibson Tun-O-Matic bridge, because this guitar won't just do the punk thing right off...it feels PERFECT for it though. I didn't get this guitar expecting an ESP or a Jackson, I got it because it FELT good and I knew that I would be able to mod it later if I needed or wanted to...but the stock hardware is growing on me, thanks to my expansion of taste...
To those of you that DO play metal stuff-this guitar will NOT drive a Mesa/Boogie or Marshall to ultimate saturation...you probably will want a fuzz pedal or a really saturated distortion pedal for this guitar, since the pickups don't have enough output on their own to drive a tube amp to anything beyond medium-hard rock and blues. It's a great guitar though, I give it an 8.

Japanese reissue jazzmaster. Candy apple red with matching headstock. Wide single coils, independent volume and tone controls. Horrible bridge, and very small frets. The jazzmaster has a huge neck which makes it fun to grab. Old style tuners, and I got a bag with the guitar.

I got suckered into the jazzmaster because of how good it looks. I probably should have done more research on Harmony Central. The jazzmaster is the thinnest guitar I have ever heard. My tele and strat are twice as full as this guitar is. I thought since the single coils were wide, they would sound kind of p-90-ish. I play lots of different music, and am a fan of various genres. I think what sucks out the tone is the crappy bridge. My jazzmaster has a very plink,plink sound. Also with the little frets and the combination with the bridge does not ad for much sustain. I have a reissue strat, and it is SO much thicker than the jazzmaster. I don't really like tinny tones. I like rich sounds. If one was to change the bridge, and change the pickups I think the sound would improve, but I don't think it could be used much more than a rythmn guitar because of the little frets. If thin sounds are your thing this could be your guitar.

The candy apple red finish looks great. The action is way to low for my liking,as there is a lot of fret buzz when playing the e,a or d strings. I have had the probelm of stings popping out and the low e string goes sharp, when I play the jazzmaster for a period of time. The electronics seem to work fine.

It seems ok to play the jazzmaster in my house, but I think with the crappy bridge, it wouldn't be the most reliable guitar to play live.

I am getting rid of this guitar this weekend, cause I don't really need it. I don't want to throw in the money for the tune-o-matic bridge, and seymour duncans. I think i will miss the guitar just because it looks so cool. Actually now that I am writing this, i am having second thoughts of getting rid of it. The little frets though, don't make for a very lead based guitar. If this guitar had a better bridge, hotter pickups, and bigger frets, it would be a lot better. People that usually used jazzmasters played them becuase of how inexpensive they were. Now with inflation of the vintage guitar market, these guitars are pretty expensive. And the reissue's do not to seem to be that much different. I do not understand why fender stopped making them, and now they are only made in the U.S. Maybe they will be made in mexico soon, that would be cool. I love the neck shape, and if you are fender mad, then you may like the jazzmaster. I don't really like the jazzmaster though.

This is the Japanese "reissue" of the 1962 Jazzmaster, manufactured in 1998 or 1999. Guitar has the standard maple neck, alder body and rosewood fretboard. Twenty one frets. Has the 2 standard single coils with which I have already had an all too familiar problem--they double as CB antennae!The circuitry is the standard Jazzmaster "double circuit" with separate rhythm and lead circuits. Controls include lead circuit with volume and tone and rhythm circuit with volume and tone along with a 3-way toggle for the [3] lead circuit pickup combinations. I'm not particularly enamored of this "dual circuit" set-up. It strikes me as being somewhat cumbersome. And very confusing. The guitar has the standard Jazzmaster "floating" tremolo and stop tail piece along with the Jazzmaster's unique bridge set-up with individual "lifters". I personally find this arrangement very attractive. I play with my fingers and this permits me to make individual adjustments--not only as to string height but placement of the strings on the fretboard itself. I can, for instance, move the B and E strings closer together. This gives finger players something of an advantage. And I consider it a very useful feature. My guitar was purchased new--but rather disappointingly, the folks at MARS had lost the tremolo bar! So after almost 2 weeks I'm still waiting for them to come up with one...[but not holding my breath]. I finally found one at a vintage guitar shop. I never use the bugger, but still think it would be nice to have a "complete" guitar.

I'm a jazz player--with classical training. And mechanically, the guitar is perfect for someone who plays with the fingers. Or has a lot of experience with nylon strings. The problem isn't the "ergonomics" of the guitar--it's the sound. If you think Telecasters have a "twang". try a Jazzmaster. I knew this, however, before I purchased the guitar--and use an effects processor to deal with the peculiar tonal characteristics of this guitar. I play through a Roland Jazz Chorus 90 with my solid bodies and archtop, but I also utilize a Crate Acoustic amp for my classical and steel string acoustic guitars. Using a Line 6 POD and a BOSS Acoustic emulator, I can pretty much shape the sound of the Jazzmaster. So the objectionable tonal characteristics aren't much of a problem. I have also played this rig through my acoustic amp with some very interesting results. I'd like to ditch the single coils for the Seymour Duncan "Hot" Jazzmaster pickups--or really get bold and re-wire the rascal with 2 humbuckers. The pickups are noisy at volume settings over 7. Other problems include bass "rumble" at low volume. And radio interference. Still, using a digital effects processor, this guitar has a great deal of potential. It can ring very clearly. The tone can be warm. And the sustain is very very good. Much brighter than other Fenders. Too bright, however, for most Jazz players.

Alas, my guitar was not set-up properly. [Not to mention the missing tremolo arm!]I had a problem with fret buzz--which was quickly eliminated using the bridge "lifters". The pickups seem to be OK as to height. The fit and finish actually seem quite good. My guitar is suburst finish--and for a factory guitar, the work is really exceptional. Tuning hardware, electrical switches [and rollers] all seem to be in good working order.

I think this guitar is reasonably well built. Time will tell...however. Personally, I'd never use this guitar [or any other guitar] without back-up. And the Jazzmaster is considerably more complicated [and idiosyncratic] than most guitars. And because of that, more "high-maintenance"...

I've had no dealing with the company, but my experience with MARS has been less than satisfactory. In effect, I bought a new guitar without a part [tremolo arm]. Also, they provided me with no warranty. All in all, a "sucky" deal.

I've been playing over 40 years. I own a custom made Chandler Telepathic, two MIDI/Synth ready Fender Strats, a Travis Bean Standard, a Hohner archtop, a Yamaha classical, an Ovation Adamas SMT and a Fender Tornado. I use a Roland GR-30 Synthesizer, a Roland VG8, a Roland GT3, and a BOSS Acoustic Emulator. I own a Roland JC-90, a Crate Acoustic Amp, a Fender Princeton Chorus and a Roland Keyboard Amp [necessary for playing a guitar with the Roland VG8]. I also own a couple of very cheap [and very portable] practice amps, a small Crate and an even smaller Epiphone. If this guitar was lost or stolen, I would replace it in short order [using a different retailer this time]. It's a very good guitar for fingerstylists. I had wanted to own one for some time. And had tested it at various retail stores over the past 6 months or so. It will never be my principal guitar, but it's the right guitar for some venues. Assuming you keep the original pickups, I'd recommend playing this in conjunction with a POD or some kind of effects processor [and/or digital modeller] to deal with the sound issues. Still, from a mechanical standpoint, it's a very unique guitar.

I bought this guitar early in 1995 from a guy who had it for "almost a year." It came with all the standard features including a three color sunburst finish and a red shell pickguard. I want to take this opportunity to comment on the extensive modifications I have made to this instrument and the condition it is in after four years of playing gigs with it as my primary guitar.

I began my modifications a few days after purchase with the installation of a humbucker in the bridge position, leaving the stock single coil in the neck position. I had to make a plate with a hole routed for a HB and glue it on the pickguard to hold the pickup. I also had to drill holes in the body cavity for the height adjustment screws. I currently use a Dimarzio Air Zone with a nickel cover (my own mod to the pickup)and the two pickups sound phenomenal. They compliment each other very well. I get a thin twangy sound when using both pickups, which, used sparingly, can add a nice effect to a song. After breaking the original second channel switch, I removed the second channel entirely and replaced it with a dpdt switch I use as a coil tap. I also replaced the original 250k volume pot with a 500k which is more suited for humbuckers. With the 250k, the sound of the guitar would get extremely muddy as soon as I backed off the volume. This problem was solved with the 500k pot. The stock single coil is very responsive and clean with a fat low end and smooth highs. I couldn't ask for a better neck pickup.

This guitar feels amazing. The neck is well crafted and the frets are beautifully dressed. After four years of daily play it is finally time for a fret job. The neck is just a bit misaligned, though, and my low E string has a tendancy to fall off the side of the neck if I am not careful when playing the upper frets. On the other hand, there is plenty of room on the high E side of the neck. The lower frets play well and I have not experienced the problem enough to do anything about it. After approximately five years, the finish has its share of dings but has held well. The body wood was not properly dried, however. When I first bought it, the gloss finish on the back of the guitar looked like glass. Now, however, it has noticable ridges which follow some of the wood grains, as if the wood has expanded over the years.

The hardware issue is one which all the user comments contain. The bridge really sucks. The singer/guitarist from Jawbox (now Burning Airlines) showed me a trick to remedy the moving string problem. He suggested placing small washers behind the bridge pieces (in with the springs) and threading the strings through them. This has worked extremely well for me and is much easier and cheaper than replacing the bridge entirely. Also, the individual action adjustment screws kept coming loose (while I was playing) after I purchased the guitar. I adjusted them how I wanted them and put a light coat of clear fingernail polish over them. Almost four years later, I still have had no further problems, even after adjustment. The tuners are vintage-styled, which may be how the guitar originally was made, but deny the advancements of modern, more rugged tuners. My low E tuning peg bent after I lightly bumped it on a music stand. My suggestion is to replace them with the modern cast metal tuners of your choice or budget. I replaced my strap buttons with strap locks just after purchase and still use them to this day. As I stated before, I broke the switch for the second channel, and the three way toggle fell apart about a year ago. I always take a backup to a gig. It once refused to make a sound entirely during a show, but worked fine the next day. That's just Murphy and his Laws.

I probably voided any warranty there might have been on this guitar by doing all my own work.

I have been playing for 10 years. I run this guitar through a Marshall JCM800 head (the one with three pre tubes and 6550s, unfortunately) and two upright 2x12 cabinets (ADA and homemade). If it were stolen, I would have to build a guitar from raw parts, so I could have exactly what I want with no problems. I love the way the Jazzmaster feels with the 7.25" radius and the placement of the pots and switches. When I bought it, I had designed a guitar to build similar to it, and bought the JM to make the mods only when I found it for sale used.

Basic Jazzmaster setup- two jazzmaster single coil pickups (quarter pounders, they're slightly bigger than humbuckers), 3-way selector switch (neck, neck/bridge, bridge), standard input jack, floating tremolo (strung like a non-american P-bass, strings go through holes in the bottom of the tailpiece, located at the bottom of the guitar and are suspended over an independent bridge piece, which does not have string grooves), a 2nd mode switch on the upper portion of the body, which you can set for a 2nd tone/volume mode, re-issue style tuning pegs, offset body, Rosewood fretboard with 21 medium jumbo frets. Basically a unique solid body experiment model.

(Okay- before you read this, not that I am a Sonic Youth/Pavement/Sebadoh/Stereolab/Yo La Tengo fan. Some comments that are made will be biased to the sound I prefer.) The first thing that you must consider, when purchasing a Jazzmaster is the reason you are buying it. I know it looks "cool", but it has a unique sound and feel, which would give some guitar players regret for buying this guitar. Let's go over the problems first- as stated in every critique, the bridge piece on the Jazzmaster is horrible. It wobbles, and the screws vibrate after constant play. Not only that, but the intonation on your guitar with this setup will be compromised. Sometimes, it gets to the point where some frets are dead. Solution- CHANGE BRIDGE PIECE!! Many people have stated that they switch it with a mustang bridge, this is not a bad choice, but there is an easier and more accessible option- a gibson tune-o-matic bridge piece. Any good guitar dealer has them in stock, I got mine for 15 bucks!!! That was lucky, i've been quoted 45. This bridge works perfectly, since I have installed this, my jazzmaster has improved a great deal, in tonality and control. DO NOT KEEP THE OLD BRIDGE, SET IT ON FIRE OR DISMANTLE IT FOR PARTS. Next problem- buzzing in bridge pickup. Solution- keep the tone on this guitar no higher than 6 or 7, unless the buzz and high twang is part of your sound (recommended for surf, rockabilly and old punk). This will solve your buzz problem. The best sound (dirty and clean) is aquired in the middle selection (for feedback, switch to bridge). The last problem, the 2nd Mode feature (for "bridge pickers" or people who play low, this can cut your arm up pretty good), not only that, but it is uncontrollable and often is not what you expect. Solution- if you want the 2nd mode- put tape over the top of the switch to cover the ridges, if you don't use or want it, tear that thing out!, make sure you do it clean and professional like- don't just clip!. Put tape over the holes (electrical prefered). Well that's it for the bad, the good can be explained in short- it's clean gives me goose bumps and it's dirty raises the hair on my neck (note- i use a fender blues deville 212). Great for my style, I love my baby. I have some tips for buyers- before you buy- play this guitar at your shop many times (like hours), get used to it and PLAY DIFFERENT MODELS!! All jazzmaster models (especially re-issues) are unique. I played one where the bridge piece was perfect, but the sound sucked. For some good tech info, visit the Sonic Youth page and go to the tech center, you will learn what nic close (sy's guitar tech) does to the jazzmaster to make it playable. The URL is www.evol.org/music.html

Action is good, the factory set-up (due to the bridge)sucks, the 3-tone sunburst finish looks good, the neck's finish is good, and the fretboard (with proper care) should give you no problems. The tuning pegs should be changed as well.

If you can afford a vintage (which I can't), buy one, you will run into less problems, and probably achieve a better sound. The finish is fragile and gigging will require some care. DO NOT ABUSE THIS GUITAR, YOUR GUITAR HEROES WHO THROW THEIR GUITARS AROUND HAVE GUITAR TECHS, YOU DO NOT!!!

Don't rely on Fender, they will just refer you to your local dealer. it all depends on them. Remember, it's Fender "Corporation". You know that deal.

Like I said, great guitar, for unique tastes. Buy wisely, don't buy a jazzmaster if- You like heavy metal, you don't have money to invest in it's care or improvement, you think it just "looks cool", or if it is your first electric. I've heard humbuckers in this guitar, and I don't like it (you won't either). For the Heavy Metal fans, if you like Fender- go with a Big Apple or Custom Shop (make sure it's not your amp), for people with not a lot of money, get a strat, save up and then fancy a jazzmaster, for people who just think it "looks cool", image isn't everything (you will look stupid playing a cool guitar with a horrible sound according to your music), for beginners, your first electric should be one that requires little mantainance like a tele, or a squire anything. OH! If you have small hands, see if you can find a model with a smaller neck (refering to the uniqueness of each model). Okay, enough of this- for me it's great, and I can help you out anytime you need.

This is a '98 model in beautiful Candy Apple Red. It features two (extremely fat) single coil pickups, with a three way switch, a rosewood 21 fret 25.5" scale vintage Jazzmaster neck, a secondary tone circuit switch with independant tone an volume controls, vintage machineheads, and the now famous Fender "Floating" fulcrum tremolo unit. In terms of the features it offers it is certainly unique, and has more tricks in its little bag than you can poke a stick at. For mine, a more versatile guitar than any on the market.

Up until this point, I have been playing on some reasonable quality, but fairly cheesey guitars. I had a squier strat with replacement pickups, which I thought sounded pretty good, but when I plugged it into my amp, I only needed to play one chord. The bridge unit is a little shrill for you Les Paul players out there, tonally sitting somewhere between a Telecaster and a P-90 Les Paul (strange, but true) played clean it gives a great trashy clang, and with a dose of Distortion it makes a great Rock Rhythm. The front pickup is a warm, rich tone, evoking the sound of far more expensive hollowbodies (not quite as woody, but no feedback problems) I wouldnt reccomend it for bashing out chords with distortion on, however, as it becomes a little too muddy for my liking. A terriffic sound for playing clean, with a little reverb or delay. The secondary tone circuit is a little too dark for my liking. Even without any gain chords sound slabby with no definition. I dont use it personally. My favourite setting by a country mile however, is with both pickups engaged. It evokes the rockabilly sounds of Brian Setzer, and is perfect for a really thick, juicy lead sound, combining the best attributes of both pickups. Drool. All in all a highly versatile and beautiful sounding guitar. The best i've heard so far.

When I recieved the guitar, it was strung with .009 gauge strings, which are a little light for my liking. I must concur with my fellow reviewers in saying that the bridge is a heap of shite. This is easily remedied by taking the guitar to a shop, who will, for a nominal fee, sort out the bridge by using nut files to put deeper grooves in the thing. I certainly cannot complain about the general fit and finish (you cant fit a piece of tracing paper between the neck and body joint) the frets are quite small, but well dressed, and the paintwork is deep and luxurious. The selector is a little noisy, but not violently so. The big gripe I have is the Neck. It feels good, but the combination of smaller frets, and a rounded fingerboard profile means that wide bends up the high end of the neck choke. Very frustrating for one who is essentily a blues player, but this forced me to learn the use of the trem arm. I am now glad it did. I actively avoided the trem on my old guitar (utter rubbish. the slightest hint of use and it was a semitone out) however, on the Jazzmaster the trem is solid as a rock. Even Lee Ronaldo style abuse refuses to shift it, and the fulcrum arangement means you can be rough as you like on the bridge while palm muting and not worry about bending, unlike on Fender standard and Floyd Rose Equipped examples. If not for the aforementioned gripes, an excellent arangement.

With the new bride filing, i would have no hesitation in using it to gig with. A solid two hours of playing and it stays in tune. And of course, like all Fenders, Solid as a rock. A little more delicate than a tele or strat, but anyone stupid enough to abuse their guitar deserves all the get.

Have never had to deal with Fender. They build their equipment to last.

I have played for two years, and I have lusted after a Jazzmaster since I saw Thurston Moore playing one in the Filmclip to "Sister" at about the sme time. Finally I have the capital to own the instruments that I really want, and every time I buy some new gear, my desire to play increases. I love this guitar. No, I REALLY love this guitar. If it were stolen, I would Kill. And Kill again. The mix of versatility, rockin' tone and THAT Tremolo makes it the ultimate playing experience as far as i am concerned. If I could only track down a real '62 Jazzmaster, i'd have think i'd died and gone to heaven.

Made in Japan in 1996. 21 frets. Solid top. Volume, tone, and 3-way switch for the bridge p.u. A vol, and tone for the neck, no switch. Two passive single coils with a special circuit for each pickup. Basswood body with an offset design. Fender's Jazzmaster "floating" trem tailpiece and bridge. Vintage tuners(with the holes in the top). Fat short scale neck. No accesories.

This is made for clean. It suits surf, jazz, rock and some blues so I'm happy with it. I use it with a Fender Hotrod Deville, a crybaby wah, and a boss tremolo pedal. It's not really noisy, actually the pickups are pretty cool. I totally love the sound. For the most part it's nice and full. On the bridge pickup circuit you can get some twangy country sounds, wild surf sounds, nice almost stratish neck sounds. With the 3-way all the way down it is a little thin, but roll the bass up on your amp and you'll be playing Dick Dale untill your fingers bleed! When you flip to the neck circuit it's pure jazz heaven. It doensn't have the hollow body character to it but if you like different sounds then this guitar is built for you. It's very vesatile. I like just about everything about the sound. The trem system is very cool. People say that theirs won't work but I can bend mine like nuts and it comes right back. The reason for that, I think, is that the bridge posts moved a lot causing the strings not to go back to their original position, but if you wrap some electrical tape around the posts, the bridge stays, and so do the strings.

Here's where they went wrong. The set-up from the factory sucked! The saddles were all out of whack, and the bridge moved like crazy. It was easy to figure out how to fix this thing on my own, so now it plays like a dream. The pickups were far too low. Bringing them up caused dramatic sound changes. The finish is beautiful, mine's a candy apple red with matching headstock. The only flaw was a couple of small dings on it, but they're really not noticeable. If it would have come set-up better it would have recieved a higher score.

This guitar will definately take live playing. The screws in the pickguard are rusting a bit, but everyting else is fine. The finish seems to be nice and thick. The strap buttons are nice and big, no problems there. I can depend on it, but I never gig withiut a backup.

I've played for nearly 10 years. I also own a Grestch Country Classic II, an epi Les Paul, and a Strat plus. If it were stolen I'd definately buy another. I love the trem system. I hated the saddles because the strings would easily slip out of them, but with a little filing they're great. I wish the pickups were a little hotter, but I'll probably get some seymour's for that.

i don't even know when mine was made, but its a nice Japanese axe. I do like the body, it has a nice feel, but i don't particularly like the basswood. and the hardware sucks. the saddles are cheap and if you strum too hard the strings slip off and go out of tune. and the vintage tuners are a pain in the ass. you have to stick the end of the string into a litle hole and wind it around the post, and i always break strings when i change them. i guess i don't know what the hell to expect from 1962, but still...

I use it through a Laney solid state amp (see my review on the Laney HC50R solid state 1X12) with a Bigg Muff reissue pedal and Morley Wah pedal. it definately isn't noisy, and for all the shit i've heard about the pickups, i think it has a nice sound. granted, if you want versatility, you should buy an American Standard Strat for just a little more money, but this guitar is nice and it has a distinctive look as well as sound. i think it feels great, and the only reason its my backup axe is that i just bought a brand new American Deluxe Strat which blows away anything on the planet.

cant comment because i bought it used. there was something sticky on the back of the body in one corner, but i wiped it off easily with a washcloth and a few squirts of Martin guitar polish, but the finish is great. i can't say that i like the neck finish (i'm spoiled by the expensive satin finish :), but it is indeed well done.

i would have given this a 10, but the bridge/saddle part has gotten screwed up twice since i got it like 3 months ago, which just required me to remove the strings and tighten some damn screw. but, other than that its a great guitar! and that was probably the fault of the guy that owned it before me.

couldn't tell 'ya. but hey, the way they make most of their guitars, who the hell needs customer support?

I've been playing for 4 years, and this is currently one of my 3 guitars (Jazzmaster, '98 American Deluxe Strat, Seagull S^ Mahogany Cedar acoustic). its a good guitar. i don't know if i would buy it again because i really love my new strat and i don't really need much else, but you never know. i do, as i mentioned before, hate the tuners, thats about it. but, drop me a line if you're interested in getting one of these things, or a Morley wah, Big Muff Reissue, American Deluxe Strat, Seagull acoustic, or Laney amp.

I'm not entirely sure what year this guitar was made, although I know it is made by the good people at Fender Japan. I guess it doesn't really matter that much about the year cause all the reissues seem to be about the same from the mid '90s anyway. It has 21 Jumbo frets and a neck which is fairly thick compared to any other guitar I have owned.
It has one of the coolest, most versatile switching systems ever. Two switchable circuits with independant tone and volume pots for each and a 3 way pickup selector. The pickups are the probably the biggest single coils I have ever seen too which really shows in the sounds.
I'm told that the bodies on these guitars are made of basswood and that on the sunburst models the grain is actually photo printed on. This doesn't affect me though because mine is Candy Apple red. I really don't know what the neck is made of although is is very straight and woody which are in my opinion good qualities!
The actual bridge is probably my least favourite part of the guitar but more on that later. The tremelo on this guitar however is the best I have EVER played. It has adsjustable tension via a screw connected to the spring and a lock to stop it from going up in pitch although I think this is just for setting up. I always take the time to set the tension up properly though as per Fenders instructions on their website. Without proper setting up though I can imagine why people don't like this trem as it would never stay in tune!
The tuners look slightly cheap but they appear to work fine. What annoyed the hell out of me when I first got this guitar was that it had 9s on which felt like rubber bands. I usually use 11s which meant I had to file the nut grooves before they would sit properly.
I'm giving it 9 in the features because the trem is fabulous and the electronics are nicely designed giving good flexibility. It would be a 10 if the bridge was such a piece of ****.

This guitar probably wouldn't suit everyone. Stylewise I am influenced mainly by bands like My Bloody Valentine, Dinosaur Jr and Sonic Youth so this guitar couldn't suit me better. I did not buy it purely for this reason though and tried out many other guitars before eventually deciding on this one.
The amps I have tried it with are my Marshall JCM800 2204 with a Boogie Recto 2x12, my friend's Fender Twin and the weirdass Line6 Transistor amp in the shop. Inspite of my daisy chain of pedals (about 7 or 8 usually) the guitar itself still comes though quite quiet, unlike others I have tried which seem to have wierd earthing problems. After pulling out all of my effects from the chain the guitar was pretty much silent as far as I could hear.
Thanks to this guitars switching system a wide range of sounds are available. However, if you are used to using Les Pauls or similar muddier guitars this could be a bit of a shock. With new strings through a Marshall with the circuit selector in the down postion and the bridge pickup selected the guitar has enough treble to make your ears bleed! The treble is not quite as overpowering through the Twin but I don't like the overall sound as much as with the Marshall.
With careful tweaking however it is possible to get some truly beautiful sounds. Clean sounds are generally better then distorted ones but that is a good thing in my opinion. The neck pickup is my favourite, sounding big and warm yet glassy at the same time. The bridge pickup sounds quite twangy yet still very glassy and once you have calmed the treble is very cutting yet not unpleasent. The circuit selector switch is a really nice feature and allows you to go from big boomy sounds to big twangy sounds at the flip of a switch. The tone controls are fairly standard although for me the treble postion tone contol is a little honky.

As I said before the guitar came with 9s which felt like rubber bands to me. I barely left them on long enough to see whether it was set up well or not. How anyone could play this guitar with 9s anyway is a mystery to me. I'm afraid this means i'm gonna deduct a point as Fender should realize that this guitar (especially with repect to the tremelo) feels, plays, and sounds better with heavier strings.
After this as you can imagine the setup was awful and the neck had a huge bow. However after I adjusted the neck, filed down the nut and adjusted the intonation and action (which I have to admit was a pain in the ass) the guitar played like a dream. I also had to file a notch in the saddles on the low E and A strings as they kept popping out when I strummed.
One thing I really must mention as it is a BIG problem is the crappy bridge. On early reissues like the 80s Jaguars the saddles and bridge appear to be slightly different. It is unfortunate that they didn't quit while they were ahead with this design as the saddles and bridge on the current reissue Jazzmasters and Jaguars really let them down.
As you are playing the grub screws in the saddles work themselves loose. After one gig I usually have to set the whole bridge up from scratch. The little pointy ended screws that the bridge float on also have this problem meaning that at the end of a gig my floating bridge has dropped about 1mm and the saddles are all over the place (sometimes the screws in the saddles actually fall out if you don't keep an eye on it whilst playing). A small problem is also that the trem arm fitting sometimes works lose if you are the kind of person that holds the arm constantly whilst strumming. This means you have to disassemble the trem system to fix it but it's not that hard to do.
My advice on these two matters is-
Throw the bridge away and put a Mustang bridge on as it has no grub screws, deeper cut saddle grooves and also doesn't suffer from the dropping problem for some reason. The fact that you can't adjust the action height sounds bad I know but if you had been through the hassle I have been though you would be greatful for the fact that you can't adjust it!
Get some liquid threadlock (available from Radio Controlled Car stores) and spread it on the threads of the trem fitting after tightening it up. This stops it working loose and is easy to scrape off if you need to later on.
Obviously the matters descibed here WILL effect this rating as a nice guitar with a crappy bridge is effectively a crappy guitar until fixed!
The Candy Apple red finish is beautiful. I found a few small cracks around the neck joint but these aren't visible from the front and don't really bother me that much. I am a bit scared of denting the paint and varnish though as it seems quite soft and easy to do by accident.

I don't think the finish will last long live. I am also shocked that Fender put the crappy bridge on as this certainly doesn't last live!
The strap buttons are fine and I don't know why people complain about them in relation to the problems in the bridge department!!
Before I put on a Mustang bridge and threadlocked the trem arm assembly I have to admit that I was a little scared of using this guitar without backup.

I never bothered going to Fender. I figured that they probably work the same as most other big corparations and that if I sent my guitar to be fixed they would just assume there is something broken send back a new one set up with 9s again with exactly the same problems. I have to applaud my local Fender dealers though for their experience and support. They were the ones that advised the Mustang bridge (which one shop did a very good deal on for a 70s one he had lying around).

I have been playing for about 5 years. This guitar is probably the most expensive I have ever bought and the only one I have ever bought new. My opinion of Fender has definately gone downhill as I really thought that on such a substantial investment they would take the time to make sure the design is right. I have been playing a 70s strat up until now. This guitar is hassle free and hasn't needed setting up once since I bought it!
I am willing to concede that after screwing around to get the Jazzmaster to behave the overall playability of the Jazzmaster is better then the Strat but I am still shocked that Fender is making such dodgy stuff at the moment and I dread to think what problems lie in wait on their other new guitars.
In the store I bought this guitar because I liked the flexibility of the sound, the tremelo, the look and the way it played (I hate it with 9s but I could still tell it was nice). I'm not sure whether I would have bought it if I knew about the problems that needed fixing. Having said that I really love Jazzmasters. If it ever got stolen I think I would spend the extra time and money to find a decent Vintage one though as the reissue is beyond a joke unless you have a lot of time and patience to spend on it.

My guitar is a '62 Reissue Jazzmaster, which was made in 1996. It has a candy apple red finish with matching headstock. Everyone has already posted the standard features, so as a quick summary: Two passive single coil pickups Rythm and Lead circuits Vintage style tuners and strap buttons Locking Tremolo System

I fell in love with this guitar for many reasons, one of which is the sound. I play alternative/grunge style songs and this guitar is awesome for my songs. I use it through a Fender Princeton Chorus. My effects are a Boss DS-1 Distortion and a Crybaby Wah. I feel this guitar has one of the most versatile sounds that I've ever seen. My other guitar player in my band likes to do a lot of metal, and though this guitar isn't really designed for such, it can hold its own in the style (just sounds a little different).

I can't say anything about the factory settings. I bought this guitar used. Barely used, but used none the less. The finish is beautiful, and one of the things that attracted me to this guitar. The previous owner had the guitar set up with a lot lower action then usual, and the guitar plays like a dream. Everything looks and sounds in order. Only problem was that the piece that holds the trem bar in (does it have a name?) loosened up, and I had to take the trem plate off to get it out and put screw it back in.

Well, I haven't gotten a chance to use this guitar live yet, because my band still in the forming process. However my friend borrowed it for a gig because his Jazzmaster needed a new bridge. It worked fine, and from my use of it I think that I would definitley not be afraid to gig without a back up for this guitar. The finish seems rock solid. I have accidentally bumped into stuff with it, and I still don't see any marks on the finish. A lot of people seem to complain about straps falling off, but I've never had that problem. These people probably just didn't realize there straps were a little over used, and should probably be replaced.

Sorry, no help from me here.

I've, admittedly, only been playing for a short time. About a year and a half. But I have taken the time to learn as much about guitars in general, as well as playing them as I could. I used to have a Squier strat, which I learned on, but I traded that in with my old practice amp (Fender Frontman 15R) in order to knock the guitar's price down to $350. I am completely satisfied with this purchase. From the minute I touched this guitar, almost four months ago, I knew it was the guitar for me (it helps to know the owner of the music store). I would definitely buy another Jazzmaster if this guitar was ever lost or stolen. It has an awesome sound, it plays great, and its very durable. Not much I hate. The bridge could be a bit better, but I'll have to wait til I'm a big rock star (or at least have a lot of money) so I can order a variation from the Fender Custom Shop. I'm also thinking of replacing the pickups with the Seymour-Duncan Antiquities Jazzmaster pickups (they're supposed to get the vintage sound right on the money). I've been to guitar shows and played many guitars, and this is still by far the best guitar for me, in my opinion. Some people don't like Jazzmasters, but I think they are some of the best made guitars ever

The '62 Jazzmaster repro is made by Fender Japan. My particular instrument was made (according to the final inspection tag) in April of 1998. The body is solid basswood, the neck a beautiful piece of maple, with a rosewood fretboard. Jazzmaster classically has 21 frets. The main circuit is two single-coil passive pickups controlled by toggle switch, and with the Fender Jaguar, this instrument shares the secondary rhythm circuit, controlled by a slide switch on the upper bass side of the pickguard, (down for main, up for secondary). tone and volume for secondary circuit are large rollers, mounted almost flush with the pickguard. It is a full-scale (25.5") neck, somewhat thinner, (as I recall) than the original Jazzmasters of the '60's. Neck finish and fretwork is perfect. A standard business card cannot be slipped into the space of the neck/body join, indicating a snugly well-fit neck. The tuners are described in the literature as "vintage", but while the shafts, rear caps and posts are steel, the buttons and post collars are not - they appear to be "chrome-ized plastic" - yeech! Nonetheless, they seem sturdy, and don't look or feel "chintzy'. I purchased the guitar because of fond memories of playing rock instumental and surf music on a friends in the '60's, which I still do. For this type of music, the Fender "Floating Vibrato" is perfect - for "dive bombing", it isn't. I frequently drop a tone and a half on the vibrato, and have never - repeat: NEVER - put the instrument out of tune with it. On the other hand, I took the time to set the vibrato assembly up per Fender's instructions - I wonder how many people do? I also purchased a traditional Fender hardshell case with the instrument. This particular Jazzmaster is finished with a bulletproof-thick polyester laquer finish in Candy Apple Red - matching headstock. Finish is perfect. Only flaw on delivery was a tiny v-shaped "nick' near the top of the pickguard at the edge. The bridge uses a 1.5mm allen wrench for adjustments.

As stated above, for '60's instrumental and surf rock, this guitar is perfect. I run it through a Crate G60XL, with a Boss Tr-2 tremelo. At any output level below insanity, the sound is smooth and clean. Not quite as warm as through a Fender amp, (no Crate amp has a particularly "warm" sound), but very nice. I also use the plate reverb in a Korg A-5 in preference to the amps reverb, which is noisy. The sound is pure Fender, but not *exactly* like the Jazzmasters of the '60's. I am told, (don't really know), that the pickups are not wound exactly the same. The difference is not large, though. This guitar is true Fender tone (to my ears),through a Crate - I'd love to hear it through a '64 Super Reverb. The tonal range of the instrument is vast, especially using the secondary rhythm circuit. A very acceptable *jazz* tone can be made with careful adjustment. I've owned many excellent electrics, and the Jazzmaster has the most distinct sound between individual pickups (and combiuned), I've heard. Master tone control (a treble rolloff) is typical, but works fine. Volume control when using bridge pickup only gets a dab "edgy" on ten, backing off to 9 cleans it up completely. I would like to give Fender credit for one thing that I probably should give to Elderly Instruments in Lansing, however - the guitar was *perfectly* set up when I recieved it. Elderly says it sets up every instrument it sells - new or used - before it leaves the store, and I'm sure I have them to thank for that.

Covered above.

The instruments ruggedness seems top-flite, especially as regards the finish, as mentioned. I question the long-term appearance/reliability of those tuner buttons, though - not the whole tuners, just the buttons. I have had a recurrent problem with the strap "popping off" the lower strap button - going to replace that with a lock-type strap button. And yes, I would gig with it without a backup.

I have not yet dealt with the Fender company as a customer in need of assistance.

I've been playing 33 years, and also currently own a Gretsch Country Gentleman, and a Martin HD-28. If I lost this Jazzmaster, I'd unhesitatingly replace it with the same, simply because of the price. My "Holy Grail" is the Mosrite Mark I Ventures model, but it's unlikely I'll ever own one of those - the so-so used ones start at about $1200, and they go up - way up - from there. The Jazzmaster is the closest thing, and an instrument Semie Mosely admitted the design of the Mosrite was heavily indebted to. For the price, it's a steal.

The particular Jazzmaster I own was probably made in 1995 at Fender's Japan factory. It's got 21 'vintage' frets as per reissue specs, these are thin or medium sized frets. It has a basswood body that has the Orginal Offset Contour body, and a tinted maple neck with a rosewood fretboard. The finish is a three tone Antique Fotoflame Sunburst (looks like a AAA grade flamed maple body, but it isn't) . Jazzmasters have two circuits, lead and rhythm, the latter one having only a tone and volume control. The lead circuit has master tone and volume pots and a three way pickup selector switch, and there is a slider switch to toggle between the two circuits. It has two passive single coil pickups, which are of the typical (and very odd) Jazzmaster style. These pickups have wide but flat coils which are inherently suceptible to hum. The Jazzmaster shares the same tremolo system as the Fender Jaguar. the 'synchronised tremolo' is located under a large plate at the far end of the guitar with the strings pass over a 'floating' bridge (that resembles a Tune-O-Matic in some ways) to the plastic-repro Kluson tuners. This guitar is one hell of a bitch to keep in tune, and is just as impossible to intonate correctly, but if you have the patience it'll pay off to work on it yourself.

I play mainly blues and classic rock, so the Jazzmaster's brittle sound doesn't exactly fit into the generic 'heavy' catagory. My philosophy is that everyone's got to have their own sound, even though this is my backup/at home guitar, I like the fact that it's unique in sound. Besides, if Hendrix busted his fingers on one it's good enough for me... At the moment I'm running it through my Fender Princeton Chorus amp, and sometimes a JD Crybaby 535 wah. The bridge pickup on this guitar is absolute crap, it's noisy and it squeals on high gain/volume settings. The neck pickup is a whole other story; it sounds perfectly balanced in terms of eq, rich and full (no brittleness, a warm bell-like tone). I've gotten it to sound convincingly SRV with the neck pickup in the lead circuit. The bridge pickup can handle the trashy alt-rock sound with little trouble. The one thing I really dislike about this guitar is the tremolo system and the bridge pickup. The low E string keeps popping out of place (really messes up the tuning), I tried filing down the notch that it sits in, but to no avail. I might try replacing it with the Mustang bridge, which has single deeper notches. I was about to order a custom made humbucker from Seymour Duncan, but then I fell short of cash.

This guitar was the epitome of clean workmanship when I bought it. The hardware was all fitted neatly, the frets were seated properly with no juts, and the finish was immaculate. After figuring out how the heck to work the circuits and controls I found out that some settings didn't work. I ended up having to take off the pick guard and resolder some stuff to remedy the problem. At the same time I decided to set up the guitar to my own specs which payed off quite a bit. I lowered the action and intonated the bridge which really helped the tuning stability. I must say that the quality of the parts used was questionable, the switchs and pots were scratchy within two months. Overall it was made quite well indeed.

I've used this guitar for one or two live gigs, and have recorded with it once. Each time the tuning has gone off kilter, which really ticked me off. I've stuck to my custom Strat for everything but playing at home since then. The hardware seems stable enough, although I really want to change the bridge. I have since changed the strap pegs, which were originally of the 'vintage' style, to the Fender/Schaller strap lock types. This was after it had slipped of my strap a couple of times. The fotoflame finish has a pretty thick layer of a hard finish. I've banged it one some stuff and the finsh seems to have cracked or something, but it's a really durable finish in general. Like I said, this is my backup guitar and it's failed the gigging test, but if I spent more time working the little problems out I would make this my number one guitar. The only qualms I have are the pickups and the damned tuning.

I've dealt with Fender regarding my Strat, but they pulled the huge corporation attitude and sent me a pretyped letter referring me to my local dealer. My local dealer monopolizes the musical instrument sales in my city and their employees are all bastards. No warranty since it's an export version. All the repairs I have done by myself, which is cheaper and makes me more confident if I have to step on stage with it.

I've been playing for about four years now and I own a Fender American Custom Stratocaster. My amps are a Princeton Chorus and a FAT Deluxe (Fender). I wish I'd had a little more knowledge when Id bought this guitar (my first year playing), I kinda regretted it at first but now it's nice to have variation from the Strat. I'm at the stage where I know I want a humbucker/solid body combo electric as my next guitar so I wouldn't buy it again if it got stolen or lost. I love how this guitar plays, it sits really well against my body and I can reach the up frets easily. If I ever make it famous I'm going to order a Jazzmaster body with a Hard Tail Big Apple Strat setup from the Custom Shop, that's how much I love the body. If you want to stand out from the crowd this one attracts a lot of attention, just because it looks and sounds so... different. There's no other way to put it.

This is a '62 Jazzmaster this is the best guitar I've played it has two passive revesed wound single coils. It has two channels a rythem which has a volume and a tone knob and only the neck pick-up is on, with the lead channel it has a volume, tone, and a 3 way selector. I think it's basswood but I'm not sure the fret board is rosewood, and has jumbo frets, it is also a duble cutway.

Like I said this is the best guitar I've played. I play thourgh a hughes&kettner tri-amp and it is good for the music I play wich is havey stuff like deftones and korn. It's a littel noisy when the bridge pick up is on but it is a very good guitar.

The guitar is pefeict and there were no flaws at all. It is 3 tone sunburst and looks butifull. The pick ups there perfict to.

I've only had one problem I was playing on the tremolo a littel to hard and I had to get it fix but other than that it is very good. I've alread giged with out a back up and had no problems.

Cann't say.

I've had it for 3 years and love I would trade this thing for any thing in the world. The guitar I would be a nother one just in case 'cause you can never be to sure.

This guitar is a reproduction of the 1962 Jazzmaster, unfortunately has a reproduction brigde on it, which needs slight modification, so as not to go blazingly out of tune on you. Also, the tuning pegs feel a bit cheap. That is the extent of my bitching... other than that, this guitar is the guitar I have been looking for for a long time. I really wanted one of those cool tweed Fender cases, but the Strat case didn't fit, so I had to settle with a plain black, aftermarket case. There aren't really to many "features" to speak of... 2 single coil pickups, 3 position switch, 1 volume, and 1 tone knob.

The sound is AWESOME! Full, rich rounded tones... I play, mostly, surf and istrumental. I don't dive bomb the tremolo, but if I did, I'd be very disapointed, the tone only drops about 1/2 to 1 full step, fully depressed, but, then again, thids isn't Eddie Van Halen's choice "axe". It's a tad buzzy with one of the two pickups on, but thats to be expected... real quiet with both on. There is a wide expance in sound between the three pickup positions, not to mention the added varience with the additional tone selector switch and knobs to the north of the neck pickup.

The finish is beautiful. Mine is a dark metallic red with a matching, painted headstock. Action is higher than I'm used to (scince I used to own an SG). All the hardware shines with beautiful chrome. Beautifuly finished in every way, the neck is smooth as glass

This guitar feels like it needs to be played with finnesse... you can't hammer on it like some others. I've only owned it for three months, but I feel quite confident with it. It feels rock solid.

3-year warranty, and the backing of Fender. But I haven't had to deal 1-on-1 with them.

The only thing I have major complaints about is the cheesiness of the tremolo, aside from that I am totally pleased with this guitar