Fender Jazzmaster

This is a candy apple red CIJ (Crafted In Japan) '93 Jazzmaster. I won't list all the features, as they should be common knowledge to anyone reading this. This guitar is based on the early sixties JM models, I believe. I never had a Jazzmaster before, although I have had two Jaguars (and hated both). The thing I like best about the JM is the "two guitars in one" circuitry, allowing the player two switch between two different sets of sounds with the flick of a slide switch. Leo Fender was a clever guy.

Get over the old thinking that the JM is a one-trick surf pony. Not true. People like J. Mascis, Sonic Youth, Elvis Costello, and many others use the JM for all kinds of music. Magic Slim plays some mean blues on his. Nils Lofgren uses one with Bruce Springsteen. I had to work with it a little to figure out how to set up the dual sound thing, but no issue. JMs sound very spanky and trebly when played with a clean sound. If that's what you want, then great, but for me, when I gave it a little distortion and rolled back the treble on my amp and boosted the mids and bass, it came to life. The sound was trebly, but not overly so, and pickups had a nice bite to them. I don't see any reason to swap them for the moment. Because they're single coil pickups, you do get a little 60 cycle hum, but it's not too bad.

The guitar is beautifully made. No complaints.

JMs are quirky guitars. The strings pop out of the saddles, and there always seems to be some fret buzz. I remedied the situation by filing notches into the saddles, and that seems to have solved the string popping. I intend to have the guitar set up properly, and soon. I really don't want to install one of those buzz stop thingies, as I heard they're pain in the a** to deal with.

Otherwise, the guitar is solid as a rock. It will last for years.

no opinion

I own lots of guitars, almost twenty, and have been playing for decades. The JM will never be my main guitar, because I don't have a "main guitar." I play Gibsons, Fenders, a Gretsch, a Rickenbacker 12, Danelectros, and an Epiphone Moderne, among others. The JM is another weapon in my aresenal, so to speak. So far, I like it a lot.

This is not the guitar's fault, but the dealer I bought it from, who shall remain nameless (he's in Montreal), shipped it to me with no strap buttons, and never told me they were missing. I wish he had been forthcoming with me and told me they were missing. I bought replacements.

1961 sunburst, all original except for the frets and nut. Tremelo never goes out of tune. The guy that refretted it said that the neck had "narrow nut" written on it, he had never seen that before.

Neck position - think SRV tone

middle position - the one I use most due to the noise-canceling

bridge - bright, and not in a bad way.

jazz circuit - I turn the volume down on mine and use it as a kill switch. Not bad sounding, just not my cup of tea.

Sounds good distorted, however the clean tone is where this really shines. The pickups are similar to P-90s. The coil is wound flat and wide, in contrast to Fender's usual tall and thin coils. This gives them a warmer tone that is without losing their single coil clarity. Mellower tone than a Strat.

As mentioned before the neck had "narrow nut" written on it when removed for refretting. The only problem I ever had with this guitar was the nut - the 1st and second strings were a little closer together than the others. Not a dealbreaker for me, but I had the nut replaced when it was refretted, and I'm glad I did. Without asking me, the guy planed the fretboard (!!!) so now it has a flatter radius than it did originally. Yes I know pros do it to vintage instruments all the time...and it does play great. I just wish I'd had the chance to make the decision....
Finish is in good shape for an instrument going on 50 years old.

This guitar will be 50 years old in a couple years, I'd say yeah, it will withstand live playing, the hardware will last, the strap buttons and everything else are solid. I can depend on it, I only wish they made an automobile half as reliable.

Not sure its still under warranty....heh
In all seriousness if I have a problem with a 40-50 year old vintage amplifier or guitar, the last place I'm taking it is to today's "Fender".

Wonderful, beautiful sounding, amazing guitar. I bought it from a guy for $600 in 1992. I've been playing for over 25 years, this is by far my favorite guitar. I own over 20 other guitars, this is Number One. It never leaves the house so its not likely to become lost. If someone stole it I would hunt them down and make them sorry they took my baby. The tremelo works! And it works GREAT, without ever going out of tune! How many other guitars can that be said of? One of the other things I like about these and Jaguars is the fact you can space the strings how ever you want. Mustang owners take note: Mustang/Jazzmaster/Jaguar bridges are the same size! Upgrade your Mustang and you will then be able to adjust string height individually, as well as change string spacing. I always thought these bridges were great,never understood why they never really caught on.
I also like the fact these guitars' body style were never really copied, at least to the extent Strats were. I do own a Fernandes Decade Sustainer, a fine guitar in its own right, that uses the Jazzmaster/Jaguar body shape.

1961 - Slab neck as they came. White.

Middle position is to die for. Bridge pickup is better then strat.

All good. Will need fret work soon but hey she is old.

Two years older then me so I guess has lasted

Modern Fender sucks - but we all know this

Best u can get

1960 Fender Jazzmaster, serial #48077,originally sunburst, the body was refinished to a dark brown in 1978 by the previous owner after he saw Elvis Costello perform, "Radio Radio," on S.N.L.,as seen on youtube. Now worn, and lighter/transparent natural body finish. Very light weight(7.2 pounds) 2 piece alder body, with the deeper/wider maple neck shape of the very early jazzmasters,7.25 radius slab rosewood fingerboard,clay dots,reftretted with 21 dunlop 6105 frets,20 year old seymour duncan vintage neck/seymour duncan quarter pound bridge pickups,(installed in 1987, original pickups in storage.)"Pat Pending" back plate(Pat Pending #'s arrived on 1961 models),soft bend tremolo bar, nitrocellulose tortoise shell pickguard. The offset body design is extremely comfortable and Jazzmasters were the first Fender guitars to have a rosewood fingerboard, (the thick slab rosewood design only lasted through the first few years of production), near p-90 style pickups,dual pickup controls and the subtle and beautiful sounding tremolo are the main features of this guitar.

I play mostly old school rock, blues, funk, and some folk and country and the guitar can handle any of these styles with ease. I now play through a new mesa boogie 5-25 express combo, digitech Ex-7, and seymour duncan lava box overdrive. The neck position sound is strat like with a blooming bottom, warm and round. The in-between setting again sorta sounds like a strat's in-between setting, but fuller and heavier like a humbucker,(cancelling most of the hum as well) and is big and open sounding. When overdriven in the middle position it has the power of a Les Paul with more bite and clarity. When I turn down the volume pot on the guitar, I can get a very pleasant, near acoustic guitar sound. The bridge pickup setting is cutting, almost tele like as roars and bites at the same time, twang and kick, Clean, overdriven, distorted, the pickups maintain warmth, clarity, and huge character.

The guitar is 47 years old with a recent dunlop 6105 refret and plays like a dream. I play with slightly higher than average action and 11-52 to 12-54 strings( depending on how strong my fingers are feeling)The guitar was designed with heavier strings in mind, so with a heavier gauge string the tuning is very stable and the strings don't pop out of their ridges on the bridge. However, for the low E string, my tech guy also brought up the little screw in the hole just south of the string slot, a few millimetres up, so the string cannot move out of the slot= no worries, can slam away without fear of the string moving.I recommend this easy 1 minute mod.

This guitar is built like a tank. Super solid feeling, quality everything, feels absolutely bulletproof. Just needed new frets after all those years.

hehehe. None required.

I have been playing guitar for 28 years and this is the first guitar I have ever played/owned.( gift from older brother)It is a remarkably flexible instrument that also has it's own distinct voice and is very expressive. The thing about jazzmasters is that they have an incredible "attack", I think more so than a strat or a tele. What you trade off a bit in sustain somewhat due to the bridge design, you gain back in attack and presence. I love it because it looks, feels, and sounds so beautifully vintage, but can handle many modern sounds as well,and it's natural tone shines in any occasion. Even when playing around acoustically without plugging it in, it sounds magnificent. I own many great guitars, but this guitar is my #1. I have received many, many compliments on this guitar over the years. An incredible and special instrument from 1960.

This review is for a 2007 "Crafted in Japan" (CIJ) alder body Jazzmaster in "Old Candy Red" (I'm guessing supposed to be aged candy apple red) with matching headstock, vintage-style mint green pickguard and pure white pickup covers. This is a color combo not offered on the current US models, and it looks great. The finish is fantastic, although it is poly, not nitro (poly is tougher but does not age the same way). The fretboard is rosewood. Two soapbar style Japanese pickups. Has separate "pre-set" tone and volume settings for lead and rhythm - a feature well ahead of its time. Has the highly publicized but erstwhile forgotten by Fender floating tremolo system that My Bloody Valentine showed the world the possibilities of and which was a big reason for my buying this guitar. Part of the tremolo system is a floating bridge that's held in place by nothing but string tension - this can be finnicky, though I think it just requires a certain amount of care to set up right (see below).

The Japanese pickups are not like the US pickups, and most people replace them with US pickups. I probably will too eventually, but I'm quite happy with the sound from the stock pickups. I'm playing through a little Marshall practice amp, so maybe not the best way to judge, but it sounds warm, rich and deep to me, which is a Jazzmaster hallmark (of course, real JM pickups might sound even warmer, richer and deeper; I have no basis for comparison on my amp). There is some hum when using only one pickup at a time - these are flat-wound single coils, not humbuckers. When used together, the hum is greatly reduced.

One thing about the tremolo is that it was not designed for big bombs. It'll only take you up or down about half an octave max. It was designed for the way guitarists used tremolo in the 50's. Not a problem for me but maybe a problem for some. I'm more interested in using it as a true vibrato or for interesting chord bends, and for that it's a fantastic design because it just does not take your guitar out of tune no matter what you do with it.

The build quality of the guitar is top-notch - no flaws whatsoever. Absolutely a beautifully made instrument. Factory setup seems average. String height is a bit high but not unreasonable and easy enough to adjust (I just haven't bothered yet). The stock strings that were factory installed are quite heavy, but this is what the Jazzmaster was designed for. Intonation seems ok. One thing that tripped me up about the factory setup - and I wonder if this actually might contribute to some of this guitar's reputation - is that the factory had adjusted the floating bridge so that it was straight with the strings loosened for shipping. When I tightened them, the bridge moved to the pickup side (it's designed to move as part of the tremolo system). I played like this for a while before I realized it, and I was getting lots of buzz from the bridge during that period. Finally one day I slapped a bridge cover on just for kicks and I noticed how odd it looked... because the bridge was tilted 2-3 degrees. I loosened the strings, reset the bridge and the buzz went away completely. So, anyone who's having bridge buzz on a Jazzmaster, check your bridge and make sure it's straight!

I would absolutely gig with this guitar. I would probably deal with the string height first (no big deal, the guitar can certainly withstand insanely low strings), but I feel like everything as stock is basically gig ready. It's a friggin' Fender! And the Japanese absolutely know how to build guitars; there's nothing about the country it was made in that affects its durability. Some say the Japanese tremolo springs are not always as strong as the American ones, but I haven't taken mine apart to verify this - it seems strong enough to me. The other hardware all feels top notch. The knobs actually feel *better* to me than the ones on the US reissues!

Never had to deal with Fender support; not sure what would happen since it's a Japanese model. There is a one year warranty but I have a feeling I'd have to ship it to Japan... anything that could possibly go wrong could probably be fixed cheaper locally even paying out of pocket.

I love this guitar. When I first opened the gig bag it came in (no hard case like the US models), I thought it was possibly the most beautiful guitar I had ever seen, and I've seen a lot of guitars. I still can't take my eyes off of it, especially in this finish with the matching headstock. In playing terms, it has that intangible quality about it that makes you feel like you're playing a real guitar, not one of those cheeseball light-stringed metal guitars that are still popular with some people even today. The sound is warm and deep and will probably be even moreso if I ever throw in some "real" US pickups (or the Curtis Novaks). And the tremolo is seriously just a work of art if you ask me.

Some people don't like the bridge, and to them I say "nuts". You've got to use the heavy strings the guitar was designed for. I haven't had a single problem with strings jumping around, and as long as the bridge is straight, I've got no buzz either (the bridge stays straight once you set it that way; you just need to do it when you re-string). This guitar is a *system*; everything's designed to work together in a certain way. You can customize it to make it more suited to your play style if you need to, but you need to think how any change is going to affect the rest of the guitar. It works perfectly out of the box if you use it as designed. And it's really got a lot of character. The Japanese models are a great deal at only about a third of the price of the US reissues.

1959 Fender Jazzmaster. Ash body w/ blonde finish. Original fatter body type which was only produced in late '58 and early '59. Gold guard. Great floating tremelo design...lead and rhythm circuts with lots of tonal variety. Great 50's Fender quality...neck is killer and the guitar is very resonant.

Sounds very sweet...musical, bright, spanky (probably due to the ash) and thick. Not noisy, sounds great. You can play many different styles on a vintage JM, from punk to indie to country and r&b.

I use it mostly with BF Fender tube amps.

Very nice for a Jazzmaster, which can occasionally have some issues, most of which can be resolved by someone who knows these guitars well. No factory set up here, as it's 48 years old, but set up very well. Bridge height/adjustment/angle on these JM's is very important to how they play, so do some research online to find the optimal set up...especially if you're frustrated or having tuning issues. Some flaws which can be expected from a vintage piece, but they're irrelevant, IMO.

Very reliable, very durable...this guitar was not a closet find, it's definietly been played throughout its life and it's held up very well. Overall, a nice broken-in feel.

N/A

Been playing 15 years...i've owned other vintage JM's and this one is superb. As stated above, killer neck and very resonant body. Ash wood on Jazzmasters is the best...alder sounds great, too, but there's just something about an ash/blonde JM! Pickups are very musical and still have nice output...very distinguishable tone between the different pickup settings.

It is a fender japan Jazzmaster with 21 frets. The colour is a nice Candy apple red on both the body and the headstock with a sort of glass layer over it. The bridge was (when i got it) a origional jazzmaster bridge but as jazzmaster/jaguar players will know its not the best bridge for a guitar, so now i have a mustang bridge on it. It also came with the origional tremelo arm which are a bugger to find if it wasn't included.
Also there is the contols, it has a 3 way selecter 2 pairs of volume and tone knobs/slides and a rhythm-solo selecter.

it sounds great, the best sounding guitar i have played. It suits my music style aswell as i play grunge because it has the look and sound of a grunge guitar (sonic youth, nirvana, dinosaur JR)
Thinking about it it maybe the settings i have on my Line 6 spider II
that is making it sound good because ive never put it through another amp.
When i replicate the noises Kurt cobain uses in the songs like Endless Nameless or Radio friendly unit shifter i find it easy with the temelo system, i beat the hell out of it when im playing live and i come out with some amazing werid noises, the temelo system is my favorite feature on the guitar.

The down side of this guitar is that it isn't perfect in the Action and Fit department, i costantly have to get cheakups by experts on it and things need to be ajusted like every month which a guitar shouldnt have to do, the main problem is the bridge even when ive changed it it still drops and bends, it probebly dosnt help when i beat the tremelo system but thats how i play it so im gunna have to get used to it :)

is also isnt very reliable because when im playing live the strings jump out of the saddles also the strap buttons are loose, every time i tighten them the come loose again, it would be embarassing if the strat buttons fell off while i was playing live, at the moment i am using this guitar as a backup because my strat copyy is more reliable, but that will change soon when i get it sorted out.

1965 Jazzmaster. When I first bought this guitar, the original sunburst finish was gone, the pickguard was cracked, had humbuckers, roller knobs and pots were gone as well as the vol and tone knobs and pots. Had(and still has)a tuneomatic bridge. I ordered a new brown tortoiseshell pickguard, Knobs, pots and switches and Seymour Duncan quarter pound pickups. Still has the original Kluson tuners and vibrato assembly. Like most JM players, I don't use the roller knobs.

Killer sound!! unbelievable!! These quarter pound pickups have guts! Why don't more humbucker freaks try these pickups and leave the humbuckers in the guitars that they were meant to be in?!! You can still get the Fender snarl, but with increased mids and bottom end. I think the tuneomatic helps as well. In clean mode it has a darker sort of twang, sort of a cross between a Tele and a Strat. I hardly get any pickup buzz. Sounds best with 10-46 guage strings.

Nice vintage feel and vibe. The neck has that smooth, solid feel that you just don't get on new guitars. Minimal fret wear. Plays like butter. I love the offset body. Seems to hug me like a beautiful woman. My brother did a fabulous factory job with the white finish.

Everything is Fender rock solid and tight. You cant't really rely on the vibrato to do the heavy metal dive-bomb thing, but it still works for Ventures/surf/Stray Cats type stuff. I don't use this guitar as a workhorse. Just when I feel like it. I use my Squire Strat and Tele as workhorses, depending on what style I'm playing.

Could be better. Takes a long time to get new parts

The worst thing I could say about this guitar is that it is not quite as versatile as a Strat(you just can't sound like Mark Knopfler on this thing). It is your ultimate Surf guitar, good for country and it certainly rocks if you use better pickups. I submitted a review on 04/30/2004 about a Jazzmaster(1963) that I regretted selling in 1983 because of the weak stock pickups. This 1965 JM is my much sought after repacement. I have been playing for 28 years. This is what I use for other gear: Telecaster, modified Squire Strat, !976 Ibanez Les Paul copy(for slide) Precision Bass copy,1977 Yamaha acoustic, 1950's Kay archtop(my first guitar)and a recently purchased Linkon D10 pedal steel. For amps, I use a 1979 Peavey Mace, early 80's Ibanez GX100 and a Randall amp for my bass. For effects, I use a Digitek RP100 processor, Boss Super Overdrive, Ibanez tremelo, boss CM-3 compressor and a crybaby wah. Like I said, My Tele and Strat are my workhorses, but this JM does get playing time. If this guitar was lost or stolen I would be devastated. I'll never sell it.

My Jazzmaaster was bought for #570 this year (2006), made in Japan. If you're looking at this page you'll already know broadly the features of a Jazzmaster: The body shape, no. of frets etc.

Mine has a sunburst finish, rosewood fretboad and redd-ish / black pickguard. It looks fantastic - best looking guitar in my opinion (just ahead of a telecaster). Which is why I iniitally considerd getting this as my first "proper" guitar, having spent the previous ten years playing a '69 Hofner Colorama inherited from my Dad.

The floating tremelo system is quite wierd, but works fine. The tremelo however is quite slight - even if you have the wahmmy bar pushed right down to the body, the guitar is not all that detuned. Which is in contrast with a strat, say, where the tremelo arm is very sensitive and can be used for big dive-bombs etc. The Jazzmaster tremelo arm isn't really good for Van Halen histrionicx, but more for David Gimour (yes I know he played a Strat, that't no the point) / Hank Marvin type wobbles.

This is a bit if a shame because I used to enjoy butchering my guitar with tortuous whammy masturbation when practicing. But in reality this isn't much of a loss since in the process you'd inevitably end up with an out-of-tune guitar anyway.

Right, I'm not expert on guitar elactronics etc.. I don't a massive number ofguitars so I can only speak from my own experiences:

When I was looking to get myself a new guitar, I was looking for something that obviously played well etc, but also something that could replicate the chunky "sound" of my previous guitar.

In the guitar shop was impressed by the variety of sounds I seemed to be able to get. I could easily go from a "fat" chunky sound, to a round bluesy kind of tone, to a trebly edgy sound. Compared to other guitars I've played (colorama, stratocaster, telecaster), you seem to be able to get a lot of variety.

I've had no problem findind a really nice sound for myself. If anything I'm spoilt for choice and find myself constantly experimenting.

The guitar seemed set up fine when I got it. No flaws.

Now here's the controversial bit:

THE LEGENDARY JAZZMASTER BRIDGE.

I had no idea about the Jazzmaster bridge issues whn I got the guitar.

Over the week following getting the thing I fiddled with the actin a bit to get the optimim set up for me. Then had a band practice and found myselkf thinking "hmmmm, something sounds a bit odd here". At the end of the tune I look down and discover that my high E, B strings have mysteriously lowed themselves several millimeters and are now in contact with the fretboard. I got out my allen key and readjusted, shrugged my shoulders and off we go again. Only for the same thing to happen after further moderate guitar-battering.

I then looked on the web and discoverd that my bridge problems are far from unique. I've even had the whole bridge lower in height. This is apain in the a*se but there is a solution.

THE SOLUTION:

I spoke to my local guitar tech and he suggested using beeswax to grease up the saddle screw threads. I borrowed some from my housemate who uses the stuff to grease her dreadlocks (trivia fans). De-strung my guitar, took the bridge apart, smeared big dollops of beeswax all over the saddle scre threads, but bridge back together again, wiped off excess beeswax with, restrung the guitar. Problem solved.

Since then, a few weeks ago, I've not had the string actions budge at all. Yet the screws are still loose enough to be adjusted should I want to.

Another problem I've noticed some people having is the low E-string jumping off the saddle. Take advantage of the saddle design by adjusting it's angle, so that the low e-string saddle is angled upwards, towards your head while your playing slightly. This absorbs the downward force on the low e-string that might make it jump out. Since I've done this that problem is solved as well.

You should also experiment with youor string weights. Previously I'd always played with ligh-guage strings. I restrung my jazzmaster with regular gauge strings, and found it was still exceptionally easy to play. Now moved up to heavy strings and still easy to play, and the extra tension makes string-jumps and fret-buzz really unlikely. The thing now plays like a dream. Keeps in tune beautifully.... Nice.

So there are definately issues with the reliability of the bridge, but I've found that these are quite easily solved. I've got a mustang bridge taht I intended to try out but since using the beeswax, I've had no need to try it out on this guitar.

Bever had to speak to them.

Been playing for about ten years, mainly rock stuff (anything from Pink Floyd, Nirvana, Radiohead, Pixies).

The only downside to this guitar is the bridge, but like I say, if you have a little patience, it's not a difficult problem to solve.

I compared this guitar to a Strat and a Telecaster. The strat I didn't like because the sound felt too thin (almost puny to me - Hendrix would probably disagree but what did he know? Amateur). The telecaster was chunkier but just not as flexible as the Jazzmaster.

1965 Jazzmaster ; the real mccoy . Burst finish , original case accompanied . All parts present and original except possibly bridge cover .

It did not suit my style ; I bought it in 1984 and sold it in 2001 .
Used with many amps . Was noisy depending on single / double coil selection and standing angle. Sounded nice on a good day with the right amp .

Seemed OK all around ; just a typical production model of the period .

Could not withstand much of anything . The strings routinely leave their setting grooves with just a bit too much touch . Typical wimpy switches .

No experience

Playing 35 years ; now stuck in a Gibson electric Guild acoustic rut .
I wish I'd bought more guitars just like this one as it was all original , cost $300 , sold on eBay for $1600 in 2001 . I would never buy another now at today's prices .

'62 re-issue manufactured around 1992. Made in Japan - where else?
21 frets, vintage, rosewood neck cambered fretboard small and tight. I have huge hands, but can pay jazz chords easily on this wonderful guitar.
Typical Jazzmaster setup - I prefer to switching set to the Jazz neck pup.
Original Japanese pups - great sounds with am set to about 2 on the bass dial and a little reverb on.

With the pickups selector set to the neck 'Jazz' switching - the sound is the best ever. To appreciate this guitar you have to be a player. You must be in love with the concept of taking chordwork and soloing to an altogether higher level.
Never use any effect as I like the gain circuit set to 7 and treble controls set to high.
Not too many sounds with this guitar. The setting using the two pickups together are for surf music and shrill type solos.
There nothing I dislike about this guitar. It could be improve, but there again, so could I.

Not factory setup. I set it up properly using steel rule etc,. The guitar has a quick smooth action and the pickups are set high.
Quality of build is outstanding. All contributors who own a Japanese Jazzmaster know exactly what I mean. The finish on this guitar is as good, or if not better than Fender USA.

This guitar is another Fender workhorse. It will play whatever you wish. It is very well constructed.

Never contacted Fender.

I have been playing 30 years. I prefer this guitar to any of my other ones. That incudes: Gibson 335 and Fender Strat.

1966 Jazzmaster, sunburst, mostly original. I had to change the two way switch, because it was broken. And I'm missing the volume knob (white witch hat, chrome topped). If anyone has one I'm interested.

wkuhns1@aol.com

I played with an old blues legend in Chicago (Eddie C. Campbell), who has an old 50's model that he loves - and so do I. I moved to the west coast and had to try to replicate that tone. I got pretty close with my '66.

I use it sparingly at gigs unless I can commit to keeping a close watch on it. Too expensive and too many thieves out there. I run it through Mesa Boogie or old Fender tube equipment and it always gets compliments.

Fortunately, I have a local shop in Laguna Beach that did a great set-up after it arrived. Everything checked out, everything works.

It's reliable, but I'm scared to take it solo to a gig. I guess I'm always safe ...

I tried to find my volume knob through Fender - what a joke.

It rocks. It's hard to bend strings on this one, because of the bridge set-up. Anyone have suggestions?

I have a 2004 MIA '62 reissue made in Fender's custom shop in Corona, CA. The thing ships with a hardshell case, which is good 'cause the Jazzmaster's offset body makes it a little hard to fit into some of the off-the-shelf cases.

The stock soapbar pickups are a little mellow for my tastes. I'm doing the unthinkable and having some Seymour Duncan humbuckers put it in. For non-noise cancelling pickups, the hum is hardly noticeable ... quite a relief compared to my Telecasters. Even with the mellow tone of the stock pickups, it's got a sound that's unique and cool.

This guitar's fit and finish, however, make this thing come alive every time you hit a string. This guitar just has a body and neck that work so well together that it's incredible. It's such a comfortable guitar to play, I've grown quite attached to it. I bought it after putting my had around the neck of a Jaguar ... from that time on, this guitar style haunted me until I bought one.

I've used it live and love it. With a guitar this good-looking, you just gotta be seen with it! It feels a little more delicate than my Telecasters, but that shouldn't suggest that it feels flimsy. Hadn't had a problem with it so far.

As car as backups .... I don't play any gigs without a backup guitar.

Never had to take advantage of service on my Telecasters, Mustang bass, or Squier Jagmaster. I don't feel as though I'll ever have to take advantage of it.

I just love this guitar. The ocean turquoise finish is just plain eye-catching. This thing feels like it was made to fit .. whether you're playing it sitting or standing. The neck is one of the most comfortable necks I've ever played on.

I purchased this mid-90's MIJ Fender Jazzmaster a short time ago. As far as I can tell all parts are stock (haven't opened up the pickguard to see what's inside, though). From what I've researched, the body is alder and the fingerboard is rosewood. It's painted in a very nice looking CAR w/ matching headstock and a "spaghetti" Fender logo. As of now there's nothing hugely special about it that would really seperate it from other Japanese Jazzmasters. However, I really dig the features that are present. The rhythm circuit is fun to play around with, although I haven't found any serious use for it yet. Currently I just use it as a fourth pickup configuration, so that the three toggle selections are Bridge, Both, Neck (all w/ vol:10 and tone:0) and the rhythm circuit is neck with full volume and tone at 0. The trem-loc system seems like it could be useful after a bit of research and proper set-up, but I haven't snapped any strings yet to get to try it out. Again, there's nothing really stand-out about this jazzmaster that would make it superior to other jazzmasters, but I really like many of the stock features and think it's a very well-featured guitar out of the box. I can't think of anything else I'd really want it to have (well, other than a better bridge), so I'm going to give it a 10.

I've used it with a small number of amps so far, first on an old Silverface Fender Vibrolux Reverb (in-store). On the tremelo channel the guitar sounded like a dream. There was some amount of twang on the bridge p/u, but it was warm and sounded very lush. The bridge pick-up sustained very well, and had very piercing mids and defined lows. I didn't play as much with the both p/u selector, as on that amp it wasn't nearly as interesting of a sound as the bridge or neck individually to me. After taking the guitar home, I found that it sounds very nice on (believe it or not) a novelty Fender Mini Tone-Master amp that I purchased a while ago for kicks. The bridge p/u sounds very thin without the aid of some reverb (as played through some cheap no-name practice amp), while the bridge is still very satisfyingly warm and sustain-y. Unfortunately, I have no high-quality tube amps or large solid-state amps at home, so I can't do much more testing as to the sound. It sounded great through that old vibrolux, though. The signal responds fairly well to pedals, though I haven't put it through a big workout on the wah-wah or stereo poly-chorus yet. It responds very well to some distortion. I'm going to give it a 9 on sound due to the bridge pick-up being a bit thin on lower quality amps. For most people with the money to shell out to buy and properly modify a jazzmaster, getting a good amp should be no problem.

I can't comment on the factory set-up, as I bought it used. However, the set-up from the store was excellent. I've had to make two minor changes to the set-up so far; one of the height adjustment screws on the bridge slipped, and the tremelo bar holding mechanism got a loose bolt shortly after I got the guitar. Both were very simple, 5 minute fixes. The action is very smooth and low (especially considering the 7.25" radius). Frets are dressed well, the truss rod is well adjusted, the pick-ups are raised properly, All the tuners function well, and the trem-loc was not too far off from where it should be to work properly. I don't know who did the set-up on this guitar (perhaps it was the shop owner or a tech there), but I would love to congratulate them. It's well done.

As for the fit, the jazzmaster body is probably the most comfortable guitar that I've played. It's a bit heavy (7-8lbs), but the offset waist contoured body feels great. Whether in a sitting position or standing, it forms to my body and feels very natural to play. None of the switches seem prone to me accidentally toggling them while strumming vigorously, but also all of the important switches, knobs, and toggles are easy to access without looking.

The guitar does have a few flaws, all easily explained by the fact that it isn't a new guitar. There are some minor dings along the body, most notably one in the crook of the upper waist, which is about a 1cm ding with wood visible. Beyond that, there are two other small dings on the back and a few creases on the neck, headstock, and lower horn. It's a decade old guitar, though, so I would consider that normal wear. The finish is starting to develop lengthwise ripples near the bridge, most likely due to moisture or some humidity the guitar was stored in. For the most part it seems like it was gently played and stored well, though.

I haven't gigged with this guitar (nor do I intend to in the nearby future). The hardware all seems like it's sturdy enough, however I would probably like to replace the bridge and perhaps look at switching the p/us (especially the bridge p/u) to something with hotter output, such as the Seymour Duncan JM p/us. The tuners have done a good job of staying in tune so far, all the other hardware doesn't seem very prone to breakage. After some bridge modification I'd probably consider it gig-worthy, with a back-up. The finish seems thick enough that I'm not worried about it wearing off, though the ripples developing near the bridge probably indicate that it might crack under bad atmosphere conditions.

I've had no problems with the strap buttons, they seem solid enough with my simple leather strap. I'd probably at least consider strap-locks before gigging it, just in case.

Because of the bridge being a bit undependable, it will lose points in this category. However, from my research it's a very fixable solution (mustang bridge or saddles, Tune-O-Matic bridge with filed-to-radius saddles) that won't set you back too much money to do if you shop around a bit.

I haven't dealt with Fender about this guitar, and probably won't any time soon. The customer service at Guitar Crazy was amazing, though, and I would definately shop there again.

I've been playing for nearly 4 years now, and this is my third guitar. I started out with a student guitar -- a Peavey Raptor Plus. It's pretty close to a strat clone. My other guitar is an acoustic, and doesn't get pulled out much. My Jazzmaster is without a doubt the highest quality instrument I own. The neck feels great to play on, the finish looks very classy, the body is shaped excellently. If I happened to lose my instrument, I'd either hunt another down or find another offset waist guitar, such as a mustang or a jaguar. However, if I had one of those, I probably would not enjoy it as much as my jazzmaster. The warm pickups and full scale length (25.5") made the guitar initially much more appealing to me than the 24" scale mustangs and jaguars (even though all of that chrome on the jag looks very awesome).

I really love the jazzmaster's sound (even though due to the MIJ pickup winding it has a mix of strat sounds and jazzmaster sounds... you should be able to find the website detailing that easily enough). It's different from the more common Fender instruments, and in a good way. Also, the offset waist contoured body is an absolute treat. When the Jazzmaster was first released, they had the body shape spot on for comfort, and the Japanese remake is no different. The matching headstock is a great bonus to me as well, I much prefer the looks of them. With the competant set-up my guitar recieved, it plays very smoothly and I don't have to fight with the instrument to coax notes out of the higher registers, like I did with my previous guitar.

As for what I dislike, the biggest thing that I don't like is the bridge. That's a simply fixed problem, and I don't feel like going into detail on the subject again. Beyond that, most of the things that others might consider as problems, I consider as quirks that greatly add to the character of the instrument, such as the tremelo (which despite being very simple compared to, say, a strat trem, is often very misunderstood). Also, the bridge pickup is at times undesirable, with its sometimes thin and too trebley sound.

I don't think I could pick out a distinct favorite feature, but perhaps a top 3.

1. Great feeling body and neck
2. Warm, distinct sound
3. Unique, distinct, subtle tremelo system

The Jazzmaster I have is made in Japan. I bought it new about 12 years ago. Paid about $550 for it. Maple neck, rosewood fret board. Photo flash finish. I couldn't stand the bridge and the E string kept coming off ,so of course, I fixed it. I took it to my local guitar geru and had him put Schaller stop bar bridge, which meant redrilling the holes and filling the old one and I had him put EMG Humbuckers under the soap bars, they will just fit. This worked wonderful. I eventually took the Humbuckers out and replaced them with EMG strat pickups. This works equally well. The tremlo obviously went south with the new bridge, but what a nice playing guitar. The neck is sooooo nice and no hum or noise and the bridge is solid and it retains the look of the jazzmaster. I eventually by passed the upper vol and tone controls so it is now one vol, one tone, and a 3 way switch. I get a lot of questions about the sound. Players just shake their heads.....

I have been playing for about 45 years, so I've owned way too many guitars. I keep about a dozen. This Jazzmaster is one I've kept. I've gig with it quite a bit. It is always a nice instrument to revisit and always feels good to play. I play a little bit of everything. This guitar is so comfortable to play and it just fits.

This guitar has the best neck and it came from the factory well set up. Maybe that 22nd fret would be nice ocassionally, but that's asking a bit much.

I take very good care of my instruments.

N/A

I have a couple of the new Epi elite guitars which if you can live without the Gibson headstock are as good as the real thing, Replace the PU with Stock 57's and WaLa. I have a strat, 3 tele's,a Gibson 333, Epi LP Custom and Epi LP Std, 2 Peavy EXP series (good guitars, replaced the PU's. and 2 Fender showmasters and an Ibanez Art Star. That's about it.

My Jazzmaster was made in 1972-21 frets, yellow with a tortoiseshell pickguard and a bound neck (YEAH!!) Standard config otherwise.

Jazzmasters are so underrated-More versatile than given credit for-It's great for the experimentalist due to its unusual layout and tremolo-The bypass and the neck pu give a very warm sound, the bridge pu is very trebly. I've had great luck with this guitar when doing a solo electric gig, as it's great for rhythm and open-tunings really breathe. If you're a slide player, give this a shot! On the other hand, I can see why these instruments are not for everyone. It IS noisy even by single-coil standards, and there are not a lot of "in-between" sounds. The volume decreases dramatically when rolled off, and the tone control isn't terribly interactive. The pickups are somewhat microphonic (maybe due to age, or design). But, it does what it does really, really well, and some things that one wouldn't think it would do well.

I got this used at a time when I needed to sit down to play due to an injury-This was the idea behind the JM's design. Very comfortable to play and well-made. Contrary to popular belief, the tremolo stays in tune very well. I LOVE the bound neck on this guitar and the large headstock works well on the model (and only on this or a Jag). It is somewhat high-maintenance, and I have had issues with the pickup selector, grounding and pickups needing to be reinforced to prevent falling into the guitar. Also, the high E string tends to fall out of the nut no matter how it is adjusted, and due to the bridge's design, strings can move about. But, it's old and has been ridden hard...

My JM has been pounded, and it shows!! It fell face-down on a street once and left only a ding or too, one busted string and was IN TUNE!! Other than the above-mentioned electrical issues this guitar is indestructible. I would not use it without a backup as it is a somewhat temperamental instrument that HATES interference.

I've been playing nearly 30 years--a variety of styles, situations and instruments. The Jazzmaster I have has been through a lot, and it has a special place among my instruments. There are some things it does really well, and some areas where it falls short. But it has "the vibe." and is a great guitar for the player who wants something a little different or explores sounds and styles that are outside the norm.

i bought a 1962 blue laminated top jazzmaster. the neck is quite nice for alternative. not for hendrix bends. ya. 3 way selector and rythym or lead toggle. Passive electronics i think. I believe it was maple. floating tailpiece. (shit.) strange vintage tuners. like the real 1962 ones.

mostly i play rock or incbusy type songs. a lot of distortion. i use my marshall half stack with it and sometimes a boss-ds1. it does have a buzz when u put it in the rythym treble position and most others exceot if you place the toggle in the middle. this sucks if u use distortion but it can be fixed for a hundred bucks and it takes a week. not on my agenda. the sound really varies unfortunately its not good. it can be good, but when there is distortion on it it sounds like a dying squaling elephant whos nuts just got kut off. a ripple sort of sound. if u have any idea of what i mean.

the action was fine and mostly everything was fine except for the sound problems and the bridge. the bridge sucks monkeys nuts. it rattles non stop which makes u insane. and the strings come out of place every couple of minutes which makes it out of tune. the tuning pegs were ok but it would barely tune right. you have to tune it every ten minutes. it was glazy which i did like.

im sure it will last long but dont use it live. it sucks everywhere. if u wanna be different and use one ur stupid. because you could play the same price for a strat which is nicer more reliable and better sound 2 if u get it with a humbucker. go with the american strats though. trust me.

i dont even know man i had it for 2 weeks. returned it. got an american highway 1 strat. thats how you roll man.

overall. ... . .get a strat. its pointless unless you have oodles of time and money to spend on a ridiculous guitar collection and repairing, and improving. most rock stars do this. dont follow their foot steps unless u are 1

1960 or 1961 fender vintage jazzmaster made in usa. 21 frets.
ash body. see thru blonde finish. gold kluson tuners.
have the orig. case, hang tags

SOUNDS REAL GOOD

got it 40 + yrs since it was built

has for 40 yrs

never used

playing for 13 years. have several other guitars. a 1990 prs custom 24. a 1999 prs mccarty soap bar. a 1990's fender us strat plus. takamine 12 string acoustic. vox xc 30 amp with a 4x12 fender tonemaster cabinet. i really like the jazzmaster. i want to know if anyone knows what this guitar is worth? is it a rare model? i have only seen 1 like it and it was a 59 model jazzmaster. the serial # is 48530 and the neck date is 1-61. thanks for any help. e mail me at sga03705@allstate.com or loungeflys@aol.com.

1964 Fender Jazzmaster....made in the US of A. Usual number of frets and features...rosewood fingerboard with clay dots - no binding. Neck is stamped 4APR64B.

The guitar is all original apart from a refinish, a new trem arm and the changed pickguard (the old one was split so I had it taken off)

Style wise, this is a perfect guitar for me. I also have a 1967 Jazzmaster (currently being refinished into Black). I play mostly alternative stuff, but jam along to anyhting usualy.

I'm using this with a Fender Musicmaster Bass Amp.

My current effects setup is: Zvex Machine > MJM China Fuzz > NVN Bronto Jr. > Zvex SHO > Boss DM3 > Boss RV2.

I also plug in a Boss TU12H tuner to the dry output of the DM3

all of the above pedals and the tuner are powered by an ADL Juicebox.

The guitar has the usual single coil buzz on the neck only, and bridge only pup positions...the buzz goes away in the middle position like in all Jazzmasters (hum cancelling position)

The bridge pup is weaker than the neck one...the neck pup is full and bassy, and with both pups on the sound is amazingly shimmery and warm....the pups on my 64 compared to my 67's are considerably hotter...they got a lot more balls to them.

The guitar loves effects, especialy my MJM China Fuzz.

To my ears it sounds like what a good Jazzmaster should sound like, so I give a ten on this one.

Well, I have no idea how the factory setup was, since I got it secondhand. The action was ok...but the guitar had been stripped of it's initial sunburst colour, and had the usual 70s style "natural look"

*sigh*

What was worse, was that someone had carved a few names on the top, and also the guitar looked like it had been left by a window having the sun hitting it for years - the tortoise shell pickguard had faded considerably, and the knobs, pup covers etc had yellowed a lot. The pickguard had also warped (common thing) and also shrunk - not to mention the split it had - so I decided to put a mint green repro on it.

Thankfuly, everything else on the guitar was original, so I decided to get it refinished into one of my favourite colours - Firemist Gold...admitedly, this colour shouldn't be on a 1964 guitar (isn't period correct - it's a CBS era colour), but I liked the colour, so I had it done anyway.

For this job I contacted a luthier in Tunbridge Wells, just outside London. You can see the guitar being restored step-by-step on his website www.ron2e.com

Just click on "1964 Jazzmaster" on the left hand menu.

You will see what an amazing job was done to it (he's also currently refinishing my 1967 Jazzmaster). When it was returned to me, the guitar not only looked amazing, but played better than any Jazzmaster I've ever played! :)

so a 5 for the state I got it in, and a resounding 10 for the restored product!

The guitar will definetely withstand live playing, and everything else thrown at it...it is 40 years old already and going strong...I can't see why it wouldn't make it to 100!

I get no buzz from the bridge or anything...all is well with 10s on.

I'd always have a backup for gigs, but I don't think I'd use it.

Pre-CBS...never dealt with them....but I thank them for making it!

I have now been playing for 12-13 years or so...I also own a 1967 Jazzmaster an Epiphone J200 and a bunch of pedals.

If it was stolen, I'd cry just like I did when my 1967 one was stolen (but then recovered!). There's nothing I hate about it...it sounds great, playes well, is comfortable, and also looks great!

I don't really like comparing different guitars...it's like comparing apples an oranges.

I will one day get a nice Tele, and SG, and probably a Les Paul with P90s....but the Jazzmasters will always be my #1 favourite guitars....I've played them for such a long time.

1964 Jazzmaster
Sun Burst finish with original hard shell case

Its a little tight for me - I'm a part-time player

I bought this guitar 20 years ago. It belonged to a woman who took lessons as a teen-ager. Her dad bought her the guitar new. She took a few lessons and quit. It has zero fret or neck wear. I grew up playing Gibsons, so the neck stretches my hand beyond my comfort level, so I play it very little. I also got a Deluxe Reverb amp with the guitar. It has the best surf sound I've ever heard. I play some jazz too and that also sounds great.
This guitar is 100% factory issue. It holds a tuning better than any other guitar I've ever owned - '54 Les Paul Special '71 Les Paul
'76 Les Paul Epiphones, Harmonys, Silvertones, Melody Makers.
The only feature I don't like is the chromed cover on the bridge. It rattles, so I remove it. I'm not a performer so this instrument sits in its case. I've always thought it should belong to a professional who can use it to its potential.

My 63 Jazzmaster has been in my arsenal since 1988 and was one of my main stage axes until I retired it recently. It has an alder sunburst body that was refinned in black laquer decades ago. The neck is Maple/rosewood with no binding and clay dots. It was modded when I got it with Schaller tuners, a Gibson tunomatic bridge with some roller saddles and the trem lock locked. I never had a vibrato arm on it. Electronics are stock except for the bridge pickup. It was real weak so I put in a Duncan Jazzmaster 1/4 pounder single coil in. It is an exact fit replacement. It came with a brown Fender case that is original and still in good shape. It has been refretted twice since 88. The preset controls for the pickups are a sweet feature that bumps up my rating here.

This guitar has a lot of sentimental value to me as it has been a studio and gigging mainstay for many years. I recently retired my 68 Tele,57 and 62 reissue Strats and this jazzmaster, replacing them onstage with new Mexican guitars (60's strat, 72 strat, and Tele Custom reissue) This guitar excells at loud slightly distorted rhythms and also sounds wonderful driving effects. It gets used often for chimy sounds and I record 50% of all my rhythms with it. I love the action and shape of the neck, and tuning is rock solid with the tunomatic and schallers. The thing was noisy as hell till I used copper foil to shield it. I love the offset shape as it is very comfortable. The tortoise guard is super pretty, unlie many modern ones. It has a great 60's vibe and gets compliments a lot. I run all my axes into a Crybaby, Rat distortion, and a tube echoplex into 2 blackface Fender Bandmasters and 2 Ampeg 412 cabs loaded with Electro-Voice SRO 12 speakers.

Well-it is a loved but beat refinned refretted non-original utility axe, but it is tough as nails and the one bad pickup is the only problem ever. It has been refretted twice with Dunlop 6100 wire. The hardware is oxidized and it's pickworn, but it looks great and has a nice vibe. Everyone that plays it likes it, even guys that don't really dig Fenders. Non-original stuff :Schaller tuners and straplocs, Duncan pickup and Tuneomatic bridge. Also during the last refret I had a new bone nut installed. It is well played and has held up like a champ. Also, the black paint is OVER the original sunburst-Dunno if this is original or oversprayed.

Tough as a ballpeen hammer! I never have used it without backup but it never breaks strings and tuning is rock solid as the vibrato is locked off. I would not be afraid to use it as my only axe,but I choose not to. For a 41 year old axe it has held up great, considering it's been gigged with hundreds of times

this is a pre-CBS fender. Support from Fender is a non-issue with this one

I ve been playing heavy alternative rock since the days when that ment HuskerDu, Replacements, Buzzcocks, etc. This little Jazzmaster has been with me longer than any other except my first electric (a Gibson LP Jr. I still have) and if something happened to it I would be dvastated-I retired it for just that reason. It compares favorably with my strats, teles, and other axes. It's just a big part of my sound and an inspirational tool for making music. No money could replace it and really, I've played a lot of Jazzmasters and this one is unique. I couldn't replace it at all!

Nothing special, typical Fender Jazzmaster. Mine was Made in Japan, I believe it was made in the early to mid 80s. 21 frets, 2 single coil pick-ups, Maple neck, Rosewood finger board. It's got the dual circuit that all Jazzmasters have, pretty cool how you can change the volume and tone at the fkip of a switch, but other then that not much in the way of features.

Here's my current set-up: Jazzmaster > Boss FZ-2 Fuzz > Cry Baby Wah > Big Muff Pi > Boss CH-1 > MXR Phase 100 > Boss NS-2 > Peavey Amp. My only gripe about the sound is that the single coil pick-ups do hum a fair bit, BUT it's nothing my NS-2 can't handle. I play Alt. Rock, and this guitar suits my style perfectly. I use a fair number of effects and I like experimetning with them and I sometimes try to get the weirdest sounds I can. Aside from the hum, I have no complaints at all.

The action on this guitar is great. I bought it used, and the previous owner had it set-up very well, I've only had to make one or two VERY minor adjustments to get it the way I want it. There were a few chips in the finish, and the pick-ups do hum a bit, but other then that, it's held up very well for a 20 year old guitar. No noise from the pick-up selectors or any other controls. I also like the off-set design, it makes this a very comfortable guitar to play.

I've gigged with this guitar a few times without any trouble. Very solid. The only thing is that the finish has a few chips, but other then that, it's in good shape, and I expect it will stay that way. I always bring a back-up guitar in case, but I don't expect I'll need it. I definately feel I can depend on it.

The guitar didn't come with a case when I bought it, so I went to the local Fender dealer to order one. The guys at the store were pretty good about it, phoned them right there while I was there to get one ordered for me. My gripe was that the guy in charge of cases was on vacation so it took an extra two weeks for them to get it here, but I got the exact case I wanted, and even with the two week delay, it only took about 3 and a half weeks total. Other then that I've never dealt with Fender

I've been playing for about 5 years now, bought this about 2 years ago. This is essentially my dream guitar, I was shocked to see it one day in a store and after trying it out I bought it almost immediately. It fits my style and sound perfectly, and it's so comfortable to play with it's off-set design. Two thumbs up!

This Jazzmaster had the usual stock features: Soapbar pickups, tremlock vibrato,Kluson tuners, rosewood fretboard, and original beige case.

To be honest, I don,t really know how good this guitar sounded through the right amp. I bought this guitar in 1983, and at the time, I was playing through a Fender super twin. These amps don't sound very good unless you play them LOUD, and I'm not a loud player. This is why it"s essential to match the guitar with the right amp. During that time, I was into heavy Rock, and because of the weak pickups, and the fact that I used the master volume for overdrive, I didn't get the sound that I should have. I traded this guitar for a Gretsch tennessean that some donkey put humbuckers into; BIG mistake!! I give this guitar a 9 for what this guitar MAY have sounded like through a better amp.

The finish was rather boring; the previous owner had taken off the original finish and laquered over the natural wood. If I still had this guitar, I would refinish it an olympic white. I didn't experience the the usual loose-bridge problems, as I didn't have this guitar for very long. There are many JM owners who complain about the lack of sustain. The problem is because of those threaded steel saddles! They are C-R-A-P!! Why do telecasters and Les Pauls have lots of sustain? because they have brass saddles, thats why. I don't know if brass saddles are available for jazzmasters, but they are fairly simple to make. Any competent repairman or machinist should be able to make them, And it should't cost much either. I have never tried this with a jazzmaster, but I would be willing to bet that it would improve the sound 100%. As for the action, it was as good as a Fender can get; nice vintage feel and smooth action.

What can you expect from any Fender solidbody? So solid you could bash your way through a door with it (not that I would). Aside from the cheesy bridge, I think they are very solid and reliable.

Never dealt with them.

I miss this guitar very much, and I,m still kicking myself for gettin rid of it. When I can afford it, I would like to get another one, even if it's a Japanese reissue in need of upgrading. I have been playin for 26 years, and right now, I own two telecasters, a Squire strat, A fender copy bass, a 1976 Ibanez Les Paul copy, a '77 Yamaha acoustic, and a 1950's Kay archtop (my first guitar). The only thing missing is a Jazzmaster. I would like to include a list of classic Jazmaster recordings:


Walk Don't Run-The Ventures
Honky Tonk-The Ventures
Perfidia- The Ventures
Little Sister- Elvis Presley (w/Hank Garland)
Mean Woman Blues-Roy Orbison(w/wayne moss)
money-Waylon Jennings(w/Wayne Moss)
Money-Waylon Jennings(w/ Wayne Moss)
Almost anything by Jerry Cole and His Spacemen

This is a follow-up to my review of my 1967 CAR Fender Jazzmaster which was stolen from my flat.

Thanks to this review forum, my guitar was identified by a reader and I managed to get it back!

many thanks to Mark for all his effort and time and also Harmony Central for forwarding his information to me.

without their help recovering the guitar would have been impossible.

1962 Jazzmaster; sunburst; alder body; maple neck w/rosewood fret board; two "soap bar" pick-ups; vibrato tail with Trem-lock; advertised on E-Bay as a 1963, but neck date stamped May 1962 and neck plate serial no. is five digits (no "L" prefix); three-way toggle switch for pick-up selection on lower horn, rhythm circuit with switch and thumb-wheel controls (volume, tone) on upper horn; came with Fender black tolex hard case, probably a later edition

Perfect for my '60s "oldies" - surf, doo-wop, folk rock, prom-type ballads; very bright with good "bite" for surfing lead riffs; played through vintage Fender amps: Super Reverb, Pro Reverb, Vibrolux Reverb, Bandmaster, Tremolux, Bassman, Dual Showman Reverb, Twin Reverb, Quad Reverb; matches well with these amps, except my '70s Twin Reverb (comes out very shrill, probably the amp, not the guitar); slight preference for the JM over my '63 Jaguar (25.5" vs. 24.0" scale); use light-gauge 10s; string buzz does not impact the amplified sound, partially solved by removing bridge cover; will also have the nut checked as a possible cause, or change to a different gauge

no mods apparent; neck pick-up was weak - sent out to be re-wound and guitar set-up; back of body is NOT sunburst, but a very dark green (almost black) - if a re-fin, must have been a "pro" job as it is indistinguishable from original; very clean with minor dings and scratches - no belt buckle rash, cracking, or checking

very reliable with a lot of life left; finish appears durable; cosmtically, I always wipe down my instruments after each use; no loose connections with input jack, pots, switches, pick-ups

Fender authorized dealer and service centers available; guitar is long out of warranty, but work performed was more than satisfactory; no problems since pick-up re-wound and set-up done

playing almost 39 years; playing with this JM for three years; had a re-issue MIJ Jazzmaster previously, which was quite good, but this is better (it may be in only my mind); other guitars - 1963 Jaguar, 1967 Mustang, 1972 Telecaster Thinline, 1970's Mosrite Avenger, 1994 standard Strat w/vintage pick-ops, Silvertone Hornet (Jag-style body); Fender amps listed above, plus Silvertone 1484 (Twin Twelve piggy-back), solid state Fender Twin Reverb