Should I keep my J Mascis or get a different Jazzmaster?

Discussion of newer designs, copies and reissue offset-waist instruments.
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secretroutines
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Re: Should I keep my J Mascis or get a different Jazzmaster?

Post by secretroutines » Wed Feb 22, 2017 6:14 am

ianramos wrote:
secretroutines wrote:
ianramos wrote:Thank you guys for all of the replies!
If there is one qualm i have with my J Mascis, it's that its too dark a guitar for the tone im trying to get. Often, when I am playing with other people in a band setting, I prefer my VM Jag simply because it just sounds a lot more clear to me. I love jazzmasters but I'm wondering if im a jaguar person hahaha.
Do you all look down on the CP jags as well?
If you just want it brighter try new pickups. The jmjm's have this jm/p90 hybrid construction which gives them a warmer sound, jm's really are just a little darker than jags. Do you use a lot of pedals? It could be an issue of output difference causing the jm to sound mushy.



Yeah I've got probably around 15 pedals im pushing though the amp to be fair. Sounds extremely dark with the jazzmaster but the jag sounds just fine. Ill have to look into pickups, thanks man!
No prob! I had a similar issue with my KC Mustang a simple parallel mod on one of the pickup selector made it much clearer. I run a lot of pedals too and in my experience higher output pickups just don't gel with some pedals, paticularly dirt pedals. The higher output is meant to overload the preamp, so it will do the same thing to every pedal in your chain.

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ianramos
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Re: Should I keep my J Mascis or get a different Jazzmaster?

Post by ianramos » Wed Feb 22, 2017 1:25 pm

mbene085 wrote:
ianramos wrote:So the more I think, I may just want a brighter guitar. Which brings the next question: Do I sell my JMJM to fund a AVRI Mustang or a Classic 60's Jag/Jazz?
Ok, honest question - could you clarify what you mean by "AVRI Mustang"? Do you just mean a vintage mustang? Because there has been no American Reissue of that guitar.

If you're happy with how the JMJM feels and plays, I'd change pickups/electronics before doing anything else. You can get it sounding like a proper vintage-style JM that way. If you'd rather have a change of radius/neck/feel, then another guitar makes sense, but having a darker tone is a very solvable issue.

My bad, I'm new to the Mustang game haha. I thought there was an AVRI mustang but theyre just reissues from Japan. Im considering saving for a japanese mustang or a cheaper vintage one.

And maybe I'll switch the pickups out on the JMJM. Maybe I'm just scratching for an excuse to get a new guitar. Who knows!

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Re: Should I keep my J Mascis or get a different Jazzmaster?

Post by ianramos » Wed Feb 22, 2017 1:30 pm

[/quote]No prob! I had a similar issue with my KC Mustang a simple parallel mod on one of the pickup selector made it much clearer. I run a lot of pedals too and in my experience higher output pickups just don't gel with some pedals, paticularly dirt pedals. The higher output is meant to overload the preamp, so it will do the same thing to every pedal in your chain.[/quote]



You know what, that totally makes sense. The pickups on the JMJM are pretty high output (I jammed in a hardcore band with it for a while!)
It's funny that J would want those in his signature instead of something less hot, considering his sound is pretty much textbook vintage jazzmaster.

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Re: Should I keep my J Mascis or get a different Jazzmaster?

Post by drmw93 » Wed Feb 22, 2017 11:17 pm

I'm actually selling my JMJM to fund an AVRI Jaguar/Jazzmaster, so I'm in your boat as well. Upgrading is worth it, but it's still a great guitar in it's own right if you don't find what you're looking for.

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Re: Should I keep my J Mascis or get a different Jazzmaster?

Post by indiandysummer » Fri Feb 24, 2017 12:31 pm

ianramos wrote:
mbene085 wrote:
ianramos wrote:So the more I think, I may just want a brighter guitar. Which brings the next question: Do I sell my JMJM to fund a AVRI Mustang or a Classic 60's Jag/Jazz?
Ok, honest question - could you clarify what you mean by "AVRI Mustang"? Do you just mean a vintage mustang? Because there has been no American Reissue of that guitar.

If you're happy with how the JMJM feels and plays, I'd change pickups/electronics before doing anything else. You can get it sounding like a proper vintage-style JM that way. If you'd rather have a change of radius/neck/feel, then another guitar makes sense, but having a darker tone is a very solvable issue.

My bad, I'm new to the Mustang game haha. I thought there was an AVRI mustang but theyre just reissues from Japan. Im considering saving for a japanese mustang or a cheaper vintage one.

And maybe I'll switch the pickups out on the JMJM. Maybe I'm just scratching for an excuse to get a new guitar. Who knows!
If you're looking for a mustang, buy a fairly clean mid-70s model if you can. The necks are really nice (beefier than 60s) and the pickups are wound to be a little hotter but they're still bright. I bought a 1975 black/black mustang for $1000 recently with OHSC. It was pretty clean (couple dings), and the fretlife is really good. The trem was locked down, but otherwise original. I love this guitar soooo much.

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Re: Should I keep my J Mascis or get a different Jazzmaster?

Post by secretroutines » Sat Feb 25, 2017 8:25 pm

ianramos wrote: You know what, that totally makes sense. The pickups on the JMJM are pretty high output (I jammed in a hardcore band with it for a while!)
It's funny that J would want those in his signature instead of something less hot, considering his sound is pretty much textbook vintage jazzmaster.
Yeah, j has said in interviews about gear that he doesn't like pickups that are too loud, high output would fall into this. the squier jmjm is meant for low budgets so it uses higher output to get a vintage (read: driven) sound without the need of a lot of gear.

But since you mentioned in another post about looking at mustangs, I do have to chime in and say mustangs are the best guitars ever. A 65ri will pair great with your jag. You should even check out the new offset series, I've got the olive green one (post coming soon) and it's a great player with a proper setup (and swapping the electronics). If you aren't looking to mod, try to find a used japanese ri, they are honestly better quality than the vintage ones. I'd recommend using the difference between an ri and vintage to just order a mastery. My 65ri just has a mastery and I can't find a better guitar.

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Re: Should I keep my J Mascis or get a different Jazzmaster?

Post by higgsblossom » Tue Feb 28, 2017 7:31 am

secretroutines wrote:Yeah, j has said in interviews about gear that he doesn't like pickups that are too loud,
J's stage and studio sound are two different things. He likes P90s in the studio. I'm pretty sure that many of the lead sounds on "Where You Been" come from a Les Paul with P90s.
"500€? That's the price of a J Mascis Jazzmaster!"

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Re: Should I keep my J Mascis or get a different Jazzmaster?

Post by GunnerWatson » Wed Mar 01, 2017 4:50 am

In the last year, I started buying a lot of gear... I have / had these Jazzmasters:

1994 Limited Edition Blonde Jazzmaster
AVRI 1962 Jazzmaster
60's Lacquer Jazzmaster
Classic Player
J. Mascis

My favorites are the Lacquer and the J. Mascis. I agree with most people here - the Classic Player just doesn't "feel" right. Unless you want to dump $300+ into it, you probably won't be satisfied.

I thought the J. Mascis was a really great guitar, and the chunky neck, jumbo frets, and tune-o-matic bridge really work well together.

If you want the signature Jazzmaster sound and feel without spending a fortune, the Road Worn or Lacquer Jazzmaster's are top notch and get my recommendation.

Don't forget the new Professional series!

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Re: Should I keep my J Mascis or get a different Jazzmaster?

Post by brudy » Fri Mar 03, 2017 6:10 pm

If you like the way the JMJM plays, just swap the pickups and electronics. It will do wonders.

FWIW, I bought my JMJM used and it had a staytrem bridge and avri trem, so all that was taken care of. I redid all the electronics and a few other things as well and had it professionally set up. It's a great guitar really, although I probably sunk as much into it as I paid for it. I've used it live and it doesn't miss a beat when switching between my more expensive guitars (Nash strat, a 335, 1965 SG jr, among others). I really love how it sounds. All that said, the neck is a little wide for me and I'm not a fan of the off white poly. I think I'm going to either do an MJT build or look for a Danocaster offset, but I'll probably keep the JMJM and put some P90s or the stock pickups back in there. It has SD Antiquity I's right now.

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