Ultra Luxe Jaguar

[ainm]

I'm gassing - send help!

What do people think of these? I'm fresh off a rant on another board about how American production line Fenders are crap and have been for a while, then of course I immediately heard one of these and my whole world turned upside down. I've never wanted an American Fender - honestly, I find the Japanese and Mexican Fenders better quality at the same price points. Is this finally the American Fender for me?

It's an abomination. 25.5 inch scale; hard-tailed; a neck that no Jaguar has had (?); body cuts are wrong; circuit is a new one; it doesn't really sound like a Jag.

But: short scale is better on a smaller body for me - Mustangs, Duos - and as much as I love Jags, they're not comfortable for me to play as the crook they put in my arm decreasesmy finger dexterity compared to say a Strat (or, more accurately, makes it hurt so much at the end of that neck that I tend to overshoot - so decreases my ability to decrease up there); I've been dreaming of a string-through Jag for a long time; I frigging love thicker-than-modern necks with less roll-off (I think that's this augmented d-neck?); my fav radius is 10-12, and this is a 10-14 compound; medium jumbo are my fav frets and on the the Ultra Luxe they're steel! Ebony fretboard It sounds The colour is not my cup of tea - it's more a cup of coffee - but I have to admit it's special.

I've been considering a similar self-build, but as pricey as the Ultra Luxe is, I would probably spend at least 2/3 on my own build and self-builds are money thrown away.

This guitar is an insult to Jags, but... Maybe I'm Fender's target customer?

Does anyone have an opinion? Forget it's pretending to be a Jag - what do you think of the guitar?

[hexes]

i think it’s absurdly ugly and boring. but i’m very much not it’s target customer. i think jaguars are perfect: scale, mute, strangle switch, and all.

that said, if it’s perfect for you, then buy it. a good guitar is a good guitar.

when I go into a guitar store, I usually pick up the guitars that make me recoil first, just in case they actually rule.

schecters and reverends (yes, i don’t like the looks but my goodness they’re great!) especially have blown my mind.

[Wucan]

Just gonna say I hate it solely because they made it 25.5". It's basically competing with every other modern-spec guitar out there. If they kept it 24" at least it would be a unique find.

[NICQ]

The pricing is absurd for a string thru Jag with humbuckers

[Embenny]

I mean, it's a limited edition US-made model, it's gonna end up maintaining or climbing in price. I'm sure it's nicely made, all the US-made Fenders I've played in the last decade have landed somewhere between "solid" and "amazing."

It's the literal opposite of anything I'd want in an Offset, but that's also probably somebody's perfect "I'd have asked the Custom Shop to do this" specs.

[ainm]

Oh, I'm loving the hate for it. Keep it coming

Just gonna say I hate it solely because they made it 25.5". It's basically competing with every other modern-spec guitar out there. If they kept it 24" at least it would be a unique find.

That neck though - surely that's its USP?

What guitars do you reckon it's competing with? I'm pretty much Fender-exclusive, so would genuinely welcome some schooling.

The pricing is absurd for a string thru Jag with humbuckers

Double coil-tapped, mind. And string-through Jags aren't really a thing, although let's be honest, it's a string-through JM. What sets the Luxe apart for me is the neck - that genuinely has an impact on the guitar's sound and playability.

The other 60 Anniversary model is just a Jag with fancy colours? I think the price is absurd on them too - maybe more so.

i think it’s absurdly ugly and boring. but i’m very much not it’s target customer. i think jaguars are perfect: scale, mute, strangle switch, and all.

that said, if it’s perfect for you, then buy it. a good guitar is a good guitar.

when I go into a guitar store, I usually pick up the guitars that make me recoil first, just in case they actually rule.

schecters and reverends (yes, i don’t like the looks but my goodness they’re great!) especially have blown my mind.

I've always been drawn to odd-ball guitars. Interesting you think it's boring. I think it's boring too, btw, but in a quirky way. I don't think it's a mistake that they even finished it in boring (it looks like Jimmy ). I think they were shooting for a solid sustain machine - string-through with d-profile neck and ebony board. Won't jangle like a jag, but I reckon there's enough string behind the bridge to get some interesting shimmer with a low setup, hopefully without the buzz issues that a low setup usually causes on a Jag.

Reverends are ace. But I disagree with you in that I think they look kinda neat

[ainm]

It's the literal opposite of anything I'd want in an Offset, but that's also probably somebody's perfect "I'd have asked the Custom Shop to do this" specs.

Sadly, I think I'm that person. Wow, I could get my custom shop spec in a colour I hate for a mere 2500. Except I'd have chanced my luck and asked for a Gibson scale They don't have the 10-14" compound radius in their CS catalogue nor the d-profile, but I'm assuming one of the vintage c-profiles is similar enough.

You guys need to put me off more. Make me hate it like you do!

[DeathJag]

It looks tough but definitely not for me - I need to whammy! Just buy the damn thing and then if you don't like it, wait two years and sell it at a 25% markup.

[Embenny]

It's the literal opposite of anything I'd want in an Offset, but that's also probably somebody's perfect "I'd have asked the Custom Shop to do this" specs.

Sadly, I think I'm that person. Wow, I could get my custom shop spec in a colour I hate for a mere 2500. Except I'd have chanced my luck and asked for a Gibson scale They don't have the 10-14" compound radius in their CS catalogue nor the d-profile, but I'm assuming one of the vintage c-profiles is similar enough.

You guys need to put me off more. Make me hate it like you do!

There's nothing to hate if you like the specs! There's no shame in liking it. I'm sure it's a great guitar for the right person. It's just not the right guitar for many OSGers, which is totally fine.

It looks tough but definitely not for me - I need to whammy! Just buy the damn thing and then if you don't like it, wait two years and sell it at a 25% markup.

Sigh. I wish I thought you were wrong. I've joked that I should just buy every limited-run Fender model the second it comes out. For the last decade or so, you literally can't go wrong (financially) with doing that. Probably a better investment strategy than most!

[BTL]

I didn't realize it was 25.5"...I like it more now.

[marginwalker]

It’s way too overpriced for what it is. You’d probably be happier doing your own build with the exact specs and color you want while saving a bit of money like you said.

Honestly it sounds to me like you’re interested in the collectibility of it more than anything, especially since you’re already thinking about the resale value of a self-build vs the Ultra Luxe and admitted that you think it’s kind of a boring looking guitar. Personally I wouldn’t buy any guitar, especially at $2500, if it didn’t look as good aesthetically as good as it played and sounded. That’s just my opinion though

[Wucan]

Just gonna say I hate it solely because they made it 25.5". It's basically competing with every other modern-spec guitar out there. If they kept it 24" at least it would be a unique find.

That neck though - surely that's its USP?

What guitars do you reckon it's competing with? I'm pretty much Fender-exclusive, so would genuinely welcome some schooling.

At that price range? We're talking Ibanez Prestiges, ESP's Japanese line, Japanese Jacksons, some of EBMM's guitars, US Charvels and many others... not to mention the endless tide of imports that already do compound radius, SS frets and the such at a much lower price point.

If we're talking Jaguar-like shapes strictly then the field is much narrower, but you still have options like Reverend or MIJ Schecters for that, as well as smaller builders (like Bilt).

[mekhem]

Ehhhh..... There are a lot of things I think are great about that guitar, or at least really unique as a platform. The pickups and switching in particular, Ebony board, and not a bad looker all things considered.

I think "the", or at least "my", issue with it is that - its not a jaguar. Its a vaguely Jaguar shaped object. Its a hardtail, scale is off, humbuckers. etc..

However: If you are in the market for a fender scale, humbucker/coil tappable (both sound pretty nice from what I have heard), 12" ebony board rock machine... then this is a pretty appealing and flexible package.

RE: Price - current Fender pricing is the new normal. MIM=1000, MIM Special/Artist=1000-2000, MIA=2000-2500, MIA Special 2200-2700. Standard Gibsons are now 2700-3000...

[smjenkins]

You know, if it had WRHBs, I might consider it. There's few things more yawn-inducing than an TOM + humbuckers guitar. The only thing there's more of than that are Strats.

[timtam]

Trogly opened one up. Has a PCB for the upper control plate switching. Hopefully not a sign of the future (would make modding more of a pain).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clc2ZNlTC-M