New MIM "Classic Player" Jaguars and Jazzmasters
Introduction
My Jazzmaster posts have been surprisingly popular, especially with beginners, and are actually bubbling up higher in Google searches now that they're linked from various other sites. Guess there's kind of a dearth of info on these guitars out there! They're certainly not as popular as Stratocasters or Les Pauls, even though they are great guitars. So I figure I may as well continue fishing for more page views trying to satisfy that audience. Introducing: the brand new Classic Player Jazzmasters and Jaguars!
Just wanna know my opinions of them? Feel free to scroll down. Otherwise, keep reading for more info.
As experienced players know but beginners likely don't, the Jaguar and Jazzmaster are similar to the point that many people who know the offset guitar line talk about them in the same breath. The Jaguar has different pickups, somewhat different electronics and a short-scale neck - otherwise, they are pretty close to being the same. The stock tone and sustain is slightly different, but beyond that, most people who play these just make their choice based either on looks (the Jaguar's got more chrome, but smaller pickups) or on the neck scale. The Jaguar is better for people with smaller hands. I have freakishly long fingers and monstrous hands, so I prefer the long-scale Jazzmaster. (I'm playing a Jag HH above because that's all the store that I went to had.)
Since the early 1990's, Fender has offered reissues of the original vintage Jazzmaster and Jaguar models under their "American Vintage Reissues" ("AVRI") line. These are pretty expensive - around $1,400 - and they have all the same intricacies, quirks and kinks as the original models did. Same threaded bridge saddles, same complicated tremolo system, same rhythm circuit, same bottom of the neck truss rod access (requiring the neck's removal to adjust), same proprietary "soap bar" pickups on the Jazzmaster (and custom pickups on the Jag that look like Strat pickups but aren't). These guitars are made for heavy strings, lest your strings fall off the thread in the bridge saddle and potentially break, or at the least throw you out of tune. They're also a bit harder to set up than a Strat or Les Paul. Many guitar techs don't even know how to do it.
For all these reasons, the AVRI models have never really expanded the line's fan base. These are real guitarist's guitars, kind of an acquired taste - they're not that accessible for people just starting out. But the people who love them love them for what they are, quirkiness included.
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Fender Japan has been selling their own line of fully licensed Jazzmasters and Jaguars for around 20 years too, loosely based on a 1960's design but not as close to vintage as the AVRI's (nor really intended as "reissues"). They're colloquially known as "MIJ" or "CIJ" models, depending on what year they were made/what's printed on the neck. I own a CIJ Jazzmaster. These are cheaper than the AVRI's and are still basically vintage-correct in most of the important ways. They were a good alternative to the AVRI's for a while, but Fender USA's been clamping down on imports lately. That caused a lot of us offset fans to wonder if something was up.
Feature Rundown
Enter the officially-imported line of Mexican-made offset guitars in a line called the "Classic Player" series. These are about the same price as a Japanese model - around $800 - but unlike the CIJ guitars, they have some pretty major revisions over the original vintage design:
1. The bridge is an "adjust-o-matic" - Fender's version of the tune-o-matic. It's a far simpler and more traditional bridge than the vintage/AVRI/CIJ floating bridge.
2. The tremolo/tailpiece is closer to the bridge. This has the effect of increasing the break angle over the bridge.
3. The neck radius is a flatter 9.5, which is more common in modern guitars than the 7.5 radius in the vintage, AVRI and CIJ models.
4. They have an increased neck pocket back angle, which is supposed to increase sustain.
5. They have different pickups intended to be "hotter".
They are also finished in poly, which is the same as the Japanese models but different from either the vintage or AVRI models. They won't wear the same way as an American version of these guitars, and the neck feels different with a glossy finish.
There are other minor changes in the wiring and electronics, and the new Jag HH (not to be confused with the older CIJ Jag HH/Special) completely lacks a rhythm circuit. It's replaced by a simple kill switch.
My Opinions
I got the chance to briefly try out a new Jag HH at my local Guitar Center a few days ago. Unfortunately, I only got to play it acoustically - but I'm not sure plugging in would have told me much, because the HH model uses humbucking pickups and they'll sound significantly different than a standard Jag anyway. But I still got a good feel for the guitar, and that should translate to any of the new Jazzmaster/Jag models. My thoughts:
* The neck looks and feels a lot like a CIJ model. Same finish, and personally I didn't notice the difference in the neck radius. Some might, though.
* The weight is inconsistent between guitars - I tried two, one fairly light, one ridiculously heavy. Definitely try before you buy.
* The hardware looked to be good quality but I am not convinced (as some others are) that it is AVRI hardware. For one thing, the only thing that really even could be is the trem plate - everything else is either totally different or it uses some obviously different parts. The trem plate to me did not look AVRI-ish, although I admit I could be wrong about that. It didn't look CIJ-ish either. I believe it is a Mexican design and production. Here's a photo - note also that the tremolo lock button is chrome, which is different from the AVRI's:
* There was not much resonance in the two guitars I tried. I don't think the wood they're using is very good (which would explain the weight issues too). I could barely hear myself playing acoustically. Good Jazzmasters and Jags are practically as loud and full as a real acoustic guitar when playing un-amped (albeit a pretty poor quality acoustic guitar). That's one of the advantages of that big body combined with the long break behind the bridge (and probably the bridge itself). The new models sound dead by comparison, and yeah, that usually translates when you're playing electrically too.
* Cosmetically, the sunburst model I saw looked good. Better than some recent AVRI or CIJ bursts I've seen. Nice color, nice finish. However, both guitars I looked at had strangely contoured edges that don't blend smoothly. I drew this picture to illustrate the difference between the MIM and AVRI/CIJ models:
This is very subtle, and I admit I'm probably being a little nitpicky. But the contours are definitely different than other Jags and Jazzmasters. I took a photo of the white one I looked at from the side, although it's hard to really see anything weird in this picture.
If you look closely at the horn (closest to the camera) on the right side of the photo (towards the top of the guitar), you can see a little of what I'm talking about - the curved edge is sort of abrupt, it doesn't blend smoothly. You can also sort of see by the shading on the side of the horn that there's a sharp edge all the way around.
* Generally, I felt like the quality was pretty good but was a step below the Japanese models, which themselves are a step below the American models. The fit and finish is not quite there - the pickguards are really thin, they don't line up perfectly with the chrome plates (see below), there's a bit of a gap in the neck pocket, the fretboard wood is very light, the weight is inconsistent, etc. Just in terms of fit & finish, I wouldn't call these top quality guitars. They're not bottom-feeders either, though. I could live with one, but you are giving up something for the lower price vs. an AVRI.
The bottom line, though, is that I feel like the changes made to these guitars sap all the character out of them. They play like generic guitars. The default factory strings are pretty light - like a Strat, not like a Jazzmaster - and the bridge and trem position are obviously intended to make that possible. The tone is different because of the trem placement (the strings themselves are shorter from the nut to the trem) and because of the bridge, and of course the intentionally "hot" pickups would make a difference too. (Ditto for the humbuckers in the HH, which aren't very Jag-like at all - though this is not a new concept anymore.) The neck radius, while I didn't notice much difference, is also more like any number of modern-day guitars.
Conclusions
Basically, these are Jaguars and Jazzmasters for people who like the way these guitars look but don't like the way they feel or sound. So, now you have an option for a guitar that looks like a Jag or Jazzmaster but really isn't one, at least not in any traditional sense. I suppose they're also more accessible to beginners, who don't have to learn a whole new system just to be able to work their guitar.
They're cheap enough and attainable enough that they'll probably attract some new players. But if what you're looking for is a vintage look and sound on a budget, I'd still advise checking eBay or Ishibashi's U-box for a used (or even new) Japanese model. (Ishibashi is not nearly as intimidating as it looks. Be sure to click the link that says "For Overseas Customers".) Even after upgrading the pickups, you'll still be right around where you would be paying for a new Classic Player model and you'll have a guitar that's very close to AVRI level. You'll never really get there with a Classic Player, which are actually routed differently than the AVRI's or CIJ's.
I'm actually a little disappointed that Fender would do this. I'm all for expanding the fan base of these guitars, but not by neutering what makes them what they are. The quality I can live with - hey, for $600 less than an AVRI model, you're going to give up something - but that's why we have the CIJ models. Certain modifications I wouldn't mind either. If people are scared of the Jazzmaster bridge, for example, why not throw a Mustang bridge on there at the factory? It could always be changed out to a real Jazzmaster bridge if desired - they're interchangeable. That's not so easy with an adjust-o-matic.
I feel like the concept behind these guitars is misguided. If you're considering one of these guitars, I want you to really think about what it is that you like about them and how you play. If you've been thinking about a Jazzmaster or Jaguar because some band you like plays them... well, they're not playing these. They won't sound or play the same. If you just want to save some money, buy a CIJ. I would only recommend one of these guitars if they both fit your budget and you're specifically looking for the features that are unique to these guitars - which happen to be the same features that make them the most generic of all of Fender's offsets.
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