Darker Jazzmaster Tone

singlepup · Post by **singlepup** » Sun Jun 15, 2014 1:50 am

I'd like to mod my VMJM to get a darker tone... More emphasis on the low-mids. Want a warmer tone when strumming open and suspended chords. I use a lot of drone notes.

I've read about a million OSG threads on the subject but would like some shortscale opinions.

Seems like changing the volume pot to 250k would help a bit. Should I bother to change the tone pot as well or just roll it back?

Another thought is to use Antiquity I pups. Would it be overkill to swap pups and pots? Should I just do one or the other?

Any opinions or insight would be much appreciated!

robroe · Post by **robroe** » Sun Jun 15, 2014 2:11 am

what amp you got?

robroe · Post by **robroe** » Sun Jun 15, 2014 2:15 am

get a meathead

[youtube][/youtube]

or a Eauclaire Thunder

Jack Black just demo'd the roeclair about a month ago which is quite exciting!!!

[youtube][/youtube]

robroe · Post by **robroe** » Sun Jun 15, 2014 2:20 am

also check these out.

quarter pound jazzmaster pickups.

ive got qp jaguar pickups in one of my mustangs and I love them.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessor ... ter-pickup

[youtube][/youtube]

ultratwin · Post by **ultratwin** » Sun Jun 15, 2014 4:03 am

One of my CIJs has pickups rewound to around 13k ohms and I can definitely get there.

Mind you, they're the original "Strat bobbin" pickups and can really scream like P90s, but that kind of oomp and midrange punch coupled with a little turning down the tone pot can also do remarkable things when I want to go dark, and the rhythm circuit with both dials on full is perfect like that and/or with fuzz du jour.

singlepup · Post by **singlepup** » Sun Jun 15, 2014 6:48 am

Rob, my amp is an '84 Fender Concert. Designed by Paul Rivera and one of the last Fenders that were wired point-to-point. It's not as bright as a silver face but it's still fairly bright overall. I'm thinking to experiment with the EQ a bit more (like turning treble down to 3).

I definitely liked those pedals, especially the Eau Claire.

I liked those quarter pounders even more. Now I'm kinda torn between the QPs and the Antiquity I pups. Definitely leaning toward new pups tho!

Ultra, what type of pups are in your CIJ? Are those just stock? I'm a bit confused. Rolling back the tone on my Squier does help a bit, but rollling back the volume takes me to mudsville right quick!

ultratwin · Post by **ultratwin** » Sun Jun 15, 2014 11:08 am

singlepickup24 wrote: Ultra, what type of pups are in your CIJ? Are those just stock? I'm a bit confused. Rolling back the tone on my Squier does help a bit, but rollling back the volume takes me to mudsville right quick!

Revisiting the Q.Pounders for Jazzmaster taht Rawb posted I'm once again reminded how good they sound as true Jazzmaster-type designs, and definitely have that original tone plus teh phatz. The ones in mine were simply rewound, but still have the very non-vintage tall bobbin thingy going on.

Creamery Custom's image to show the design difference and how tall the CIJ RI's are:

singlepup · Post by **singlepup** » Mon Jun 16, 2014 4:06 am

Ah, I see. A picture is definitely worth a thousand words.

I just came from my rehearsal space and spent a few hours adjusting both guitar and amp. I came closer to finding that tone I'm seeking, but I ultimately comcluded that this guitar-amp pairing is no longer working for me. Even if I swap pups and pots, I think this amp will still be a tad bright for this guitar.

Luckily the guy who sold me the amp actually wants to buy it back, and I'm moving out of area in two weeks. One less thing to move, although I'll be amp-less for a bit.

Rox · Post by **Rox** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 11:19 pm

There's a few options . Personally I wouldn't do 250k pots . Quarter Pounders are an idea . Frankly you can get dark playing with the settings on your amp . Especially the gear you're flossing . Cost: 0.00$

singlepup · Post by **singlepup** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 2:32 am

Yup, I may still do Quarter Pounders but haven't pulled the trigger yet.

Messing around with tone controls on the amp was the first thing I tried. Didn't get me the tone I was seeking. I started messing around with a friend's EQ pedal and had a lot more success. Definitely looking to pick up my own EQ immediately... Doog has recommended a used Danelectro, and the search is on!

What I like about using an EQ is that you can keep those classic jazzmaster bright tones but "de-emphasize" them. Really gives you so much control. Yes, I think I'll stick with the original pots for the time being...

Concretebadger · Post by **Concretebadger** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 8:54 am

I don't see the benefit of going for lower value pots for darker tone really. Fitting larger value pots for brighter tone makes sense, but surely if it's the pot that's the cause and solution to the problem, you can just roll it off a bit further if it's not dark enough. I don't think I've ever picked up a guitar and thought it sounded too bright with the tone knob at zero.

Using an eq pedal is probably more practical and is less messy...I'd be interested to hear about a pickup swap if you do go down that route though.

singlepup · Post by **singlepup** » Thu Jun 26, 2014 5:01 am

Regarding the pot values, I came to pretty much the same conclusion. The only thing I should add is that the VMJM still retains a certain brightness when the volume is at 10 (even if the tone is at zero). When rolling off the volume, I lost clarity really quickly. I got frustrated, started thinking about pot values, and turned to shortscale for advice.

Can't wait to get my EQ... Have been using a virtual EQ via the JamUp app and it's tons of fun

I've been thinking about new pickups for a while, but the Duncan Designed are nice in this kinda lo-fi way. Certainly I've heard much nicer pups, but it's hard to justify a $100 mod to a $300 guitar, especially when the stock pups are decent.

If I pull the trigger, I'll definitely do an demo!

paul_ · Post by **paul_** » Thu Jun 26, 2014 7:41 am

Concretebadger wrote:I don't think I've ever picked up a guitar and thought it sounded too bright with the tone knob at zero.

I have, but only after listening to The Beatles without earmuffs.

brainfur · Post by **brainfur** » Mon Jun 30, 2014 5:43 pm

put some PAFs in

singlepup · Post by **singlepup** » Tue Jul 01, 2014 7:06 am

Not a horrible idea... I once had an LP standard with Burstbuckers. Many things I didn't love about that guitar, but I was always happy with the pickups.