I heard somewhere that the late 70's Musicmasters were heavier and only routed for the neck pickup.MMPicker wrote:I have a '65 Musicmaster II that I added a pickup and toggle switch to.
The 60s neck pickup on that guitar sounds amazing, like a 60s strat. It turns heads when I play it in a shop, and it's not my playing.
But the added bridge pickup (custom, not Fender) also sounds great, really nasty and biting, and the "hum canceling" middle position is also great. I think those other sounds are also valuable. I don't have the standard Duosonic II switching though, I have a toggle like yours.
However, though it sounds great I started becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the vintage neck, particularly after I had a Reverend guitar for a while and saw how much easier it was to play lead & get good vibrato on a guitar with a bit flatter radius & bigger frets. Of course that's just personal preference. But that's why when the CV Duosonic came out I was very interested in checking one out. But never saw one around. Led to my getting my CP Jaguar.
I haven't played enough old Mustangs, for long enough to see how much difference its bridge makes, vs, the hard-tail.
I am sort of enjoying having the tremelo unit on the jaguar though.
BTW the Musicmaster II is also light as a feather.
I got mine & did this work a long time ago, and the guitar was already a beater that someone else had modded, so I was not devaluing it beyond what had been done to it already. In today's environment, If I had a clean one I probably would not have drilled for a toggle. It is correct that the routing is already there for two pickups & Duosonic II/ Mustang switching.
Duo Sonic II vs. Musicmaster II
Moderated By: mods
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taylornutt
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J Mascis Jazzmaster | AVRI Jaguar | Tuxedo-stang |Fender Toronado GT |
Squier FSR Sparkle Jaguar | Squier CV Mustang |1971 Fender Bronco| Baja Telecaster |
Squier FSR Sparkle Jaguar | Squier CV Mustang |1971 Fender Bronco| Baja Telecaster |
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stewart
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it's worth bearing in mind that all these guitars were made to different specs across their lifespan, and there are a lot of things that affect how they feel and play. the weights can be all over the place, the neck profiles vary wildly, the electrics sound different, etc etc... and i'm talking within the same decade here, not just a 60s vs 70s thing.
i think it's more a case of finding one that feels and sounds decent, you just can't tell by looking at pictures on the internet. they all look nice, but some are going to play wonderfully and others will be a bag of shit.
i think it's more a case of finding one that feels and sounds decent, you just can't tell by looking at pictures on the internet. they all look nice, but some are going to play wonderfully and others will be a bag of shit.
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taylornutt
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I will keep that in mind as I move forward.stewart wrote:it's worth bearing in mind that all these guitars were made to different specs across their lifespan, and there are a lot of things that affect how they feel and play. the weights can be all over the place, the neck profiles vary wildly, the electrics sound different, etc etc... and i'm talking within the same decade here, not just a 60s vs 70s thing.
i think it's more a case of finding one that feels and sounds decent, you just can't tell by looking at pictures on the internet. they all look nice, but some are going to play wonderfully and others will be a bag of shit.
What do y'all think of this project idea?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... K:MEWAX:IT
J Mascis Jazzmaster | AVRI Jaguar | Tuxedo-stang |Fender Toronado GT |
Squier FSR Sparkle Jaguar | Squier CV Mustang |1971 Fender Bronco| Baja Telecaster |
Squier FSR Sparkle Jaguar | Squier CV Mustang |1971 Fender Bronco| Baja Telecaster |
That looks good, if the price stays low. Shame about the guard being routed for a humbucker, if it was single coils i woul keep it - i like the colour.taylornutt wrote: What do y'all think of this project idea?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... K:MEWAX:IT
When I first saw it I thought of this:
I much prefer the original Duo-Sonics as I like the toggle much more than the slider switches.
Never been able to consistently use the sliders on the fly mid song or anything.
Having said that - as you already have one of those I would definitely go with a 2 pickup guitar over a Musicmaster - I need a bridge pickup!
But I also really like the Mustang trem - I'm not a trem user generally, but subte shimmers you can do with the Mustang trem using only your hand are great. So I voted Mustang.
Personally if I had the patience/skills I would do a project to make a Mustang, with toggle switch rather than sliders.
Never been able to consistently use the sliders on the fly mid song or anything.
Having said that - as you already have one of those I would definitely go with a 2 pickup guitar over a Musicmaster - I need a bridge pickup!
But I also really like the Mustang trem - I'm not a trem user generally, but subte shimmers you can do with the Mustang trem using only your hand are great. So I voted Mustang.
Personally if I had the patience/skills I would do a project to make a Mustang, with toggle switch rather than sliders.
The thing is, those original Duosonics were 22.5" scale, not 24".
Some other things:
1) The tuners on mine really need replacing, this is something that one might reasonably encounter on a 44 year old guitar.
2) Since I recently changed string gauges I have now noticed a couple times, for the first time ever, some intonation issues on the high E string; the octave no longer always sounds perfect at the 12th fret, and playing past the 12th fret it can be a little flat. The barrel bridge saddles do not easily allow for individual string intonation. I bought some aftermarket brass saddles that are supposed to compensate for this & provide better intonation, but I haven't put them on. Anyway this is a known issue with the old Teles and these models, that have the "barrel" saddles. But I never had a problem with it until now. So you might, or might not, encounter it. It's still not a huge deal, but I have sensitive ears.
3) If you like vintage neck specs, you'd probably find this one to be great. You can really fly around on these worn-in necks with the little frets and the low action they allow. I think the nut width is 1 mm narrower than the Jaguars.
Some other things:
1) The tuners on mine really need replacing, this is something that one might reasonably encounter on a 44 year old guitar.
2) Since I recently changed string gauges I have now noticed a couple times, for the first time ever, some intonation issues on the high E string; the octave no longer always sounds perfect at the 12th fret, and playing past the 12th fret it can be a little flat. The barrel bridge saddles do not easily allow for individual string intonation. I bought some aftermarket brass saddles that are supposed to compensate for this & provide better intonation, but I haven't put them on. Anyway this is a known issue with the old Teles and these models, that have the "barrel" saddles. But I never had a problem with it until now. So you might, or might not, encounter it. It's still not a huge deal, but I have sensitive ears.
3) If you like vintage neck specs, you'd probably find this one to be great. You can really fly around on these worn-in necks with the little frets and the low action they allow. I think the nut width is 1 mm narrower than the Jaguars.
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hotrodperlmutter
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that guard is horrible. the control portion is the wrong shape, it's routed for a humbucker and it's orange??DanHeron wrote:That looks good, if the price stays low. Shame about the guard being routed for a humbucker, if it was single coils i woul keep it - i like the colour.taylornutt wrote: What do y'all think of this project idea?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... K:MEWAX:IT
but yes, it looks like a good project.
yea, that really is the thing. there were some 24" ones but they can be pretty hard to find.MMPicker wrote:The thing is, those original Duosonics were 22.5" scale, not 24".
the offset body on the later ones are just way cooler looking, IMO.
cogito ergo sum...thing or other...
I voted Mustang because of the Vibrato. I like the Musicmaster II's scale and the single pickup in the neck, but a Vibrato on a guitar is a must for me.
One positive of having only one pickup is it forces you play more with your hands than relying on switching settings if that makes sense. It is a lot of fun to play with switches and stuff sometimes too though.
One positive of having only one pickup is it forces you play more with your hands than relying on switching settings if that makes sense. It is a lot of fun to play with switches and stuff sometimes too though.