Squier J Mascis Jazzmaster

SKC Willie · Post by **SKC Willie** » Sun Oct 23, 2011 5:34 am

you obviously didn't read the thread

weed_killer · Post by **weed_killer** » Sun Oct 23, 2011 1:50 pm

unboxing pics from harmony central:

► Show Spoiler

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/sho ... ning-it-up...

taylornutt · Post by **taylornutt** » Sun Oct 23, 2011 3:40 pm

I keep trying to convince myself that I want to holdout for the original J Mascis Jazzmaster, but the differences are so few and price is so right. The neck will probably be the deciding factor for me. Pickups can be changed to preference and a locking trem can be switched out with little dremel work. I know the neck can be changed as well but at that point I might as well save up for the original. Maybe I should get both and be done with it.

othomas2 · Post by **othomas2** » Sun Oct 23, 2011 4:15 pm

I just wish they'd positioned the tremolo plate in the normal position because of its traditional aesthetics.

On something like the blacktop it doesn't bother me so much because it's pretty far removed from a standard jazzmaster.

I'm however tempted to pick one to mod, and turn into a blaster master.

serfx · Post by **serfx** » Sun Oct 23, 2011 6:38 pm

not a full review from Phil..
but i'm sad that he never posted his thoughts here...

Phil O'Keefe wrote:But I will tell you a few initial thoughts. For all the in-depth details and the full and fair assessment (and not just "first impressions"), you'll have to wait for the final review. Fair enough?

It's pretty sweet. The neck is satin and feels pretty comfy. I've been playing a fairly svelte 24" neck more often than not lately, so that is possibly affecting my initial subjective response, but the neck feels a bit bigger than I was expecting. It doesn't feel bad though. Squier says it's a C shape IIRC, but it's nearly a modified, very subtle and soft-v, or somewhere between V and C. I'll do actual measurements with my digital calipers for the review, but my initial thoughts are that it feels a touch thicker (fretboard to back of neck) than some other Fender / Squier necks, but with a little less "meat" in the shoulders, which helps it feel less "big" if you have shorter fingers.

The radius is 9.5 too IIRC, which is a bit flatter than the vintage Fender radius (7.25"). The medium jumbo frets have nice edges, but there's a bit of grit when you bend the strings across the top of the frets - probably from leftover buffing compound or frets that could use a bit more polish - one or the other. I'll be investigating that one a bit further. I still have not asked Fender if this neck is "common" with any other Squier model. I can tell you the J Mascis is CIC (at least that's what it says on the back of the headstock), so it most likely has a different neck than the CII or CII (India or Indonesia) models, although I suppose it could be the same neck as used on some other 25.5" Squier guitar made in China.

Stays in tune fairly well. Like I said - it arrived in tune right out of the box, which I wasn't expecting at all. It "pings" a bit at the nut. I'll be getting out a magnifying glass and having a closer look there to see how well it's cut and also doing some setup work later on to see how well I can get it to perform. The bar is a standard push-in (unthreaded) Jazzmaster style, and the guitar stayed in tune reasonably well with a couple minutes of fairly heavy bar use, although a couple of strings needed a bit of tuning touch up after a while. Again, I suspect that can be improved on with some basic / general DIY setup tweaks. We'll see.

I still have not run it with any fuzz yet, but the overall sound is somewhat brighter than I was expecting, although definitely Jazzmaster-flavored in overall sound character. That could be a result of the basswood - I'm not sure yet. It certainly isn't a super-light guitar - there's some heft to it, although I have not weighed it yet. The switching works a treat, and I didn't have any problem dialing up a warmer sound with the rhythm circuit and switching back and forth between that and whatever main setting I wanted. Output is fairly beefy - they are not anemic pickups. I did a quick "through the output jack" measurement with all controls wide open and measured 8.28k (bridge) and 8.14k (neck).

It looks better in person than in pics IMO. Nice looking and playing guitar. With a street price of $380, I have seen nothing so far to change my initial opinion upon hearing about them that Squier is going to be selling a boatload of these things...

and then a few pages later

Phil O'Keefe wrote:
► Show Spoiler

but sums it up pretty well
this thing is getting a LOT of love on HC and many many other forums
and at the price, i can totally see why
plus.. its just fucking a delicious guitar

Gabriel · Post by **Gabriel** » Sun Oct 23, 2011 7:02 pm

I don't need/want another guitar, but seriously the more I see of this the more I begin eyeing up potential things to sell ...

Mages · Post by **Mages** » Sun Oct 23, 2011 7:22 pm

Phil O'Keefe wrote:the neck feels a bit bigger than I was expecting. It doesn't feel bad though. Squier says it's a C shape IIRC, but it's nearly a modified, very subtle and soft-v, or somewhere between V and C.

ok, this sounds awesome.

stewart · Post by **stewart** » Sun Oct 23, 2011 7:24 pm

W

A

N

T

westtexasred · Post by **westtexasred** » Sun Oct 23, 2011 7:26 pm

weed_killer wrote:unboxing pics from harmony central:

► Show Spoiler

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/sho ... ning-it-up...

I love the "unboxing" pics,it's like watching a japanese porno flick!

Stuart · Post by **Stuart** » Sun Oct 23, 2011 8:11 pm

Andertons website says they are coming in tomorrow. They'll probably change their minds again though. I'm so tempted but one possibility is keeping from jumping in. Let me ask you this Shortscale:

Can I get one of those squire jag and turn it into a squire jazzuar? Is there some reason that wont work? Not deep enough to route for the trem/pickups?

lorez · Post by **lorez** » Mon Oct 24, 2011 10:44 am

mrperson wrote:I don't need/want another guitar, but seriously the more I see of this the more I begin eyeing up potential things to sell ...

same here

deaner33 · Post by **deaner33** » Mon Oct 24, 2011 3:09 pm

lorez wrote:
mrperson wrote:I don't need/want another guitar, but seriously the more I see of this the more I begin eyeing up potential things to sell ...
same here

Me three! I couldn't take it anymore and preordered one from Sweetwater.

Lucamo · Post by **Lucamo** » Mon Oct 24, 2011 8:42 pm

If you read the HC thread entirely, some guy claims to have spoke to J himself.

J told the dude that a purple variant of the Squier was on the way out in a few months. How much of that is true I cannot say, but that idea excites me greatly.

deaner33 · Post by **deaner33** » Mon Oct 24, 2011 9:46 pm

Lucamo wrote:If you read the HC thread entirely, some guy claims to have spoke to J himself.

J told the dude that a purple variant of the Squier was on the way out in a few months. How much of that is true I cannot say, but that idea excites me greatly.

Jeeze, now you tell me.

jcyphe · Post by **jcyphe** » Mon Oct 24, 2011 11:46 pm

If the purple Squier has a matching headstock that would be great.

ultratwin · Post by **ultratwin** » Mon Oct 24, 2011 11:46 pm

Would be sweet indeed, but...

Gonna go out on a limb and conjecture that if it's true that Squier will be adding the Fender color to the lineup, there's at least a slim chance we might end up seeing grape drink instead of sparkling grape soda, ifyaknowwhatimean.

jcyphe · Post by **jcyphe** » Mon Oct 24, 2011 11:55 pm

ultratwin wrote:

[youtube][/youtube]

endsjustifymeans · Post by **endsjustifymeans** » Tue Oct 25, 2011 12:18 am

jcyphe wrote:If the purple Squier has a matching headstock that would be great.

I literally will be forced to buy one. I'll have no say in the matter. Damn you squier.

Josh · Post by **Josh** » Tue Oct 25, 2011 12:48 am

woahwoahwoah, i might just have to wait for one of those instead.. on the fence.

ultratwin · Post by **ultratwin** » Tue Oct 25, 2011 1:59 am

PURPLE STUFF!