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Whether AVRI or CIJ, it seems to me that all of the "really good deals"  are for Jaguars.  I haven't been really in a position to buy one (and won't be until I pay for my CS Bass VI), but I've been browsing craigslist, gbase, and ebay for used Jazzmasters and I keep getting irritated by the really great deals available for used Jaguars!  But I almost never see a good deal on a used Jazzmaster. 

Am I just having bad luck, or does anyone else see the same pattern?  I really, really want to get a Jazzmaster for my next guitar.  When I played one at Sam Ash, I feel in love.  I briefly owned a Mustang, and I'm sure that shortscales aren't for me, so I know I don't want a Jag.  Where are all the cheap(er) used Jazzmasters?

sonik wrote: Am I just having bad luck, or does anyone else see the same pattern?  I really, really want to get a Jazzmaster for my next guitar.  When I played one at Sam Ash, I feel in love.  I briefly owned a Mustang, and I'm sure that shortscales aren't for me, so I know I don't want a Jag.  Where are all the cheap(er) used Jazzmasters?

I think you probably partially answered your own question.

I think the short scale neck is probably one reason for the Jag's lower popularity.  I know it's really the main reason I went with a JM.  I can play a short scale neck and actually my next guitar will probably be a short scale guitar, but for my first guitar after a long hiatus, I wanted a normal scale neck.  I do have pretty long fingers and arms.

I think also that JM's show up more frequently in modern bands that people may be trying to emulate.  Kurt Cobain used a Jaguar, and so did Kevin Shields, but whenever I see an offset in a music video from a popular band these days, it's almost always a Jazzmaster.  And that's always been a big marketing point for any guitar.

Even though I like the Jaguar looks better than the JM in general, I have to admit the JM sounds much nicer.
Of course sometimes one is in the mood for the Jag sound. This is why it is nice to have both.
The JM is more popular because it does have a better sound.

I think Spacecadet hit the nail on the head...

1.  Scale..Definitely a factor.  Look at vintage prices.  Jazzmasters are going for 2X the price of comparable Jags.  For some reason, shortscale=less $$$$.  That means good deal for Shortscale fans.  You can still find refin'd 60's Jags for $1300-$1500.  Good luck finding a Jazzmaster for that price.

2. Popularity...These days, Jazzzmasters have made a  huge comeback with newer pop bands.  It's a damn shame, because bands like Maroon 5 drive up JM prices.  On the other hand, Fender is more likely to release new versions of JMs now.  We've seen that with the JM JM and Costello JM.

"Sounds better" is a subjective thing.  Some like the Jag sound better.  I personally prefer a JM most of the time, but Jags are great too! 

Jags just walk into the room like an obnoxious drunk chick with a piercing voice being WAY too loud!  That's why I love them!

But seriously, you plug a jag into a twin, which is probably what most folks do at Guitar Center, and unless you turn that tone down around 5 or 6 to start with it's going to make a Telecaster sound creamy and smooth.  Getting a handle on the Jag's voice takes some time, if not skill.  If more people plugged it in to an AC30 or Boogie, that would help.

Yes the scale turns people off, but I believe the tone, unless you know what you are doing, does too.  Dave Wronski once told me "with a jazzmaster, you set the tone to 10 and turn it down until you're happy.  With a Jag, you set it at 1 and turn it up until you're satisfied".  It's great advice.

Jags really need a heavier string too but I venture a guess most of them end up with 9 or 10's and that's WAAAAAAAY too lite for the 24" scale.  Personally I think 11's are too light too and so I use 12's but tune down a whole step to get the tension right where I like it.  I think if Jag were set up properly more often people would find them more appealing as well.  In fact that's probably one of the main reasons these guitars were not so popular back in the day.  I can't count the number of times the Jag's or JM's I was checking out in shops were totally unplayable due to improper setup.  Just last weekend I looked at a 68-ish Jag that had the shims removed and the action was too low and everything was rattling.  Tough sell there, especially to someone who doesn't know that some dumbass hosed up the setup.

As Jay Said. I loved my Jag (after I switched to Curtis Novak Pu's) and Put 0.12 on it. It really did it for me. Using a Tremolux with a 4x12" cab....hmmm.
Sold it to finance house rebuilding and kept the JM. Here it is sometimes the other way arround. Finding better deals on JM then Jag. Strange wolrd. Although luck is a BIG factor sometimes. When the house is done, I'm back in the market for a Jag as I miss it. But I can't get to say goodbye on either one of my JM's for that....
But the "piercing drunk chick voice" is a really good description imo. Guess I love that too + she's good looking as well

I never went on the bay to buy a guitar, just followed the "local" online adds. (more popular here then the bay) and when a guitar is "posted more then 5 times, it's time to move in....
+ in most cases trades are also possible. And you actually get to play and see what you buy. (and in most cases the sellers overall look tells a lot about the guitar)

Although, some might disagree, but I feel the Jag has qua feel and play a more close resemblance to the JM then to the Mustang. I happen to like bands where both are used at the same time. They mix soooo good imo.....

I think it might be the neck feel of a JM is similar to a strat. Strat dudes who want an old fender with that feel
are going to reach for something in a more affordable price range (the JM). I'm guessing the demand for a large scale
vintage fender has encroached on JM turf, pushing prices way up.

Jay wrote: I think if Jag were set up properly more often people would find them more appealing as well.  In fact that's probably one of the main reasons these guitars were not so popular back in the day.  I can't count the number of times the Jag's or JM's I was checking out in shops were totally unplayable due to improper setup. 

NO SHIT!  When I got my Jag new, unplayed for $1050, it was set up so bad that the bridge was higher on the treble side, but the saddles were adjusted to balance everything out so the bass strings were higher than the treble strings.  Of course the action was set at 2/64ths, and it was wearing the factory standard round 10s   When I gave it my setup I discovered that not only was the bass side lower, it was so low that the pivot screw it rocks on was completely retracted into the bridge leg!  That thing was rocking on a flat surface the size of a dime on the bass side and a needle point on the treble.  I could just picture everyone who played it in the shop thinking "gee... This thing goes out of tune everytime I even touch the trem arm..."

And that's probably the case at least 9 of 10 times too...  I can't ever recall a properly set up JM I've played in a shop.

The only JM I've ever played in a shop was setup pretty well.  It was an Oly AVRI at Portland Music.  I've only ever seen Jag HH's on the Jag side.  Obviously not the same.

I once played a JM at Guitar Center that literally fretted out over 80% of the board.  Someone had put 9's on it without adjusting the truss and it had backbow.  I imagine they had a really hard time making that sale.

Every Jazzmaster and Jaguar that I have ever played at Capsule Music here in Toronto have been set up ridiculously bad, which is a shame because they're usually overpriced as well.

Jay wrote: I once played a JM at Guitar Center that literally fretted out over 80% of the board.  Someone had put 9's on it without adjusting the truss and it had backbow.  I imagine they had a really hard time making that sale.

A friend of a friend bought an AVRI Jag a year or so ago from Guitar Center.  I played it when he got it and it fretted out everywhere.  It was unplayable.
I told him to get it setup but I don't know if he ever did.  It was the same way a couple months later when I played it.

Of course, this is the same person that had a 63 JM (I think it was 63) and he treated it so poorly he cracked the head in half.  It broke my heart.

maximum_perlich wrote:

Of course, this is the same person that had a 63 JM (I think it was 63) and he treated it so poorly he cracked the head in half.  It broke my heart.

How did he do that?