90s "Matte Black" CIJ Jag - JG-66-MBL

Discussion of newer designs, copies and reissue offset-waist instruments.
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sunburster
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Re: 90s "Matte Black" CIJ Jag - JG-66-MBL

Post by sunburster » Sat Oct 31, 2020 9:41 pm

garyptaszek wrote:
Sat Oct 31, 2020 2:39 pm
I played an AVRI before and it felt like junk. Tbh it wasn’t setup well but generally it didn’t feel as solid as my CIJ.
OK. Try one that's actually set up properly next time. Any guitar will feel like junk if it has a bad setup.

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Re: 90s "Matte Black" CIJ Jag - JG-66-MBL

Post by garyptaszek » Sat Oct 31, 2020 11:04 pm

sunburster wrote:
Sat Oct 31, 2020 9:41 pm
garyptaszek wrote:
Sat Oct 31, 2020 2:39 pm
I played an AVRI before and it felt like junk. Tbh it wasn’t setup well but generally it didn’t feel as solid as my CIJ.
OK. Try one that's actually set up properly next time. Any guitar will feel like junk if it has a bad setup.
That’s all well and good but finding one that is setup the way I like it (without having to buy it first) is the issue. I use pretty hefty strings (12-60 for E or Eb tuning). Not to mention the upgraded hardware and pickups. Bare in mind I got both my CIJ JM and Jag for less than £500 each, and have since upgraded the hardware (Mastery vibrato/bridge, staytrem bridge on the jag), and also upgraded the pickups (Creamery pickups). Paying out for these upgraded parts for an AVRI seems kinda silly, if I spent that much money on a guitar and still had to upgraded everything what’s the point?

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Re: 90s "Matte Black" CIJ Jag - JG-66-MBL

Post by andy_tchp » Sun Nov 01, 2020 12:57 am

Because you don't 'have' to upgrade all that stuff on the AVRI.

And yes, I'm another who has owned both (I no longer have the CIJ). No question which is better.
"I don't know why we asked him to join the band 'cause the rest of us don't like country music all that much; we just like Graham Lee."
David McComb, 1987.

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Re: 90s "Matte Black" CIJ Jag - JG-66-MBL

Post by MayTheFuzzBeWithYou » Sun Nov 01, 2020 2:10 am

Mechanical Birds wrote:
Sat Oct 31, 2020 8:18 pm

On the cover thing, I was bummed to find that it didn’t work on the Staytrems I’ve tried to use. I could force it onto them but it would fall off easily and then not fit on the AV bridge anymore.
That‘s a bummer indeed - as Staytrem claims it would!
And also I‘ve waited half a year 'till any european shop would have them back in stock...
and it says November 6th...

Don‘t „need“ it badly for the guitars I already own but I love the look of them and thought why not - I want to try it!

... on an upcoming Jag build (or the OTM Vintera if I should ever get one) I‘d like to install both: bridge cover and the mute (which seems even harder to get in Europe).

And yes on the setup thing: it changes everything!
But besides the squealing pickups (that are hopefully a thing of the past now) I really like Japanese Offsets!

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Re: 90s "Matte Black" CIJ Jag - JG-66-MBL

Post by garyptaszek » Sun Nov 01, 2020 8:06 am

andy_tchp wrote:
Sun Nov 01, 2020 12:57 am
Because you don't 'have' to upgrade all that stuff on the AVRI.

And yes, I'm another who has owned both (I no longer have the CIJ). No question which is better.
Well I know for a fact that I don’t like the stock AVRI pickups (I’m sure I’m not the only one who would consider changing them). And if you’re trying to tell me that the stock bridge and vibrato are better than a staytrem/Mastery I guess we’re gonna have to agree to disagree...

For the record, I’m not claiming one is better than the other. I’m merely saying that, given that I got my CIJ for less than £500 (due to offsets not being as popular all those years ago), had I paid an extra £1000 for an AVRI, I don’t think I’d have and extra £1000 worth of guitar.
I have considered “upgrading” to a AVRI/thin skin since, but I don’t see what I’d be getting for the extra money (besides bragging rights).

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Re: 90s "Matte Black" CIJ Jag - JG-66-MBL

Post by garyptaszek » Sun Nov 01, 2020 8:22 am

MayTheFuzzBeWithYou wrote:
Sun Nov 01, 2020 2:10 am
And yes on the setup thing: it changes everything!
But besides the squealing pickups (that are hopefully a thing of the past now) I really like Japanese Offsets!
Sorry perhaps I should’ve been more clear, I’m aware how much of a difference a good setup makes, let not talk down to one another, regardless of the fact I like a particular setup on my guitars, I can still identify when I like a guitar I’m playing in a shop, or when playing a friends guitar. The guitar in question was a brand new new AVRI Jazzmaster (with a factory setup), in a guitar shop, and I was excited to try it out, yet immediately disappointed. The factory setup was terrible, and the pickups sounded trashy (still, not as bad as the stock CIJ ones tho :blush: ).

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Re: 90s "Matte Black" CIJ Jag - JG-66-MBL

Post by andy_tchp » Sun Nov 01, 2020 2:50 pm

garyptaszek wrote:
Sun Nov 01, 2020 8:06 am
andy_tchp wrote:
Sun Nov 01, 2020 12:57 am
Because you don't 'have' to upgrade all that stuff on the AVRI.

And yes, I'm another who has owned both (I no longer have the CIJ). No question which is better.
Well I know for a fact that I don’t like the stock AVRI pickups (I’m sure I’m not the only one who would consider changing them). And if you’re trying to tell me that the stock bridge and vibrato are better than a staytrem/Mastery I guess we’re gonna have to agree to disagree...
I guess that's great because I never tried to tell you that.

The AVRI bridge, vibrato and pickups are markedly better than their Fender Japan equivalents however, and are perfectly serviceable. The only thing changed on my AVRI is the pickguard, purely for aesthetics. Whereas my (long ago sold) CIJ Jazzmaster's only remaining original parts were the body and neck.

Can't speak to the Staytrem as I have no requirement for anything 'better', but for my purposes the AVRI bridge sounds better than the Mastery bridges (that I used for many years).
"I don't know why we asked him to join the band 'cause the rest of us don't like country music all that much; we just like Graham Lee."
David McComb, 1987.

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Re: 90s "Matte Black" CIJ Jag - JG-66-MBL

Post by Mechanical Birds » Sun Nov 01, 2020 3:07 pm

garyptaszek wrote:
Sun Nov 01, 2020 8:06 am
andy_tchp wrote:
Sun Nov 01, 2020 12:57 am
Because you don't 'have' to upgrade all that stuff on the AVRI.

And yes, I'm another who has owned both (I no longer have the CIJ). No question which is better.
Well I know for a fact that I don’t like the stock AVRI pickups (I’m sure I’m not the only one who would consider changing them). And if you’re trying to tell me that the stock bridge and vibrato are better than a staytrem/Mastery I guess we’re gonna have to agree to disagree...

For the record, I’m not claiming one is better than the other. I’m merely saying that, given that I got my CIJ for less than £500 (due to offsets not being as popular all those years ago), had I paid an extra £1000 for an AVRI, I don’t think I’d have and extra £1000 worth of guitar.
I have considered “upgrading” to a AVRI/thin skin since, but I don’t see what I’d be getting for the extra money (besides bragging rights).
I think they were just saying that typically the reissues are gonna come closer to being ready out of the box compared to like a Squier or something. Like the stock bridge on the VM jaguars and Jazzmasters were horrid trash that were entirely unusable just because of how and what materials were used to make it compared to the stock thing on an AV65.

Changing the bridge is a pretty universal thing on these guitars, though. Like the guys who keep and appreciate the stock bridges are definitely in the minority I’d say, but it’s all subjective so there’s not a lot of black and white right and wrong arguments to be had.

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Re: 90s "Matte Black" CIJ Jag - JG-66-MBL

Post by Embenny » Sun Nov 01, 2020 4:56 pm

For the record, the only stock bridges I've ever enjoyed have been the ones on my AV65 and my actual vintage Jag. I string my jags with .010's and both the AV65 and vintage bridges work perfectly for me.

The pickups, bridge and vibrato on an AV65 only need to be touched if you have a specific preference for an aftermarket option, not as a matter of "needing" to be upgraded.

I have four MIJ offsets and as much as I love their bones (neck/body), you simply can't compare the overall quality of those guitars to an AV65 or AO.

Well, you can compare them, but it's not favourable.
The artist formerly known as mbene085.

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Re: 90s "Matte Black" CIJ Jag - JG-66-MBL

Post by garyptaszek » Mon Nov 02, 2020 10:20 am

Again, my point was simply that in my opinion, for the extra £1000 I wouldn’t be getting £1000 worth of guitar. Stock Vs stock I have no doubt that the AVRI/Thinskin offsets are higher quality than their CIJ counterparts. I think I paid £450 for my CIJ Jazzmaster, if the prices were what they’re like now I would’ve paid the extra for the AVRI, even though I still would’ve had to upgrade the pickups and hardware.

Sorry for the thread hijack, I usually hate matte black but that Jag looks very nice, although the price is kinda crazy.

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