JM and Jag with overdrive

[1946dodge]

I just got through playing my 64 JM and 66 Jag thru a marshall Jackhammer pedal, a Marshall echo pedal and a compressor into a Twin.
I have to say, these are more than just surf guitars.
These ROAR.
I wonder if the reissues sound like this? Is it just because they are old?
Is this why they are so costly now?
I was lucky and got these in the late 80's for 275 each. I always fancied a Jag and a JM probably for the same reason you guys are all in love with them.
And this was long before Cobain put them on the radar screen.

I can't imagine why someone hadn't used them more for rock in the 60's and 70's.
By the way, I lived thru the "surf" music time and never cared for that sound.

But these guitars just roar when you want them too.

I mean Strats sound great too, I have a few, but I always get a better sound out of these, even if they have bridges that people complain about.

[Mad-Mike]

Well, you're right about the roar, one of my two main shred axes is a Jaguar with what are basically "rails" pickups voiced like hot-wired Single Coils (Cool Rails), even though I have a home full of guitars with full blown High Output Humbuckers, I usually go running back to the Jaguar for some reason.

The one guitar that sold me on using a Jaguar tonewise was a beat up but bone stock 63' Fender Jaguar, which was strung up with 10's, I have yet to find a more agressive guitar.  I had that thing run through a Mesa-Boogie Heartbreaker set to the bold setting on full gain with the mids run out, and played some Metallica...the Guitar Tech dropped by and his jaw just dropped, I thought I was going to get into trouble or be whined at again for playing "metal" on a "surf" guitar, nope, he just said "Man, I never knew a Jaguar could sound like that, that's incredible".

I can see where the Japanese Jaguars might fall short, but overall, I'm finding the only problem with these guitars are not the guitars themselve, but the people playing them.  Of course if you run a Fender Jaguar through a twin reverb, you won't have a "shred" sound, because a Twin is not a high gain amplifier.  For a Jaguar, the best amps for high gain are either a Marshall JCM800 or TSL JCM2000, a Mesa Boogie Heartbreaker/Rectifier, or something else that can get get plenty of gain going. 

Besides, the I like the lower output Jaguar sound with heavy distortion better, because it's overall cleaner, and sings on solos, and  it's not too gainy and buzzy.  I prefer that 70's/early 80's type distortion to that mud-sludge sound people use now, clean, punchy, but with enough grit to give it attitude.

As for Jazzmaster's, I have not played on in years, but I intend to eventually to see what one can do in my current situation.  I already know a Jazzmaster and a Boss Hyperfuzz is like Garage/Punk heaven for me tonewise.

[Pumpkin]

I have a Jaguar with Antiquity bridge and AV neck pups and i use it with 1 or 2 Big muffs or big muff and distortion on and it is sick,you'd never guess the pups are not even 7k.

I'm finding the only problem with these guitars are not the guitars themselves, but the people playing them.

True,a lot of people have no idea how to get a cool sound out of a Jaguar and Jazzmaster so they load it with JB's or some shit.

Nothing personal against anyone with a jaguar with jbs either!

[Green angel]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITvd0ko69c4

Most part of solos are played with the neck pickup (antiquity II), surf musicians love to play with jazzmasters but it's defintly not only a surf guitar, Imo it's the best Fender for overdrive !!

[1946dodge]

GreenAngel, great video.
The think I like about JMs and Jags is the single coil sound when overdriven.
HIgh output Humbuckers are more for tight solos, but they dont seem to roar like the single coils, which have a much wider range frequency response, at least it seems to me.

I never understood why people say that a Les Paul or any humbucker guitar sounds better on a Marshall stack than a single coil guitar. The humbucker sound is just too one dimensional to me while the single coil sound is always different with different players. It has more body to the sound,  more overtones ring out and they arent all the same. The distorted humbucker sound seems compressed to me, while the single coil is more "freeform".

Ah what the hell am I talking about. It just sounds better to me - a single coil guitar thru a driven amp, that is.

[Mad-Mike]

I think a lot of the increased frequency response is because there is more bandwidth for it  on the wires due to the lower output of the pickups, rather than trying to drive a 14.9K Shred Sludge through the wire, it's driving a mere 6-7K level output, which is much less, and leaves a little more room for extra frequencies to get out of the pickup.That's just my theory.

[Felix]

A pickup with a 5K or 6K output seems pretty low, even for a single coil. I think my stock CIJ pups were about 5.5, and that proved to be an impact part after I made the switch.
Actually, my Antiquity I and II are both rated around 9.2K--CIJ Jazzmaster. I think the quarter pounders are 12k, are they not?

I do agree though that single coils are a great sound-the only sound I use.

[Pumpkin]

1946 said:

The humbucker sound is just too one dimensional to me while the single coil sound is always different with different players. It has more body to the sound,  more overtones ring out and they arent all the same. The distorted humbucker sound seems compressed to me, while the single coil is more "freeform".

This pretty much hit the nail on the head imo!

Humbuckers have they're place of course,but singles do roar and sing,especially with a big muff

[StevenO]

Imo it's the best Fender for overdrive !!

I was going to agree, but then I thought "well I'd have to say the jazzmaster on neck pickup and the strat on neck pickup sounds awesome with overdrive" and then I thought "and even the tele sounds awesome with drive." So I guess I just have to settle with all three of those for my sick little drive needs.

[luau]

I'm in the opposite boat. I nearly always play with my RAT switched on. When I do switch it off, I'm always like 'wow! this sounds great clean'.

[aen]

I prefer my CIJ JM overdriven, it's ultra beefy, better for chunky rhythm, slower/monolithic stomping stuff.  I'm using an SD QP in the neck, rarely use bridge pickups, except on teles.

My 69 Jag sounds awesome in every setting, but the story i have is that the neck pickup was a hand made replacement from fender.  The jag has more "bite" i guess, so TREBLe, to put it bluntly, it's a different sound than any ohter guitar in the stable, more suited to angry sounds, or playing leads with plenty of low end.  That's kind of my Jag endorsement. 

If i was in a fender ad it would say "Fender Jaguar:  PLay frikken leads on the neck pickup!"

Ramble ramble?

[RumorsOFsurF]

I do agree though that single coils are a great sound-the only sound I use.

+1

[Yannic]

I'm using a CIJ jazz loaded with SD 1/4Pounders. And I must say, it absolutely roars like hell. I'm running it through a Koch Powertone2, which is a pretty high gain amplifier. I realy like te depth of the overdriven sound, combined with some humbucker thightness. For me this is the perfect balance between a humbucker guitar and a low-output singlecoil one.

[spacewhale]

I have a Burgundy Mist CIJ Jazzmaster and a Fender DeVille 2x12.

I initially replaced the pickups with an SD vintage neck and an SD QP bridge, but didnt like the QP, was too aggressive and trebley so I replaced it with an SD vintage which was much smoother. The paired sound was awesome and the bridge with some distortion was more even.

Recently I've temporarily replaced the bridge pup with a scatterwound custom PAF style hum which I found worked better in my band, though the tone isnt as cool, it packs a bit more drive without being nasal like the QP. I play quite mellow alternative rock (not emo or metal) and just needed that little bit more oomph without the guitar becoming unbalanced again.

I think, having heard both Jazz and Jag overdriven, the Jag is obviously the lead guitar and the Jazz is an excellent rythmn machine. I'm definately a single coil person, but that humbucker has its place - it's functional and suits the vintage neck well.

[Green angel]

I don't understand why Jaguar would be a "leader" guitar than Jazzmaster?
It's my personal opinion but I love the "agressive and sharp edge" sound of Jaguar for Rythmn, I prefer the versatility,  the sustain, the smoother and hotter pickups of Jazzmaster to play solos.
More I feel uncomfortable with Jaguar Neck after the 12th Fret.