Squier 40th anniversary Jazzmaster (impressions on p. 8)

[gibs]

Looks like the Olympic white jazzmaster with gold hardware is in stock in 1 or 2 UK shops. That ones not for me, still nice though.

I’m just not a fan of gold hardware, otherwise I like the model. Problem is it’s a bit too similar to the white blonde 50s cv that I have. Like the desert sand one too, but again, I think I’d rather get a darker solid color or a burst.

[smalahove]

Everything from Fender has gotten ridiculously more expensive compared to new brands like Sire (Larry Carlton models).

Yes, the $600 price tag on the new 40th Ann JMs is a serious step up, but it’s reflected in the prices of the MiM and MiA lines. Look at the price of the Marguar f.inst.; it’s almost doubled in price since I bought mine.

Sterling, Sire and Gretsch make impressive guitars in Indonesia, so there’s no reason Squires should offer anything less. I don’t mind paying $600 for a squire made in Indonesia, bit I expect the same quality as the brands above, with quality that are impressively close to their high end counterparts.

[Pacafeliz]

Oh wow, the MusicStore here seems to have the white ones with blocks in store now, I might go check it out in an hour or so.

I REALLY don't plan on getting one (not since I also picked up a purple Andertons Jag...) but can't guarantee anything...

[Pacafeliz]

gosh what a letdown! (Thank God...)

They are set up so incredibly bad.
Ok we all know to expect Squiers dry fretboard and scratchy frets... But it just felt, and even looked cheap all over. I've never used or seen a JM with the pickups so high up, the bridge is surely almost maxed out high. (That was on both the white and the blue one...)

Neck is pale like an affinity, but glossy. Ok it feels ok.
Binding is über white. I thought the body color was a bit transparent but no.
God the knobs look SO damn cheap!!! Fake cream.
The rhythm circuit wheely scratches against the guard.

It just feels cheap. There's something weird about the tummy cut. Dunno. The binding was scratched in places, there's some carton residue looking out sticking under the guard.
It oozes loveless. I mean, built without any love.
Not resonant or alive in any way. Yes, lifeless.

I'd be very disappointed and even angry if I had shelled out €500 for this.






This is the blue one. Dunno if it's the wood or a glue stain there.



No way.

I instantly fell in love with a LPB CV Mustang, though. NICE and really ALIVE. Felt even better than the Vintera one (also nice!) and the Gibbard one (too chunky neck for me...)

[Pacafeliz]

Oh and, the sound. Ok it was okay (as much as I can say with he thin strings and high action), but I think the middle position was actually out of phase.

Just no way man, no....

[panoramic]

gosh what a letdown! (Thank God...)

They are set up so incredibly bad.
Ok we all know to expect Squiers dry fretboard and scratchy frets... But it just felt, and even looked cheap all over. I've never used or seen a JM with the pickups so high up, the bridge is surely almost maxed out high. (That was on both the white and the blue one...)

Neck is pale like an affinity, but glossy. Ok it feels ok.
Binding is über white. I thought the body color was a bit transparent but no.
God the knobs look SO damn cheap!!! Fake cream.
The rhythm circuit wheely scratches against the guard.

It just feels cheap. There's something weird about the tummy cut. Dunno. The binding was scratched in places, there's some carton residue looking out sticking under the guard.
It oozes loveless. I mean, built without any love.
Not resonant or alive in any way. Yes, lifeless.

I'd be very disappointed and even angry if I had shelled out €500 for this.






This is the blue one. Dunno if it's the wood or a glue stain there.



No way.

I instantly fell in love with a LPB CV Mustang, though. NICE and really ALIVE. Felt even better than the Vintera one (also nice!) and the Gibbard one (too chunky neck for me...)

this echoes all of my experiences with Squier JM's so far aside of the JM JM, all the rest have been very bad playing.

[Pacafeliz]

...well other than the initial bad setup, dry fretboard and having/hating to have to get used to those damn "narrow tall" frets, I've apparently been quite happy to be spending my cash on Squiers lately...


(the other Jarman and a Contemporary Jaguar missing)

[JSett]

Ergh. Let's hope the Classic Vibe FSR aren't as bad.

[Wucan]

Everything from Fender has gotten ridiculously more expensive compared to new brands like Sire (Larry Carlton models).

Yes, the $600 price tag on the new 40th Ann JMs is a serious step up, but it’s reflected in the prices of the MiM and MiA lines. Look at the price of the Marguar f.inst.; it’s almost doubled in price since I bought mine.

Sterling, Sire and Gretsch make impressive guitars in Indonesia, so there’s no reason Squires should offer anything less. I don’t mind paying $600 for a squire made in Indonesia, bit I expect the same quality as the brands above, with quality that are impressively close to their high end counterparts.

Sterling guitars are real hit or miss. I flirted with them before giving up and just paying the premium for EBMM. Brands who build high-spec guitars in Indonesia like Ibanez, Jackson and Strandberg also whiff quite often. Not much consistency from the country itself, it seems depending on the brand's own tolerances for their models. Even for Squiers, I was impressed with the quality of every Paranormal I played. OTOH the latest CV's were all over the place - some good, others felt like cheap plastic crap.

[vistavision]

Even for Squiers, I was impressed with the quality of every Paranormal I played. OTOH the latest CV's were all over the place - some good, others felt like cheap plastic crap.

Probably because the Paranormals are built in China.
At my local shop the salesguys and I noticed the new 2021 Affinity models were coming in from Indonesia and China, even for some of the same models. The China stuff was solid, but some of the Indonesian ones had rough frets and dodgy set-ups.

[Wucan]

Even for Squiers, I was impressed with the quality of every Paranormal I played. OTOH the latest CV's were all over the place - some good, others felt like cheap plastic crap.

Probably because the Paranormals are built in China.
At my local shop the salesguys and I noticed the new 2021 Affinity models were coming in from Indonesia and China, even for some of the same models. The China stuff was solid, but some of the Indonesian ones had rough frets and dodgy set-ups.

Interesting, just assumed everything Squier was MII nowadays.

[HNB]

That is interesting. I have always loved the Indonesian Squiers and not really loved the Chinese ones in my experience. Must be different preferences and such.

[seenoevil II]

Oh and, the sound. Ok it was okay (as much as I can say with he thin strings and high action), but I think the middle position was actually out of phase.

Just no way man, no....

I wouldn't be surprised if it was out of phase.

This describes my experience with the 2 VMJM's I've owned pretty well. Dead, lifeless guitars slapped together without care or attention. Except I payed $260 for one and $190 for the other. Granted, the one I kept got livelier with time. The body now resonates in ways it did not before. But that's 8 years of playing and drying out later.

I stand by my hot take here. Cort (or Samick as the case may be here) Squiers are complete dogs of guitars that can only realistically command a $200-300 price tag ( Ich weiss nicht wie vielle Euros das ist).

This price hike is not going to end well for Fender is my prediction.

[girarj]

Does the 40th Anniversary Vintage Edition feature modern or traditional vibrato spacing?

Also, is the neck pocket angled?

[GilmourD]

Well all I can say about my CV is I must have lucked out, cuz the frets were polished and no sharp edges at all, necks straight and comfortable. Maybe CME did a good setup on it before shipping to me. Yes I’ve played CVs that had sharp edges and were rough. But I’d say mine has good bones and not cheap crap untreated lumber. I will say despite being listed has having ash veneers, it looks like poplar grain under the white blonde to me, oh well. Still a great guitar for the money. Also, I put it on par with my 2006 American delexe tele in playability. Just had to put a little more time into setting it up properly. Back to the thread at hand.

A lot of my bitterness toward current Squiers stems from my feeling of being taken in by the "grassroots" hype for them in places like this forum and YouTube. There is so much sunk cost self-justification going on. "Just shim the neck! Loctite the bridge screws! Replace the pots and switches! Then replace the neck! And the body! And all the hardware!" The constant insistence that they play as well as MIMs, they hold up to wear as well, they're a better deal. I played my CVJM every day for two & 1/2 years because it's what I had. But I knew from day 1 that I had made a mistake buying it.

I know this is an old thread, but it got bumped recently and I read through.

I find this take that guitars need to be set up perfectly out of the box kinda weird. Maybe it's because I worked for both Guitar Center and, afterwards, a real shop and spent A LOT of time with A LOT of guitars. The only guitar I ever pulled out of the box that was set up well was my personal Peavey Wolfgang Special. Even at that point, I still tweaked the setup for my preferences.

Part of the problem is that prior to my adventures in guitar shops would pull the guitars out of the box and give them a little bit of a tweak before putting them on the wall, but that was before the explosion of the big box stores coast to coast. I actually got scolded for spending time doing that when I was at GC. Most of the time they barely get tuned before being put up on the wall, and I can't imagine that helps sales.

Another part of the problem is the sheer amount of guitars that are now purchased sight unseen via the internet. For the most part they arrive in the retailers warehouse, get tossed on a shelf, and then get picked for shipping without ever leaving the box. You're getting the guitar as it left the factory. And where are these factories? Indonesia, China, Korea, Mexico, California, Tennessee, Michigan, etc., etc., etc. When you have a guitar delivered to your doorstep, how does your climate compare to where the guitar was manufactured? We have to remember that most of our guitars are made out of wood and, well, wood gets weird with climate changes. The guitar may be perfect at the factory but things shift by the time it gets to you.

I've been playing for 29 years at this point. My first guitar was an Ibanez Silver Cadet with a licensed Floyd Rose that was a bear to set up. Then I got a '94 MIM Standard Strat (which I still have) for $285 brand new. 30+ guitars have gone through my collection since, 26 of which I still have. Some of the guitars came to me factory fresh, some as parts that I put together, a couple as kits. All of the factory fresh, brand new guitars, ranging from almost 30 years ago to this very year, have all needed setup work.

I would dare say that any of the Squiers coming out now are actually better than the MIM Standards were when I got mine (back when Squiers being junk would have been an upgrade). I have a CV '60s Strat that I think was one of the last ones coming out of China because it has the round lam fretboard and the deeper contours (deeper than even my Vintera Road Worn '60s!) and I'm 99% sure it's alder from the wood grain that I am able to see but the new pickups and the new headstock decals used on the Indonesian CVs. The frets are smooth and level, the laurel looks and feels pretty nice, and the thing is RESONANT. The finish is a tiny fraction as thick as the finish on my '94 MIM Standard. I also bought myself a used MII '70s CV Strat neck and the quality is the same there, although with the thicker neck profile compared to the MIC CVs and the slab board. I also get bored and find myself at Guitar Center often enough to goof off and try stuff out and at no point did I think there was anything wrong with any of the Squiers on the wall that a simple setup wouldn't fix. Well, there was that one that I think somebody may have tossed into the parking lot from the roof, but that's a different story.

Well, this reply ended up much longer than I thought it would... But I have ADHD and a tendency to include every single detail that pops into my head.