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@@cendle1979 Hey Cendle, awesome that's amazing! Great work 😊 I'm really glad the video was helpful. Enjoy your new bridge!

@@armandosinger Haha yeah I really went down a rabbit hole with this one 😂 The Descendant stuff looks great, I'm really impressed with the design of their Vibrato and the Companion Bridge - I'm sure that would make sure a great upgrade! You make a very good point about how these rabbit holes pull us away from actually playing - something I suffer from often. I also enjoy problem solving and modding too though 😊 Good luck with your upgrades, I'm sure that'll be a fantastic guitar when you're done!

@@MarkB.Guitar I’m an engineer so I love tinkering too. My problem is that I stack up too many projects. DIY guitar pedals, setups, fret leveling, etc. If it’s too much, I just feel like an unpaid guitar tech 😅

@@armandosinger Ha, evidently, I am not an engineer 😉 But I do aspire to having better tools and better skills! It can be overwhelming for sure - I always need a reminder to focus on practicing and playing and not just tinkering and GAS 😄

@@MarkB.Guitar but you are an engineer. Doing all the things an engineer would do. Finding a problem, analyzing it, experimenting and iterating until you have a solution. And documenting and sharing to boot!

@@armandosinger Haha thanks mate, that's very kind! I knew I would find some like-minded people interested in this kind of thing too 😄

@@mehabox Yeah I think I was unfortunate with how squeaky mine is! I'm sure the hammer trick works very well, but it only costs about £5 more to get the Staytrem arm/collet in the UK Vs buying the AVRI arm and AVRI arm tip separately 😊 The AVRI is great and although I concluded in the video that the Classic Player is better, I have now had some longevity issues with the Classic Player but I haven't had any further issues with the AVRI .

@@Tonetwisters Thanks mate! I love that guitar so much 😊 That's a totally valid point of view - in this video I was using 12-68 gauge strings, which I don't think would sit very nicely in the small grooves of the original barrel saddles. I have to confess, I've never used a vintage style barrel saddle bridge. This bridge is very comfortable and adds a very nice tone though 😊

I was disappointed by mine when I first got it, for sure. I'm glad I've got it, and I do prefer it overall to the Squier, but I do think it's overhyped. As it only costs £50 in the USA it seems like a no-brainer for Americans, but for £140 in the UK/EU it's a much harder sell...

@@MarkB.Guitar luckily I have paid only £88 per unit, but I still feel angry every time I grab my Squiers fitted with those AVRI trems. Lesson learned, like you said it’s just the Americans praising what’s American, not what’s actually the best value upgrade

It's much more of a squeak or a creak - it isn't a click! But yeah, I was disappointed... I think some lube would probably fix it but I feel like the top of the line Fender unit should work properly out of the box...

Wow, that's amazing! What a cool opportunity. I bet they sound absolutely awesome!

Hi Pa'Chango, I might consider selling my Casterbridge to you. Message me on Instagram at @markbguitar if you're interested and we can discuss it.

@@MarkB.Guitar yes how much?

Hello mate 😊 That's a Casterbridge. I made a video on it a little while back if you want to know more!

@@MarkB.Guitar great!!

Hey mate! Yeah, so Sven started a run of custom order, hand made versions of the bridge for offsets and was selling them on Reverb. He wanted to gauge how many people were interested enough to buy one before doing a production run. The problem was that because they were custom made, they were a fair bit more expensive and he didn't sell too many. After getting some feedback from people struggling to cut good string slots he decided to shelve the offset version of the bridge. Last time I spoke to him, he still had one 9.5" and one 7.25" offset bridge left. I really liked the bridge, haven't revised the sound comparisons since I made this. I've recently stopped using the Casterbridge as I've swapped the neck out on this guitar for a 7.25", so the radius no longer matches. I can see why it's not for everyone but I thought it was a cool bridge 😊

@@MarkB.Guitar Very interesting to hear what became of the offset attempts of this fine company. I suppose their marketing (reach) was less than needed to get the full attention of the offset community, else it might have really taken off. If they ever come up with a new one that is even slightly more jangly, I‘d give it a try (in 9.5 inch). They should then get Puisheen and other offset experts like yourself to test it out on YT.

@@scottbecker3485 it's always an honour to me mentioned in the same sentence as Puisheen 😊 I think the subdued high end that I interpreted as sweetness is probably just the inherent tonal signature of a big lump of brass under the strings. I totally get that some people prefer the more traditional sound of steel. I also think he would've done much better if he was willing/and to offer a bridge that came with professionally cut string groves as standard too - but for whatever reason that wasn't an option 🤷🏼‍♂️

Thanks mate 😂

Cool, very interesting. I don't know anything about that set - I'll have a look at them!

Hey mate! Yeah, so Sven started a run of custom order, hand made versions of the bridge for offsets and was selling them on Reverb. He wanted to gauge how many people were interested enough to buy one before doing a production run. The problem was that because they were custom made, they were a fair bit more expensive and he didn't sell too many. After getting some feedback from people struggling to cut good string slots he decided to shelve the offset version of the bridge. Last time I spoke to him, he still had one 9.5" and one 7.25" offset bridge left - if you hit him up he might still have them! Or you could get a Tele version and do the Bobba Mod or the Strat version and follows my installation in this video. Hope that helps! 😊

Thanks Gobeco! 😊

Thanks mate! Glad you enjoyed 😊

Hey Zoe, thanks so much for your support! Hopefully we'll get there eventually 😊

I absolutely agree! A pickup swap is about way more than EQ; Feel, dynamics, clarity, and attack all play a really big role 😊

I never used my tone control before getting offset guitars - used to just take them out! But they are invaluable with offsets 😊 I guess partly this video is also making the point that if Jazzmaster pickups really were weak and thin, they'd still be weak and thin with the tone rolled down, just not as bright. Whereas actually they can sound huge and aggressive!

I'm not sure why so many money Jazzmasters come with different pickups - I think it must partly be due to the misconception that Jazzmaster pickups are weak and thin 🤷🏼‍♂️ The J Mascis is really cool, people seem to love them - I hope you do too if you get one!

Getting better drill bits massively improved things for sure! I believe the first bit I used was the correct type but it came with a dremel by grandad bought about 20 years ago and was well past its best. The new Makita bits made a massive difference! You're right, I really need to get a centre punch too 😊

Haha, I'm not sure what her qualifications are but she LOVES guitar 😅

Wow, yeah I can imagine that isn't always perfect! I hope this works out for you - the radius is obviously completely flexible with this bridge 😊

It sounds like a stupid thing to do when you say it out loud, doesn't it 🙄 The pickups are all good though thank you!

Haha hopefully you'll be able to learn from my mistakes! 😅

@@MarkB.Guitar As a fellow budget guitarist, I can relate to your struggles, and I can tell you from my experience, when I made attempts at "improving" my Gibson SG, those mahogany slabs will dent easier than a pub can!

@@grandudetonesnob7107 Oh yeah oil or nitro finishes are so easy to smash up with guitar DIY 😬 If you call it a relic it looks good though? 😅

Yeah it's a funny one isn't it - to me it makes a huge difference but I can appreciate that, objectively, the difference may seem fairly negligible to a third party. I'd love to try a Mastery and I'm especially intrigued by the Aluminium Bronze bridge that Halon make. Hopefully one day!

The waiting list for Staytrem can feel like torture, haha. I've bought a couple of things from them now. It's absolutely unbeatable for the price! Having the right tools makes a massive difference and it can be very expensive - a vice and pillar drill would've made this so much easier. They're on my wish list but it does all add up. I hope you enjoy your Staytrem when the wait is finally over! 😊

@@MarkB.Guitar It is going on my custom shop Jazzmaster i just got, the stock threaded saddle bridge is great but I want a more solid tone from the chunky Staytrem saddles. I think a Dremel would have been a good tool to shape your bridge over the files. Also won't the steel just rust along the edges now the chrome is gone/

@@markharmon9892 Oh sweet, that'll be a great pairing! Custom Shop Jazzmasters are so beautiful. A dremel might have worked better - I don't have a vice, which always makes me a bit nervous about my fingers when using the dremel. I really need to get one! Unfortunately, I killed my dremel routing out the cavities on a Jazzmaster body to convert it to a Jaguar (there'll be multiple videos on this project coming!), so didn't have the choice of using it. Need to get a new one of those too! That's a good question about chrome and rust... I hadn't thought about that. I've just looked at it closely and after about 4 weeks of playing it is tarnishing a bit. I'll have to keep an eye on it 😊

The Bensonite bridge looks great - and they offer very reasonable postage to the UK! I was actually planning on making a Bobba Bridge with the Bensonite Tele saddles before they released their new offset bridge. It's on my shopping list for my 40th Anni too 😊 Thanks so much mate!

Thanks so much mate!

Sven did start maming some custom order Casterbridges by hand for Jaguar/Jazzmaster to see how well they would sell before making a production version. However, he decided to discontinue it, rather than make a production version. Last time I spoke to him, he still had some Jaguar/Jazzmaster stock left though. If you reach out to him on Reverb or via his website, he might be able to help you 😊

@@MarkB.Guitar thank you this is great news

No worries, thanks for checking it out! 😊

Hey Phillip, sorry I couldn't help you there! I had a single Jazzmaster bridge pickup in the guitar before this, a single P90 before that! They're very nice pickups though and I'm still using them. If you have a specific question about them I'll try my best to answer 😊

Hey Harald, that's a fair enough comment. I probably overstated a couple of things in the video upon reflection. Calibrated certainly works better in my experience. I don't know when calibrated pickups became standard... The values I stated are in the video are generally what I've read but I know things could be pretty random in the 50s and 60s and I don't know when calibrated became standard 😊

@@MarkB.Guitar calibrated pickups never really became standard… it’s a quite recent invention. And yes, you make some bold and IMHO questionable statements when claiming that most people haven’t experienced “real” jazzmaster pickups. That said I generally like your stuff.

@@haraldwestman6137 It certainly makes sense as an innovation; I'll have to look into it more and why people making reissue sets almost always have a higher dcr, sometimes significantly higher, for the bridge pickup. Again, I would say that's another fair comment. At the time, I was very frustrated trying to find a set of aftermarket Jazzmaster pickups from UK/Europe (as USA made pickups are really expensive over here) that were wound with a wide, flat bobbin; I'd even got some that claimed to be vintage reissues that had very narrow bobbins, like an MIJ pickup; and I was frustrated about the pickups Fender was using in the Jazzmasters that were at a price point I could afford (i e., V Mod, Yosemite, etc). I'd also read many articles/blog posts/forums that stated vintage Jazzmaster pickups fundamentally had a ⅛ inch bobbin wound right to the edge - and I took that as a very rigid framework. After posting the video, I messaged Mike Adams about it, and he suggested I was being too narrow in my definition of a Jazzmaster pickup and that ⅛ inch coil height and being wound right to the edge of the bobbin. He said as long as the pickup is short, wide, and wound hot, that's enough in his opinion, and that pickups outside of the "quintessential spec" like the PV65s can still be meaningfully considered Jazzmaster pickups, even if they're not the type of that pickup he personally prefers. So I concede, I was wrong about the PV65s, and there may be previous pickups Fender used that I don't know about that weren't P90s or Strat style pickups, or humbuckers, too. The other factor is that it's difficult trying to navigate making content that is both informative and educational on the one hand, but entices and encourages views and engagement on the other - whilst trying to be entertaining too! Bold claims or negative statements massively increase viewership, which makes it seem like making the video was more worthwhile, but I also don't want viewership to come at the cost of factuality and genuineness. Thanks for your support and constructive criticism 😊 I'm still trying to find my way with this, and even the right format! It's all about learning and moving forwards better, so thanks!

@@MarkB.Guitar Actually the reason for aftermarket sets using pickups that are calibrated for their different positions is that it’s (admittedly subjectively) better than going the vintage correct route. I think one thing to keep in mind is that they weren’t really obsessing over and optimizing parts, specs and details the way we do now back in the 50’s - 60’s. Of course they tried to make great guitars at Fender BUT production economics were very important too. So in terms of materials and components they didn’t really scour the earth to ensure everything was optimum but rather went for making a good product that could be sold at a profit. Leo Fender wasn’t a musician but rather a guy who was good at industrial design and production. But he was also good at taking in feedback from players and surrounding himself with takented designers.

@@haraldwestman6137 It's always fascinated me that the reason Leo went for a bolt on neck was so that when the frets wore out, or if some other damage occured, the whole neck could just be replaced - if I've understood correctly. A really great inventor and interesting man!

Hey mate, good question - I've never added it up! Let's do it now: - I got the GuitarBuildUK Swamp Ash body 2nd hand. It was already finished with Tru Oil and came with the control plate, pots, knobs, and a hardtailed tremolo (£150) - I got the neck from Musikraft USA: 1 5/8" nut width, 7.25" radius, with a 0.79 - 0.97 profile taken from a vintage 60's Fender profile, Nitro "thin skin" style finish (approx. £300) - I had the Wilkinson Tuners, string tree, neck plate & screws, and bone nut already (probs £45) - I had the A3 Mustang pickups already from Northern Pickups that I'd been sent to demo (£100) - Monty's Double Thickness Steel Pickup Base Plate [not yet installed in this video] (£20) - Teisco On-On Slider switches - one of the few parts I have left from my first guitar (£10?) - Pickguard I had already and I finished it with a wallpaper and decorater's varnish (£15) - MIK Mustang Tremolo (£40) - KMS JAM Bridge (£125) - Headstock decal + Nitro aerosol (£35) So about £840, I guess! That's about £100 less than the Fender Vintera II Mustang. Of that £840, I actually paid about £550 due to having some parts already, getting gifted some parts for my birthday, and getting some sent to me to demo. It's taken me the best part of a year to bond with this guitar and get it feeling/sounding/playing exactly how I wanted - but now I can't put it down! I absolutely love it! The neck is incredible, fretwork is amazing, hardware is all killer, pickups are awesome, and it's finished in Nitro or Oil, rather than plastic. For me, it's absolutely worth it! I hadn't thought about making a video on it - I'm currently editing a couple of videos that are taking a while to come together. But once those are done, I can do a demo/review of it for sure 😊

Ha, sorry mate, that's just the way I play 😂 However, I would say the riffs at 3:03, 4:37, 6:54, 9:07, and 10:12 are all picked moderately or even gently. There's no room mic there, so there's no acoustic string noise in the video... I'm not sure there's anything inherent in gentle playing that would make tonal differences more obvious - if anything I'd suggest they are more likely to be apparent with harder playing than softer playing. But I think there should be enough of both throughout the video! 😊

That's true! But that friction is intended to be generated with the string travelling in a nice smooth uninterrupted path from the vibrato to the nut - the friction comes simply from the string rubbing on the saddle groove. The problem with the MIJ trem is that it introduces additional unintended friction due to the string path being interrupted by the bridge. It also means the strings are pressed up against the side of the saddle groove rather than resting nicely in the middle of the groove, which is also the factor that contributes to additional string popping potential. A lot of people don't find it a problem but I much prefer my modded version 😊

The best way is to trying playing both! And, if possible, a few different models of each. I've played some Jags I loved and some that were horrible! But Jags are definitely my favourite now 🖤

Thanks Jack! Yeah they're both really great sounding pickups. Recently I've been playing the A5 set more often than the A2s. Can't go wrong with either though! 😊

Hey Jack, thanks so much! I'm really glad you enjoyed it 😊

Oh sweet, very nice mate! I'm glad the video was able to help you make up your mind 😊 I also prefer the A2 pickup set. There's a beautiful clarity and upper midrange character that you get with A2 pickups that's hard to achieve otherwise - you can add gain and low end to an A2 pickup but it's harder to add the lower mid clarity to an A5 pickup. I hope your project turns out great!

Sweet, cheers mate! Glad I could help 😄 I hope the project comes out great!

@@MarkB.Guitar Thanks Mark , enjoyed the KSM JAM bridge review too .

@@smokiejohn Ah nice one! 😊 Have you gone for the KMS bridge for your project or something else?

@@MarkB.Guitar torn between KMS , Staytrem and forthcoming Tuffset bridge tbh …. will need tremolo assembly and arm too , so researching everything I can

​@@smokiejohn fair enough, they're all good choices! I'm very intrigued by the Tuffset Bridge too - although I understand it'll be quite pricey. The KMS is a cool option, I really like it; I personally prefer a rocking design but still enjoy the bridge. I feel like the locking, non-rocking design and heavy duty metals give it a very dense sound - I like it but sometimes miss the airy twanginess of a more traditional bridge. I've just ordered a Staytrem bridge for my current Jaguar build. Staytrem has a great reputation and is the best value for money. You can also get great results going down the DIY route with the Bobba Bridge. I'm going to finally get round to making a video on this soon I hope - I've just started getting footage together for it 😊

Good question! The main difference is that the Northern Pickups set I demoed most recently have the quintessential vintage spec of 3mm high coils and A5 magnet pole pieces, whereas this set has slightly taller/narrower coils and A2 magnet pole pieces. The wider/flatter coil and stronger A5 magnets gives the NP set more low end thump, shifts the mid range emphasis to a lower register, boosts overall output, and gives the pickups a broader/less focussed character. The Toltec set has a slightly "clearer" sound as there's less lower mids and the midrange focus is in the upper mids. There's less low end and the sound is more focussed, with less output overall, but increased midrange. The Toltecs are super dynamic and touch sensitive too. A5 pickups are generally pretty fat, A2 pickups are generally thinner and brighter, in my experience. I really like the neck pickup and rhythm circuit tones with this set. I think they're super musical and the slightly more focussed, less bassy tone of the Toltecs works really nicely in that application. However, I miss the fat thump and power of a slightly thinner/wider pickup with A5 mags in the bridge. Both can make pickups to any spec you like though and both sound awesome. Hope that helps!

Yeah absolutely! I have 3 Squier Classic Vibe guitars at the moment and I play shows with all of them. They're really reliable guitars and they play really well. I'd take them on tour without a second's hesitation too 😊 The only essential bit of preparation work you need to do is put a drop of blue Loctite on the bridge height adjustment screws as they can be prone to loosening as you play (and makes your action bottom out) - but it's not uncommon for this to happen on more expensive offset guitars too and it's very easy and cheap to fix 😊

@@MarkB.Guitar Thanks ☺️… it’s all a bit of a minefield really with these models. I’m seriously considering this model along with a MIJ albeit that’s near a grand and I’m just not sure if I’d be getting THAT much more for the money really so trying to find the middle ground. I haven’t come across any outstanding reviews for the player series either…

@@rach623 Ha, yeah it can be! I think they're definitely a bit more suited towards people who don't mind (or actively enjoying) tinkering with their guitars to get them just right and are quite particular about their guitars and tone, rather than the kind of player who doesn't really care about the fine details of the instrument so much but just wants to be able to pick something up and plug it in and not have to think about it... I'm not personally too excited about the Player models either because they're kind of missing so many of the essential elements of what makes Jaguars cool - even the headstock logo is bad on them IMO 🙈 I think especially in the UK/Europe, MIJ stuff offers excellent value for money because USA models are so much more expensive here than in the USA - you can get some great bargains on secondhand MIJ Jaguars. I don't know if they're less competitively priced in the USA or not... In my opinion, the biggest selling points for an MIJ over a CV would be: - Vintage style neck profile with 7.25" fretboard radius and 1⅝ nut width - Bridge and tremolo will be higher quality and there's less need to replace them - The stock pickups probably aren't microphonic like the Squier pickups are I forgot to mention that - the stock Squier pickups can be very badly microphonic and squeal if you're playing at loud volumes or with a lot of gain. I have 2 Squier CV Jags and one was usable in that regard and one wasn't. The Vintera 60s or MIJ guitars would be great instruments that should be more or less good to go straight away and are a bit more vintage correct. With a Squier CV, the pickups may or may not be usable in a live situation (I replaced mine very early on so had forgotten about that), and the tremolo systems also benefit from an upgrade IMO. All 3 are good options: you can get the Squier for less money and upgrade it a bit at a time (pickups and tremolo are pretty vital upgrades in my opinion but aren't essential), or you could save up a bit more and get an MIJ or Vintera 60s and not have to worry so much about potential issues. I'd recommend trying them out in a shop and seeing what you connect with! 😊

@@MarkB.Guitar You’ve pretty much covered it Mark. I think I might hold off and get the MIJ primarily based on the fact that it will be my main guitar. At least that’s the intention anyway. Thanks for the feedback. 👍

@@rach623 I hope you find the guitar that's just right for you and that you really enjoy it! I've always thought that MIJ Candy Apple Red Jags are absolutely beautiful 😍

Thank you, Naoki! I will definitely try that next time - nobody has mentioned it before, but the flickering is really annoying and I didn't know how to fix it. 😅 Hope to see you next time!

Thanks so much mate! Yeah those pickups are awesome, everything Dave makes is gold!

Hey Samantha, thanks for your feedback 😊 I guess I was anticipating people to be very vocal about thinking that both sets sound identical, which they definitely don't, so I was trying to highlight the differences between the two sets and to help people pick up on the nuances between the sets. However, the video hasn't got enough views to get any negative comments, so maybe I needn't have bothered! I don't have any stake in the magnets other people choose or use in the pickups, it doesn't matter to me what anyone else plays, as long as they're happy with their tone - but I would like to help people understand the differences between different pieces of gear and why they like/dislike what they do and what might work for them better. But you're probably right that my captions get less objective as the video goes on and start to evidence my preferences more and more. Whilst I can't keep everyone happy, I'll definitely bear your feedback in mind for future videos. Thanks!

I take your meaning, but it was very easy for me to just look at the left of the screen to note when he switched between Alnico 2 and Alnico 5, and not have my objectivity compromised. Going back later and reading his subjective thoughts on each set was useful as well, so I actually prefer how he shot and edited this video.

​@@Jaysthename Thanks for your feedback and support. I'm glad you enjoyed the video! 😄