Jazzers are great for old school country. Don't know why they weren't used more offend for that back in the day. But if the big shots in Nashville didn't like them, the artists didn't play them. Politics.
@Walter Coyle They aren't P90's. They are Jazzmaster single Coils. I thought the same thing when I first saw them, but there are a few videos out there explaining the difference.
Raleigh Dent Company the j mascis jazzmaster actually does have p90s, in order to keep the prices down. I think for actual jazzmaster pickups, the volume and tone pots for the main controls (not jazz circuit) would also have to be changed. That being said, the j mascis jazzmaster is still an excellent platform to put in some authentic jazzmaster pickups and the right pots. It would still be cheaper than fender’s classic player jazzmaster a too!
Agree, the warmth of the strat has a more spaghetti western vibe to it. Sould replace the jazzmaster for a jag actually, the new classic vibes are even more twangy
Leo Fender provided a perfect canvas for humanity no matter what the shape of the body, headstock, or quality of the hardware. This video is yet more proof.
My vote goes to the Jazzmaster, a Squier model to boot, and I'm a Strat man myself. But the Jazzmaster, for this music genre, hands over sounded better. I think the pickups made the difference.
Very nice. For strat lovers : add a push-pull to wire bridge +neck pickup (and all 3 pickups, à la Gilmour), and you get close to the jazzmaster middle position (or tele). Not the same, but the vibe is close.
Or install a Freeway 10-way switch. It's a drop in replacement for the 5-way switch and you get these options, but also bridge-middle, bridge-neck and middle-neck in series like a humbucker. Some real creamy sounds on your strat.
I've played that song on both. They both work fine but the Jazzmaster tremolo is just smoother and more expressive for surf. Better than a bigsby also. Also the stings behind the bridge can be played for those crazy surf freakouts...
The JM Jazzmaster was my No 1 for quite a while. Now I'm back to gigging with a Strat or a Telecaster. The trem on the Strat has very different feel though.
Stratocasters were pretty popular with the original surf style bands, the Jazz and Jag seem to be more popular with the retro surf crowd. Those guitars were the most expensive and newest guitars in the Fender lineup at the time, which may have helped the Strat as cheaper and second hand are often a musicians only option.
I'm in for the Jazzmaster too. I've played lots of Strats and Jazzmasters and Jaguars too, but after fighting Strats to get a decent tone I abandoned them and went to just the Jazzmaster. Oddly I even went to using Pyramid flatwounds for the Surf stuff, and a real Fender reverb unit with a Bassman set. Surf is so fun to play - but the tone is not super easy to get right - at least for me.
After 61+ years of playing electric, I have come to the conclusion that no matter the guitar/amp/rig/gendre, getting that "tone" right, is always a struggle. Both my sons and I have discussed this ... we set our guitar down for the day thinking, WOW! that sounds great! And pick it up the next day and go ... "What happened?"
I've found that only jazzmasters really get that sort of wet, surf rock tone with cranked reverb. I've never been able to get that same sound with my Stratocaster.
I only recently discovered your channel when I was researching the J.Mascis Jazzmaster. I'm absolutely obsessed with your surf style playing. You sound amazing. And have inspired me to learn how to play surf myself.
This video is making want to buy a Jazzmaster. I nearly bought that exact same J Mascis JM with the gold pick guard.. Picked up my Mexican Players Series Strat that day instead. Great job man!
Two years ago I commented how I thought the Squire Jazzmaster sounded so sweet. I now own a Squire Jazzmaster 60s Vibe . It has the Mustang rocking bridge and sounds so damn good and the Tremolo is great. It was $460 w tax and it is sweet ! The wide flat pickups just have a sound that the narrow tall Fender pickups can not get. It is the premier surf guitar like Bob Bogle played . The rocking bridge threw me for a little while but it works great with the Mustang bridge .
I'd be curious to hear a Telecaster next to the Jazzmaster actually. The Strat seems too warm, but the Tele has a country twang that might lend itself to surf rock.
Problem is the J Mascis while a lovely guitar is NOT a Jazzmaster, it has P90 style pickups not JMs. I have one and just thought the PUPs sounded a bit anemic as far as a real robust surf sound goes. David would make a piece of cardboard with rubber bands as strings sound good but I switched to Fender Pure Vintage 65s, now it is heaven.
Excellent comparison! I used to play Surf Rider on a '52 Tele, Now I have a 2007 Fender Strat VG and a 2020 Haze Jazzmaster with 3 P90s and other major upgrades and love playing both of them, although the JM gets most of my playing time. I have a hard time keeping my hands off of it!
@@robertcooney1938 Yes, I agree with you, but the Haze JM, which came with the P-90s, has it's own unique sound. However, several months ago, I purchased a new American Professional II Jazzmaster and absolutely love it! I gave the Haze away to a relative :).
@@sgd5k292 well, I shouldn't talk. I have a Tele Deluxe (has a strat looking neck) with 2 humbuckers and a Tele Custom with a humbucker and a single coil up by the bridge.
@@robertcooney1938 Sounds like you have a couple of awesome Tele's. Miss my '52...it was sold at a moving sale while I was in the service back in the day.
@@anotherheadlessdemo Yes sir they're 😎I want to get another one will it be silly to put jag pickups on a j.master?, If so I'll get a Squier jag instead like you video btw ✌️
As a surf fan that plays completely different music and instrument (so I can't lose myself in discussions of pickups and pots), the Jazzmaster sounds better on first listening, but the Strat has that touch of mellow that ultimately helps it go the distance for me.
I have the J mascis Jazzy, I have to be honest with all the fenders I have owned and currently own, the Squier J mascis was a gem right out of the box, no tweaking no nothing, I highly recommend getting one still under $500
The Strat does the scooped sparkly thing as well when two pickups in parallel (positions 2 or 4) are selected, which is what the middle position on the Jazzmaster is...
I don’t recall a dick dale cover of surf rider. Nokia Edwards of the ventures composed originally as “Sputnik” but as the surf craze thickened they dubbed it “surf rider “ my favorite version is by “the lively one’s” which is the version in “pulp fiction”
Just got my J Mascis jazzmaster a few days ago and I'm really digging it. The first new song I learned on it was "Ghost Riders in the Sky" and it sounds so rad 😁 Thanks for the inspiration!
A MASSIVE thing people are missing here is pickup selection between the two guitars. The center position of the Jazzmaster plays a huge part of the sound, and unless you mod your strat, it won't quite get there. But believe me, modding your strat to allow the bridge and neck pickups to be used together will get you right into that jazzy territory. Especially with flatwound 11s or bigger. It won't be exactly like a Jazzmaster, but if you have quality pickups in your strat and mod it to what I said above, it's indistinguishable to your average audience. When I only want to take one guitar to a surf gig, I always use the strat because of its flexibility. I also think the strat bridge sounds slightly better with some gain or a fuzz. At least in a mix, because it cuts right through where a Jazzmaster might be thin unless you've got a high output Jazzmaster pickup (which then ruins what makes the Jazzmaster middle position sound so twangy). All that said, if I were recording a surf album, I'd pick the Jazzmaster every time.
I've always found it odd that Fender chose not to have the bridge- neck pickup combination in a Strat. Very strange. I rarely gig with the Strat, I more often use a Tele or my Jazzmaster.
@@anotherheadlessdemo yeah I always wonder why Fender didnt wire it up like that as well all those years back. Maybe because they thought there'd be some tone overlap with a tele or a jazz? But yeah like I said I do prefer a Jazzmaster every time if we're talking strictly surf tone. If I know there's gonna be a backline to a blackface amp, the jazzy comes with me. Some venues we play have AC30s or Marshalls, in which case I'll take both the strat and jazz and see what's working better for the mix, but that's usually the strat with those amps. When I was playing with a 3 piece instrumental group, that was pretty much exclusively Jazzmaster because I didn't have to worry about fighting for frequency spectrum with another guitarist. My dream is to have someone build me a strat scale neck on a jaguar body but with Jazzmaster type pickups. Maybe omeday I'll be able to afford a luthier to do that for me lol.
@@LeviBulger Yes, the neck/ bridge combination is my fave strat sound, I modded all my strats to have that combination. Sounds so much better than the strat middle pickup alone, which to me only sounds good in combination with the neck- or bridge pickup. The neck/ bridge combination on the strat would have sounded much closer to the Jazzmaster middle position.
@@anotherheadlessdemo It’s because the original strat didn’t have any pickup combinations, just each pickup by itself. Fender only added the 5 way selector in the late 70’s after players starting jamming their selectors in between the positions to combine pickups.
Jaguars are significantly different in spite of the way they look. It was actually a bit of a jump for me to get used to playing it. Anyway, there’s no doubt about it, my next guitar is a Jazzmaster.
@@anotherheadlessdemo Seems like a Jazzmaster would be really hard to play upside down like Dick Dale did. All the switches and the cord input would probably be hard to avoid bumping into.
Comparing the "middle" position on a Jazzmaster to the "middle" position on the Strat is a bit weird. The middle on the JM is two pickups, on the Strat it is one. For apples-to-apples comparison, Strat should be set to position 2 or 4.
First off, BOTH guitars have a great tone, and BOTH sound awesome... With that being said, on this particular song, I HAVE to give the win to the JazzMaster. IMO it cuts through the mix just a tad better than the Strat. The Strat offers up a more rounded, mellow tone, especially in the lower notes. But the Jazzmaster is a little more twang, and for surf style, and this song in particular, it out performs the Strat hands sown IMO... (But again, they BOTH really sound great!)
I love surf guitar, ditching local lessons so long ago focused on Beatles and such. My Mexican Strat hanging right behind me is listening, and embarrassed. Wow!
The Jazzmaster WINS!!!! The Strat sounds muffled on all settings, and lacks detail... I am very surprised, as I expected the Jazzmaster to be the one that would lack detail... Or maybe that is an old strat that needs some professional adjustment? I thought Strats were CRISP AND CRUNCHY BEASTS!!! Maybe your "Joyo American Sound pedal" just goes well with the Jazzmaster? I went to High School with with J. Mascis, I assume that is the Squire J. Mascis special ed. Jazzmaster... I prefer the look of a Tobacco burst Jazzmaster though... If I was rich... I would buy a 60th ed., with the Chrome Tele knobs...
I like the bridge pickup alone on a Strat much better. For the video, I wanted to keep the EQ and the gain the same (very clean). When I do use the Strat, I almost never use the middle setting. If you watch some of my other videos, the Strat sounds better and they all use the Joyo pedal with more gain.
I have a Mexican Strat with alnico pickups and it's brighter than a Tele. Very crunchy with overdrive. If the Strat in the video has ceramic pickups then they will be darker.
A Squier 40th anniversary Jazzmaster found me in a guitar shop and I haven't stopped playing it ever since. I'm using a BOSS GT-001 with a JBL Partybox 110 and my phone with the RE equalizer app. It sounds better than a Twin Reverb or Jazz Chorus amp. I love it and I can highly recommend it to everyone!
Just an FYI. I really noticed the sound difference when the Strat starts again at 2:47, but if you look, the pickup switch is no longer in the "Middle", it's at the "Bridge" position which I've always thought sounds too bright and tinny, especially when playing surf guitar.
I think the Jazzmaster sounded a bit more sweeter and fuller in tone than the Stratocaster. I'm saving to buy a Jazzmaster as I'm playing a lot of surf these days. I have two strats that do surf well, but I'd like a Jazzmaster too.
yeah definitley the jazz master has the more hornswoggly melty carmel tone, definitely maroon if it were a color and the stray is without a doubt light blue, has that sound just like a real crisp sparky slappy poppy jonky donky fonky sound
I like 'em both. Jazzmaster has that great Bob Bogel of the Ventures sound. Strat was used on countless surf tunes as well, so it's right at home. Thanks!
Just so that you're all aware that J Mascis Jazzmaster has _Jazzmaster-shaped_ P90 pickups, those are not jazzmaster pickups. Totally different beast altogether. Still sounded best, because P90s are the best.
Yes, it's been discussed (you can see the comments below). That said, they sound pretty good! I just bought another Jazzmaster with traditional pickups and I'll be comparing the two at some point next week.
the jazzmaster doesnt quite sound like a classic jazzmaster, much too hot and middy sounding, but using the middle position certainly helped quite a bit imo!
I just built a strat with Jazzmaster pickups and it sounds completely different to my other strat - basically just like a Jazzmaster apart from the Stetsbar trem (with Tune-o-matic style bridge) I used, which is ever so slightly different. It's all about the pickups, 1 meg pots and possibly the bridge folks.
i’ve been wanting to do the opposite, i’ve been wanting to make a jazzmaster with strat pickups (i haven’t started it yet) and i was just wondering how do you place pickups on a guitar that’s not made for the guitar? i’m sorry if this is a dumb question, i’ve never built a guitar before so i don’t know much about it lol :)
It will be easier the other way round unless you want to add a middle pickup to a body routed for 2 Jazzmaster pickups - in which case you will have to route out the section in between. You will also need to make a new scratchplate or find one that will fit - they probably exist. Another thing to bear in mind is the pickup selector - you will have to find a workaround for that too. If it's a "proper" Jazzmaster with 1 meg pots and a 50K in the rhythm circuit you will want to replace the pots too (250K and no more than 500K). You could of course use the rhythm circuit for something else - like master/series switching.
No one seem to mention that the Jaguar - similar to the Jazzmaster - was the original favourite of the surf rock genre! Having said that, the Strat is the number one choice of most instrumental players!
Bought myself a Squier 40th Anniversary Vintage Edition Jazzmaster in Seafoam Green. Sadly, there wasn‘t any with the Desert Sand finish under 599€. I only paid 310€ on Ebay! I‘m super excited, because of the many good reviews and impressions on that guitar.
@@anotherheadlessdemo Now it’s in my House! 😂 Love that Jazzmaster. Sounds pretty much like a high end Fender and feels buttery smooth. Maybe I let the frets be polished and add some filing to the fret edges. Then it‘s perfect! I like it more than a Fender American Pro Jazzmaster, I tried in the past.
“ I was in the guitar store recently with the intent on finding a Jaguar but after trying out a Jag and then a Jazzmaster. I chose the Jazzmaster instead. Not sure why but they seem to have better tone.”
I purchased a Squier Mascis Jazzmaster six hours ago, from a shop, brand new, 415 euros in Espoo, Finland. Now putting new strings. So my answer is YES!
I'm a Strat guy all the way, but Jazzmasters have the perfect twang for surf music.
I play mostly punk stuff and I prefer the dirt the jazz master has. It has more character to my ear.
Jazzers are great for old school country. Don't know why they weren't used more offend for that back in the day. But if the big shots in Nashville didn't like them, the artists didn't play them. Politics.
@@gutbucket260 Roy Clark played one. Of course his main ax was a Gibson hollow body of some kind.
Well, Dick Dale preferred strats
Don’t forget the Jaguar...
Can we appreciate that the jazzmaster is a squier?
Yes! Here's my review of that guitar: th-cam.com/video/BUAHmbMMnVw/w-d-xo.html
The J. Mascis JM is a great guitar.
Pol Obrador I was literally thinking the same thing. Not an even comparison.
@Walter Coyle They aren't P90's. They are Jazzmaster single Coils. I thought the same thing when I first saw them, but there are a few videos out there explaining the difference.
Raleigh Dent Company the j mascis jazzmaster actually does have p90s, in order to keep the prices down. I think for actual jazzmaster pickups, the volume and tone pots for the main controls (not jazz circuit) would also have to be changed. That being said, the j mascis jazzmaster is still an excellent platform to put in some authentic jazzmaster pickups and the right pots. It would still be cheaper than fender’s classic player jazzmaster a too!
Wow, that Jazz Master sounds perfect for surf rock. The pick ups and reverb and tremolo are so good.
The J Mascis is the best Squier I've played so far and you don't need to break the bank to buy one!
@@anotherheadlessdemo it sounds great. Have you played the 40th Anniversary Squier Jazzmaster yet?
I came here to compare the guitars and I just loved how you played.
Thanks Marcos! Hope you enjoyed the comparison too.
Strat sounds like ya just walked into the wild west.
Jazzmaster sounds like you're about to ride some waves.
They're both fenders technically
@@trulsolsen683 autocorrect replaced strat with fender for whatever reason lol
Thought exactly the same
Agree, the warmth of the strat has a more spaghetti western vibe to it.
Sould replace the jazzmaster for a jag actually, the new classic vibes are even more twangy
Perfect Description!!
I don't even have a guitar... Why am I here... Just to listening to your fabulous guitar play, I guess.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Wkwkwkwkw
Bro, same lol
Leo Fender provided a perfect canvas for humanity no matter what the shape of the body, headstock, or quality of the hardware. This video is yet more proof.
nothing is quite like the lush haunting tone of a Jazzmaster. Strats are Strats, Jazzmasters are Jazzmasters, apples and oranges my friends
I like oranges better than apples though
@@djswaggot5109 I am assuming you haven't tried unpeeled bananas yet
@@mikl376 You don't eat the banana with the crust?
@@djswaggot5109 golden
remembr outboard reveb unit 13
63
My vote goes to the Jazzmaster, a Squier model to boot, and I'm a Strat man myself. But the Jazzmaster, for this music
genre, hands over sounded better. I think the pickups made the difference.
I have a strat. Agree that the Jazzmaster (on middle pickups) will bs hands down.
The stratocaster sounded like a... well... stratocaster.
Yes it did, didn't it? :)
Agreed
both grea gjitars depends on what you like
The Jazzmaster just fits like a glove indeed.
Very nice. For strat lovers : add a push-pull to wire bridge +neck pickup (and all 3 pickups, à la Gilmour), and you get close to the jazzmaster middle position (or tele). Not the same, but the vibe is close.
Thanks for the info. I'd be interested in hearing what this sounds like!
Or install a Freeway 10-way switch. It's a drop in replacement for the 5-way switch and you get these options, but also bridge-middle, bridge-neck and middle-neck in series like a humbucker. Some real creamy sounds on your strat.
Both guitars sounded great but I would agree the jazzmaster has that perfect surf tone!
The strat did the job, A+ for effort.
The jazzmaster tho, MMM YUMMY SURF 😍👍🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼🌊
A+ effort on the strat for kicking butt. Jazzmaster sounds ok but darker, I liked the strat, just ask Dick Dale.
In awe of your talent. I love surf music and your renditions are excellent. Looking forward to more!
Thanks so much!
Wonderful playing. I loved both sounds. The Jazzmaster sounded particularly surfy… thanks.
Thanks, glad you liked it! I like the Jazzmaster for surf.
I've played that song on both. They both work fine but the Jazzmaster tremolo is just smoother and more expressive for surf. Better than a bigsby also. Also the stings behind the bridge can be played for those crazy surf freakouts...
The JM Jazzmaster was my No 1 for quite a while. Now I'm back to gigging with a Strat or a Telecaster. The trem on the Strat has very different feel though.
I agree with y'all, the Jazzmaster definitely has the Definitive Sound for Surf Music 🏄🤘
0:06 Jazz Middle
1:13 Strat Middle
2:21 Jazz Bridge
2:48 Strat Bridge
3:01 Back To Back
Jazzmasters are perfect for surf guitar. Stratocasters not so much but they're great for everything else. That's why I got both
Stratocasters were pretty popular with the original surf style bands, the Jazz and Jag seem to be more popular with the retro surf crowd. Those guitars were the most expensive and newest guitars in the Fender lineup at the time, which may have helped the Strat as cheaper and second hand are often a musicians only option.
Jazzmaster just sounds so right for surf. Great demo, thanks
Thanks! The middle position on the Jazzmaster is bliss.
this was awesome but it would be even more awesome to do a jazzmaster vs jaguar
I've been eyeing one of those new Classic Vibe Jaguars. So who knows, maybe that will happen?
@@anotherheadlessdemo that would be epic! everyone says the jaguar is the surf guitar!
David Niles I triple split banana dog dare you to get one.
Marcos Pintor you sir deserve a medal
jaguars are pretty mcuh tailor made for surf
I'm in for the Jazzmaster too. I've played lots of Strats and Jazzmasters and Jaguars too, but after fighting Strats to get a decent tone I abandoned them and went to just the Jazzmaster. Oddly I even went to using Pyramid flatwounds for the Surf stuff, and a real Fender reverb unit with a Bassman set. Surf is so fun to play - but the tone is not super easy to get right - at least for me.
After 61+ years of playing electric, I have come to the conclusion that no matter the guitar/amp/rig/gendre, getting that "tone" right, is always a struggle. Both my sons and I have discussed this ... we set our guitar down for the day thinking, WOW! that sounds great! And pick it up the next day and go ... "What happened?"
“I’m tryin Ringo“
B*TCH BE COOL!
It's the one that says "Bad motherfucker".
I'm trying *real* hard
I've found that only jazzmasters really get that sort of wet, surf rock tone with cranked reverb. I've never been able to get that same sound with my Stratocaster.
I only recently discovered your channel when I was researching the J.Mascis Jazzmaster. I'm absolutely obsessed with your surf style playing. You sound amazing. And have inspired me to learn how to play surf myself.
Thanks! Happy to hear you like my playing. I caught the surf bug a couple of years ago and now I'm kind of obsessed as well. :)
Lol, same thing has just happened to me too! Gutted that I delayed buying a Jazzmaster, but now they are all sold out..
Probably the best comparison video I have ever seen, an outstanding job!
Thank you!
Excellent video. Magnificent guitar playing. Both guitars have a great sound but I lean towards the stratocaster
Cool, thanks!
Jazzmaster all the way. The Jaguar wouldn't be a bad alternative either
This video is making want to buy a Jazzmaster. I nearly bought that exact same J Mascis JM with the gold pick guard.. Picked up my Mexican Players Series Strat that day instead. Great job man!
Thanks! Jazzmasters are great.
Two years ago I commented how I thought the Squire Jazzmaster sounded so sweet. I now own a Squire Jazzmaster 60s Vibe . It has the Mustang rocking bridge and sounds so damn good and the Tremolo is great. It was $460 w tax and it is sweet ! The wide flat pickups just have a sound that the narrow tall Fender pickups can not get. It is the premier surf guitar like Bob Bogle played . The rocking bridge threw me for a little while but it works great with the Mustang bridge .
The Jazz master SQUIER, smoked the Strat.
Nice David, obviously the Jazzmaster sounded better. But since I have a Squier Vintage Modified Jaguar, I'll stay with that.
I've been looking at getting a VM Jaguar. Not that I really need it, but you know .... :)
Fantastic job of editing ...gotta be Jazzmaster for Surf music
Thanks. Jazzmaster rule!
What a great video, thank you!!! ...and how good this Squier Jazzmaster sounds, whow!
Thanks, Dano!
I'm always partial to a Strat but the Jazzmaster sounds pretty darn good. Thanks for posting.
Thanks for this. That JM just owns that surf sound, doesn't it!!
Absolutely!
I'd be curious to hear a Telecaster next to the Jazzmaster actually. The Strat seems too warm, but the Tele has a country twang that might lend itself to surf rock.
Here you go: th-cam.com/video/nOglrVpLTqQ/w-d-xo.html
@@anotherheadlessdemo Oh, bravo on having such a specific request on-hand! Excellent videos, by the way.
@@trevscribbles Thanks!
Check out The Vanduras. I believe that guy plays a Tele.
Jesse Wright Sounds like it. Thanks for telling me about them!
Jazzmaster has a lot more twang for surf. Really great to hear them side by side.
The two-pickup combination sounds really good in the Jazzmaster. Perfect for surf.
I come everyday to listen to this video, your production level and artistry on the guitar is amazing, thank you
Thank you. I'm glad you enjoyed it!
That surf sound puts a smile on my face
Cool song. Nice job! The Jazzmaster nailed it. I am a Fender Strat and Tele guy but love the Jazzmaster.
Problem is the J Mascis while a lovely guitar is NOT a Jazzmaster, it has P90 style pickups not JMs. I have one and just thought the PUPs sounded a bit anemic as far as a real robust surf sound goes. David would make a piece of cardboard with rubber bands as strings sound good but I switched to Fender Pure Vintage 65s, now it is heaven.
My J Mascis is in the shop and while it's there, I'm having Pure Vintage 65s installed. I'll be doing a video. :)
Excellent comparison! I used to play Surf Rider on a '52 Tele, Now I have a 2007 Fender Strat VG and a 2020 Haze Jazzmaster with 3 P90s and other major upgrades and love playing both of them, although the JM gets most of my playing time. I have a hard time keeping my hands off of it!
Isn't putting 3 P90s in a JM defeating the purpose?
@@robertcooney1938 Yes, I agree with you, but the Haze JM, which came with the P-90s, has it's own unique sound. However, several months ago, I purchased a new American Professional II Jazzmaster and absolutely love it! I gave the Haze away to a relative :).
@@sgd5k292 well, I shouldn't talk. I have a Tele Deluxe (has a strat looking neck) with 2 humbuckers and a Tele Custom with a humbucker and a single coil up by the bridge.
@@robertcooney1938 Sounds like you have a couple of awesome Tele's. Miss my '52...it was sold at a moving sale while I was in the service back in the day.
👍 Glad I got my squier 70s vibe jazz always put a grin on my face when I see players jamming out with them 🤘🎸
Jazzmasters are awesome guitars. It took me forever to figure that out!
@@anotherheadlessdemo Yes sir they're 😎I want to get another one will it be silly to put jag pickups on a j.master?, If so I'll get a Squier jag instead like you video btw ✌️
As a surf fan that plays completely different music and instrument (so I can't lose myself in discussions of pickups and pots), the Jazzmaster sounds better on first listening, but the Strat has that touch of mellow that ultimately helps it go the distance for me.
I have the J mascis Jazzy, I have to be honest with all the fenders I have owned and currently own, the Squier J mascis was a gem right out of the box, no tweaking no nothing, I highly recommend getting one still under $500
Absolutely. It's the best under $500 guitar I've ever owned.
Brilliant demo! Thanks for sharing it with us all. 🌠👌
Glad you enjoyed it!
Both guitars sounds excellent for the style! Very sweet tones in the Jazzmaster.
I'm really partial to the Jazzmaster - maybe because it's new. The middle position is perfect for surf.
Those Jazzmasters are very sparkly and dynamic. 👍🏻
Oh yes!
The Strat does the scooped sparkly thing as well when two pickups in parallel (positions 2 or 4) are selected, which is what the middle position on the Jazzmaster is...
This tune was originally played by Dick Dale, King of Surf Guitar, and he ALWAYS played a strat....so it is hard to decide...
Surf Rider was written by Nokie Edwards of Ventures fame and originally performed by the Lively Ones
I don’t recall a dick dale cover of surf rider. Nokia Edwards of the ventures composed originally as “Sputnik” but as the surf craze thickened they dubbed it “surf rider “ my favorite version is by “the lively one’s” which is the version in “pulp fiction”
Muy esclarecedora la prueba y comparación entre estos dos modelos. Yo me quedo con la jazzmaster. Gracias!!
Just got my J Mascis jazzmaster a few days ago and I'm really digging it. The first new song I learned on it was "Ghost Riders in the Sky" and it sounds so rad 😁 Thanks for the inspiration!
Glad to hear it!
A MASSIVE thing people are missing here is pickup selection between the two guitars. The center position of the Jazzmaster plays a huge part of the sound, and unless you mod your strat, it won't quite get there. But believe me, modding your strat to allow the bridge and neck pickups to be used together will get you right into that jazzy territory. Especially with flatwound 11s or bigger. It won't be exactly like a Jazzmaster, but if you have quality pickups in your strat and mod it to what I said above, it's indistinguishable to your average audience. When I only want to take one guitar to a surf gig, I always use the strat because of its flexibility. I also think the strat bridge sounds slightly better with some gain or a fuzz. At least in a mix, because it cuts right through where a Jazzmaster might be thin unless you've got a high output Jazzmaster pickup (which then ruins what makes the Jazzmaster middle position sound so twangy). All that said, if I were recording a surf album, I'd pick the Jazzmaster every time.
I've always found it odd that Fender chose not to have the bridge- neck pickup combination in a Strat. Very strange.
I rarely gig with the Strat, I more often use a Tele or my Jazzmaster.
@@anotherheadlessdemo yeah I always wonder why Fender didnt wire it up like that as well all those years back. Maybe because they thought there'd be some tone overlap with a tele or a jazz? But yeah like I said I do prefer a Jazzmaster every time if we're talking strictly surf tone. If I know there's gonna be a backline to a blackface amp, the jazzy comes with me. Some venues we play have AC30s or Marshalls, in which case I'll take both the strat and jazz and see what's working better for the mix, but that's usually the strat with those amps. When I was playing with a 3 piece instrumental group, that was pretty much exclusively Jazzmaster because I didn't have to worry about fighting for frequency spectrum with another guitarist. My dream is to have someone build me a strat scale neck on a jaguar body but with Jazzmaster type pickups. Maybe omeday I'll be able to afford a luthier to do that for me lol.
@@LeviBulger Yes, the neck/ bridge combination is my fave strat sound, I modded all my strats to have that combination. Sounds so much better than the strat middle pickup alone, which to me only sounds good in combination with the neck- or bridge pickup. The neck/ bridge combination on the strat would have sounded much closer to the Jazzmaster middle position.
@@anotherheadlessdemo It’s because the original strat didn’t have any pickup combinations, just each pickup by itself. Fender only added the 5 way selector in the late 70’s after players starting jamming their selectors in between the positions to combine pickups.
Wow! That spells it out. I own a Fender Strat and also a Squire Vintage Modified Jaguar for surf music, which exceeded all expectations. Thanks!
Glad you liked it! I've never played a Jaguar - it's certainly on my list of guitars to try.
Jaguars are significantly different in spite of the way they look. It was actually a bit of a jump for me to get used to playing it. Anyway, there’s no doubt about it, my next guitar is a Jazzmaster.
In summary:
You CAN play surf with a Stratocaster.
You SHOULD play it with a Jazzmaster.
LOL! For some reason Dick Dale stuck with the Strat all those years. Just thing what he could have done with a Jazzmaster! :)
@@anotherheadlessdemo Seems like a Jazzmaster would be really hard to play upside down like Dick Dale did. All the switches and the cord input would probably be hard to avoid bumping into.
Comparing the "middle" position on a Jazzmaster to the "middle" position on the Strat is a bit weird. The middle on the JM is two pickups, on the Strat it is one. For apples-to-apples comparison, Strat should be set to position 2 or 4.
So you're saying Dick Dale did it wrong?
@@frossbog No! I would never!
The Jazzmaster is saying it though. ;)
nice side by side demo. nice strat ! some drippy reverb would be sweet with your great playing.
Thanks!
First off, BOTH guitars have a great tone, and BOTH sound awesome...
With that being said, on this particular song, I HAVE to give the win to the JazzMaster. IMO it cuts through the mix just a tad better than the Strat.
The Strat offers up a more rounded, mellow tone, especially in the lower notes. But the Jazzmaster is a little more twang, and for surf style, and this song in particular, it out performs the Strat hands sown IMO...
(But again, they BOTH really sound great!)
The Jazzmaster has that two-pickup sound that a Strat doesn't have (at least not without rewiring it).
I love surf guitar, ditching local lessons so long ago focused on Beatles and such. My Mexican Strat hanging right behind me is listening, and embarrassed. Wow!
The Jazzmaster WINS!!!! The Strat sounds muffled on all settings, and lacks detail... I am very surprised, as I expected the Jazzmaster to be the one that would lack detail... Or maybe that is an old strat that needs some professional adjustment? I thought Strats were CRISP AND CRUNCHY BEASTS!!!
Maybe your "Joyo American Sound pedal" just goes well with the Jazzmaster?
I went to High School with with J. Mascis, I assume that is the Squire J. Mascis special ed. Jazzmaster... I prefer the look of a Tobacco burst Jazzmaster though... If I was rich... I would buy a 60th ed., with the Chrome Tele knobs...
I like the bridge pickup alone on a Strat much better. For the video, I wanted to keep the EQ and the gain the same (very clean). When I do use the Strat, I almost never use the middle
setting.
If you watch some of my other videos, the Strat sounds better and they all use the Joyo pedal with more gain.
I have a Mexican Strat with alnico pickups and it's brighter than a Tele. Very crunchy with overdrive. If the Strat in the video has ceramic pickups then they will be darker.
Hello from the Future. You sure make the Jazzmaster sound absolutely proper for surf music. I really enjoyed this.
Thank You & Best Regards
Many thanks!
That jazzmaster sounds delicious.
But:
I'd like to hear other PU positions on the Strat.
Yeah, it's unfair to compare the JM middle position, which uses both pickups, to the Strat middle position, which only uses one.
I love Strats but the Amp and its settings and the ability to play surf 🏄♂️music have a lot to do with the final out come . Excellent music video 🏆
Thanks!
Nice comparison, it actually sounds like two different instruments. Which isn't always the case on youtube
Thanks! They really do sound different and I didn't really need to do anything other than play them!
A Squier 40th anniversary Jazzmaster found me in a guitar shop and I haven't stopped playing it ever since. I'm using a BOSS GT-001 with a JBL Partybox 110 and my phone with the RE equalizer app. It sounds better than a Twin Reverb or Jazz Chorus amp. I love it and I can highly recommend it to everyone!
I've only played one of these once (in a store), and the action was so high I couldn't get an idea how well the guitar played.
Jazzmaster all day, far superior for this type of music due to its scooped pickups - thumping low end, light mids, bright treble. So so good.
I liked the Jazzmaster, a very smooth tone. Sounds more even between notes too.
wow ! very nice playing. :) and Sound.
Thanks!
Just an FYI. I really noticed the sound difference when the Strat starts again at 2:47, but if you look, the pickup switch is no longer in the "Middle", it's at the "Bridge" position which I've always thought sounds too bright and tinny, especially when playing surf guitar.
I think the Jazzmaster sounded a bit more sweeter and fuller in tone than the Stratocaster. I'm saving to buy a Jazzmaster as I'm playing a lot of surf these days. I have two strats that do surf well, but I'd like a Jazzmaster too.
That's because it's a Squier Jazzmaster lacking true Jazzmaster pickups.
Nicely done, super clean playing! Jazzmaster all the way.
To me Jazzmaster is more chimey, while the strat is more sparkly.
yes I agree, the Jazzmaster has that milky sound while the strat definitely has the velvety tone.
Yeah totally brah the jazz-boi has a Helvetica sound while straaaat is more goudy stout
yeah definitley the jazz master has the more hornswoggly melty carmel tone, definitely maroon if it were a color and the stray is without a doubt light blue, has that sound just like a real crisp sparky slappy poppy jonky donky fonky sound
Oh dude man...wow...like the strat is like orange sherbert, but the jazz is like totally far out right on groovy rocky road...or something.
jazz 1 tone strat other tone
I like 'em both. Jazzmaster has that great Bob Bogel of the Ventures sound. Strat was used on countless surf tunes as well, so it's right at home. Thanks!
J mascis Squier isn’t a very good representative of how a Jazzmaster should be
It has P90-like in Jazzmaster shape PU, which has higher output
That's correct, but it does show the difference between a Strat and this model Jazzmaster. :)
David Niles bruh
The ventures did all their studio work with JazzMasters. But they appeared on stage later in their careers with mosrites.
Just so that you're all aware that J Mascis Jazzmaster has _Jazzmaster-shaped_ P90 pickups, those are not jazzmaster pickups. Totally different beast altogether.
Still sounded best, because P90s are the best.
Yes, it's been discussed (you can see the comments below). That said, they sound pretty good! I just bought another Jazzmaster with traditional pickups and I'll be comparing the two at some point next week.
The very reason I bought the same Jazzmaster. Great video!
Awesome! Thank you!
Jazzmaster in the middle position.
Would love to see a comparison like this, in a surf song between the JM vs the classic vibe.
I'll have to put together one of those. :)
the jazzmaster doesnt quite sound like a classic jazzmaster, much too hot and middy sounding, but using the middle position certainly helped quite a bit imo!
The pickup are very hot, so yes, it doesn't quite like a classic Jazzmaster.
because that Jazzmaster has p90-like pickups
Nice playing David....loved this, thank you!
Thanks, Howard!
closing credits to Pulp Fiction song
Yes!
Loved it, and I noticed and liked the Jazzmaster sound a bit more.
Where is the Jaguar? :D great comparison though ;)
That would be nice, wouldn't it? :)
I just built a strat with Jazzmaster pickups and it sounds completely different to my other strat - basically just like a Jazzmaster apart from the Stetsbar trem (with Tune-o-matic style bridge) I used, which is ever so slightly different. It's all about the pickups, 1 meg pots and possibly the bridge folks.
i’ve been wanting to do the opposite, i’ve been wanting to make a jazzmaster with strat pickups (i haven’t started it yet) and i was just wondering how do you place pickups on a guitar that’s not made for the guitar? i’m sorry if this is a dumb question, i’ve never built a guitar before so i don’t know much about it lol :)
It will be easier the other way round unless you want to add a middle pickup to a body routed for 2 Jazzmaster pickups - in which case you will have to route out the section in between. You will also need to make a new scratchplate or find one that will fit - they probably exist. Another thing to bear in mind is the pickup selector - you will have to find a workaround for that too.
If it's a "proper" Jazzmaster with 1 meg pots and a 50K in the rhythm circuit you will want to replace the pots too (250K and no more than 500K). You could of course use the rhythm circuit for something else - like master/series switching.
Jazzmaster音头较弱，但是延音更长，声音更松弛。strat音头更强，声音很坚实，两种琴取向完全不同，对于这个音乐，我喜欢Jazzmaster
No one seem to mention that the Jaguar - similar to the Jazzmaster - was the original favourite of the surf rock genre! Having said that, the Strat is the number one choice of most instrumental players!
Dave Wronski from Slacktone is a Jaguar guy. Check him out - he's a really good player!
The Strat captures that sound better. You can thank Dick Dale for that. To my ears the Jazzmaster sounds more James Bond-ish.
I own both I only use the Jazzmaster for vintage surf covers.. Only one exception when I play Dick Dale covers I use my Strat..
That model does not have "standard jazzmaster" pickups... the JMascis model has something much closer to P90s
There's quite a few comments about that. I compared tow Jazzmasters in this video: th-cam.com/video/X0AeEHFBO8k/w-d-xo.html
Bought myself a Squier 40th Anniversary Vintage Edition Jazzmaster in Seafoam Green. Sadly, there wasn‘t any with the Desert Sand finish under 599€. I only paid 310€ on Ebay! I‘m super excited, because of the many good reviews and impressions on that guitar.
I had been looking at the Desert Sand 40th Anniversary as well. But yeah, I couldn't find one that was in the $300-$400 range.
Do you like the guitar?
@@anotherheadlessdemo I don‘t have it yet. It will arrive on Monday or Tuesday next week, but I‘m super excited!
Greetings from Germany :)
@@anotherheadlessdemo Now it’s in my House! 😂
Love that Jazzmaster. Sounds pretty much like a high end Fender and feels buttery smooth. Maybe I let the frets be polished and add some filing to the fret edges. Then it‘s perfect! I like it more than a Fender American Pro Jazzmaster, I tried in the past.
My vote is for the Jazzmaster!
I love that Squier Jazzmaster! J Mascis did great guitar with them.
Jazz master all the way.... I'm sold..yeah..!!!!!
Any day of the year i would choose a jazz-master over a strat, not sure why but i feel as though the tone is just much more fuller and richer
That strat's clearly been well loved
Nicely played! One of my favorites.
“ I was in the guitar store recently with the intent on finding a Jaguar but after trying out a Jag and then a Jazzmaster. I chose the Jazzmaster instead. Not sure why but they seem to have better tone.”
Which Jazzmaster did you get?
@@anotherheadlessdemo “ the light blue Squire Jazzmaster.”
I purchased a Squier Mascis Jazzmaster six hours ago, from a shop, brand new, 415 euros in Espoo, Finland. Now putting new strings. So my answer is YES!
Probably the best Squier for the money!
Definitivamente la jazzmaster tiene más tonalidad y carácter que el plano sonido de la strat
I'm a Strat player love that Jazz though .. Tele almost ..Fender definitely . I want one😍