Classic Vibe vs J Mascis Jazzmasters: Which one plays better? 

My favorite guitar (at least for this week). :)

HAHHAHHA you’ll get one soon! Work hard!

This is how I feel

😂

Same

You all prolly dont give a shit but does anybody know of a method to get back into an Instagram account?? I was dumb lost my login password. I would love any help you can give me.

@Ezra Camilo Instablaster =)

@Eduardo Payton i really appreciate your reply. I found the site on google and Im waiting for the hacking stuff now. Seems to take quite some time so I will get back to you later with my results.

@Eduardo Payton it did the trick and I finally got access to my account again. I am so happy! Thank you so much you really help me out!

@Ezra Camilo glad I could help :D

The strings popping off are on the CV, but unlike my VM I used to have, I haven't shimmed the neck. I think your'e right, the neck angle on most Jazzmasters need tweaking. Seems fine on my JM though.

I've been gigging with the CV quite a bit and the bridge has been fine, in terms of strings popping out. The biggest problem I've had is the bridge rocking towards the trem bar and not returning to the proper spot and the bass side lowering as I play. I've added a shim under that side of the bridge. Its kind of rinky dink but it works!

@@anotherheadlessdemo Thanks !

Thanks, Brandon!

I hadn't heard that about discontinuing. That's too bad.

I just bought one. not discontinued. made in china.

@@ragnadrabinowitz7629 Mine was made in China as well. I'm noticing they're still on the Squier website.

David Niles I think our friend above is misinformed. also, they make decent guitars in Indonesia. just ask PRS.

My bad guys, but theres a youtber called johnnathancordy who revies this model and said that squier is discontiung them soon...i dont know the details much .hopefully they dont since they are great guitars on a reasonable price

Yup, Katana into Garageband via USB. The reverb is called PlatinumVerb which is in Garageband. It's stereo and sounds awesome. :)

I have some tape, I think it's plumber's tape, that I've been meaning to add to the posts. Sounds like you found a good solution!

Probably 0:15. I've found that the surf green and the seafoam green colors are really difficult to photograph accurately. My two Canon video cameras render those colors differently from each other. My Nikon D7500 seems to be the most accurate when I shoot stills (that was used for the photo at 0:15). Thanks for checking out the channel!

@@anotherheadlessdemo thank you!

Whoops, I meant 1:00 rather than 0:59 (the greener playing shot), but hopefully that was implicit 😊

In theory, yes. Each pickup set probably have their own characteristics though.

The J Mascis is 1.675" (42.5 mm) at the nut and the Classic Vibe is CV 1.650" (42 mm).

thank you very helpfull @@anotherheadlessdemo

thank you very helpfull information@@anotherheadlessdemo

The J Mascis is great right out of the box. The Classic Vibe needs a little work to make it really good. If you are a beginner, you would need to take the CV to you local repair guy. The J Mascis, not so much. I'll have to do a video on what I did to make the CV more playable (shim, adjusted the nut slots etc).

The bridge pickup height on mine measures about 3/16" to the low E and 2/16" from the top of the pole. Hope that helps!

Yes, I think the earlier J Mascis Jazzmasters had rosewood fingerboards. That said, both of these in the video have Indian laurel, but the J Mascis fingerbaord is slightly darker than the CV.

@@anotherheadlessdemo I have bought a 2012 VM - came with Creamery Wide Range JM Pickups and uprated bridge / staytrem . Waiting on a Deluxe to arrive too . Hopefully same as your Masics. Still want a 59 CS though in Sonic Blue 😍 GAS 💊

Totally agree. Why can't the CV be as good from the get go?

It stays in tune ok and the strings do not pop off the bridge. I've had three Jazzmasters, and none of them bend strings as well as any Strat or Tele I've owned. The JMs have a much tighter feel, even with light strings. Not sure why this is.

I really wanted one of those, but they released the seafoam green and I couldn't resist!

@@anotherheadlessdemo that's my second choice

Hard to say. To me, the most important thing about frets is how well they've been dressed/installed/leveled. My Road Worn Tele and my Strat both have tall and narrow and I have no problem switching from one of those to the J Mascis. Glad you liked the video!

@@anotherheadlessdemo Thank you for getting back to me, just trying to weigh up the cons and pros between them. All non essential retail is shut down where I live so unfortunately I can't play them in a store to compare.

That's too bad. There are however, plenty of used ones out there, including some with a rosewood fingerboard. It will be interesting to see how the used prices go now that it's been discontinued.

Good question. I recently swapped the P90s for a set of Pure Vintage 65s. I haven't decided if I like them better or not!

LOL I've heard that about him!

I totally agree - the neck is perfect. First time I picked one up I couldn't stop playing it!

are the antiquity pickups more jingly or just more note definition or both, I just bought the JM JM Squire and might switch out to those Antiquity, Thanks

@@jixxxxer17 They honestly just make it sound like a Jazzmaster. The JMJM pickups are basically P-90's and have more mid focus but are muddy in comparison. Antiquity I or Antiquity II pickups are just better. The I's are darker and more vintage true to the original sound. Sunday Handwound on Reverb also makes excellent pickups for JMs.

ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-uJFijvz4zFs.html

Yes, there are high frets on the Classic Vibe. I was also gifted a J Mascis neck and swapped the original neck for the JM. It's a much better guitar now!

Your'e welcome!

Good to know. Thanks!

Officially if you ask fender customer service about the radius of the Ajustomatic Bridge they reply « around 10.5 ». But reallisticaly, it seems that most of them are more around 12,5. And moreover there is a « tolerance » in the production, there can be some differences. Mike Adams (« Puisheen ») measured a ajustomatic bridge in his review of the ClassicPlayer Jaguar. He measured a 14.5 inch radius...

Totally agree!

Wood filler? Yikes. I find the J Mascis build quality superior to any CV Jazzmaster or any other Squier I've played or owned. What can't they all be like that? Maybe they are made in a different plant?

I've heard good things about the 40th Anniversary Jazzmaster. I'd love to play one.

Thank you so much! I appreciate it!

Yes, the break angle is different on these two guitars.

I have a roller bridge that has yet to be installed. I think it's a Wilkinson. I'm planning on doing a video on installing that as well as a Fender American Vintage Jazzmaster trem. We'll see if it makes sense to upgrade these two parts.

You don't need that, put some 11s on it, no need to change anything.

The first JM I played, I couldn't put down. I knew I had to buy one!

I'm actually more interested in the shoegazy sound with modulation effects than blistering distortion. I have a $600 gift certificate from Sweetwater and was thinking of getting the J Mascis and swapping out the p90s for Seymour Duncan jazzmaster antiquity pickups for another $159. Does that sound like a good compromise?

@@HerveBoisde Yeah, that works. Although I don't think I would swap out the pickups until you try the stock ones. I don't necessarily think the stock pickups completely lack the ability to get the shoegazy sound- kinda depends on your effects and such as well. Also, I wouldn't rule out the Fender JM pickups, maybe even finding a used set.

The JM pickups are pretty versatile. I can get a clean twangy tone and if needed, a nice fat overdriven sound as well.

@@anotherheadlessdemo The jangly/twangy tone is what I think i'm missing right now. I ended up getting the Player Series jazzmaster with the humbucker pickups since it came with a $150 store credit from Sweetwater. It sounds great with effects and distortion but I dont really like the clean tone very much.

I always used to think that Jazzmasters and Jaguars were ugly - not anymore!

The CV looks better imo

I'm curious about what amplifier you were using. I can get a fairly clean sound if I use my JM with my Katana, but my Princeton not so much. I've been thinking about swapping out the pickups as well (probably for the Vintage 65s or Seymour Duncan Antiquities). Also, one of the problems with all these Squier Jazzmasters is the treble bleed when you turn down the volume. The VMs were much worse.

​@@anotherheadlessdemo Cool. I'd like to preface my comment with the fact that I'm a bit of a novice when it comes to most of the guitar stuff. I'm an older bedroom player and this is the first time I've done any major surgery to a guitar. I have also never played a, "Real" Jazzmaster so I don't have any frame of reference of a Jazzmaster sound. I'm using a Katana 50. I only use reverb and compression. Sometimes I use delay and EQ, but that's about it. When I added "Crunch," to the JMJM, it was so gritty that it sounded like my Tele on Brown Sound. The JMJMs were just hot and gritty, The JMJMs are more along the lines of a P-90 pickup. It has adjustable pole pieces and bar magnets on the bottom of the pickup on either side of the pole pieces. I measured them and they were Bridge 9.0 and Neck 8.4. The Pure Vintage '65's are 6.9 Bridge and 6.7 Neck. Box said they were 6.8 for both. I used the same foam on the JMJM pickups for the '65's but because of the magnets on the JMJM's sitting higher because of the Bar Magnets I needed more foam under the pickups to install the '65's because there are no magnets on the bottom of them. The wiring instructions included for the '65's showed the ground, I guess to the shielding in the cavity. However there is no shielding in the cavity of the JMJM so I installed it exactly like the JMJM pickups. The only difference is that the wiring instructions showed the Bridge PU with the Lead and Ground Wire coming out of the right side of the PU and the Neck PU with the lead and ground coming out of the Left side of the PU. I did it like that. The JMJMs were both wires coming out of right hand side for Bridge and Neck. Not sure if flipping the PU around would make a difference. There is still a bit of Treble Bleed, but not as much. It sounds much better now. Cleaner and more subtle. The Rhythm circuit sounds better as well. I'm happy with it.

This is all good to know since I'm contemplating a swap myself. I've done quite a few mods to my Telecasters in the past but Jazzmasters look way more complicated. Thanks for the info about your pickup swap!

@@anotherheadlessdemo De nada. The key here is to take pictures before you disconnect old pickup so you remember how new pickup should be installed. Next thing is to be prepared with xtra foam. The foam is used to keep the pickup pushed up tight and flush into the cover, Insufficient foam will cause the pickup to fall inside cover when screwing it in the body. This knowledge would have helped me. I hope it helps you.

Thanks for the info! I had just been reading about adjusting the pickup height and the foam. How odd.

The first time I played a JMJM, I couldn't put it down. I knew it was a keeper.

I totally agree. I really liked the feel of the JM as soon as I picked it up. The CV I've had to just get used to.

rough fret board and frets take 10 mins to fix with some 0000 no big deal.

Hi there. Glad you liked the video! I'll have to check out Captain Quad's channel. Thanks for the tip.

Thanks for watching!

I've only seen one 40th in a store and it was setup so poorly it was almost unplayable. I'd love to try one that has a good setup.

@@anotherheadlessdemo Mine came with 9's, which didn't feel good at all. I immediately put on a set of 10-46 and it felt way better. But the neck was bowed because there was zero tension on the truss rod(!). After fixing that, it feels and plays very nicely. I was looking for the rare satin desert sand. This was the only new one I could I could find in the entire USA and it was a better price than any of the used ones. I think it's a keeper.

The Classic Vibe has been a problem, the J Mascis not so much. The CV really needs more work on the nut by someone who knows what they are doing (that's not me!). The other issue is with the rocking Jazzmaster bridge which the CV has; it really needs to be anchored (some players use tape). That said, I spoke with Surfer Joe a couple of years ago and he claimed his Jazzmaster rarely went of tune. Should we believe him? LOL

Tuning stability on a Jazzmaster is tricky if you don't shim the neck and if you are using light gauge strings. With a shim and a good setup the stability is fantastic. But you have to bear in mind that those guitars were designed originally to be used with heavy gauge flatwound stings. For jazz.

Thanks! They've discontinued the J Mascis as well.

@@anotherheadlessdemo Shame ...great guitars

I know. It's arguably the best guitar Squier has ever made.

Thanks. Glad you liked it!

Absolutely. Not sure why all Fenders (or Squiers) can't be like this.

Thanks, Joe. Glad I could help you with your purchase!

Thanks for the info!

Thank you! I really do like them both as well.

Yes, sometimes the J Mascis pickups are too meaty for some of the music I play. I've have a set of Fender Vintage 65 pickups I've been meaning to install - probably should stop procrastinating!

String bending on my Tele and Strat is easier than on my JMJM or CVJM. That said, I don't have a problem bending the strings on my J Mascis but I do find it slightly easier than my Classic Vibe. I use 9s on all my Fenders and Squiers. You could always try 8s. :)

@@anotherheadlessdemo Thank you for your reply. I tried 8s and it feels much better now.

I put in some quarter pounder JM pickups in my classic vibe. Changed everything. Now just need a proper setup.

Thanks Nathan. Yes, straight into Garageband from the Katana. I do use the compressor in Garageband now and again, but I'm not sure how much it's really affecting the sound. When I'm recording with the Katana, I don't use any of the amp's built-in effects. All the effects I use are part of Garageband (reverb, delays, tremolo, chorus etc).

@@anotherheadlessdemo thanks for the response!

:)

Yup. I finally got some of that to solve the issue. :)

It depends on how you want your action set. For mine, any higher would border on unplayable. The problem with all these inexpensive guitars is the inconsistency, especially in terms of fretwork.

If I had to choose one of my Jazzmasters to keep, it would be the J Mascis. Great guitar.

Lo

Glad it was helpful!

Haven't remedied that yet, but then again I haven't gigged since September. They slip off if I get too heavy handed (more likely at a gig). It's been suggested I use heavier strings.

Best way is to shim the neck

Yes, shim the neck to create a pitched back angle so you can raise the bridge off of the body/pickguard. This is how the guitar was designed. I have the original bridge (multiple groove saddles) and I have zero issue with string slippage while using .10 gauge strings. Buzzing on the other hand has been harder to tame.

You're welcome!

Glad you liked it!

I just put on new strings, 9s instead of 10s, did a setup and it might be the best playing guitar I own. My PRS is pretty good, but I like the thicker Jazzmaster neck.

Both the CV and J Mascis are almost identical, but the J Mascis is about 3/8" shorter. There is something different about how they both sit into the trem system however, the CV sits slightly higher. Hope that answers your question.

@@anotherheadlessdemo Thank you, sir.

Unfortunately on mine, they cut the slot on the high E a little too far to the right-- so anything below the fifth fret is very easy to roll off the board.

Is it a pop in or screw in trem for the Mascis?

@@mykhedelic6471 You can try this: loosen the strings a lot, then loosen the neck screws quarter to max half turn. Try first with a quarter turn loose screws. Bump carefully with your palm on the low edge of the neck (high e side, fret 6-7-8 zone) to move the neck upwards in the pocket. Usually there is a minimal gap in the pocket to let that 1-1.5 degree shift happen. Check first if there is that tiny bit of play in the neckpocket to do that! Be careful not to use brute force, or overdue it, you might get a crack in the heel pocket!! The crack can also appear later! So, if the neck doesn’t want to shift further, just stop! You might hear a short squeak or creak, it happens when wood moves on wood under pressure. Nothing to worry so far. Go slow!! Be gentle! If a quarter turn wasn’t loose enough, loosen them to almost half turn. Check the thin e string if it moved enough away from the fretboard edge, also check the wound E. If all to your liking, tighten the neck screws slightly firm in this order: first the two towards the body, then the two towards the neck/headstock. Check the neck position again! Then tighten (not over tight!) all of them in an X shape order, over cross. Tune the guitar and enjoy!😊 Had worked perfectly on two of mine

There's a couple of tunes where I use a real drummer, but for the most part I use a virtual drummer in Garageband or a plugin called MT-PowerDrumKit. I play the bass parts on a keyboard and rhythm and lead part on a guitar.

I find the J Mascis to be a good surf guitar as is (never mind other genres). If you want to sound "authentic" and just like a Jazzmaster from some vintage recording, you really would also need a Dual Showman with a reverb tank, right? :) That said, I'd love to compare both these Squiers to Vinteras or Classic Players (or even more expensive Jazzmasters). In terms of build quality, I'm guessing the J Mascis would hold up pretty well, the CV not so much. In theory, both the JM and CV "should" have fairly low action. In practice, my CV and my older VM, both have frets that are too high, and really need some fret leveling. I'm not finding that to be the case with the JM. Then there's the nut; the CV needs work right out of the box and my JM was fine.

You are welcome!

Maybe I should start a new channel? LOL

The JMJM is a sleeper, for sure.

Thanks Dave!

I think the problem with the Mastery bridge on a JMJM are the holes for the posts. They need to be filled and re-drilled (or so I've been told). I have a roller bridge that fits I haven't installed yet. As far as the vibrato goes, anything that works with a Fender should be fine with this.

You're welcome!

@@anotherheadlessdemo I might purchase one on Wednesday so I really need to make a good decision right now. Your videos are great. I'm a songwriter type and I play in a low-volume situation in the middle of the night. This J Mascis looks like a fun choice - something I will like to pick up and play as often as one would using an acoustic maybe. I have a Spark amp which does a great low-volume job. I am an old guy now and won't play in band anymore - I am recording with friends and we are having fun doing that. My influences are Roxy Music, early Bowie, early Lou Reed, Kate Bush, Elvis Costello - my friends like Squeeze - for example - I am going to purchase a Squire fretless bass to explore as I write - (I like jazz but I am not that good but I am very creative with my humble skills) I am playing piano and acoustic guitars - I also have a new electric 12 string Danelectro. Okay - got the idea? I am about to trade in a $800.00 Strat (Player series) for the J Mascis and fretless bass. If I need a Strat lead I have a great Squire Strat that I have used for years for the job. Still with me? Any suggestions? Opinions? Should I just get a Telecaster and keep it simple? Or an Epiphone? Sheraton II or Dot? I am less than 48 hours away from making this move and I'm very interested in your opinion. Right now I am being brave and stepping away from the Strat world to write new songs with what I hope are unusual combinations - I have Arturia pro for organs and synths etc I am surrounded by great guitar players who have the Strats and Teles - I'm going rogue! LOL I'll see if you respond by tomorrow night.

Hey Joel, sorry for the delay - I don't know if you went through with your purchase or not, but you can't go wrong with the J Mascis. I was a Tele guy for years, but more recently my go-to has been my Jazzmasters.

@@anotherheadlessdemo thanks - still up in the air - it's such a nice sounding guitar -

Absolutely! When I first played the J Mascis in a store, I couldn't put it down.

I love using vibrato bars! The difference between these two trem systems is the distance from the bridge. CV is further away and the JMJM is closer (I assume to create a better break angle). For the player, or at least from me, is that the JM has a much tighter feel. than the CV. Hope that answers your question!

@@anotherheadlessdemo Ah, so there IS a big difference in the two. Got it! Thanks. This steers me away from the Squire Mascis, even though it has a great neck. Makes me feel I’ll have to spend a lot more to get a good. jazzmaster, like an AVRI. Thanks again for doing these!

The J Mascis is an awesome guitar and its build quality is as good as a Jazzmaster at twice the price. That said, if you want a "real" Jazzmaster sound, you would need to swap out the pickups. Also, some Fender Jazzmasters have the same placement of the vibrato system as the J Mascis.

@@anotherheadlessdemo I hear that. I think if I didn’t care about a wonderful tremolo system, I would be aiming at the Squire J Mascis. It looks like a marvelous guitar otherwise. But I am in love with the sound of Bob Bogle‘s guitar on the first ventures album and I don’t think that the stiffer system lends itself to that kind of sound. I could be wrong. I’m certainly not wealthy, but I paid perhaps three times as much for my acoustic guitar as I would need to pay for an AVRI ‘62 year issue or something. After all, it’s my only discretionary purchase in a world of necessities. I never regretted getting a great guitar.

@@anotherheadlessdemo Alsoa separate point: in a couple places I’ve read people say that the Squire J. Mascis was a better guitar prior to around 2017, and that since then it the build quality has declined. Again, I don’t know if that’s true.

It's nice, isn't it? I've been using mine again the last few days. Great guitar for the money!

@@anotherheadlessdemo Definitely worth the money, now I just need to practice more

@@SPETZSNAZ66 Ha! That's the hard part. :)

One of the reasons I keep going back to the CV, is the sound. I play quite a bit of country along with a little surf with the band I'm in. I can get closer to a Tele sound with the CV than the JM. If I decide to keep the CV, I may get a Mastery bridge - that would probably solve that problem!

@@anotherheadlessdemo masteries still arent as effective as the neck shim (and tend to still need them)! tightens the string tension and tone, lowers the action. the cv bridge is more or less perfect already to be honest. i added a bit of nail polish to the screws so they stood in place better, and taped the bridge posts for a bit more sustain (and that still allows the bridge to float). my cv jag had an issue with the nut slots where they had to be deepened considerably. this might be an issue on your guitar, since you mentioned you struggled to have low action on yours. basically these guitars need 3 things to play perfectly: - at least 10-46 gauge strings - a neck shim (a few layers of business card for example) - a well cut nut chances are, that if you set up the guitar with this in mind, you might entirely prefer the playability of the cv.

@@OlegUstimenko Thank you for the info! I've heard about taping the bridge posts, which I might try doing next. My first Jazzmaster was a Squier VM, and I did shim the neck which helped quite a bit. I had also swapped out the Jazzmaster bridge for a Mustang. That said, my CV still plays better than my VM did, even without a shim. I think I had put 11s on the VM as well.

No. The bridge is really solid.

Your'e right!

The CV is definitely more chimey. That's why I've been playing it more than my JM. I saw that purple CV at Chicago Music, but I couldn't convince myself that I needed another. Nice color though!

mine shipped and arrives today, I'd prefer larger frets but I'll take more chime over that. Hope yours arrives soon and you are happy with it. Cheers.

@@kloc1337 how long did it take for yours to arrive i just ordered one yesterday and its my first time ordering from Chicago Music so im just so excite!

The CV absolutely needs a fret job, plus nut slots and yes, a new bridge.

... not sure where I would find a free fret job though.

@@anotherheadlessdemo where? At home! A fret job is something every guitarist should know...

Um ... well, some people are better at playing then fixing things. I'd much rather pay someone who does this kind of thing all the time than have me try to do it myself (I've messed up two guitars trying to do a DIY repair - both ended up going to a luthier anyway). Plus, to be honest I'd rather spend my time actually playing!

@@anotherheadlessdemo Yeah, tell that to EVH. My point of view is when you become a more technical player you want a better instrument and in general you want to be able to modify your guitar by yourself, but it needs years of practice, that's not allowed to everybody for sure!