Phat Jazz

And yet another re-string adventure before the year ends. This is my Fender Modern Player HH  Jazzmaster. There are not many fans of this series namely due to its Chinese pedigree. The MP series were all made in China & they are not fakes. I'm reiterating this because there are people of a certain age group with firm Fender inclinations thinking these are copied instruments. The fact that they are from China, it somehow concurred the belief. Well, the MP series were handled by the Chinese Squier team. These are nothing but tastefully twisted upper end Squiers rebranded as Fenders. The MP instruments were the first most affordable Fenders & they were very good value for money instruments. 

The MP HH Jazzmasters came in two finishes, this is the other one featuring a rosewood fretboard. I chose the maple fretboard version simply because the Jazzmasters are traditionally made with rosewood fretboards, the maple version was rare. Today, you can get the other maple fretboard Jazzmaster from the American Professional series. 

I have swapped out the Tesla Plasma X-1 pickups for these Seymour Duncan Phat Cats. The difference was stark. This decision came about because I'm about done with trying to convince myself in getting the American Professional Jazzmaster with a price tag exceeding $2K. It was on my 2018 list but in view of the price & after trying it in person at the store, it was a definite NO. As consolation, I decided to make this MP version more Jazzmaster-ish by having single coils in there instead of humbuckers. I must say that the Phat Cats are all but under-appreciated when it comes to high octane overdrive & all-out shred stuff. Having these in this guitar- no regrets!

The other subtle change  here are these Strat-esque control knobs.

Of course, a fresh set of D'Addario 9s to get things going. 

Modern Player- recall (Part 1)

Back in 2011, Fender introduced (re-introduced?) the Marauder in the Modern Player series. The Modern Player, my friends, consist of idiosyncratic models which forged its identity by assuming an established Fender monicker only to fall victim to the manufacturer's creative license in making it 'different'. 

Fender also released the Jaguar in the same series, altering it significantly to manifest some Gibson-ish DNA in terms of tone- P-90s, tune-o-matic, 3-way toggle... these are definitely not Fender genetics.

On that note, they messed with the Jazzmaster as well, desecrating its signature tone by including humbuckers & a rather profane fretboard switch to maple. 

And while they're at it, why not include the Mustang into the mix. P-90 equipped Mustang instead of traditional single coils.

To be continued...

Fender: MP Jazzmaster HH... pickups

Most of the time, I'm at odds with what the manufacturer offers in the guitar in terms of pickups. It's namely due to the fact that I'm inclined towards what I like to hear rather than what the manufacturer suggests. The default humbuckers in my Jazzmaster HH were replaced with a pair of Tesla Plasma X-1. The default pickups fared rather well when it comes to clean & crunchy tones but at saturated drive settings, they made the instrument sound below par. The X-1 gives off a spiked midrange tone in the bridge while the neck counterpart bags lots of clarity for solos- my kinda duo. The ones you see here are covered, you can purchase these covers at TYMC for under $5 (for a pair).

Fender: Modern Player Jazzmaster HH

Fender's Modern Players are such value-for-money instruments, it's difficult to ignore them. While they may not be everyone's idea of a Fender, they are still legit, done by the very people who give us the Squier Classic Vibe & Vintage Modern series.

As documented earlier, my concern with this guitar is its confusing manifestation; it's a Jazzmaster (by virtue of looks & appointments) but it's not a Jazzmaster (with humbuckers in there, no traditional Jazzmaster tone could be acquired). I've overcome the humbucking appointment of this guitar, accepting what it was intended to be. However, the other concern, now that I actually own this guitar (OK it's been slightly more than a week now) & had a good playing time with it- is the tune-o-matic type bridge. In use, the whammy mechanism works- no complaints there but the TOM bridge won't hold tuning no matter how much lubrication one applies to the slots. Do note that the original Jazzmaster features a different bridge mechanism, so the most sensible thing to do here is not to whammy. As such, I've set it up to a locking position so no whammy action any time soon. I did some other parts replacements but that's saved for an April episode :-)

Fender: Modern Player Jazzmaster HH (review)

We're still in Chinese territory. No territorial trespassing though, just craftsmanship appraisal. This time it's Fender's Modern Player Jazzmaster HH. Once again, to re-affirm the Modern Player philosophy; everything traditional with a dash of eccentricity. So you see a Jazzmaster here with details you won't normally see in one; humbuckers, absence of slider control for the lead circuit, tune-o-matic type bridge & maple fretboard.

If you are accustomed to the Strat or Tele, the Jaguar & Jazzmaster are definitely extensive in body measurements; it's not that handle-friendly. Adding considerable weight to that, the Jazzmaster here is quite a beast. Ditto the neck profile- despite the familiar C curvature, it's a meaty version. It is no wonder then the Mustang, Musicamaster & Bronco were produced back then to offer a more manageable handling. In this aspect, this MP Jazzmaster is keeping with traditions in terms of outline & mass.

Moving on to the differences, the MP Jazzmaster sports a mahogany body, a pair of humbuckers & maple fretboard (rosewood version available). The slider switch controlling the lead tones were also not included at the factory. Without plugging in, we are already dealing with specs contrary to the traditional Jazzmaster. A quick strum revealed some warm midrange, typical of a mahogany response. No pronounced brightness coming from this one.

We need to at least hear a P-90 type guitar in action to know where the Jazzmaster stands in terms of tone. The original Jazzmaster pickup is a single coil affair but these are humbuckers so let's not get too carried away with the tonal departure. There isn't any fat single coil tone to be heard here, the stark truth- the MP Jazzmaster is another humbucking guitar out there. Zooming into the pickups, they are pleasant in clean mode with no accentuated frequencies, rather flat-sounding if I may add. In drive mode, we know they are neither too high output nor vintage sounding. 

So what do we have here? A Jazzmaster? Not really, it doesn't sound like one despite looking like one. What makes a Jazzmaster a Jazzmaster? Essentially, it should be a chemistry of the looks & the tone. We have the Jazzmaster looks here despite some feature differences but the Jazzmaster tone is absent. Some of us would be happy campers knowing that one of Fender's overlooked player is finally offered with humbuckers because we just can't stand that single coil hum. Well, that could be a purchase consideration.

Because I'm the type who discriminates workmanship as it adds to cost, I'm rather unhappy with the test model as it features stained frets. Stain here isn't merely chemical pigmentation but (light) rust. Also, the 3-way toggle is a little dodgy; the bridge pickup failed to connect at times. That's rather worrying. Please take some time to ask yourselves why you'd want to buy this guitar. The Jazzmaster in its traditional incarnation, is a special guitar, tone-wise especially. This Modern Player Jazzmaster has the looks but not the tone, not even close.

Rating: 70%

Fender: Moder Player Jazzmaster HH

Availbility: Swee Lee Co.

Price: $700