Talk to me about Squier Jazz

[T-Bay]

Being a set in the Mould Thunderbird lover my previous experiences of Fenders has mostly been limited to a Precision I had off here. The fatter neck felt like a cricket bat and it never got past the occasional use stage. Recently I have been having GAS for a Lake placid blue Jazz,  no idea why. So today I spot a cheapish Squier Jazz so thought what the hell and put an offer in. I was as surprised as anyone when it was accepted and my mate has picked it up for me tonight and I get it next week. Soooooooo now good/ bad are they compared to a yank one? Is it worth upgrading any bits? What are the variations and how do you know which is which? Will it give me a feel for what a Yank Jazz would play/ sound like? All I know so far is that it’s black on black and someone has put a Fender logo on it (yeah I know.......). 

[T-Bay]

Mate has sent me a better pic and it has a Seymour Duncan pick up in - the neck one, no markings on the bridge one though. But that’s a nice surprise!

[paul_c2]

By sheer chance I have a Squier Jazz bass (with upgraded Seymour Duncan pickups) and a Japanese Fender Jazz bass. However its slightly difficult to compare because the Squier is fretless, so it feels markedly different from the neck perspective; and because it has flatwounds, the tone is also much different. It had roundwounds on (for less than a day!) but they chewed my fingers up too much, so I fitted the flats. 

I can't really fault the Squier but there's an intangible something which makes the Fender that bit more comfortable to play. I think the Squier is ever so slightly lighter though. The only negative so far is that the Squier's knobs are the metal type without a line, whereas the Fender ones are plastic with a line (so I can see where stuff is set, etc).

Sorry its a bit vague, but basically there's nothing wrong with the Squier and its playable but there's something about the Fender which feels better. Whether the Fender is more durable (I travel a lot with the bass, its in and out of cars etc all the time) or whether its higher value just makes it a liability, I can't tell.

[interpol52]

I have had a fair few Jazz basses over the years. After a few years of trying to convince myself that all I need is a P bass I went back to the trusty Jazz. They just feel right to me.

My experience of the Squier range is limited to the Vintage Modified 70s model in the natural finish. Those basses are incredible, the construction is top notch and the tone was great. 

The Squier you are picking up should definitely give you a feel for what a USA could offer. If you are used to playing a P bass with a fat neck then the Jazz will feel very different! It goes without saying that the USA models will be made with higher quality components, but the core sound and feel with be there with the Squier you are getting. 

Enjoy!

[WHUFC BASS]

I wouldn't touch the Affinity series as they're pretty crap. The Vintage Modified and the Classic Vibe are much better both in construction and sound. If you're a Thunderbird player, then the Jazz neck will feel very similar to the Thunderbird, especially at the nut.

[T-Bay]

5 hours ago, WHUFC BASS said:

I wouldn't touch the Affinity series as they're pretty crap. The Vintage Modified and the Classic Vibe are much better both in construction and sound. If you're a Thunderbird player, then the Jazz neck will feel very similar to the Thunderbird, especially at the nut.

Is there an easy way to determine if it’s an affinity or not? The neck profile is important as that’s what I don’t get on with when I have tried precisions.

[WHUFC BASS]

The affinity series should have "affinity series" on the headstock. If you click on the link below and zoom in, "affinity" is written (it's near the end of the headstock).

I bought one for my nephew when he first started on bass and I was really disappointed with the quality. Granted it was cheap, but there's better basses out there for the money such as "SX" and "vintage" to name just two.

[T-Bay]

5 minutes ago, WHUFC BASS said:

The affinity series should have "affinity series" on the headstock. If you click on the link below and zoom in, "affinity" is written (it's near the end of the headstock).

I bought one for my nephew when he first started on bass and I was really disappointed with the quality. Granted it was cheap, but there's better basses out there for the money such as "SX" and "vintage" to name just two.

Aahhh, this one has been ‘improved’ by the addition of a Fender logo. I will get it next Tuesday so will have a better idea then. Are there any markings in the neck pocket on these?

[T-Bay]

Here is a pic from the ad, it looks like a VM to me, based on pickups and pick guard colour but whether it is or whether these are additions I don’t know enough to determine.

[Gottastopbuyinggear]

3 hours ago, T-Bay said:

Is there an easy way to determine if it’s an affinity or not? The neck profile is important as that’s what I don’t get on with when I have tried precisions.

I think the classic vibe and vintage modified necks will have a plastic insert where the truss rod access is, whereas the affinity don’t?

[WHUFC BASS]

Doesn't look like an Affinity series. Usually it had really cheap looking wood on the headstock. There's nothing really in the neck pocket from what I remember.

Bottom line is if it plays well, and you're happy with the sound it doesn't really matter what it is. Not sure if you're Thunderbird is a Gibson or Epiphone, if it's the former then you might be disappointed with the quality.

[T-Bay]

18 hours ago, WHUFC BASS said:

Doesn't look like an Affinity series. Usually it had really cheap looking wood on the headstock. There's nothing really in the neck pocket from what I remember.

Bottom line is if it plays well, and you're happy with the sound it doesn't really matter what it is. Not sure if you're Thunderbird is a Gibson or Epiphone, if it's the former then you might be disappointed with the quality.

It’s a Gibson, but not expecting this to match up to that, more a dip my toe in the water before I commit to buying a Fender. I know you can play them in a shop or at someone’s house but I find I need a decent length of time to decide if it fits me or not somthis seemed a decent way to do it and be able to get my money back if it’s not for me.

Edited December 12, 2018 by T-Bay

[paul_c2]

10 hours ago, T-Bay said:

Here is a pic from the ad, it looks like a VM to me, based on pickups and pick guard colour but whether it is or whether these are additions I don’t know enough to determine.

What's the label just below the G string tuner? Could it be the "Affinity" logo/wording?

[paul_c2]

PS there's nothing drastically wrong with the Affinity series; but obviously they're built down to a price, rather than built up to a standard. So expect something like a 3 piece body of indeterminate wood, cheap tuners, bridge, pickups, screws etc. Obviously they fetch less money secondhand, and if you're looking to possibly sell on then obviously you don't want to pay VM price for an Affinity then lose a lot upon selling.

[WHUFC BASS]

29 minutes ago, paul_c2 said:

What's the label just below the G string tuner? Could it be the "Affinity" logo/wording?

Could well be, either way though, it's not a VM as they don't have anything like that on the headstock, just the Squier and smaller Fender logos. Their serial numbers are usually on the back.

[yorks5stringer]

Don' think Affinity's have 'designed by Duncan' on the pickups unless they've been swapped out?

[paul_c2]

On 10/12/2018 at 21:05, T-Bay said:

Mate has sent me a better pic and it has a Seymour Duncan pick up in - the neck one, no markings on the bridge one though. But that’s a nice surprise!

 

2 minutes ago, yorks5stringer said:

Don' think Affinity's have 'designed by Duncan' on the pickups unless they've been swapped out?

It seems it has been upgraded with at least 1 new pickup (or maybe just the cover - that would be cruel though!) A Squier with a few sensible upgrades kinda makes sense and seems quite a common thing to do. Normally upgrades would add nothing to the price (since it reduces the originality) but given the base value, I think in this case it would add a bit. I can't say how much of an improvement they are though.

(Aren't the original pickups OEM manufactured by Seymour Duncan anyway, down to a price?)

[Pea Turgh]

The neck pup has big pole pieces - Quarter Pounder maybe?

I really like the QPs in my P bass!

[T-Bay]

Looking at Affinity logos it could be, could also be a small Fender one, will find out when my mate drops it off but looking mostly likely it’s an affinity that has been upgraded a bit, still a bargain at £60 even if I factor in a set of strings and couple of other tweaks.

[Pea Turgh]

Well it looks nice, and it was cheap, so if it plays half decent I’d consider it a win!

[T-Bay]

You can’t go far wrong at £60 can you? At least that’s my theory!

[T-Bay]

Update time as I collected this off my mate today. The serial number suggests it was made in Indonesia in 2009 which I think rules out the affinity series. Any info on this would and possible models would be gratefully received. 

The neck pick up is a Seymour Duncan with noticeably larger poles than bridge one and a much better tone. The neck feels very nice, not as perfect a profile as the Thunderbird but that’s a personal preference, it also feels about 15cm shorter. Sound wise it’s quite intriguing, the E string lacks the bottom end of the Gibson (there’s a surprise I hear you saying) and feels a little thin to my ear but much better on 100% neck pick up. The D and G strings are much hotter though, the pick up is at quite an angle but even still those strings really blast out, far more cutting than on the Gibson. Tuners aren’t that nice but I have Grovers and Hipshot ones on my other Basses so no great surprise. I will put new strings on and give it a clean but overall it seems a really nice bit of kit for the money. It won’t replace the Gibson (except at the rougher pubs we play perhaps) but I a want to play it a lot more and then seek out a genuine yank Fender to compare it to. You can tell it’s built to a budget but for the money I think I would struggle to get much that sounded better. A clean, some minor TLC, new scratch plate and possibly knobs and it will be a keeper I think.

[paul_c2]

Have you played another Jazz before? The first time I played one, after another bass (with humbuckers), I was surprised at the lack of low end. Its quite a different and distinctive sound. But over time, that sound has kinda grown on me, and going back to the other bass it now sounds boomy!!

[Pea Turgh]

Cool - get another Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounder at the bridge then you’ll be rockin.

[T-Bay]

Just now, paul_c2 said:

Have you played another Jazz before? The first time I played one, after another bass (with humbuckers), I was surprised at the lack of low end. Its quite a different and distinctive sound. But over time, that sound has kinda grown on me, and going back to the other bass it now sounds boomy!!

Nope, it’s a first for me. I have had a couple of Precision’s but didn’t get on with the neck profile so thought the jazz may be a decent compromise. It’s reassuring to hear that the sound is ‘typical’, I do think the better definition/ level on the higher strings will make it stand out a bit more on some songs but I think I may miss the trouser flapping effect of the Gibson.