I'm notorious for buying basses; keeping them for a couple years; then selling them and buying something new. But I have a funny feeling that this baby would be very hard to part with. I have two other very nice Fenders at the moment ('75 P-Bass and a '75 American Vintage Jazz). I love all three of these basses; but for the past year, this Sunset Orange American Series Jazz has been my "go-to" bass. I just seem to grab it more often than the others.

Sound
I'm very pleased with this bass. I've owned probably a dozen Fender American basses over the years. This is one of the best I've had. I string most of my basses with flatwounds for that old-school thump. This baby delivers. I've thought about getting a set of '60's Custom Shop replacement pickups, but then I think, "Why???" It sounds great just the way it is.

Features
It's a Jazz Bass. You basically know what you're getting. Two volume knobs and a tone knob. But you can get a wide variety of tones just from those few little knobs. Want old-school rock or reggae? Just crank the neck pickup and back off the bridge pickup a little bit. Like the more modern sound? Crank the bridge pup & back off the neck pup. If you max both volume knobs, you eliminate the "cycle hum" if you need something more quiet for some reason. I didn't really see a need for the S-1 switch, but now that I have it, it's a really nice feature. When we play certain old songs (like… read more "Mustang Sally", for example), my sax player will look over and say, "Hit your switch for this one!". He gets more excited about it than I do, but it really is a cool feature that allows you to switch from Jazz to Precision Bass tones at the push of a button. You can also get different tones simply by plucking/picking in different locations near the two pickups.

Ease of Use
Simple. A rhesus monkey could figure out the controls. That's why this bass has endured for so many years: Simple, yet great.

Quality
I cannot find a flaw on mine. The finish is perfect; the neck/body fit is excellent; and even the fretwork is great. No sharp edges. Mine is the Sunset Orange Transparent with rosewood. The woodgrain shows through, and it is beautiful. I put a tortoiseshell pickguard on mine for more of an old-school look. And it looks stunning under the stage lights. The first time I played it out in a club, several people came up to me when we were doing soundcheck to comment on how gorgeous my bass looks under the lights.

Value
In my opinion, this bass is well worth it. Well made. Well respected product. And zzounds always offers good prices.

Manufacturer Support
I haven't had to use them. I will say that I wish Fender would create an "800" phone number for it's customer service.

The Wow Factor
For my money, the Fender Jazz is one of the sexiest looking basses ever made. It's simple, yet elegant styling just seem to demand your attention. Granted, I like certain color schemes better than others, but you just can't go wrong with an American Fender Jazz.

Musical Background:
Mainly "Hobbyist", although we do play out for parties, etc. But we all have day-jobs!

Musical Style:
Old-time rock & roll; blues; country read less