customer reviews
11 People rated this product :
8 out of 10
4 People wrote reviews
10 out of 10
"The Fender American Jazz is "The Real Deal""
Feature:
I first considered the Geddy Lee. What first drew me to the Geddy was the looks. That's not a good reason but I LOVED the look of those black rectangular markers, black-bound maple fingerboard on the black body with white pickguard. It played very well but upon further inspection, I found the pickups to be a bit weak and the pots weren't as smooth as I thought they should be. Not bad, but I like for my guitar controls to feel like butter. Finally, the truss rod on the Geddy is adjusted from the end close to the neck pickup and can only be adjusted by removing the pickguard (or neck!!) and instead of a hex tool it is adjusted using a Philips screwdriver. What? A screwdriver on a truss rod? Painfully having to remove major parts to adjust a truss rod? Nope.. not me.
I don’t mean to slam the Geddy – it's a good bass but life is short and I wanted something special. By the time I would have put in snappier pickups, purchased a case (the $800 Geddy comes with a gigbag), put in better quality smooth pots, installed a push-pull pot and rewired to allow for series/parallel pickup switching, I would have added enough money that would have pushed that $800 bass well over the $1049 that an authentic American Jazz would cost. And after all that, I would have voided the warranty on the electronics, still had to disassemble *something* to make truss rod adjustments, and the Geddy would still have said "Crafted in Japan" on the back of the neck.
So... I bought a brand new 2007 Fender American Jazz Bass. This is the real deal. In this regard, I got what I paid for.
The American series neck on my Jazz has a satin finish on the back and fingerboard. The neck is silky smooth and can be adjusted perfectly straight. The truss rod is accessible via a routed pocket next to the neck pickup (without having to remove anything!) and is easily adjustable using the included T-handled, ball-end hex wrench. The frets were dressed nicely, no sharp edges, no frets protruding on the sides.
Tuning keys are first class. Volume and tone knobs turn silky smooth.
The plastic molded case that came with my 2007 American Jazz is SUPERB - much better than any plastic molded case I've seen. It fits the Jazz perfectly and there is enough room in the accessory compartment for strings, tools, strap, etc.
Warning: There is a separately sold Fender–branded molded case on the market that is advertised to fit both the Precision and Jazz. Do not buy that case for the Jazz. It's a tight fit and the hard foam padding does not have enough "give" to allow for the Jazz shape and is a poor fit. The lid will not close easily without force. Fender should not say that it fits both P and J basses.
HOWEVER... the case included with the 2007 Fender American Jazz DOES fit the Jazz perfectly. The padding under the fur has just the right amount of cushion. A nice feature is the neck of the bass kinda sits on top of the padding of the lower part of the case for easy access (placing bass in and out of the case) and the case has a deep lid which has pads that run along *both sides of the neck*. When the case is closed the WHOLE length of the neck is cradled securely between these pads. Ingenious case design. I would not trade this case for any hard-shell rectangular case and I own a few. The 4 latches all appear to be heavy-duty and open and close perfectly.
Included with my 2007 American Jazz was a bag of accessories that was tucked snugly into the 7"x5"x2" lidded accessory compartment. Included was a deluxe Fender strap, owner's manual, quick-start instruction sheet, key for the case lock, warranty card, polishing cloth, small hex key for the bridge saddles, and a quality long shaft T-handle hex wrench for the truss rod. They included everything I could think of to put with a premium quality guitar. First class.
Quality:
I was hoping for a flawless guitar and it did not disappoint. From the tip of the headstock to the bottom strap pin, this guitar was perfect. Well.. there were a few fingerprints on the tuning keys. :)
Value:
Read my comments comparing this American Jazz to the Japanese Geddy Lee model. My opinion is that the American Jazz comes up as the winner in value. You get what you pay for and I feel this American Jazz is worth the price.
Desirability:
I prefer painted guitars over natural or stained finishes and I love the look of this bass. Black body, white pickguard, maple fingerboard has a balanced look that screams classic/classy. The only thing I would add would be black neck binding and black rectangular markers of the 70's necks like the Japanese Geddy Lee has.
Sound:
I would give it a 10 but I think a 10 in sound should be reserved for something Divine (haha!) I have over 30 years of 6-string guitar experience and have pretty high standards as far as quality and sound go. I wanted to get a nice bass for my 11 year old son and me ;). I wanted a passive model that got classic sounds and after trying out a few, I knew I a Fender Jazz was what I wanted. I'm fairly new at bass and this American Jazz bass easily allows the "thumb thunk" (whatever it's called) sound and "slap 'n pop" techniques that I am learning and intend to teach my son. This is a real Fender Jazz with good, strong American Series pickups so getting the authentic Fender sound is easy – even for a bass beginner.
Ease of Use:
The 2007 American Jazz has standard Jazz controls (vol neck, vol bridge, master tone) but with the addition of the "S-1" switch. When both pickups are played with full volume, the S-1 switch will alternate the sound from airy/thunky/funky to full/funky/bassy with the push of a button.
The S-1 switch isn't a push/pull pot but instead, it's a button built into the first (neck) volume knob. Push once and the button stays in - putting the pickups in series which gives a fuller, bassier tone. Since the pickups are now in the circuit end-to-end (in series), the neck volume functions as a master volume and the bridge volume is removed from the circuit.
Push the button again and it pops back out switching the pickups back to standard Jazz configuration which gives that famous Fender funky Jazz thwap. This puts the pickups back in parallel and both volumes can be adjusted for blend, one pickup on, other pickup off.
The volume, volume, tone controls are effective at dialing in whatever passive bass sound you need. I'm beginner bass player and I knew right where to go to get those classic Jazz bass sounds. IMO, the S-1 switch is a must-have on a Jazz. If I had a Jazz without the S-1 switch, I would have installed a push/pull pot for the tone control and wired up a series/parallel switch on my own.
Overall:
I'm very happy with my purchase. No buyers's remorse whatsoever. I'm glad I sent the Geddy back and kicked in the extra $250 to get an American Jazz over the Japanese. zZounds is a caring company and they have my support and loyalty - they are probably the best Internet-based company I have ever dealt with music or otherwise.
Submitted: 11/15/2007
Style of Music: Classic Rock, Rock, Pop
9 out of 10
"Hot and Nasty"
Feature:
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 "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.
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.
Desirability:
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.
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.
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.
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.
Overall:
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.
Submitted: 11/10/2007
Style of Music: Old-time rock & roll; blues; country
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