Fender Squier Jagmaster

The Fender Jaguar line of guitar has kind of been lost in the shuffle of other models that have gained more fame for Fender, like the Stratocaster and Telecaster. Regardless, it has remained a hugely valuable item in collector's and vintage markets. Today, the Squier brand, owned by Fender itself, offers its own version called, simply, the Fender Squier Jagmaster. Let's take a closer look at it to see what it has to offer.

Features: The body of the Squier Jagmaster is made of Alder wood, which is a relatively common material for the manufacture of budget instruments. There are two finishes offered, one of which is the black with white parchment pickguard, and the other of which is the three tone Sunburst with tortoise shell pickguard. Both have a vintage look, but the 3-tone Sunburst just seems a little richer. The neck is made of maple, and is bolted on the body. It has a rosewood fretboard with a special 24 inch scale length, twenty one medium jumbo frets, and pearloid inlays. All of the hardware, including the tremolo bridge, tuning heads, and input jack, are chrome. The bridge, in a Stratocaster style design, is mounted with six screws and comes complete with a whammy bar. Electronically, the Squier Jagmaster has two Duncan Designed humbucker pickups, one volume and one tone control knobs, and a three way selector switch. Overall, the features make for a very unique combination. There is a Fender look and feel about but the electronics and body design are all their own.

Playability: One observation about the Fender Squier Jagmaster many musicians make is its body style. It is much like a Stratocaster, except the angles are a bit more obtuse and the arms don't extend out or curve as much. The cutaways, however, are just as deep. This makes for good high fret access. Also, the long twenty four inch neck means the high notes will ring clearer and sustain better.

Sound: As mentioned before, the Squier Jagmaster has two Duncan Designed humbucker pickups. These make for a sound that separates the Jagmaster from most other Squier guitars. They are, in a word, nice and rich. They deliver a fat bluesy tone naturally, and con handle both distortion and clean tones very well. The sound quality, it's safe to say, will impress you when you first pick up the Jagmaster.

Overall: If you're looking to make a statement both visually and sonically, the Fender Squier Jagmaster is one of the better and highest value instruments on the market. It looks great, plays nicely, and has a wide range of thick tones. You can find the Squier Jagmaster in music stores for around $250.