Any sub-£1000 Jazzmasters have out the box usable trem?

MaximumZargon

I need a 2x single coil plus trem guitar.

Currently use a doheny, but the string drop off (seems a common flaw) is killing me. Otherwise is perfection.

Thought maybe a tele plus trem but can't find anything that fits the bill and wouldn't want further work.

Would consider Jazzmaster but don't want to enter into the black hole of JM trem obsession.

It's obviously for wobbles, not Satriani.

JayGee

Would you believe my Squier VM Jazzmaster? A Staytrem bridge eliminated a few rattles and reduced the need to fiddle now and again but the trem itself is perfectly usable and well behaved.

I’d say that if you look out for models with Mustang style bridges you’re unlikely to have any real problems with any of them…

impmann

My Squier 40th Anniversary JM has been spot on - and the bridge works too.
The only thing I’ve done is the ‘hammer trick’ to improve the feel of the arm.
I got mine *new* from Thomann on a deal for £289 and it’s been as good to play as any expensive JM I’ve owned. Genuinely.

marxski

You might at a pinch get a used Troy Van Leeuwen. They are highly regarded. 

Fingers657

These are outstanding Jazz masters.

https://www.gak.co.uk/en/squier-j-mascis-jazzmaster-vintage-white/54114

That just work straight out of the box.

marxski

marxski said:

You might at a pinch get a used Troy Van Leeuwen. They are highly regarded. 

I also think the problem is more the bridge than the trem. The bridge needs to be raised high and the neck shimmed back to compensate and lower the action. Wrap a couple of time around the bridge posts with tape so the bridge still rocks but only a little. Then when you have the bridge saddles where they need to be a drop of blue loctite in each Allen screw to stop the damn things unwinding and you should be good to go. Or…. Get a Staytrem bridge but I think the waiting list is two or three months.

Revolutions

Nothing wrong with JM trem with a decent setup, a lot of the models these days angled necks so no need to shim either.

Now there’s an argument to say that the MIJ trem isn’t as good as the American model. But you could just get a staytrem or mastery bridge &/or trem unit.

JCA2550

marxski said:

marxski said:

You might at a pinch get a used Troy Van Leeuwen. They are highly regarded. 

I also think the problem is more the bridge than the trem. The bridge needs to be raised high and the neck shimmed back to compensate and lower the action. Wrap a couple of time around the bridge posts with tape so the bridge still rocks but only a little. Then when you have the bridge saddles where they need to be a drop of blue loctite in each Allen screw to stop the damn things unwinding and you should be good to go. Or…. Get a Staytrem bridge but I think the waiting list is two or three months.

Just got a Staytrem bridge this week, it took about 10 weeks from ordering. It's great. Also I echo all the positive praise for the 40th anniversary Squier JMs.

guitargeek62

marxski said:

You might at a pinch get a used Troy Van Leeuwen. They are highly regarded. 

I grabbed a bargain one locally back in the summer, it’s a stellar guitar in general but the trem and bridge are indeed brilliant and stable. I had to double-check that it hadn’t already been fitted with a staytrem!

simonhpieman

I've never had an issue with Japanese, USA reissue, USA vintage or Squier Classic Vibe trems/bridges.

One handy tip is to tip the rocking bridge back ever so slightly so it's "normal" point (before engaging the trem arm) is leaning towards the trem plate. Helps get the tension up and avoids slippage on the saddles (again, not really a thing for me but people harp on about it) without the use of shims etc and helps tuning stability.

I would recommend against taping the posts, the bridges were designed to rock back and forth and limiting that doesn't seem like it'll help. If anything, it'll introduce tuning issues under trem use.

Also re replacement bridges, I bought a guitar that already had a Mastery on it and it was junk. Ok, it didn't rattle but it shifted during the first gig I did with it so the strings ended up touching the fretboard. £200 is a LOT of money for something that is arguably worse in function, and in my opinion far, FAR uglier than what's already on the guitar..

I also had a guitar come with a Staytrem. I haven't taken it off because I don't have a spare but to be fair it seems solid enough. Again, I wouldn't have spent the money on it myself but it works at least.

You can also adjust these trems for a looser or firmer feel with just the turn of the screw on the front of the plate. Easy peasy.

In short, as long as you don't use 9s (I quite like the heavy bottom, 10 top Ernie Balls at the moment for a super solid feel) and pay a tiny bit of attention to setup you'll be in trem heaven, they feel great!

Sporky

MaximumZargon said:

Currently use a Doheny, but the string drop off (seems a common flaw) is killing me. Otherwise is perfection.

Ah - that was going to be my suggestion.

There's a thread suggesting it might be the neck has shifted during shipping, and how to fix it:

https://www.guitarsbyleo.com/FORUM/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=3488

strtdv

Tele with bigsby?

marxski

I would recommend against taping the posts, the bridges were designed to rock back and forth and limiting that doesn't seem like it'll help. If anything, it'll introduce tuning issues under trem use.

In my experience it only causes problems when too much tape is applied and the bridge can’t rock at all. I only use a small amount to make the movement more restricted so it still rocks.. but less so. Never had any issues that way.

lovestrat74

Head to youtube and search "Puisheen" and you'll get all the knowledge you need to properly set up your JM.

blueskunk

impmann said:

My Squier 40th Anniversary JM has been spot on - and the bridge works too.
The only thing I’ve done is the ‘hammer trick’ to improve the feel of the arm.
I got mine *new* from Thomann on a deal for £289 and it’s been as good to play as any expensive JM I’ve owned. Genuinely.

100% 

inewham

I have a Squier CV 60 everything is fine and works

I changed the term collet for a Staytrem collet because the original squeaked, sometimes.

I also got a Staytrem bridge just because, but I didn't really need to. The Mustang style bridge on the CV60 is fine.

MaximumZargon

Sporky said:

MaximumZargon said:

Currently use a Doheny, but the string drop off (seems a common flaw) is killing me. Otherwise is perfection.

Ah - that was going to be my suggestion.

There's a thread suggesting it might be the neck has shifted during shipping, and how to fix it:

https://www.guitarsbyleo.com/FORUM/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=3488

Yeah, that was my first port of call, but sadly that isn't it; the neck past about 7/8 fret is just too narrow, and there's nothing to be done about it. Even looking at pictures of the newest US ones, you can see that there's still an issue. Really wierd imo. I'm not a new player, and I can play around it but at gigs it's just too easy (particularly bass-side) to fall off. 

Infuriatingly it is othwise absolutely fantastic.

thefez

Squier CV works perfectly for me

Sporky

MaximumZargon said:

Yeah, that was my first port of call, but sadly that isn't it; the neck past about 7/8 fret is just too narrow, and there's nothing to be done about it. 

Gotcha - I thought it was worth mentioning just in case. That is a shame - the dual fulcrum trem is probably my favourite. 

Teyeplayer

There’s a s/h Rexter built JM with staytrem and stuff on gumtree at the moment. If I had 850 I’d be all over it, looks to be a cracking guitar. 

MaximumZargon

Teyeplayer said:

There’s a s/h Rexter built JM with staytrem and stuff on gumtree at the moment. If I had 850 I’d be all over it, looks to be a cracking guitar. 

Looks amazing, but mahogany neck and body doesn't seem like much fun for gigging, weight-wise.