NGD!!! Squier CV Jazzmaster Shell Pink
This was multiple levels of surprise to me. Here I was, doing my daily search for sales on Daphne Blue Jazzmasters, when I thought I saw one open box on Musician’s Friend! Click the link and turns out it is shell pink, but what a deal. I then notice, “Extra 10% off open box.” Oh my… Let’s just run this by my wife. “Early birthday present?”
“It’s so pretty! And it’s our dogs ‘s favorite color!”(Now you and the scientific community might say dogs can’t see pink, but then explain to me why she loves it so much over any shades of red or green.)
Well, it wasn’t the plan but I was mainly looking for something to test and mod in before stepping up to a custom. And after doing some visualizing of different pickups and pickguards, I think this can be pretty awesome.
“It’s open box, so there might be some light cosmetic issues, but that’s no big deal. At less than $300 I’m fine with that.” I say.
“Well, you don’t have to get this one. We can get you the one you want.”
“It’s at least an $80 price difference.”
“Well you can always take this one back if it’s too bad, right?”
Well here she is!!!
It took me a while, but I think I found the blemish. There’s too much birdseye on the neck and (I had to look this term up) chatoyancy! It’s not quite a flame, too wide an area, but has big shimmering parts up and down the neck almost like a fat quilt pattern. I’m utterly disappointed. I had big plans for swapping this out for a custom neck and now I can’t find any good reason to do it.
The fretboard was super thirsty, but that’s expected. I gave it some oil and it shined up very nice. It went from grey to dark brown. Last picture is after the oil. There’s a few fret ends that are just a tiny bit sharp, but otherwise dressed and leveled very well.
There’s still hope that the pickups suck and I can swap those out for something boutique though, right? Wrong again! Clear as the afternoon sky in the desert. I think I’d need a much better amp to pick up any difference between these and something much pricier. But how am I supposed to scratch that modding GAS itch if I leave everything alone? The trem! Maybe the trem sucks!?!
Nope nope nope. Woe is me, I enjoy the trem exactly as it is. Utterly disappointed.
The color is excellent and I couldn’t find a single problem in the finish.
Final verdict: I absolutely love this guitar. I should have bought one years ago.
That said, some small tweaks / concerns I’ll address in the near or far future.
Near future: Swap the pickguard to white and the pickup covers, knobs, jack, trem tip and switch tip to black.
Middle future: Investigate the roller knobs on the rhythm circuit. Both seem to control the volume instead of a volume and tone. This could be the blemish that reduced it, which is fine because of the next point.
Far future: Upgrade the pots. They’re fine aside from the issue noted above, but a tiny bit scratchy in a few spots. I have a Les Paul that’s having issues with the toggle switch, so whenever I get around to breaking out the soldering iron for that I’ll probably order some new pots.
That’s it. I now have every guitar I’ll ever need. Now what?
I guess it’s time to jump into the pedal wars! Any suggestions? Right now I’ve got a Marshall 15W, a Spark Go and a Boss BD2, and they’re alright but I think I’m outgrowing the Spark in terms of the sounds I’m trying to make and I don’t really have a place private enough to crank up an amp anymore. I’ve been pining for a UAFX golden reverb, Starlight Echo, and Orange Kongpressor for years, as well as a few other effects that I haven’t quite settled on the specifics, but with all the high quality modelers out there I’m wondering if it would be a waste and I should just get a Tonex Board, Neural DSP, Line 6, or something like that. I hope 60 Cycle Hum does a Tonex Board review soon. I’ve found his musical taste aligns greatly with mine. I’m not that great at playing to be honest so I don’t need a touring rig, but it’s my meditation and helps center me. I’ve tried doing NAM A2 on my computer but the latency wigs me out.
TLDR: Great guitar! So happy!