Squier Affinity Jazzmaster HH: Is it worth $200? I say yes! (Full Demo)

[@masonshapiro]

I’ve been looking for reviews of this guitar and this one is by far the best. I may be picking this up soon.

[@LucasFowler]

These are excellent value in my opinion.

[@Teebone-lw6yb]

I’m gonna get one to make a Steve Klein from New Found Glory mod platform

[@albertgein3082]

I'll have mine tues.... Yeahh

[@albertgein3082]

@@Teebone-lw6yb jokes 🤣

[@EasyHeat]

@@LucasFowler I will concur. I bought two : ) lol!

[@JGAbstract]

im looking at the squire contemporary active jazzmaster HH and stumbled across your video. Damn this is cheaper and you make it sound amazing.

[@LucasFowler]

Its a great guitar!

[@EasyHeat]

I had one of those and ended up selling it. I couldn't gel with the active pups and got in a financial pinch at the time so off it went. I kept both my two Affinity Jazzmasters tho. If that tells you anything about the crazy value of them?! Definitely a solid sleeper axe at a "budget guitar" price point IMO.

[@starwolffan13]

My buddy got this model a few years back, swapped the neck for a mexican one and put Railhammer pickups and uses it to gig with!

[@davidreidy5750]

It's a very versatile guitar works great with muff,fuzz,overdrive, modulation.

[@elmanitasdeplomo]

Bought a Squier VM J Bass because of lockdown, and really having fun learning. I also want a guitar, and this video really makes me want to buy one of these. It sounds awesome and I love the shape of these bodies. The fact it lacks all those switched makes it looks much better imho.

[@LucasFowler]

If I'm being honest I prefer it to not have the old school vibrato and rhythm circuit. It's stuff I wouldn't use and would just get in my way :P

[@eburney68]

Beautiful playing and great review, Lucas! I have a PRS SE Custom 24 that's awesome, but I've always been intrigued by Jazzmasters. Love the classic look and tone. Hard to believe that's only a $200 guitar.

[@TVguy9999]

Cool AC/DC vibe...rocking out!!!

[@fernandovasconez8581]

Well played, I'm a bass player but i need a guitar for demos and record at home so i think this guitar is perfect!

[@ck2music712]

That's it... I'm gettin one, lol... I've been a die-hard Squier fan since I got my 97 Mexican Strat new... I've recently got into humbuckers, but since I'm normally a Strat/Tele guy, MOST humbuckers sound WAY too dark for my taste... With the exception of my Bullet Mustang, which have an ALMOST single-coil-ish tone, and from what I understand this JM even has a similar 12" radius... So, this video pretty much sealed the deal, lol... And it's my birthday today, so who knows? I might just get lucky... ;) Thanks for the awesome review, hoss...

[@LucasFowler]

Hey it’s my birthday today too 😂 I think you’ll be happy with one of these, they are surprisingly high quality for the price point.

[@ck2music712]

@@LucasFowler well, Happy Birthday, hoss! Who would've thought we share a birthday! Hope it's a great one!

[@MrNotYet1]

Super dope review and playing.

[@LucasFowler]

Thanks!

[@StevenRockwood]

Both pickups together sound very twangy, ... Great demo!

[@HelpingHandAlias]

I owned, played and modded over 100 guitars from cheap to expensive and all types of. A long journey and thousands of bucks later it ended up with this Affinity Jazzmaster. Just changed the tuners and the stringtree and gave it a good setup. I own three of them. I prefer only playing the neck PU on all my guitars. To my ears and personal taste this affinity pickups are the 'best' sounding ones. They Sound like Singlecoils with much more Output. They are ceramic, which i prefer. I buy them on the second market and put it in much more expensive guitars.

[@popo_perez]

Would you say Jazzmaster pickups have similar attack and dynamics of a single coil pickup? If so, I can say I'm sold on this guitar by your comment :)

[@HelpingHandAlias]

@@popo_perez this pickups are very well balanced from bass, midds to treble.

[@popo_perez]

Thanks!

[@hidaroot2282]

@@popo_perez sorry to interupt but yes the pickup is suprisingly sound good, very balance, and so clear, im using fuzz octave and the clarity is very helping.

[@popo_perez]

@@hidaroot2282 thanks! The more I learn from this guitar, the more I want it!

[@slinkycrown8757]

Thanks for a great demo! Awesome

[@LucasFowler]

slinky crown I’m glad you dig it!

[@jimmyz2098]

Damn, Dude. You are one he11 of a guitar player. Cool cheap axe (which I'm a sucker for).... and you are showing off some killer playing here. I dig.

[@christophercaratzas1743]

I enjoyed this video very much and the few others I've watched as well. You provide a lot of useful information and don't cheat the viewer as regards the sound of the instruments in question. I have one nit to pick, however. You mentioned that the traditional Jazzmaster controls/switches are "too much " for you. Not sure exactly what you mean there. If you mean to say they're too complicated, fair enough. But your video on the P-rails delved into the umpteen combinations of sounds, e.g., P90 bridge + humbucker neck, etc. That to me made my head swim with all the different combinations. SO I guess I'm saying if you thought the Jazzmaster controls were too much, how the heck could you keep all the P-rail combos straight?

[@LucasFowler]

That's a fair question! I suppose what I should have said was, I don't care for the effects those particular controls have on the traditional jazzmasters.

[@19guitarshredder]

Just ordered one of these! I plan on swapping out the bridge pickup with a Duncan designed detonator from my TD signature strat. Should be a cool combo

[@albertgein3082]

Sort thinking of doing something like that

[@ErebosGR]

You said you bought the guitar for some mod project. Looking forward to see what that is!

[@LucasFowler]

I'm working on it, shooting video of the whole process as well :)

[@TheDmonet]

I haven't seen any other review mention that the bridge on this thing is a top loader despite the body being string through. My next string change I will see what difference that makes in tone and playability. It's an incredible value for what I paid for it (got a demo from Sweetwater). Let's put i this way...it cost the same as my first guitar did back in 1986..a Japanese made Ibanez Roadstar. They were considered cheap back then but they are well regarded to this day as quality instruments and I wish I had never sold mine as used they are going for over $300 on reverb. This guitar overall is higher quality than those were. I fully expected to want to change the pickups out as I was expecting mud. My experience was the opposite, as you mentioned. Despite being ceramic, they are voiced pretty clearly. The neck pickup isn't muddy at all, and the bridge is clearly a humbucker but it has a little bit of "spank" to it. I love the flatter radius neck and the satin finish. The only thing I feel is a little low end on this are the pots...I use dimarzio low frictions on my other guitars and obviously these grind a bit more than those do, but it isn't a big deal. When you consider a finished guitar body from Warmoth costs almost twice what this thing does for an entire guitar..and that's what I was really getting at for a build, a Jazzmaster/tele deluxe hybrid to mod...it's just a no brainer.

[@socialdef3]

Thanks for that little review! The fact that they have a toploader bridge option is what turned me onto these... I think toploader bridges have a more buttery feel for bends. Also, most pickups, however cheap, will sound better after some simple adjustments, which most won't bother to do before doing pickup swaps. I have an Epiphone Les Paul SL that absolutely rocks and it is completely stock, just made a few adjustments to the pickup heights, action and truss rod and it's awesome. Same goes for the Epiphone Les Paul VE (Vintage Edition). I don't doubt it will be the same for the white Affinity Jazzmaster I am eyeing!!

[@TheDmonet]

@@socialdef3 quick update, my bridge pickup is dead. I think it's the toggle switch as it was going in and out intermittently and now it's dead. Not a major issue to fix the toggle but that's a very "squire" like thing to happen I guess.

[@gerrypair3856]

I have a Squier Jazzmaster and it plays great. I play mostly country and it has a great twang for that.

[@federicogoez]

This guitar should be called “Rockmaster” 🔥

[@alwayssmile9799]

Can Play Metal?

[@federicogoez]

@@alwayssmile9799 man those cheap Mics can 🎥🎬💨

[@hidaroot2282]

Playing this guitar for two months now. I just replace the gauge to .10, the pickup surprisingly very good with that singe coil taste kinda like. And they are so clear all the way from string #6 to #1. Even thou im using fuzz and overdrive. Neck is also very fast. But i have to getting used to the length, usually i use tele but this guitar feels longer.

[@EasyHeat]

I love these soo much I got both finish options! You gotta know going in that these benefit tremendously with the $50 drop in Grover tuning machine upgrade, but oh man! Soo much workhorse rock guitar to be had here for such a small investment IMO! I mean hell! It's got a "swimming pool " route in an alder body! That's worth the price of admission alone to be honest!

[@DragonofLimerick]

great....all the squealies at the end of the video set all the dogs in my neighborhood off, and I'm listening on earphones, actually love hearing you do all the squealies, wish I could do them nearly as good

[@LightningDogg]

Hey it's a Jazzmaster... where's the jazz??...haha. I'm not a "bargain guitar" snob. I have a few of the Bullet and Squier models myself. Looks like you got a nice deal there. I prefer single coils myself but judging by the wall behind you, you're in humbucker heaven, and all those cool licks at the end might be why \m/ Wooooo... lol. Seriously though...nice playing. Now I'm going to watch part 3....

[@LucasFowler]

LightningDogg I was going to put in different pickups, but I think I’m actually going to put the stock ones back. They just have a cool, unique sound!

[@LightningDogg]

@@LucasFowler Hey that's not a bad idea. I thought they sounded pretty good. Wait til you get that tone paint on lol.

[@RonnyEsquivel]

Great demo Lucas! Which amp did you play through?

[@R3dbudd]

I've had the black one for a year and a half now. My pickups don't seem as bright, but I'm using it as a drop C beater. They are surprisingly good for anything I've gotten this cheap. Went to switch them out for some G&B LTD pickups, but the guard has rounded corners. If you buy this guitar to "Jim Root" it with EMG or any other covered pickup, you'll need to order a pickguard from GFS. Only complaint is they shoulda went with the large headstock for a Jazz.

[@thespecialist429]

What gauge strings are you playing to play drop C?

[@R3dbudd]

@@thespecialist429 10-52 on the light side.11-54 on the heavy.

[@MrNotYet1]

I am about to buy the black one , for the same reason as you. I used to own an ibanez for 2x the price, and I just played my squier strat all the time. I sold the Ibanez, but now I'm missing the downtuned guitar. I was looking for a lot more expensive guitars , when I found this beauty. I think I'll change the bridge to a nazgul or pegasus. But in this vid the stock pickups sound super impressive.

[@R3dbudd]

@@MrNotYet1 If you have a high gain amp, skip the Nazgul. Check out the Black Winter too. I try to use lower output or neck versions of these pickups now. Fighting feedback with 2 gates and I don't even run my gain that high. Figured it out by getting a Titan neck pickup by accident from Sweetwater, they shipped the wrong one.

[@davidreidy5750]

Love mine changed the stock strings to super slinky's but going back to regulars.Hooked up with a boost/overdrive this thing sounds awesome.

[@RRJackson]

Very nice! Great tone, too!

[@LucasFowler]

Thanks very much!

[@milesk.205]

Which amp are you using? Sounds great!!!!

[@sarondiesel588]

Thank U for saying they sound a little more twords single coils. I was wandering if U had done something to it to get that tone. I'm trying to get something better than a bullet strat. I'm thinking of this guitar, a Mustang HH, or a good ol affinity Tele.

[@davidreidy5750]

I agree I don't care to much for Bells and whistles on the JM.Btw damn you got mad skills on that thing nice work!

[@royrcf]

Awesome playing,

[@LucasFowler]

Thanks very much!

[@iiGODLYWARRIOR]

These are going to be in high demand when Fender discontinues them. They're a modder's dream. I'm thinking about putting the Dave Mustaine Seymour Duncans in mine. Oh, and a gold mirror pickguard 😎🎸🤘

[@matt.noble05]

Just ordered one, should be here in a few weeks!!!

[@albertgein3082]

3 days for me 👌

[@matt.noble05]

@@albertgein3082 it's an amazing guitar, you'll love it!

[@albertgein3082]

@@matt.noble05 yas.. and I wanna put a Seymour Duncan in that bad boy.. I already got plans too any suggestions??

[@albertgein3082]

Can't wait till Tuesday

[@matt.noble05]

@@albertgein3082 I'm planning to put a seymour duncan invader in the bridge. then I'm planning to replace the tuners to some locking ones. and I'm thinking of replacing the bridge. just not sure what to yet

[@mjobermeyer09]

I picked one up in black up. I’m looking to put some Seymour Duncan pickups into it. As is, it’s great for high gain tunes.

[@VictorVDoom]

Hey bud, I’m getting this guitar soon and was wondering which Seymour pups did you get? Thanks

[@mjobermeyer09]

@@VictorVDoom I put the Seymour Duncan invaders in mine.

[@jdmhbeats]

Got any left? Im in the UK. I need this guitar man!

[@maxe9612]

I cant decide whether to get this jazz master affinity or get the jazzmaster contemporary. I play in a rock/grunge band but I also like to play metal in my spare time, both look and sound amazing however this one is almost half the price of the contemporary. So I'm torn between which guitar to buy :/

[@LucasFowler]

I can't speak for the contemporary, but you can absolutely play rock, grunge and metal on this guitar. The pickups have plenty of output for any of the more aggressive styles and the guitar has a nice tight bottom end.

[@Kamil92Zgon]

I think that most of Fender type guitars has this really noisy high freqs. I heard that also in that model, even if it has humbucker pickups. Do you think it`s a matter of squier/fender guitars as acoustic construction or pickups? What produces these high freq. noises? Thank you

[@jjcarta0610]

Hi Lucas, does it holds tune very well? Planning to buy one! Thanks!

[@LucasFowler]

I have had no tuning troubles with mine :)

[@hynekibr6793]

Great video!!! Its ok for dropC tuning? Another bridge pickups? Thanks

[@LucasFowler]

It would be fine for Drop C, though you'll probably want to adjust the string gauge accordingly. Maybe an 11-54 set to keep that low end tight. The stock pickups actually sound really good, but they are definitely more "fender" sounding than most humbuckers. Your mileage may vary, but a great guitar either way!

[@hynekibr6793]

Lucas Fowler thanks bro!!! I buy one tomorrow:) one more thx:)

[@movimentodoscacos]

@@LucasFowler I use an 11-54 set for standard tuning, would you say these humbuckers are "clearer" sounding than most humbuckers? I play mostly noise rock with some post-rock influence, do you think this guitar offers enough versatility to someonde who will be most of the time playing through distortion but also wants to do some ambient-ish stuff? Sorry for flooding you with questions, great review btw.

[@Mattsnotyours]

Rad playing!

[@bigsby78]

Merci pour ce test complet. Et bravo

[@rooseveltzavala999]

Thnx for this review!

[@LucasFowler]

I'm glad you liked it! Its a great guitar.

[@Leo-fs7ts]

Hi i want to buy a guitar to play blues would this guitar be the right one or which one do you suggest and also which amp should i get .. thank you

[@ck2music712]

Just my opinion, but if you're relatively new to guitar, you really can't go wrong with a Squier Stratocaster of some kind... They sound great for Blues, but they're really about as versatile as you can get... And you can pick one up used for under $100... That'd be my suggestion...

[@EasyHeat]

The 2018's, like my white one, had Rosewood boards, but the later, like my black one? Is either Pao Ferro or Indian Laurel, I forget. Not a deal breaker IMO.

[@lancherosnovajuanjose5143]

It is a beautiful guitar, do you think I can get the Nirvana style with it?

[@LucasFowler]

Absolutely.

[@MilkoOfficialChannel]

Super review

[@TrickyPickins]

I normally play with 11’s, is that to big a string gauge for this guitar? My guitar that I have now is an old strat copy and that is the string gauge I use. I just went to a Sam ash yesterday and tried the jazz master, and I like it a lot, I was just wondering if the string gauge I use is too much for this guitar.

[@LucasFowler]

11's are what I use on mine. They aren't too much, but you will need to make some small adjustments for a heavier string gauge, you'll probably need to widen the nut slots a little and adjust the neck relief, but these are adjustments a qualified tech can do for you in a basic set up.

[@TrickyPickins]

Lucas Fowler okay I like the abrasive texture of thicker gauge strings, but I wouldn’t mind using lighter gauge. Thanks for the info. Good video tho.

[@TrickyPickins]

Lucas Fowler My strat copy was set up when it was with someone else when I loaned it so it could get fixed. It had 11s and was set up for that and I liked it, so I stick with that now. Thanks for the info.

[@Datttsnake]

I'm trying to get into blues what would you recommend? Would this be a good guitar for that?

[@jazzmasterfuzzblaster]

Not really a blues guitar, you might wanna look into strats for that

[@RiXDiP]

🔥🔥🔥

[@DravenxEyeless]

I want to get this guitar so bad, and to use it with a Drop B tune. Would you say the material can keep up with that, being a Squier?, and what gouge would you say would be good for that for its 25.5 scale factor?

[@iiGODLYWARRIOR]

just buy the thickest set of strings you can find. i used to play drop c# on my short scale jaguar with no problem

[@GrimYak]

I came here because I bought a squier affinity HH and was wondering if i should get Seymour's, but upon looking at this video i think i should wait till it arrives and see how the pups sound before i change them.

[@diegoleiro8932]

Qué diferencia hay con la jagmaster standard h h ? No es igual?

[@paradox7743]

Kick Ass guitar .Find mine in someone's garbage-THe Guitar has a mean nasty hard Rocking tone. It is a bit heavy @ almost 9 lbs. But neck pickup is stellar...

[@orenfisher8948]

...and check the nifty licks at 5:50 and 9:58!

[@gabeblums2062]

First riff sounds like Foo Fighters. Starts at 1:59

[@ivankryzh]

Should I buy this one or Yamaha Pacifica?

[@iahan4961]

The pacifica is probably *slightly* better in terms of quality parts but if you want the jazzmaster shape go for this

[@hidaroot2282]

matter of taste. pacifica is very standard cheap but good quality guitar, this jazzmaster is something else, longer range thou it doesnt feel long at all, but yes so easy to get the high range. jazzmaster pickup is awesome, really clear tone and so detail, im using fuzz btw and its so perfectly fit.

[@rudemf1990]

I'd get the squiers ive had less issues with squiers than Yamahas ( I do own a strat in both and the Yamaha plays a little better but that has taken me forever to get it to that point)

[@tomjjordan91]

What amp are you using?

[@danielpecheny]

Amazing

[@benasslick67]

Is the body thickness the same as a fender Jazzmaster? I know the affinities usually run thinner.

[@supermariasunshine2618]

This one is definitely thinner. Not a bad thing in my opinion, makes it lighter and easier to gig with.

[@jumpboy29]

I've compared affinity jazzmasters next to a j mascis and the thickness is nearly identical, though the body contours are slightly different. Their may be a small difference in thickness but it's not big like an affinity strat compared to a standard. This page has some picture comparison with affinity-fender jazzmaster offsetguitars.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=109700

[@Kurk4soul]

this guitar sounds exactly like an HH jag imo

[@danielcarter3928]

Does anyone know what the best gauge strings to use on a Jazzmaster are? I'm going to be picking up one of these really soon, and want to order a new set of strings along with it, and am curious what gauge to go with! I've read a lot of people say 11s are best for the Jazzmaster.

[@cloudsnbrooms8954]

You have to choose your gauge with your tuning. For a standard tuning, I recommend a 10-46 gauge. It's really polyvalent if you want to change your tuning without changing your strings. I hope I could help you, and sorry for potential mistakes, I'm not anglophone 🤗

[@TheDmonet]

Very late reply, this jazzmaster doesn't have any of the traditional problems with Jazzmaster bridges, because it doesn't have a "jazzmaster" bridge, where saddles rattle and strings pop off. So put whatever strings you want on it, you just have to make the same adjustments you'd have to make with a tele. This guitar is basically a tele deluxe in a jazzmaster shape without the fake "wide range" pickups, so it's easier to swap pickups in and out. With the tele deluxe, you need to get a new pickguard because standard gibson size HB's don't fit, which is stupid. Most deluxe and '72 thinlines Fender and Squier released over the last few decades have standard humbuckers covered with giant wide range plates, and they pretty much suck, so many people want to change them out, and now you need to spend money on a pickguard. Spoken from experience on my 72 thinline.

[@ze-ce.cra_]

Does the body thinner than regular model? Because the Affinity Tele and Strat both have a hair thinner body

[@LucasFowler]

I don't have a Fender Jazzmaster with which to compare it, but it doesn't feel "thin" like an Affinity guitar often does.

[@ze-ce.cra_]

@@LucasFowler hmm interesting.. Thanks a lot for the info

[@dubox37]

@@ze-ce.cra_ not sure compared to a regular Jazzmaster, but compared to my MIM Strat it is around 3mm thinner. Just measured them last night actually haha

[@ze-ce.cra_]

@@dubox37 really? Wow that's interesting I think... Hmm..

[@oxcerionelpocoyoconswag7136]

in Argentina that guitar costs 400 dollars. im argentinian

[@vldmrkrch]

In Ukraine - 300 USD

[@honkyvanwildebeest8926]

$329 AUD in Australia

[@Emerson159100]

3000 R$ here in Brazil kkkkkk, its a joke that price, Lol

[@JayEdom]

does this guitar have a bit of a quack like the strats do

[@LucasFowler]

I don't know if quack is the word I would use, since I typically use that to describe the 2 and 4 positions on a strat. It does have an inherently "fender" sound though, bright, snappy and very clear. Even with the stock pickups which are pretty hot.

[@devonmcgettigan6469]

what amp is this

[@LucasFowler]

That's my Line 6 Helix directly into my computer, modeling a Hiwatt and a Marshall Plexi later.

[@lgiorgos1]

What s the weight of it?

[@LucasFowler]

About 7.5 pounds. Pretty light, especially considering the size.

[@mikejones-vd3fg]

Tone reminds me of when I had a Mexican HSS strat, still too much i think honestly for a no frills budget guitar it comes in at 269.99 here in Canada at Best Buy where I saw it. Thats $300 with taxes. If it was $200 i would have just bought it on impulse, but the budget guitar makers have upped their game a Harley Benton can be had for like 400 with stainless steel frets and all the fine little details, and their $200 guitars offer way more, i guess your still paying for the name, or body shape in this case. Not to take away anything from this guitar, it sounded great, and great playing too but man just looking at what i can get for $200 CAD at the Harley Benton website, only if they werent blatant copies of known guitars! but still a lot of guitar for the money.

[@lgiorgos1]

Harley Bentons are trash most of the time. And they don't copy the feel of the guitar only the appearance . For example they have a standard fretboard radius for every guitar they produce. And there is no way they sound like this one. Squier pickups are probably the best on budget guitars.

[@toasted_butter5601]

Is it right handed?

[@LucasFowler]

Indeed it is, just offset style body. Although I think a reverse Jazzmaster would look cool!

[@laussethecat]

That guitar is a Jazzmaster in name only. No jazzmaster vibrato, Maple neck, No rhythm circuit, No soap box pickups. Why even call it a Jazzmaster?

[@LucasFowler]

I said something like that at 1:08 , it's really just the Jazzmaster shape.

[@Sanya_paket]

In Russian stores it is 350$((((

[@petarrazovicmusicchannel460]

I'm sorry, but this is a sound device for scaring birds in the garden, not a guitar. The test guitar must be done with clean sound and not with distortion because every distorted guitar sounds almost the same

[@rutiger6901]

You right! This is just a misshapen strat. But so what. the sound of any guitar is determined 100% by the amplifier. Your particular amp sounds so much like a chainsaw that I pulled the pin. I don't care much for the scream of a chainsaw.

[@bobdeluxeandtheideals1356]

🔥🔥🔥