Which One Is The REAL Jazz Guitar?

[@twli]

I was starting to fetishize guitars until I realized I'd be better by focusing on the notes I play instead of the guitar on which I play them. It was liberating, and this video confirms it's fine to not obsess much about guitars.

[@JensLarsen]

Indeed! The most important thing is probably how they feel to play!

[@chrisnedbalek2866]

You can't do that! That attitude doesn't sell guitars!

[@JensLarsen]

@@chrisnedbalek2866 😂😂👍

[@nicolas.ordialesjuarez]

It's the "container culture" (and not the content) in which the actual liberal/globalist system only can be sustained.

[@snifty4497]

I quite like the feel of playing my Jazzmaster but I’m clueless about tone, amps, and all that. I feel like the best next step for me would be to learn a bit about tone studio (I have a Boss Katana amp)and EQ and stuff like that before figuring out what my next guitar will be. I do drool over semi-hollows though.

[@JensLarsen]

Do we need a video on string gauges? That could be another experiment

[@dcjway]

Yes please.

[@Calbertone]

They make a massive difference to sound. Martino Benson would sound very different on 8s round. I find that Daddario ej12s have a really defined sound that makes my archtops sound more similar to one another than when stringed with say Thomastik, which are more neutral.

[@marcusjansen3904]

I think string gauges make a big difference in the acoustic sound. Not so shure with electric amplification? Would be very interested how you think about it.

[@paulpmanhowland7818]

I was gonna say some things about string gauges actually. I'll save my comments for that video.

[@TheElectricfishmusic]

Yes!

[@autokrohne]

I agree. The biggest difference among amplified electric guitars tonality is probably between single coils and double coils - all other things being equal. Other KZbinrs have shown how little difference body construction and design makes among electric guitars. One even suggested that how you mike the speakers makes an even greater difference - well demonstrated. There are so many factors involved in getting the tone you want, it is hard to pick just one element. I think it is the player who works with their gear who is the biggest determinant of the tone we hear - at least live. I know I work with my gear until I hear the tone I want. It almost doesn’t matter what guitar I pick up. We guitarists often obsess too much about the wrong things. We should spend more time learning how to play.

[@michu6777]

Yup, pickups are the biggest factor in a guitar's sound. Scale length also makes a huge difference

[@randyzeitman1354]

They DO NOT care... any excuse to claim there is a different tone is an excuse to buy more toys.

[@raymondarthur5937]

Agreed re: single coils vs humbuckers being the only difference that I could really notice. I'm guessing guitar #2 was the Strat. The rest all sound the same to me!

[@dappawap]

the last jazz gig I did was with a Vantage superstrat with a Floyd Rose it's all sbout pickups

[@ScrubDaddy265]

You can even mitigate that by rewiring a double coil in parallel with itself to cancel the midrange and it will sound more like a single coil. You can conversely boost mids on a single coil, but the hum will always be there. Even neck versus bridge can be altered with filters, EQ, and gain adjustment.

[@DARKLYLIT]

If, as guitarists, we put as much time into actually PRACTICING and PLAYING, as we often spend obsessing about gear, we would all be much better musicians than we are. Speaking from experience, I can certainly attest to this fact. Having a decent guitar that is well set-up and a decent amp, will be fine for most of us... for DECADES, without having to spend a fortune on the "right", "best", "most versatile", or "vintage" guitar we can find. If we focus on the music, not the gear, we'll all be better musicians for it.

[@BrianVallotton]

Yes, welcome to my world. I love everything about music and I love learning and using new technology, but as a guitar player I have felt the surge of sadness that I have not had my guitar in my hands as often as I could have. I am 62 and whatever time I have here I want to have the guitar in my hands more often. I still enjoy all the subjects around it, but nothing takes the place of fingers on the fretboard! God bless.

[@JazzGuitarTS]

Holy words!! Just stopped taking care of gear some 20 years ago, after recording an album with inexpensive gear which I found in studio. Just talk about MUSIC not guitars, amps etc. The REAL big change for me was start playing with thumb instead of pick, whatever guitar/amp

[@julianharford-taylor5962]

Hence the term here in Australia “all the gear with no idea” 😅

[@robertfuller2196]

@DARKLYLIT You do realize that if you persist in making correct and logical arguments like this, you'll be unceremoniously bounced from the League of Haughtily Obnoxious Guitar Afficionados...?

[@riclrk9947]

A jazz guitar is any guitar you play jazz on

[@anuktouceda5242]

True words of wisdom by @riclrk9947!!

[@rockstarjazzcat]

I hear pickups, fret buzz, note envelope… Some guitars cripple my playing, others inspire and feel effortless to play. Having played for four decades and owning two dozen or so guitars of heterogeneous design, always glad to see folks pointing out that your FM3 sounds great. ;-) The greats are as susceptible to myth as any of us. Good to see fellow players emphasizing focus on note choice, phrasing, and well, aesthetic choices born of knowledge and skill and not of assumptions. Fun video, Jens! 😊 Cheers all, Daniel

[@t3hgir]

@@pbajnow I recently got an AxeFX II used and it blows my mind every time... "It's a space station..." - Steve Vai

[@timothydaniels504]

I grew up in Toronto in the 60’s listening to a great jazz guitarist, Ed Bickert, without even being aware of who he was. He played all sorts of gig’s with a CBC house band that backed many different performers. Being a hard core r&b fan I used to wonder who the guy was playing the white Telecaster. I love the almost delicate precision and tone of his playing. As a Torontonian, I’m so happy that all you jazz cats are making sure that he’ll never be forgotten.

[@jaaklucas1329]

Nice to hear him mention Lorne Lofsky as well...

[@RC32Smiths01]

Interesting and very truthful video man. For me, if a guitar can play jazz, which with the right settings and tones can be any model really, then it doesn't have to be a guitar that was built specifically for jazz. Cheers man!

[@leascaart]

Dear Jens, this is such a great video, not just for learning about tone and guitars, but also learning about your favorite players and other players I was not familiar with. You always keep it classy. Thanks.

[@JensLarsen]

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it!

[@kenneylee8431]

I choose guitars for a project in order to exploit their differences, not to make them sound alike. String type, fret height, neck width, fretboard radius, how it interacts with amp or DAW, etc. will influence my choice for a particular session. Love the idea of a string comparison video! Round vs flat, nickel vs chrome, expensive vs cheap. Love your videos!

[@clintstewart6627]

Any style of music is in your fingers from your minds eye. The great innovators of the world, in any form, have always gone against the conventional grain. You sound fantastic and clearly understand the language you speak. Carry on my friend 💪👍😎

[@lalinho767]

Como siempre Jens, aprendiendo de tus aportaciones. "No oigan con los ojos" ¡qué gran verdad! Saludos y gracias.

[@JensLarsen]

You are very welcome 🙂

[@qmj9720]

The first time I played a 335 I fell in lust. Not a real jazz guitar? So what. I'm not a real jazz player. Perfect match. Great video! Thanks for taking the time.

[@jimmrvos2930]

Thanks Jens! I’m fascinated by guitars and have always enjoy this kind of video. I play a lot of tennis. Your video reminded me of a saying I have about the obsessions people have with tennis racquets: “A good tennis player can beat you using a snowshoe”. Jens, I think you’d be able to play great jazz using a using a snowshoe too!

[@JensLarsen]

Haha! Thanks Jim! 🙂

[@bjornlangoren3002]

Or old tennis racket. How anyone could hit the ball with those tiny heads is amazing.

[@marcosplaystheguitar4770]

That is true. But if I play Roger Federer using a snowshoe, it will take him probably 3 minutes to beat me. If he's using a more appropriate gear, it will take him 1 minute.... An appropriate equipment cannot be neglected.

[@kennethbrein2037]

I liked all of them. So much of the tone comes from the hands, so Jens could make almost any guitar sound good.

[@djsjdh-hoahdi]

The best advice Jens has given me came from when the visual at the start of the video came up saying “New text layer” Such profound advice, it changed the way I think forever, and has greatly influenced my jazz playing.

[@JensLarsen]

Just go with it and see where it takes you 😁

[@djsjdh-hoahdi]

@official_jensLarsen go away scammer

[@ob1quixote]

This video just confirms my intuition that you should play what you want to play with anything that will stay in tune. I agonized for a long time about how I couldn't get the sound I wanted without a specific guitar. Then I watched Jim Lill's videos and realized that, above a certain threshold, gear does not matter to your sound.

[@BrianVallotton]

I really enjoyed this video Jens. I love your sense of humor too! I have a brand new Gibson ES335 arriving Tuesday! I sold a bunch of stuff and can feel good about spending a LOT of money. I am essentially playing three guitars that are pretty distinct from each other. A PRS Custom 24, A Fender Stratocaster Ultra, and now the 335. The Strat is by far the one I reach for the most. We will see if the 335 will become my number one. I play at church, mostly contemporary worship songs. At home I spend a lot of time trying to get those beautiful chord tones you play. I have a long ways to go, but you are always an encouragement. Thanks and God bless you and all you love.

[@mbmillermo]

This was a great video. The key concept is EQ. I've seen quite a few videos where studio pros talk about guitar recording and they're always really into EQ and how much it changes the sound of the guitar. They are also really into mic placement. I've been working for years on my playing, but completely ignoring these issues. Soon I will start recording myself, and then all of this stuff about EQ, mics, etc., will become my new obsession. There are so many choices, even within one guitar/amp combo without any other processing: pickup switch, tone knobs, volume knobs -- both on guitar and amp -- and stuff like whether I turn the guitar up and the amp down, or the guitar down and the amp up, will make a huge difference. Any one rig can produce a huge range of sounds.

[@gibsonflyingv2820]

Mics yes, EQ no. I really wouldn’t bother with EQ in jazz guitar since much of the form predates it.

[@mbmillermo]

@gibsonflyingv2820 -- I don't think it's possible to "not bother with EQ". If you have a tone knob on your guitar, and/or a tone knob on your amplifier, then you are "bothering with EQ". This is also true if you have a pickup switch.

[@gibsonflyingv2820]

@@mbmillermo That's stupid. You know what I'm talking about, I'm talking about signal chain EQ in a pedal or guitar amp. Not fixed "EQ" in an instrument. That's a ridiculous comparison.

[@gibsonflyingv2820]

@@mbmillermo Comparing your pickups tonality to mixing levels with an EQ is also just silly. Guitar tone knobs cut frequencies, they certainly don't boost them, EQ is for boosting and lowering frequencies in a mix. Again, don't bother with EQ, the guitar itself with a mic'd cab Is the correct sound.

[@mbmillermo]

@@gibsonflyingv2820 I guess we only disagree because I don't know what EQ is. I thought it was a broader concept. Maybe a tone knob on a guitar is not doing EQ.

[@JensLarsen]

Is there such a thing as a Jazz Guitar? and what is it? And what about Amps? kzbin.info/www/bejne/kJq7dmeJebKta5I

[@paulpmanhowland7818]

Quilter. Before that, Peavey. But I use a pedal style preamp and cab sim solution in to the effects return or recording interface.

[@robertnewell5057]

There's no such thing as a jazz guitar or a jazz guitar amp. I cannot remember if I commented here or on a similar thread, but I say UK jazzer Adrian Ingram turn up at a workshop, pull a Fender tele out of a gig bag, plug in to the house Fender twin and blow everyone away with solo fingerstyle jazz. That night, same guitar, another borrowed amp and he played a huge variety of jazz styles at a stratospheric level in a dingy little club setting with a pickup band. I don't recall him touching the controls the whole night. He just knows how jazz guitar sounds.

[@kamrankerim636]

thanks Jens. I am playing jazz (amateur level) on a strat, and I was kind of insecure about it. But you help change my mind that it is not a big deal at all.

[@JensLarsen]

Great! Just go for it 🙂

[@Grindstaff09]

Me, too.

[@pierremandon2323]

About Glenn's videos, it's not so much that all metal sounds the same: it's more about the fact that if something is gonna affect your sound, it's not so much the kind of pickups you're using.

[@rickjensen2717]

Very intersting comparisons Jens ✅. I play my Gibson ES 137 semi-hollow for gigs and playing with brass and reed instruments as its got a nice mellow but punchy sound. I use a Gibson ES 175 for studio recording, small groups or solo playing where you really can hear that thick warm tone. I never use any pedals these days, EQ or compression. However, I think the main thing is to play an instrument that inspires, has a quality sound and is playable. 95% of the audience can't really tell the difference to be honest.

[@diystompbox]

This is a real player perspective! Very similar to pedals - sometimes the "feel" is just as (or more) important than the sound to the player. Your comment about sustain, envelope and dynamics is spot on when adjusting the feel of an overdrive pedal using different clipping solutions! Great video!

[@bradhurlburt2227]

This was really interesting, Jens. I currently own and play an Eastman 403ce that I bought at a great shop in Summit, NJ, Guitar and Jazz, which is dedicated exclusively to jazz guitars. I played a bunch of more expensive archtops, but went with the 403ce because it didn't break my bank account and it held up against much more expensive guitars. Would I love to own a 175? Absolutely! Will it make me a better player? Probably not as much as watching your videos and practicing everyday on my Eastman. Thank you for always inspiring me, Jens! Cheers from VT!

[@Nightjar726]

Great video. As a guitarist of over 35 years. Yeah of course there is a minute difference and you have to ‘ squint’ to tell. The point is that it’s the tactile feel of the instrument to the player. That’s all that counts in the end. Expensive or cheap guitar. If the feel is good to the musician then that’s what inspires us to play. That’s pretty much it. Acoustic guitars are quite a different story. And of course aesthetics are super important to us human beings. And rightfully so. Of course it’s good to ground ourselves and know that the music is the most important. The only thing I look for now in a guitar is if I can’t put it down. That’s the ‘ one’. No more listening for midrange, clarity etc. Great video

[@michaelstevens8]

Jens, great video as always. The fact is that some, and the key word here is some Jazz Fans/Musicians are a little bit snobbish when it comes to Guitars. They believe that if you're playing Jazz, it has to be a Hollow body Single Cut Guitar. But it's not true. Ted Greene and Ed Bickert played Telecasters. John Abercrombie played Solid/Semi and Hollowbody's. Terje Rypdal plays Strats. Scofield plays Semi hollowbody's. Allan Holdsworth played Chambered Solidbody's. Stanley Jordan plays Solidbody's. Nir Felder plays a Strat. The point is that you can Dial in a Good Jazz Tone on just about any Guitar. Not always. But usually. Also, it doesn't have to be a 10,000 Dollar Gibson L-5. Thanks.

[@babylemonade2868]

Jens that bit of shredding on the Strat was awesome. More please😃

[@freeforscott]

Jens, it is so nice to watch and listen to your videos. This vid was fun for the switch games but what made it great was how adult and honest you are, not pushing any agenda. You make it feel like I'm talking with a friend. A very good musician friend.

[@JensLarsen]

Thank you very much 🙂

[@thatlovejones]

Wonderful video. The Strat sounded great to me, I think about semi hollows and jazz boxes a lot as I branch out into jazz, but maybe I'll just stick with my Strat for now. Really fun editing on this video.

[@JensLarsen]

It's not the guitar anyway, it is what you play on it. Glad you like the video 🙂

[@jmoorecareers]

Excellent video. I suggest that a major factor in the similarity of the sound of those guitars is the talent and experience in the two hands playing them. Call me crazy, but I think accomplished players subconsciously adjust their technique to get a specific desired sound from different guitars. There are limits to this of course but I think it happens.

[@BrianVallotton]

Very good point!

[@AlanThomas-hp3fn]

Pretty much. My personal experience neck shape and set up produce different sounds from my guitars. The brand or pickup type not so much. I don't use any pedals just reverb in the amp.

[@ElenaTheMenace]

It's so cool to see Glenn Fricker refer to Jim Lill, a country musician, and you refer to Glenn, a metal studio engineer. Across all the genres, you all just care about getting the best from the instrument you love.

[@Typical.Anomaly]

You and Glenn are my main guitar KZbinrs! He's got a bit of a potty mouth but it's usually just tough love lol Very interesting that this applies to clean tone as well. Humbucker vs. single coil vs. P90 does make a difference imo, but as far as recording goes, speakers and mics (and mic placement) are the biggest influence on tone.

[@JensLarsen]

Glenn is a lot of fun, and a really nice guy if you meet him!

[@raymondwlodarski786]

Great stuff..it's all about the tone..i like to put humbuckers in my strats..recently, playing more jazz, I'm looking at hollow bodies..but I believe I can get great tone from the strat..but yes..the jazz guys don't like to see my strat.

[@JensLarsen]

Yes, we listen with our eyes as well 😁

[@Gk2003m]

There have been multiple experiments that clearly illustrate that the main sonic component of an electric guitar is (drum roll please)….. THE PICKUPS. From there, as you move from solid to semi hollow to archtop you’ll get less sustain of the intitial pick attack. So an archtop will sound more ‘percussive’ while a solidbody will be smoother overall. I personally love my archtop (w/floating pickup, and electronics mounted in the pickguard), AND I love the ES335 a guitarist brings down for our weekly session. They both sound great. He also brings a Telecaster occasionally, and that too sounds great as does his Strat. I’ve seen people play jazz on ‘pointy’ guitars designed to be ‘metal’ guitars…. as long as you back down the volume a tad and engage the neck pickup, they sound just fine,

[@JensLarsen]

But would you not expect a bigger difference between the P90 and the humbucker then?

[@paul_der_pinguin6791]

I don’t know if it is a hot take, but I love to play jazz with my Gibson SG. In my opinion the warm and harsh sg sound is amazing for jazz. But in general I think you can play jazz with any guitar and it sounds beautiful. Great video btw.

[@koaguilds]

I have a batwing SG with the big neck and an angel wing SG with the slim taper neck and both work great for jazz. I learned much of Duke Ellingtons early catalog on the SG's.

[@stevealliemusic]

I remember seeing an article years ago about a jazz session player that used a telecaster for all his sessions. Since he was a working player, it would make sense that the real jazz guitar is the one people pay you money to play.

[@jabohonu]

Beautiful video. The start really has a beauty sound a wide range of tones. I bet almost no one noticed the strat as #2

[@janehutchison1063]

Cool video. I owned a Barney Kessel guitar (fat hollow body) and on gigs always had to be conscious of feedback issues. I traded for a 335 style guitar--much less prone to those issues and the tone is right where I want it

[@snifty4497]

I’ve never played one and always wondered if those huge beasts are uncomfortable to play?

[@janehutchison1063]

@@snifty4497 no. They're not uncomfortable to play at all

[@richclayton5785]

❤ it’s really about the musicians ears and fingers. Great job thanks!

[@JensLarsen]

My pleasure!

[@misterarthur]

Wonderful video. Thanks for the lesson! So much of a guitar's 'tone' is from the player's hands

[@JensLarsen]

Glad you liked it!

[@ChordYogaGuitar]

Thank you for addressing this! A lot of the sonic differences we work with are indeed very subtle and the 'form factor' of that interface (guitar) is only one aspect among many others. Actually a nice takeaway that one's own personal guitar touch / technique / tone also 'equalizes' the sound of different types of instrument. I have three guitars, mostly to have a variety of pickup sounds on tap and while I stopped to aim to achieve that "official" jazz tone the differences are so subtle - the most audible difference is how a guitar makes you play.

[@JensLarsen]

Glad you like it Jan! Hope you are well! It is nice to have a video to send people when they tell me that I should be playing another guitar because it sounds better 🙂

[@greg_austin]

I play an old 70s Ovation with a chipped tuning head that I bought for $40. Works great

[@RonnyGuittarDuo]

Totally agree with you. The eyes do listen, too. Since 1974 I do play electric guitar and I can´t say it often enough: If you close your eyes and can tell exactly which guitar you hear, you are a magician, a guru, a kind of guitar Merlin. Even sometimes one cannot even say, if the song is played on a single coil or on a humbucker. By using additional effect pedals, the situation is even more complicated. I have both: hollowbodies as well als solid bodies and somehow I can produce exactly the same sound with each of these guitars. If you don´t see them you don´t know which one is played. I love your video. Thank you for this.

[@crimfan]

The guitars all sounded good and have workable tones. There were differences in each clip but not enough that I'd say a bit of EQ wouldn't solve that. In a mix they'd work great. Feel-wise, I suspect they'd all bring out different things in the player, especially the scale length difference between 24.75" and 25.5".

[@politicus56]

Yes. Beautifully explained...and without any judgemental dogma. Tim Lerch gets a fantastic tone out of his Telecasters. Robben Ford played overdriven L5s and Super 400s back when he played with Jimmy Witherspoon. Steve Howe played a 175 with Yes. Jack Pearson plays a Squire Stratocaster a lot of the time and if you close your eyes you would swear it was duane Allman on a Les Paul. That "Emperor's New Clothes" analogy is fitting. What works is what works for you. Listen with your ears.There are an amazing variety of sounds in any good guitar and most players never even begin to explore the possibilites. Thanks for the great analysis. Keep up the good work.

[@stratplayr6997]

This is the perfect demonstration of "tone is in the hands". It's the player, not the gear

[@maraviyoso8473]

It IS the gear. Try to play with no guitar

[@Terkenk]

Great video! I have been a guitar maker for almost 20 years. Flat top acoustics and hollow body jazz guitars. One thing that surprised me was how you could take an average instrument , acoustic or plugged in, and put it in the hands of an average player and it sounded - well - average. Put it in the hands of an accomplished professional and wow! Technique is huge eh? The other was how important the headstock logo is in sales for a large hunk of the buying public. Maybe you secretly realize you like the Ibanez or Eastman better but your public image demands “Gibson”.

[@paulpmanhowland7818]

Interesting video. I love this kind of thing. I spend way more time than necessary thinking about stuff like this. I'm definitely gonna watch this again. I bought a Gibson Les Paul last year. That thing sounds great! Especially on the neck pickup. I'm surprised more people don't use them for Jazz.

[@JensLarsen]

Glad you enjoyed it, Paul! It is fun, and also great to have a little variation between all the lessons

[@Rexmorgan687]

Wanted to piggy back off your comment on Les Pauls. I typ play a solid-body LTD EC-256 (Les Paul Clone) with a couple Seymour-Duncan jazz PUPs. That swap alone helped to really bring out my low-end and deliver a warmer, darker, and clearer tone from my neck PUP. Cost about $100 for the swap at the time but made a $250 guitar sound like $2500. It's a light-weight, wide-necked jazz machine that delights me every time I pick up and plug in. Can't say enough about those Seymour-Duncan jazz PUPs.

[@MarkAnderson-iv1zt]

I recently bought a Les Paul w/p-90's. I Was able to dial in a sweet jazz tone.

[@marciamakesmusic]

I used to use a les paul junior with the p90 in the neck, and it has a great jazz sound! The major problem I ran into is that 1) the guitar is just too heavy to be comfortable for me long term, and 2) I don't love the shape of the neck.

[@Guitar6ty]

Well Les Paul certainly thought his solid body guitars were great for Jazz.

[@samprakos]

I love this video!! People seem to think that certain electrics are genre specific and that's just not the case. I can however really hear differences in acoustic guitars...electrics, not so much especially given the ability to alter the sound via pedals, etc.

[@JensLarsen]

Thanks for watching!

[@maxwellshammer5283]

I’m not sure anymore how important the type of guitar is. For the longest time I wanted a good hollow body. But, when I finally got one I wasn’t happy with the position it put me in with the thicker body, so I went back to my first love, semi-hollow guitars. But really, the first time I tried a Telecaster I was able to dial in a pretty decent jazz tone on that guitar also. I guess it’s just personal choice.

[@DaveElke]

Fun video. I’ve gone through fully hollow, semi hollow, solid body and all types. They all inspire in a different way. I keep coming back to telecasters and Stratocasters but also really enjoy gibsons of all kinds. Man, guitars are just awesome. Each one is unique and a great guitar can inspire a great performance. Cheers.

[@michavandam]

Funny how you maintain the exact opposite of what Jens Larsen is demonstrating in his video.

[@RomulusReemus]

This experiment confirmed my biases: #3 and #5 clearly stood out as preferable to the rest, and sure enough they were hollow and semi. #2 #4 noticeably thin, with #4 outright annoying. #1 was just "OK". As you said EQ adjustment would maybe go a long way.

[@stefangeschke7604]

I completely agree. I also thought the third guitar was clearly the best of the five. Which is amazing given the fact that this ES175 has single coils. However, the difference was not so clear in the three guitar comparison. I have an ES175 clone and a semi-hollow, both with humbuckers and identical strings, and sometimes they sound the same to my ear and sometimes they don't. The difference is minimal and probably not at all noticable in a band context.

[@royswan]

Agree. I’m 70 and have chased / owned various guitars. Spent several years playing my 175s (and even an L5) Recently sold my last full hollowbody because, like you, I couldn’t hear much difference compared to my 335 - and I really do like the better access to the high notes. I expect I may eventually go back to where I started- on a solid body! Lest we never forget, Les Paul was himself a jazz musician 😂!

[@doctbarr]

One thing that strikes me apart from the bodies is that the P90 sounds the same as the humbuckers. I am one of the ones that your fooled and I love it!

[@JensLarsen]

Yes, I was also super surprised by that! :)

[@timwarneka5681]

Thanks for the video, sir! Long time jazz player here. Always wanted an ES-175; simply not in my budget. I have a Yamaha SBG 2000 (similar to your SG1000. I’ve been astounded how the Yamaha with (as you mentioned in this video) an EQ pedal ( Boss GE-7 for me) gets me VERY close to that archetypal jazz sound in my head. Thanks for confirming my experience!

[@JensLarsen]

My pleasure! 😁

[@DavidKAnderson]

Wonderful, thought-provoking video. For jazz, I play an ESP semi-hollow eclipse, one of the early ones with a bolt-on neck (the later Eclipse semis are set neck). The moderate output factory humbuckers are pretty versatile, and I've never had a problem getting jazz tones I like from various profiles on my Kemper. I'm glad that's the case, because its typical ESP playability gives me a lot of confidence tackling technically demanding music, and I don't have to choose between a guitar that sounds like I want and one I can actually play stuff on.

[@AlphaTribeBand]

The main thing I think makes the difference between archtop, semi, and solid body has nothing to do with tone or pickups. It's how the body width effects your right hand position and technique. I feel a lot more comfortable and efficient with my right hand technique when playing jazz on an archtop.

[@JensLarsen]

That is indeed one of the best reasons I have seen in the comments yet 👍🙂

[@AlphaTribeBand]

@@JensLarsen Thankyou.

[@BenKolloch]

I agree 100 %!

[@FalseNomen]

Good point. People tend to focus on the output of the music (how it sounds to the listener) versus on its input (how the guitar feels/reacts to the person playing).

[@johnmartin2597]

Jens, Thank you. This thoughtful and well-executed comparison should really help emphasize that instrument choice really is about three things. In order of importance; 1- Tone is in the practice 2- How a particular instrument “feels” to you is important to “you” and how you may play. 3- Tone is in the practice I have many guitars and nothing makes them sound better than when I emerge from some good wood-shedding sessions.

[@insidejazzguitar8112]

Fascinating and funny. Ed bickert is about my favorite tone, so so much for hollow bodies. Always wondered how the air in a hollow body affects the sound when the pick up doesn’t interact with the air at all.

[@ragingchimera8021]

Ed and his Tele were magic.

[@mattg629]

Jens, I found your experiments and videos fascinating. Thanks for indirectly telling me to practice more and spend less on more guitars chasing a "jazz tone." My wife really appreciates it!

[@rifosi]

Very interesting. I was going to point the Strat as the #4, because I heard more of high end in this take. I guess you’re right when you say that our perception is not just related to frequencies we hear but also (and in great extent) with compression and sustain, which influences a lot how the tone is shaped until it reaches our ear. These factors actually act as a kind of Eq by itself.

[@tweakrr99]

Thanks for doing such an objective comparison! To me I liked the sound of the ES335, ES175, and the Ibanez over the Strat and the SG1000, with the Ibanez sounding the nicest. It is surprising how similar the semi-hollows all sound to each other. Ultimately you proved that it's the player that makes the sound, and any of these guitars could be EQ'd or adjusted slightly to create a great sound with you playing

[@gregorglasbruch6917]

The main difference between all these guitars is the way they make us play differently. The sound comes from the fingers. So when you change guitars and you‘d like to get a certain sound then there is an automatic process that makes you adapt your picking to what’s required to get that sound you’re trying to achieve.

[@casualmetalhead9383]

I never would have imagined seeing you shredd absolutely phenomenal!!

[@JensLarsen]

😂🎉🙏

[@markw9548]

Great video. There is a factor that the sound is also in our fingers....which is why having bought various drive pedals for rock after a couple of weeks I've dialed the same sound out of all of them (even though they are supposed to be different - TS vs Plexi vs Dumble). Maybe our ears draw us to play with a particular sound irrespective of the guitar - or not ??

[@JensLarsen]

Good point!

[@jimmiphaze5785]

You have a great Channel great channel for jazz this is the place to be thanks for all your hard work thanks from Alaska

[@giovi.0]

Apart from being a wonderful musician and educator, Jens is such a gentleman

[@yikelu]

Couple of things 1. Which phrase you choose has a big effect on the tone. The 5 guitar blind test used different phrases and I could not pick out the strat. In fact I thought it was #4 because I felt #4 was the brightest. 2. The amount of high end roll off with typical jazz tone seems to mask a lot of tonal differences. In a similar vein, more distortion masks tonal differences coming pre-distortion (in Glenn's case). 3. Loudness is a huge factor in comparisons, psycho-acoustically. And the amount of overdrive the pickup provides to the amp is as well.

[@RobertHerndon]

Interesting! This video comes at time when I am assessing how often I use each of my guitars. I play blues and a little Jazz. The guitars: Epiphone ES-339 P90 Pro, Ibanez AFC151, Squier Affinity Telecaster and a Yamaha Revstar RS620. I find myself playing the Revstar the most. I almost went down the road of changing out the pickups for less hot output. Then I learned that using active EQ I could dial back the gain ahead of the amp’s preamp, while emphasizing frequencies that get me into the stereotypical jazz tone. Even with round wound strings installed. I also purchased a used Voodoo Labs Giggity which works nicely, but isn’t as handy at switching EQ curves for different tonal qualities for a given piece of music. My Ibanez has the stock pickup which is OK. But it is a floating pickup and it sounds similar to a Telecaster or a bright P90. EQ helps but I found that If I did the old-school trick of rolling back the volume, leaving the tone pot fully “open ,” I was into the “boop” tone territory. Just not as much as the Revstar with the hotter pickups. I also discovered that my cheap Squier was capable of sounding similar to the Ibanez using the volume control as a treble cut and a few tweaks of EQ at the amp. I don’t have large hands. Yet I find the Revstar’s wider nut allows me to cleanly finger chords. The Ibanez nut is as narrow as the Tele.

[@onceuponascale]

Also more confortable than the es 175 and give you better access to the upper frets.

[@johnmac8084]

Hilarious 🤣 I always say just play what you enjoy playing, and this confirms it

[@kenrobertson9995]

The conclusion in this video was really stunning, I think. The similarity between the guitars closes the gap on their price point, as well. However, I don't think that this applies to the tone of some budget guitars. I could never get the tone that I wanted from my Epiphone 335 dot - so I replaced the pickups with Low-Wind Lollars and the control harness with a supposed 335 classic - and What A Difference (a day made...🙂). I'm playing through a Henriksen Blu, as well. Now I'm *very* happy with my tone! What this video does is to make me re-think the necessity to get a 175 or something similar.... Thanks, Jens - I love your videos,

[@JensLarsen]

That was my experience as well with the Sheraton, the cheap pickups lacked definition and were muddy and unclear

[@cbolt4492]

Good video Jens. It's down to the player, not the instrument 🎷

[@JensLarsen]

Exactly, Christian!

[@rainer.b62221]

I love the acoustic sound of a good archtop in combination with the neck pickup. In a small to medium setting, this is exactly the sound I like, especially when the player is comping.

[@robertfuller2196]

"The quality of tone in an electric guitar comes entirely down to the electronics - everything else is snobbery." - prove me wrong. Updated July 3rd, 2024: Look up Jim Lill's post, "Where does the tone of an electric guitar come from?" - in which he takes the guts of a nice guitar, attaches them to an old work bench made of 2 x 4's and plywood, then proceeds to generate the identical tone of a Gibson. Mahogany bodies, ebony fretboards, and Gotoh tuners - my a$$...

[@watersnortmoment3734]

Tuners and bridges are more for tuning stability than tone. The ebony freboard is just because it looks cool

[@gibsonflyingv2820]

Dumb comparison, because these are semi acoustic guitars bud. Hollow bodied clean tone guitars like this hardly applies to Jim lil comparing a gibson to a telecaster.

[@wellfedstarvingartist]

love we're finally getting your input on this, Jens

[@JensLarsen]

Glad you like it! 🙂

[@rwfthesr]

After many years of playing my ES-345, the older stereo models, I got a ‘61 custom SG and found myself happier with the clean tone with my Fender Jazzmaster Ultralight. It just took the right amplifier. I love my Twin but not the weight 😁

[@JuanDhas]

Great video, Jens!

[@JensLarsen]

Thank you, Juan 🙂

[@MikeMurrayGuitar]

I love this, hopefully we can all focus more on our hands rather than gear. Only thing I was able to pick out was the strat and even then it hardly sounded bad for the style.

[@joelschmidt7700]

Very entertaining and informative as well. Thanks Jens. The biggest difference I noticed were the added high harmonics because you went without using your blue scrunchie to mute the strings between the nut and the tuners. Ah ha ha ha ha.........

[@JensLarsen]

Good point! 😂

[@johnjacquard863]

ive noticed this for years now, all 6 string standard tuned guitars almost the same. its why i have 6 string standard, 6 string baritone, 8 string baritone etc. so i have different sounds. i found i love the sheraton pro guitar for jazz over 335 plays nice. any guitar is great for jazz. even single coils ( tun treble knob down if you want! lol)

[@gregonline6506]

I am no professional. I´ve played guitars for almost 50 years, right now I have two strat squire which I received as a gift. We are playing mostly blues and some rock, I switch forth and back between the keys and the git. With some pedals and some patience I get a nice sound out of these guitars, I do neither have the money nore the patience to look for new gear. It works. Maybe one day I find someone able to adjust one of my strats. Would be nice. Still works. Your professional view on these things is very relaxing. Thx a lot.

[@jtbutlerjr]

Thank you for posting this. I also use an Ibanez for Jazz and R &B; this video confirms that my choice is solid. 👍🏾👍🏾😎

[@DaveBluesManFaulkner]

I've played jazz on several of my guitars (Eastman, Schecter, Ibanez AR300, Telecaster). IMHO guitarists after a time automatically twiddle the controls of guitar and amp to get the sound they like to hear - or very close. So for me this is a bit like asking "can you recognise me in this different shirt?" - yes of course and your guitars sound the same because you make it so (as do I). Gregor Hilden does this when he demonstrates guitars - which rather defeats the object of the exercise! I watch his demos and think "great guitar" then another, and another until I realise that actually "great guitarist" is the correct response! Keep up the good work!

[@JensLarsen]

My point is not really about that. I am much more demonstrating how the people who insist that there is a big difference are not able to tell, and then also that I was surprised how little a difference there was when I made that initial recording. This video is much more about the people who listen with their eyes than anything else.

[@Fatfingertunes]

I love solid body guitars, more flexible in gig situations where you play "Happy Birthday" followed by "On the Road Again", and then my girl singer wants to do "My Funny Valentine". My teacher had a 175, classic and beautiful, and I always wanted one... but then, there's Ed Bickert (as you noted) and Bill Frisell (another Tele guy). One thing I did notice... on one of your guitars, the action did not seem to be set up very well, and I did notice that. But, all said... electronics, recording and live, are so darn good now, my choice would simply go to a guitar that's fun to play... BTW, as always, I love your posts, I'm a subscriber and a fan.

[@slowjammerukdog]

Love this video! I think that having your amp and signal chain set up for a jazz sound sort of takes the edges off specific guitar tones and you get an emphasis on the common midrange frequencies. Turning things up brings out some of the more extreme individual characteristics; the distorted, bridge pickup Telecaster tones on the first Roy Buchanan album just can't be replicated on anything else, for example...but, on the other hand, there are people who drool over Jimmy Page's Les Paul 'burst' tone on the first Zeppelin album - and he's using a Tele. Thanks, Jens, you're an absolute gem.

[@JensLarsen]

Thanks! I don't know, I think all styles wants the same sound from an instrument, and that means that the type of guitar becomes less important. Would SRV really sound different on a Tele? I never even knew he used the middle pickup so much.

[@slowjammerukdog]

@@JensLarsen Hm, maybe, but there are certain sounds that seem to come only from certain guitars, like that 'Lenny', 'Little Wing' Strat neck pickup thing. A Tele doesn't quite have that. I think you're basically right, though - these iconic tones are really the exception. This makes me feel good about the £175 Hagstrom I've been attempting to play jazz on for the past 40-odd years. Sounds gorgeous.

[@onceuponascale]

Hollow or semi-hollow is the sound of jazz. NO DOUBT about that. But those can get expensive. Especially if you go for Gibson. But fortunately there is a maker called Ibanez that will give you the sound and great playability wihtout having to take a loan. Even a shredder like Frank Gambale says that one of his favourite guitar is the GB10. And Even I don’t have his chops, I could not agree more!

[@tim5749]

Hey Jen’s listened with some studio headphones with my eyes closed when the audio was mismatched up. Got all three guitars nailed perfectly! I guessed correctly later on too haha. I’m a jazz guitarist, and I play with a strat! I love the strat’s sound, and if I play just right, I can get a great jazz sound. It’s not about the guitar, it’s about the player. But . . . I will say I love the sound of a hollowbody the best hahaha great video

[@garethevans2650]

Appreciate your quest for truth. My first electric was s bass in 70s when gear was way more expensive. It was a good education to try to make it sound like players I loved who had radically different gear. With your skill you could probably make my bass sound close to what you want it to!

[@montaramike]

Awesome video! Reminds me of another video somewhere here on youtube where a guy built two guitars with the same components only difference was one was a solid wood body and the other was a concrete block. Their sound was practically identical.

[@MarkedForJazz]

This video is enormously helpful - I now have the confidence to buy just about any guitar to use as a jazz guitar, and not worry about the "authenticity" of the sound. That being said, I'm still going to buy the guitar I can find with the widest nut. Most likely the Epiphone Joe Pass Emperor II

[@JensLarsen]

That's great Emilio!

[@julianwilsonsongwritermusi9413]

Really informative. I have a Yamaha SG 1000 and have often thought of getting a hollow body guitar but now I am convinced that I don't need to. Thanks Jens! Jules

[@JensLarsen]

Glad it was helpful! I have a few lessons where I use the SG1000 if you are interested 🙂

[@julianwilsonutube]

@@JensLarsen Hi Jens At the moment I have a mega amount of stuff I'm working through. I also write lyrics for people so time is always at a premium as I jam with a small band as well. I greatly admire your teaching and easy going ways so maybe in the future I will be able to respond positively to your kind offer. Regards, Jules

[@mattc1176]

Great video - I do think there are some points that do make a difference beyond those you mention. Scale length would be one. Choice of string would be another. And from my own experiments with this stuff I’ve found that changes to things in direct physical contact with the string - bridge saddles, nut, term block etc - have some influence. But that brings me on to perhaps my main point. Many of these differences are really subtle but you shouldn’t judge them by the sonic output alone. It’s a question of how they affect your interaction with the instrument. And I really endorse your comments about things like sustain and envelope - that’s also my experience. As the saying goes, you can’t taste the chef’s knife when you go for dinner in a nice restaurant - but it made a difference to the chef, over thousands of others they might have used.

[@JensLarsen]

Thanks! I would say that sustain and envelope are sonic output? I could demonstrate the difference between the guitars in that regard, in fact, I do both in the video on the 175 and in the video on bending. What was surprising to me was that if I don't really try to emphasize the difference the there is almost no difference.

[@mattc1176]

Sustain and envelope at the guitar affect the sonic output of course - but I suggest differences between guitars before you've gone through amp, and then recording chain, and then KZbin, are bigger than one can hope to measure at output. My experience is that those differences can feed back more into how I play the instrument than you might obviously hear. Simplest example I can give is, I have 2 strats with different pickup heights (also different pickups). Those differences influence how hard I play. But I must stress, I couldn't agree more with your core message here, that the differences are far more subtle than a world of sophisticated marketing and our vanities would have us believe.

[@bgflex888]

Over the years I've really grown to appreciate your versatility, inventiveness, teaching style and, of course, your musicianship. Since Ted Greene amazed us with what he could do with a tele I stopped blaming the clubs for how I hit the ball.

[@rotatingdriveline3466]

One of the biggest traits of pickups is what frequency and Q factor the resonant peak was defined to be at. That's harder to change with EQ and have it sound good. A great demonstration of this is the Fender custom shop Texas special pickups. They have a lower frequency peak than most other telecaster pickups, and it's easily discernable. Compare those to something like the Fender custom shop Pure Vintage 64, which are much brighter. Sometimes pickups matter a lot! Sometimes not.

[@gertzpalma]

THANKS, JENS!

[@paulafranceschi]

Bought another jazzbox yesterday. A used Ibanez AF95 VLS 12-03. Flame maple top, back and sides. Couldn't resist once I picked it up and started playing. Much smaller and lighter than my D'Angelico, and brighter and with a cutaway, which my Godin doesn't have. Wish me good playing! (Adapting to my new shoulders.)

[@dsb227]

That was really interesting! I'm trying to decide between two guitars right now actually and that question was specifically on my mind.

[@JensLarsen]

Glad it was useful 🙂

[@DenisAhmet]

Very interesting video. For me the feel/ playability of a semi inspires me more than any other design. You can make a guitar sound like any Jazz guitar with choice of pick-ups, amp and tone settings. One guitar is really all I need, playing one becomes parts of you, getting the very best out of it. Also the set-up is crucial for me. I'm luckly in that I'm very practical and have set-up my guitars just how I like them - it's worth learning everything there is to know about set-ups to get it just how like it.