Fender Classic Player Jaguar Special HH Electric Guitar (with Gig Bag)
A vintage Jag? Not quite: the Fender Classic Player Jaguar Special HH is a twist on an old favorite, with a pair of Enforcer humbuckers for fat, chunky tone.
Overall User Ratings (based on 13 ratings)
Submitted December 6, 2015 by Paul C in Pearl River, LA
"CP Jaguar Special HH Sunburst"
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This review has been selected by our experts as particularly helpful.
First off, I would like to start by saying Thank You To ZZounds.com and their Staff for the great assistance both before and after the sale. Superb, Bar None. This is my 5th purchase from ZZounds, And it's because they take care of their customers, and they stand behind the products they sell.
Now, As stated above this is my 5th purchase. I bought the Fender Sunburst Classic Player Jaguar Special HH. (MIM). I ordered it on Wednesday, by Friday afternoon it had arrived at my door, and I began unpacking it. (2 Days Total).
First, I will say The finish on this guitar is Impeccable, not a blemish or even handling smudge....Perfect, Beautiful, I couldn't ask for better. Upon typical inspection, I found the String action to be too high for my liking, but a couple of minutes and tools, all was acceptable. This guitar came with '10's, So I changed them to 09's, Hmmm, changed them right back to '10's. This Jaguar prefers '10's and it actually feels good with them. The 09's felt too weak for my taste, at least on this guitar. I own and play 3 Strats, 2 Teles, and 2 Les Pauls, they all have 09's, but not this Jaguar......Possibly due to my preferences concerning the neck. (All of my guitars get a fret shave down to "30 thousandths", too low to ever be "dressed" again once the frets wear down.) So please take my comments concerning the "Neck" with a grain of salt (Your mileage may vary YMMV)
The neck was straight, Relief was excellent, the frets LEVEL (Nice job), no real complaints, The intonation was close (Just a tad off on a couple strings), and much to my surprise...This guitar actually holds tune when using the Tremolo, AND it's not affected when doing string bends (usually when I bend the strings, it will pull the other strings flat, but not the case with this one). So I give the Tremolo System a "5 of 5".
The Nut appears to need a slight file in a couple of places for better overall string height, but I've never seen a guitar that didn't benefit from a PRO SET UP.
Sound
Upon plugging in the guitar, I had to get used to the controls a little, but I noticed this guitar has an incredible amount of versatility. The Enforcer Humbuckers are quite a surprise in their own right....They are typical Humbuckers with lots of power (Though the Bridge Humbucker seems a little less powerful), but I promise, these are everything they are said to be...Enforcers!! And when split, they are as hot a Single Coil as any Strat out there. I A/B'd them against SD Hot Rails in a Strat, This Jaguar held her own...In Single Coil Mode.....These Enforcer Pickups are no slouch!!
Honestly though, as versatile as everyone else claimed this guitar to be.....I could not find a "4th position Strat tone...THE QUACK". Upon further investigation, I noticed that the Humbuckers were installed with the "always on" coil to the outside on both pickups, So I took immediate liberty and flipped them around. Guess What !!?? FYI.....This Jag can sound just like a 4th Position (B+M) Strat!!! She won my heart!!
Features
The most useful feature I found....out of the many many features, was the Coil Splitting Roller Knobs.....Because they actually do just what they claim, they are true BLEND knobs. This Guitar has so many variations in tones, I can't begin to describe just how versatile it really is.
I thought that the "Kill Switch" was a waste....until I realized that It is VERY useful, Because You don't have to Unplug, or Touch any knobs when setting the Guitar down....Just flip a switch, and when you come back...All of your settings are as you left them, Very useful feature IMO. The Tremolo has been moved closer to the bridge, so there isn't any need for a BUZZ STOP, and with the NEW Tune-0-matic bridge. It's so easy to quickly set your action and your intonation (I Really like those MAJOR improvements/upgrades).
Ease of Use
Ease of use? Well, Read your little instruction papers concerning the Switches and knobs, and you will find it very easy to use, And You WILL find a tone that fits your attitude, no matter what It Is. A Learning curve??? Maybe a small short lived one... and this guitar is extremely playable. I read others online say how they "Didn't want to put it down".....I finally know the feeling. After playing it and putting it away....I find myself going back to see what else I can do with it. I love playing guitar, but never have I looked so forward to playing A guitar, as I do with this Jaguar. And FYI, I've been playing 49 years, 41 years Pro.
Quality
This Jaguar Special HH appears to me to be as solid as any guitar I have ever held. The neck feels "Full" when I hold it, This guitar is not light, but I wouldn't say it's too heavy, But I prefer weight on a guitar...Old School beliefs. But It's not like a Les Paul either. As stated earlier, the Finish is excellent, Just beautiful, and the same for the Chrome, it appears to me to be quality plating on all of the chrome parts. The vintage tuners are excellent, The High Gloss Tinted Neck...Beautiful. The switches feel good as well, not flimsy like some of the less expensive electronics available today.
Value
Is this product worth Zzounds asking price.....upon reading all of the bad publicity online that "MIM" Fender gets hit with....It's not without saying that I was a little skeptical, I even hesitated before my purchase because of the price and the fact that it was a "Mexican Made Fender" instead of American Made. I am so very pleased with my purchase now that I am holding this guitar, I feel like I really made a great decision to buy it at the price offered, and feel that I got a GREAT deal.
Manufacturer Support
I've had no reason to deal with "Fender" concerning this guitar, but I have dealt with them in the past concerning other queries, and they have always been easy and helpful, so I can only presume that I would have quality care again if ever needed.
The Wow Factor
I would rate the appeal of the CP Jaguar Special HH at a "5 of 5". Everyone who has seen this new guitar says it is very "Classy" looking, Not to mention...How great it sounds. My Strats, Teles and Pauls are all wonderful Guitars, But none of them are as "Unique" looking as This Jaguar, And THAT was the MAIN reason for my purchase. Barring the fact that I need to have the Neck worked specifically for my own taste, This Guitar has already shown itself to be Very worthy of the FENDER name. This Jaguar will find itself quite at home on a Country Music Stage as well as a Classic Rock/Alternative/Blues or Surf Venue. I don't play Metal but I have no doubt that she can hold her own in that field too....
Musical Background:
49yrs / 41yrs Pro
Musical Style:
Country, Classic Rock, Southern Rock, Oldies, Alternative, Dance, Pop.
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Submitted November 8, 2012 by David B in Santa Rosa, CA
"Great experience, awesome guitar!"
Verified Customer
zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
Been lusting after a Jag for quite a while. This guitar does not disappoint & has kicked my playing into overdrive. The build quality is fantastic, finish is beautiful... couldn't ask for more, and the Olympic white... it's a piece of art! zZounds has made the entire experience top-notch, I opted for the 8 payment option, super easy, a no-brainer. I think the guitar arrived 2 days after my order. These guys are the best, looking at amps now & will be buying from zZounds for sure!
Musical Background:
Playing guitar for 40 years, for fun.
Musical Style:
Rock, blues, alt, jazz.
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Submitted March 17, 2011 by a customer from verizon.net
"Prepare to be amazed finally satisfied!"
Over all, I'd have to say that I really dig this guitar. If lost or stolen, I'd have to replace it as soon as possible. I'm always seeking another sound either by purchasing a new axe or amp. I would supplement this product with either a 1962 reissue Jaguar or a new Fender Stratocaster. The truth is I've found everything I need in this axe. It's a high quality musical instrument that sounds good through any amplifier. This guitar can help you develop your signature sound because it covers the entire sonic sound scape and can produce some sweet tones.
Sound
I am absolutely impressed by this guitar! I've wanted a Fender Jaguar since I was 6 years old. When I went to by one after graduating high school, Fender wasn't making them at the time, so I bought a Stratocaster instead. I still have that Stratocaster. When Fender started offering the HH Jaguar, I held off purchasing one. I figured what else could you possibly get from a Fender guitar than you can get out of a Strat.
Then I saw the Fender Jaquar in Olympic White and I had to have one! Thanks to zZounds I do!
The range of sounds that the Enforcer pickups can put out is amazing. Since the Jaguar HH has "blendable" coil tapping, you can go gradually from full humbucker to pure single coil and all points in between.
This lets you cut through the mix. This guitar lets you make the sound as bright as it needs to be and has amazing sustain.
I'm also impressed with the range of the floating tremolo. (actually floating vibrato) You can do decent dive bombs and pitch raises and remain in tune!
I've used this guitar with 5 to 15 watt tube and solid state practice amps, and have played it through my full 120 watt tube stacks. The Enforcer pickups sure were named appropriately! Through any amp the Enforcers, when set for full humbucker, will easily overdrive the input/first stage of the amp, working with the amp to create smooth, harmonically rich overdrive and distortion sounds.
As the Enforcers are "blended" toward single coil, you can go from fully distortion capable settings to pristine cleans and all points in between!
This guitar is very responsive to picking dynamics and can produce beautiful, high quality music. The secret is to experiment with the blendable coil tapping. This feature will allow you to create expressive music suitable for any music genre.
Features
The Fender Jaguar HH came with an impressive array of accessories. The actual hardware is a wrench to adjust the truss rod and a high quality guitar chord. The information however, is extensive! Everything from how to adjust the truss rod to proper string highth in relation to the fretboard and pickups is revealed.
The choice of materials is excellent. The
guitar has a high quality maple neck bolted to a select alder body. The chrome trim sets off the Olympic White color really well!
The only feature I wish this guitar had is a phase switch. The guitar is very quiet but actually has one of the slide swithes wired to be a kill switch. I'll bet this switch could be rewired (or replaced and rewired} to be a phase switch. This I can probably do myself.
Ease of Use
`It is very easy to get great sounds from this guitar. The interface is intuitive, but I'd recommend reading at least the one page nomenclature sheet, which shows what each switch and knob do. In addition to the blendable rotating switches, there is also a low pass filter circuit switch, and of course a volume and tone knob.
There is a bit of a learning curve. It took me a little while to get used to using the two pickup sliding selector switches instead of the usual single, three position switch, but it's fun navigating all of the controls! This is truly an artist's guitar. The tonal palette contains more true colors than any guitar I've ever played. The neck is narrow at the nut and speed tapers wider as you go up the neck. This guitar fits me like a glove. The 24" scale length makes it very easy to bend the strings. Even though the guitar has a short scale length, the guitar itself is too long to fit in my Strat case!
Quality
This guitar was in perfect condition when it arrived on time from zZounds. I opened up the box and was amazed. I put on the guitar and played it unamplified for awhile. It sounded and felt perfect. I've never had an experience like this before. For me, there is just something really special about this guitar. Every other guitar I've ever purchased required some minor or even major setup and tweaking.
This guitar is built like my 1970's Strat which was on the road for over twenty years, so I expect that with the proper care I try to give to all my guitars, this Jaguar HH will last a life time. The necks on Fender guitars are so strong, you could probably jack your car up with one of them if you had to!
Value
This guitar is easily worth more than it's selling price. The only draw back is that it is manufactured in Mexico, but comparing it to my made in the USA Strat, you cannot tell the difference. This guitar was manufactured by very talented human hands. Today, I don't mind what country a musical instrument or effect was made in as long as it's quality work and this guitar has quality written all over it.
Manufacturer Support
I've never had to contact Fender, other than browsing their website, but they sure have been around a long time so I don't think it will be difficult to work with them if I ever need to.
The Wow Factor
For me, this guitar has strong sex appeal. My wife also really liked it the moment she saw it. I even take it in the shower with me. (Just kidding!) But with a light coating of lemon oil, I'm sure the guitar could take it.
Mostly it's the sheer genius of design that amazes me. It's hard to believe that most of the circuitry was designed in the 1960's. Putting pickups in that can blend between full humbucker to single coil is a real stroke of genius. It has a Strat head stock on it, so that's probably why it also feels like an old friend to me.
Musical Background:
Active musician, Guitar and Mandolin Teacher.
Musical Style:
Classic Rock,1980's Heavy Metal, Allternative, and my own style.
25 of 27 people (93%) people found this review helpful. Did you?
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Submitted March 17, 2011 by a customer from verizon.net
"Prepare to be amazed finally satisfied!"
Over all, I'd have to say that I really dig this guitar. If lost or stolen, I'd have to replace it as soon as possible. I'm always seeking another sound either by purchasing a new axe or amp. I would supplement this product with either a 1962 reissue Jaguar or a new Fender Stratocaster. The truth is I've found everything I need in this axe. It's a high quality musical instrument that sounds good through any amplifier. This guitar can help you develop your signature sound because it covers the entire sonic sound scape and can produce some sweet tones.
Sound
I am absolutely impressed by this guitar! I've wanted a Fender Jaguar since I was 6 years old. When I went to by one after graduating high school, Fender wasn't making them at the time, so I bought a Stratocaster instead. I still have that Stratocaster. When Fender started offering the HH Jaguar, I held off purchasing one. I figured what else could you possibly get from a Fender guitar than you can get out of a Strat.
Then I saw the Fender Jaquar in Olympic White and I had to have one! Thanks to zZounds I do!
The range of sounds that the Enforcer pickups can put out is amazing. Since the Jaguar HH has "blendable" coil tapping, you can go gradually from full humbucker to pure single coil and all points in between.
This lets you cut through the mix. This guitar lets you make the sound as bright as it needs to be and has amazing sustain.
I'm also impressed with the range of the floating tremolo. (actually floating vibrato) You can do decent dive bombs and pitch raises and remain in tune!
I've used this guitar with 5 to 15 watt tube and solid state practice amps, and have played it through my full 120 watt tube stacks. The Enforcer pickups sure were named appropriately! Through any amp the Enforcers, when set for full humbucker, will easily overdrive the input/first stage of the amp, working with the amp to create smooth, harmonically rich overdrive and distortion sounds.
As the Enforcers are "blended" toward single coil, you can go from fully distortion capable settings to pristine cleans and all points in between!
This guitar is very responsive to picking dynamics and can produce beautiful, high quality music. The secret is to experiment with the blendable coil tapping. This feature will allow you to create expressive music suitable for any music genre.
Features
The Fender Jaguar HH came with an impressive array of accessories. The actual hardware is a wrench to adjust the truss rod and a high quality guitar chord. The information however, is extensive! Everything from how to adjust the truss rod to proper string highth in relation to the fretboard and pickups is revealed.
The choice of materials is excellent. The
guitar has a high quality maple neck bolted to a select alder body. The chrome trim sets off the Olympic White color really well!
The only feature I wish this guitar had is a phase switch. The guitar is very quiet but actually has one of the slide swithes wired to be a kill switch. I'll bet this switch could be rewired (or replaced and rewired} to be a phase switch. This I can probably do myself.
Ease of Use
`It is very easy to get great sounds from this guitar. The interface is intuitive, but I'd recommend reading at least the one page nomenclature sheet, which shows what each switch and knob do. In addition to the blendable rotating switches, there is also a low pass filter circuit switch, and of course a volume and tone knob.
There is a bit of a learning curve. It took me a little while to get used to using the two pickup sliding selector switches instead of the usual single, three position switch, but it's fun navigating all of the controls! This is truly an artist's guitar. The tonal palette contains more true colors than any guitar I've ever played. The neck is narrow at the nut and speed tapers wider as you go up the neck. This guitar fits me like a glove. The 24" scale length makes it very easy to bend the strings. Even though the guitar has a short scale length, the guitar itself is too long to fit in my Strat case!
Quality
This guitar was in perfect condition when it arrived on time from zZounds. I opened up the box and was amazed. I put on the guitar and played it unamplified for awhile. It sounded and felt perfect. I've never had an experience like this before. For me, there is just something really special about this guitar. Every other guitar I've ever purchased required some minor or even major setup and tweaking.
This guitar is built like my 1970's Strat which was on the road for over twenty years, so I expect that with the proper care I try to give to all my guitars, this Jaguar HH will last a life time. The necks on Fender guitars are so strong, you could probably jack your car up with one of them if you had to!
Value
This guitar is easily worth more than it's selling price. The only draw back is that it is manufactured in Mexico, but comparing it to my made in the USA Strat, you cannot tell the difference. This guitar was manufactured by very talented human hands. Today, I don't mind what country a musical instrument or effect was made in as long as it's quality work and this guitar has quality written all over it.
Manufacturer Support
I've never had to contact Fender, other than browsing their website, but they sure have been around a long time so I don't think it will be difficult to work with them if I ever need to.
The Wow Factor
For me, this guitar has strong sex appeal. My wife also really liked it the moment she saw it. I even take it in the shower with me. (Just kidding!) But with a light coating of lemon oil, I'm sure the guitar could take it.
Mostly it's the sheer genius of design that amazes me. It's hard to believe that most of the circuitry was designed in the 1960's. Putting pickups in that can blend between full humbucker to single coil is a real stroke of genius. It has a Strat head stock on it, so that's probably why it also feels like an old friend to me.
Musical Background:
Active musician, Guitar and Mandolin Teacher.
Musical Style:
Classic Rock,1980's Heavy Metal, Allternative, and my own style.
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