Squier J. Mascis Jazzmaster

It's been a long wait, but it was worth it. You can buy a lot of guitar these days for under $400 if you're smart about it, and this Squier is a serious over-achiever in terms of value. This is the first "proper" Jazzmaster to come equipped with practically all of the traditional Jazzmaster features and still come in at an under $400 price point. The Fender Blacktop Jazzmaster is somewhat close, and does feature the floating tremolo, but lacks the rhythm circuit and uses a humbucking pickup in the bridge instead of the traditional Jazzmaster single coil. It's also more expensive, with a "street" price of around $499.99.

The Squier J Mascis Jazzmaster looks better in person than it does in pictures. It's very classy. It may need a little setup help to help it meet its potential, but that's a relatively minor complaint, and once it's adjusted, it really is a nice looking and sounding guitar that plays great. Based on how long people have been asking for this very thing -- a "real" yet affordable Jazzmaster -- and the level of excitement and interest I've seen expressed in this model on the forums, I predict Squier is going to sell these by the boatload. It's pretty much everything everyone wanted, and the majority of you won't be disappointed - come and get it!