Fender has expanded its J Mascis signature line with the release of the Jazzmaster electric guitar pickup set, a pair of Alnico II soapbars that promise a “sweeter more vintage sound,” in the words of the Dinosaur Jr frontman.
With the Fender Jazzmaster being one of the most fun electric guitars to mod – the Jazzmaster bridge is often the first thing to be upgraded – these will no doubt sell like hot cakes, and offer something a little different to his signature Fender Telecaster’s bright snap and midrange growl.
These will sound more mellow, and are ideal for giving your offset a new voice for alt-rock adventures. Those who own one of the gnarly Squier J Mascis Jazzmasters should keep reading because they could be the aftermarket upgrade you’ve been looking for.
These pickups are voiced to pair well with any manner of overdrive and fuzz pedals, eating up the gain, maintaining warmth and clarity, and playing nice with your pedalboard, as you might expect from a man with Mascis’ discography, but they’ll also excel at honeyed cleans.
The J Mascis Jazzmaster pickups feature Alnico II rod magnets and enamel-coated magnet wire, flush-mounted pole-pieces for an even response across each string, and are wax-potted to help reduce noise when the world around you is all about volume and gain.
They have a vintage-style cloth wire and fibre bobbin construction, and will be perfectly at home transforming your favourite offset into a bona fide fire-breather, capable of the sort of tones you might hear while watching 1991: The Year Punk Broke, but also of more sedate sounds, the kind of cleans you can comp with, or send through some reverb and delay pedals for a dreamy soundscape.
If you’re happy with your pickups, or if you prefer the Telecaster side of Mascis’ sound, there’s also a plethora of new J Mascis signature accessories available.
A pair of brightly coloured guitar straps in Magenta Flower and Yellow Burst, a 30-foot J Mascis coiled guitar cable (in bright purple), and a signature Dinosaur Jr tin and guitar pick set are included.