NBD Squier VM jazz 5 string (when did Squiers start getting good?)

northpaul

northpaul

Feb 4, 2006
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New Jersey, USA
#1
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Years ago I would absolutely recommend NOT getting a Squier to guitar and bass students so it is surreal to get one and playing it professionally. I got music for a musical today and there is a lot of low B string stuff in the part. I have all four strings and a six string but that is tuned an octave below the guitar so no low B - so I went off to Guitar Center to check out what they had in terms of cheap basses not expecting much. I was prepared to spend more too but luckily for me the nicer basses were all set up horribly (pinky fitting under the strings bad) and although I brought my Allen wrenches to set some up on the down low to check out how the necks were (and as a public service), I forgot my screwdriver so anything with antruss rod cover I couldn't get to. I ended up spending a couple hours trying to decide between a SUB Ray5 and the Squier. Ultimately the Squier had more character to the sound even though the low B was not as beefy and there was a loose pot that let me talk them into 15% off so I am not the proud owner of a Squier.

I had heard that Squiers were getting better with the Vintage Vibe guitars but I have enough nice guitars that I never tried them. What year did they start getting like this? The neck is great, the pickups are decent and overall it is actually a good instrument. After getting it home I put on TI flats and set it up properly and it is a great player with a really nice sound. And after the string change and some EQing the low B is not bad either - not as strong as when I had my 6 string string with a low B since it is a 35" scale but still very usable and thick sounding. And I didn't even have to lower the nut slots - they are actually cut properly. Mind blown.

Not the best photos indoors with a phone but here she is. I really like the black inlays with the black binding.
 
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#3
Congrats! She's purdy too. And I have to agree with you about the quality of the CV and VM's...both guitar AND bass. I had a CV Tele. ANd to be honest, the only Tele that sounded and played better, is my MIJ 50's reissue Fender. Yes, they're that good. I also have a VM Jaguar bass that can do it all. A great guitar that won't empty your pockets is a great thing.

Enjoy!
 
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#5
My drummer is a munter and a snob. He thinks only old fenders or ricks are any good. So I put a sock over the headstock of any new basses I bring to practice. I play through a GK fusion 550, an Aggie TH550 or a GenzBenz shuttle 6.0, into an audiokinesis TC112 af. He has raved abot my tone more than once, only to discover I'm playing one of my three squiers, 2 VM jazzes (fretted and fretless) or my squier standard PJ. Shame
 
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#6
El Spearo said:
My drummer is a munter and a snob. He thinks only old fenders or ricks are any good. So I put a sock over the headstock of any new basses I bring to practice. I play through a GK fusion 550, an Aggie TH550 or a GenzBenz shuttle 6.0, into an audiokinesis TC112 af. He has raved abot my tone more than once, only to discover I'm playing one of my three squiers, 2 VM jazzes (fretted and fretless) or my squier standard PJ. Shame
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Ahaha. That's awesome and a really good idea. Granted, Squires had a bad rep for a long time. I always try to set up students' instruments to be as easy to play as possible without actually doing fretwork and for years I could never get the Squires to feel good. Now I can recommend these ones for sure. I have seen similar things from Epiphone too with some of their archtops - it is kind of a golden age for cheap instruments. It was really hard to find cheap, playable instruments back in the 90's - at least harder than it is now. It is really nice to see.
 
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#7
northpaul said:
Ahaha. That's awesome and a really good idea. Granted, Squires had a bad rep for a long time. I always try to set up students' instruments to be as easy to play as possible without actually doing fretwork and for years I could never get the Squires to feel good. Now I can recommend these ones for sure. I have seen similar things from Epiphone too with some of their archtops - it is kind of a golden age for cheap instruments. It was really hard to find cheap, playable instruments back in the 90's - at least harder than it is now. It is really nice to see.
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I agree. Back in the 90's I was drummer, and the only way to get a decent kit was to fork out quite a bit of coin. I'm looking at getting a kit now, and the cheap options are pretty good. Great time to buy gear IMO
 
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#8
Natural + Maple fretboard + Black binding + Gloss everyway = Sexy Shiny Jazz V
The Black / maple fretboard / pearl binding VM 77 Jazz is another eye catching .
 
#10
I had a VM Jag that was a Indo made, actually a pretty good bass. I looked at a VM jazz natural finish at a pawn shop that was really nice. I believe that the Squiers started getting better with the 'standard' models on 2006 or 2007. Be careful saying you like a Squier, you may get dis-owned by TB !!
 
#12
I recently bought a Squier James Johnston Jazz, and was similarly stunned at how much bass I got for 400 bucks. And the great thing about them, is should you decide (as I did) to do some mods, everybody makes Fender parts. The only catch there is that replacement pickguards are close, but not quite, but a visit with Pickguardian fixed all that.

For me in a practical sense, upgraded as I have mine, I'd see no real value in buying another Fender axe in their lower or mid-price ranges. From here, only an American Deluxe or stepping off into Sadowskys, Lulls, etc., would offer any real jump for my use. All I really did was to go to Fralin humbucker Jazz pickups, and a rewire for vol-blend-tone, and the Pickguardian piece in white to match the white Fralins. Oh, and some replacement chrome knobs from AllParts. The bridge and keys are fine, one-piece neck with the old-school drop-in-the-truss-rod-under-the-fingerboard construction (no 'stripe'), and it weighs nothing (barely 8 lbs with strap and strap locks).

When I started out (back when amps were steam-powered . . . . . ), you could buy junk or you had to buy pro gear. It's a wonderful thing how much you can buy today and hope it really eases young folks getting their start. I'd have killed for a bass this good in that price range in the early 70's.
 
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#14
Somebody can correct me but I believe the bodies are made of alder? I read that alder is a very consistent sounding wood. No surprise that if you outsource the labour and train people well you can create just as good an instrument if you use good parts. I never even got the cheaper pickups. How much extra could it really cost to use alnico pile pieces instead of ceramic, and capacitors, pots, bridges, tuning machines are all dirt cheap to make. Costs more to have two factories lol.
 
#15
I got this exact bass but in white (I'm holding it in my profile picture) a few months ago, and boy is it the best bass I've ever played! The sound is killer, I get an amazing growl from all pickup combinations. A hundred times better than my AMERICAN P bass. I love it. Good score!

EDIT:
Yes, these basses are quite heavy, but that's no problem for my 17 year old back. Let's just hope I can strengthen my back enough so I can keep it when I'm old!

EDIT EDIT:
I kinda like how it looks without a pickguard. I imagine the natural finish might look better:
Squire VM bass without PG
 
#17
I had that exact bass and only sold it to help fund the purchase of my current bass.

My only gripe was the bridge. Wished it had channels for the saddle screws to keep the saddles from shifting while digging in with a pick near the bridge. If I had kept it I would have swapped in a different bridge, shielded the cavities, and put ultra lite tuners on it to help it balance better.

I don't know what year Squiers got good, but I'm sure it was in no small part due to manufacturers using CNC machines to cut bodies and necks. Quality certainly became much more consistent.
 
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#20
craigie said:
Somebody can correct me but I believe the bodies are made of alder? I read that alder is a very consistent sounding wood. No surprise that if you outsource the labour and train people well you can create just as good an instrument if you use good parts. I never even got the cheaper pickups. How much extra could it really cost to use alnico pile pieces instead of ceramic, and capacitors, pots, bridges, tuning machines are all dirt cheap to make. Costs more to have two factories lol.
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They are made from soft maple which is why they are on the heavy side of things. The ceramic pickups are responsive,but when played back to back against another jazz with alnico's they are a little dumb sounding. I've been contemplating replacing the pups in mine or even going further down the road by putting a music man pickup in it.
 
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