Fender Classic Player Jazzmaster special VS Gretsch Electromatic Pro Jet

[ztikmaen]

Hi guys,
So I was wondering. Since I have a Single coil guitar (Tele) and a Humbucker guitar (Ibanez), I was thinking that my next guitar should be a different sort of guitar that I personally like but performs well too. This is what I think of them so far:
Fender Classic Player Jazzmaster Special:
Can clean up very well, to the point of bell/piano like. Overdrive cuts nicely but still sounds rounder than my Tele. I like the tonal versatility with the switching combos and stuff. Not sure about this issue that needs a buzz stop or something? I like the 3 tone sunburst with tortuise shell pickguard, looks vintage and "woody". Looks more sharp/sleek than the Gretsch. Does this guitar have good pickups in your opinion? Hard to replace them?
Gretsch Electromatic Pro Jet
Looks/sounds like a Jack White sort of guitar. I don't have a semi hollow guitar yet so this could be different. I Like the looks, really retro southernblues look. This sounds woody and has a decent finish. Looks nice in black, want to see one in gold sparkle in first person. Has prescence. Does this Bigsby go out of tune easily? Are the pickups decent?
I'm having a really hard time deciding... Make sure to leave your own opinions too please! Thanks!

[Telerocker]

All vintagestyle-tremolo systems are a compromise when it comes to tuningstability. I think a Bigsby should cause less problems then the Jazzmaster-trem. Besides that, these are two different guitars. Just play them and feel which one fits to your playingstyle. I think the Gretsch will complement your collection more then the Jazzmaster.

[ztikmaen]

All vintagestyle-tremolo systems are a compromise when it comes to tuningstability. I think a Bigsby should cause less problems then the Jazzmaster-trem. Besides that, these are two different guitars. Just play them and feel which one fits to your playingstyle. I think the Gretsch will complement your collection more then the Jazzmaster.

Okay cool. I've only played the Gretsch and I was immediately used to it somehow. The trem seemed sturdy enough. Everytime I look at a photo of one of the two, I'm sure the one I'm looking at is the one I want :/
What are the pickup differences? I know the Jazzmaster is supposed to be slightly similar to a P90 and the Gretsch is supposed to have some Humbucker tones but with single coil clarity etc... I can't get a good sound comparison because the sound clips I find are always through different gear and styles of playing.
The Gretsh reminds me of a 1950's Ford Coupe whereas the Jazzmaster reminds me of some 70's car. I really like the I've of both and the sound clips of both sound great. Except the Jazzmaster is made in Mexico but the Gretsch is made in China... What's the quality difference like?

[ztikmaen]

Also, how much does body wood and Floyd rose bridges affect tone? Because if it makes a big difference, I may want to get a replacement humbucker guitar such as the Fender Special Edition Custom Telecaster HH. In that case I wouldn't need to replace the pickups as they are decent already. Although my two main axes would become two different Teles lol, they are very different underneath. This one is mahogany with a set neck, two Humbuckers, flame top, rosewood fingerboard etc. But I don't know, a Gretsch would be very different to both the Tele and Ibanez I guess... One choice would be go for fully upgraded Humbucker and Single coil, the other would be have a wider variety of guitars

[Telerocker]

Wood and bridge can influence the tone dramatically. Hardtails will provide more sustain then trem-systems. Think about the question if you really want a trem-loaded guitar. I'm not a Jazzmaster-fan. For me tele's with p90's appeal more tonally. The Gretsch has a sound of its own. You should check the Chinese-version on tuningstability. I saw a vid that the A-string could not stay in tune above the 12th fret. Difficult to intonate. Doesn't mean every Chinese Gretsch has this problem.  But trem-systems ask good hardware (like tuners) to stay tuned properly.
Personally I would have a look too at a PRS SE Hollow with P90's. It's affordable and good quality for it's price.

[ztikmaen]

Ok thanks. The PRS guitars looks really awesome, but. I may as well sum up my whole situation now.
I have an Ibanez RG370DX. This is the one I oriiy wanted to replace the pickups in. This is made of basswood and has a Floyd rose along with the expected echo chamber from the springs and routing that it needs. However, I added a tremol-no to stop the bridge from moving at all so it is effectively a hardtail with floyd rose routing. So I'd imagine this takes tone away. My dilemma is, should I upgrade to a properly good Humbucking guitar thus replacing my Ibanez (ending up with a good single coil and Humbucking guitar)  or should I look for a really different guitar like a Gretsh (there are hardtail variants) and just change the pickups in my relatively stock Ibanez? This all comes down to how much the bridge Riuting affects tone really.
So these are my choices
Different Guitars: Fender Classic Players Jazzmaster Special, Gretsch Electromatic Pro Jet
Ibanez Replacements: Fender Special Edition Custom Telecaster HH, Some PRS SE
So now you know the problems I'm trying to get around. I don't really want to replace my trusty Ibanez though, I kinda like it :/
BOTTOM LINE: How much does body routing for Floyd rose bridges affect tone/How much do Blocked off tremolos affect tone
Thanks

[Telerocker]

- If you like the Ibbie, upgrade it. My friend upgraded a Squier Tele with Blackguards and he is totally happy.
- If you want another guitar, I would look for a p90-equipped one, but I don't know what style you play. But a p90-loaded guitar certainly complements your singlecoil-tele and your hb-Ibbie.
- Remember that the Gretsch is made (in China) of budgetcomponents. Don't need to be a bad guitar but at this price, it cannot be topnotch material. In general I think the PRS SE Hollow P90 has better components/wood.
- Blocked off trems do affect the tone not that much, but will keep your guitar better in tune. The principal of Floyd/locking nut, the scale of the neck and the basswoodbody all contribute to the tone/lack of tone.

(I had a Jem 77 FP, that was great for heavy riffing, but for the classic stuff I play now, absolutely the wrong guitar. I like the open vibe, especially on the lower strings, of a tele or a strat. If you want one guitar that can cover nearly every style, buy a HSS-strat. Mine is loaded with a Crawler and Irish Tours. The Fender American Special HSS is decent and not too expensive. )

[ztikmaen]

Ok cool thanks. I have been looking for P90/Minihumbucker guitars, I was really into that PRS SE semi hollow P90 one. But I believe that it's discontinued. That would have been perfect. Anything else like that? I want good quality too and something that would compliment my Ibanez and Tele.
Also do you mean that by blocking off my tremolo the affect on my guitar's tone is less?
Is the Made in Mexico Jazzmaster built well? And is the bridge worse than, say, a Strat? Because my perfect guitar would have these features:
P90/Mini Humbuckers
Chambered/Semi-Hollow
Good quality
Price of under US $1100
Nice looking
Different
Decent pickups as standard
Stays in tune/easy to restring

[Telerocker]

As you already guessed I'm not a fan of the Jazzmaster-concept. But if you want one, test thoroughly.

Maxguitar in the Hague (Holland) has some PRS SE Hollow P90's on stock for under 500 euro. They ship all over the world, so that should not be a problem.

http://www.maxguitarstore.com/store/index.php?productID=6959

Fender JA-90 thinline, made in Indonesia, yep, but sounds nice.
http://www.fender.com/products/search.php?partno=0262350538

Reverend has a lot of P90 loaded guitars like the Jetstream en Clubking 290 (both bolt on) and Manta Ray 290, Sensei 290 and Warwick II 390 (all setneck)
http://www.reverendguitars.com/

THe G&L Asat Special is a good budgetguitar too.
http://www.glguitars.com/instruments/TributeSeries/guitars/ASAT_Special_SH/index.asp

[Ratrod]

I'm a big Gretsch fan but the Pro-Jet is nothing more than a Les Paul that looks like a Duo Jet. The real Duo Jet has a compltely different construction and is way more hollow.

Because of that I'd choose a Jazzmaster over a Pro-Jet.

[Telerocker]

I'm a big Gretsch fan but the Pro-Jet is nothing more than a Les Paul that looks like a Duo Jet. The real Duo Jet has a compltely different construction and is way more hollow.

Because of that I'd choose a Jazzmaster over a Pro-Jet.

I wouldn't buy either.  :)

[ztikmaen]

The Reverends look cool, their quality seems to be good and the price is ok. I like the JA90, I just wish it wasn't a signature model -__-
I don't really want a G&L guitar because it's too similar to my Fender. At least the JA90 seems to hardly be a Fender at all
In fact, before you mentioned the Reverends and the JA90, I was already looking at them. I like the Sensei 290.
So is it unanimous that the Fender Jazzmaster and Gretsch Electromatic Pro Jet are bad? :/
So these are what I can pick from what you guys said.
Gretsch: Bad quality, like a Les Paul
Jazzmaster: Bad bridge, too similar to my other guitars
Is that right?

[Telerocker]

I don't say they are bad, but they are not faultless. Just encouraging you to look at other competitors in this pricerange. And yes, I think the Reverends are most cool.

[ztikmaen]

I don't say they are bad, but they are not faultless. Just encouraging you to look at other competitors in this pricerange. And yes, I think the Reverends are most cool.

I like the Sensei 290. Only bad thing about it is I'll have to say that my guitar is a Reverend Sensei xD Sounds funny lol
Are the pickups good?

[Ratrod]

They're certainly not bad in quality. I just think the Pro-Jet isn't Gretschy enough.

I can't comment too much on Jazzmasters as I have little experience with them. I like the look and tone of them and I have rarely seen anything from Fender that was bad quality. Common dislikes about the Jazzmasters are the 7.25" fretboard radius and the bridge that rattles and strings that pop out of their slots.