Fender - Jaguar Baritone Custom
 

Fender reintroduced one of it's rarest models, the Bass VI, in the form of the Jaguar Baritone Custom. Don't be fooled by the name "Baritone", this guitar is not tuned like one...it's a six string bass! Instead of your average six-string bass tuning, though, this one is tuned like a guitar. Sound strange? It is, and it's not for everybody. But for some, the Jag Bari is the perfect bass.

The Jaguar Baritone's controls allow for so much tone shaping, you're gonna flip out! Volume and tone for each pickup, and on and off switches for each and mids. You can coax all sorts of tone from this, and what's great is that a simple flick between pickups allows you to change from a growl to a smooth tone mid-song. This guitar does not, however, have that THUDDD low end that so many bassists (myself not included) love so much. It's a short scale, so it's always going to be a little behind in the low end. If this suits your musical style, then great! If not, steer clear!

The high B and E can add a lot to a surf and indie rock sound. Basically, this guitar is great for genre that would sound akward with that thudddd bass. I play in a surf rock band, and I used to use a Fender Musicmaster because it complemented our sound. With the Jaguar Baritone, I get that, but I can also have a much more vertisile sound.

As far as looks, this guitar is beautiful. The sunburst really looks good (and it'd better, because it's your only choice!), and the hardware complements the retro styling.

My only bone to pick with this guitar is the string situation. I don't like Fender's strings for this; I prefer Jazz strings (that's what I set up my Musicmaster with). If you want to get strings other than the Fender ones, you're in for a bit of a project. You'll probably have to buy a set of bass strings as well as a set of guitar strings, and fiddle around with them until you like it. Leo Fender designed this guitar to be unique, but you'll pay for that uniqueness when it's time to change your strings.

Overall, this is a beautiful bass that is great for some, horrible for others. This guitar does not have the balls for the low end that metalheads (or many others) might desire. The strings are very close together, and they take some time getting used to (and finding!). But the tone of this bass is perfect for those who aren't looking for thud, and the Jaguar design allows for plenty of tone shaping. I love this bass, so check it out.

One last word:
PLEASE DON'T THINK THIS IS A GUITAR! (Guitar) chords sound interesting on this, but this is far from your average strat. The Jag Bari is too muddy to really play as a guitar IMO, so play it as a six string bass.

It isn't a bass i'm afraid.

Does tuning a Strat down half an octave make it a bass ? No ? Same applies to this Jag I believe.

As for playing chords - baritones generally aren't made for that. They're usually for low tuned metal songs or just generally lower tuned jazzy style stuff.

A 6 string bass is traditionally tuned BEADGC, whereas a baritone guitar is BEADF#B, the B on the baritone guitar is a whole octave above that of a 6 string bass.

Ahhh!!! Like I said in the article, don't be fooled by the name! This is not a baritone guitar! It is tuned EADGBE. A bass with a high B and E. If you plugged one in you'd understand.

[QUOTE=MachinesOfHate]It isn't a bass i'm afraid.

Does tuning a Strat down half an octave make it a bass ? No ? Same applies to this Jag I believe.

As for playing chords - baritones generally aren't made for that. They're usually for low tuned metal songs or just generally lower tuned jazzy style stuff.

A 6 string bass is traditionally tuned BEADGC, whereas a baritone guitar is BEADF#B, the B on the baritone guitar is a whole octave above that of a 6 string bass.[/QUOTE]

Wrong.

The Jag is tuned EADGBE, an octave down like a bass. For all intents and purposes it is a bass. The original Fender VI was a bass with guitar specs so that guitarist could double the guitar parts an octave down and/or replace the bassist.
This, as well as the the EBMM Silhouette Bass, are 6 String Basses that are tuned EADGBE. These were around before any of the 6 string basses you're talking about were in existance. So, 6 string basses are traditionally tuned EADGBE, not BEADGC.

Edit: OK, I came acrosss a little harsh here. No offense, MachinesOfHate.

pics?

[QUOTE=Mitchell Royce]Wrong.

The Jag is tuned EADGBE, and ovctave down like a bass. For all intents and purposes this is a bass. The original Fender VI was a bass with guitar specs so that guitarist could double the upright bass or even replace it.
This, as well as the the EBMM Silhouette Bass, are 6 String Basses that are tuned EADGBE. These were around before any of the 6 string basses you're talking about were in existance. So, 6 string basses are traditionally tuned EADGBE, not BEADGC.[/QUOTE]

I stand corrected ;). Interesting info there that I was ignorant to Mitchell.

[IMG]http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/51/515206.jpg[/IMG]

Jack Bruce plays one on Cream's first album, if anybody wants to hear it in action.

My dad had one back in the day. It was purple and some of the electronics are different. I think some of the old ones had tremolos, too.

Where was it made?

the old ones are called Bass VI's. Yeah, they had a tremolo! So crazy. The Jag Bari is made in Japan.

i really want one now
that is the greatest body shape ever

i really like the shape of that, great review/

this is pretty much the closest analog I could find to Peter Hook's Shergold Marathon six-string in terms of size, stringing, and scale... could someone maybe put up a sample? I'd like to hear what it sounds like. :)

the string spacing looks too narrow for slapping but perfect for aggressive pick playing. nice bass.

Hey I just wanted to say that I just tried Rotosound Jazz Shortscales on this baby and they sound GREAT! I'll probably use some Rotosounds for the top 2 as well, but these strings really make it deep and smooth.

Oooooooo.I've seen this bass before.Its in the fender guitar magazine for 2005.They put it in the guitar section(go figure).It looks awesome.I would love to play it.

[QUOTE=eriatarka]They put it in the guitar section(go figure).[/QUOTE]

Probably because its a guitar.

No rating or picture?

[QUOTE=nicatterberry]Probably because its a guitar.[/QUOTE]

ITS A BASS.

i kinda want one now. how much are they?

I know the go for about 700 euros here in Germany. I'd suspect it would cost about 700 dollars in the US.