
Offset addict Michael Adams reveals setup secrets for making Fender’s ingenious, sorely misunderstood axes sing.
In the second episode of the Netflix documentary series Abstract: The Art of Design, the famed creator of the Air Jordan, Tinker Hatfield, muses on his years at Nike, where he seemingly pulled iconic shoe designs out of the very ether. From the AJ III to the AJ XIV, his work was universally acclaimed and the company couldn't keep the shoes on store shelves.
A dramatic shift occurred when the XV—the first release after Michael Jordan's retirement from basketball—hit the streets in 1999. Consumer reaction toward the stark black-and-Kevlar aesthetic of the new shoe was overwhelmingly negative, and they were critically panned. In the film, Tinker reflected on the shoe that nearly ended his career: "People struggle with stuff they don't understand—design that's different than what they're used to."
That sounds a lot like my favorite guitars.
My heart goes out to the Jazzmaster; it really does. Introduced at a time when Fender was thinking of discontinuing the now-hallowed Stratocaster, what began as a top-of-the-line model eventually fell into obscurity, relegated to pawn shop bargain bins and sold to musicians who couldn't afford the upmarket prices of more familiar, more desirable guitars. For nearly 50 years they were misunderstood, maligned, and marred by stories of string slippage, tuning instability, and impossible intonation.
A well-maintained Jazzmaster possesses one of the most stable and dynamic non-locking vibrato systems on the market, and all that's needed for the guitar to operate as intended is a proper setup.
Convicted in the court of opinion, the Jazzmaster was viewed as a flawed experiment—a joke guitar that was nice to look at perhaps, but not to play. The sad truth of this underdog of Leo Fender's otherwise beloved instruments is that it's not the design itself that's problematic, but rather a lack of consumer education. That's where this article comes in. I'm here to help!
A well-maintained Jazzmaster possesses one of the most stable and dynamic non-locking vibrato systems on the market, and all that's needed for the guitar to operate as intended is a proper setup. What's hilarious is that decades of complaints and ire could have been avoided had anyone actually read the manual tucked into the case pocket.
In this article, I'm going to give you some DIY tips for keeping your offset guitar in perfect working condition so you'll never have to worry about it again. But to truly understand this vexing vibrato system, we're going to have to go all the way back to 1957.
Jazz Odyssey
When Leo Fender began work on the Jazzmaster alongside designer George Fullerton and Hawaiian steel player Freddie Tavares, he set out to create a solidbody guitar with the geometry of an archtop acoustic. It was an effort to capture the jazz market, in which Gibson had enjoyed overwhelming success. Going through old patent drawings—one of which is now tattooed on my left forearm—his intent is obvious.
Photo 1
When viewed from the side, the string path of a properly set up Jazzmaster (Photo 1) is reminiscent of an archtop, such as a venerable L-5 or ES-175 (Photo 2). The strings flow from the tailpiece and break over the floating bridge at an angle, then plummet down a pitched-back neck toward the nut and tuning machines. In theory, the downward force exerted on the bridge keeps the strings in place while the bridge freely rocks back and forth with vibrato use.
Photo 2
It's important to keep all of this in mind when you're working on your Jazzmaster or Jaguar, as conventional setup techniques won't quite get the job done. Whereas most other models tend to need some bridge adjustment or a partial turn of the truss rod, to play their best these guitars need to be treated differently and considered as a whole.
String Selection
Being aimed at jazz players of the day, the Jazzmaster was built around the use of heavy flatwound strings. The extra tension of those sets helped keep the bridge in place, while the darker sound produced by flats paired well with the brighter nature of the Jazzmaster's wide, flat single-coil pickups. But this doesn't mean you have to use gigantic strings!
No, it's quite easy to achieve a perfectly playable Jazzmaster with lighter roundwound gauges. It just takes a bit more fiddling around with the setup. I use and recommend .011–.050 rounds as a good starting point, but if .010s are your thing, that's absolutely doable. I do find it interesting that complaints about bridge buzz started surfacing around the time that ultra-light gauges became more commonplace, in the mid-to-late 1960s.
When viewed from the side, the string path of a properly set up Jazzmaster is reminiscent of an archtop, such as a venerable L-5 or ES-175.
Neck Angle
Ensuring the proper amount of neck angle relative to the body is essential to getting the most out of your offset guitar. Although the archtops that inspired him were constructed with a permanently inclined set neck, the famously pragmatic Leo Fender addressed this by specifically designing the Jazzmaster with shims in mind. If you're not familiar with the process of shimming, it's simply a thin spacer placed between the neck and pocket of a bolt-on guitar, allowing its angle to be easily adjusted.
The goal here is to increase downward force on the bridge. As the neck is angled down away from the body—like a see-saw, imagine the headstock dropping slightly lower than the end of the fretboard—the bridge must be raised to achieve playable action. This causes the strings to pass over the bridge at a sharper angle (this is called break angle), and thus adequate pressure on the bridge is realized. This pressure helps keep the strings in place while also increasing resonance.
Photo 3
It's quite easy to perform this tweak yourself. Fender used to employ leftover fiberboard pickup bobbin material, but for DIY-ers, baseball or business cards will do just fine. Simply remove the neck, cut the material of your choice to fit (3/8" by 1 1/2" should do the trick), and then lay it down in the neck pocket, in the semi-enclosed area closest to the bridge (Photo 3). Position the 1 1/2" section so it lies across the neck pocket, parallel to the saddles. Reattach the neck, string up, and then raise the bridge until you find the action comfortable.
Manufacturing being what it is, there's no magic number of shims that works automatically. I usually start with two shims and add or subtract according to the needs of the individual instrument. It takes some trial and error at first, but the more familiar you become with the process, the better you'll be able to assess your guitar.
Note: If you happen to be using a Mastery or Staytrem bridge, one or two shims should work just fine. Newer Fender models such as the Classic Player and American Professional series even boast angled neck pockets, so if you have one of these, you likely won't need to worry about shimming at all.
The Bridge
When I got my first Jazzmaster, the bridge positively flummoxed me. It seemed that, no matter what I did, I could not get the thing to stop buzzing. It wasn't until I discovered shimming as part of the offset equation that I was able to quell the beastly noises coming from my guitar. Using heavier strings goes a long way to cure this.
Photo 4
However, I also realized that with the original bridge, the intonation screws that poke through the middle of the saddles can be just as much of a pain (Photo 4). If the bridge isn't set up in exactly the right way, those screws can make contact with your strings, causing an unpleasant sitar-like noise.
Photo 5
Every time I've seen this happen, it was because someone set the overall action with the individual saddles instead of the bridge posts. If you weren't aware, the offset bridge is height-adjustable by way of two grub screws concealed within the posts. Insert the appropriate hex key in the postholes on the face of the bridge and adjust the height of the treble and bass sides of the bridge to taste (Photo 5).
The saddles themselves should only be used to set radius. Doing so this way will keep the saddles low enough that the intonation screws won't hit your strings, and it'll make life easier down the road should you decide you want to change action. Two screws, after all, are much easier to adjust than 12.
String Slippage and Bridge Buzz
Photo 6
We've already addressed shimming as one possible solution for slipping strings, but with import bridges or worn saddles, it may be necessary to file a deeper groove in them. Aftermarket bridges such as the Staytrem deal with this by utilizing a single, deep slot on each saddle, while the string channels of the two-saddle Mastery Bridge guarantee your strings won't be going anywhere (Photo 6).
Another option is adding a Buzz Stop—an aftermarket part that bolts onto the vibrato plate and forces the strings down toward the body. This isn't my favorite solution, because it not only shoves the strings into the back of the bridge, it also introduces another point of friction between the vibrato and bridge, and this can upset the feel and stability of the system.
The Vibrato
The Fender offset vibrato is hands-down my favorite unit on the market. There's nothing out there that feels quite like it. With a wider range of pitch than Bigsbys, but not quite as immediate as the Stratocaster trem, it's my opinion that this is the most musical vibrato around.
Photo 7
The original bridge is meant to work in tandem with the vibrato, rocking back and forth as the arm is actuated (Photo 7). This confounds some players, but believe me, it's supposed to be like that. The bridge should zero out, but if you're using lighter string gauges you may find this somewhat unreliable.
Photo 8
Wrapping the bridge posts with foil or electrical tape to stop the bridge from rocking is a common DIY mod (Photo 8). Of course, you could substitute a Mastery or Staytrem instead. If you've never removed the vibrato, what's going on under the plate may not be fancy, but it is effective. The strings anchor through the same plate as the collet for the arm and the spring, which has adjustable tension.
Fig. 1 — Diagram courtesy of Tom Arnold / offset.guitars.com
This assembly hinges on a pivot plate, which is attached to the face of the unit by three screws. When the bar is depressed, this pushes the anchor plate down toward the spring, which, in turn, pushes back (Fig. 1).
The Trem-lock
Photo 9
The most interesting feature may be the unassuming little button on the forward edge, known as the trem-lock (Photo 9). Many players erroneously believe that engaging this button effectively hard-tails the vibrato, but that's not at all correct. In fact, with it engaged, you can still depress the bar—you just can't pull up. And there's good reason for that.
Fig. 2 — Diagram courtesy of Tom Arnold / offset.guitars
The actual intended purpose of the trem-lock button is as a sort of mechanical memory for when a string breaks. When a break occurs, the decreased string tension causes the unit to pull sharp. Sliding that button back (Fig. 2), the vibrato "recalls" the tension of the remaining strings, returning them to pitch automatically. It's all about balance.
To get the trem-lock working properly, make sure your strings are tuned, then depress the vibrato arm until you can slide the button all the way back. If you release the arm and the pitch is lower than it should be, you'll need to loosen the spring tension by turning the screw counterclockwise. Return your strings to pitch, and repeat until you've achieved balance. If you can easily slide the trem-lock button all the way back but still pull up on the bar, then you'll need to tighten the spring's tension by turning the screw clockwise.
Incidentally, setting up the trem-lock button is also useful as a guide for the overall feel and play of the vibrato. In my view, doing so brings out the best in the system, with plenty of upward and downward pitch variation. Of course, I recommend that players adjust their instruments according to their needs, so if what you want is maximum downward travel, then, by all means, tighten that spring.
String Breakage
If you break strings frequently on your Jazzmaster or Jaguar, it's probably happening in one of two areas of the vibrato itself. To properly diagnose these issues, it's important to pay attention to how the string is breaking.
If the string breaks at the anchor plate, this could mean that a burr has developed where the ball end rests. A visual inspection is usually all you'll need to confirm this. The best way to fix the problem is to use a small file to gently round off any sharp edges on the perimeter of the string-through hole. Mitchell's Abrasive Cord, sold by StewMac and most woodworking retailers, is a godsend in this regard—it's the Soap on a Rope of the sandpaper world! Thread it through the hole in question and then use it to "floss" the plate. It'll take care of this issue in no time flat.
Photo 10
The other main source of frustration when it comes to string longevity is due to the E strings not having enough clearance over the outermost screws that secure the pivot plate. On vintage trems, these screws have a flattened dome and aren't an issue, but for some reason the American Vintage reissue vibratos have taller, fully domed screws, which causes big problems for the low E string (Photo 10). As the player uses the vibrato, the string rubs against the Phillips head of the screw, which eventually saws through the finish wrap of the string, causing it to unwind.
Photo 11
The two best ways I've found to address this are as follows. First, soldering the finish wraps of the strings reinforces them more than enough to withstand even heavy vibrato use. Or, if you're handy, flip the screws over. Simply remove the vibrato from the body, unscrew the spring and claw assembly, and set aside the anchor plate. Remove the offending outermost screws, re-insert them upside down, tighten them down, and then reassemble the entire unit as standard. With the heads hidden, the threaded ends of the screws will barely poke out of the body plate (Photo 11), leaving more than enough space for strings.
A Call to Arms
Issues with the arm itself seem to be universal, no matter which model you own. Often it swings freely and is prone to falling out of the guitar—a symptom of poor contact between the arm and its collet. Sure, you could order a Staytrem arm and replacement collet (which is amazing) or install a Mastery Vibrato with its adjustable arm tension (also amazing), but this article is all about that DIY lifestyle, so let's get our hands dirty, yes?
Photo 12
Put the arm in a vice and clamp it down with about 1" of the insert end sticking out (Photo 12). One good tap on that end with a hammer will put a nearly imperceptible bend in the end of the arm, and that's just enough to create some positive contact. Repeat a few more times if it's still not quite right or you want your arm to stay in place when you let go. This is legitimately one of my favorite and most-used tricks.
Photo 13
I'm often asked why my vibrato arms have such a graceful curve when they don't come like that from the factory. A lot of folks don't realize you can do that yourself! The first thing I do when I acquire a new instrument is bend the arm so it snakes around the bridge and the tip sits in my palm (Photo 13). Just hold the arm in your hands and use your thumbs to bend it. If you're worried about potential damage, use a heat gun to soften the metal first, but be careful not to burn yourself.
Look, I could go on. I really could. While there are countless other, more nuanced intricacies to discuss, it's my hope that this at least gives you a starting point for wrangling the obtuse beast that is the Jazzmaster. Good luck!
[Updated 9/15/21]
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Xotic revamps a classic Vox-boost-in-a-box pedal, creating a new one in the process.
Smart, feature-packed update on a classic. Nice size and price.
Small boost knob.
$180
Xotic Effects AC Booster V2
Xotic Effects newest version of the Vox-flavored AC Booster, the AC Booster V2, adds a second, footswitchable boost circuit (tweakable via a small, clear knob tucked among the four main-channel controls), plus a set of four dip switches on the box’s righthand side which engage compression, modern or classic voicing, low-mid boost, and high-mid boost.
This new suite of features packs significant extra functionality into V2’s still-diminutive enclosure. The Vox sounds are all there, and with the high-mids juiced and treble nudged, you’re squarely in clanging Top Boost territory. The modern voicing trades some furry mid-range chunk for a bit more aggression and clarity, while the compression is useful for leveling leads and smoothing out unruly playing.
The boost knob is a little difficult to access, situated as it is in the center of the primary four-knob array. I don’t have particularly big fingers, but even I had trouble twiddling it. That’ll annoy some. But it’s a small price to pay for such a pedalboard-friendly footprint. The boost doses you with a healthy bump in level and gain that’s great for stand-out leads and solos. And speaking of standing out, the upper-mid boost switch is a treat. I found that creating a greater disparity between the high mids from the low mids made for a more precise and satisfying tone-shaping experience than I would experience using a standard mids knob.
There are no shortage of pedals that ape Vox AC30 mojo, but I haven’t seen many that will give you the range of utility that the AC Booster V2 will, for less for $200. Xotic nailed a smart and versatile redesign here.
Nashville luthier and guitar tech Dave Johnson shows us the baker's dozen of tools he thinks any guitar picker requires to be a guitar fixer.
3. Guitar Tech Screwdriver Set - 3000
4. Nut File Set (for medium guitar strings) - 0882
8. String Spacing Ruler - 0673
9. Nut and Saddle Files - 4556
The Ultimate Guitarist's Tool Chest Giveaway
Whether you're setting up your first guitar or fine-tuning a custom build, these are the 13 tools every guitarist needs. Now you can win them all. We've partnered with our friends at StewMac to give away a complete pro-level toolkit valued at over $750.
Click here to enter
Paul Reed Smith cradles one of his company’s Charcoal Phoenix limited-edition guitars in front of a PRS Sonzera amp.
The storied guitar builder reflects on his dozen months sharing his experience, knowledge, and perspective with PG’s readers.
Over the past year, I’ve written a series of articles in Premier Guitar going over some of my, and our industry’s, views of guitar making. You can find all of them all online (and for those reading this online, the articles are collected here). What I am going to attempt to do for this final piece is boil down each of these articles to a “sort of” conclusion. I have enjoyed the process of writing and editing each one. For the most part, it’s been a lot of fun. So:
Tonewood Doesn’t Matter. Wood Does (August 2024)
We don’t use the word tonewood in conversation at PRS. It doesn’t capture a lot of my experience of which combinations of wood make good instruments. First and foremost, we are looking for qualities of wood over species, and we make sure we dry and treat each one appropriately.
What Makes a Guitar Worth the Price? (September 2024)
Very often, the price of a guitar does reflect how good an instrument is—and very often the price of the guitar has nothing to do with how good an instrument is.
What You Can and Can’t See When Buying a Guitar (October 2024)
This one’s a pet peeve. When making a purchase, you can clearly see the color of a guitar and how beautiful it is, but you have no idea if the neck is going to warp over time because of many factors, including wood drying and truss rod installment design. Trust your experience.
Does Where a Guitar Is Made Really Matter? (November 2024)
There are really good, really smart, really talented people all over the world. While I won’t deny it’s helped our career here at PRS being in the United States, I do not believe it is a truly defining factor of our quality. A good example would be the PRS SE Series.
The Complicated Beauty of Electric Guitar Pickups (December 2024)
We’ve taken so many good stabs at humbucking design, and I’m getting incredibly good feedback on our new McCarty IIIs. But making pickups is a complicated art. There are a lot of ingredients in the recipe.
“I hope these articles have had some positive impact on you as a group.”
In Guitar Making, It’s the Details that Matter (January 2025)
Well, that title says it. What’s interesting for me is that all guitar makers believe that different types of details matter more than others. At PRS, we have our own beliefs.
When Building Guitars—Or Pursuing Anything—Go Down All the Rabbit Holes (February 2025)
This one’s about learning. It’s a process I really enjoy. Whether your passion is guitar making, guitar playing, or something else entirely, there is always more to keep discovering.
Paul Reed Smith on Buying Gear (March 2025)
Very often at a clinic, the people who don’t play guitar have a less calcified view of the sound of the instruments being demonstrated than those players who have already developed strong ideas. On the other hand, one time a very experienced player was at one of my clinics and heard something he’d been looking for for a long time and did not expect it out of the guitar he got it from. Trust your experience—not your predetermined views.
Learning from the Mistakes of Guitar Building’s Past (April 2025)
I think my beginnings as a repairman gave me a lot of insight on this one. Even still, just the process of defining a past guitar-making mistake is its own art.
Paul Reed Smith on Where Amp History—and Tone—Begins (May 2025)
This one I love. It’s a greatly exaggerated version of mods you could do to a TS808 Tube Screamer, which has a history on the web. Amplifiers are “modulated power supplies” and can have so much impact on your tone.
The Lifelong Rhythm of Learning (June 2025)
In some periods of time, there’s a lot to be learned, and in some periods of time, you can barely hold what you had before. It’s different for everyone, and for me, it’s been up and down. No matter where you are in the process, there’s always good work to do.
I hope these articles have had some positive impact on you as a group. I know some things resonate with some people and not others, and the opposite as well. I haven’t gotten a lot of feedback from these articles except that there’s not an overwhelming chorus saying “what an idiot,” which I assume means there’s been some meat on the bone of some of the views shared. It’s been a joy. Thanks for listening.
The Billy Idol guitarist rides his Knaggs into Nashville.
There’s nothing subtle about Billy Idol, so it tracks that there’d be nothing subtle about the guitars used onstage by his longtime guitarist, Steve Stevens. Famous for his guitar work with Idol and the Grammy-winning symphony of sustain “Top Gun Anthem,” Stevens brought a brigade of eye-popping signature electrics and some choice other jewels out on the road with Idol this spring.
The tour touched down at Bridgestone Arena in downtown Nashville in May, and while Stevens was jetting into town, PG’s John Bohlinger met up with tech and guitar builder Frank Falbo to learn the ins and outs of Stevens’ rig.
Brought to you by D’Addario
Cherry Pie
This cherryburst is one of a score of single-cut Knaggs Steve Stevens signature models in Stevens’ arsenal. He plays with heavier Tortex picks and uses Ernie Ball strings, usually .010–.048s.
More, More, More (Sustain)
This Knaggs Steve Stevens Severn XF, complete with a Sustainiac pickup system, was designed to mimic the look of one of his old guitars, and the stage lights make this finish go insane. It comes out for three to four songs in any given set, including “Rebel Yell.”
Songs from the Sparkle Lounge
This Knaggs Steve Stevens, finished in silver sparkle, is outfitted with a killswitch, push-pull control knobs, and Fishman Fluence pickups. Falbo was on the R&D team that helped design the Fluences.
Other guitars backstage include a red sparkle Knaggs with PAFs, a Godin LGXT with piezo saddles and Seymour Duncan pickups that sends three signals (synth, electric, and piezo), a pair of piezo- and MIDI-equipped Godin nylon-string guitars, a dazzling Gibson Les Paul with stock Gibson pickups, a Suhr T-style electric, and a Ciari Ascender for travel and dressing-room rehearsal.
Tube Heart, Digital Brains
Stevens runs through a pair of Friedman heads—a B100 and Steve Stevens SS100, plus a third backup—with each panned hard to either the left or right. Both signals run through a Neve 8803 rack EQ into two RedSeven Amplification Amp Central Evo loadboxes, and through their impulse response programs to front of house. A Neural Quad Cortex is on hand as a backup and for fly dates.
Steve Stevens’ Pedalboard
Stevens’ pedal playground is masterminded by an RJM Mastermind GT, which lives on its own board alongside a Fractal FM3 MK II. He orchestrates most of the changes himself, but Falbo is ready to flip switches backstage in case Stevens is away from his board for a key moment.
The centre hub, built on a Tone Merchants board, carries a TC Electronic PolyTune2 Noir, Xotic Effects Super Sweet Booster, Vox wah, Ernie Ball volume pedal, Mission Engineering expression pedal, DigiTech Whammy Ricochet, Suhr Discovery, JHS Muffuletta, DigiTech Drop, ISP DECI-MATE, Walrus Voyager, Suhr Koji Comp, Zvex Super Ringtone, DryBell Vibe Machine, and Ammoon EX EQ7. An Ebtech Hum Eliminator, two Strymon Ojais, and a Strymon Zuma keep the wheels greased.
The board to the right carries a Boss RV-500, Fender Smolder Acoustic OD, Lehle Dual Expression, Boss GM-800, Empress Bass Compressor, Grace Design ALiX preamp, Fishman Aura, and a Peterson tuner. Utility boxes include an Ernie Ball Volt and a Radial J48.