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Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster
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Playability
70
Sound
72
Build
69
Value
70
Score
70
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Playability
70
Sound
78
Build
75
Value
64
Score
74
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Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster vs American Ultra Jazzmaster Specs Comparison
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster American Ultra Jazzmaster
General
Brand: Fender Fender
Year: 2023 2019
Configuration: SS SS
Strings: 6 6
Made in: United States United States
Series: Vintera II American Ultra
Colors: Blue, Golden Sunburst, Blue, Brown Burst
Left-Handed Version: No No
Body
Type: Solid Body Solid Body
Body Material: Alder Alder
Bridge: 6-Saddle Vintage-Style Adjustable with “Floating” Tremolo Tailpiece with Vintage-Style Floating Tremolo with Tremolo Lock Button and Push-In Tremolo Arm American Professional Jazzmaster
Neck
Neck Joint: Bolt-On Bolt-On
Tuners: Fender Vintage-Style Deluxe Cast/Sealed Locking (all short posts)
Fretboard: Slab Rosewood Rosewood
Neck Material: Maple Maple
Decoration: White Dot White Pearloid Dot
Scale Size: 25.5" 25.5"
Shape: Late '50s C Ultra Modern D
Frets: 21 Vintage Tall Nickel Silver 21 Medium Jumbo Nickel Silver
Fretboard Radius: 7.25" 10" to 14"
Nut: Synthetic Bone Bone
Nut Width: 41.9mm (1.65'') 42.8mm (1.685'')
Electronics
Bridge Pickups: Fender Vintage-Style 50s Single-Coil Jazzmaster (Single Coil / Passive) Fender Ultra Noiseless Vintage Jazzmaster (Single Coil / Passive)
Middle Pickup:
Neck Pickup: Fender Vintage-Style 50s Single-Coil Jazzmaster (Single Coil / Passive) Fender Ultra Noiseless Vintage Jazzmaster (Single Coil / Passive)
Switch: 3 Way 3 Way
Knobs: Bell Bell
Pickup Mods: None Series Split
Volume Controls: 1 2
Tone Controls: 1 2
Hardware
Strap Lock: No No
Hardware Color: Chrome Chrome
Show Diagrams Comparison
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster pickups switch and push knobs diagram
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster's switch options
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster pickups switch and push knobs diagram
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster's switch options

Reasons to Get
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster over American Ultra Jazzmaster

Release Year
2023 vs 2019
From a more recent year
Frets Height
Taller vs Shorter
Easier to press down strings and bend them
Neck Profile
Late '50s C vs Ultra Modern D
Comfortable neck that works for most people
Nut Width
1.65'' (41.9mm) vs 1.685'' (42.8mm)
Favors small hands, easier bar chords and other shapes
Value Score
70 vs 64
Better price/quality relationship

Reasons to Get
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster over Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster

Compound Radius
10" to 14" vs 7.25"
Balanced playability for chords and single-notes
Neck Profile
Ultra Modern D vs Late '50s C
Thin and flat neck for playing fast
Pickup Mods
Series Split vs None
Connects pickups in series to imitate a humbucker
Volume Knobs
2 vs 1
More volume control
Tone Knobs
2 vs 1
More tone control
Locking Tuners
Yes vs None
Easier to change strings
Nut Width
1.685'' (42.8mm) vs 1.65'' (41.9mm)
Less likely to mute strings by accident and more space for fingerstyle

Other Key Differences
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster vs American Ultra Jazzmaster

Bridge Pickup
Fender Vintage-Style 50s Single-Coil Jazzmaster vs Fender Ultra Noiseless Vintage Jazzmaster
Different Bridge Pickup
Neck Pickup
Fender Vintage-Style 50s Single-Coil Jazzmaster vs Fender Ultra Noiseless Vintage Jazzmaster
Different Neck Pickup
Nut Material
Synthetic Bone vs Bone
Different Nut Material

Shared Features
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster vs American Ultra Jazzmaster

Body Wood
Alder
Same Body Wood
Neck Wood
Maple
Same Neck Wood
Fretboard Wood
Rosewood
Same Fretboard Wood
Headstock
6
Same Headstock
Strings
6
Same playing style
Body Type
Solid Body
Feedback free
Switch Positions
3
Same pickups versatility
Pickups
SS
Beautiful cleans
Number of Frets
21
Same maximum octave
Paint Finish
Poly
Resistant paint that ages well
Bridge
Tremolo
Simple vibratos without too much maintenance
Scale Length
25.5'' (647.7mm)
Same string tension and fret separation
Pickups Power
Passive
Cleaner sound and no battery needed
Neck Joint
Bolt-On
Allows you to detach and swap the neck
Type of Frets
Vintage Tall vs Medium Jumbo
You'll feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings

Common Strengths

  • High-Quality Nut
  • From a High-Quality-Standards Country
  • Top Pickup Brand
  • Expensive Wood

Common Weaknesses

  • Neck-Through Build
  • Weight Relief
  • Stays in Tune (Evertune)
  • High-Quality Frets
  • Luminescent Sidedots
  • Strap Lock
  • 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • Active/Passive Preamp

Price History Comparison

SET PRICE ALERT

Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster Prices

SET PRICE ALERT

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Hand Size Comfortability

And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster favors large hands more than the Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster. But it's still more comfortable for people with small hands, as you can see in the score meter below.

Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster:
Big Hands
Small Hands
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster:
Big Hands
Small Hands

Beginner Friendliness

The Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster meets 7 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster meets only 5. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players.

New Player Friendliness

Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Tall frets
  • Narrow nut
  • Comfortable neck
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Short scale
  • Locking tuners

New Player Friendliness

Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Locking tuners
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Tall frets
  • Narrow nut
  • Comfortable neck
  • Short scale

Sound Quality Comparison

The wood used in an electric guitar or bass is not as important to determine the final tone. However, some people prefer specific wood types, so we'll take a look at those first. Then, we'll take a look at the electronics to determine the versatility and sound quality of each instrument.

Woods Used in Both

Maple wood pattern used for guitar building
Maple
Rosewood wood pattern used for guitar building
Rosewood
Alder wood pattern used for guitar building
Alder

Maple is one of the most popular necks for good reasons. It is a strong wood that is relatively cheap to make and looks beautiful. The highest quality maple is the hardest that comes from North America. Find out more about Maple.

Rosewood is an almost purple-looking wood that is used mainly for fretboards since it's heavy, rare, and expensive. It's sometimes used on acoustic guitar bodies to create stronger warm tones. Find out more about Rosewood.

Alder is the most popular wood that Fender uses in most of their guitars nowadays. Even though they say it's because of its balanced tone with an emphasis in the upper midrange, it probably is because it isn't too expensive, and it's also pretty lightweight—more than Mahogany. Find out more about Alder.

Winner: Tie.

Pickup Configuration

Both pickup configurations are SS. SS is the classic Telecaster configuration. It's used mainly for playing clean or with low-gain distortion, and it's very popular for the country genre because of their brightness. It doesn't give you as much versatility as a Strat SSS configuration, but you might like the cleaner look of a guitar body with fewer pickups.

Pickups Quality

Both come with some of the top pickups on the market. You can't go wrong with either of them. You'll probably never need a pickup upgrade.

Both use Passive pickups. This is what's used for most music genres. They have a regular output and will serve you for both high-gain and clean tones. The alternative (Active pickups) offer a higher output that is mostly used for heavy music.

Winner: Tie.

Versatility Comparison

Some instruments offer you more ways to explore your creativity than others. Below you'll find how both compare when it comes to versatility.

Switch Options

Both are equal when it comes to the pickup switching option.

Only the Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster comes with some kind of pickup modification: Series Split.

The Series Split feature allows it to split and connect some of the pickups in series. When wired in series, the resulting tone is similar to a Humbucker's. The pickups will work together and produce a fuller tone with more output than single-coils, but less than Humbuckers.

When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.

Winner: Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster.

Final Sound Quality Scores

Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster
Pickups 100
Sustain 60
Versatility 64
Tuning Stability 65
Sound 72
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster
Pickups 100
Sustain 60
Versatility 78
Tuning Stability 75
Sound 78

Build Quality Comparison

When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster compares to the Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster.

Country of Origin

The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. Both in this comparison where made in United States.

The United States is considered one of the best electric guitar manufacturers in the world. A guitar made in this country is supposed to have world-class quality control. Nowadays, guitars made in other countries can beat some of the ones made in the US, but most of the time, this country offers the best you can get. Of course, that comes at a price.

Winner: Tie

Nut Material

If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.

The Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster has a Synthetic Bone nut. Bone is the best natural material for guitar nuts. However, its tonal properties can be inconsistent. That's the problem that synthetic bone fixes. This is much better than using a plastic nut because the nut is more slippery—which helps with tuning stability—, and it gives your open strings rich harmonics.

On the other hand, the Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster comes with a Bone nut. It's a type of nut found in high-quality instruments. They sound similar to Ivory since they give a lot of sustain and a bright sound (at least when striking open strings). The only problem they can run into is that you may get a bone piece that simply doesn't sound as well as others because that's just how natural materials are.

Winner: Tie.

Fret Material

Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.

Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.

Winner: Tie.

Bridge

The perfect bridge for you will depend on your playstyle because they all have advantages and disadvantages. However, some bridges are more expensive—like Floyd Roses and Evertunes—and thus add more value to a guitar.

Both come with a similar bridge: Tremolo. Tremolo bridges give you more versatility than fixed bridges. They let you perform the intense vibrato effects that would be impossible with a fixed bridge. However, since the bridge floats and there's less contact with the body, the strings lose sustain slightly faster. They can also be a bit harder to restring and set up correctly than fixed bridges.

Since we need to be objective, the most expensive type of bridge will be the winner of this section. In the end, this doesn't matter if you're not going to use the bridge for its original purpose, so choose the bridge that fits your playing style better.

Winner: Tie.

Tuners

The Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster has the best tuners of the two because they are locking tuners. They'll help to keep your guitar in tune because they allow you to tune it without wrapping the strings around the posts. This avoids variations in the tuning due to the strings changing position at the post after a bend. They come at the disadvantage of being slightly heavier than regular tuners. Also, it makes it a lot easier to restring.

Winner: Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster.

Neck Joint

Contrary to popular belief, the difference in sustain and tone that some neck joints give to a guitar is simply unperceivable—if they're all well built. However, some of them do have advantages over the others.

Both have a Bolt-On neck joint. This neck is joined to the body by 4 bolts that you can simply unscrew. This allows you to replace the neck or take it off for travel. It's the most common and cheapest way to build a guitar.

Winner: Tie.

Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:

Strengths & Weaknesses
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster
  • Made in United States
  • Expensive Wood
  • Synthetic Bone Nut
  • Top Brand Pickups
  • Tremolo
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • No Neck-Through Build
  • No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
  • No Weight Relief
  • No Luminescent Inlay
  • No Compound Radius Fretboard
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock
Strengths & Weaknesses
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster
  • Locking Tuners
  • Made in United States
  • Expensive Wood
  • Bone Nut
  • Top Brand Pickups
  • Series Split Pickups
  • Tremolo
  • Compound Radius Fretboard
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Neck-Through Build
  • No Weight Relief
  • No Luminescent Inlay
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock

Final Build Quality Scores

Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster
Quality of materials 66
Features 55
Quality Control 85
Build Quality 69
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster
Quality of materials 51
Features 80
Quality Control 95
Build Quality 75

Playability Comparison

Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.

Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.

Nut Width

Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster Nut Width
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster Nut Width
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster Nut Width
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster Nut Width

The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, the Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster has the wider nut with 42.8mm (1.685'') vs 41.9mm (1.65''). This is a 0.9mm (0.035'') difference

This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.

Scale Length

Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster and Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster's Scale Length
Both have the same scale length

The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.

In this case, both have a scale length of 25.5".

This is the scale used in most Stratocasters. It's slightly longer than the typical 24.75'' size found in Les Pauls, and it's one of the main reasons why Stratocasters have such a bright sound in general. A longer scale also means that the strings will have higher tension. This will help you get lower action without suffering fret buzz, which will also be helpful when playing in lower tunings without having to increase your string gauge.

However, this also means that there will be more separation between frets, which can make it more difficult to play. Also, bending the strings will require more strengths due to the increased tension, but remember that a tremolo guitar will offset this difficulty.

Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.

Neck Profile

Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster Neck Profile
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster's neck profile
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster Neck Profile
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster's neck profile

No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.

In this case, both have different neck shapes:

The Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster has a C type of neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.

The Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster, on the other hand, has a D neck. This is a thin and flat neck that is made for playing fast. If you prefer a neck that doesn't get in your way when soloing, this is the shape you should use. Guitarists that prefer to have a bit more grip won't like this type of neck.

Fretboard Radius

Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster Fingerboard Radius
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster's Fingerboard radius
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster Fretboard Compound Radius
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster's Compound Fretboard Radius

Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.

In this case, the Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster is the only one with a compound radius. This is a huge win because it will give you the best of both worlds: a more curved radius in the first few frets for chords, and flatter as you come closer to the body for soloing.

Fret Size

Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster Frets Size
Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster's Frets Size
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster Frets Size
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster's Frets Size

The Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster has Vintage Tall frets, which should be taller than the Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster's Medium Jumbo frets.

Some people prefer taller frets because they result in more sustain since the strings get pressed cleanly without interference from the fretboard. However, if they're too tall—like Jumbo frets—, you might change the pitch of the strings accidentally if you press too hard because you won't be touching the fretboard with your fingers. This is also why some guitarists with a heavy grip prefer smaller frets. They like to feel the fingerboard to avoid pressing down too hard and getting out of pitch.

Final Playability Scores

Fender Vintera II '50s Jazzmaster
Bending & Vibrato Ease 60
Chord Playability 90
Solo Playability 60
Playability 70
Fender American Ultra Jazzmaster
Bending & Vibrato Ease 60
Chord Playability 80
Solo Playability 70
Playability 70