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Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar
VS
Playability
70
Sound
70
Build
79
Value
63
Score
73
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Playability
78
Sound
73
Build
60
Value
70
Score
70
FIND IT ON:
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Side to side spec comparison >

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray vs Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar

Reasons to Get
Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray over Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar

Country of Manufacturing
United States vs Mexico
Built with higher quality standards
Fret Material
Stainless Steel vs Nickel Silver
Best fret material that will last forever
Release Year
2020 vs 2019
From a more recent year
Frets Height
Taller vs Shorter
Easier to press down strings and bend them
Pickups
H vs SS
Hum-free with more right hand freedom and sustain
Locking Tuners
Yes vs None
Easier to change strings
Nut Width
1.625'' (41.3mm) vs 1.654'' (42mm)
Favors small hands, easier bar chords and other shapes
Bridge
Fixed vs Tremolo
Good sustain and needs no set-up
Scale Length
25.5'' (647.7mm) vs 24'' (609.6mm)
Lower action and brighter natural tone
Fretboard Radius
10'' (254mm) vs 7.25'' (184.2mm)
Flatter fretboard makes it easier to play single notes and bend

Reasons to Get
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar over Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray

Switch Positions
3 vs 0
More tone options
Volume Knobs
2 vs 0
More volume control
Tone Knobs
2 vs 0
More tone control
Pickups
SS vs H
Beautiful cleans
Nut Width
1.654'' (42mm) vs 1.625'' (41.3mm)
Less likely to mute strings by accident and more space for fingerstyle
Bridge
Tremolo vs Fixed
Simple vibratos without too much maintenance
Scale Length
24'' (609.6mm) vs 25.5'' (647.7mm)
Easier bending, shorter fret separation and warmer natural tone
Fretboard Radius
7.25'' (184.2mm) vs 10'' (254mm)
More curved fretboard helpful to play chords without muting strings
Value Score
70 vs 63
Better price/quality relationship

Other Key Differences
Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray vs Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar

Bridge Pickup
Music Man Custom Humbucker vs Fender Vintage-Style Single-Coil Jaguar
Different Bridge Pickup
Body Wood
Okoume vs Alder
Different Body Wood
Fretboard Wood
Rosewood vs Pau Ferro
Different Fretboard Wood
Headstock
4-2 vs 6
Different Headstock
Nut Material
Compensated vs Synthetic Bone
Different Nut Material

Shared Features
Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray vs Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar

Neck Wood
Maple
Same Neck Wood
Strings
6
Same playing style
Body Type
Solid Body
Feedback free
Number of Frets
22
Same maximum octave
Paint Finish
Poly
Resistant paint that ages well
Pickups Power
Passive
Cleaner sound and no battery needed
Neck Profile Type
C
Comfortable neck that works for most people
Neck Joint
Bolt-On
Allows you to detach and swap the neck
Type of Frets
Medium Jumbo vs Vintage
You'll feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings

Common Strengths

  • High-Quality Nut
  • Top Pickup Brand

Common Weaknesses

  • Neck-Through Build
  • Pickup Alter Switch/Knob
  • Weight Relief
  • Stays in Tune (Evertune)
  • Compound Radius Fretboard
  • Luminescent Sidedots
  • Strap Lock
  • 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • Active/Passive Preamp

Table of Contents

Price History Comparison

Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar Prices

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Which One is Better Overall?

After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that the Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray is probably the better product overall with its final score of 73 compared to the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar's 70 score, although not by a lot.

The Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray wins when it comes to build quality. On the other hand, the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar has the upper hand when it comes to sound, playability, value for the money.

If you got small hands, you'll probably feel more comfortable playing the Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray.

Which One is Better for Beginners?

If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray is the better choice.

The Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray meets 6 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar 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

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Locking tuners
  • Tall frets
  • Narrow nut
  • Comfortable neck
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Short scale

New Player Friendliness

Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar
  • Comfortable shape
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Narrow nut
  • Short scale
  • Comfortable neck
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Tall frets
  • Locking tuners

Nevertheless, when it comes to choosing an instrument, you should pick the one more compatible with your personal style. Still, below we'll try you to give you our results as objectively as it's possible to help you decide.

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray Overview

  • From Music Man's 2020 Stephen Egerton series
  • Stephen Egerton Signature
  • Made in United States
  • 6 strings
  • 25.5"'' scale
  • 10" Fretboard Radius
  • Okoume body
  • Maple neck
  • Rosewood fretboard
  • Bridge pickup: Music Man Custom Humbucker (Humbucker/Passive)
  • 0 volume and 0 tone Dome knobs
  • Music Man Modern hardtail with crescent cover vintage bent steel saddles bridge
  • Stephen Egerton Bolt-On neck
  • 22 Medium Jumbo Stainless Steel frets
  • Schaller M6-IND locking tuners
  • Compare Specs >

Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar Overview

  • From Fender's 2019 Vintera series
  • Made in Mexico
  • 6 strings
  • 24"'' scale
  • 7.25" Fretboard Radius
  • Alder body
  • Maple neck
  • Pau Ferro fretboard
  • Bridge pickup: Fender Vintage-Style Single-Coil Jaguar (Single Coil/Passive)
  • Neck pickup: Fender Vintage-Style Single-Coil Jaguar (Single Coil/Passive)
  • 2 volume and 2 tone Bell knobs
  • 3-way Switch
  • 6-Saddle Vintage-Style Adjustable with “Floating” Tremolo Tailpiece bridge
  • 60s C Bolt-On neck
  • 22 Vintage frets
  • Vintage-Style tuners
  • Weight between 8.25lbs (3.7kgs) and 9.05lbs (4.1kgs)
  • Compare Specs >

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

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.

Woods Used in the Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray

Rosewood wood pattern used for guitar building
Rosewood
Okoume wood pattern used for guitar building
Okoume

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.

Okoume is an affordable wood and one of the first to replace Mahogany when the prohibitions started. It's generally softer than Mahogany and the tone has warmer lows.

Woods Used in the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar

Pau Ferro wood pattern used for guitar building
Pau Ferro
Alder wood pattern used for guitar building
Alder

Pau Ferro has a dark, chocolate-like color with straight dark grains that is being used as a replacement to Rosewood due to the regulations. It produces a warm tone that is somewhere between Mahogany and Rosewood. Find out more about Pau Ferro.

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: Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray.

Pickup Configuration

The Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray has an H configuration while the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar has SS pickups.

A single H pickup gives you the advantage of having a little longer sustain (all other things being equal) because there will be less magnetic fields from other pickups affecting the strings' vibration. However, they also give you the least versatility because you won't have other pickups at different distances from the bridge to create different tones. A single humbucking pickup is used for noiseless high output, which is used mainly for Hard Rock genres.

On the other hand, 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 very good pickups from at least one of the specialized brands in the market. With pickups like these, you probably won't need an upgrade anytime soon.

However, the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar has a slight sound quality advantage when taking into account other factors like the type of pickups, magnet, position, etc.

We found the same or similar pickups to the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar's online:

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: Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar.

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

The Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar gives you 3 switch options while the Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray gives you 0. This means that the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve

Neither of them come with some kind of coil split or pickup mod option. This makes both lacking in terms of versatility.

The Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray doesn't come with pickup switching options.

Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar pickups switch and push knobs diagram
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar's switch options

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 Vintera 60s Jaguar.

Final Sound Quality Scores

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray
Pickups 90
Sustain 70
Versatility 40
Tuning Stability 80
Sound 70
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar
Pickups 100
Sustain 60
Versatility 68
Tuning Stability 65
Sound 73

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 Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray compares to the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar.

Country of Origin

The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray is built in United States while the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar is made in Mexico.

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.

Mexico has been for a long time where Fender has built their semi-premium series. If you don't want to overpay for a wellp-built instrument, a guitar built in this country by a good brand always offers good value for the money.

Winner: Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray

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 Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray has a Compensated nut. Each hole where the string sits at the nut is cut at a different distance from the bridge, which compensates for the different amount of tension that each string is subject to. This fixes most intonation issues across the fretboard, so it gives great tuning stability.

On the other hand, the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar comes with 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.

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.

In this comparison, the Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray is the only one that has stainless steel frets. These frets will basically last for the entire life of the guitar. They will never need polishing nor replacement. And not only that, but some people also notice that bending and vibratos are much easier to perform when they upgrade to stainless steel.

Winner: Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray.

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.

The Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray's brige is a Fixed. It's a simple bridge that is very beginner-friendly since it doesn't require any set-up. You can swap strings easily. It might also give more sustain since it doesn't have complex moving parts that make the strings lose vibration. However, it doesn't have the same versatility as a tremolo bridge.

On the other hand, the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar's is a 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 Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray 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: Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray.

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
Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray
  • Stainless Steel Frets
  • Locking Tuners
  • Made in United States
  • Expensive Wood
  • Compensated Nut
  • Top Brand Pickups
  • No Neck-Through Build
  • No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
  • No Weight Relief
  • No Luminescent Inlay
  • No Tremolo
  • No Compound Radius Fretboard
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock
Strengths & Weaknesses
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar
  • Synthetic Bone Nut
  • Top Brand Pickups
  • Tremolo
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • Made in Mexico
  • No Expensive Woods
  • 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

Final Build Quality Scores

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray
Quality of materials 81
Features 60
Quality Control 95
Build Quality 79
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar
Quality of materials 51
Features 55
Quality Control 75
Build Quality 60

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

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray Nut Width
Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray Nut Width
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar Nut Width
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar Nut Width

The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar has the wider nut with 42mm (1.654'') vs 41.3mm (1.625''). This is a 0.7mm (0.029'') difference

This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.

Scale Length

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray's Scale Length
Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray's Scale Length
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar's Scale Length
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar's 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.

The Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray has the longest scale: 25.5". The Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar is only 24" long. This is a 1.5'' (38.1mm) scale length difference.

This longer scale means that the strings need more tension to get in tune. This is good if you want to avoid fret buzz, which can happen when the strings are too loose and touch the frets while vibrating. This is especially important when playing in lower tunings. This will also let you reduce the gap between fretboard and strings (low action) to make them easier to press down. However, this higher tension will also make it harder to perform bends and vibratos as the strings will feel stiffer.

This also means that the frets have a longer separation between each other, so this will make it harder for people with smaller hands when playing some chord positions.

Another characteristic of a longer scale is that it makes the guitar sound 'snappier' or brighter. This is due to the extra separation between harmonics and overtones produced by the tension. This influences tone more than any other factor (except the pickups).

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

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray Neck Profile
Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray's neck profile
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar Neck Profile
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar'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.

Both the Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray and the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar have a C-shaped 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.

Fretboard Radius

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray Fingerboard Radius
Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray's Fingerboard radius
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar Fingerboard Radius
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar's Fingerboard 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 Vintera 60s Jaguar's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray's. This extra arc will make playing chords easier in this model. You won't be as likely to mute the strings, especially if you have big hands. However, playing single notes and bending will be easier on the Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray.

Hand Size Comfortability

Everyone has a different hand size, and that's why it's recommended to try a guitar before buying, even if others tell you that it's comfortable to play. However, we can know whether a guitar favors small or large hands just by knowing its exact measurements.

And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar favors large hands more than the Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray.

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray:
Big Hands
Small Hands
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar:
Big Hands
Small Hands

Fret Size

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray Frets Size
Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray's Frets Size
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar Frets Size
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar's Frets Size

The Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray has Medium Jumbo frets, which should be taller than the Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar's Vintage 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

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray
Bending & Vibrato Ease 70
Chord Playability 75
Solo Playability 65
Playability 70
Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar
Bending & Vibrato Ease 75
Chord Playability 100
Solo Playability 60
Playability 78

Specs Side-by-Side

Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray vs Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar
General Music Man Stephen Egerton Stingray Fender Vintera 60s Jaguar
Brand: Music Man Fender
Year: 2020 2019
Configuration: H SS
Strings: 6 6
Made in: United States Mexico
Series: Stephen Egerton Vintera
Colors: Black Sunburst, Blue
Left-Handed Version: No No
Body
Type: Solid Body Solid Body
Body Material: Okoume Alder
Bridge: Music Man Modern hardtail with crescent cover vintage bent steel saddles 6-Saddle Vintage-Style Adjustable with “Floating” Tremolo Tailpiece
Neck
Neck Joint: Bolt-On Bolt-On
Tuners: Schaller M6-IND locking Vintage-Style
Fretboard: Rosewood Pau Ferro
Neck Material: Maple Maple
Decoration: 1/4 Dot Inlay White Dot
Scale Size: 25.5" 24"
Shape: Stephen Egerton 60s C
Frets: 22 Medium Jumbo Stainless Steel 22 Vintage Nickel Silver
Fretboard Radius: 10" 7.25"
Nut: Compensated Synthetic Bone
Nut Width: 41.3mm (1.625'') 42mm (1.654'')
Electronics
Bridge Pickup: Music Man Custom Humbucker (Humbucker / Passive) Fender Vintage-Style Single-Coil Jaguar (Single Coil / Passive)
Middle Pickup:
Neck Pickup: Fender Vintage-Style Single-Coil Jaguar (Single Coil / Passive)
Switch: 0 Way 3 Way
Knobs: Dome Bell
Pickup Mods: None None
Volume Controls: 0 2
Tone Controls: 0 2