Fender Blacktop Jaguar 90 review

A pocket-friendly way to (over-) drive a Jag

  • £598
  • $739.99
Reviews
By
( )
published
There's just enough Jag-style vibe to keep this guitar clinging to a branch on its family tree

MusicRadar Verdict

As much as we like the existing Jaguar HH, we had our fingers crossed for a twin-P-90- loaded version. The Jaguar 90 is every bit as great as we hoped it would be.

Pros

  • +

    Tones. Playability. We don't miss the vibrato.

Cons

  • -

    It's a Jaguar only in shape.

MusicRadar's got your back Our team of expert musicians and producers spends hours testing products to help you choose the best music-making gear for you. Find out more about how we test.

This latest version of Fender's sixties offset switches out the dual humbuckers of the existing Blacktop Jaguar HH for a pair of sweet-sounding P-90s. Like the HH, the new Jag comes sans the vibrato unit that plagued/made the original guitar.

In its place, the Jaguar 90 features a chrome Adjusto-Matic bridge and anchored tailpiece that suffers none of the tuning problems often present in the sixties guitar and its reissues.

"There's more edge on this alder- fuelled guitar than you'd expect from mahogany-bodied P-90 planks"

This Jag's alder body, slim-profile maple neck, big headstock and the crucial 24-inch scale length offer just enough Jag-style vibe to keep this guitar clinging to a branch on its family tree. Those looking for a cool alternative to a Gibson Les Paul Special should give it a go.

Sounds

If P-90s have passed you by, imagine them as fat-sounding single-coils; the chubby vibe is here in the Jaguar 90. Clean tones are bright, yet well-rounded, in all positions on the three-way switch. Add some overdrive for a lovely clang when you hit power chords with the bridge pickup engaged.

There's more edge on this alder- fuelled guitar than you'd expect from mahogany-bodied P-90 planks, but all those rock, mod and punk tones are in here. That edge also helps the clarity of the overdriven neck pickup, making it perfect for upper- fingerboard blues licks.

Trevor Curwen

Trevor Curwen has played guitar for several decades – he's also mimed it on the UK's Top of the Pops. Much of his working life, though, has been spent behind the mixing desk, during which time he has built up a solid collection of the guitars, amps and pedals needed to cover just about any studio session. He writes pedal reviews for Guitarist and has contributed to Total Guitar, MusicRadar and Future Music among others.