Fender Squier Paranormal XII Jazzmaster - unbox/testing

Описание: Welcome to the 1st play / unboxing of the Fender Squier Paranormal XII Jazzmaster.

Continuing GAS journey!
Being a Keeley freak - the new Beach Boys pedals appeared on the radar.
But, they are only available from Sweetwater which presents two problems:

Least significantly - at $300 dollars, once you add on cost of shipping, tax / duty, cost very quickly soars closer to $450 - $500 by the time it reaches UK. (note; Sweetwater price on 8th June 2024 - Paranormal XII $449).

Significantly - Sweetwater aren't shipping them to the UK anyway!

Hence, California Girls 12 String Sim and I Get Around rotary sim ain't happening any time soon!

I was chewing the fat on gear / GAS with ‪@PopsIntrepidPedaler‬ and the thread led us to Squier Jazzmasters - of which he owns the J Mascus variety... Cue deep web research on Squier Jazzmasters - And I held strong against the GASeous urge to splurge and was quite surprised that I managed to show some self regulation - momentarily.

One thing that kept popping up during the search was the XII, this was already on radar for sometime as there was a 12-string size hole in the Armory.

Then the very next day, a very tempting price from ‪@GakCoUk‬ on the PXII - All resolve instantly vanished - the deal was done.

Thus the conclusion that for about the equivalent price of a 12 String simulator pedal - a 12-string electric was acquired!

So what's it like?
Glad you asked....

Fit and Finish:
Impressive - putting many more expensive guitars to shame.
The Lake Placid Blue finish and Mint Green pick guard combo work well.
Neck, headstock, fingerboard and frets all finished to a good standard...
The tuners work well, are responsive to small adjustments, and hold tune well.
The action is ok, allowing access to the higher registers. It's heavy

Playability:
Open chords transport you to the magical chorus-y world of the 12-string... Plugged in that vibe is amplified - the tone from the pups and circuitry is pleasantly effective if a little bright. It plays remarkably well with pedals. Surprisingly, using fuzz, distortion and overdrive it still maintains it's twelve string character!
Sounds: great budget pups/electronics - clear and articulates well - even with fuzz!

The main difficulty, when not used to 12-strings, is it's like learning a new instrument.... One can transfer existing 6 string skills on to the 12 string, but it commands respect and discipline.
Having previously only dabbled with acoustic 12 strings - my main experience with double courses has been the mandolin. The chunky neck and extra strings really force one to be more accurate on the note. Having mostly played easy action electrics of late - my fingers were in for a surprise bout of soreness but the ears kept willing more of the glorious sound to happen.

The jam featured is the 2nd take a week or so later as I scrapped the first and nearly scrapped this too but hey!

All of that occurred in real time as witnessed in this video - if the playing is somewhat more sporadic and choppy than usual but, that is why. You can use time stamps if necessary. But, as ever, it is recommended to have the music on in the background...

If you've read this description, thank you very much... Let me know if you made it this far by leaving the comment - Well Read!

Thank you and - Subscribe, Like, Comment, cheers, MEB...

Working Title: BOOF! (Blisters on our fingers).

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Chapters
0:00 Intro montage Gas, gags, unboxing
7:40 See what it sounds like unplugged!!!!
9:27 more 12-String talk!
13:54 Let's get it weighed
15:36 More XII Talk
16:36 Sounds something like this
17:49 Hydra / Halo Core
19:21 cloudburst
22:15 Angry Orange
23:15 Realisation dawns on board cam
24:28 Big Green
26:49 Mellow to major ish
28:05 Sanctuary
30:35 Prog - ress - ...
33:08 Transition
36:00 Back to AO / NS Wind up!
38:36 Wind down
39:49 Clean up major mess...
42:00 Minor/Major conflict resolution
45:36 Outro blurb etc...
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A stereo Wet Dry Wet setup.
Amp: Laney Cub12r.

Dry:
Keeley Noble Screamer and Angry Orange.
Wet:
Line out from Torpedo to mono in of Halo out in stereo to Hydra.and stereo to cloudburst

Captured at 32/96 by the SSL12.
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User guide:
With these long soundscapes the 1st bit is usually a sound check before gradually building up to the ambient improvisation - let it build up and breathe.
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Signal Chain:
XII Jazzmaster - NS - AO - Cub12r - Speaker out - Captor 8 - DI - comp - Mono XLR in.
Captor 8 Line - Halo - Hydra - cloudburst - Simplifier Stereo return - Stereo XLR out - comp - SSL12 Stereo XLR in.

Recorded in Cubase
Camera: Galaxy S10 / iPhones.
Edited in: Premiere Pro.
Pedalboard: Vert Deluxe Limo by Marcus D'Luxe

All Material © Matthew Elvis Brown 2024.
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#paranormal #guitar #ambient