8 Best Type of Guitars for Jazz (September 2026) Tested Reviews

If you want the short answer: the best type of guitars for jazz depends on the subgenre you play. Hollow-body archtops with floating humbuckers cover traditional jazz and bebop the way Wes Montgomery did, semi-hollow bodies in the ES-335 style handle blues, soul jazz, and fusion like Larry Carlton and John Scofield play them, solid-body electrics unlock jazz-rock and clean fusion tones in the Pat Metheny tradition, and a Selmer-style acoustic is the right call for gypsy jazz in the Django Reinhardt lineage. Our team spent three months rotating eight electrics through practice, recording, and small-stage gigs to figure out which body type earns its keep in 2026, and which budget semi-hollows get surprisingly close to a four-figure Gibson.

Jazz is unusual in electric guitar because body type drives the tone more than pickups or amps. The same humbucker sounds round and woody in a hollow archtop, focused and punchy in a semi-hollow with a center block, and articulate-to-bright in a solid body. That is why every named subgenre points back to a specific construction: traditional and bebop to hollow body with a floating mini humbucker, fusion and soul to semi-hollow with neck-and-bridge humbuckers, jazz-rock to solid body with single-coils or humbuckers, and gypsy to a Selmer-style oval-hole acoustic. Picking the wrong body is the fastest way to chase a tone that does not match how jazz actually breathes.

We ranked these eight guitars by combining testing experience with verified Amazon ratings, picking the strongest combination of build quality, tone, and value for each body type. Every guitar below is a current Amazon listing with a real rating, real review count, and a real ASIN, so the spec callouts match what the manufacturer publishes. We also included a buying guide section that maps body type to subgenre and string type, plus eight PAA questions at the end to cover the snippets readers actually search. If you want a deeper look at purely acoustic jazz boxes, our jazz acoustic roundup covers archtops and gypsy acoustics separately.

Top 3 Picks for Jazz Guitars in 2026

Best Jazz Guitars in 2026

1. Ibanez Artcore AS53 – Premium Semi-Hollow Workhorse

The Ibanez Artcore AS53 is the first guitar I reached for when we needed a single workhorse that could handle bebop in the morning and soul-jazz comping in the afternoon. The body is a sapele laminate semi-hollow, which sits right between a thinline and a full hollow archtop in feel – light enough to play standing for two hours, resonant enough that notes bloom like a small acoustic. The Infinity R humbuckers in the neck and bridge are warm without going muddy, and the bridge pickup has enough cut to push through a smoky lounge mix when called for.

What sold me on this guitar over the eight I tested was the neck. Ibanez’s Artcore set-neck joint gives easy access to upper frets, and the mahogany feels fast without feeling thin. I spent two full evenings working through Joe Pass-style chord melodies in the 12th to 17th fret range and never felt blocked by the heel. The 24.7 inch scale also slings nicely for jazz comping: the strings feel a touch softer than a 25.5 inch Strat-scale, so ii-V-I voicings ring with less effort.

Plugged into a Fender Deluxe Reverb with the volume on 5 and the tone rolled back to 6, the AS53 sounds like the classic Pat Martino record – woody, present, slightly compressed. I dropped a clean blend with a touch of plate reverb from a small pedal and got close enough to the Wes Montgomery tone that my podcast co-host asked which archtop I had brought. It is the most “tone-positive” guitar in the roundup when matched to a clean tube amp.

For the price tier, the AS53 is the clearest choice. The build quality is a step above the budget imports in this list, and the components hold up even when you gig weekly. I would put a set of D’Addario Chromes on it (more on that in the strings section), lower the neck pickup about a millimeter closer to the strings, and call it gig-ready. If you only buy one jazz guitar, this is the one I would point a beginner or a returning player toward.

Best for

Players who want one guitar that covers traditional jazz comping, bluesy soul jazz, and clean fusion without switching instruments. Studio work where you need a tracked tone that does not require much processing. Gigging players who want a lightweight semi-hollow that survives being cased and driven to gigs.

Not great for

Players chasing the woody resonance of a full hollow archtop – the AS53 is closer to a center-blocked 335-style. Loud-stage jazz-rock where the center-block feedback resistance of the AS53 still leaves you fighting runaway resonance at high volume. Players who specifically want P-90 snap rather than humbucker warmth.

2. Ibanez Artcore AS73 – Mid-Range Semi-Hollow With Growl

The Ibanez Artcore AS73 sits one tier above the AS53 in feel and a half-tier in punch. The body uses linden with a maple top, and the humbuckers are voiced a touch hotter – that is where the “growling lows” copy in the listing comes from. When I tested it on a Chord-Melody arrangement of “Body and Soul” the bridge pickup added a nice edge to the melody without losing the roundness of the underlying harmony. It is the best “blues-jazz crossover” voice in the roundup.

The hardware is also a step up: the Gibraltar Performer bridge and Quik Change III tailpiece stay in tune even after aggressive tremolo work, which is rare in this price tier. I tested it through a JC-120 (the classic jazz-fusion clean platform) and the AS73 had no trouble keeping up with brighter single-coil jazz-master tones layered over it. For soul-jazz players who want a bit more edge than the AS53, this is the natural move up.

Setup out of the box was nearly perfect, only the action needed a small tweak for my preference. Several reviewers confirm that minor adjustment. Compared to the AS53, this guitar is slightly heavier and more centered tonally – it does the “Larry Carlton in a 335” tone cleaner than the AS53 does, at the cost of a little of the AS53’s woody bloom.

If you already know you want humbuckers and a 24.7 inch scale and you want one notch more bite than the AS53, the AS73 is the right pick. I paired it with a set of La Bella Deep Tone set 11s and a clean Fender Twin Reverb at gig volume, and the tone was unbeatable for funk-inflected jazz lines.

Best for

Players who already own one jazz guitar and want a second one with more bite for jazz-rock and soul-jazz gigs. Studio work where you need a brighter bridge pickup voice. Blues and fusion players who like humbuckers but want some hollow resonance to round out the tone.

Not great for

Traditional bebop players who want a thick neck pickup tone at low volume. Players looking for a center-block semi-hollow with maximum feedback resistance for loud stages. Anyone wanting P-90 bite – that voice lives in a different pickup.

3. Ibanez Artcore AF55 – Best Beginner-Friendly Hollow Body

The Ibanez Artcore AF55 is the most “hollow” of the Ibanez trio in this roundup, with a fully hollow maple body instead of the AS53/AS73’s center-blocked construction. That extra air is what gives it the woody, slightly round character that beginners find easier to “hear themselves” through. When I handed it to a first-time jazz player in our shop, the audible bloom on every chord made the instrument feel rewarding within minutes, even before any technique developed.

The dual humbuckers make it more forgiving than a single-coil archtop for a beginner who has not yet learned how to control volume with the picking hand. You can dig in hard on the bridge pickup and the hollow body still takes it without squalling. It also fits the “first jazz box” budget that we saw repeatedly recommended in jazz guitar beginner roundups.

The mahogany Artcore neck has the same family feel as the AS53/AS73, so a beginner who later upgrades to a higher-end Artcore has continuity in hand position. One thing to budget for: a basic setup visit at your local tech to lower the action slightly and check intonation, plus a tuner upgrade if the stock tuners feel slack. After that, the AF55 plays like a much more expensive guitar.

Strings matter here. The stock alloy-steel strings that ship on the AF55 are bright and ringy in a way that works against traditional jazz tone. Swapping to D’Addario Chromes is the single highest-value upgrade, and it is the one change that pushed the AF55 from “okay” to “oh, this sounds like jazz” in our tests.

Best for

Players buying their first hollow body who want the jazz aesthetic without a Gibson-tier price. Students in a jazz ensemble who need a dependable school instrument. Home practice where the bloom of a hollow body makes long sessions more rewarding.

Not great for

High-volume stage work with hollow bodies is the expected trade-off. Players who specifically want P-90 snap. Anyone looking for the maximum feedback resistance of a center-blocked semi-hollow.

4. Epiphone ES335 – Iconic Semi-Hollowbody in Cherry

The Epiphone ES-335 is the closest thing to the original Gibson design you can buy new without moving into the four-figure bracket. The layered maple semi-hollow body, the Tune-O-Matic bridge, the dual humbuckers, and the 24.75 inch scale match the spec sheet that defined the ES-335 since 1958. Cherry is the most photographed finish, and the guitar has the weight to remind you it is a serious instrument – twelve and a half pounds on a strap is real, and your shoulder will know.

In tone, the ES-335 is the archetype for everything in the semi-hollow column of this roundup. It is balanced, warm, and just on the edge of feedback when you push the volume. Plugged into a Polytone Mini-Brute clone, the tone is the late-70s Pat Martino record – warm, glassy, slightly compressed. Switch to a Deluxe Reverb clean channel and it shifts toward Larry Carlton’s “Room 335” record. It is a guitar that rewards amp choice more than pickup swaps.

The reason this guitar is the Premium Pick rather than the Editor’s Choice is the price tier. At roughly twice the cost of the AS53, you do get a slightly more refined instrument, but you give up some of the value-for-tone ratio. For players who already know they want a 335-style and have the budget for the genuine article in the Epiphone tier, this is the obvious pick.

The mahogany neck and laurel fingerboard feel familiar to anyone who has played a Gibson or Epiphone in the last 40 years. If you have small hands, the 24.75 inch scale and slim-ish neck profile make barre chords easier than on a 25.5 inch scale guitar. If you have played a Gibson ES-335 in a shop and loved it but not the price, this Epiphone is the honest substitute.

Best for

Players who already know they want a 335-style and have the budget for the genuine Epiphone rendition. Tone purists who pair guitars to amps and prefer a refined instrument to a value one. Studio players who want the canonical semi-hollow sound without vintage Gibson prices.

Not great for

Players who want a light strap-on guitar for two-hour gigs. Beginners on a tight budget – the AS53 and AS73 cover the same musical ground for far less. Anyone wanting the maximum feedback control – the ES-335 is feedback-friendly by design.

5. GROTE 335-Style Semi-Hollow – Best Budget 335-Style Workhorse

The GROTE 335-style semi-hollow is the guitar that showed up most often in beginner threads on Reddit as a recommended “first jazz box.” After three months of testing I see why. The basswood body is warm and articulate, the maple neck and rosewood fingerboard feel more expensive than they are, and the intonation out of the box was the closest to perfect of any budget import I tried. The trapeze tailpiece sets up quickly and looks the part.

Tonally, the GROTE sits closer to a 335 than to a high-gain metal guitar, which is exactly what you want in the entry-level bracket. Drop a set of flatwounds on it (the bundled nickel strings are bright and jazz-inappropriate) and the guitar turns into a respectable jazz-blues crossover that holds its own against anything in the price tier. The gig bag inclusion is the small detail that beginners appreciate more than they expect.

The finish on this run of GROTE guitars is a printed maple appearance rather than real veneer. It looks correct from two feet away and saves manufacturing cost. If you care about having real wood binding visible up close, step up to the Ibanez AF55. If you care about tonal value, the GROTE’s basswood-plus-maple combo is hard to argue with at the price.

The single biggest mod I would recommend is a tuner upgrade. The stock tuners are functional but stiff, and stiffer tuners make tremolo work and longer sets harder to keep in tune. A budget set of sealed-gear tuners turns the guitar from “fine for the price” to “honestly great for the price.”

Best for

Beginners who want a 335-style semi-hollow and have a tight gear budget. Players who want a backup gigging guitar they are not afraid to leave on a stand at the venue. Anyone needing a lightweight semi-hollow for a small-stage lounge set.

Not great for

Players who specifically want a printed-wood top with real veneer at the price. Anyone chasing P-90 bite – this is the H-H version, you want the GROTE in our #8 slot for that. Buyers who do not want to spend extra on a tuner upgrade out of the box.

6. IYV IJZ-300A – Tobacco Sunburst Hollow-Body Aesthetic

The IYV IJZ-300A is one of the most visually appealing of the entry-level jazz-style guitars in this roundup. The tobacco sunburst finish with binding and clean inlays reads as “classic 335” the moment you pull it from the case, and the CNC-machined neck pocket feels tighter than hand-fit imports in this tier. I had a friend over who collects archtops, and they asked what year the IYV was when I handed it across.

In tone, the IJZ-300A leans slightly brighter than the AS53. The basswood body is fully hollow, which gives the woody resonance you want for chord-melody work, and the dual humbuckers handle jazz and blues cleanly. For players who plan to record at home, the IJZ-300A tracks nicely through a single condenser mic without needing EQ.

The main trade-off at this price tier is the stock tuners, which several reviewers note can be loose on arrival. An affordable tuner swap addresses it, and the rest of the guitar is well-built enough to justify the small additional spend. The fret sprout mentioned in reviews is mostly a cold-weather shipping issue, easily fixed with a tech visit if you live in a dry climate.

If you want a jazz-style guitar that looks as good as it sounds and you do not want to spend on a Gibson, the IYV IJZ-300A is one of the strongest picks in this roundup. It is the guitar I would recommend to anyone who plays a few Sunday-night jazz gigs at a wine bar and wants to look the part. For a broader view of acoustic-friendly options, the electric jazz buyer guide covers similar alternatives with different voicings.

Best for

Players who care about looks as much as tone – the tobacco sunburst is the most photogenic finish in the roundup. Chord-melody players who record at home. Beginners who want an entry-level hollow body that will not look out of place on a small stage.

Not great for

Players moving to a cold climate in winter without a hard case. Anyone unwilling to swap tuners to get the most out of the guitar. Players specifically seeking the smoothest factory setup in this price tier.

7. Redid RD-100 – 335-Style With Stainless Steel Frets

The Redid RD-100 is the dark horse in this roundup. It has the lowest price among the 335-style semi-hollows in the lineup, but the spec sheet reads like a more expensive instrument: Canadian hard maple neck, rosewood fingerboard, stainless steel frets, and a 3-way toggle with independent volume and tone for each pickup. For anyone planning to gig or record for years, the stainless frets alone are a meaningful upgrade over nickel.

Tonally, the RD-100 lands in the warm-but-focused slice of the 335 curve. It is slightly more articulate than the GROTE 335-style and slightly warmer than the AS53. For chord-melody work in the Joe Pass tradition, the neck pickup is the star – round, full, with just enough bite to push the melody over the chord voicings underneath.

The main caution with the RD-100 is shipping. Several reviewers mention packaging damage. If you order one, request a hard case at the same time, or be prepared to file a claim if the box arrives compromised. Once past that, the guitar itself is well-built for the price and survives normal gig handling.

If the GROTE 335-style is the best “beginner first 335” and the Ibanez AS53 is the best “value 335 overall,” the RD-100 is the best “long-term ownership 335” in the entry-level tier. The stainless frets and hard maple neck are the components that outlast the price point. For five more jazz guitar ideas across price tiers, the broader jazz guitar roundup covers options we did not include here.

Best for

Players planning to keep the guitar for years – stainless frets mean no refret for a long time. Chord-melody players who want the neck pickup to carry the load. Anyone wanting independent volume and tone control for each pickup.

Not great for

Buyers shipping to climates where the packaging has been an issue in the past. Players looking for the warmest hollow-body resonance – this is a semi-hollow, not a full hollow. Anyone wanting a printed-wood aesthetic finish – the RD-100 looks understated by design.

8. GROTE Jazz Hollow P-90 – Best P-90 Pickup Voice

The GROTE hollow-body P-90 is the only P-90-loaded guitar in this roundup, and the pickup choice makes a real tonal difference. P-90s sit between single-coils and humbuckers in character: brighter and more articulate than a humbucker, fuller and warmer than a true single-coil. In a fully hollow maple body, that combination produces a tone that works for bebop lines, bluesy comping, and even Chicago-style jazz with equal authority.

The 25.5 inch scale is the longest in this roundup and the closest to a Fender feel. If you have already spent years on a Stratocaster or a Tele and you want to move to a jazz box without retraining your hand, this is the easiest transition. The 42mm nut also matches a Strat-style width. Several reviewers confirm that the scale length and the P-90 are the reason they bought it.

The strings ship loose to prevent tension damage during shipping, so budget 15 minutes for a proper tune-up and stretch before you judge the guitar. After that, the P-90 wake up properly and the maple body resonates the way it should. This is a quirk of the brand, not a defect, and it is worth knowing before you unbox.

For a player who wants to study how Wes Montgomery or early-Kenny Burrell got their sound without buying a vintage archtop, a P-90 in a hollow body is the closest modern shortcut. The GROTE hollow P-90 covers that ground at a beginner-friendly entry point.

Best for

Players coming from a Strat or Tele who want a jazz box without retraining their hands. Anyone studying how P-90s work in a hollow body for traditional jazz tones. Players who want a brighter jazz sound that still has the air of a hollow body.

Not great for

Players wanting a humbucker-warm tone – the P-90 is brighter and more articulate than any humbucker in this roundup. Anyone unwilling to spend 15 minutes setting up the strings on first arrival. Players chasing a 24.75 inch Gibson-style scale feel.

What Type of Guitar Is Best for Jazz? A Subgenre-by-Body-Type Map

The short answer is the one I opened with: each subgenre points to a specific body type. The longer answer – the one that matters when you actually buy a guitar – is the subgenre map below. Pick the column that matches the music you want to play, then pick the body type at the top of that column.

Hollow-body archtop (traditional, bebop, swing): The classic jazz-box. A 16-inch or 17-inch archtop with a floating humbucker or mini humbucker is the closest modern instrument to what Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, and Barney Kessel used. Tonally it is round, woody, and slightly microphonic – the pickups hear the body’s resonance as much as the strings. The trade-off is feedback at high stage volume, which is exactly why the semi-hollow was invented.

Semi-hollow body (soul jazz, blues, fusion, jazz-rock): Pat Martino’s Super 335 session work, Larry Carlton’s 335 work, John Scofield’s Ibanez AS-200, and B.B. King’s “Lucille” all live here. A center block under the top kills feedback enough to play loud stages, but enough air remains to give the woody character. This is also where the most budget options live, which is why this roundup leans semi-hollow.

Solid body (jazz-rock, modern jazz, clean fusion): Pat Metheny’s signature Ibanez PM-100, John McLaughlin’s work on a clean Strat-style guitar, and Mike Stern’s Ibanez JS all use solid bodies. The trade-off is that the tone lives or dies on the amp and the player’s right hand. A solid body through a JC-120 or Twin Reverb can sound as warm as a hollow body if the amp does the work, and it can also cut through a loud band in a way hollow bodies cannot.

Acoustic Selmer-style (gypsy jazz): Not in this roundup because it is a different instrument family – the Selmer-Maccaferri style oval-hole acoustic that Django Reinhardt made famous. If you want gypsy jazz specifically, you want a Gitane, an Altamira, or a Dell’Arte, plus a set of Argentine-style strings that are heavier than anything in the electric lists above.

Strings for Jazz Guitar: Flatwound vs Half-Round vs Roundwound

The single biggest tone upgrade on any jazz guitar is a string change. Budget electric jazz-boxes ship with nickel roundwound strings that are designed to be bright and articulate – the wrong shape for jazz. Jazz tone wants a smooth string with reduced high-frequency finger noise, and that means flatwounds, half-rounds, or thick-gauge roundwounds.

Flatwounds are the traditional jazz choice. The outer wrap is a flat ribbon of metal rather than a round wire, which gives the smoothest, warmest tone and the lowest finger noise. D’Addario Chromes and La Bella Deep Tone are the two most common sets. Chromes sit in the middle of warmth and brightness, La Bella leans toward vintage warmth. For most jazz comping and chord-melody, Chromes in 11-50 or 12-52 are correct.

Half-rounds are ground flat after a normal round winding, so they sit between round and flat in feel. They are a good compromise for players who want less finger noise than roundwounds but more brightness than flatwounds. D’Addario NYXL Half Rounds are a popular choice. They are also easier on the frets than pure flatwounds.

Roundwounds are the brightest and most articulate option, and they are what every guitar ships with by default. For jazz they generally work only for fusion, jazz-rock, and players who specifically want that brightness. If you are picking a guitar to play straight-ahead jazz, plan to swap the stock strings within the first week.

Gauge matters as much as type. The traditional jazz gauge is heavy – 12s or 13s on the low E. Heavier strings produce more fundamental tone and less string noise, at the cost of bending. For chord-melody and comping, the heavier gauges are correct. For lead lines with bends, drop to 10s or 11s. The Strunal approach with very heavy strings is what Wes Montgomery played; lighter gauges are a more modern compromise.

Jazz Guitar Buying Guide: How to Pick the Right Type

Once you know which subgenre you want to play and which body type fits, the choice of pickup, scale length, neck profile, and amp is where the final tone comes from. The biggest mistake I see is picking the amp second – the amp is the second most important decision in your jazz rig, and you should match it to your body type before you finalize the guitar.

Body type – hollow, semi-hollow, or solid. Hollow for traditional jazz and any subgenre that wants air in the tone. Semi-hollow for the broadest range – soul jazz, blues, fusion, jazz-rock, and clean stage work. Solid for jazz-rock, modern jazz, and any context where feedback resistance matters more than woody resonance. If you only buy one guitar and want it to cover as much as possible, semi-hollow is the safest choice and the Ibanez AS53, Ibanez AS73, Epiphone ES335, and GROTE 335-style all live there.

Pickup type – humbucker, mini humbucker, P-90, or floating. Humbuckers are the safest tone – warm, balanced, and forgiving. Mini humbuckers (smaller humbuckers with a different magnetic footprint) sit between humbuckers and P-90s in character; they are the classic “floating mini” mount on traditional archtops. P-90s are brighter and more articulate – the GROTE hollow P-90 in this roundup is the only P-90 example. Floating pickups mounted on the pickguard rather than the body are the traditional jazz choice on full archtops.

Scale length and neck profile. The Gibson 24.75 inch scale and the Fender 25.5 inch scale are both correct for jazz. 24.75 (or 24.7 as Ibanez labels it) feels softer under the fingers and suits most jazz comping. 25.5 feels brighter and more familiar to players coming from a Stratocaster. Neck profile matters more than scale – if a particular neck does not fit your hand, no spec sheet will fix it. The GROTE hollow P-90 in 25.5 and the Ibanez Artcore trio in 24.7 are the two main camps here.

Amp pairing. Traditional jazz tone lives in clean tube amps with headroom. The Fender Deluxe Reverb is the most-cited jazz amp in recording history. The Twin Reverb has more headroom for bigger rooms. The Polytone Mini-Brute was the gigging player’s choice for decades because it weighs 35 pounds and pushes a 15-inch speaker, and the late-70s Pat Martino tone lives there. The Roland JC-120 is the cleanest solid-state amp ever made – perfect for solid-body jazz fusion where the amp should add nothing. Pair a hollow or semi-hollow with a clean tube amp; pair a solid body with whatever amp gives you the cleanest headroom.

Climate care. Hollow and semi-hollow guitars with maple tops are more reactive to humidity changes than solid bodies. In dry winter months, a guitar left out of its case can crack the top, lift the binding, or shift the neck. An inexpensive hygrometer and a soundhole humidifier are the cheapest insurance you can buy for any hollow body. The budget imports in this roundup are not as climate-stable as a higher-end Gibson, so this matters more if you go with the GROTE, IYV, or Redid.

Mod and upgrade roadmap. Every guitar in this roundup benefits from at least one of these mods: a tuner upgrade if the stock tuners feel stiff, a pickup height adjustment to bring the neck pickup a millimeter closer to the strings, a setup by a local tech for action and intonation, and a string swap to flatwounds. Doing these four things in order is a small overall spend and is worth more than the difference between an entry-level guitar and a mid-tier one.

Budget allocation between guitar, amp, and pedals. The forum wisdom most often repeated on r/jazzguitar is to spend more on the amp than on the guitar if your budget is tight. A budget guitar through a quality amp will out-tone a quality guitar through a budget amp every time. If you can only afford one upgrade a year, prioritize the amp and pedals over a new guitar. For a paired look at the bass side of the equation, the jazz bass beginner roundup covers the bass companion.

Frequently Asked Questions

Final Verdict

For most players reading this in 2026, the best type of guitars for jazz is a semi-hollow in the ES-335 style, and the strongest all-around pick from our eight tested is the Ibanez Artcore AS53 – the Editor’s Choice for its combination of build quality, Infinity R humbucker tone, smooth set-neck access, and the value it delivers under the price tier of the Epiphone ES335. If you want more bite for jazz-rock and soul jazz, step up to the Ibanez AS73. If you want a true hollow body that still works on a small stage, the Ibanez Artcore AF55 is the right beginner-friendly step.

If you only want one piece of advice from this entire roundup, it is this: pick the body type that matches your subgenre, then match the amp to the guitar rather than the other way around. That is the difference between a guitar that sounds good in a shop and a guitar that sounds like jazz at home. For more perspectives on jazz guitars across age groups and price tiers, the men’s jazz guitar roundup and the broader jazz guitar list cover options we did not fit here. Whichever guitar you choose from this list, put D’Addario Chromes or La Bella Deep Tone strings on it before you judge it – that one swap will do more for your jazz tone than any other mod.