Gretsch Junior Jet review

[EricaO]

They suggested perhaps trying a product called No Hum or getting a power conditioner. I just need to do some more research on them to see if it would actually solve the problem.

 

[Adagietto]

They suggested perhaps trying a product called No Hum or getting a power conditioner. I just need to do some more research on them to see if it would actually solve the problem.

What I get with mine is a little airborne buzz. It can be mitigated some by turning at a right angle to the source. AFAIK this sort of noise enters through the top of the pickups, so shielding may not help. Also, dimmer noise can get through almost any kind of pickup. I can tell if there's a dimmer on in any place in the house (with any of a dozen guitars), even if it's on another circuit. Solution: turn it off.

 

[gip111]

No buzzing out of this one. Had one last year but traded it. The one shown here I recently purchased, it was on the used rack at GC, not a scratch on it and about 2/3 of the price of a new one, I don't think it was ever used, still had the protective plastic. Really lucked out, straight neck and upgraded rounds on it 40-90 and only 6.5 lbs. Last one I had was close to 8 lbs. Pickups are hot, I think it probably does well with LaBella flats, it's a bit too happy with rounds but a small foam mute close to the bridge tames the rounds.

 

[Headhunter78]

Gretsch Junior Jet Review
There's a lot to say about this bass, so I'll just start with a short summary, then go into the details in no particular order. The Junior Jet is a short scale bass with a huge sound, and a great buy for just $299. How's that for a short summary!

Aesthetics
It's a good looking bass. But if you don't like the single-cut look, then its not for you. Personally I really like the 2x2 head stock, the Gretsch logo, and the cool logo knobs. To me, it has sort of a retro vibe that works. It comes in three colors. The green is cool, but just a little too much for me. The burst looks great and was my first preference, but the burgundy one had the mojo in sound and feel. Its funny how you can pick up 2 or 3 of the same bass in the store and one of them just feels and sounds better than the others.

Balance
No neck dive standing, with a regular 2.5 inch leather strap. The strap button is at about the 15th fret, so Its a little further back than on a Fender which is normally at the 12th fret. But it hangs well. No issue.

Weight
Its not a lightweight bass, but not heavy either. It feels solid. It weights in at 8.5lbs on the bathroom scale.

Fit and Finish
I can't find any flaws in the paint. The neck fits tightly in the pocket. It didn't come with any loose screws. And the knobs feel substantial and turn well.

Frets
The frets are level and its easy to setup with low action. The fret ends were smooth enough, but the edges were a little sharp for me. About 10 minutes with a small fret file was all it took to take the edge off.

Nut
The nut feels like cheap plastic and had a small ragged edge where it was not finished nicely. But the nut slots are cut to the right depth and it plays great. If you have the tools and know how, a new nut would be a nice upgrade. But it plays and sounds fine. Its not necessary.

Bridge
The bridge is small and thin, with small saddles. My first impression was to change it. But after a setup and playing the bass, I can't see any reason to do it. It sounds great, and isn't that the main thing? The good news is that the bridge has standard Fender 5 screw mounting, so just about any Fender replacement or high mass bridge would be a drop in.

Some good things about the bridge:
(1) The string holes are big enough for the silks on flat wound strings to go through. (2) With flats, and intonation set, the silk is not on the the saddle on the E string.

So overall, a cheap, but perfectly usable bridge that can be easily replaced.

Neck
The finish is a heavy poly as you might expect. My first impression was the neck finish was too thick, and it felt like it was coated in plastic. I generally prefer lightly finished, or matte necks. This was almost a deal breaker for me. But after playing it for a while, my hand slides easily, and it plays well. Its not my preference, but its not an issue anymore.

The neck is very thin - front to back. I guess you would call the neck profile a U-shape. Kind of flat and thin. It felt too thin at first, but over time, its growing on me. It plays easy and fast. Super easy!

I measured the nut width and its hard to measure exactly because the nut has a radius on the edge, but its between 38-40mm.

Fretboard
The fretboard is walnut. If you're bothered by the light look of Pau Ferro, then you'll appreciate the dark walnut on this one. Walnut has a denser grain than Rosewood, but honestly I don't notice it. Looks great and feels fine.

Strings
The stock round strings are playable. I changed to D'Addario Chrome Flats (45-100). It sounds great with them. Lots of low end, but still plenty of mids, and some highs.

Pickups
These are monsters, with very high output levels. The low end is unbelievable, while still maintaining mid punch. The sound of this bass comes through, with flats or rounds. In my opinion, this is the best feature of the Gretsch Junior Jet - it sounds amazing!

I play mostly the neck pickup. But with both pickups, or just the rear pickup, you can get some serious growl out of it. I don't use that tone, so I'm not a good judge of how good it sounds this way, or how it compares to a Jazz for example. But the growl is definitely there.

Tuners
The tuners were average and worked OK. They held tune well enough. I like to upgrade tuners so I bought a set of Hipshots. These are drop-in replacements with no drilling.

Hipshot: licensed ultralight, 3/8", chrome, Y-key, treble side. Total with shipping was $56.40 direct from Hipshot.

They look good, but don't really work much better than the originals. But I like them and I bought the licensed version so they weren't that expensive.

Electronics
I already talked about how much I like the pickups, so there isn't much else to say. Except that I like the simplicity of having one volume, one tone, and a 3-way pickup selector switch. The tone and switch were scratchy so I sprayed them with contact cleaner.

Summary
I highly recommend this bass. It sounds amazing, with a variety of tones, and feels great to play. It has a few things that could be upgraded, but its perfectly playable out of the box and for $299 its a steal. If you're into short-scales, this could be the perfect backup to your expensive number one player. It might even sneak up on you and become your main player.

View attachment 4487215
View attachment 4487216
View attachment 4487218
View attachment 4487219
View attachment 4487220

 

[Headhunter78]

Perfect review. I just picked up my Gretsch last week. I also tried another one in the store and then the walnut stain one which just had a bit more mojo. I was surprised at how good it sounded. I had some Labella flats at home which sound great but I think I'll give some chromes a try before I go back to rounds if needed. Here's mine.

 

[Ostie]

I just snagged a Jr. today. Saw it on FB and made a crazy offer, and danged if the seller didn’t bite on it. Haven’t had much time to play it, but my first impression is dang, those Humbuckers are hot! I’m thinking about switching to flats to maybe tone em down a little, since I don’t play much rock anymore. The plastic film is still on the pup rings and control cavity cover, and not a scratch on it. Got it for about 2/3 of retail, which seems like a good deal.

The seller said he got it from Sweetwater so the set up is spot on and it plays great. I had my sights set on black but the walnut is very pretty.

 

[EricaO]

I have the walnut too and it's beautiful!

 

[Ostie]

I swapped the strings from rounds to flats and the tone is just right! It mellowed out those hot hummers took away the clankiness. I love playing this little bass!

 

[LowEndLobster]

I was planning on reviewing the Junior Jet II that I purchased. Plugged the bass in and got a TON of hum with pickups soloed as well as together. No change in hum levels when switching pickups, but it was directional like single coil hum. I did some digging on here and I guess these are single coil pickups with dual magnets (I have some magnetic viewing paper on the way to confirm). Ok... but that still doesn't explain the noise with both pickups together. Decided to open up the bass and have a look. I think I found the culprit. This is quite disappointing, though I'm not going to lose sleep over a bass that I got for a couple hundred bucks.

 

[B-Mac]

I was planning on reviewing the Junior Jet II that I purchased. Plugged the bass in and got a TON of hum with pickups soloed as well as together. No change in hum levels when switching pickups, but it was directional like single coil hum. I did some digging on here and I guess these are single coil pickups with dual magnets (I have some magnetic viewing paper on the way to confirm). Ok... but that still doesn't explain the noise with both pickups together. Decided to open up the bass and have a look. I think I found the culprit. This is quite disappointing, though I'm not going to lose sleep over a bass that I got for a couple hundred bucks.

View attachment 4643995

I'm seeing double!


see what I did there?

 

[Adagietto]

I was planning on reviewing the Junior Jet II that I purchased. Plugged the bass in and got a TON of hum with pickups soloed as well as together. No change in hum levels when switching pickups, but it was directional like single coil hum. I did some digging on here and I guess these are single coil pickups with dual magnets (I have some magnetic viewing paper on the way to confirm). Ok... but that still doesn't explain the noise with both pickups together. Decided to open up the bass and have a look. I think I found the culprit. This is quite disappointing, though I'm not going to lose sleep over a bass that I got for a couple hundred bucks.

View attachment 4643995

Please review it and tell it like it is! I'll be sure to watch it as I'm a subscriber and I appreciate your reviews.

I have a G2220 and like it for a number of reasons. My biggest issue with the bass is apparent false advertising, although I'm not pleased with the hum either.

 

[LBS-bass]

I was planning on reviewing the Junior Jet II that I purchased. Plugged the bass in and got a TON of hum with pickups soloed as well as together. No change in hum levels when switching pickups, but it was directional like single coil hum. I did some digging on here and I guess these are single coil pickups with dual magnets (I have some magnetic viewing paper on the way to confirm). Ok... but that still doesn't explain the noise with both pickups together. Decided to open up the bass and have a look. I think I found the culprit. This is quite disappointing, though I'm not going to lose sleep over a bass that I got for a couple hundred bucks.

View attachment 4643995

Oh, man. That's awful. With all the good reports out here on these, they just had to send that one to the YouTube review guy!

 

[LowEndLobster]

Confirming these are single coil (or they appear to be using magnetic viewing paper)

 

[LowEndLobster]

Looking for some help figuring out what is going on with Gretsch and their Junior Jet II bass. The instrument has been around for over a decade and has been marketed as having "dual coil mini hums". However, I have recently stumbled upon the discovery that they are in fact using single coil pickups. I made a thread on this: Has Gretsch been lying to us for over a decade?

I am looking for other owners of the Gretsch Junior Jet II G2220 bass to test their pickups using magnetic viewing paper to see if the pickups in their models are dual coil (as advertised) or single coil (what appears to be reality). I have pics of the internals as well as my result with the paper in the thread linked above. Below is a link for the magnetic paper. I appreciate the help in getting to the bottom of this. I think this is a HUGE deal if Gretsch has been misadvertising one of their most popular bass models for over a decade.....

https://www.amazon.com/Luganni-Magnetic-Viewing-Film-inches/dp/B07CGMG1JL/

 

[mrperkolator]

My Junior Jet is my current "in the office, virtual conference call with the boss" bass. Mine is single pickup and the neck meets the body at the 13th fret, MIK. What a fun little bass!

Can you test your pickup as Lobster is recommending? I'm wondering if the old one pickup ones are similar.

 

[B-Mac]

Gretsch Junior Jet Review
There's a lot to say about this bass, so I'll just start with a short summary, then go into the details in no particular order. The Junior Jet is a short scale bass with a huge sound, and a great buy for just $299. How's that for a short summary!

Aesthetics
It's a good looking bass. But if you don't like the single-cut look, then its not for you. Personally I really like the 2x2 head stock, the Gretsch logo, and the cool logo knobs. To me, it has sort of a retro vibe that works. It comes in three colors. The green is cool, but just a little too much for me. The burst looks great and was my first preference, but the burgundy one had the mojo in sound and feel. Its funny how you can pick up 2 or 3 of the same bass in the store and one of them just feels and sounds better than the others.

Balance
No neck dive standing, with a regular 2.5 inch leather strap. The strap button is at about the 15th fret, so Its a little further back than on a Fender which is normally at the 12th fret. But it hangs well. No issue.

Weight
Its not a lightweight bass, but not heavy either. It feels solid. It weights in at 8.5lbs on the bathroom scale.

Fit and Finish
I can't find any flaws in the paint. The neck fits tightly in the pocket. It didn't come with any loose screws. And the knobs feel substantial and turn well.

Frets
The frets are level and its easy to setup with low action. The fret ends were smooth enough, but the edges were a little sharp for me. About 10 minutes with a small fret file was all it took to take the edge off.

Nut
The nut feels like cheap plastic and had a small ragged edge where it was not finished nicely. But the nut slots are cut to the right depth and it plays great. If you have the tools and know how, a new nut would be a nice upgrade. But it plays and sounds fine. Its not necessary.

Bridge
The bridge is small and thin, with small saddles. My first impression was to change it. But after a setup and playing the bass, I can't see any reason to do it. It sounds great, and isn't that the main thing? The good news is that the bridge has standard Fender 5 screw mounting, so just about any Fender replacement or high mass bridge would be a drop in.

Some good things about the bridge:
(1) The string holes are big enough for the silks on flat wound strings to go through. (2) With flats, and intonation set, the silk is not on the the saddle on the E string.

So overall, a cheap, but perfectly usable bridge that can be easily replaced.

Neck
The finish is a heavy poly as you might expect. My first impression was the neck finish was too thick, and it felt like it was coated in plastic. I generally prefer lightly finished, or matte necks. This was almost a deal breaker for me. But after playing it for a while, my hand slides easily, and it plays well. Its not my preference, but its not an issue anymore.

The neck is very thin - front to back. I guess you would call the neck profile a U-shape. Kind of flat and thin. It felt too thin at first, but over time, its growing on me. It plays easy and fast. Super easy!

I measured the nut width and its hard to measure exactly because the nut has a radius on the edge, but its between 38-40mm.

Fretboard
The fretboard is walnut. If you're bothered by the light look of Pau Ferro, then you'll appreciate the dark walnut on this one. Walnut has a denser grain than Rosewood, but honestly I don't notice it. Looks great and feels fine.

Strings
The stock round strings are playable. I changed to D'Addario Chrome Flats (45-100). It sounds great with them. Lots of low end, but still plenty of mids, and some highs.

Pickups
These are monsters, with very high output levels. The low end is unbelievable, while still maintaining mid punch. The sound of this bass comes through, with flats or rounds. In my opinion, this is the best feature of the Gretsch Junior Jet - it sounds amazing!

I play mostly the neck pickup. But with both pickups, or just the rear pickup, you can get some serious growl out of it. I don't use that tone, so I'm not a good judge of how good it sounds this way, or how it compares to a Jazz for example. But the growl is definitely there.

Tuners
The tuners were average and worked OK. They held tune well enough. I like to upgrade tuners so I bought a set of Hipshots. These are drop-in replacements with no drilling.

Hipshot: licensed ultralight, 3/8", chrome, Y-key, treble side. Total with shipping was $56.40 direct from Hipshot.

They look good, but don't really work much better than the originals. But I like them and I bought the licensed version so they weren't that expensive.

Electronics
I already talked about how much I like the pickups, so there isn't much else to say. Except that I like the simplicity of having one volume, one tone, and a 3-way pickup selector switch. The tone and switch were scratchy so I sprayed them with contact cleaner.

Summary
I highly recommend this bass. It sounds amazing, with a variety of tones, and feels great to play. It has a few things that could be upgraded, but its perfectly playable out of the box and for $299 its a steal. If you're into short-scales, this could be the perfect backup to your expensive number one player. It might even sneak up on you and become your main player.

View attachment 4487215
View attachment 4487216
View attachment 4487218
View attachment 4487219
View attachment 4487220

Just so you can catch up on this possible ‘scandal’…
This is the thread @mrperkolator is referring to.
Has Gretsch been lying to us for over a decade?

 

[jpmcbride]

Just so you can catch up on this possible ‘scandal’…
This is the thread @mrperkolator is referring to.
Has Gretsch been lying to us for over a decade?

I saw the video and pics. With all due respect to Lobster, (my favorite Youtube bass reviewer - the best!) I haven't seen definitive proof that its a single coil. Unless you pull it apart and unwind it, you can't be 100% sure. There may be some creative engineering inside there that makes it a humbucker.

 

[Adagietto]

I saw the video and pics. With all due respect to Lobster, (my favorite Youtube bass reviewer - the best!) I haven't seen definitive proof that its a single coil. Unless you pull it apart and unwind it, you can't be 100% sure. There may be some creative engineering inside there that makes it a humbucker.

Good point. IMO, proving that they are single-coils is a mere formality and I agree that this should be done. A pickup maker could do this, offer an expert opinion, then rewind it if desired.

 

[mcgreivey]

If a pickup has one coil, it's a single-coil. "Single" = "one". Lobster took the pickup apart and found one coil inside. It's a single-coil. Case closed. No expert opinion needed

 

[Adagietto]

If a pickup has one coil, it's a single-coil. "Single" = "one". Lobster took the pickup apart and found one coil inside. It's a single-coil. Case closed. No expert opinion needed

I believe this to be true, but was addressing the hypothetical idea of "creative engineering". Folks seem to want different levels of proof, and I was suggesting a way to satisfy all levels with complete objective evidence. The case was closed for me by simply playing the bass.