The Fender Jazzmaster is an electric guitar designed as a more expensive sibling of the Fender Stratocaster. First introduced at the 1958 NAMM Show, it was initially marketed to jazz guitarists, but found favor among surf rock guitarists in the early 1960s. Its appearance is similar to the Jaguar, though it is tonally and physically different in many technical ways, including pickup design, scale length and controls. Development The Jazzmaster's contoured "offset-waist" body was designed for comfort while playing the guitar in a seated position, as many jazz and blues artists prefer to do. A full scale length, 'lead' and 'rhythm' circuit switching with independent volume and tone controls, a 'floating tremolo' with tremolo lock, and a uniquely designed bridge were other keys to the guitar's character. The tremolo lock can be manually activated to keep the entire guitar from going out of tune if one string breaks. The Jazzmaster also had an extra-long tremolo arm. The bridge and tremolo construction is very different from that of the Stratocaster, and gives the Jazzmaster a different resonance and generally less sustain. The bridge sits on two fulcrum points and moves back and forth with the tremolo motion. The functionality of the bridge is a topic that is widely discussed. Some consider the clipped sustain as part of the Jazzmaster sound, whereas others argue that the design is flawed. Aftermarket versions that provided more sustain and less buzz were created during the 2000s by companies such as Mastery, Staytrem and Halon. The body is larger than that of other Fender guitars, requiring a more spacious guitar case. The Jazzmaster had unique wide, white 'soapbar' pickups that were unlike any other single coil guitar pickup. Jazzmaster pickups are often confused with Gibson's P-90 pickups; although they look similar, they are constructed differently. Whereas the polepieces of the Jazzmaster pickups are magnets, the P-90 has its magnets placed underneath the coil. The JM coil is wound flat and wide, even more so than that of the P-90. This is in contrast to Fender's usual tall and thin coils. This 'pancake winding' gives them a warmer thicker tone without losing their single coil clarity. Additionally, due to the pickups being reverse-wound, the pickups provide a 'hum cancelling' effect in the middle pickup position. This position eliminates the typical 60-cycle mains hum that is inherent in most single-coil pickups. The Jazzmaster has a mellower, 'jazzier' tone