Is This Ibanez Hollow Body A Good Buy?

[Corndog]

Sparrow Big Daddy Ace???

 

[soundchaser59]

I would certainly be open to suggestions about what kind of pickups to put on the thing. It responds way differently than the Strat to an identical signal chain.

If I had mo $$$$$ mo $$$$$ I would buy the little Fender Frontman amp I used to play the Ibanez! That was nice!

 

[Jason43]

I would certainly be open to suggestions about what kind of pickups to put on the thing. It responds way differently than the Strat to an identical signal chain.

If I had mo $$$$$ mo $$$$$ I would buy the little Fender Frontman amp I used to play the Ibanez! That was nice!

They take to PAF's pretty well. I have a Dimarzio PAF Classic in the neck and a Golden Age in the bridge and couldn't be happier with it. I'd give the stock ACH pickups a chance though. You might actually like them. They take a little work to get dialed in, but once you do, they aren't really that bad at all. Semi/hollowbodies aren't easy to work on, so if you do swap pups, you might as well swap out the stock "dime" pots, caps etc and do everything right the first time.

 

[soundchaser59]

Semi/hollowbodies aren't easy to work on, so if you do swap pups, you might as well swap out the stock "dime" pots, caps etc and do everything right the first time.

Agreed. I did some pickup swapping on my Strat and it was not fun. Good results, but not my idea of an entertaining evening! So I would undoubtedly let my favorite luthier do any mods on the Ibanez. I'll research the DiMarzios, I've had good luck with their Tone Zone (middle slot) on my Strat, so the PAF's are worth looking into!

Are they a hotter pickup? Or not so hot? I am thinking I would like a not so hot pickup, cuz I prefer to let the amp do the signal boosting, that way I can play the pots' range more as I jam. If the pickups are too hot to begin with, it seems like the usable range of the volume and tone knobs is decreased. I'm thinking about avoiding any ear piercing highs and any annoying fuzz when the knobs are maxed out. Hard to explain, but I seem to prefer a mellower signal level on the way in to the amp.

 

[Jason43]

Agreed. I did some pickup swapping on my Strat and it was not fun. Good results, but not my idea of an entertaining evening! So I would undoubtedly let my favorite luthier do any mods on the Ibanez. I'll research the DiMarzios, I've had good luck with their Tone Zone (middle slot) on my Strat, so the PAF's are worth looking into!

Are they a hotter pickup? Or not so hot? I am thinking I would like a not so hot pickup, cuz I prefer to let the amp do the signal boosting, that way I can play the pots' range more as I jam. If the pickups are too hot to begin with, it seems like the usable range of the volume and tone knobs is decreased. I'm thinking about avoiding any ear piercing highs and any annoying fuzz when the knobs are maxed out. Hard to explain, but I seem to prefer a mellower signal level on the way in to the amp.

I'd say they are mid output, around 8-9k ohms IIRC. I don't believe they still make the PAF Classic though. If you're on a budget and a PAF style is what you want, I'd look into the Golden Age pickups that stewmac sells. They are very decent pickups and not just for the price decent. If I didn't already the Dimarzio laying in the parts box, I would have put a Golden Age in the neck too.
http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics,_pickups/Pickups:_Guitar,_electric/2/Golden_Age_Pickups.html

 

[soundchaser59]

Well, I went back to the first store and did another sit down with the first AF75D that I tried a few days ago.

I was not impressed. I know both guitars (the AF75 and the AM78T) are supposed to be Artcore guitars, but man that AM78T is built waaaaaaaayyyyy more solid and precision than that AF75 is. The difference in construction is visible to the naked eye, and you can feel it when you hold it and play it.

The AM78T at the used shop is a much better and nicer guitar. I'm glad I went back, and I'm glad I did some more looking around, cuz that AF75 is just not quite up to my kind of playing. Is that just because it is full hollow? I know the block of wood in the middle of the semi hollow makes a difference, but man the AM78T is just (relatively) flawless when compared side by side with the AF75.

I guess flat wound strings on electric guitars are not very popular. Nobody in town even has a set on the shelf. Got a nice tan suede leather Fender strap for $20 bucks, though!!

 

[soundchaser59]

Well, the AM78T has turned out to be a very good deal. Even the luthier thought it was a bargain. It sure does play sweet now.

I had to spend the evening starting from scratch with the pedal board and the amp, but it was time well spent. Run this thing thru the 15 inch Blue Dog and I am getting goose bumps!

My first Ibanez in 30 years. I wish I had never let go of the 1975 Flying V I had, but this will kinda make up for it!

I am still looking at the possibility of getting a DiMarzio Air Classic for around $30 bucks. But at this early stage I'm not convinced I need to go that route with it yet.......