Which Ibanez guitar to get?

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amt7565

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Folks,
This is a question for Ibanez fans. I have an Ibanez RG320DX. I piad about $400.00 for this 2 years ago. I like it's neck. It's fast. ALso the tremolo system (floyd rose) is really good. However the pickups are not every responsive. I need an upgrade to another Ibanez. Any suggestions on what I can get without spending too much?
Thanks :)
 
Have you considered just buying new pick-ups for your RG 320?
It might be cheaper than upgrading? I've heard some great active pick-ups.
I have an Ibanez S series. I love that thing. Have fun.
 
What style music do you play? I would suggest swapping out those pickups. I bet your pots (volume) have quite a bit of treble roll of too, so i'd replace those as well if I were you. You wont believe how much just swapping out cheap pots will do for your tone. If you love the neck, then new electronics are the way to go.
 
ss454:

I'm strongly considering getting an Ibanez SA160. It's the perfect clean and jangly complement to my infinitely harder, darker SG. I love the way it plaps. It's really fast and really slim. I'm just worried because I keep seeing it referred to as a "beginner's guitar". That phrase doesn't mean the guitar is going to break or warp on me, does it?
 
It means that you shouldn't play any really good guitars, because you'll hate you Ibanez after that.
 
I have a '92 RG 760. I haven't kept up with Ibanez guitars, but IMO, I think they put out quality products when they were made in Japan. It has the S-S-H configuration with USA Dimarzio stock pick-ups, a fast Wizard II neck with the Floyd Rose. It's rare to find these anywhere, because these were one of the best they made. Just my 2 cents worth.
 
I am looking at the Ibanez homepage. They got some flashy guitars. The "S" series looks good and affordable. I think it's best to buy a new guitar instead of replacing my pickups. replacing pickups will force me to fine tune and adjust them, which I have not experience in. So I will keep my current 320 and get something in the $650-700 range maybe.

I just wish the RG320 I have, had better sustain and response. It will make playing so much easier.....
 
i stepped up to a much more expensive line of guitars a while back but still view the old ibanez rg550 as a great guitar. get one used on ebay for 250.00- 300.00 & see how you like it. swap out pickups if you don't like the stock ones.
 
A few things to check when buying an Ibanez -

try getting a japanese one. the korean are actually much better than they used to be a few years ago but still... the Indonesian are really not what i'd go for...

Don't go for a guitar for its looks - the trend in cheap guitars is to make beatiful guitars using all sorts of techniques to make people buy more. I've seen some beautiful korean guitars that have nothing more than their looks... I do have a korean ibanez acoustic and it's definitely OK for it's pricetag, and more.

The Ibanez tremolo systems - go for the better ones - Lo-Pro for example. some people have trouble with the Lo-TRS (i have one and i set it up quite well, though).

The S series can be very misleading - they're very comfortable, very light, but sometimes you need that thick fender-style neck... only go for it if you're absolutely certain you like it. I think the RG is a smarter buy because it has more wood. the S series guitar are just to thin to get enough "wood" in the sound sometimes, or so it seems.

Pickups... generally speaking, i don't like them. the Ibanez stock pickups are usually too "weak" for me. the DiMarzios can work but they only put them in the expensive models.

if you have the RG320 and you really really like maybe you'd like to change the pickups... but it depends on the guitar and its condition.

Always remember, you only get what you paid for. the only Ibanez guitars that are great from the start are the expensive ones - the Prestige (depends...) and the signature models...

I've had my ibanez s470 since 1996 or maybe sooner. didn't like the stock pickups. i really liked the neck and size back then but now i don't really like them. after changing the pickups to some nice (expensive) ones it sounds much much better.
 
amt7565 said:
So I will keep my current 320 and get something in the $650-700 range maybe.

I just wish the RG320 I have, had better sustain and response. It will make playing so much easier.....
Click to expand...

For that price range you can get an RG550 or 570, you an get 570 mail order but the 550 you will have to go to the dealer and order it. The 550 is a maple neck with maple fretboard the 570 has rosewood fretboard. The 500 series rg's have higher output pups and the edge tremolo on then stock, thats the way I would go as a current owner of an RG350DXWH, the option of having the pups replaced it good to. There are several options from John Petrucci to Steve Vai and Joe Satriani types that are easy to install. I prefer the Dimarzio super distortion 2's and ahs3 stacked, you even might consider going with some emg actives.

SoMm
 
I found my RG 760 for $400 at harmonycentral.com. I got lucky. It's definitely a step up from the 500 series. IMO the older Ibanez guitars are better. The RG 760 has the shark tooth inlays with the white binding along the sides of the neck. It's a beautiful guitar.
 
In 1990,I bought an Ibanez RG 540. Very similiar (asthetically) to Joe Satriani's. Except mine was black in the middle, then faded into a metallic blue, then faded back to black.
It was a georgous guitar. After about 2 years, I noticeed a hairline crack running just above the pots. Needless to say, I was pissed. I paid about 900 bucks for the thing, and always maintained it, and this shit happened.
I opened up the back, where the pots are, and noticed that the fracture ran right along the top of the cavity for the pots. Come to find out, there was only a 1/4" of wood there. Of course it was going to crack. The dumb thing is that, ther was a 1/2" of space from the top of the pot, to the backplate. They could have added an extra 1/4" to their design!
I called the company, and got no support whatsoever.
Here's where you call me stupid. I bought another Ibanez. A Signature Series 270 and, luckily, have had no problems. So, look out for the quality and support issues. SS454
 
I bought the RG570 a few years ago and am pretty happy with it, both in tone and playability. Good neck and p/u configuration is pretty versatile.:)
 
ARTSTAR Big, fat ass, volume, HUGE SOUND, Jazz, Rock, Whatever
 
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