Product: Ibanez Johnny Smith FA800
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted
09/18/2008
at
05:03am
by
Fritz
Email: ian<dot>frakes at btinternet<dot>com
Features
:
10
This a 1980 model (I believe), full and wide bodied, single cut-away, brown tobacco sunburst, all acoustic, F-holed, arch-topped jazzer (based on a Gibbo' L5 ?). Lovely finish, lovely inlays, superb tuners, lovely warm big tone, nice sunburst on front back and sides, a very sexy instrument indeed. It has a carved spruce top with curly maple back and sides in brown sunburst, a three-piece maple neck with a beautiful M.of.P inlaid headstock, med-large frets on a M.of.P inlaid ebony fret-board, an ebony bridge with yet more mother of pearl inlays, and gold hardware. The slot (and hole) tuners are gold and M.of.P and work very well. I've now set this up with a set of Earthwood Blues and Country 10 - 52 strings, with a plain third, and it sounds awesome. I tried Phos-bronze 13 - 56 strings which were ok but dullish and inflexible compared to the Earthwoods! I play Blues with a very heavy pick, and or finger style, and the 10s are just fine!
Sound
:
10
As a blues player I prefer amplified guitars, but this has given me a whole new outlook on playing. It's big and sexy, loud and full of warm bluesy-jazzy tones! Perhaps if I experimented with my choice of strings I might like it even more!
Action, Fit, & Finish
:
10
The condition of this guitar is 9/10, which aint bad for a 25 year old guitar. The frets need dressing but it was built to last with a top quality finish and top quality hardware. I reckon it'll last another quater of a century ...... at least! Well done Ibanez!
Reliability/Durability
:
10
A top notch guitar!
Customer Support
:
No Opinion
Never dealt with Ibanez so I can't comment!
Overall Rating
:
10
This is not my first arch-topped, wide bodied, big acoustic guitar. Apart from being a Blues player, I also play Gypsy Jazz and I own and play a couple of Maccaferri copies. But this is a subtler, smoother tone, ideal for my Blues picking! If only I could get my old brain around the concept of slide playing, this would make the ideal acoustic bottle-neck instrument; ..... other than a resonator of course!
