Aria Pro II Knight Warrior RS

let me start by saying wow!
mine came with a double locking floyd rose style trem
i can dive until the strings are flapping and stick to the pickup
release them and it will still be in perfect tune!
i replaced the stock pickups with emg's
i routed the neck pickup spot to accept an emg 89 dual mode pickup and i put an 81 in the bridge.
the only othe mod i did was to install straplocks
i learned from an unfortunate mistake with my les paul =[

i play everything from the blues to shread your face off metal
and this guitar does it all
the original pickups sounded great but werent hot enough for me
so i replaced them with an 81 and 89
the clean sound could be a little more full but
i'm happy with it
so i give it a 9

the gloss black paint is bulletproof
no joke its a 20 something year old guitar that looks 2 years old
it has some light scratches from playing it but hell i dont care.
the guitar plays like water.
seriously, the 11's i put on there feel like 8's on any other guitar
this guitar will not hold you back
my fingers cant twitch fast enough to keep up with it

this guitar has done live shows for 20 some odd years
it has survived wild drunken parties of which occured prior to my obtaining the instrument.
every screw is tight
the neck is flawless
i filed the frets down and recrowned them
because 20 years of hard playing diveted them
and it also helped the action
i can barely slip paper under the strings yet it has no buzzes or dead spots anywhere
the only flaw is that there is a little rust starting to form inside the head of the screws on the trem.

never dealt with em

i
had
a les paul, granted the transparent finish on it was prettier
i still like the aria better.
its been dropped thrown spilled on and is still in one peice
the gibson...
not so much
i play all my guitars through an early 90's crate gx 15
ive played through mesa triple rec's
marshall tsl's , 5150's the krankenstien
name it ive probably used it and i still prefer my little 8 inch crate
i also have a strat knockoff that looks like evh's
and 2 accoustics a washburn electric accoustic and an old epiphone

black paint, rosewood neck, 'superstrat',
kahler flyer trem, locking nut, two single coils and a single
coil that turns into a humbucker with a coil tap.
22 frets. Approx 1987?

It suits a variety of music the humbucker has enough output for rock
and you can do all the strat single coil sounds.
the single coils can be noisy.

The action wasn't the greatest when i first got the thing, but after it was setup it had a very nice neck suitable for rock and shredding.

Everything was quite good except that the trem eventually rusted up and couldn't be adjusted.

no idea.

A very good first guitar at the time with a lot of options.

This was my first electric guitar and I remember researching for months what guitar I wanted - I was fourteen and money was tight so I didn't want to spend more than $500. It got a good review in Guitar Player magazine, I think, and was touted as a good beginner's guitar. I also remember George Lynch playing Arias in his early "Breaking the Chains" days. I bought it in 1983-1984 and here we are now almost 20 years later and I still have the guitar, with a few mods. I bought it in Dallas, Texas, for around $400. Mine came jet black, strat-style with a front loaded bridge HB and two singles, Kahler Flyer w/ locking nut, painted neck, rosewood fingerboard, 22 frets, 5-position switch, volume and tone knobs - the tone knob could be pushed/pulled to "split" the humbucker, bolt-on neck, non-locking tuners. Mine came with a case - still have that too. Considering the price, it really came loaded with quite a few options. Since it was my first electric, it took a lot of abuse. I wound up pounding the middle pick-up into submission and so I just took it out - never used it anyways. I disliked the output on the pickups so I switched to an EMG-81 (bridge) and EMG-S for the neck, leaving a hole (adds character) in the middle position. The EMGS were a HUGE move - quieter, less hum with great tone, output. The stocks just weren't up to par.

I like to play hard rock mainly and for this, it's great. It was built for the 80s brand of rock and it fits nicely. At the same time, I have delved into Eric Johnson, SRV area and it works for me, but then again, a single-coil strat is a single coil strat and a hot 81 will just be different. I run it through a Roland GP-8 into a Crate G-60. I've used it in live club gigs/parties with zero issues. As I mentioned, the original pickups did hum a bit, especially the singles - changing these really brought the guitar up to speed. A quirk of my guitar is that the G string likes to catch at the nut when using the Kahler so I have to be sure to "bounce" it back in tune sometimes. It's great when you get to know the quirks of each guitar you own - that's what makes it personal. Unplugged it resonates nicely, no dead spots.

The action was a bit high for me at first but adjusting it was easy with the Kahler. The pickups were not moved from the factory set-up and once I replaced them, I haven't monkeyed with them either. Everything was routed/finished nicely, no flaws. The pick-up selector buzzed a bit moving through the midlle pick-up but since I removed it, no problem. The guitar has a nice weight to it, balanced, solid. I give it a 9 because there is always PRS.

As I said, this has been my main guitar for 15+ years. I have tried others (American Standard Strat, Les Pauls, ESPs, etc.) and I have never been able to pull the trigger - I keep coming back to old reliable, old frankenstein. I must say, however, that I tried a PRS recently and the neck actually felt better than my firstborn. It will be my next guitar. I have used it for gigs, practice, trying to twirl it around my head (remember Cinderella), banged it on the floor, banged it with my fist, and it keeps coming back for more. Damn thing feels unbreakable to me. The finish is thick, quality - an aspect I have explored a lot. Growing up, whenever I met one of my idols, I'd have them carve their name into my guitar with a knife. I've got my all-time favorite Eric Johnson front and back, Paul Gilbert, Billy Sheehan, and others, with photos to prove it. Not one has been able to get through the finish...yet.

Never needed it - I had no issues with it.

I've been playing 20+ years on and off. I wish I'd known more about the pickups. I was very glad when I upgraded. If it were stolen, at this point, it's irreplaceable to me. Now that I make real money, I'd probably buy a good PRS (are there any bad ones?). I love the tone, the feel. Its weight is between a Strat and a Les Paul so it feels solid, steady - not like some of the Ibanez that feel like they could blow away. I compared this guitar to similar price range Kramers, Squier strats, Washburns. I only wish it had a rear access panel as getting to the EMG battery is a pain.

I bought this guitar I believe back in 1987. It comes with a 5 selector toggle for pickups, a push pull tone and volume knob. One Humbucker and two single coil pickups. I believe there made bye Duncan and are of the single blade variety. Came with a Kahler flyer and a locking tuners. Back in 87 I paid $348 for it. Its a Strat shape with really nice curves. 22 fret rosewood frets. Guitar is made in Japan. Later models where made in korea and are of less quality so im told. The finish is bueatiful. Ive banged this baby around for over ten years and still shines like new except for a few dings. Came with a painted neck and is of a bolt on variety. Im not sure of the wood but it isnt all that heavy.

This baby stays in tune. Between the 5 selector and blade pickups you can get anywhere from a rich full type of sound to a very bright and clear sound. These pickups are decent but I hav ea feeling if I replaced them I could definately get more out of this guitar. However from the factory it is a very versitile guitar. Only complaint I had was a slight humming when using the neck foward single coil. Its very slight but enough to annoy you. Might had been a grounding problem which I had aleviated when I reset up teh guitar. I play Vai to Maiden with this. Like I said very versatile guitar

Ill be honest with you. I read peoples reviews of this guitar and the only one complaint that I had personaly was the screws holding the pick gaurd down. The paint after over ten years of playing has started if not all come off. I dont know if I can even call that a flaw. Stainless stell woulda been nice. Otherwise the chorome has not a pit in it. Its really in my opinion a very good looking and good playing guitar. From the factory I belive it had tens and played awsome. Not a buzz. I guess the only thing that would slow you down is teh painted neck. Looks nice but for speed it can hider you. My reccomondation..Use a good wax:O)

I used this guitar as my main stay for 5 years. The finish is very durable and where I did actually chip teh paint to the wood you can see how thick the clear coat is on this. The guitar from a foot away still looks brand new

Seriously never dealt with the company. Never had too

Ive been playing guitar for over 20 years. I originally purchased this one when I was 16 I believe. Had no idea what aria pro was..I however knew Cliff Burton played there basses at the time. The guy at the store said try this. To be honest I didnt know what I wanted. If they still made this model Im sure I would buy it again if at the same quality. As far as features I cant see it having anymore. My next guitar after that was an ESP mII. I guess I wanted a *metal guitar*. I cant really compare the two they are very different. I howvever sold the ESP and hung on to the Aria. I was playing it through a Mesa boogie SIMUL-Class 295 and a quadraverb at the time. Really a great guitar. If ya get one Try different pickups perhaps. I also have an Angelica 12 string and a Fender acoustic. It is definately not a cheap guitar bye any means