Aria Pro II PE-180

i bought my aria pro 2 on ebay about eight months ago. i'm a jazz player and i "took a flyer" as they say and paid $993.00 shipped. i've played and owned gibson es-125's, played es-175's, and owned one older ibanez fat body but this is so far beyond those in quality i just can't get over it. it is a joy to play and own. i consider these a well kept secret of the fat body electric world. within minutes of picking it up for the first time i knew it would not be leaving me for a long time. it makes practising a pleasure. the tuners are solid and reliable , the top is solid spruce?, the neck is just right, an over all feeling of quality.. the high fret playing is just a little tinny. is that the pick up? but i've gotten over it.

talk about the sound. wow! i am thrilled. i play through a fender pro junior or a 1947 montgomery wards airline 50 watt amp and the sound is legendary. just like kenny and wes.

there are no flaws that i've ever noticed. just the little bit of tinniness up on top. the playability is excellent.

it is a beauty to look at. i get a lot of comments. as i said it has an unmistakable overall feeling of quality.

i've been playing for 25 years on and off. seriously pursuing jazz the last eight years. as i said before i feel like i lucked into this axe because i had no prior experience or knowledge of them but if you are looking for a $5000.00 axe at a considerably lower price this is it. it hangs on the wall of my bedroom and i can't help but steal a look every once and a while.

Great looking, full bodied jazz guitar L-5 style. Two humbuckers. Really wonderful and effortlessly playing neck
The nice honey burst lacquer has aged a little to a slightly darker, more vintage looking color.
Due to the sunlight I guess. I didn't notice this until I looked under the
pickguard. The binding has yellowed nicely too thru the years.
I always assumed the top is laminated spruce. But the looks and acoustic
sound of the guitar could make one believe it is solid.

All the features have been accuratly described in the previous reviews so I won't repeat them.
According to the serial number mine is from 1981 also.
Apart from the pickups the guitar is still in original condition. I have replaced the stock pups
with two Gibson Burstbuckers #1.
What more features would I want in a jazz guitar? It's all there and more.

I have had this Aria for 20 years(!) now and it is still my main guitar. A true workhorse jazzbox
that has never let me down. I play in a 30's/40's/50's jazz and jump blues band and have gigged with this
guitar for 20 years. Never had any problem with it.
When I bought the Aria it had the original Alnico VII pickups in it.
The neck pup sounded quiet good, warm and full, although a little muddy, the bridge pup however was
thinny and weak to my ears. But I didn't use the bridge pup much anyway as a jazzer.

Anyway, about ten years ago I decided my musical ears (and skills) had developed enough ...cough..cough...
to upgrade to a 'much better' (read: more expensive) guitar so i started shopping around. I admit
there have been several occasions i almost sold this Aria thinking I found something better. And ofcourse
there are (there were) a lot of more expensive archtops that sound better. But as I discovered, most of
them certainly were not built better. More and more I realised the construction of this Matsumoku Aria was
really very high quality. And the playabillity was on par or (dare i even say?) even better then some
higher end Gibsons, Guilds and whatever i have tried. And believe me i have tried some. Then i realised
this quality might sound better with better pickups.
But from there.... my quest for THE JAZZ TONE began.

The acoustic sound is suprisingly good for a two humbucker 17" (laminated?) archtop and loud enough for
practising at home. Warm, full and balanced. It also depends on what strings and technique you use.
I have it strung with d'Addario 0.13-0.56 flatwound Chromes and play almost everything with a pick. A very thick one
from Micheal Wegen. But I can get a great Wes sound using my thumb only. I have really noticed a difference in acoustic
tone the past years that has become more and more obvious lately. Although the guitar is (most likely)
laminated I feel the acoustic tone has aged too. In a great way. More fuller and warmer and even louder.
For example: I have played a Hofner New President in the shop and it sounded not that much louder than the PE-180 acoustically.
Crazy no?

Anyway, I have tried a whole bunch of pickups in the Aria. To name a few: Gibson Classics, Schallers Golden 50's,
Kent Armstrongs humbuckers, Seymour Duncans, Gibson P-90's, DeArmond GoldTones, DeArmond 2k's single coils
and a few more I can't recall. All of them sounded good with distinct characteristics. But none of them really
hit the spot for me. Although i loved the P-90's a great deal. Again I came up to point thinking of selling my car
and rob a bank to upgrade to a better sounding archtop. But then I could lay my hands on a pair of Gibson Burstbuckers
and WHAM!... The sound I was looking for!. I have read mixed opinions on the Burstbuckers but in an archtop
like the Aria they sound truly great. That is, if you are into medium volume vintage jazz and old school blues, like me.
Even the bridge pichup has a great warm vintage blues sound now.
The amps I us are a Polytone MiniBrute III with 15" speaker, a Koch Studiotone
and a 40's Gibson BR-1 (greatest jazz amp i ever heard).

I think the PE-180 is a versatile guitar. You can get a lot of 'modern' sounds out of it too. Put to me it is mainly a big jazzer.

The sound as it was with the stock pups I would have rated a 9.
With the Burstbuckers it's a big 10!

When examining the guitar thouroughly there are some finish flaws.
But who cares? For the price I bought it 20 years ago I couldn't care less!

The Aria is built like a tank. It has survived any gig I did with
stand everything that happened to it until now . It has been kicked over (not on purpose), fallen face down, on the back, bumped in drums, walls, doors, musicians, kids, you name it It shows some scratches and spots. The neck is straight as an arrow. The frets are still in decent shape, although could use a job in about 10 years. The ebony fretboard has dents but nothing serious.
And I am sure it will even outlast me. I have never had any
problems or issues with it. No repairs or what so ever. Just a tank.

I have tried to get information about Aria archtops
through email but never got an answer.

I have been playing over 30 years now. Owned some gear and still kept a
few. I have only played archtops from the start. Never had it for solid body guitars anyway. Right now I have this Aria and '51 Gibson ES-300 with two
P-90's. And I am shopping around for a nice full bodied acoustic archtop.
New or vintage. But I will never part with the Aria. If somedy stole it I would
certainly try to find another one (or an Ibanez from that era - these are almost equal) However the prices of the Japanese Aria's are going sky high lately. They're becoming collectors items.
I did compare it to some Gibson ES-175's, ES-165's, Epiphone Broadway and Zephyr Blues Deluxe and Regent, Guild x-175, DeArmond X-155, Yamaha AES,
and some Ibanez boxes. I tried some newer Samicks and Wasburns. And I still keep coming back to my trusty PE-180. An old friend. (sob)

She is a beatuful, full bodied archtop from 1981. I bought it in used but extremily good condition considering her age.
Hand crafted in Japan, maple back and rims and spruce top (I guess laminated but can't tell it honestly) all very good materials.
2 original Alnico humbuckers, usual jazz guitar features like 4 tone/volume knobs, 3-way switcher etc.
Looks like an L5 (it has the same tailpiece with PE-180 Aria inscription) but the body is just 16 3/4" wide not 17" as a real L5. The depth of the body is 3 1/2". 20 frets.
MOP split block inlays and very comfortable neck. (Actually the most comfortable I've ever tried) People say that's designed after the Super 400's neck but I can't confirm it since never played a Super400. Small bird-symbol inlay (typical for that Aria-era) and Aria Pro II inlay in headstock - all MOP.
Original tortoise pickguard, gold hardware. Tuners are simple but working precisely. Great pearl inlay even in the bridge.
The only thing I miss that there is no strap-button at the neck but I got used to it and can live with.
The guitar looks wonderful and has all the features what a great archtop needs. Nothing more and nothing less. There was an extra attention on details when the Japanese manufacturers crafted that awesome instrument.

Unplugged not as loud as an older solid top archtop (like Framus or Hofners)but very well balanced, a lot of sustain and harmonics. You can't compair it to a newer manufactured Korean guitars.
If you plug in: Incredible jazz sound! Good balance between the 60's sound and the more modern Benson-sound from the late 70' and 80'. I like the fact that she is not as oldfasioned as some archtops from the 60' and 70' but not as agressively modern as some of the new pick-ups' sound.
Very full and very round tone through my Polytone amp or via line6 podxt setting tube preamp or Fender Blacface. I use now 12' strings but it had a great sound with 11' strings as well.
I must mention that I use mostly the neck pick-up or both pick-up at the same time. I very rarely use only the bridge position but to be frank it has also a reasonable sound comparing to other archtops' usually very weak sounding bridge PU-s. The output of the PU-s is significantly lower than a new Gibson classic 57' but I don't think it's a matter.

Smooth finish! Both the body and the neck are properly manufactured. There is only a litle flaw on the fingerboard. The fingerboard material is not totally even at the 15th fret but it doesn't effect the sound or playability.
Very low action, fantastic playability even for difficult chords and for the fastest solos. The neck is superb, superb, superb!!
Laquer is fantastic, you couldn't say that's a 24 year old instrument. Top-sticker of a volume control knob is missing but I don't care about it. The gold parts are tarnishing a bit, but nothing really serious.

She is a very reliable partner. I've used her just a couple of times on gigging but there was no problem at all. The body materials are top+ and the electronics and other hardwares seems to be also very reliable.

I've been playing for 18 years, mostly classical guitar and archtops. She is one of the best instruments I've ever played. I've played Gibson es175, older Hofners, Joe Pass Epiphone, Japanese Martin Sigma and Japanese Morris archtops and I must say that the Aria Pe-180 sounds better than any of them. Only an old Hofner and the Gibson are in the same cathegory considering the sound but the craftmanship on the Aria is definitely better! I would buy it again for the same price (maybe even for a bit higher price). It worth every cent!
I would like to try it against a 4-5 times more expensive L5. I've never had possibility to do it but I think that Aria is not far from L5 in workmanship and sound.

Beautiful Japanese jazz guitar, made in 1980. Some confusion about which Gibson it's copying. But my guess is,from the slightly smaller than 17" body and 25 1/" scale that its a Gibson Super V - the Super 400 neck and the smaller L5 body. It seems the Super V was introduced in the late 70's and early 80's, so it make sense that that is what the Japanese had around to copy. The only difference seems to be the Aria has an L5 style tailpiece.

It has a body depth opf about 3 1/2" and a nice Venetian cutaway. The top is spruce, but can't tell if it's laminated or not. The back and sides are a pretty good maple with a sunburst finish - just the way I like 'em. (I can't stand those sunburst finishes which look like they've been put on with black paint and a boot brush round the edges!) This one's a nice gradation with the grain nicely visible through the colour.
There's 2 humbuckers which are the Alnico 7's if the original spec is right. There's 20 frets and the fingerboard is ebony with mop split block inlays. The tuners, the bridge with it's little inlays, headstock arte all very classy and pretty traditional. The neck(3 0r 5 piece maple) is a corker, especially around the first fret. It's really easy to use.

I was looking for a traditional jazz box, having never had one. Never played a real top end guitar, but when I picked this one up it felt like I'd expect a really really classy Gibson would feel like. I demo'd a newi 335 once and was appalled at the crappy quality of workmanship on the binding and f'holes, and the sound didn't make me HAVE to have it! When I plugged the Aria in, 24 years after it was made, it hit the spot straight away. Rich bass, and really clear mid and treble. The sound has a real precision, like a piano, like a really good sound system. Each string sounded musical and distinct, not just one big strum, if you know what I mean. I'd like to try a realy top-end arhctop like a Benedetto, but frankly, my search is over so I don't really need to. Goodbye E-bay!

Guitar was in fantastic nick for such an oldie. The bindings are now a creamy aged yellow which looks nice. The input jack is a bit noicy and could do with a resolder, but apart from that to my eye, it seems just perfect. It's one of those guitars you can just sit back on the sofa and gaze at for ages. My missus is not happy, I can tell you!

It's been well cared for so far and I'm going to look after it, but it does seem damn well constructed and would take a bit of bashing, if someone had the heart to do that.

Who knows? Tried a new Aria archtop and was hugely underwhelmed. But hopefully won't need to deal with Aria as they are now.

I've got seven other guitars including a really beautiful Valley Arts Larry Carlton Standard Pro, a Dearmond Starfire, Martin 16 series. But this beaut does it for me right now. I'm not much of a player, but if anything's going to inspire me, this one will. I might change the strings for some Thomastik flatwounds cos I've heard good things about them.
No wonder Gibson got their lawyers out back in the 70's! These are too damn good.