Ibanez AS73

Features have been covered by others.

I bought this guitar expecting to immediately upgrade the pickups - I was already pricing some SD Alnico 2 Pros. But when I got the guitar home and plugged it in I was blown away by the tone of this thing! I have a Les Paul Standard (with Burstbucker Pros) and a Strat with noiseless Kinmans, and this AS73 fits beautifully between the two.

Neck PUP: The neck pup is rich, warm and buttery! At first it seemed a little too warm, so I raised it a little and the bright top end appeared as if I had turned up a tone pot. In fact, I had to drop the pup down a little lower after my first adjustment because the highs came out a little too strongly for my taste. I love this pup! It has plenty of mids like a humbucker should, with a big bottom end and nice smooth, buttery highs. It's just the sound I was looking for in a neck pup. I can't believe I didn't have to pay big dollars for a boutique pup to get this sound!

Bridge PUP: At first I thought that the bridge pup was a little too twangy. Then I rolled the tone pot down to 7 and there it was - sweet tones with just the right amount of twang for a bridge pup. In fact the tone pot allows you plenty of scope to produce all kinds of tones. Kick in some distortion and roll the tone back up to 10 and this thing will cut through any band without being harsh or ice picky. There's plenty of meat in this pup - just use the tone pot to find YOUR sound.

MIDDLE POSITION: Beautiful! These pickups are nicely balanced and the middle position produces a sound that I makes me want to play all day. I took the guitar to band practice a few nights ago and everyone commented on the beautiful clean sound from the middle position. With the both tone pots on 10 it produces a well balanced, slightly quacky, sound beautifully balanced across the tonal spectrum.

OVERALL: This guitar makes my strat sound thin and my Les Paul sound harsh. In fact, after comparing these guitars all week I have decided to get rid of the Burstbucker Pros in the LP and upgrade to something else. This AS73 blows the LP out of the water for clean tones. As I said before I wasn't expecting to like these pups but I have found the sound I have been looking for and they are definitely staying! Perhaps it helps that I have a fairly bright amp (50 watt Richards - a boutique hand made valve amp), but my advice to you is to play with pickup heights and tone pots for a while - give these pups a chance.

Action was terrible- way too high and the neck had quite a bow in it. The truss rod was completely untightened and was quite stiff to adjust. I was worried that there might not be enough adjustment in it to straighten out the neck. But my fears were unfounded - I was able to straighten the neck, and even had to back the truss rod off a little because I had straightened it too much. The top nut is too high for my tastes and the machines heads feel cheap and uneven. I have ordered some schallers and my guitar tech is going to install them, file down the top nut and do a full set up for me. The intonation seems quite good but the top nut is so high that fretting notes on the first 3 or 4 frets results in pitch change because you're having to press the strings down so far to make contact with the frets.

Apart from these minor issues, the finish on these guitars is amazing for the price. It is a very well made piece of gear. I've looked it over very closely from top to bottom and everything from the binding to the neck joint to the finish is first class.

Only had it a week but it feels and looks like it will be a very durable, giggable guitar.

Been playing for 34 years and owned lots of guitars (still do). This is my favourite. This guitar has shown up my LP to be harsh and honky. I play in a covers band (funk, rock, pop) and in church and this AS73 is going with me to every gig as my first choice guitar. I'm stoked that I found such a great sounding guitar at such an amazing price.

2008 transparent cherry. Model has been available for a few years, so I won't repeat the feature list. Review is for stock AS73, as shipped by Ibanez. It has the same "features" as the expensive model it replicates, but, obviously, is built to a much lower price.

That said, this is a Chinese-made, semi-hollow 335-style guitar. It equipped with better components than you might expect at this price point. I don't feel compelled to change anything (tuners are solid, pickups are fine for a hobbyist, etc.) but everyone has their own take on upgrading stock guitars. Some guys buy them just to hot rod them into something completely different. Me, if it doesn't sound good off the wall, I don't want it. And this one sounds good.

Sound with stock pickups is outstanding. I run it through an older Marshall valvestate amp, and it sounds great clean and dirty. Neck pickup is rich and full across the spectrum (unlike the muddy neck p/u on two different Epi Dots I tried in the shop the same day). Bridge pickup has a bit of twang to it, but that just adds to the versatility. Handles all musical styles well; it's a very adaptable guitar.

Action just a bit higher than I like, but easily adjusted and a personal issue, not a problem with the guitar itself. Finish was flawless, hands down the best finished guitar I've seen lately. Everything is solid and works properly. You'd never know this was a low-priced guitar from looking at it or playing it.

Don't gig anymore, but don't see why you couldn't. Hardware and finish seem solid. Stays in tune well. Always best to have a backup, but at $300 or so, why not have 2 of these?

Have not contacted Ibanez, as guitar has performed flawlessly. Most customer support for guitars is done at the store level anyway, so who you buy from is probably more important than what you buy.

I've played for over 35 years, and have had a variety of equipment during that time. Good guitars tend to stay around. I currently have a '79 Ibanez Artist 2617, a late '80s MIJ Strat, Ovation 12-string, mid-70s Yiari Acoustic, among others. I picked this one up to see if I could find the sound of a 335 bought and sold in my starving musician days. It's not perfect, of course, but close enough. Since I don't gig anymore, I can't justify big bucks for guitars, and this one is an incredible value for $300. I played a few others (Epi Dot, Sheraton, Casino, a couple of other artcores and a new 335 just for a sanity check) and could find no reason to choose anything else. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another if the need arose. Unless and until that happens, this one is a keeper.

Tobacco sunburst - bought in 2007, standard features, no changes made.

Sound is good - the pickups maybe could be a bit sharper, but give a lovely smooth sound played clean or through effects board. I use a Vox valvetronix and the guitar sounds great through this. The electronics are beautifully quiet.

Absolutely first class, don't know how they do it for the money, perhaps it is better not to find out... I lowered action, slight adjustment to the truss rod and the guitar nearly plays itself, it is very fast and the smooth frets make playing a real pleasure.

Looks bulletproof to me, mine fell off the stand at a gig and I just picked it up, slight ding, but no other issues.

Never tried with any Ibanez I've had, never needed to.

been playing more than 30 years now, rock, jazz, and church worship. So glad we can get really good quality guitars for so little money these days, not like when I started out, but I need a bigger house to store them all :)

You can get all the details somewhere else here. I just want to say I love this guitar. Trans Red version with really nice trim.

I have a Fender Strat for the sounds it gives and wanted a semi-hollowbody for those types of sounds. I play mostly rock and this Ibanez gets some great tones for the price. Played mostly through my Carvin Belair 50 watt tube amp it is sweet. I use a variety of pedals and they all sound good but it sounds wonderful with no pedals also. I may, or may not, change the tuners and pickups someday but for now it is very nice just the way it is.

I've had it about a week and it plays great right out of the box. It could probably use an overall setup and will get one when it needs new strings but for now all is good. Fit and finish seem perfect and I have no complaints.

Seems well built and since it won't travel much it should last a long long time.

Never had to deal with Ibanez. I also have one of their electric/acoustics and it is a fine piece too. No problems..

I've been playing for roughly 40 years in and out of bands. Mostly home recording now. I think I would buy another if something happened to this one. I looked at Epiphone Dot guitars before finding this one and the Epi's don't even compare to this. Cheaply made and put together they are, really, pretty crappy by comparison. I also looked at Gibson 335's but at $2500 not a reality......

For the money it is very much worth every penny. The guitar does even more than it's pricetag would have you believe. I had many tones pouring out of the beast when I first got it home and hooked up with my ROSS compressor. The neck is definately a very nice fit, I have bigger hands (skinny but long) and prefer a skinnier neck than most guitars seem to have. The neck was exactly what I was looking for and the tone was even better. Only thing I don't like is, as mentioned before, there is no whammy. However, I never expected one on this style of a guitar, it just wouldn't look good. Also the tuning keys do a great job of staying in tune, I usually only have to barely tweak a couple strings every couple of days. 9 just because of no whammy.

For the money, I don't see how you get much better. Since you're already looking for a hollow-body with humbuckers, it'd be pointless to say this doesn't pull off strat sounds, why should it? It has great warmth; especially when you crank up the volume with overdrive, the body really pickups the sound and makes the guitar sing. Like I said, I found very many different tones, most notably a Gilmour-esque tone on the neck with a very ZZ top via La Grange sound on the bridge. There are many types and a lot of versatility when it comes to finding tones.

10/10 for it's price range, body-style and features. There are no better Hollowbodies for this price range.

Action needed adjusted, as I am a pretty soft player the majority of the time. However, after getting the action adjusted to a pretty low action; it was perfectly set-up. The pick-ups were pretty horribly off-set and didn't hold the same volume, but this was easily corrected when they were alligned straight after getting the string action set up. Overall the guitar factory set-up definately needed work, but what guitar have you ever bought brand new that was designed at the factory to be exactly your set-up for every model produced?

Definate dependability. No problems here.

Never had to use them to this point.

Definitely a 10/10. There's no better value, versatility, and sound quality from a guitar in this price range and this type of guitar.

Really basic features, but what is surprising is the quality of many of the parts. For instance, the tuners stay in tune even with a heavy playing session, which is rather tough to find on a guitar in this price range. Only feature I would like that it doesn't have is a tremolo, but honestly it's not necessary. The stock gear is rather amazing, most notably the pickups that rival some of the big-name stock pickups and sound absolutely phenomenal going through the right tube amp. That is to say, they don't sound -bad- on a solid-state, but I'm just trying to allude to the incredible sound of this baby on the all-tube amps. The neck is fast, fits well in the hand and is perfectly balanced. Seriously, pop a strap on it and situate it, then just gently move your hands off of it, and it stays as is.

6/10 as it's rather standard, BUT bumped up to an 8/10 because of the quality of the stock gear.

Here's where your heart is. Obviously, the most important part of any guitar is how she sounds, and this is without a doubt, an intensely shocking ratio of price/sound quality. I played it in the store and thought to myself, "You've got to be kidding, there's no way this costs under $400." I even asked one of the salesmen, making sure it wasn't mis-tagged or anything like that. Luckily for me, it was not. I mostly play blues, but also dabble in heavy metal, basic rock, and ambiance music. An odd mix, to be sure, and it's hard to find one guitar that can cover a range like that, and this guitar honestly can. As I said in "features," this guitar is a king of the tube amp, and the hollow body sound chimes through perfectly. I've owned this guitar for a year now and I can safely say that the sound is incredible and doesn't diminish with use. If you're considering buying this guitar, but simply aren't sure, plug it into a tube-amp and play it for a while, and I have faith you'll make the right choice.

10/10 for versatility and quality.

The neck is well-balanced and very fast, comfortable in your hands and easy on your fingers. This guitar can suit a metal head and a blues boy both rather comfortably. Stock setup is solid and all the parts are installed right and in the right place, which should be a given, but I've seen guitars that came all willy-nilly out of the factory.

As for finish, this baby looks beautiful. Just the prettiest guitar I've seen in a while. I have the transparent cherry, and love it. I do not like the sunburst too much, but that's no matter as I was given the option of the pretty red! Seriously, the red is gorgeous and has a creamy-white trim on all sides that just perfects the image. Take a good, long look at it and I really think you'll agree.

10/10 for no complaints and a fabulous look.

Here is my single complaint. The input jack, on my particular guitar, was rather low-quality. After a few months, I plugged in an instrument cable and got nothing but electronic hum, and when I strummed no noise came out. The hum was loud, loud as my strumming should have been. The input jack had been broken and needed to be repaired. Easy fix, and the store where I bought it took responsibility, fixing it for free within an hour. However, a few months later it happened again, and upon further examination, I realized that the input jack was simply low quality and the problem would persist if not replaced. Took it to the store I bought it again and they actually replaced it free of charge. Now, the jack is perfect. Solid and tight and not coming loose anytime soon, the jack even picks up the signal better and I have a bit of a better tone. You might look into replacing the jack upon purchase, but honestly, if it costs you even a few bucks to get that upgraded, combine that cost with the cost of the guitar and consider the price of similar hollow-body guitars. You'll do the math and agree that this is a hell of a deal.

9/10 for only one, minor, easily fixed problem.

Have not dealt with Ibanez, only a local music store.

No opinion.

Overall, this is a guitar worth a -lot- more than her price tag. You really ought to take a look at her and play her a bit. You'll likely be as blown away as I was, and as a few other people who wrote reviews here. If this beauty was stolen, I'd scour the globe for it. Okay, likely I wouldn't but I'd make the police do everything they could, and if that fails I'd buy a new one and quickly get a new input jack on it! Anyway, give it a shot.

10/10, my personal favorite guitar, my main guitar, my friend.

Semi-hollow body, maple lam, two humbuckers with dual tone/volume and a single switch. Stop bridge, rosewood fingerboard, some sort of crazy "mahogany material" neck--whatever the heck that is--dot inlays, two f-holes, and binding out the kazoo. Feels fairly sturdy for its light weight. Mine's burgundy and the finish is nicer than on most of my guitars (including a Les Paul). Neck is very thin compared to almost all of my rigs, and access at the top of the fretboard is exemplary. It is effortless to hit those high notes.

I agree that it is a bit muddy when at low output levels. So why not turn it up? That's what I do (Marshall, Digitech modeling), and problem solved. I have always wanted to be Larry Carlton, and this Ibanez gets me a good part of the way as far as the instrument part of that goes. I love the semi-acoustic nature of this thing, which is tonally rich when played at sensible volumes through good electronics. I simply cannot tbelieve how good this guitar sounds for less than my pickups are on most of my other stuff. It definitely gives you more than a small glimpse of that 335 thing, whether you do the rock/metal thing, or more of a blues/jazz bit.I'm a classic rock and blues/jazz guy, and this is my axe of choice for the latter. However, I am increasingly using it for rock. I love the freaking neck! I am sure if you put some nice PAFs of your preference in (Wolf?) that it would really shine. Having several very expensive guitars, I just cannot imagine that paying two grand more for a 'real' 335 would get me two grand more fun or tone. This thing is shocking at the price.

This is where it gets hilarious. I am constantly messing with the intonation on my other guitars, as I am a whammy nut and an note bender-extreme. I will not tolerate my guitar being tonally less than perfect anyplace on the fingerboard. I have a very expensive Dean with about three gazillion pounds of mahogany in it that sounds, as a result, incredible. The neck is buttah. However, I don't play it very much because the intonation is a constant battle (yes I know how to deal with a Fl Rose). So, I open up this Ibanez, and I'm sort of dissing it as I do ("flippin two hundred dollars/friggin joke/whatamI doin' with this piecea-c-drap!'). I hook it up to the Marshall and start playing some chords that I know will reveal what a piece it is, and, presto!. Perfect intonation. Everywherre I go to try to reveal its pathetic nature is spot-on. So, I just start playing, and I'm, like, laughing after a few minutes because the whole thing just feels so comfortable, and easy, and sweet. I played for three hours that day before I realized what time it was.

Action was and remains the best of any guitar I own. No fret buzz, no crazy fret activity that one would expect at this price due to what I knew would be pathetic fret job. They're smooth, nicely rounded, easy to bend, tap, legato, staccato--whatevvah. My pickups are undoubtedly not ideally set up, I am no electronics expert on the guitar side of things, but there is no hum, little feedback, and the tone is pretty darn good for now. I would definitely spend the couple hunski to upgrade these. For me, the machine heads are fantastic. They hold like granite, way better than some Grovers, Schallers, and a locking nut or two I have. It's crazy. I will never replace these, as they rock the house. As others have well said, the finish on this guitar alone would cost you at the very least fivve hundred if done by any reputable person in the US. The binding work they did was not for the amnateur, and it looks beautiful How did they do it?

This is sort of the real question. I do not know how the AS73 would do with some real live gigging. It is, by its nature, not a heavy, sturdy instrument. The lacquer job is substantial, and that will help. But getting banged around and dropped and stuff? I dunno. I am one of the zillions who has had the misery of losing a Gibson Les Paul to a hard floor on a stage. Nuf said. I am always stressed when I see a set neck. You just never know. I think what I will do with this is take on stage, but use it only for those tunes it is best suited for (the few blues and jazz tunes I do). I am using this guitar every day in practice and it is not giving away any ground so far. I suspect this just happens to be one of those weird awesome values that come along from time to time.

No input here. I have no need for any support.

Been playing since 1970. Have owned or do own a bunch of stuff in that time: Ibanez Iceman, Epi SG (my first guitar), custom Explorer, MexiTele, 68 Les Paul Goldtop, Wolfgang USA, Deans, some good and bad Chinese copies, and I don't remember what all else. Couldn't really tell you. I use an old Marshall run clean into the Digitech Modeler (great fun) and I alter my sound markedly, sometimes from song to song. I am so very glad I didn't buy a Gib 335, which I was within minutes of doing. I can upgrade the AS73 and probably get ninety percent of the way there for peanuts. I'm taking that money I had set aside for the Gibson and buying a tricked out Warmoth Les Paul. I will always have one of these and, honestly, I now want the Ibanez L5 copy , too. I am sure the Agiles are quite good, or so I hear, but at this price point, the Ibanez cannot be beaten. The thing I love about this guitar is how it plays, the feel, the comfort. The neck is faster than my Wolfgang and makes the Goldtop feel like I'm playing in quicksand. I only wish it came with some killer PAFs, but that can be handled.

This AS73 I think brings up a really good point for consideration by all but the wealthiest guitar players. And that is, should you struggle and scrimp to buy a big-name guitar or not. I've done it, and I have a very valuable one in the 68 Goldtop. But I just told you that the two hundred dollar Ibanez is more fun to play. It doesn't sound nearly as good, but it provides more enjoyment. So, which is the better buy? Thousands and thousands for something with a big name that you sort of enjoy playing, or a lot less for something that looks great, seems well made, and is tons of fun? My own opinion is that the big American names have all become far too expensive when you look at their cost of goods. It does not cost three thousand dollars to build and market a Les Paul. Do you know what mahogany body blanks cost? Nuf said. What I would suggest, if you are contemplating not doing the amazing value thing (like the AS73), is to check out one of the reasonable custom shops such as Warmoth or USA. You can get a guitar exactly, completely the way you want it (want a panda bear guitar? they'll make you one)for a third to a half what you'll pay in the stores for an American-made rig. Just my opinion, worth what it costs, which is nothing.

This is an archtop semi-hollow body 335 style guitar with dual ACH Humbucker pickups. The body and neck are maple with a rosewood fret board. The neck and body are fully bound and mine is a brown sunburst. The finish is buffed out and this guitar is a real treat for the eyes. The guitar came with chrome hardware but this has been changed over to gold as I think it looks better with the color. The bridge / tailpiece are a Tune-O-Matic style and the tuners are Rotomatic style tuners. I have replaced these with a set of Grovers as I???ve heard the originals can start to slip as they age.
The neck is very comfortable and fast. To me the body is slightly less clunky feeling than the Gibson or Epiphone 335???s. I would suggest replacing those poorly designed strap pins with a good set of strap locks to keep that beautifully made guitar off the floor!
This guitar is Chinese made but don???t let that fool you. They???ve been making instruments and other fine wood products for a couple thousand of years. The people building these obviously take a lot of pride in their work and it shows in their product. My suggestion is buy one while they???re still inexpensive.

The sound this guitar pushes out is truly incredible for an instrument in this price range. I primarily use mine for Rock and Blues and can always find the sound I'm looking for. My primary amp is a Peavy Bandit 65 and I've never had any problem pushing enough sound to fill a venue with this combination.
The ACH pickups put out impressive volume and good clear tone. While these aren???t considered ???state of the art??? top end pickups they deliver the goods with surprising quality. The electronics are very quiet; I get no hum in any switch position or volume setting. This feature alone impresses me. The sustain is very good without having to use overdrive to compensate. The sound output can range from a mellow buttery jazz tone to a screaming lead. The only weak area I can find here is that the manufacturer used budget switches and pots in these guitars. This is a very inexpensive and easy upgrade that would make this an heirloom you could leave to your grandkids. Spend some money on a set of high grade Duncan???s along with the switch and pot upgrade and you have got a guitar that would rival any Gibson 335 for about a quarter of the price. Use the extra money for lessons they???ll take you further than a logo.

From the ones that I???ve played in the local music stores these guitars come from the factory very well set up. The action is very easy even with heavier strings like .011???s or .012???s. There are no buzzing or high frets and all the wires are well dressed making the neck very comfortable in your hand.
The fit and finish of the guitar is better than any of my other guitars and comparing it to a new Gibson 335 it???s as good as it gets. The binding on my guitar is immaculate and the finish looks like you could swim in it. All the joints are tight and I have yet to find a flaw in this area.
My guitar has been to the pro shop for overall check and setup. The technician said he did very little to the instrument other than minor adjustments for my playing and string preferences. This is something all guitar players should consider reguardless of the make they purchase.

This guitar seems to be built like a tank! I can???t think of a gig I???ve ever been to that it would have been out of place or not held up. The body is as solid as any 335 style I???ve ever played and the price tag means you won???t soil yourself if it gets knocked to the floor. As far as not having a backup I play this and a strat copy as my primary instruments as they are each good for different sounds. In that sense they act as backup for each other. Other than the very seldom broken string this rig has never given any sign of cut out.
The only drawback to this guitar right out the box is the strap locks chosen by the manufacturer. This is true of every guitar I???ve ever owned so when I buy a guitar I buy a set of Schaller???s to go with it. I also replaced the tuners with a set of Grover Rotomatics. This is just a personal choice, as I had no real complaints about the origionals but have heard they will start to slip as they age. At some point I will probably replace the electronics with upgraded hardware to make this a ???custom??? level instrument.

Never had to use the warranty or contact the manufacturer...just no problems with this axe.

I???ve been playing for 40 years, I primarily play blues and rock and this guitar fills this position well. It projects a lot of musical character for such an inexpensive instrument. I wouldn???t trade it for 2 Epiphone DOT???s and would replace it without reservation if it were lost, stolen or destroyed. I???ve played it against a Gibson and find that in my hands it feels better than the $2K flagship. The Gibson had all high dollar electronics but for around $250 this guitar could be brought to the same level. If you???re just starting out and want a 335 style guitar you can???t go wrong with this instrument. I never really considered Ibanez guitars until I played this one. From first sight it won me over???now I wonder what I might be missing in their other guitars.

Arch top, semi-hollow 335-style, all maple body and neck, rosewood fretboard, two ACH humbuckers, tune-o-matic style bridge with an Ibanez revision of the stop tailpiece (same basic thing as the classic, the Ibanez just looks different), ivory binding all everywhere, and a very nice deep transparent cherry finish. The neck feels thinner (both ways) than my Epi Dot, but it's comfortable, and it plays fast. The neck joint is extended as compared to the classic Gibson/Epiphone design, and that could be a good thing. Everything looks to be of good quality. If you compare this to the Epi Dot Studio (same price range), this guitar beats it in every single way.

For a $300 guitar, you'd expect to sacrifice some sound, but this guitar will really surprise you. I have an Epi Dot 335 from the mid 90's (not the clunky, new Dot Studio I mentioned before), so I can compare this guitar to that one. For off-the-body (meaning unplugged) tone, they are quite close. Granted, my Dot has the benefit of age, but this Ibanez can only get better. The Ibanez pushes out generous volume and good sustain (which is aided by its extended neck joint). The ACH pickups are not as good as my Dot's, but to be fair, I put Duncan Alnico Pro II's in my Dot. Those pickups, if you've never used them, are heaven in these type of guitars. That said, these Ibanez pickups are no slouches. They have good clarity; the neck pickup isn't too deep, and the bridge pickup isn't too bright. The middle position is my favorite. They are well-suited for any musical style (as most modern pickups are), but given that this is a semi-hollow guitar, I wouldn't use this for metal. Ibanez has plenty of other options for you if that's your thing.

Out of the box, this is a fine guitar. If you're really picky, you can change the pickups, but no audience will notice the upgrade.

The finish is flawless, and the binding also looks great - and this guitar is made in China! This guitar might change your mind about Chinese-made instruments. I've seen U.S. made guitars with really lousy work, and nothing about this guitar seems cheap or poorly made. The frets don't have sharp ends, and they're all leveled well. The action is good, and after a setup it's perfect. I use .012's with a wound third, and this guitar still plays great.

The only knock against my particular guitar is that the tone control to the neck pickup doesn't seem to be connected. The tone is stuck on 10. I did buy this off the wall of a Guitar Center, so that might not be Ibanez's fault. Anyway, I left it broken (they would have fixed it for free) and took a discount on the guitar. I never use the tone control on the neck pickup; I only use it on the bridge pickup. You'd really only use that tone control if you were trying to get a really dead, flat jazzbox tone. I like to play my jazz with some clarity, so I was happy to just take a discount.

It seems to be built well, and the neck joint especially makes it feel sturdy. I always gig with a backup, but now I can gig with two very nice 335-style guitars.

No experience with them.

If you're looking for a 335, and you can't afford to overpay for a Gibson, look here. The Epiphone Dot (the $500 version) may sound just a bit better (the new Anico V pickups in the Epiphones really sound great), but it's probably not worth the extra $200. If cosmetics are important to you, then the Ibanez will not disappoint. I still prefer my Dot with the Duncans in there, but this guitar will still get plenty of play time. The body on this Ibanez is a little more comfortable. If you're in the market for a semi-hollow guitar, you've got to check out the Ibanez Artcore series. The price is reasonable, and you get a great guitar. Forget about Ibanez's reputation for making only shred-metalhead guitars - they can make a very respectable, versatile semi-hollow as well.

The wood and construction is where this guitar really shines. The laminated maple body is just as good and in some ways better than my Gibson. The neck joint is more level and seamless. It has multiply binding on the body, bound head stock and F holes. For 3 grand you would think that Gibson would offer these accents. I gave an 8 because the hardware and electronics are pretty poor. I didn't score it lower because these things can be fixed. The tuners feel a little loose, but it does stay in tune, so I'm going to keep them for now. Replace the bridge, the electronics and the nut and you'll have an guitar that will rival the ones coming out of the Gibson custom shop (for 1/3 of the price)!. One other thing. I could do without the lightning bolt in the headstock logo. Looks a little cheesy for an otherwise very classy looking instrument.

I'm playing through a Marshall JMP-1 preamp and a Marsall series 9000 power amp. Its a very vintage rack setup. I also have a compressor, an Alesis quadraverb and BBE sonic maximizer in the effects chain. At full volume the tone is absolutley amazing. I'm not saying amazing for a $300 guitar, just plain amazing. The pickups have a good PAF flavor to them. I played it side by side against a Les Paul wired with the Wolftone Vinatge PAF pickups. Of course the Gibson came out ahead in this arena, but considering price - not an extra $2100 worth of better! Others have posted that it gets very muddy at lower volumes and I agree completely. A high pass filter similar to the one in my JS-1000 would help a lot. Considering I use the volume pots to roll of some gain from the preamp, this is a critical flaw, but as I said before, replace the electronics and you'll get blown away.

Out of the factory, the action was terrible and the pickups were too high. 10 minutes on the bench and it was like a whole differnt guitar. I'm not going to give it less than an 8 because the guitar is capable of very low action, they just didn't set it that way when they shipped it. The finish was flawless and the neck was set perfectly. The fret job was ok, but could use some dressing. Very mice job on the binding all the way around.

After the upgrades mentioned above, I would definitely play live with it. In fact, it would probably be my main guitar so I wouldn't get my expensive ones all dinged up. I would never gig without a backup for any of my guitars.

Never had to deal with them.

I'ver been playing for 25 years. From Gibson, I have a Les Paul and a Lucille. From Fender I have a strat and a tele. I also have a Satriani JS-1000. After the upgrades, I would put this up against my Lucille any day of the week. Would absolutely replace it if anything ever happened to it. Love the attention to detail in the construction. Hate the lack of attention to detail in the hardware and electronics. I will give it a 10 in the overall category because it truely is a fantastic value. I've played guitars with triple the price tag and half the tone. Go get one!