Ibanez Artist

This guitar was made in december 1981 in japan. I read in an article that they were made to compete with the les paul in the late 70's and early 80's. The ingredients are the same, mahogany body, maple top, rosewood fretboard, 2 hb's (not sure which models),standard tuners (changed to grovers), 2 volumes, 2 tones, wine red with gold hardware, very classy looking. As i said earlier, i read about these guitars in guitar shop magazine in an article called recent relics and it sounded like a good buy so i set out to find one. A couple of years went by checking local pawn shops, ads in the newspaper, just casually looking when i thought about it and had no luck. One day while at work i was talking to a coworker about guitars, i had known for years he had an old electric sitting in its case in the closet at home and didn't play it anymore, and asked what he had. When he said "i think it's an IBANEZ ARTIST" i had trouble keeping my cool about it, so i said "hmm" mind if i come over and have a look. Brought it home and completely tore it apart. I polished and waxed everything, put new strings on it and played the hell out of it over the weekend. To cut it short, i paid $150.00 for the guitar. As far as features go it's got everything i need. I know some models had push-pull pots for series/parallel but i think this one is great cause it's simple and effective like a les paul standard.

As far as my musical style, i grew up on 70's and 80's rock and metal. This guitar suits me perfectly. I was blown away the first time i plugged it in, fat is the word and great sustain. I compaired it to a friend of mines les paul standard and the main diference i heard was the gibson pups were a tad hotter though i am not complaining. My buddy was sick, $1700.00 vs. $150.00 though that really isn't the issue here. This guitar sounds great and i love it. I run it through an MXR dynocomp-TS9-BOSS DS1-CRYBABY-MXR PHASE 90-ELECTRO HARMONIX MEMORY MAN-MXR MICRO AMP into a FENDER HOT ROD DEVILLE, although i'm looking for another amp for distortion. There is nothing about this guitar soundwise i don't like.

As i said, this guitar was in a closet collecting dust and has a few minor dings on the finish (i think the kids may have gotten a hold of it a few times, hopefully an ass whipping was in order) but once i cleaned it up that kinda added to vintage appeal. I like fairly low action which was not a problem and adjusted the pups to my liking. Other than the cosmetics the guitar worked like brand new.

As far as durability goes i believe you could lay waste to a few local high spirited "red necks" in a bar and still get up and jam on a little THIN LIZZY "YOU GOT A BAD REPUTATION", this is one solid chunk of wood. Besides it servived 3 kids dragging it around on the floor and years of neglect so i'm sure it can take any punishment i may give it.

Never dealt with them. I do my own work anyway.

I have been playing for about 18 years and have owned quite a few (wish i had them all back) guitars. I currently have a FENDER DELUXE STRAT PLUS, GIBSON EXPLORER and a YAMAHAH acoustic. If this guitar was stolen i would probably cry outloud. When i think of all those years this guitar spent being neglected and abused in the worst way i think you know all it neede was someone to love it and take care of it.Seriously if you ever run across one of these by all means check it out, i wasn't dissapointed and i don't think you will be ether.

My Ibanez Artist was purchase by me new at a music store in Dekalb Illinois and is an Orange sunburst model. It had the locking tuning heads which I replaced with the gold and pearl Grover tuning heads. The pickups are gold tone with pixies on them, they work great like the old 58 gibson humbuckers. I have played a number of different guitars over the years, I am not a professional musician, however after owning Strats, SG's, and a Gretch Tennessean, I love this guitar the most of all. I prefer it to the old workhorse of rock and roll the Gibson Les Paul. It is beautifully balanced, heavy a bit but that gives it a great sustain. I play thru an old Fender tweed Champ and have played this same guitar thru my old Marshall 100watt and a Traynor 100 watt amp. Simply said, no better electric guitar has ever been made.

The Sound is incredible, it has a rich full sound and even thru wah-wah pedals and a flanger it is excellent. I have played it thru Marshall 100 watt amps, traynor 100 watt amps and my old trusty Fender Champ (tweed).....nuff said this is a great sounding guitar with a great neck, great sustain, and for one who could and can play better than me, it would kick the butt of any Fender off the block, not only that, Gibsons too.

I am fortunate to say that after owning this since purchase in 1977 that it has aged wonderfully. I have owned it since it was sold to me at the music store. The finish has aged beautifully and I have not had to have any adjustments done to it whatsoever. I believe the workmanship to be far above the Gibson Les Pauls that were made at the time.

If I were a professional I would think that this would be the only guitar that a fellow or gal would need. Period. This is a great guitar model, the finish has aged wonderfully, just think, after a solid 24 yrs, it looks as good as when I bought it, yes I have a nick on the top of the tuning head, but that was my doing and it does not reflect on the manufacturer. I have played it so much that the underlying orange on the neck is showing thru, still shiny and lots and lots of finish left. Beautiful.

I cannot say that I ever had any dealings with the company, other than to purchase a guitar they made. But after all, isn't that why we buy them, to play and forget about further need for company support?

My other electric guitar is an Ibanez as well, one of the explorer copies that Ibanez got into a heated lawsuit over with Gibson. A copy infringement. Made of Korina wood, I bought it used from a buddy who played in a band and he sold it to me for $200 back in 1978. It had a Diarmond pu in the treble position and I installed a Patent applied for pu from an old SG in the position by the neck. This guitar I had set up by a guitar manufacturer friend of mine back in Dekalb Illinois who, by the way made guitars, if you see one BUY IT, DO NOT WASTE TIME...BUY ONE. His name is Larry Lothson, he made the two guitars for ZZ top for the video, give me all your loving, the fur covered ones that spin around, a waste of fine playing guitars. He made some excellent Flying V's, and several of his own design. Larry Lothson set my Explorer (Destroyer) with a brass nut at the top of the neck for the strings to lay across for slide.....oooooh does it sound fine! I wish I had a solid Aluminum case for this guitar, I had a buddy want to trade me outta this one for a Gibson Explorer, no thanks I told him, I will keep my IBANEZ GUITAR!

Pretty thoroughly described by everyone else.
This is a very, very beautiful, classical looking and sounding machine. Looks more beautiful than any Les Paul I have seen. The symmentrical cutaway is quite an elegant distiction.
Don't know what year this particular guitar is but I've had it since 1986 and the orange/bown flamed sunburst is aging very elegantly.
Only modification was to get the frets shaved.
The two humbuckers seem very hot and loud. They sing and they scream.
The 3-way toggle switch for each humbucker (humbucker, single coil & out-of-phase modes) is very useful. I usually play the bridge (treble) pickup in humbucker mode and occasionally switch to both pickups with the neck (bass) pickup set on single coil.

Amazing. Amazing.
I play through a loud, cranked 40W Fender Hotrod Deluxe (1x12" Weber C12B + 2x12" cabinet Weber C12S + C12N). V1&V2 preamps are Mullard M8137/CV4004 (check 'em out), V3/PI is Mullard CV4024, V4&V5 Svetlana 6L6GCs. Heavy, bright 12-56 strings, heavy pick. Ibanez tubescreamer > Dunlop Crybaby > DOD classic fuzz > Marshall tremelo.
I play very hard and loud and this guitar is a VINTAGE ROCK PIG! Amazing sustain, crisp and sharp, full-on tone, immense harmonic complexity. A singer and a screamer.

I'm going to mark it down just a little because it is very heavy, and like someone else mentioned, it seems a bit strangely balanced. Seems to sit very horizontally. So, to keep it comfy for my playing, I wear a wide leather strap and hold it up quite high on my midrift. Quite a "jazz" playing stance, though I know it's cool and trendy to sling your axe around your knees, I just can't play very well like that.

This is a beast.
Like I said, aging very gracefully. Many people remark how beautiful the guitar appears and sounds.
My perdonal fave.

N/A

I love my guitar. In combination with my souped up HotRod Deluxe, I have a unique signature tone. A rock monster.

1981 Made in Japan Solid top Double cut away with stop tail piece
Humbuckers

Blows my Prs Custom 24 and early 70 Ibanez LP out of the water!Can you say SUSTAIN ?????

MY POOR BROTHER IN LAW IS A LEFTY PLAYS AN AMERICAN STRAT THAT SOUNDS LIKE A BANJO NEXT TO THIS HE WANTS ME TO RESTRING IT SO HE CAN PLAY IT NOT A CHANCE !!!

BRICK SHIT HOUSE

DONT KNOW WHY SOMEONE WOULD SPEND 2000 MORE ON A GIBSON I TRADE A LOT OF MY GUITARS NOT THIS ONE ITS A KEEPER AND A PLAYER IF SOMEOME KNOWS IF THERE IS A LEFTY FLOATING AROUND PLS CONTACT ME

This is a 1985 Artist ( not sure of the exact model).Aqua Maple flame top. Two humbuckers, two tone, two volume controls (same as gibson set up). A coil tap for each humbucker, giving the option of humbucker, single coil or out of phase. I pretty sure this is a mahogany body, it has a gibson style bridge, good quality machine heads - what more can you ask for?????

With the coil taps this guitar can produce an exellent range of sounds. In single coil mode I get a beautiful sound through a clean valve amp, and when switched to humbucker, you get a gutsy gibson tone ( not quite as heavy). I own a 93 Gibson les paul standard and this guitar sounds almost as good in humbucker mode when you play them back to back.

I was able to lower the strings so they are almost touching the frets and the guitar still does not buzz. The neck is very 'flat' and is quite wide in the higher frets making solo's easy to play, this neck feels very comfortable. My only complaint is that the guitar seems 'unbalanced', the neck tend to drop and want to be played horizontally, this took a few weeks to get used to. This is a heavy guitar, about a pound heavier than the Les paul, Girls this guitar is not for you - unless your built like K.D.Lang.

This a heavy guitar that could withstand a thrashing, Give it all its worth fella's.

I'm 22, been playing in bands for 7 years, owned alot of 'name' guitars, and this one rates. I've sold my american fenders, kept only one of my gibsons, and use this ibanez 90% of the time.
These guitars are fantastic value for money in australia, I paid the equilivent of about $200US, I've seen dozens of these sell at eBay for 3 times that much. I would never sell this guitar and am constantly on the look out to buy another one - if you've got one SELL IT TO ME!!!!!!!!

This is one of two electric guitars I have, the other is a 1980's Fender strat with a solid Hawaiin koa body. The Artist is a very good guitar, the only possible drawback is the weight. Using the coil taps switches I can get this thing t sound like a number of solid bodied guitars.

It has a neck through body design, the heel of the neck fits very comfortably into the palm of your left hand when you're 'way up the neck. The intonation, once set, stays in place. The metal parts were all gold plated, looked nice new, put it comes off with regular polishing. Still looks cool though.

It has a quilted mahogany top and plain mahogany back, very nice purfling around the body and the inlay work on the necka nd headstock is well-done.

All-in-all, this is a very nice guitar, great to have around, great on gigs if you have a wide strap and good shoulders.

"Mr. Bill"

Japanese-built mahogany double cutaway body with lightly flamed carved maple top. Finished in warm orange-brown sunburst, a.k.a. antique violin. Set in three piece laminated maple neck, flat ebony fingerboard, 22 low fat frets, pearl/abalone block inlays, bone nut, 24.75" scale. The neck is stained to match the dark red/brown of the mahogany back, and the joint has been sanded smooth to aid access to the upper frets. Ibanez Velvetune machine heads, three-a-side on back-angled headstock which gets close to straight string pull. Gibraltar bridge (similar to Gibson's tune-o-matic but a bit wider), and slotted Gibraltar tailpiece for quick string change. The bridge screws into a ?brass insert set in the body. Two Ibanez Super 58 humbuckers and a 3-way toggle switch. Each pickup has individual volume and tone controls, and a tri-sound mini-toggle switch (series/parallel/coil-tap). Hardware all gold plated (originally); maple cap, ebony fretboard and headstock all bound. A pretty luscious looking guitar! This particular instrument was built in 1982, and the features described apparently make it the AR300 model. If you want to find out about vintage Ibanez guitars, as I did, check out the following excellent website for everything you could possibly need to know, and more: http://www.comcat.com/~alnico5/

I've owned both a Les Paul Standard and a 335 in the past, but somehow I was never really satisfied with the sounds they produced, and for years I've been a single coil / Fender fan. Prior to picking up this Artist I was mostly using a 1990 Fender USA Standard Strat; more recent additions are a ?1997 Gibson Les Paul Special DC (twin P-90s), and a 1997 Fender Japan 72 Thinline Telecaster reissue (twin humbuckers). But this Ibanez has changed my opinion of twin humbucker Gibson-esque guitars pretty radically! The phase/tapped sounds are useful, some good funky/scratchy/cutting tones available, and the volume changes when switching from these settings to the much louder/thicker humbuckers are handy or a hassle depending on your viewpoint. No, it doesn't sound like a Strat or a Tele, but I never yet encountered any split humbucker which does. If you want to nail those tones, buy those guitars! A mahogany-bodied fixed bridge guitar is never going to sound like a Strat with an ash or alder body and all those trem springs. And to get the true Tele tone you need a big flat metal plate bridge surrounding your single coil. But I digress..... The single coil sounds add some useful variety, but it's those full on humbucking tones which are just really excellent. All of a sudden I find myself playing (badly) old Gary Moore solos! Ancient Thin Lizzy riffs are dredged from the dusty recesses of my musical memory! AC:DC ? the boogie just keeps coming! Not bad going for a long-time indie fan, but this is definitely a classic rock guitar, it fits right in to all those places where you might use a Les Paul Standard or an SG. On clean settings (I plug straight into a Trace Elliot Speed Twin C30 class A valve combo, very few effects apart from occasionally using a Tech 21 Tri-OD or an ancient MXR Distortion + for some good old analogue distortions) the tones are simultaneously warm, full, clear and bell-like. Some crunchy rock sounds are available when you crank the gain, but it really excels at those thick, juicy, endlessly sustaining lead lines. Definitely Gary Moore meets Carlos Santana, with extra sustaaaaaaaaaaain! Brilliant.

Being 17 years old this guitar isn't in mint condition, it's clearly been well used over the years. There are a few minor dents and scratches, and the binding has discoloured in places. The gold finish is wearing thin on the bridge and tailpiece, and has disappeared altogether round the edges of the pickup covers. The frets are by now very low profile, you couldn't dress them down much further! As a result the neck feels incredibly smooth and easy, really well played in. It's also dead straight and flat, the action very low, the electrics noiseless, and tuning stability is excellent. Actually, the action was a bit too low for me, especially compared to my usual Fender set up. That made it supremely comfortable and easy to play, but there was just a little too much choking and buzzing, so the bridge had to be raised a little and I slackened off the truss rod a quarter turn. Encouraging to see the truss rod adjustment work fine on a guitar this old. Now the action is still comfortable, but with a lot less buzzing. Weight-wise this guitar is pretty heavy, on a par with a Les Paul.

Only had it a few months, but it seems pretty solid to me, and I'd expect it to last another 17 years at least. It's the first Ibanez electric I've owned, but I did have an Ibanez acoustic guitar for many years which was fine, and my digital delay pedal is an Ibanez, and that has been totally reliable for the eight years I've had it.

Never dealt with Ibanez.

I've never bought a second-hand guitar before, and generally I go for plain and functional instruments. But it was definitely a case of love at first sight when I saw this baby! Twenty years ago, when I was a relatively penniless teenager, I used to dream about the guitars I might afford in the future to replace my rather poor Gibson Marauder copy. I collected all the company literature I could find, and Ibanez were always very generous with their brochures. I was never keen on the Iceman type stuff, but the Artists struck me as highly desirable. As I mentioned, in later years I never really got on with traditional Gibsons, and had settled down with a pair of Fenders and an LP Special. Anyway, I was strolling down Denmark Street (focal point for guitarists here in London) and there in a shop window was this gorgeous Ibanez Artist. It was flashback time! With sounds to match the looks, and a great feeling neck, I just had to have it. A tad pricey I thought, even after haggling the price down a bit and getting a reasonable hard case into the deal, but hey, that's what credit cards are for! And in retrospect, it was worth every penny ? I LOVE this guitar! Would I buy one again if stolen? If I could find another, for sure. Alternatively, I could save up for a new PRS McCarty Standard, but then I'd be scared to death of scratching it. This one already has the war wounds, so no worries. The sound and feel of this guitar have opened my eyes to a whole new world of humbucker-equipped second-hand electrics. Damn. There goes my savings plan.....

EARLY 80/S MODEL WITH A FANTASTIC TIGER MAPLE TOP,ONE PIECE MAHOGANY BODY,GIBRALTAR BRIDGE AND SLOT TAILPIECE.COIL TAP & PHASE MINE TOGLE SWITCHES,GOLD HARDWARE AND VERY GOOD GOLD COVER HAMBUCKERS.ONE PIECE MAHOGANY NECK,EBONY FINGERBOARD WITH LARGE BLOCK PEARL INLAYS,MEDIUM JUMBO FRETS,MEDIUM NECK PROFILE BEAUTIFUL BINDING EVERYWHERE! SUNBURST NITRO FINISH,DOUBLE CUTAWAY,IBANEZ WANTED TO COMPETE WITH GIBSON AND IN MY OPINION THIS GUITAR IS MUCH BETTER THAN MOST OF THE EARLY 80/S LES PAUL CUSTOMS.

AMAZING SOUNDING GUITAR,CLASSIC LES PAUL SOUNDS (A BIT BRIGHTER AND POUNCHIER THOUGH),COIL TAP AND OUT OF PHASE SWITCHES GIVE A WIDE RANGE OF SOUNDS ESPECIALLY FOR SCOOPED FUNKY TONES! NO NOISE AT ALL,GREAT PICKUPS (ALTHOUGH I BELIEVE THAT THE PREVIOUS OWNER HAS CHANGED THE STOCK PICKUPS WITH DI MARZIOS.

AMAZING DETAIL AND FINISH,A REAL CLASSY INSTRUMENT,BETTER THAN ANY 80/S GIBSON OR GRETSCH GUITARS,IT IS A SAME THEY DON/T MAKE THEM ANYMORE (RECENTLY IBANEZ REISSUED THEM BUT THEY ARE NOT ACCURATE REPLICAS,THEY ARE MUCH LESS DECORATED AND WITH LESS FEATURES). A SIMILAR GUITAR WITH SUCH FEATURES WOULD SIMPLY COST A FORTUNE TODAY (WE ARE TALKING TERRY MC INTRUFF LEAGUE HERE!)

BUILT LIKE A TANK

NEVER DEALT WITH IBANEZ.

ONE OF THE BEST GUITARS I EVER OWNED.I WAS STUPID ENOUGH TO TRADE IT WITH A GIBSON LES PAUL CUSTOM (BECAUSE OF THE GIBSON NAME) AND SOON I HAVE REALIZED WHAT A BIG MISTAKE I HAVE MADE. IT TOUGHT ME A LESSON THOUGH TO LISTEN WITH MY EARS AND NOT WITH MY EYES.I WISH I COULD GET IT BACK BUT THE GUY WHO BOUGHT IT DOES NOT EVEN CONSIDER IT!!

This particular guitar is an '83 Artist, made in Japan. The features are excellent...lots of versatility. As i understand, these guitars came with a variety of features, depending on the specific model...mine is a dual humbucker guitar with seperate volume controls and a master tone control, a coil-split switch and a series/parallel switch. The controls are well laid out, easily accessible, and simple to make good use of...i can flip from a rich neck humbucker to a very tele-like single coil quack with minimal difficulty. The neck humbucker can be a bit squeely at higher volumes (they're Ibanez stock pickups, don't know the model). It's a 22 fret mahagony neck/body with a carved maple top and a dinked-up gloss finish...looks a bit like a les paul jr. (double cutaway). Tune-o-matic bridge, ibanez tuners (the guitar stays in tune under fairly nasty string bending conditions), 24-3/4 scale neck...after 15 years, it seems as if the frets could stand some work. comfortable gibson-like neck. cheezy chipboard case included.

i play just about any style that occurs to me...i'll scoop the mids and make palm-muted noise, do my best santana, or play some twangy cointry-blues, depending on my mood, and i currently play in a swing band. i can't really think of a sound that this guitar can't do. no, it doesn't sound just like a strat with a split neck humbucker...but it DOES offer a very deep, meaty single coil sound in that position. neither does it completely nail an in-between tele sound or a les paul bridge...but it gets very close to all of them and does it's own thing in the process. not noisy at all. i'm currently using it with a mesa 50 caliber +, and it seems as if the two were made for each other...large variety of very useable tones available, and the combination is often inspiring.

i bought it used, so i can't comment on the factory setup. i play it with d'addario 10's and get great action...not so low as to preclude bending, but still very easy to play. as stated earlier, after 15 years, it seems as if the frets need a bit of work, and the finish has been chipped in places. outside of normal wear and tear, though, the guitar is great, and was clearly well put together.

it's lasted plenty long already with no problems, and i have no reason to believe that this won't continue to be the case. the strap buttons tend to come loose at times...not hard to fix with a screwdriver and a minute of work, but it can be annoying. still wouldn't gig without a backup (strings break, after all) but i have no problem using it as my main guitar.

never dealt with them.

for the price i paid for it, i can't think of a better guitar...outside of better upper fret access, there's nothing i would change about it. i'd definitely pick another one up if anything happened to this one, and may just buy myself a semi-hollow artist...if it's as well put together and toneful as this guitar, i'm sure i'll love it. there are better guitars out there, to be sure, but i can't think of anything under $1000 that does so many things as well as this guitar.

This is a 1977 model (a "vintage" Ibanez, as some of the shops are now calling them) with 24 frets, 2 humbuckers, a brass bridge, gold hardware, and a really nice violin like finish. The neck is sanded down where it meets the body, which really helps (if you have ever owned a Les Paul, I'm sure you would want this).

I play a mixture of styles, and I use this guitar for what is was intended - a thick, juicy distorted tone. I took out the pickups and replaced them with a Duncan '59 in the neck and a JB in the bridge, which made a big difference. I bought this for $350.00 from Nadine's in Hollywood in 1982, sould it to a friend a few years later, and bought it back 3 years ago when he wanted to dump it. I used to play it clean, and I never really liked the tone. But now through my Boogie v-twin into a vintage Marshall 50, it really can sound great. The frets after 12 can get a little crowded, though, and I have small hands. The tone reminds me of what a good Paul would sound like, with less bottom, and less high end sizzle. But it has more beef than a strat with a humbucker in it. I have read that on the first Van Halen album, Eddie used an early Ibanez Destroyer for many of the tunes ("You Really Got Me"). That guitar apparently was made out of african limba wood, rather than mahogony like this one. But that fact should let you know the quality of workmanship. If you want single coil tones, you could always have a system like the Page model Gibson with push-pull pots. Since I don't gig anymore, when I want that I pick up my G&L s-500.

The action and set up are great. Ibanez really put some time into it. Actually, a repairman from Westwood Music asked if I wanted to sell it! He has other early Ibanez models and loves them. The violin finish is really beautiful. The pickup selector has NEVER slipped (wish I could say the same about the Page model Les Paul with the $4,800 price at Westwood Music). The frets are jumbo, and I would want them in another guitar also. No parts have rusted or broken off. The top side has a small ding from the last owner. The top is plain maple; no flames. But the color of the stain is subtle, rich, and very elegant.

I used to play live with it, and it's very solid. I used to stand there like Lord Nelson at Trafalgar Square, and I really didn't throw it around. You definately could use it without back up, but like and two humbucker guitar, you might get a little tired of the sound.

Never had to deal with them. I only had it repaired to change the pickups.

If it was stolen, I would probably get a PRS Mcarty or something made better. I would not get a Les Paul, as there is really not a great amount of difference between alot of them. The Artist models from the early 80's are much cheaper; in every way, and I do not suggest them at all. Finding another one of these would take some looking, so I'd rather just upgrade it. This quality of a guitar for under a grand is really stunning, though. It can sound great on either pickup. My least favorite aspect is the skinniness of the neck up high. My most favorite is the thick, Gary Moore, Van Halen type sound If you find an early one cheap, check it out.