Ibanez Roadstar 2

Make/Model: Ibanez Roadstar II RS 205
Year: 1983
Stratocaster Body
Basswood/Birch
Serial Number:F83----
Location of Manufacture: Japan
Neck/Fingerboard Wood: Maple neck, maple fingerboard
Scale Length:25 1/2"
Nut Width:1 5/8"
Weight: 8.4Lbs.
Finish Color: Tobacco burst
Pickup/Control Layout: 3 super 6 single coils/ 1 vol/ 1 tone 5-way selector switch/ 1 phase switch
Features: Left handed, Original tremolo bridge and whammy bar

Well lets see, covers pretty much any sound desired, the super 6 singles are very nice, have plenty of harmonics and will definatley keep them in the guitar for originality sake, i dont like to mod guitars tends to decrease value. Rich full sounding, can be bright as a bell with the phase switch. plenty of choices on midrange, treble, and bass. I really like the variety.

Purchased used, action needs a bit of adjustment, i have intonated properly strings 5 and 3 needed adjustment they were sharp. pickup height is fine, more than likely factory settings. Finish is still great this guitar was played quite exttensivley before my purchase and is a GOOD sign of a great guitar. Has play wear on body only, neck is perfect as is headstock, which is most important. I can deal with finish bumps and pick marks.

I have had it for 3 days now and the build quality is extremely professional, i have owned a 1988 Yamaha SBG, 1969 Yamaha Super Axe and the same build quality is evident.
Also owned Gibsons, 1984 SG, 1966 Melody maker, 1966 ES 335 which was coverted to lefty, the playability of the Ibanez is superior to these models. I must admit the 60s model Gibsons had that feel that is hard to replicate.

I am sure they would be helpful if needed, but there is much info online for this model

been playing since 1966, played for a year then got distracted as a kid, summer, etc. forgot about it up until 1973 and haven't stopped since. have played out a few times. mostly practice at home through a Sansui 350 stereo- Alesis quadraverb - 1959 Electrovoice wolverine 15" full range speakers in the original Marquis cabints which are Huge. Great sound, but i need an Amp, maybe a Musicman. I would but another if i could find a good lefty, any leftys are difficult to find in original condition, most have changed parts

??? Make/Model: Ibanez Roadstar II RS 205
??? Year: 1983
. Stratocaster Body
. Basswood/Birch
??? Serial Number:F83----
??? Location of Manufacture: Japan
??? Neck/Fingerboard Wood: Maple neck, maple fingerboard
??? Scale Length:25 1/2"
??? Nut Width:1 5/8"
??? Weight: 8.4Lbs.
??? Finish Color: Tobacco burst
??? Pickup/Control Layout: 3 super 6 single coils/ 1 vol/ 1 tone 5-way selector switch/ 1 phase switch
??? Features: Left handed, Original tremolo bridge and whammy bar

Well lets see, covers pretty much any sound desired, the super 6 singles are very nice, have plenty of harmonics and will definatley keep them in the guitar for originality sake, i dont like to mod guitars tends to decrease value. Rich full sounding, can be bright as a bell with the phase switch. plenty of choices on midrange, treble, and bass. I really like the variety.

Purchased used, action needs a bit of adjustment, i have intonated properly strings 5 and 3 needed adjustment they were sharp. pickup height is fine, more than likely factory settings. Finish is still great this guitar was played quite exttensivley before my purchase and is a GOOD sign of a great guitar. Has play wear on body only, neck is perfect as is headstock, which is most important. I can deal with finish bumps and pick marks.

I have had it for 3 days now and the build quality is extremely professional, i have owned a 1988 Yamaha SBG, 1969 Yamaha Super Axe and the same build quality is evident.
Also owned Gibsons, 1984 SG, 1966 Melody maker, 1966 ES 335 which was coverted to lefty, the playability of the Ibanez is superior to these models. I must admit the 60s model Gibsons had that feel that is hard to replicate.

I am sure they would be helpful if needed, but there is much info online for this model

been playing since 1966, played for a year then got distracted as a kid, summer, etc. forgot about it up until 1973 and haven't stopped since. have played out a few times. mostly practice at home through a Sansui 350 stereo- Alesis quadraverb - 1959 Electrovoice wolverine 15" full range speakers in the original Marquis cabints which are Huge. Great sound, but i need an Amp, maybe a Musicman. I would but another if i could find a good lefty, any leftys are difficult to find in original condition, most have changed parts. Good luck trying to find a Tobacco burst model in righty and especially lefty.

ibanez roadster 2 series made in japan, 21 fret maple neck and fingerboard, strat style body, ibanez smooth tuner machine heads, stock ibanez pickups 3x single coil, 5 way selector switch, phase switch, bone nut, ibanez strat style trem, candye apple red body with tortois shell pick gaurd, alder body wood.

bought this guitar in 2007 (??120.00 uk) as a backup for my ibanez rg550, now the roles have reversed, i play most styles of music from rock to country and i cant believe the versatility of this thing, i play it through a marshall valvestate 2000, the tones i can acheive with the roadstar through the marshall are really rich and warm, to be honest, i have never felt any more comfertable on a guitar in the 20 years i've been playing, only problem i get with it is when i use heavy distortion i tend to get some buzz through the amp, but that will be sorted soon enough.

the guitar was set up with a set of 10's when i got it, i just took them off, threw some dean markley 9's on it, adjusted the acction (i like low acction ) and it plays a dream, the neck is so smooth and the acction is fabulous, the pickups are only stock ibanez, but i wont be changing them as i feel they deliver what i need (tone comes from the fingers imo) the finnish on mines is a bit beaten up but not that bad, but hey it's 25 years old (1983) my honest advice is this, dont buy a fender strat, because the roadster is far supperior in every aspect. it will save you a fortune.cant fault it anywhere. future classic.

the roadster 2 never goes out of tune so it's great for gigging, i noticed it's a bit heavier than the rg550 but lighter than my telecaster, the guitar is bombproof, all the hardware still works as good as new, very reliable old dog. i would gladly go on stage without a backup with this thing.

never dealt with ibanez (yet)

for ??120.00 uk, $240.00 u.s what better guitar can you buy? lets be honest here, i own an rg550, rg470, rg270, fender mexico tele and none of them come remotely close to the roadster, i've played many strats usa made, relics etc and still cant remember feeling this comfertable on a guitar as the roadster, im accually going to buy another one in case anything happens to this one. to sum it up! im surprised you can buy a guitar this good for so little money, trade in your strat, rg, whatever and buy yourself one of these fine guitars..80's classic. superb.

'85 RG 140 - MIJ.

Usual frets, solid basswood on these me thinks. 5 way selector, push pull bridge humbucker. So, it's S/S/H. I bought this to replace a beloved all-single coil Roadstar I bought from a caveman (loved that guitar). But I am almost cured, as this one is almost as beautiful. Second hand, of course.

Tobacco burst, black scratch, typical strat shape (the nice rounded fins). The basswood body is deceptive; it is quite a heavy guitar. Maple and rosewood neck. Ibanez tremolo. Ibanez stock tuners work well as they always do/did. Fabulous neck (Ibanez give good neck) - not too thin, not too fat, not too flat. Right for me.

'Lizzie' is a handsome girl alright (I name them, and engrave them on the neckplate too; yeah, nuts, but it stops theft).

Bolt-on neck. You can believe that sustain paradigm with set neck if you want to. Had a few Pauls in my time.

Previous owner (who had taken very good care of this baby) had put in Di Marzios all round. They sound nice; great when the hummer is split and great presence when in. Nice. Ibanez get critisised for their stock pickups on these. But I liked Old Blacky; and I love the Di Marzis too. Case came with it - in very good shape too. Great buy off Ebay.

Played a bit in my time, lotsa stuff. Plus the usual guitar-god homage stuff. Had, and have, some diverse and quality guitars. Roland amp, loads of vintage and newer FX.

It is a little noisy on the single coils, understandably. But nothing you can't gate-out without destroying sustain and tone. The sound? Drool (well, for me at least). It's like a strat - there's 'chiming bell' and a bit of quack there for sure. But not Knopfler strat; it's fuller, less nasal. The humbucker really does cut through when switched in. With these humbucker Roadstars the single bridge and middle combo doesn't do Knopfler, it's thin and tinny. It's sorta Nashville tuning sound, but without the ringing overtones. But useable with the right stuff. I've tried to tweak the pickups to fatten that setting out - no luck, yet. That 'strat' sound comes from the bridge pup on the single coil. It's a bit more 'twang' like a Tele really. The neck pup has a growl, yet warm (think Clapton's 'woman', but that was an SG, or E335 at times). It's probably the Di Marzi, as I don't recall Old Blacky having that neck pup sound with the same clearness, depth and warmth.

But it isn't a strat substitute - it has its own sounds. Roadstars always did.

So, it has a very diverse array of sounds; ones that react with pedals very well. It loves compression.

Likes? All of her; simply beautiful looking guitar. Great sounds. Stays in tune (is there anyone out there that has ever had a Roadstar that didn't keep tune?). Reliable, solid, well made, nice neck. Always loved those curious Ibanez boomerang strap clips too. Nuthin' comes off with those babies! Why can't ya buy them nowdays?

Dislike? Ibanez tremolo arms that don't have a tip - hate that. So I put a Gotoh arm in - it doesn't screw in, but you can creatively and neatly use gaff. I like a tip to rest my pinky on when bending - best thing Leo ever did really.

Don't like the cable-in to the front plate either, but that's no big deal really. At least it stops the trem from going too far away as it hits the cable-end.

As stated, bought it off Ebay (these guitars are a very well kept secret). But knowing how Ibanez sold them new no doubt Lizzie had the same treatment from Fuji-Gakken way back then.

I tweaked the action and intonation a little downward - no probs. Good guitars are always easy to work on. The guitar rings from all the right places when played acoustically. No buzzes, no rattles; just good in-your-tummy resonance, and distinct overtones from the neck. Nice.

I've fiddled with pup height quite a bit - but hey, what guitar player doesn't almost continually, chasing our 'El Dorado' sound? It's good.

This guitar was in tip-top condition from the guy that sold it to me (one of life's gentlemen). No rust, no scratches, little bit of fretwear at the top (which he put in the ad too).

This thing was in immaculate condition, and looked just out of the showroom despite it's 20+ odd years. It's an abused Roadstar that looks shabby.

These things are tough! The ubiquitous 'tank' comes to mind. I used a Roadstar a lot in my playing days. Always faithful, always in tune. I had one once that kept breaking high strings, but that was only because I was a dork and had the locks on the Rose trem too tight and didn't file them properly. Roadstars cut it alright. Satriani uses what is basically a developed Roadstar, after all.

Real Japanese hardware? Built to last! Have you seen the tiny CIJ pots and wiring these days? Have you seen the Chinese wiring? This stuff will last.

Lizzie is one of the guitars I reach for when playing something new - she's reliable.

To not have a backup guitar at a gig? Insane, bravado-of-youth, or foolhardy. 'Nough said in my humble opinion.

Never dealt with Ibanez; but in Australia the retailer is the point of sale. So get them to track down The Shady Beijing Custom Guitar Company (is anyone else getting sick of Chinese guitars that cost .99c and then cost $600 to post it - gotta be sus, surely? Almost as annoying that every Ibanez item that is more than 0.6 of a second old is 'lawsuit'. Do ya homework guys). But, I digress. Obviously this doesn't apply to second-hand or out of warranty. But if you have a good music shop they'll have someone that can do most things that you can't, or don't want to.

Been playing for, um, a while now. Won't say how long; but this writer knows his stuff a little bit.

I would love to collect-up all the little stray Roadstars and have them in my home - daffy jokes aside, that's how highly I rate these things. Every time I see one on Ebay I want to buy it (down boy, time for your medication now).

These are great old guitars. Get one. MIJ quality that really did give Leo and Orville a run-for-their-money. Probably even better value now with the hindsight of how good Jap-built stuff was (and is. Look at the Jem Ibanez stuff).

the floyed rose is great it never fails
lots of pearlescent color options
best action ever

It is really great for harmonics with some DR extra lifes are great

My only complaint is the tuners, other than that it really is great

I have never had a prblem with this guitar A little costimizing with the pickups and it is perfect.

Never Needed a repair

It is perfect.

This is a black, left handed RG140. A humbucker and two covered single coils. 5 way switch, volume knob and a tone knob that you can push for fatter tone via mid-range boost. Tuners are Ibanez. Passive pickups. 22 frets.

The humbucker is great and not noisy. The front single coil is hums a bit but gives you that Stevie Ray Vaughn front pickup tone. The humbucker can get pretty bright. The tone knob is very reactive though I don't really use the push button knob at all.

I got this guitar in 1985 and didn't have a clue about setup but I remember it staying in tune from day one.
This is the best neck on Earth to me. I can't find a Strat with this neck. It's the not too thin or thick or too wide. The frets are great. My Carvin frets got eaten away after 5 years this frets are hanging tuff after 17 YEARS! They must be made of some super metal. The bridge is simple and solid but I almost never use it to bend notes. After about ten years the low E tuner started shift. I really would like to replace with Sperzel locking tuners. The input is a little flakey after all these years. I never like inputs on the front of a guitar and the contacts to be checked out. Common stuff on a 17 year old guitar.

This guitar is solid. I have one chip which reveal the paint/coating --looks like tough stuff. I'm still gigging with this guitar and I intend to maintain it for many more years.
The front strap button has come loose but the button themselves are a large V-shape so IF you can get a strap on it won't come undone.
I always gig with a backup.

I've been playing guitar on and off for about 17 years. This was my first real electric guitar. I picked it out and my Mom bought it for me in 1985. :-). That's real love! I'm looking for another lefty RG140.
I owned an American Strat and still have a Carvin. I wans't crazy about the Strat. The neck was too wide for me and the controls got in my way and I like having a humbucker. I sold that Strat and went back to the RG140. My RG140 has the smaller headstock. If anyone knows what exact neck this was based on (59 tele or 72 Strat or nothing) please let me know.
Things I would change: I would give the neck a tung oil satin finish and put the input on the side/bottom of the guitar.
I LOVE: the neck it slick fast & perfect & the frets, I love the bridge, I love the body shape and I love the puckups. Alo

My Roadstar 2 is a 1983 Model Made in March,it has a sunburst transparent finish,it appears to be made of Maple,with a rosewood finger board with 21 frets,it was refretted in 2003 with jumbo frets,Dimarzio X2n in the lead position,and a super distortion in the neck position,I installed a bartolini tc-3<awesome pre-amp> The coils are tapped and a phase switch was installed,at gigs guitarists ask about My guitar and drool over the sound of it and wonder why their $2000 les paul doesnt sound as good...

Hey guys I have an Ibanez roadstar 2 I'm thinking made in the early 80's but am having trouble finding a whole lot of Rosie on it .The humbuckers are suited for this model but tend to be a bit noisey in the bridge position. it has a three position switch everything is original on it and the tuners are stock and still very tight.22 frets and the bridge seems to be floyd rose?over all is very tight

This guitar suits my playing style very well and by the way is all over from southern hard and netal even outlaw country and when i'm in the mood some mellow blues. I play it mainly through a behringer gxm220 but have had peavey stacks and just through a P.A system set with a midiverb two.She tend to get a tad bit noisy in the bridge position but nothing tradgic ,still has good highs although I have had trouble to adjust to my taste as I'm picky. I'd rate the sound somewhere between a strat and sg gibson i guess. I get some great skynyrd sounds as in wines and screams but can't quiet master the full throttle of alot of the metal scream. over all it is a great sounding ax but could be beefed up to my syandards which by the way are very high the highs could be aa bit higher and clearer

I bought thhe guitar used so not sure how well the factory set it up but knowing the early days of Ibanez i thinking everyone has trials and tribs.like i said i bought used so i had to tweek the pickups to my taste.the thig seems to be extrodinarially matched for the day and time and the bidge is right on.as far as craftysmenship I have to say it was great and is holding its own with age

I have played this thing for 18 or so years and it is rugged man. with it being somewhere in the naborhood of 20-24 years old it has all the original equipment so I'd have to say it will withstand almost anything short of being flung out a window of a car. This thing is like an ole trusty ride and i'd drive it across country and back

I have been playing alot of years maybe an e-on? I have several guitars and instruments nothing to write home about LOL If it were ever stlen I pitty the full if lost I'd cry .I love the playablity and raw purity I dislike the information out there about this guitar and it could have a little better sound to it but keep it original man . I think my faviorite feature is its durability

From the neck bolt on metal plate: D850*** Made In Japan. So that'd be an 1985 guitar. 22 frets. Strat style body

I bought this guitar for 50$ from a crackhead in 1992. It was his own, and he needed cash fast. I wanted a purple guitar with no tremolo, and could not find one in any stores. The guitar sounded very bad, and could not stay in tune even with new strings. It was buzzing all over the fingerboard, and was just a plain mess to play.

Push-pull volume, and push-pull tone, 5-way selector. Now the volume push-pull is used for pickup selection, and the tone push-pull is used for the humbucker, series/parallel selection. The 5-way switch is not used, as I do not have a middle pickup anymore. Original pickups were S/S/H, now they are, Single coil De Armond 2000, blank, early '90s Original Gibson Humbucker.

Solid body, three pieces glued together, wood unknown, but heavy. It originally was all white. I wanted a purple guitar, So I sprayed a coat of light blue, and a very thin coat of pink (1992). That made it Purple. Then I was done with purple (2005), so I sanded it down to bare wood. Sure enough, as other reviewers said it, the original finish was much harder to sand than the added coats. Now the body is semi flat black, and the neck is unpainted, except for the front of the headstock, which is black. Much like the Gibson Gothic series. The original hardware was all replaced by black items. The back of the neck was sanded down with 2000 grit paper.

I also smoothed out both body horns by removing the spikes facing the neck. I also smoothed out the neck headstock where you have those spikes thingies. While I was hacking the body in 1992, I removed the tremolo, and made a square hole right thru the body where the tremolo was. I then made a very tight fitting block of maple, and I glued it in there. Gone was the tremolo. I then installed a Schaller fixed bridge, and Schaller tuners. I removed all the locking hardware at the other end of the neck. This guitar now stays in tune.

I played with the neck angle, the rod, and now the action is low, and fast with no buzzing.

I rated it at 7 because originaly this guitar was unplayable, and sounded lame. But it is a good guitar to start with if you are into hacking your stuff.

It came with a standard case.

I play from twangy rockabilly to Jazz comping to speed metal, and this guitar is very good at it. It is a very good guitar to start with.

A big portion of the sound comes from the pickups I'd say, so I tried to get the best I could buy. The original pickups sounded like shit, so they went straight to the garbage can. The De Armond is excellent for a "Gretch" kind of sound twangy sound. The Bridge Gibson is what it is, a Gibson. It plays clean very well, and it also has lots of overdrive if you push it. You hear a the Gibson sound through it.

I played this guitar with '70s Marshall, '60 Fender Twin, and '80s Mesa, and it always sounded great with the replacement pickup.

Lots of friends borrowed it over the years, and they were all surprised at how well it played, and how good it sounded. Lots of people wanted to buy it. But it is my don't care utility guitar, and it plays and sounds really great, so I have no reason to sell it.

I also play a mid '70s fretless wonder Gibson Les Paul. My expectations are usually quite high regarding guitars. This is why I am keeping the Ibanez. I also owned four guitars previous to these, and did not keep any of them.

I rated a 8 because I really like its sound, and so does everybody who played it.

The original action fit and finish are all gone. That guitar looked, played and sounded like your typical "Pawnshop Special". The action, fit and finish are mine now, so the rating does not apply that much. I gave it a 3 because the original finish was very hard.

This guitar plays really well. It stays in tune. The original hardware was crap, but the Schaller replacement parts make for a very nice guitar.

This is basically a very good guitar. I'd say a like diamond in the rough.

Not Applicable. It is out of warranty, and I fix my own stuff.

I have been playing for 20 years, and I also play mostly Gibson guitars. What I like about the Ibanez, is that it plays and sounds close to Gibson's without any fear of damaging it.

This guitar now plays like a gem, and it sounds like a gem too. This is my opinion, and this is what lots of players told me about it.

Early 80's Japaneese strat copy S/S/H off-white with a maple neck and a rosewood fingerboard. A freind of mine got it of someone who was trying to learn how to play hipster punk for $150 with an amp. It was badly in need of intonation adjustment and just a little more than a little TLC. Regardless, I fell in love with it and traded him straight up for a Fender Strat I had and wasn't playing.
This is a very comfortable guitar. I can't get real technical as to why but it just feels right so it's been my main guitar for five years or so now.
It isn't perfect though. First of all the original single coil pickups were good sounding but very weak (I replaced them with Kinman Hx's). The humbucker that it came with was non-original so i can't comment on it (if you're curious it came with some ems battery powered job that i swapped out for a Gibson 490T with a coil splitter). The tuners are alright for being 20 years old but are starting to show some play. The fact that the jack comes out of the pickguard kindof irks me too. The worst thing is the bridge though. It's just a real oddball design that makes stringing this thing a little more annoying than usual.

I play blues/rock or whatever the bar owner wants to hear. Right now I'm running it through a 66 Bassman head and it sounds very nice. Bearing in mind that i've swapped the pickups out, it sounds like a strat should. I also modified the the electronics so that there is no tone control but instead there are two volume controls (one for the HB and one for the SC's). The coil splitter on the HB makes it possible to get a better "quack" out of the middle/bridge selection. Yeah, just a great little workhorse guitar.

Well, i got it after 10 years of playing, but it seems to be no worse for the wear and everything was put together right i guess.

I would trust this guitar to guard a city of kittens from evil aliens who need them for fuel. I gig with it and have used it as my only electric for a couple of years now.

I've been playing for 10 years. I used to own a Gibson ES335, an Am Std Strat, and an Epiphone Triumph Archtop but I found that this was the only guitar I ever actually played, so i sold them. The Roadstar II is just a good player's guitar. It's not flashy and it doesn't have any kind of retro pseudo-value attached to it. If it was lost or stolen i would definately try to replace it. As a matter of fact i kindof want another one now.