Jackson Dinky XL

Bought a used Jackson Dinky XL Professional serial #500642. Not sure of the year or where it was built (would like to know). It is all original with the 24 fret neck, s/s/h Jackson pickups with 5-way switch,jumbo frets, double locking Floyd Rose. With Jackson/Charvel case

Used with a Marshall, ground noises when on the bridge pickup. Pickups need to go

Very poor action and has lots of string buzzing even with the action high. Frets heights uneven. Locking nut is set too low

Floyd Rose fine tuners are very sloppy and finish has rust spots. The high E-String lock does not hold the string, so I had to file it. Finish on the neck and body of the guitar is very nice. Strap buttons still solid.

It looked to be mint condition with no dings or even scratches and definately was not abused. I was extremely disappointed. It has a lot of string buzzing even with the action set reasonably high. I also found the Floyd Rose on it very poor, as the fine tuners were very sloppy and the High E sting would slip out out of the bridge lock, so I had to file the lock. I also had problems with ground noise. I also don't like the location of the volume knob as I find it too close to the bridge pick up. I bought it because I was looking for something different, with a different sound. I have an Ibanez RG525 (1986) which I bought used when it was a year old. It is 100 times the guitar, as the neck is still straight and even with the action set low it has no buzzing ever since I first set it up and it stays in tune. The Jackson was a BIG disappointment.

Black Metal Flake finish,Floyd Rose Trem,Thin neck Jumbo frets,USA made Custom shop,1 vol 1 tone,5 way switch,SSH,Original pick ups.Why change the custom shop signed!They are better than any of the Japan Jacksons I have with upgrades.Body unknown rare black metal flake custom shop only on the professional Dinky XL,Maple neck with rosewood fretboard and Ivory neck bindings.Mother of pearl inlays like Ibenez.

Super fast player on played a fender twin.NIce clean crisp sound and when you want to thrash it will thrash out some very heavy licks.Love everything about it but I have the USA rare black with Ivory neck binding.Rare model only a few made.

Action is great came with the intonation already set and thats rare.Never need to retune.The pick ups are perfect.Everything is alighned perfect.It has the rare black metal flake all the way around with the Ivory binding on the fretboard.This thing is perfect.I only saw one other and the guy wanted my arm and half my leg for it.I waited years to find another black metal flake with ivory as there were only a few ever made at the custom shop to the dinky xl professionals.Ivory grain is super and held well over the years.No cracking or pulling away.I own several Jacksons this is the best I have seen to date but its a USA XL professional custom shop.Looks the same but plays 10x better.All that handwork makes the diff.

Played live and studio and never took the backup out of the case.The finish is like the day it was born and everything is solid like it was new.I always have a back up but I have not even checked my backup to see if its in tune anymore and thats Strat USA custom shop.This guitar is alot better.I do not even know if I have the key to my backups case anymore.

Never needed repairs it stays like new although I have played the heck out of it.Frets even stayed like new.Nothing has gotten loose and the trem is the best floyd Rose I have ever use.I guess it must be due to the rare model.I have called them looking for one and they have been nice but could not locate me one.They offered something like it but I wanted the older one due to the Craftsmanship and Ivory quality.Maybe its just in my head but I can tell mine compaired to other Dinky XL pros and mine is 10x nicer and all agree the USA model is supperior.

Been paying 30 years have not till this day found a guitar as good as the handmade Jackson Dinky XL professional USA.They were only made in Black Metal Flake and have the Ivory binding on the neck.I own about 10 guitars and can afford what I like.I have been searching for this paticular guitar for years.I have now owned it 4 years nothing to complain about at all.Makes the money.Great for studio or live play play.Touch strings.+

I'm not sure what year the exact year it was made but I do know that it is the last year they were made. It's got 24 frets, flamed top, with 2 single coil semour duncan pickups an alder body with a maple neck, floyd rose original bridge, locking tremelo, the neck is super skinny for shredding like crazy

I play METAL like Megadeth, slayer, old school Metallica, and Anthrax and it my dream come true I've played it through alot of diferent equipment and it always sounds good

The action on this guitar is insane way better than my RR3, and my ESP LTD EX-400 Ibought it used and the pick ups weren't stock but the way it is set up is smokin, and I looked for poor quality in the guitar over and over and have found no signs

It stays in tune forever, the hardware isn't going anywhere the finish is good I don't doubt it's durability one bit but I would never go to a gig without a backup, 'cause you never know what might happen no matter what guitar you have

Never had to contact them about anything

love it never, giveit up, thats all I have to say

My beauty is a Dinky XL Professional purchased in San Diego in February of 1995. I went to purchase the green one, but it was gone; they ordered this one from the shop in Texas, Violet with tiger-stripe looking mabye flame maple veneer under the finish. The Jackson pickups are humbucker, single, single, and there is a Floyd Rose licensed Jackson double-locking tremelo, black hardware throughout. The maple neck is super-fast, and the frets are huge. It came with a hardshell Jackson/Charvel case. It said $999 on the price tag but I made a deal with a Fender amp, strap and cord.

I play anything from Pungent Stench, Dying Fetus, Six Feet Under to Jimi and SRV. Oh and lots of Nugent. So Grindcore and Blues mostly. I play through a Fender Princeton Chorus (50 watt solid state) amp and use either an original Tk-999 Ibanez Tube King w/ noise gate, or Boss Metal Zone MT-2. I also have a Roland GP-16 Guitar Effects Processor with MK-II foot controller. I've used Cry Baby Wah and VOX wah-wah pedals but they went away. No noise, once in a while I spray the inside to make the contacts quit scratching. I use the neck for Hendrix, neck and middle for Stevie, middle for Reggae, middle and bridge for country (yeah right), and bridge for screaming pinch harmonics and heavy palm muted thrash. Total variety. My Fender kicks it at low-bug-the-neighbors levels, and that's what I use often: just under the One volume setting. Only dislikes is sometimes while playing the volume knob gets hit, and slowly turns down. Local musicians I know modify with on/off switches for that.

It almost looks better on the back, newer Jacksons don't often have color on the back like this, except for expensive Solo's. It's always been set up fine, but when I had it at my friend's practice spot, a band members roommate put way different strings on it and I got it back and had the local store set it up for Super Slinky's. Sometimes I got to be carefull how hard I fret cords. If I want it to sound great on chords with open strings, I got to watch working around those huge frets (super jumbo?). I've got some good dings and such around the body, but I leave 'em-it's character, and it is nine years old. It's the best looking guitar I've ever seen. I'm never envious of any guitar in the music stores. Mine's always better.

My buddy used it as a backup to his Iceman when his pickup went down. It worked fine. The hardware is pretty good, it's a little hard to twist the fine tuners sometimes. The finish holds out good when I'm not banging the edges. Strap buttons are large and sturdy. I would depend on this without a backup, but I for one don't go through a lot of string changes...I lost the screw and stuff that holds on the whammy, and the repair shops want me to bring it in because of all the different Floyd's out there. I don't use the wham all that much. I got it set up to switch from E to dropped D with minimal need to adjust other strings, just using the fine tuner dialed in tight on the low E and backing it way off to find the D.

Never needed help from the company. It'd be nice if they would have info on my serial number on the website, but they don't since it's from Japan I guess.

I've been playing for eleven years. I also have an Ibanez GS-200 4-string Bass guitar playing through a B60 Hartke amp, and an Airline acoustic with a portable humbucker that is great in my Fender. I would get another Dinky XL at any cost. My old roommate put a JB-4 in his hot rod strat and my Jackson humbucker still kicked its ass in the pick harmonic area. I hate nothing about it. I love the versatility of styles I can play. I used to have an Ibanez RG series, and I liked my $100 Les Paul clone better than that. These inlays in the neck make it look great, and I feel like the color is like some kind of 'deep purple'. The screamin' pickup, killer neck and awesome finish make this the best guitar ever. I'm buying a KSXT next...

Jackson dinky XL made in Japan
you know the specs..

I play mostly hard rock and some blues. This guitar is definatley made for the shredder. However due to my everchanging taste in tone, guitars and music in general, this guitar is just not my cup of tea anymore as I favor a more vintage sound and feel from a guitar: Non locking trem, narrow fretboard, fat neck, rounded or compound radius.
The Dinky has just the opposite of these features -- I'm not saying its a bad guitar at all, infact it is a well made, decent sounding instrument, if this happens to be the style of guitar you like.

As usual the factory setup (just about ANY factory setup) was poor but with a few setup tweaks the action was nice and low and it always stays in tune. Fast smooth playing neck. The licensed Floyd works very well, its one of the best Floyd copies I have used but nothing compares to the real thing. One annoying thing about the otherwise nice paintjob is the white sh*t they left in the pickup cavities. Jackson could have painted in there also because this is highly visible and it lends a sort of "unfinished" look to the guitar.

I've gigged plenty of times with this guitar and it has always gotten the job done without any problems and the finish seems to be quite durable, but hey, that really depends on how well you care for your instrument. I've replaced the standard strap buttons with straplocks. At gigs I always have a backup guitar just in case.

never dealt with them

I've been playing for 23 years. Other gear includes a Mesa dual rectifier, marshall 1960 cab. and for guitars a Fender American Strat with EMGs and a Les Paul Standard with EMGs...assorted vintage pedals come and go but my Wah and univibe are always present on my pedalboard.

24 frets, ultra-thin neck, floyd rose trem, S-S-H pickup config.... read the other reviews if you want all the skinny.

Ok, first off, the stock Jackson pickups SUCK! I replaced them with the following: bridge- Duncan JB, neck and middle- Duncan Li'l Screamin' Demons. (I know they're "bridge" p-ups, but they sound better in the neck and middle than you'll ever get them to sound in the bridge.) My setup is as follows: Dinky XL to a Mesa/Boogie Studio Pre, with a Lexicon MPX-500 in the effects loop, to a Carvin Tube 100 Stereo power amp to two Carvin 2x12 cabs.

After I broke the neck on my Ibanez RG470 (made in '93- when you could get a great Ibanez for under $1000), I went looking for another guitar with a floyd rose system. I banez has seriously jacked their prices, so buying another one went out the window... I found this used Dinky XL and a pawn shop in Houston. After playing it for a few minutes, I was sold. It felt good, played well, and was in really good condition. I will have to admit that I am not a huge Jackson fan. To me, most for their stuff is seriously over priced. If you spend $1000 on a guitar, it had better play like a $1000 guitar. Most of the Jacksons that I had played just didn't merit their price tags. This one suprised me. After replacing the lame excuses for pickups that were in the guitar, I now have a winner. It's fast, and STAYS IN TUNE! Which is more than I can say about most floyd rose equipt guitars. It has a very warm tone, and is a joy to play.

bought it used...

I've heard good things about Jackson holding their own... so hopefully it will.

For the money, this is a great guitar. Just replace the pickups. The only real compliant that I have is the pickup routes. They limit your choice of pickups. You can either go with EMGs or Duncans... if you don't like either one of those... you're screwed. If you runn across one that is used and has a good price tag, by all means pick it up. It's a good, solid guitar.

This a `93 Dinky XL, part of the Japanese-made Jackson Professional line. The body is basswood, the scaled-down Dinky profile, with black metallic finish. The neck is the usual thin-wide Jackson type, bolt-on maple. It has a dark rosewood fretboard, 24 frets, mother-of-pearl sharkfin inlays, with creme binding on the fretboard and headstock. Standard non-locking Jackson tuners. Although it is a bolt-on guitar, the body contour at the neck-joint and on the lower horn cutaway allow for easy access to even the highest frets. Controls are volume, tone and a 5-way pickup switch.

This guitar was purchased used from a guitar tech, so the remaining features were added later, not at the factory. The trem is a double-locking Jackson, made in Germany by Schaller -- the best Floyd Rose version on the market in my experience. The bridge pickup is a Seymour Duncan JB humbucker, and the neck pickup is a Duncan Lil' 59 stacked humbucker in a single coil slot. A Jackson single coil is in the middle position.

The Dinky Pro models made in the early `90s were quite good, with the XL being on the higher end of the line, and this one has added features that make it even better. Perfect.

I am the lead guitarist in a thrash/death metal band. Out of seven guitars, five of them are Jacksons, for the simple reason that they make what I consider to be the best guitars for playing metal. Some USA purists might laugh, but I think that the best necks Jackson has ever made are those found on their Japanese guitars. Coupled with the "real" Duncans that were installed in this XL, it is very well suited for the metal lead player. My only complaint, which is common apparently, is that the JB isn't really a very good rhythm pickup. What is delivers in the treble and midrange, it lacks in the low end, getting a bit muddy. However, I'm don't intend to swap it out, since it still has good tone despite this shortcoming.

The Lil' 59 in the neck position doesn't get quite the sparkling clean tone that a single coil would give, and the stock Jackson single in the middle has such low output that it doesn't really fit. This guitar probably won't get much use for clean playing, which is too bad since I do use clean passages in several songs.

I actually had to RAISE the action on this guitar, which is a first. Although it had been setup before I bought it, the brand new strings on it had a bit of rattle to them. It is still comfortably low, and I could probably lower it back down a little.

Because of some rather weird chords that I use at times, I actually tune the G string a little flat to accomodate my finger positioning. This ended up requiring some significant intonation changes on my part, which most people would not need to make. So that's not a flaw really, just a personal preference. The fine-tuning capability of the Schaller trem is better than anything I've ever come across, a definite plus. Normally I block off Floyd Rose trems, but might leave this one alone to experiment with the whammy. It returns to perfect tune every time.

The finish had some chips near the input jack and trem cavity, which were filled in with black marker. I was aware of this when I purchased the guitar, so no problem. Unfortunate though, since this finish is otherwise very nice.

My Jacksons have always been dependable, and the addition of the Schaller-made trem should increase the reliability. The older Jacksons had huge strap buttons, so I don't see any immediate need to replace them.

This will be my workhorse guitar, and I have high hopes for it.

This is an older model, and was purchased used, so no warranty issues. Jackson's staff has always answered my questions promptly.

I was specifically looking for a Jackson bolt-on, when I found this on eBay, with the case, just sitting at $300. The neck rivals that on my Soloist Pro, which this Dinky will be replacing as my main guitar. The neck-thru imports of the early `90s are increasing in popularity, so I want to have something to take the majority of the abuse!

I can't really comment on the new 2001 imported Jacksons, which are made in India and have little in common with the original Professional line. I was going to buy a new X-series King V string-thru (KVX10), but cancelled my order to get this instead. Neck binding, real inlays, and the addition of the Schaller trem and Seymour Duncan pickups made it an easy decision. Great guitar, especially at this price.

This guitar was made in Japan and purchased new in 1994 for around $700. It has a super fast feel with the additions of a lo profile floyd rose lisenced bridge, 24 fret 25-1/2 scaled ebony fretboard w/ sharkfins on a thin maple neck. My particular guitar came in a purpe burst over a flame maple veneer on top of a basswood body w/ a hum/sgl/sgl pickup configuration. Very appealing visually

The stock floyd rose is OK, but the bar does not lock tight enough and has lots of play. Also the bridge pickup lacks a very nice full sound, or seems to be a little thin on the bottom end. The stock mid and neck pick ups are pretty good, but did not suit my musical tastes. I ended up puting a new floyd in and added a EVH d-Tuna which has helped the guitar in terms of bar stability and versitility as I can now play in standard and drop d at the flick of my wrist. To do this I ended up blocking the floyd so it can only be pushed down. I also changed the pickups to Duncans Screamin' Demon in the bridge, Little 59 middle, and a JB Jr. in the neck. All I can say is WOW. The demon in the bridge complements this particular guitar very well. Great for metal and hard rock. The little 59 and JB are also great and with te addition of coil taps that I wired in add an extreme amount of versitility. In the 4th position of the 5 way switch and coils tapped I can get an increible clean sound. Warm, Glassy, and Smooth. I have it set so the original volume control is now the volme for the neck/mid pickups along with there coil taps, and the tone pot was replaced so now it is the lead pickups volume and coil tap. I think I have a lot more versitilty with having the guitar set up this way. I have a few different rigs, and this guitar shines through them all. My main rig is a Bogner/ Hafler triple giant with a Roland GP100 in the fx Loop, and powered by a Marshall 20/20 all tube power amp. This set up sounds fabulous. My other rig is a Soldano SP-77, Mesa Boogie Formula, And Kitty Hawk Quattro fed though a rocktron Patchmate to a Rocktron Intellifex LTD. to a Peavey Clssic 50/50 Power amp. Even with both these rigs, this guitar shines and never gets lost in any of the processing that occurs. Harmonics just seem to leap an scream out of it. Being that I did have to modify the guitar to make it work for me I Have to give it a 7 on its factory specs.

This guitar was put together extremely well. Better than any Ibanez, or recent Fender, or Gibson Models. The mechanics (bridge pickup/ tremolo) left a little to be desired by myself, but were probably quite functional to most who purchased this particular model. The quality of the physical construction was awesome. Right on Par with a USA Produced model o this ERA, and After my alterings, I feel I have a better product for less money than a USA model.

I have used this guitar on most of my gigs. I do bring a backup, because with a Floyd Rose it takes to long to pull out the wrenches and restring. I have not however, had to use a backup that I brought along.

Customer support is a little confused. I had a saddle on the original supplied Floyd Rose strip on me, And I was very clear on what I needed. Apparently the newer models (DX1) have some different hardware and they sent me the wrong piece. I called to inform them of that and they made me buy another one and sent me the piece. I did not get credited until UPS brought back there piece.

I wouldn't buy this particular guitar again as my tastes have changed. It's a fantastic guitar, but there are some aspects that I would definately like that this particular guitar does not have. I wish that it was set up like a Dinky Reverse model wth 2 Humbucker directly mounted to the body, A better Floyd Rose, and a better wood than Basswood. But It is a killer, lightweight stage guitar that few other manufacturers can compete against. I also own the following guitars and feel that this guitar is made, and plays better than them in most respects. Ibanez RBM-1 Voyager (Just a plain cheap feeling guitar in terms of construction. I keep it because its cool 80's vibe.) Heartfield Talon 3 (Sounds better and plays better than the Ibanez above, and most Ibanez' in general. Just feels like a cookie cutter guitar. Nothing special in terms of looks, but great Hardware. I do like the neck, pickups, and the Real Floyd Rose Pro) Kramer FR422 (Actually a pretty impressive guitar considering I bought it for $170 new. Not as nice as the Jackson In terms of construction, But definately more solid than the 2 above. With different pickups, this guitar could be awesome for the price. Ibanez Be very afraid.) Go to Music YO.com If you are looking for a sleek rocker at a good price. You definately will not be disappointed. Gibson Les Paul Studio Lite (Gibson should get shot for the kind of money they charg fr some of the shittiest craftsmanship. I bought this one when I had no Idea of how to tell what a great guitar should sound like. I mean, It sounds pretty good plugged in, but like a dead piece of wood when played acousically. And the paint was all over the fret edges. I wish I could make it sound better as It really is a comfortable guitar to play. Gibson MIII (a great concept and plays wonderfully. Mine is the deluxe model which is made out of a comibnation of woods, and looks interesting. Again for Gibson, craftsmanship is the issue. The bottom of the fingerboard above the neck pickup is rough. Also it appears as though they drilled to install the Floyd rose, but it was not in the right spot so they filled it up, and redrilled right next to it. What the hell is that? Also it looks as though they drilled to intall the locking nut, and then ended up glueing it. To further make me feel disappointed with the craftsmanship, when I tried to remove the pickguard to replace the pickups, the paint that is used on the pickgaurd so it can not be seen through held the pickguard onto the body after the screws were removed. It seems as thugh they rushed to put it on before letting the paint dry. This kind of work on a $1000+ guitar. With The exception of the Les Paul, I did get some great deals on the other guitars, and therefore purchased them. I do like them for what they are, I am just givng my opinion on how I feel in general about the way they are made in comparison. I know this sounds silly, but I feel this guitar is on the level of my Peavey Wolfgang. I know most people inculding myself, dont like Peavey at one point or another, but I feel as though this guitar is an exception. It's a great reliable axe. It is actually a toss up between the Jackson, and this guitar.
I have heard that the newer Japanese Jackson Guitars are not as good as the early nineties, and of the few I have tried, I will have to agree. They no have the ebony boards on these, and the bridges look even cheaper. If you like rosewood, and are silling to replace the bridge then I think that you will be very happy if you play fusion, rock, or metal.

The Jackson Dinky XL features a double locking Floyd Rose licensed tremelo, passive Jackson pickups in a S-S-H configuration, 5-way pickup selector switch, tone knob and volume knob. The Strat-style body is basswood. The neck has jumbo frets and is bound maple with a rosewood fingerboard. The shape of the neck is thin and semi-flat. The finish on the body is a beautiful transparent red with a flamed/tiger stripe pattern.

This guitar is capabale of a variety of tones, thanks to the S-S-H pickup configuration and 5-way selector switch. The guitar sounds great clean, and even better distorted. The tone can be described as warm and punchy. Harmonics jump from the guitar, and the sustain is really good. The floating Floyd Rose licensed tremelo allows you to pull up notes or dive bomb them into oblivion.

The action is very low (the way I like it) with no string buzz. The transparent red flamed/tiger stripe finish is beautiful. The Floyd Rose licensed tremelo works well and stays in tune, but the connection for the tremelo arm leaves a lot to be desired. There is a lot of "play" in the tremelo arm, and a noticable "clunk" sound is heard when using the tremelo. The nut that locks the tremelo arm to the tremelo tends to come loose very easily. I'm giving this category a 7 because of the looseness of the tremelo arm connection.

This guitar is built like a tank. The controls are solid and dependable. I have doubts about how durable the tremelo arm connection will be over a long period of time, given the looseness of the connection. The guitar itself would have gotten a 10, but I'm giving it a 9 because of the tremelo.

I get free guitar setups from the dealer, Alpha Music in Virginia Beach, VA. They are very courteous and do an excellent job.

I've had this guitar for 5 years now, and it has served me well. It still looks brand new. The only thing I don't like about it is the connection for the tremelo arm.

Manufactured 1995. 24 frets. Solid top. Volume, tone and 5-way switch. S/S/H. Jackson pickups. Passive Electronics. Bolt-on maple neck with bound rosewood fretboard. Strat style basswood body. Transparent violet finish. Double locking Floyd Rose tremolo.

The two single coils (neck & middle) sound excellent with a warm full sound. Bridge humbucker quite crappy with a thin bright sound. I use it with a solid state amp and a tube amp would probably do more justice. Otherwise very flexible especially with the neck and middle pickups.

I've set the action quite low, but not too low. The fretboard is very fast and smooth and it sounds great. Hardly no string buzz at all. Finish is extremely good and it still looks like a dream. Has some minor glitches in the hardware and the most dissappointing one is the bridge. The tremolo bar itself is extremely sloppy and has some play in the locking mechanism. This makes a clearly noticable "clunk" when using the bar. The locking nut for the bar has a tendency to unwind itself and this makes the bar even more sloppy. The pickup selector switch is also very noisy.

It is very robust and I've used it for 3 years (almost every day) now and it still sounds like when it was new. I've also used it several times live without backup and so far no big disasters. Just the usual string breaks....

Never had any contact with them.

It is an excellent guitar overall. Replacing the bridge pickup and putting an Ibanez Lo-Pro Edge on it would make it the ultimate guitar.