Raven RM-2000

You can look at the specs from other reviews! No sense in repeating, eh?

I would like to start off saying that this guitar rocks. The stock pick-ups were not the greatest, they were not bad, but I opted for better. I left the neck pick-up and installed a evolution pick-up in the bridge position and boy this baby screams and has sustain for days. sounds great clean with both pick-ups selected. I play Pop-Punk and some heavier rock. This guitar suits me great. stays in tune beautifully. I also own an Ibanez 540, I never play it anymore, because of the great sound and sustain of the raven!

after a little adjusting the action is great, a little string buzzing but what guitar doesn't? finish is beautiful and I could find nothing wrong with the the way it was setup.

I haven't trashed this guitar but it fells very strudy. I've hit the headstock quite a bit, and it is fine.

I have never dealt with them!

I have been playing for about five years now, and have grown to know when a guitar plays well and when one doesn't, and I can say that this guitar plays very well. If this guitar was stolen I would definatly by another one, and with its price I could afford it. In fact I've been thinking about buying another one soon!

2001 rm2000 green/black quilted mahogany top mohagany body/neck(set) i might also mention the weight is damn near perfect, what i mean is mahogany that's TOO light sounds like sh-t to me, 2 gold covered humbuckers,what looks like grover minis(tuners) tunamatic/stopbar bridge, 24&3/4 scle neck, medium frets,all hardware is gold, never seen quilted mahogany before and BOY OH BOY IS THIS FINISH SMOKIN!!!!!!! neck is very comfotable and easily navigated came with "run of the mill" strings,allen wrench and "patch" quality cable(same kind you always get free with any guitar. double -cut archtop with really good access to 2nd octave.i give a 9.75 cause nothing in this world is perfect exept my wife who approved funds for this purchase,thanks honey!!

I play through an ampeg superjet 50watt combo ,w a digitech rp300, my band plays everything from classic country, to rage against the machine,,lets just say this i got the guitar on oct 12 at about 3pm went to a gig that night (as recieved) and didn't put it down all night!!!!!ive seen other reviews in this category about the pickups being weak,well they've either remedied this or those guys just need to get an ampeg like mine!(best amp in the known universe!) tone was TOP SHELF!!! The non marke knobs will take some getting used to though i.e. not seeing with my eyes where my vol.& tone are set still im not gonna change em they look so good on the guitar,i don't think seymour duncan's gonna invade THIS one.

as with any factory guitar,nut's cut a little deep(dan erlewine says 1/2 of strings diameter should rest above nut)but doesn't impede string vibration at all so that's just preference I suppose. wood has a really nice timbre,surprising for what you pay but I ain't whinin' about it!!! after the gig i did take a LITTLE relief out of the neck' which is barely crowmed(great for bending and not too flat like a jackson)pots are smooth and all the switches work fine. I don't buy guitars th look at I BEAT THE HELL OUT OF 'EM and this one has no problem stayin in tune. I may put a nashville style bridge on it simply because i hate the "abr-1". OH YEAH TO THE GUY COMPLAININ ABOUT THE BRIDGE BEIN PUT ON BACKWARDS,,YA CAN'T PUT A TUNAMATIC ON BACKWARDS!!!!!Some smart companies will face them towards the tailpiece in order to keep you from scratching your gold pickups while adjusting it.finish was excellent(has your average "not perfectly sraight"lines where the body binding & paint meet but I've seen this on $5000 custom shop gibsons) cavity wired averagely neat and shielded w paint

well you already read what i've written about giggin with it 3 hourd after gettin it,and how hard i am on my guitars so i'll let those statements be as they are.strap buttons are the big "mushroom type so holdin on to a strap is no problemo chief.can't tell yet on longevity of finish yet but i poured sweat al over this thing & it cleaned up real nice so......

I must've driven eric nuts with all of my emails& questions before buying it and while waitin like a little kid for santa claus for it to arrive!! he was very gracious and patient answered every email that day! ordered my guitar on the sun(open on sun!) before columbus day (eric took my order over the phone ON A SUNDAY) and i got it in time for friday's gig. came with a lifetime warranty that i don't think ill use.

been playin almost 20 years,and i really like this rm2000,if it were stolen id get another,however im not gonna tell everyone cause i want everyone else to be JEALOUS AS HELL!!!!!!!!!!!the only thing that could've made it better woul've been if it was free(at $288 it almost is!!!!!)

Body: Solid Mohogany- Burgundy & Black Maple Flame Top.
Neck: Set Solid Mohogany w/ Rosewood fretboard, Gibson like neck & head stock.
Pickups: Standard Korean Made Gold finish Humbuckers, 1 Neck, 1 Bridge. Thay just don't sound like "Standard Korean Made Gold finish Humbuckers", much better.
Controls: Gold 3-way switch, and gold volume, and tone knobs.
Bridge: Gold tune-o-matic
Finish: Gloss Flame top.
Body Style: Paul Reed Smith copy.
Tuners: Sealed gold grover looking, non-locking.
Included accessories: Cheap 6 foot Cable. And massive Good Craftmanship.

This Guitar will stay mostly to the LP side of sound, but will go very hot, Heavy, with a Thick Mohogany metal side, thought a pod. The sound is very think like a LP anywhere you set it, Mainly because of the Solid Mohogany. If you where blindfolded and had two Slash clones, playing through a evil twin amp, and one had the RAven, and the other the Les, and they were trading up kicking the Church solo from "November Rain". Les Himself could not tell the difference between them. I give it a nine becouse I know that there is alway something better that I haven't heard.

The Guitar was ready to go with fresh strings,perfect setup, and in tune out of the box. The action is just right, and fast. This thing nearly plays itself. The only thing I didn't like fits this catagory, the painted neck. It seemed to stick at first, until I slicked it up with some polish. once polished it shined bigtime. The strings will bend until you think they will break, and stay in tune. I've been playing this for two weeks, and it's still in tune. I give it a nine for the same reason I gave the last two nines.

It feels solid, and heavey as hell, probably 15 pounds. It stays in tune. It could Gig without any modifictions, and lst for years of Tour. I haven't beat it off the floor, walls, or put it through an amp, yet. I don't expect I will since it's a discontinued, model, and color.

Lets talk raymar from all the reviews. I asked how to get ahold of support, and they wanted to replace it for me. I had to explain that it was strickly precautionary. Raymar are the folk to buy from. I love then.

It is as good as any Les Paul I've every heard, at 10% of the price. It's simple but true. Thank you Father And Son Music (fatherandsonmusic.com) for screwing up my order, and allowing me to buy a really sweet guitar! By the way Lewis Hawkins at father and son, does not aswer calls. Also, Tony Hawkins, is a class "A" prick. I recommend that you do not do business with them. They do not have an answering system, and do not return calls. They screw up your order, then you have to call and hopefully get them, before you find out. It could be weeks, and they don't care as long as you already paid, becouse they want your money right now. They to return the money takes forever, that where Tony the prick comes in. They offer not even an appology.
Ray Mar enterprises on the other ahnd Buy a Raven Guitar from them. They ship right away. They are kind, courteous, and expiedient. They are the worlds greatest.

For the features on this guitar check the guy named Bill below. He spells it out thoroughly; only difference is the body on mine has a green burst shading over swirly quilted maple. All gold plated hardware.

I run all my guitars through homebuilt clones of early Fender amps...5e3 Tweed Deluxe combo circuit with a 12" Celestion Blue and a 5f6 Bassman with separate homebuilt cab with 4 10" Ted Weber ceramic and alnico speakers (THE best speakers on the market). I've got a box full of assorted pickups (mainly Duncans), pots, caps and switches which I use, of course, as replacements in all the low end copy guitars I love to purchase. I've had this guitar since December and all the original parts are still on it. It sounds fine. It needs nothing added to it as far as I'm concerned. Pair it with a decent amp, thats all it needs.

Low action, fast neck. Factory set up nearly perfect. Simple screwdriver adjustments to set intonation on high E string and raise neck pickup. Only flaw in finish was 1/2" green overspray on the top side of fret board where the neck and body meet (virtually unnoticeable). Otherwise flawless. Beautiful.

I've use it live maybe 10 times now. Every time I bring it out one of the local hotshot guitarists asks me about it. The snobbier ones blow it off because it doesn't have the G-word on the head stock. The more reflective ones though are blown away by it.

I don't know anything about the Raven Company; who they are, where they are etc. so I can't really comment on it. I can say this though - this one was the first one I bought and I got it off an Ebay auction dealer who's Ebay ID name is raymar96@earthlink.net. He had three for sale at once and the highest bidder got to pick which color he wanted. I won it and chose the green. I want to say first that I don't know this guy at all so don't accuse me of trying to shill for him. I've only talked with through email. I mention this simply because I was so impressed with this guitar that I wanted to buy another one so I emailed him directly, outside of the world of Ebay, and asked him what other kinds (if any) of the Ravens he had available and at what prices. He emailed back with pictures of Raven's LP knockoff (it had a blue flame top) and a PRS knockoff (it was cherry red sunburt flame). They were both absolutely beautiful. I chose the PRS copy (called the RP-350) and will review it too at a later date. That being said I give Raven Support a No Opinion but I give this independent dealer, Ray Heffron, a 10...he went out of his way to help me.

Playing 25 years. When I went to buy this guitar at auction there was actually a little run going on for them at the time. I knew I wanted to check it out so I was prepared to bid pretty competitively. I might have been able to get it even a little bit cheaper at a different time...you know how the auction thing goes. I couldn't care less. This guitar is a jawdropping deal. It's ridiculous and rather pathetic that so many people are caught up in the vintage/name brand buying scramble and willing to pay absolutely absurd prices. I've been there, done that and it's just plain stupid - especially when these instruments are so easily and cheaply available. I plan on buying several more. I'll review my Raven PRS copy sometime soon. It too is an unbelievable value.

Brand new possibly year 2001.Mahogany body maple top, set neck, two humbuckers.Looks like a Les Paul double cut away. Great top, kind of a quilted red to blackburst real deep finish. Bought it on e-bay it said it had a blemish on top I really dont see it.

It just about gets that Les Paul sound but the pick ups are a little weak. Not bad for Korean humbuckers but compaired to my 1969 gold top with 57 classics or my Gothic explorer with the 498 and 500t they are not quite sensitive enough to really crunch or squeek. I,m running through either a Fender hotrod or Marshall micro stack sometimes using my pod for the front end so I can get a lot of sounds out of it. I do like the neck pick up it is really dark and fluid even if underpowdered. I definatly will be changing the pickups.

Guitar was set up fine althouigh for my tastes I lowered the action a bit and raised the pickups. The top is gorgeous really nice deep birdseye swirls. Everything else fit really well and looks great. The only other change I would make is to offer something other than a dot fretboard. A guitar with a top this nice needs blocks, traps or something custom on the neck.

I bought this for a couple of reasons. One for a inexpensive back up that I really dont mind a few dents and damm it just looked to good for the price. As for the rest of this well see.

Havent really had to deal with anybody yet.

Ive been playing for about 30 years and have had my share of guitars come and go. This is my 15th guitar in the house right now, hard to juistify with the wife when you stop playing out. Some others I own a Parker nitefly, strat, gretch sparkle jet reissue, 2 Les pauls and my favorite Gothic Explorer amongst others. The bottom line, its nicely built and great looking but I need to change the pickups. Not because of tone but because their a bit weak.

Made in 2000. This is a fairly new brand of guitar being manufactured in Korea but (I've heard) it is built in the factory that makes many other well known brands and has been doing so for a long time. It is a double cut Les Paul style with a solid (though surprisingly light weight) mahogany body and a set maple neck (I believe, though I've been told by others that there are versions of this model with mahogany necks). The top is a beautiful carved (like a Les Paul) crimson quilting that has been hand painted or stained in a combination of crimson and blue (the back is transparent blue)to bring out and highlight the nice quilting. It has a creme binding around the top, a 22 fret unbound rosewood neck, 2 uncovered humbuckers, one volume, one tone control and a three way LP type switch. The headstock shape is very similar to the 70's Ibanez artist series (As a matter of fact, I can't find any difference between the headstock shapes and had I been handed this guitar without the Raven logo on the headstock I would have bet anything that Ibanez made it!). The tuners are very good quality diecast sealed units, and are in gold as are the tune-o-matic style bridge and standard stop tailpiece. The finish was very nice, probably the standard poly that most overseas makers use and very nicely buffed to a high gloss. Since I bought it at Ebay, I received it without a case but it did come with a moulded cable and a limited lifetime warranty card.

I bought the guitar to use on my bands latest CD. Normally, I use Fender Strats exclusively but I needed an LP type of sound for a few of the new pieces and I'd sold off everything with humbuckers from my collection in the last few years. I used it in the studio both direct and through my studio amps (Fender)and it sounded surprisingly solid and toneful. I was fully expecting to have to replace the pickups because this ALWAYS seems to be the weak spot of many imports, but was pleasantly surprised at how cool these sounded! They were weighted a bit on the treble side (as most imports are) and don't quite give that smooth PAF sound, but to be fair, I've owned guitars that have cost double of what I paid for the Raven and sounded nowhere near as good. The pickups are uncovered with studs (no adjustment screws) on each black bobbin. I haven't seen another on ebay like this, the pickups I see on the Raven's listed now are covered and have the individual adjustment screws ala Gibson. Maybe mine are the Raven equivalent of a "super distortion"? There are no coil tapping or other features, just standard humbuckers. They are set in standard creme plastic pickup rings with gold screws. The use of one volume and one tone control (with gold Gibson style bell knobs)is in keeping with the LP jr. style and since I usually play with everything wide open, I find this perfectly acceptable. There is room between the volume and tone to add a second volume control if you really wanted. The volume and tone controls were smooth and worked as they should with no volume jumps or noise. The tone control rolls off enough treble to really give you dark tones if that's what you're into. The three way switch (front pickup, both, rear pickup)is of a good quality and works smoothly. The conrol cavity was neat and the soldering was solid and well done. It even looks as if (though I haven't taken a meter to it yet) it's been painted with shielding paint. Without alot of coil tapping switches etc, the tones you can get are somewhat limited. There's no way, without a lot of work that you'll ever make this sound like a strat but I'd rather have a guitar that gives me one killer tone than ten wimpy ones and the Raven does that very well.

The guitar arrived with a decent setup but like most guitarists, I tweaked it a bit to my liking. I adjusted the truss rod a tiny bit to flatten out what I think was a bit too much relief. The action was very low with no buzzing frets. The fretwork was very well done and smoothly finished, (actually, it was about the best I've seen in an import at this price range). The frets are rather low, medium width and very close to vintage feel. If you're into tall jumbo style frets, this guitar isn't going to work for you, but players that are into early Gibson style "fretless wonder" style necks will really like this neck. The pearl dot inlays were done extremely well (no offense to you Gibson lovers but I've owned 80's Gibsons with way more epoxy visible around the inlays). The side dots are small but stand out well against the brown rosewood board sides. The radius of the fingerboard is almost flat making a low action and bending easy to achieve. When it arrived, the rosewood was very light in color and almost looked like Pao Ferro but after a little fingerboard oil it darkened up and looked great. The tun-o-matic style bridge was intonated correctly and it and the stop tailpiece were both solidly mounted. The tuners were smooth and worked fine. The finish was very good without any major flaws. One thing (which I believe they've changed in the newer guitars) that I found not quite as well thought out was the position of the output jack. It is on a standard creme plastic (new models look to be metal)LP style plate and is almost on the bottom (slightly offset toward the rear)of the guitar right underneath the control cavity. The newer models I've seen have this jack moved more toward the rear. The only other major complaint I have is the use of a stamped ink serial number between the keys on the back of the headstock. Since the guitar comes with a lifetime warranty, I think the serial number should be a bit more permanent.

Since I bought this guitar exlusively for the studio and my band isn't planning on doing any live gigs until the new CD is released, I can't tell you how it'll hold up to repeated bashings. The finish appears very thick and durable and the hardware is solid. I certainly wouldn't be worried about using it live even without a backup.

I bought the guitar online and was really not expecting much in the way of customer support but the seller I bought it from (Ravenwest guitar co.) has been excellent to deal with. Very friendly and prompt with replies to any questions etc. Since I just got the guitar last month I haven't had to test the lifetime warranty (a good sign I think! LOL!!!).

I've been playing professionally for over 20 years and I've owned just about every guitar you can think of. I'm not saying that the Raven is the next holy grail of guitardom but quite frankly I find it an incredible value and STILL find it hard to believe that they can produce a guitar with this quality of woods,hardware and finish for the bucks. Even if I had to gut the electronics after I got it, I'd still say I got a good deal! I think the true test of any brand of guitar is "would you buy another one?" and I certainly do plan on that. I'm dying to get my hands on their 7 string and their doubleneck before they raise their prices. When I do, I'll let you know what I think.