Members the_gunslinger Posted April 4, 2011 Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 Cross forum poast: I may possibly be getting a new guitar in the middle of May, and I just stumbled across an ad for the new RG Premiums. Looks like a stunning guitar, and I like the specs very much. However, the price new is about 900$ and it's made in Indonesia:freak: So my question is has anyone had an opportunity to play or pick one up, and how is the build quality? What about the humbuckers? Do they sound alright or would I eventually need to put something better in? Also what about the trem? I hear a lot of positive and negative feed back about Ibanez's trems especially about the finish wearing off of them, is this one of the good ones? Basically is it worth it? Because if not, I could easily find plenty of other guitars that suit my needs for around this price point. Any feedback is appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members humbuckerstrat Posted April 4, 2011 Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 I can't answer any of your questions about those Ibbys as they're a bit pricey for me, but that's a sweet looking axe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ExiledCrow Posted April 4, 2011 Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 The only comment I have is a little off-topic: Man, I love off-set dot markers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members undergod12 Posted April 4, 2011 Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 Man, I love off-set dot markers! Me too - I just wish they had stuck with the smaller size throughout. Using two different dot sizes is the epitome of Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RaVenCAD Posted April 4, 2011 Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 1 - Looks gaudy.. Metal guitars and figured maple should be mutually exclusive..2 - $900 for Indonesia? FAIL!3 - I had an RG-1570 many years ago, and if the stock pups in that "Prestige" RG is any indication of the pups in a "Premium" RG, expect a pup swap within a couple days of buying it. They were absolute garbage.4 - Overall the specs look good, but that's kind of pricey for basswood.5 - I like odd numbers... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kayd_mon Posted April 4, 2011 Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 Not for me. But play it - who cares where it's made if you like it. Of course, try other guitars so you don't limit your options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RaVenCAD Posted April 4, 2011 Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 Not for me. But play it - who cares where it's made if you like it. Of course, try other guitars so you don't limit your options. If it was $400, then I agree about not caring where it's made.. But when you approach a grand, such things matter a great deal because labor and materials are much cheaper in Indonesia than in Japan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members the_gunslinger Posted April 4, 2011 Author Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 That's my biggest hangup about this guitar, is the origin of manufacture and price. I've never heard of a 900 dollar Indonesian guitar before. Sure it looks like a cool guitar, but like I said, for the price of this thing I could buy something with much better quality. Really I'm just seeing peoples opinion on this guitar, I still don't really know what I'm looking for yet, this one just happened to catch my eye. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members calclown Posted April 4, 2011 Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 I own a lot of cheap ibanezes and I wouldn't worry at all about being built in indonesia. Quality and finish are always top notch from what I've seen. Downsides to Ibanez are 1) from what i've heard those pickups aren't great. 2) at least on my cheapies the fret material is super soft. Fret wear would be a huge concern for me if I were gigging or only used 1 guitar. Refrets aren't cheap.The bridges on Ibanez are awesome! I don't think I've tried the edge zero with zps that that one has, but they are always comfortable and stable from what I've seen and the zero-positioning system is an awesome upgrade. Again though I think maybe they use some softer materials so the bridge knife-edges might dull after repeated use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members billybilly Posted April 4, 2011 Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 Yep, 900 for an Indonesian guitar is ridiculous. I'd get a carvin for that kind of dough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Ratae Corieltauvorum Posted April 4, 2011 Moderators Share Posted April 4, 2011 and it's made in Indonesia:freak:. You don't know much about Indonesia's pedigree for guitar building then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Ratae Corieltauvorum Posted April 4, 2011 Moderators Share Posted April 4, 2011 4 - Overall the specs look good, but that's kind of pricey for basswood. Thats my feelins on basswood, however EBMM, Suhr and a few others don't see it this way Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members angry again2 Posted April 4, 2011 Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 I think the price is too high for an indonesian made guitar. For almost a grand, I would think they would have used brand pickups instead of the ibz/dimarzio ones and a better trem. Hated those pickups on my rg2550. Im sure that top is a paper thin veneer top too. For the money I would go with a new Charvel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members clay sails Posted April 4, 2011 Members Share Posted April 4, 2011 Are Indonesian CNC Machines crummier than Japanese ones? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Argh! Zombies! Posted April 5, 2011 Members Share Posted April 5, 2011 There's no reason to buy one. There are thousands of terrific real Japanese RGs on the used market for the same or less money. On a slow day you'll grab, say, an RG3120, basically the proper version of this thing, for $700-800. They have simply produced so many that you will always find a great deal used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 6StringSling Posted April 5, 2011 Members Share Posted April 5, 2011 http://www.michaelkellyguitars.com/patriot_limited_active_tremolo.html# I don't know what the price is but the Patriots are usually in the $500 range. This being a trem, I'd guess that it's in the $700 range. I'm paying off my Patriot Glory this Friday. These are beautifully made and awesome sounding guitars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members diceman1000 Posted April 5, 2011 Members Share Posted April 5, 2011 i just love how everybody "assumes" that the guitar is crap because it's Indonesian made... too funny... FWIW, you can pick up a Cort X Series for less and it's the EXACT same guitar more or less... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Skyforger Posted April 5, 2011 Members Share Posted April 5, 2011 Indonesian build quality is usually pretty good, on par with China and Korea. But I wouldn't pay $900 for it. Does it say what the body and neck are made of? I hear that Asian countries aren't bound by certain import laws regarding exotic woods, and that's the only thing I can think of that could possibly justify that price tag. Unless each one is hand painted by Asian child prodigies of art. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Skyforger Posted April 5, 2011 Members Share Posted April 5, 2011 i just love how everybody "assumes" that the guitar is crap because it's Indonesian made... too funny... FWIW, you can pick up a Cort X Series for less and it's the EXACT same guitar more or less... Very true. I have a Cort M100 and as a guitar to mess around on, I can't fault it. Looks nice, plays well but isn't my best sounding guitar. I put it down to the thinner-than-Courtney-Cox body or the pickups, which should soon be replaced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Argh! Zombies! Posted April 5, 2011 Members Share Posted April 5, 2011 i just love how everybody "assumes" that the guitar is crap because it's Indonesian made... too funny... I love how you assume we haven't played Indo and Korean Ibanezes over the years and always found them to be creaky lower quality models than the Japanese ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Ratae Corieltauvorum Posted April 5, 2011 Moderators Share Posted April 5, 2011 and always found them to be creaky lower quality models than the Japanese ones. always??....that doesn't mirror my experience with most of the Cort built Korean Ibanezs....whose only problem are their bland single dimensional pickups....but then pickups are usually the first to go in most guitars I buy if they're not to my ear. And yes, mainly they ain't as good as the best Japanese ones, but some of the best Korean ones are better than some of the lesser Japanese ones. On the whole if the build is good and with an Ibanez if the vibrato unit is good, then the rest I can make good.........all that said, whoever keeps thinking that higher end guitars should have quilt tops need to stop and think again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members scolfax Posted April 5, 2011 Members Share Posted April 5, 2011 I would totally buy that guitar. Only thing that would stop me if I was in the market is that there are a couple of real MIJ RG's for around $700 still available at MF. Friend bought a black one recently and it's awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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