Ibanez J.Customs in 2022: Are They Worth The Pricetag?

Piing said:
Absolutely not. I have replaced everything, including the neck. The cause is the body absorbing the vibrational energy of the strings at one specific frequency. As I've said, this is not a new problem. Good luthiers have been trying to deal with it for a long time, and it is well known by bass players. It is not just my experience, it is well documented
Click to expand...

The other problem is that bridge is an absolute POS. Take one apart or repair it enough times and you'll quickly realize this. I had the exact same J custom and I also had a dead spot on that model. It had something to do with the wood they sourced for the 10 or 20 that they made of that model. I sold mine right away.
 
I've posted this before, but here's my personal list of stuff to check in any guitar I'm actually considering to buy:

22 Stainless Steel Frets
Check for notes that fret out just from regular playing
Feel for upper fret access
Dead / Wolf Notes
See if middle pickup is in the way of picking
Do wide bends on every note to check for bad frets
Check that trem stays in tune with dive bombs, aggressive wiggling, pull backs, and regular left hand note bends
Check that G string stays in tune: Do double-stops with D & G string 4ths and 5ths dives and pull ups, and do double-stops with G & B string 4ths and 5ths dives and pull ups
Check for sustain in general, this goes with checking for dead notes
Check for any echoes from trem when you abruptly mute a power chord with high gain
Look for grain of neck to be quarter sawn, not flat saw
Make sure there is no harshness at low gain. Play open wound strings and see if pick attack is harsh.
Straight neck on bass and Treble sides
Play natural harmonics to see how they ring

It's so easy for me to get very excited about a guitar and forget to check for things that are really important, so I made this list to make sure I at least consider all these points before buying. Some stuff can be fixed of course, well, a lot of stuff can be fixed, but for me it's always the question, "is it worth it?"
 
State of Epicicity said:
Check for any echoes from trem when you abruptly mute a power chord with high gain
Click to expand...

That will lilkely happen with some notes, as most trems do not come with spring dampeners from factory. The Ibanez Edge at the j.custom comes with a couple of plastic tubes at the springs that do the job.
 
Piing said:
That will lilkely happen with some notes, as most trems do not come with spring dampeners from factory. The Ibanez Edge at the j.custom comes with a couple of plastic tubes at the springs that do the job.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that goes in the less important category to me, but it's something just for me to note. On my Schecter Sun Valley Super Shredder, I have that occur, although I have the noiseless springs as well as trem spring inserts. I discovered the ringing sound is from the part of the sustain block that connects to the baseplate, because I can pinch the block in that area and it eliminates the ringing. I took apart the trem, wrapped that part of the sustain block in a bunch of really really tight thick rubber bands, and it did not do the trick. It's not intolerable or anything, but again, just something to check. Like, if there are two guitars in the shop that are equal in every other way, maybe this turns the tide in favor of one over the other. I think about it that way.
 
State of Epicicity said:
Yeah, that goes in the less important category to me, but it's something just for me to note. On my Schecter Sun Valley Super Shredder, I have that occur, although I have the noiseless springs as well as trem spring inserts. I discovered the ringing sound is from the part of the sustain block that connects to the baseplate, because I can pinch the block in that area and it eliminates the ringing. I took apart the trem, wrapped that part of the sustain block in a bunch of really really tight thick rubber bands, and it did not do the trick. It's not intolerable or anything, but again, just something to check. Like, if there are two guitars in the shop that are equal in every other way, maybe this turns the tide in favor of one over the other. I think about it that way.
Click to expand...

And at one Lo-Pro Edge I had to insert a small piece of paper between two saddles because one was vibrating
 
PBGas said:
The other problem is that bridge is an absolute POS. Take one apart or repair it enough times and you'll quickly realize this. I had the exact same J custom and I also had a dead spot on that model. It had something to do with the wood they sourced for the 10 or 20 that they made of that model. I sold mine right away.
Click to expand...
Do you mean the Edge Zero? I hate them. I had one on a Prestige and it ruined the whole guitar. I'm glad they've wised up and reintroduced the Edge/Edge Lo-Pro.
 
State of Epicicity said:
I've posted this before, but here's my personal list of stuff to check in any guitar I'm actually considering to buy:

22 Stainless Steel Frets
Check for notes that fret out just from regular playing
Feel for upper fret access
Dead / Wolf Notes
See if middle pickup is in the way of picking
Do wide bends on every note to check for bad frets
Check that trem stays in tune with dive bombs, aggressive wiggling, pull backs, and regular left hand note bends
Check that G string stays in tune: Do double-stops with D & G string 4ths and 5ths dives and pull ups, and do double-stops with G & B string 4ths and 5ths dives and pull ups
Check for sustain in general, this goes with checking for dead notes
Check for any echoes from trem when you abruptly mute a power chord with high gain
Look for grain of neck to be quarter sawn, not flat saw
Make sure there is no harshness at low gain. Play open wound strings and see if pick attack is harsh.
Straight neck on bass and Treble sides
Play natural harmonics to see how they ring

It's so easy for me to get very excited about a guitar and forget to check for things that are really important, so I made this list to make sure I at least consider all these points before buying. Some stuff can be fixed of course, well, a lot of stuff can be fixed, but for me it's always the question, "is it worth it?"
Click to expand...
I live in New Zealand so I would have to go to Japan to try the kinds of guitars I'm interested in lol.
 
Sorenspete said:
Do you mean the Edge Zero? I hate them. I had one on a Prestige and it ruined the whole guitar. I'm glad they've wised up and reintroduced the Edge/Edge Lo-Pro.
Click to expand...
Agreed, the Edge and Edge Lo Pro are probably the best Floyd Rose licensed trems. The Edge Zero equipped guitars I've had were dismal for anything other than slight vibrato.
 
Sorenspete said:
I live in New Zealand so I would have to go to Japan to try the kinds of guitars I'm interested in lol.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's the kicker right there. I just don't believe I can trust any guitar that's not a Vigier or Aristides without having it in hand. Even with those two brands, if I can kind of trust the quality and lack of dead notes, does it have tone that hits my ears right? Does it have mojo? So many questions. I end up obsessing about everything tonally and feelwise with my guitar, so I know if it's not right I'll just waste forever trying to make it right. I got lucky with my Schecter that this particular one came out of the factory in great shape, great fretwork, etc, and it feels great, even though it not in the realm of the really expensive stuff. And I've still routed and modded the shit out of it to get it where I want haha.

Personally, unless I could absolutely gamble on a guitar, I have to have it in hand. But I don't blame anyone for ordering something and hoping for the best. I did that once, and it was a huge expensive waste of money and time, so I get this sick feeling when I think about it.
 
JoKeR III said:
Agreed, the Edge and Edge Lo Pro are probably the best Floyd Rose licensed trems. The Edge Zero equipped guitars I've had were dismal for anything other than slight vibrato.
Click to expand...
It just didn't inspire me to use it. Schaller has felt the best for me so far. OFR's are great but only when the arms are machined to an acceptable tolerance so that it doesn't wiggle in the assembly.
 
Sorenspete said:
I live in New Zealand so I would have to go to Japan to try the kinds of guitars I'm interested in lol.
Click to expand...
what's the return policy like? if you generally like the specs based on other guitars you have owned, you'll have a good idea on whether or not you'll dig the one you want to order.

I ordered a guitar from California and it's the most expensive guitar I've ever bought. Took a week to get here. Between my current experience with the brand and line and the specs listed, I went for it and it's my favourite guitar.
 
Sorenspete said:
Do you mean the Edge Zero? I hate them. I had one on a Prestige and it ruined the whole guitar. I'm glad they've wised up and reintroduced the Edge/Edge Lo-Pro.
Click to expand...

I have guitars with both, and I can perfectly live with any of them (once removing the ZR stabilizer springs from the Zero, of course. Maybe it ruined your experience because you didn't remove that fun-killer). No hate or dislike. With the Edge having the advantages of not needing arm bushes, easy intonation, the easy spring tension adjustment, and these stabilizer springs in case you need them.

But if I had to chose only one, I would surely go for the Lo-Pro Edge despite the arm bushes (I use teflon tape under the bushes to keep it tight). I don't know exactly why. Maybe because it is the one I have been using since 1995
 
Piing said:
I have guitars with both, and I can perfectly live with any of them (once removing the ZR stabilizer springs from the Zero, of course. Maybe it ruined your experience because you didn't remove that fun-killer). No hate or dislike. With the Edge having the advantages of not needing arm bushes, easy intonation, the easy spring tension adjustment, and these stabilizer springs in case you need them.

But if I had to chose only one, I would surely go for the Lo-Pro Edge despite the arm bushes (I use teflon tape under the bushes to keep it tight). I don't know exactly why. Maybe because it is the one I have been using since 1995
Click to expand...
I did remove the stabilizer springs! It just wasn't a great feeling tremolo system. The best Floyd I've ever used was a chrome Schaller. The bar was machined perfectly for the tremolo arm housing/assembly.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom