I recently played one of these a few times (and once in Toronto which was quite lovely) and I absolutely love it. Thin neck, 24 frets, great sounding pickups and a hard tail bridge. My only problem is the price tag. I cant even spend $1200 on an amp, how am I going to get a guitar like this? I was hoping you folk could offer some suggestions.
Alternatives to Ibanez's RGA series?
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In the early 2000s Washburn made some cool fast-neck Strat type guitars for the Japanese market... the WG-780. Over the past year I have scored two of them via Craigslist, each for under 250 bucks Canuck. These guys are equipped with Floyds but I got my local guitar tech to take it out of the second one I bought and filled the cavity with maple and install a no-nonsense hardtail bridge. The result: an extremely supple hardtail player with great pickups and clean, good looks. Check out Washburn's Nuno series for the kinds of necks I'm talking about. If you're a metal guy or just like to tickle the strings way up the neck, it's a very accessible instrument.
In other words, with decent research and a good deal of patience you can probably score a very nice guitar that will fit the bill. That is, if you're not in a rush to get something to play.
Also, much depends on the premium you put on having a brand new guitar or one with zero wear on the finish or frets, etc. CL is also the way to go if you're looking to get a second-hand Ibanez - if you're set on that particular maker. I consider my Washburns excellent value for the money... if I can get a deal this way you can too. I haven't gone the Ebay route... not yet, anyway, so I can't comment on that.
Hope this helps.
In other words, with decent research and a good deal of patience you can probably score a very nice guitar that will fit the bill. That is, if you're not in a rush to get something to play.
Also, much depends on the premium you put on having a brand new guitar or one with zero wear on the finish or frets, etc. CL is also the way to go if you're looking to get a second-hand Ibanez - if you're set on that particular maker. I consider my Washburns excellent value for the money... if I can get a deal this way you can too. I haven't gone the Ebay route... not yet, anyway, so I can't comment on that.
Hope this helps.
Or if you're on a real tight budget there's always the import Ibanez models from a few years ago. I have a '96 MIK RG that plays nice. Basswood body, maple 24-fret bolt-on with the contoured heel, Wizard II profile (i.e. thin/fast with the flatter back). It needed a pickup upgrade though (just put EMG's in it last week, finally). The licensed Floyd on mine isn't the best (will be replaced soon hopefully), but some of them came with the Ibanez Edge bridges which were better. There were also hardtail models too.
You can probably pick up a used one dirt cheap in good shape, and with a couple hundred in upgrades it would be pretty sweet. I would say the model I have (RG270DX) could be had for around $200 or so in VG condition. Add in $250-300 for a pickup upgrade & you have a killer player for about $500.
You can probably pick up a used one dirt cheap in good shape, and with a couple hundred in upgrades it would be pretty sweet. I would say the model I have (RG270DX) could be had for around $200 or so in VG condition. Add in $250-300 for a pickup upgrade & you have a killer player for about $500.
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