ive been looking for a guitar like this for a while. seriously, about a year after i started playing guitar i thought to my self "hmm, i wonder if ibanez would ever make a neck thru fixed bridge with a active pickups"... and they did! and i could afford it was the best part. now, the actual reason i got this guitar stems on the fact that my cousin and i play some stuff together for small venues (he is a drummer), and i really wanted a solid guitar that would offer undoubtably the most sonic and clear sound through my cab, and at the same time look cool and also be easy for me to play. all three requierments were satisfied for $540.

Sound
Well, we're talkin about active EMGs in this guy, so i probably dont have to say too much on arguably the most popular active pick ups on the market. If then you so happen to not be familiar with these pickups, i'll characterize the sound briefly: extremely tonally bright, lacking a lot of organic sound (what some call sterile sound), loud, clear, sharp, differentiable sounds (when you play chords, you will hear all the strings clealy). in other words, designed for metal, because these pickups were made to cut tone right through a lot of distortion at the price of a really authentic passive electric sound. enjoy.

Features
Well, ive argued this before when i bought the xiphosfx, the more simple the more my friend. 2 tools for adjustments and one damn nice guitar (oh… read more and an amp cable) were all that came with it. Everything was of sturdy build, the moment you pick this thing up you can tell its worth the money.

Ease of Use
instructions: take outta box, tune, enjoy. i personally prefer a bit lower action than the out of factory setting, so i took an extra 3 min and lowered the strings, re tuned and then tried again. simple guitar, excellent sound, easy to manage. and on the note of playable, my first guitar was a little $200 rg about 3 years about, and i learned on that. so to fairly rate the easy of play, i cant come at it without a bias, playing this rg vs my old rg was simply not even a transition for me. but, objectively, super thin neck, neck thru, fixed bridge, hot pickups, this thing is just a shred machine in the hands of an average to better than average player.

Quality
its ibanez, i have no doubts. my $200 rg is still around today, still plays excellent, my xiphos (about a year ago) is still in great shape, and i have no doubts that this rg was built to last.

Value
haha, for $540 and at an msrp of about 1200 this thing is a steal. my buddy was going to buy a jackson with active emgs and a trem system for $600 used, and then he gets to deal with the trem for tunning and just a used guitar. i got a simple powerful sounding guitar for 540 new through zzounds, which is simply a killer deal.

Manufacturer Support
the best kind of support is one you never have to contact cause they actually took the time to make quality instruments. im sure, however, if i needed something from them it would be fine.

The Wow Factor
i got the blue chameleon finish in the deal, and its simply stunning. very good looking guitar, perfect for catching the eyes of others, and then on the practical side, it is all the aforementioned items, making it extremely practical.

Musical Background:
hobbyist/active musician

Musical Style:
metal read less