| Author |
Message |
Funkle
Username: Funkle
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Sunday, February 12, 2006 - 5:45 pm: | |
Ibanez necks, whether new or old have always felt great to me, and I've always wondered what factors make them so comfortable. I have come to the conclusion it is mostly that extra steps are taken to round the fret ends, and more importantly, the edge of the fretboard. I've owned a few Warmoth necks, and technically they are great - very stable and precise, nice materials, and very low buzz-free action. But they just feel bad to me. Then it hit me: the edge of the Warmoth fretboard is so sharp you could almost cut yourself on it. Vs. just about any MIJ Ibanez neck, particularly Prestige necks, which have nicely eased edges to the fretboard. I believe most of those extra finishing steps are focused on the fret ends and fretboard corners. I wonder why very few companies have caught onto this? |
Craigjc
Username: Craigjc
Registered: 11-2002
| | Posted on Monday, February 13, 2006 - 5:36 am: | |
More companies are rounding the fingerboard edges - the new American Standard Strat for example. As far as the comfort of Ibanez necks, I think that it's definitely more than just the fingerboard edges - Ibanez just seems to have a talent for making a great neck. Each Ibanez model I own has its own neck profile and, no matter how different in shape they may be, they're all comfortable in my hands. They must actually build prototypes and play them (imagine that)! |
Guitartim
Username: Guitartim
Registered: 04-2001
| | Posted on Monday, February 13, 2006 - 1:07 pm: | |
I'd bet (someone else's money) that Ibanez actually listens to professional players and adjust their manufacturing accordingly.
The consistency of the great necks as well many other aspects of their instruments has always amazed me.
Fender finally got a clue...after G&L shamed them with their incredible hand made 'Strats/Legacy and Tele/ASAT' necks. |
Petruz
Username: Petruz
Registered: 05-2004
| | Posted on Monday, February 13, 2006 - 6:45 pm: | |
I agree totally with Craigic. The ONE thing that attracted me to Ibanez guitars from the beginning was their incredibly confortable necks, no matter what model.
An exception that validates the rule: a korean PM20 I tried some months ago. Big, fat, awkward neck. |
Olafreijnders
Username: Olafreijnders
Registered: 07-2005
| | Posted on Monday, February 13, 2006 - 8:34 pm: | |
I own 2 pre lawsuit ibanezes and the necks are both very confortable. The most confortable of mine is a luthier bass but it would be very unfair to compair a luthier bass with a factory bass. |
Craigjc
Username: Craigjc
Registered: 11-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, February 14, 2006 - 8:54 am: | |
Yes, Petruz, there are exceptions but probably nothing as bad as some of the other manufacturers are giving us. I will be honest and say that I played a new JSM100 recently and it didn't have a neck that made me want to play it for more than 5 minutes. My new AF75D, on the other hand, has a neck that kept me going back and playing it until I bought it. I've played many other Artcores since then, and they're absolutely consistent.
By the way, if any Ibaneezers are in Cleveland and see a guy in a musical instrument store walking up and down the aisle just grabbing the necks of guitars, that would be me. If it's got a crummy feeling neck, I don't even want to look at it. I can easily change the pickups in a guitar, but I'd rather not have to change the neck. |
Funkle
Username: Funkle
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, February 14, 2006 - 2:06 pm: | |
I think Petruz' sentiment about the PM20 is what I was eluding to: The Korean Ibanez necks are no better than anything else coming out of the Cort or World plants. But I do have a lot of faith in the new Chinese stuff. The AF105 I recently tried had a wonderful neck, and the ball ends on the frets were a sight to behold. Whether they can compete with Fiji Gen remains to be seen, but they are on the right track.
-Sven |
Mrblanche
Username: Mrblanche
Registered: 01-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, February 19, 2006 - 3:10 pm: | |
I just "accidentally" bought an RG120, and the fret ends were sharp. And evening with some 2000 grit sandpaper made a world of difference. In other words, it wasn't far off. It looks like the Indonesian worker was in a hurry to get the lunch curry.
Other than that, it's a might fine $100 guitar. |
Craigjc
Username: Craigjc
Registered: 11-2002
| | Posted on Monday, February 20, 2006 - 6:25 am: | |
Alas, even guitars that say Ibanez can be in need of work. Very inexpensive Ibanez tend to have an issue with fret ends. The more you pay, the better the fretwork seems to be. |
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