Best Baritone Guitar For Metal (2024 Update)

This guitar is lightweight very well balanced, it seems to almost float when wearing it with a strap, As I heard in another rating, it feels like every single note on every single fret is available and reachable at any moment. It takes me back to the early 90's when I played a early 70's Gibson Explorer. What an easy guitar to play! It just seemed to fall off the frets into your hands, and this ESP SnakeByte is no different. I've heard James Hetfield talk about his love for his Gibson Explorers, so it's not a surprise that his signature series SnakeByte has that feel and tone! I really like the locking tuners, what a great invention! It makes the horrible business of replacing strings easy and painless! The locking bridge is also a delight, keeps intonation intact when changing strings. I like the tone of the JH HET SET pups, they scream when needed, and purr when needed. This guitar matches up particularly well with a Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier, or most any amp from Mesa Boogie or Marshall.mkcr33l

I was so excited to get this guitar and I hooked it up out of the box a played it for about 5 minutes. Unplugged it put it back in the case. The next day I hooked it up again and got a terrible flanger like sound out of the guitar so I switched guitars and my other one was fine. Before I sent it back I wanted to check the 9v battery in the back compartment for the pickups and discovered only 1.2 v of power coming out of the battery. I swapped the battery and now it's good. I just thought it was kind of annoying that esp would sell guitars with off brand dead batteries. I know it's not musiciansfriends fault but still.Chris

Just a quick note now that I've had this for a week, and played it at band practice… I really dig it! The mini humbuckers are fantastic! I play mostly clean tones, and all 3 pickup combinations work well in my style. It's hits the sweet spot on my Soul Food. Triggers the Mel9 like I want. And is fairly light weight. The one thing I was concerned about was the 12" radius fingerboard, but it's comfortable and wider than I expected. Almost like an acoustic guitar. All in all, I'd recommend this Gretsch to anyone looking for a baritone on the long end of the spectrum.BRENT

Sound: The sound is absolutely amazing… absolutely no complaints. You can make it dark, chimey or right in the middle. Features: Everything is fitted well and the craftsmanship is spot on… Ease of Use: Great tones with the two humbuckers and 3-way switch… Quality: The craftsmanship is superb… period. Value: At a price tag under $700 you cannot go wrong… Manufacturer Support: I have never had to reach out to Gretsch even though I own 3 other Gretsch guitars… The Wow Factor: A beautifully designed/crafted guitar. Overall: I had been considering purchasing a baritone guitar for several years… I watched a video comparison between this Gretsch and the Squire Paranormal baritone guitar. The reviewer, who was an awesome player, picked the Gretsch hands down. I had to get one after that. And I am glad I did. This guitar sounds and plays absolutely amazingly. The fit and finish is spot on. And, which is not always the case, this guitar was setup nicely from the factory. The action is set where it needs to be for playability. The fret ends are rounded and feel smooth (no jagged or unfinished edges). And so far, I have found, this guitar stays in tune even after playing heavily. I don't know where zZounds got their information or if it is a misprint, but the Gretsch website tells us this guitar is fitted with "Nickel Plated Steel Gauges .014-.018-.024-.044-.056-.072, Tuned B to B" strings. zZounds tells us it is fitted with D'Addario EXL157 Nickel Plated Steel (.014-.068 Gauges, Tuned B to B). Is this a big deal? Absolutely not. I will be changing strings over time. I just have no clue right now which gauge strings came with the guitar. So I purchased replacement sets in both gauges. A beautiful instrument that plays incredibly well and also looks the part. You cannot go wrong with this guitar. It is that good. The only thing I do not like is the "Crafted in China" painted tag on the back of the headstock. I would pay extra to have this guitar made in Korea, Japan or the USA. I do everything I can to avoid purchasing anything made in China. But at this guitar's price point, Gretsch is looking for the cheapest labor. I own 3 other Gretsch guitars all made in Japan. I have to say this China crafted guitar is equal in quality to the ones made in Japan. Without the China tag, you would have no clue where this guitar is made. With or without the China tag, this is a fantastic guitar. Especially with a price tag under $700.Richard

Sound: The 'Blackened' Black Winter pickup is very bright. Not shrill, but definitely will cut through a mix. It's incredibly clear, and touch sensitive. Very high output, which is appropriate for a guitar called the Black Metal! Features: This guitar has an alder body, which is amazing for almost all tonal aims. The raised LTD logo on the headstock is an incredibly nice touch! The Grovers are smooth, and stable, and the OFR is also stable and reliable. Ease of Use: This is where this, and just about every other LTD I've purchased shines. The fretwork is immaculate. I have the action at .75mm, and it doesn't buzz, for those who aren't familiarwith action measurements, this is incredibly low. The pickup height was perfect right out of the box. The only thing I needed to adjust was the truss rod, it had a bit too much relief. But once that was done, it plays like butter and sounds brutal! Quality: This guitar has absolutely no quality control issues, and feels extremely well made. As stated above, it has all high end appointments, such as a Seymour Duncan pickup, OFR, and grover tuners. It functions amazingly. Value: Absolutely. I'm a Jackson fanboy 90% of the time, but I can say (and zZounds can verify) I've had to return multiple Jackson products and never a single LTD. The Jacksons cost more, and have less. Manufacturer Support: I haven't needed to deal with ESP, as I've never had an issue with their products. The Wow Factor: When you're playing this guitar, if feels metal. The guitar is so easy to play, and sounds so brutal. I can't recommend it enough if you like to play extreme genres of music. Overall: LTD never disappoints. This guitar is metal as it gets, and plays fantastically.Matheau

Overall: This guitar sounded very clean when plugged in directly w/o effects applied. Wonderful sound when applying effects as well. neck action is nice. 2 things I would consider if you haven't played this guitar and are going to purchase by internet:: 1. The pickups are located next to each other so a slight modification in your strumming hand position will be needed. 2. The neck is very wide and not friendly to shorter fingers. You may need to find a different position on the neck to play certain things. Otherwise it is a fine guitar with an absolutely beautiful finish that shines even in a dimly lit room. the pickguard and pinstripe around the body have a matching shell like pattern that I thought was a nice touch. My first ESP and I am very impressed. Made in the USA too very nice.Angelica

I have owned a custom shop Jackson SL and an American made Jackson SL2 in my life. I have also owned a Carvin 727. I have to admit the fit and finish of my 607B is on par with those. I am using it for recording primarily, but it sounds incredible. It cuts right through a dense mix of keys, brass, strings and percussion. I compose symphonic metal and this guitar suits me perfectly. The is jaw dropping in person. It stays in tune extremely well and the intonation appears dead on and the strings are ver, very close to the fretboard. This guitar easily rivals my previous guitars and cost less than half or a third of the others. I may eventually decide the buy the purple 607 because the quality of this has sold me on these. The pickups are the first actives I have ever used and are very aggressive. They sound dark, but powerful. Thank you ESP and AMS for such a great axe and a payment plan that made it possible.Lonzenator

First off…the paint job on this is AMAZING. There is no way for this to NOT look good on stage or in the practice room. It is surprisingly pretty hefty for a telecaster style body in terms of weight, but not to the point that it is uncomfortable to play. The ebony fretboard and neck radius makes this guitar VERY easy to play. Doesn't matter if I am chugging away or doing shred style solos, the easy of fretboard navigation and feel is beyond comparison. The Fishman Fluence Customs it sound great through an overdriven 5150's and a Kemper. Surprisingly the cleans are very nice as well. The Longer baritone length gives it a lot pf crispness and clarity while maintaining that gnarly bite even under high gain. The only thing I wish was a little different is the pickup placement. For solos, I love to use neck pickups. The pickup being in the middle is not as usable as I would like it to be, and I had to lower it a great deal so that I was not hitting it with picks constantly. But…I knew what I was getting when I got it. The neck meeting the body where it does makes it a little harder to access the upper frets for that 23rd and 24th fret. The switching between voices is a little different on these when compared to the normal Fishman Fluence Moderns…but not a deal breaker. My only regret overall is that I did not buy this guitar years ago. I am thinking about getting another simply for touring so I can have different tunings on one and then switch to the other.Casey L.

I love the sound of this guitar. The lower voicings just grab you from the first chord. I tuned down A to A and it Plays fine. Right out of the box it felt good. I like an instrument that fights back a little when playing. The bigger strings and action on this guitar felt great. The only down side so far is finding replacement strings of the same gauge and lenght. If your like me,it took awhile to pull the string on this purchase. Go for it. You'll be glad you did.J.

Overall: I purchased the Viper 400B expecting a middle of the road guitar for lower tunings. When it arrived, I was blown away by the quality. This guitar is my first ESP purchase, and now I'm a big fan. The pickups are great for heavy guitar, as you'd expect from EMGs. The matte finish is beautiful, and i catch myself staring at the guitar across the room when I'm not playing it. I've been able to get an awesome clean tone for intros out of this axe, and the palm muting(chugs) and chordal stuff I do really growl and punch nicely. Single note passages sing out beautifully, and the neck feels very nice to my hands. If you're like me, and you love Melodic Death Metal Bands that use B standard tuning(Amon Amarth, Avatar, Kataklysm, etc.) and want to capture that tone yourself without having to file the nut down on a normal scale-length guitar, I don't think you can find a better option anywhere else in this price range. Great job, ESP! You've got yourself a new loyal customer!James

Never having owned an Ibanez before, I decided to opt for something new. Great choice. This is a guitar designed to be played. The neck and action are wonderful. The best word I can think of for this guitar is "lean." It has everything I need and no frills that get in the way. The two pickups, with a single selector switch and volume control are all I need. At first I was worried about the lack of fret inlays, but the dots on the side of the fret board are sufficient. Beautiful design, and a pleasure to play. Oh, almost forgot to mention that it looks awesome.cjskama

Ibanez is a name well known for quality guitars. Even the super affordable line of Gio's are awesome guitars for the price. The overall quality of this baritone Ibanez was excellent and the factory setup was on point and ready to tune and play. This is the third Ibanez I've bought from Proaudiostar and 5th overall purchase from them and they've delivered free and on time and everything was in perfect order. This time was no different and the guitar came well packed and in perfect condition.LongQuail-46485

Handles drop F as well as, if not better than, my M80M Meshuggah signature. Swapped the EMG's out for a Nazgul/Jazz combo and modified the killswitch to be a coil split instead. Also added push-pull pot on the volume knob for out-of-phase. This guitar is excellent, especially for the price.peelskiwis

Overall: I purchased the Viper 400B expecting a middle of the road guitar for lower tunings. When it arrived, I was blown away by the quality. This guitar is my first ESP purchase, and now I'm a big fan. The pickups are great for heavy guitar, as you'd expect from EMGs. The matte finish is beautiful, and i catch myself staring at the guitar across the room when I'm not playing it. I've been able to get an awesome clean tone for intros out of this axe, and the palm muting(chugs) and chordal stuff I do really growl and punch nicely. Single note passages sing out beautifully, and the neck feels very nice to my hands. If you're like me, and you love Melodic Death Metal Bands that use B standard tuning(Amon Amarth, Avatar, Kataklysm, etc.) and want to capture that tone yourself without having to file the nut down on a normal scale-length guitar, I don't think you can find a better option anywhere else in this price range. Great job, ESP! You've got yourself a new loyal customer!James

This Squire Baritone guitar is a good deal for the money. It's obviously not the best quality guitar, but then, it doesn't pretend to be. It is, however, a rather unique guitar and it seems ideal as a 'discovery' instrument. By this I mean, at very reasonable price, it does allow a player to investigate the rather unique world of baritone guitars (and they ARE different) before deciding or not whether to buy an expensive baritone guitar. I like it, and am very happy to have invested in this guitar.Stephen L.

I've been wanting a baritone guitar for a long time! Not knowing if I'd like it, I didn't want to spend a lot of money on a guitar that wouldn't be may main axe. I've been a Fender guy for fifty plus years, so I thought the Squier Paranormal would be a good place to start! Fit and finish on the baritone are great, as I've come to expect from Squier. The ability to play with familiar chord shapes is great fun, and the sound/ tone is inspiring. Still getting used to playing along with standard tuned guitars but its fun! The pickups and electronics are "ok" not bad but not great, usable for the price. Overall I'm happy with the purchase, and would recommend the Paranormal Telecaster Baritone to anyone wanting to get into the lower tone realm.Dave

This is truly an outstanding instrument for the price, that seems fairly well dialed in right out of the box. It has a great clean warmth and presence when played out of a good tube amp, and is a nice middle ground between a regular six string and a bass guitar. The playability is solid although I will likely get a professional set up on it eventually because the action isn't totally ideal for my style of play. Intonation seems on point so far… In your hands it feels like something that is solid and well made, and nothing stands out as being cheap to me other than the tuners perhaps which can easily be replaced. Thus far my biggest complaint and the reason I'm going with four stars is the muddiness/jumbled sound of the notes as increase volume. I cannot leave the volume knob all the way up on the instrument or everything turns in to mud on distortion settings. Which is slightly disappointing because I was hoping to use this primarily for heavier music. That isn't to say you can't tweak knobs and find something comfortable and passable. The picks up aren't awful by any means. But they're not quite ideal either… I would say that's the weakest aspect overall. But that can be updated and changed depending on what you're willing to invest. But if you're investing more, the question might be …Why not go with something that cost more to begin with? I think you have the bones of a really fine guitar here that could become five stars with a little more TLC. As for the look and feel of it…I love the sea foam green soooo much!!! Probably my favorite guitar I own for the color.David

Sound: The 'Blackened' Black Winter pickup is very bright. Not shrill, but definitely will cut through a mix. It's incredibly clear, and touch sensitive. Very high output, which is appropriate for a guitar called the Black Metal! Features: This guitar has an alder body, which is amazing for almost all tonal aims. The raised LTD logo on the headstock is an incredibly nice touch! The Grovers are smooth, and stable, and the OFR is also stable and reliable. Ease of Use: This is where this, and just about every other LTD I've purchased shines. The fretwork is immaculate. I have the action at .75mm, and it doesn't buzz, for those who aren't familiarwith action measurements, this is incredibly low. The pickup height was perfect right out of the box. The only thing I needed to adjust was the truss rod, it had a bit too much relief. But once that was done, it plays like butter and sounds brutal! Quality: This guitar has absolutely no quality control issues, and feels extremely well made. As stated above, it has all high end appointments, such as a Seymour Duncan pickup, OFR, and grover tuners. It functions amazingly. Value: Absolutely. I'm a Jackson fanboy 90% of the time, but I can say (and zZounds can verify) I've had to return multiple Jackson products and never a single LTD. The Jacksons cost more, and have less. Manufacturer Support: I haven't needed to deal with ESP, as I've never had an issue with their products. The Wow Factor: When you're playing this guitar, if feels metal. The guitar is so easy to play, and sounds so brutal. I can't recommend it enough if you like to play extreme genres of music. Overall: LTD never disappoints. This guitar is metal as it gets, and plays fantastically.Matheau

I am a 59 year old guitar player, had expensive and cheap gear over the years. I don't think I'm technically great but know how to get a good sound. When looking for a cheap guitar to sit with, my Les Paul and even my '88 Strat often got a bit uncomfortable , I decided to try one of these, you can return them after all, no trouble. What a great little guitar! Obviously GAK probably don't get these out of the box to check them, my box was still stapled shut from the factory, and this is OK at this level but I worry a beginner would be put off if the guitar is poorly set-up. First off the finish is superb, no rough edges to the frets, the colour and gloss on the body was perfect, the unvarnished neck just sits comfortably in the hand, I picked this above the more expensive 'Affinity' as apparently the nut width is a little wider. I didn't need to adjust the neck, I just cut the nut a little lower on the G,B and E strings for comfort. The frets needed a light rubbing with fine wet and dry and that was it, a perfect, light practise tool. I would even gig with this no problem. Each and every one of the tuners work smoothly and firmly. Sound wise, it sounds like a Tele to me and this is always a very subjective and personal thing anyway, I don't like overly powerful pickups (my Les Paul has '57's) I prefer to push the sound with pedals. All I can say is, if not sure, 'Buy one'. I have done nothing but played this to death since I got it 4 days ago, hard on the finger tips as I haven't played regularly for a while. I hope I haven't just got a 'good one' and would like to think any of them would be as good, all the reviews I read suggests so.Customer

I love ESPs this is my 5th one Ive bought and I love them all I own a Gibson SG and I love the body style so thats why I bought the viper and I love it plays great and the sounds awesome cant go wrong with EMG pick upstoflo14

I am playing this guitar in my Original Metal Band "HeadState " . I initially purchased a 7 string guitar to get the Low B or Drop A tuning to write songs in , However I was never able to get used to playing it . That's why I purchased this guitar to enable me to continue playing with the Low B and Drop A but with the more conventional feel of a six string ! The guitar is amazing , plays and sounds great !SKULLY

This guitar sits on its stand in my Music room always ready for a quick play. I love the rich deep tone that this guitar puts out. Stays in tune and sounds great! Baritone guitars are few and far between and most cheap baritones just dont cut it. This one is the exception. You wont find a better Baritone at this price point!John

I've owned the Alvarez, the Ibanez and a Taylor GT-8. What you usually get with the cheaper baritones is muddiness and in the case of the Alvarez, mine had a funky neck and fret job. I wasn't expecting this to be so nice at this price. But having bought a Guild D-55 and F512 recently, I've become somewhat of a Guild convert. This guitar makes me even more so. Nicely made, straight neck, tunes well and the intonation is almost right on. Just a shade off at the 14th fret, but I think I can work that out. Balanced tone with a nice cohesive sound that you usually get with more expensive guitars. In the low ranges this had a really nice distinct sound, instead of the mud I had with both the Ibanez and Alvarez. The Taylor was great but it was too much of an investment for a specialty guitar like this. If you are thinking of toying with a baritone, this is a great option. The electronics sound good as well on this. It would work well on stage and the unpluggedl tone would work well for recording. All in all a really nice guitar at a very reasonable price, as guitars go these days.Lenny

I just took delivery of my Guild Baritone, and I already love it! It came well set-up right out of the box – though a couple of the string pegs did need to be pushed in all the way prior to tuning. It has a beautiful, deep sound that carries well when unplugged. I can't wait to try it out plugged in!Jason

. Now let me set the scene… I am a guitar lover (I can even play a little too) and a quality professional so My expectations are somewhat higher than most looking at this product. An absolutely beautiful instrument, this is my second SA360 and although they are no longer. Made in Japan, be assured they have not lost any of the build quality or attention to detail. The guitar was really well set up, is great to play, feels good in the hand and sounds the bee’s knee’s. If you are looking to start out in guitar playing get yourself an Ibanez Gio to start as a first upgrade from that, then the SA series is where you want to be at.Timbo

2 disclaimers: I got this 5 days ago. I've had an Jackson RR tattoo for years. She's a looker… never thought I'd get a purple guitar but the purple quilt w/ gold hardware and white binding is gorgeous and I love how the reverse headstock has the color and quilting too. It plays fast as F. You'll wanna shred on it. It makes me wanna play Crazy Train, Holy Wars and the like but it may make you wanna play stuff that's way above my skill level and you can! Never had a Floyd Rose before but tuning it up wasn't too bad out the box (and it's super fun!); we'll see what happens when a string snaps. The frets and unlacquered back are smooth so it's easy to do fun slides and bendy things! The sustain is pretty good thanks to the mahogany body and the thru neck and it just feels solid. I've read this is heavy compared to other V's but it's the lightest of my 3 electrics and it feels quality and well balanced – there's no neck dive. I love that it comes installed with Dunlop button strap locks which I've had to purchase & install previously on my other 2 electrics. The pickups sound great with distortion and I haven't/am never going to play this w/o distortion so who cares about clean but I will say comparatively it doesn't sound as good as the EMG's on my EC-1000. There are some QC issues: There's fret buzz on the low E, some purple paint smudges on a small part of the white binding and the blending of the paint in some areas (which you generally never look at) could be better. I didn't have any of these issues on my (similarly priced) LTD EC-1000 and (my much cheaper) Ibanez AR-325 so these are pretty disappointing. Bottom line: I haven't put it down yet. It's fun to play and my other guitars currently feel unloved. If you like metal or you've always wanted a V this shape you should get it. I'm going 4/5 stars for the QC issues which are super disappointing but well reported on Indonesian Jacksons. Let's be honest – this purchase is mostly about speed and style. It sounds great and it delivers both of those in spades.Rishav

Paint job is just ok, but not great. It has a cheap quality to it, but looks good from a little distance. Matte is a hard paint job to be fair, and this is entry level, but still, this is a review. Pickup colors don't match at all. I bought black plastic pickup covers, which made it look a lot better fairly affordably. The plastics of the backplate, the humbucker rings, and the pick guard are super cheap and kinda bent, maybe from heat? Once again, entry level, but still, I've bought guitars at this price point without these kinds of issues. The Jackson version of Floyd Rose seems pretty ok considering. I've never had a Floyd rose that stayed in tune for very long, so this seems to be about right. The pickups sound very aggressive and bright, which was surprising. There is a loose wire that I had to tape down because of it hits the right spot, it cuts off the pickups (maybe a ground wire? Everything works still) The high string is a little too close to the edge of the edge of the neck for my liking, but I think that's just a personal preference. The body and neck seem solid, the neck is left unfinished, which I usually prefer, though this neck is like completely unfinished, so I'll probably need to get some sort of wood treatment for it. The fret inlays are great at this price point (not dots) and the frets don't have any burrs, which is a good thing for your fingers. The outline of the neck in white is also a classy touch, and the headstock is beautiful. Overall, it's an ok guitar. I would maybe get a different finish, and wouldn't expect it to be the greatest guitar ever, but it has a personality to it and is still a Randy Rhodes. Plays fairly well, definitely shredable. Accessing the 24th fret is a little bit of a reach, but that's ok. If I were Jackson (fender), I'd raise the price $20 and put decent plastics on it because it really does cheapen the guitar overall. I'll probably replace those parts myself over time, but I really shouldn't have to.Zachary

Schecter just dominates in this class. I always like to wait a year to give reviews but it was hard to wait with this guitar.
From the fast, satin smooth neck, to the low action and the tuning stability, it's just hard to believe the quality in this price range. It feels every bit as nice as my pricier guitars and that's NOT hyperbole, it's the truth.

If half stars were available, I might go 4.5 just because the active pickups, while honestly good, aren't "great".. But at this price point? I'm probably expecting too much because the feel and playability of the guitar keeps making me compare to higher classed categories.
That's a good problem.
I'd like to see schecter push their alternative passive pickup guitars more, just so the market would have increased availability.
I prefer passive and would love to add more Schecters to the collection.Joseph Clark

I love this guitar! It has a great sound for rock, metal and other genre music, but mainly for metal, it's so perfect. I actually traded a Ibanez Xiphos hp330, because I was tired of the floyd rose floating saddle bridge. Nothing against it, but it wasn't for me. The Ibanez had a great sound, played beautifully and definitely good metal guitar, but I wanted something with an easier bridge. I'm glad that I bought the Schecter when Guitar Center had their annual guitar a-thon sale, and I traded my Ibanez for the Schecter and didn't cost me much. For the money it's well worth it, it's a solid guitar, electronics are great, the neck is smooth and fast, the finish is awesome and a reall eye catcher. I'm very happy with the guitar overall. I also have a Schecter bass. The stiletto and I love the Schecter brand. I'll recomend it to anyone ,from the beginner to the experience player, you can't go wrong with this guitar.John

Let me start out by saying I'm a little bias towards Schecter. That being said , this is my 3rd and probably my favorite one. I currently own the demon-6 and have owned the Synyster Gates custom S , not my style so traded it in. The Omen Extremely is absolutely amazing sounding and my favorite out of the 3 I've owned , the pickups are way better than my Demon with active pickups , these can easily handle high gains without crackling or sounding muffled. I didn't really necessarily want the coil splitting option , but glad i have it. This guitar handles clean sounds very well and the splitting option gives the guitar a lot of versatility , the neck is perfect. It reminds me of my Ibanez's , very comfortable and easy to play , it's heavier than most of my other guitars but this just adds to the sustain you get out of this guitar. I got the magenta color , which looks pink to me since I'm color blind. That's all they had in stock but I don't care , it's fine and I play at home plus it throws in some color to my collection of mostly black anyway. I don't know how Schecter continues to put these out for the price , it's solidly built and feels much more expensive. The tuners also are very tight and hardly ever go out of tune , I will continue to purchase Schecter's in the future. I can buy 4 quality built guitars from this company for the price of one Gibson. I highly recommend the Omen Extreme to anyone on the fence , once again Schecter delivers!🤘Mike G.

Overall: I am now in my 2nd day of ownership and I decided to set this extremely light and sexy purple (blemished) have not found one …down long enuff to read reviews.and ya if I could find something about it I dont like… well havent!. What's there not to love at the reasonable price and the abilities this ax possesses. 5way and quantum is a nice pxkge.what. would one expect? At fraction of the price on those high dollar "others".. I feel pretty smart these days not emptying my wallet and can say. The wizard neck is so sweet jatoba fretboard is not only beautiful sustain harmonics….for days….VERY NICE..zZOUNDS AND IBANEZ….THANK YOU FOR. A GREAT DEAL ON A KEEPER….OH YEA AND WHY UPGRADE ANYTHING SEEMS TOVDEFEATCYHE PURPOSE AND UNNECESSARY IN MY OPINION. BUT IM A TIGHTWAD.been a member of the ibz family for awhile and they never stop making great products with reasonable pricing.Kenneth

This (and the blue with rosewood/hardtail) are my first Ibanezes. I mostly play strats and Les Pauls. As I understand it, these have been referred to as Super Strats, because of the double cutaway and the HH. The blue has a matching headstock and a five tone switch. The neck is the most comfortable I've played, the strings are evenly spaced and there's plenty of room for your fingers, even at the top. The satin finished body has the same feel as the neck and it weighs around 6 pounds. After I found the dragon eye (reverse matching headstock, maple fretboard and whammy) at the same price, I couldn't let go of the blue, so now I have two. I'm playing them through my Boss Katana, and it's a good match. Gotta say, it's a totally new guitar playing experience, and the only question is which one to pick up first. If you're thinking about an Ibanez, this would be the one (or two).Rich at the Beach

Personally I don't care for the sound of the pickups but I bought it for my 15 year old son who loves the sound. That said, though, by playing around with the selector switch and the tone knob, I can get a sound I like too. The guitar has a good solid feel. It's not flimsy. Great action. Easy to play for a beginner and no string buzz. Its well set up. I feel like we got excellent value for the price.Coach Doc

Overall: I got this for my brithday about 2 years ago. Since then I have done many a thing to this and with this guitar. I replaced the output jack, took out the tone pot to replace it with a killswitch, replaced the 5 way stock blade switch to a 3 way blade switch, switched the bride Pickup for a Dimebag Darrell signature Seymour Duncan and now am replacing the hardware with all black. One thing I did NOT like is that over time the hardware lost its color. That’s why I’m replacing the hardware but other that that I love it.Matt

Great tone, and beautiful finish. This guitar is very easy to play and has surprising quality for the price. Loved the fast shipping and return policy.Craig P