thlunasa

I had a 9-46 set of these and will probably get another set when I'm through all of my other 9-46. I dislike the uneven-intensity glow, but I guess it's better than no glow at all. Only some pick materials will work with these strings - carbon fibre picks, for example, will scratch that coating right off. If you're talented enough to pick-tap, then say goodbye to your coating...

I've got an Ibanez with the Gotoh Licensed FR. I've got an Ibanez with a genuine FR. I've got an Ibanez with the Ibanez spin-off ZR tremolo. I've got a fake Chinese guitar with the Ibanez spin-off Edge Pro tremolo.

@@Arsenal Really? You don't have to put as much pressure on a short-scale? Do you have a source for this? I would buy a short-scale in a heartbeat! (Not that I have any real cramping problems that annoy me) Also, yeah, I think RS is a bit finicky with intonation. My guitars are all so hotrodded (and/or worn) that playing at lower frets sometimes just gets random misses... Doesn't matter to meeee, 'long as it sounds good!

Every price grade you jump (sub-700, 700-1000, 1000-1500, 1500+) will play better. I bought a sub-700 Chinese guitar, hotrodded it, shimmed the nut, put in an awesome bridge, awesome pickups, sanded down the neck... It's still no match for a genuine Ibanez Prestige. I presume that if I took it to a luthier to get the neck straightened, re-studded the bridge, and completely re-fretted, it might get closer to the level... but at that point I might as well have bought another Prestige!

@@HolloW Here's a tip - with a floating bridge (such as FR) - block the bridge from pulling back (eg. on the Face side of the guitar, put a thick stack of foam underneath the bridge). This will keep the bridge "in playing position" and you can remove all strings at once. Saves me about 40% time compared to how I used to unstring/restring one at a time. @@Collision You've probably already restrung, but for future restringings - consider which string gauge you will want! Most guitars come stock with 9-42, I like 9-46, many people like 10-46, if you're a drop-tune metalhead you may want 11-56, etc.

@@Spades I didn't know they made 24-fret SGs? @@Tonedef Hmm, well if a thinner neck is good for you, then here's a list of typical neck thicknesses: BASEBALL BAT (like 28mm): Schecter Guitar Research THICKEST (24mm): Gibson/Fender (Epiphone/Squier) THICKER (21mm): Agile THICK (20mm): ESP MEDIUM (19mm): Jackson THIN (17mm): Ibanez, Hagstrom THINNER: Anyone wanna give me some recommendations? :D tl;dr Consider how many steps thinner than your Strat you want, then have a look at that particular brand. I'm also 5'9" actually, so our hands might be nearly similar. Consider the 19-20mm range, I guess. Not all models from a brand have the same neck. Ibanez has stuff as thick as 21-23mm, Agile has stuff as thin as 17-21mm.

@@snowdog Floating bridges don't complicate things! ...Having never owned a fixed bridge, I am probably not qualified to say that. But like, with a double-locking tremolo, adjusting the action and nut is a snap! I think it would be harder on a fixed-bridge, but maybe that's just 'cause I don't own one. @@CoachL23 3rd fret down? As in, 1-3? Nut problem. As in, 3-24? That would be 3rd fret up, hahaha. Sounds like a truss rod problem.

If you're used to the massively thick neck of a Fender, then Ibanez is not the best idea. Well, Ibanez has *some* thick necks such as the SAS (S, Archtop, Set-neck) or RGT (RG, neck-Through), but Jackson's necks are marginally thicker... still not as thick as a Fender. If thick-necks are your jazz, I would agree with Philo that Schecter is a good brand to pick, you will get decent genuine features for a decently low price. Consider ESP as well. If you're doing an online buy - consider Agile Guitars, they have super-cheap base models, and you can specify upgrades such as EMGs. They also do the crazier stuff like extended-scale, 7/8/9 string, multi-scale... As for me, I need a super-thin neck (asian guy, tiny hands) so I'm an Ibanez boy all the way!

Look at the guitar while you're playing. Now slowly tilt it toward you (so you don't have to crane your neck). Now tilt it more... until it's facing you. Notice how the high E string is on top, and the low E string is on bottom, just like "Inverted" view? But also yes, reading tablature

Yeah, if you have the spare time to try your hand at luthiership, that's the real value of a cheap guitar! I'll assume you've already tried replacing your strings. Where's your fret buzz? Frets 0-4 are usually a nut problem (on a Gio the nuts are terrible, so just replace it) Frets 4-19 are usually a truss rod problem (ignore everyone saying messing with the truss rod is dangerous, if you have excess bow then it can't possibly hurt to dial in a tiny amount of backbow at a time) Frets 19-24 are usually a bridge problem (again, Gios don't have great bridges, check on Jemsite etc to find out what you can drop-in-replace... If nothing can drop-in-replace, it's time to adjust your action and/or do some filing and intonation) Regarding your chords, now would be also a good time to file/sand down your neck to the actual Wizard profile of 17-20mm, which should reduce the amount of pressure you need to hold chords. Alternatively, it could be a fret integrity thing (you've been playing 3 years, after all). Consider doing your own fret crowning. Alternatively, replace the neck! (be careful, even if you have a 56mm neck there's no guarantee a 56mm Super Wizard Prestige will fit in the pocket, for example. also, intonation might be an issue)