Ibanez RG
| Ibanez RG | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Manufacturer | Ibanez |
| Period | 1987 — present |
| Construction | |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Bolt-on, Neck-thru |
| Woods | |
| Body | Basswood, Mahogany, Mahogany with Maple cap |
| Neck | 5pc Maple with Walnut, 3pc Maple with Walnut |
| Fretboard | 24 fret Rosewood, Maple |
| Hardware | |
| Bridge | Edge, Edge Lo-Pro, Edge Zero, Edge III Tremolo, Fixed Bridge, Edge Pro Tremolo, Gibraltar Plus Bridge |
| Pickup(s) | H-S-H or H-H Infinity, DiMarzio IBZ, Air Norton, Blue Velvet, and Tone Zone, IBZ V7, V8 & S1, or EMG 81, 85, 60, 707, or 808 pickups |
| Colors available | |
| Black, Purple Neon, Electric Blue, White, Amber, Transparent Lavender Blue, Weathered Black, Metallic Khaki, Jewel Blue, Black Night, Regal Brown Burst, Stained Oil, Natural Flat, Dark Amber, Aged Natural, Cubed Black Pewter, Grey Nickel, Vital Silver, Galaxy Black, Mirage Blue, Mirage Red, Royal Blue, Black Pearl, Sapphire Blue & Violin Flat | |
The Ibanez RG is a series of electric guitars produced by Hoshino Gakki and are among the most popular hard rock and metal guitars ever made. RG originally stood for Roadstar Guitar as they were first released as part of the Roadstar series. That series was renamed 'RG' in 1992 and all models since are simply known as RGs.
The RG series has the most subtypes of any Ibanez model and is the most popular series of Ibanez electric guitars produced by Hoshino Gakki. The Ibanez RG was originally designed as a derivative of Steve Vai's JEM/Universe series released in 1987. The RG's deep cutaway, flat neck and extended fret range (24 as standard) has made it one of the most popular guitars for rock and metal music.
Origins
The RG series was first introduced in 1987 as a derivative to the Ibanez JEM and Universe series by Steve Vai, contrary to the more popular opinion that Rocky George, former lead guitarist for the California based hardcore punk/thrash metal outfit Suicidal Tendencies and current lead guitarist for Fishbone was its designer (Rocky however was one of the first famous users of the RG model). This was believed because Rocky's initials are the same as the model. The RG in the Ibanez RG name does not mean Rocky George, in reality it means Roadstar Guitar, although these instruments differ significantly from the original Roadstar II series, introduced in the early 1980s. All of the RG550s, 560s, 565s, 570s, 670s 750s, 760s and 770s have a version of the Ibanez Edge tremolo, be it Original or Lo-Pro. The Edge tremolo incorporated several manufacturing changes when compared to the original Floyd Rose, including increased mass, relocated fine tuners and improved locking posts. The locking posts are no longer used as of the 2003 model year along with the introduction of the Edge Pro.
Features
The RG Series features a neck that is very thin in cross section and a wide, almost flat (i.e. large radius) double octave (24 fret) fret board. Flatter radius fret boards facilitate wider bends and lower string action at the expense of comfort in playing chords. For the virtuosic "shred" style of guitar playing or fast, aggressive thrash/speed metal rhythm, this type of neck is often preferred. The body of the RG Series features sleek, offset pointed double cutaways giving better access to the upper frets. Typically the body is made of Mahogany or Basswood with the exception of the RGT220A, where the body is made of swamp ash. As of 2008 though, select J Custom RGs are made out of Alder as well as Basswood and Mahogany. The fretboard is made of Rosewood with the exception of the RG350MDX, the RG550MXXDY/RF and the RG270 which can be seen in the catalog section of IbanezRules.com in the 1996 catalog , where the fretboard is made of maple. The pickups are usually configured as HSH or HH. There are Japan-Custom IBZ, USA-Custom IBZ, Infinity, Powersound, Seymour Duncan, DiMarzio, Acis, LoZ or EMG pickups in the RG Tremolo and Fixed series. The Prestige series typically comes equipped with either the USA and Japan IBZ series, IBZ DiMarzio pickups, DiMarzio pickups in different configurations (most often the ToneZone and Air Norton), active EMGs in several configurations, and one model comes equipped with Non-OEM Seymour Duncans. Bare Knuckle pickups are now standard on some Prestige models.
Most models of the RG series use variations of Ibanez's own proprietary edge tremolo systems except the fixed bridge models, which are equipped with either a hipshot-style bridge or a gibraltar standard bridge. Fixed bridge versions of the Edge bridge are also available on a few select signature models.
RG's are famous for being the basis of particularly easy to play seven string guitars, and as of 2007, Ibanez produced its first commercially available 8 string guitar, the RG2228.
Various models
Current RG Series is currently split into 5 versions depending on quality:
- Ibanez J Custom - Highest quality Japanese made RG guitars exclusive to the Japanese market, sometimes available retail in Europe. The only source of 7-String RG's with non-IBZ branded pickups. Unfortunately, not available outside Japan (as of 2011, J customs are available in the U.S.) unless you buy them from a non-authorized retailer. Typically, there are a few listed at any given time on eBay.
- RG Prestige - High quality Japanese-made RG guitars which contains the RG, RGA, and most of the RGT series. Contains the higher quality model of the two 7-String RG's currently in production.
- Ibanez RG Premium - High quality instrument below the RG prestige series, has USA-made Dimarzio/Ibz pickups and Edge Zero II tremolos. Some models feature highly figured maple veneer.
- RG Tremolo - RG series guitars of non-Japanese origin (Korea and Indonesia) with Floyd Rose-style tremolo.
- RG Fixed - RG guitars with fixed bridges of non-Japanese origin (Korea and Indonesia).
References
External links
- http://jemsite.com/ - A fansite for JEM and other Ibanez guitars
- http://www.guitar123.co.uk/index.php?page=ibanez_rg - Comparison of the RG models & RG's Bridge pick-ups.