Reviewed by:
Mazzakazza, on september 04, 2009
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
Price paid: £ 100
Purchased from: eBay
Features: Made in 2001, in the Fujigen plant in Japan, this Ibanez RG comes with 24 frets over a 25.5" scale. Superstrat body style, basswood body wood, V7 and V8 stock Ibanez humbucking pickups, Lo-TRS (LFR) floating bridge, Very thin Wizard 7 neck (A rosewood fretboard on maple neck (Walnut striped), with jumbo frets, Gotoh tuning machines. One volume, and one tone control. // 7
Sound: Ibanez make great sounding 7 strings, and this is no exception. I play metal and jazz, and this handles both well. I was surprised to find that the stock pickups actually give quite a nice clean sound, but not shocked to find that they lack a bit of punchiness in higher gain situations. The pots crackle a bit and need replacing, but this is a 2nd hand guitar, so I can't hold Ibanez responsible for that. There is little unwanted noise in the form of a quiet constant hum, but it is negligible in a noisy gigging situation.
Given the chance and money, I would replace the pickups, but for now will settle with pot and selector Switch replacements. My other Ibanez 7 is an RG1527 with EMG707s, and comparing the two, the RG7420 has a brighter sound, and has much less punch and crunch. The RG7420 also needs more gain, presence and a little more treble and bass to match the power of the RG1527.
However, I am not disappointed, for the price I paid, the sound is more than satisfactory, and will be rectified later with investment in pickups and a new amplifier. // 7
Action, Fit & Finish: The seller of this guitar sent it to me with a pretty good set-up, I just had to bring the action down a little, and it was more or less perfect. I have blocked the lo-TRS bridge, as it is notoriously poor, created during a cost-cutting spree, and the use of poor quality metal is obvious - I could feel a definite weakness while using it.
The neck is extremely comfortable, sleek and fast, with no volute, unlike the RG1527. This particular guitar's neck actually belongs to an RG7620, as an overproduction of necks in the factory for the RG7620 was resolved by attaching the spare necks to RG7420 bodies, close to the end of production for the RG7620. It really is lightning fast, sure proof of Ibanez' ability to create amazing 'shred' guitars - even when making 7 strings which some find uncomfortable for the width of the neck. It's only a little wider than a comparable 6-string RG's neck, and an absolute delight to play. // 8
Reliability & Durability: Well, this guitar is 8 years old, and has taken a beating from previous owners - yet the hardware (except the bridge, which is in poor condition and had to be blocked) is in quite good condition. The finish seems to come off relatively easily, however, and the strap buttons are ridiculously small, and need to be replaced with something more substantial.
I do use this guitar to gig, but only usually as a backup guitar to my RG1527, as that guitar is in better condition - however, it has a floating bridge, so this guitar is the obvious answer when looking for a backup. Cheap and quite reliable. // 6
Impression: For the price, this guitar is superb. They're out of production now, and although the RG7620s tend to be the better guitar of these two well-known OOP guitars, they've been gaining in price for a little while now. So if you don't need a trem and are willing to put in a little work to make a block, or pay some more for a Tremel-no, then you'll be better off with the RG7420. There is a HardTail version however, the RG7421, which might be preferable to the tremolo equipped model.
The RG series has been one of my favourite series of guitars, alongside the Ibanez S, and the Jackson Dinky range for quite some time. For 7 strings, Ibanez holds all the cards - their current (UK available) production model 7s, the S7320, RG7321(/FM) and RG1527 are great guitars, and I can't wait to see where they go next. I would personally prefer a mahogany body RG, but I won't hold my breath too long.
All in all, a very decent guitar, with an excellent neck, with no stand-out or surprising features, but a great deal of quality workmanship. I couldn't ask for more at the price these are available, and I recommend that if you ever get the chance - snap one up - especially one with a 7620 neck! You won't regret it. // 7
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its very cool
, well not quite the mother, more like the 2nd cousin of all guitars