Guitar: Ibanez S470DXQM
Price: $649.99 (as quoted on Musiciansfriend.com)
Pros: HSH configuration gives a wealth of tonal variations. Wizard II neck is nice and thin and has a satin finish on the back of the neck so it's fast and smooth. For a non-floyd rose tremelo this thing stays in tune pretty well as long as you keep good strings on it.
Cons: The jack is recessed into the face of the guitar and therefore demands a certain style of cord (with shrinkwrap up the cord) or the user could easily pull the cord out of the end (plug). Other than that...I haven't found any other CONS.
REVIEW:
The Ibanez S470DXQM is a fine quality instrument that covers many different styles and feels comfortable in the hands of the player. The Wizard II neck provides and comfortable 'interface' for the fingers. This guitar practically plays itself. Ibanez puts 500k pots in the instrument from the factory which gives you the best possible tonal response and linear tapers on both volume and tone. The tremelo works just like a floyd rose and stays in tune well with decent (not old or over-used) strings. It came set-up almost perfectly from the factory which is rare in my experience.
SUMMARY:
Of all of the guitars that I've had, this one lasted in 'stock' form for the longest before I felt the need to replace hardware/pickups. Most definitely the best investment I've made in YEARS! At the price listed above, this guitar is a STEAL.
