Ibanez Jem Jr

[mariosyjp]

Some of you must be easy to please if you consider the JEM jr a "great guitar" after you replace the Floyd [$300} and pups & pots [$400] by then its still not even close to the Japan JEM's from 20 years ago.
Oh and don't forget the hardshell case [$200].

$300 + $400 + $200 = $900

Depends.... My main guitar for the last 10 years is a Gibson LP (signature T) with A2P pickups. It was impossible for me to find a LP with less money that would give me the tone that I was looking for.
I'm not a shredder or a Vai enthousiast. Super strats are not even my favourite type of guitars.
The point of buying one is to have a guitar with a different sound and playing style. The crazy looks even.
Of course jem jr 480€ + schaller 200€ + setup + fret polish does not equal a superior built guitar with better materials and craftmanship.
That's not the point.
It does equal an instrument with good playability and top of the line tremolo (one of the main features of this type of guitar).

Hard case is not a necessity it's not a guitar that costs 1k-3k

PS also there's a special kind of joy in upgrading a budget instrument

 

[Mr. 80's]

Well, this guy put a Schaller in it and it looks pretty good:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zM1t...ndex=5&t=2366s

I believe it is very difficult to find a guitar with a good floyd under 1k.
Any trem that isn't an OFR, original Edge, Schaller or Gotoh 1996T, will need to be replaced sooner or later anyway (FR special included) so....

Yeah it definitely has the huge unsightly gap I figured it would have. At least a guitar that comes with an FR Special has a nice clean looking and easy direct swap. There's tons of guitars under well 1K with great Floyd's (FR1000's). Anything that comes with a FR 1000 is a great Floyd (lots of those for under a k), people are only kidding themselves if they think otherwise. You will get the same Floyd on even a $2500 guitar.

 

[mariosyjp]

Yeah it definitely has the huge unsightly gap I figured it would have. At least a guitar that comes with an FR Special has a nice clean looking and easy direct swap. There's tons of guitars under well 1K with great Floyd's (FR1000's). Anything that comes with a FR 1000 is a great Floyd (lots of those for under a k), people are only kidding themselves if they think otherwise. You will get the same Floyd on even a $2500 guitar.

You can use the Gotoh 1996T which is bigger (the Schaller is more compact) if you mind the gap
Didn't know about the FR 1000 thanks.

 

[Top-L]

I hate Ibanez guitars now. (Still own two).

All the hipster kids who think playing arpeggio exercises over a backing track is music. They play Ibanez.

The proprietary trems. The Edge trems are good but typically only on 2K+ guitars these days. And you have to deal with the push in bar which gets loose in a couple weeks, then you have to rework the bushings. PITA. Cant even set the bar swing tension.

The mid range trems have tiny tone blocks and there isn't anything you can do about it because of the body route. They are engineered to sound worse than the edge and there aren't any drop in replacements.

Their cheaper guitars have chinese floyd copies. Haven't played one, but if they aren't parts compatible with real floyds, even if they are, its NO GO. For similar price in another brand you can get a FRS or Floyd 1000. Who is going to spend $500-600 for a "meranti" guitar that you also have to buy a replacement trem? No.

Then you've got a guitar like the JEM, which is an obvious Vai fanboy design. This is 2022, who is still a Vai fanboy and wouldn't look ridiculous playing that JEM at his Sunday church gig?

I am the target audience of Ibanez guitars, I was under their spell for 20 some years, now I realize they are living on past glory. Their trem ecosystem absolutely sucks. A new replacement Edge is $500ish and I hate the push in bars.

 

[Top-L]

I wouldn’t call myself a devoted Ibanez fan, but I have owned a half-dozen and played many more. I love the push-in bar. The bushings that hold the bar in can wear out, but they are easily replaceable. A real Edge or Edge low-profile is a great trem. It doesn’t sound like a Floyd, but I wouldn’t want it to on those guitars. Ibanez have put plenty of junk trems on guitars, but a real Edge is not one of them.

Don’t limit your ideas of what a guitar can do to the bozos making bad videos for YouTube.

OK. Agree edge trems are very good (except for push in bar), but that is only 10% of their catalog or less. And you will pay much more for an edge guitar than an OFR guitar. Their proprietary trem BS isn't worth the cost. You are paying more money to get into a system that doesn't have parts readily available.

I think that liking the push in bar is probably the best reason to get an edge. But that means you like the bar to swing down from gravity. The bushings only stay tight enough to hold the bar in place for a couple weeks. After that there is a couple months of swinging down, but stable in socket. After that the bar develops play.

After having used them for 20+ years, I realized the reason I didn't use the trem very much, was because having to reach down and grab the bar is a PITA. On my Floyd guitars, the bar stays where I put it. If I don't want it in easy access, I push it out of the way. If I want it ready, I keep it under the strings.

Furthermore, if you want a floyd with a push in bar, you can buy inexpensive parts for that conversion. Because lots of parts are available. Inexpensive parts. And they are all interchangeable.

Ibanez is living on past glory. Every once in a while they throw a bone and release a Genesis-like reissue for a good price. But the majority of their catalog... meh.

Remember, back in the day, you could get an RG550 or 565(had this) with an Edge or Lo-Pro for $600. The vast majority of rack guitars back then had licenced floyd garbage, khalers, or traditional trems. OFR guitars usually were $1k+. So by comparison, Ibanez guitars were freakin great.

They aren't the same value proposition any more. The low end Floyd ecosystem is a FRS with full parts compatibility with rest of line. So the Ibanez advantage of the 80/90s isn't there anymore, in fact has flipped. (Now Ibanez more likely to have proprietary junk trem.)

Past glory.

 

[Top-L]

If you buy a cheap Floyd guitar with an FRS, and you want to upgrade, you just pay $200 and drop in an OFR or Schaller, etc. Or if the FRS wears out, you can replace it for $80.

If you buy a mid range Ibanez and want to upgrade. You are stuck. Even if there was a drop in replacement, the route is not large enough for a full sized tone block.

If you have an expensive Ibanez and the Edge develops pitting/corrosion or some other problem. Good luck. A new Edge or Lo Pro is $500 and special order part. Good luck with that.

Ibanez sucks.

 

[Top-L]

I bought this in 2016, changed the pickups, played it a few times, put it back in its case and it's been in there probably for the last 5 years unplayed. It feels cheap like a toy, probably because I can't get the cardboard box out of my mind. I was thinking about getting the purple neon one but the price makes no sense, I can get a Schecter with Duncans or EMGs with that kind of money.

I can tell you haven't played this much. Those maple necks score really easy and the play wear shows up quickly.

 

[mariosyjp]

You can easily replace an Edge with a Schaller I think. The Schaller is more compact. Post spacing is the same. Blocks come in various sizes.

As for the jem jr you can argue that 500$ guitar with Meranti body and a bad trem is wasted money.
But this guitar sounds good i don't care if they called the wood Mariah , also it plays great after a setup and polish.
So with the trem it goes for 700$.
For sure you can get a guitar that needs no upgrades for that money but it might not sound or look like this one. And it will probably not have a top of the line trem.

All big brands live off of their past glory.
Their sound and looks mean something to us guitarists.
Of course you can get a yamaha pacifica with SD pickups and good standard trem and be done with it!

 

[Top-L]

A real Edge has more going for it than just a pop-in arm. For me, they feel and respond wonderfully for the way I like to use a floating trem. They also have locking studs for the pivot posts and a lockdown bar to keep the springs from sliding out of the block. The low-profile Edge is also super comfortable and sits out of the way for any pick-hand posture. I think itâs a very well thought-out bridge design.

Just an FYI, a Floyd Rose has much finer threads than the ones used by Ibanez. They don't really need locking studs like Ibanez studs.

I have two guitars with Lo Pro edge, and I agree they are slick and out of the way. The 5% ergonomic advantage not worth it to me to have to deal with the bushings and push in bar. Ever wonder why Satch and Vai kept the original Edge on their guitars instead of the Lo Pro? To them apparently the Edge/Floyd contour not an issue. Maybe they like feeling it on the edge of their hand. Who knows?

 

[Top-L]

I hated both of and replaced them with OFR’s, which are awesome. My Pro Series Dinky still has one of those bridges and is probably going to get OFR’d eventually.

And that is why Floyd guitars are better; interchangeable parts.

If you buy anything south of a 2K Prestige (excepting the Genesis special runs) you aren't getting an Edge or Lo Pro. You are getting a lesser, proprietary trem that can't be swapped with something better.

I have both on my guitar wall, just strongly believe that Ibanez dropped the ball. Dont love the super thin necks, proprietary trems, or the price premium. I am glad there are so many other great choices these days. 25 Years ago, that wasn't as true. I remember equal priced Jacksons ($600ish) in early 90s didn't have OFRs or even FRS. To get the good stuff on Jackson you had to spend. The situation is reversed today.

 

[Top-L]

And yet I did swap out a cheap Ibanez trem somehow? It doesn’t really matter now; that guitar was built twenty years ago. I haven’t been digging the lower-end locking trem guitars from any brand lately. I am probably not buying another sub-prestige RG unless it’s a Genesis. I don’t know about the Jem Premiums; maybe. A lot depends on what I think of that E-II when it finally comes.

E-II. Why oh why are they using pickup rings on almost all of them !?! Several of those would be my next guitar except for those damn rings.

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

RG652 and 655 are under 2K, both with DM and Edge. But they are discontinued now.

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[Obsessive Compulsive]

Top-L, Schecter Banshee passive come without the dreaded pickup rings and with Pegasus Sentient installed. And it costs less than EIi or Prestige.


The real value for penny is Schecter. Prestige is overrated, it's popular thanks to Vai.

But you have to actually own both or otherwise all I get is dissing responses..lol.

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[mariosyjp]

And that is why Floyd guitars are better; interchangeable parts.

If you buy anything south of a 2K Prestige (excepting the Genesis special runs) you aren't getting an Edge or Lo Pro. You are getting a lesser, proprietary trem that can't be swapped with something better.

I have both on my guitar wall, just strongly believe that Ibanez dropped the ball. Dont love the super thin necks, proprietary trems, or the price premium. I am glad there are so many other great choices these days. 25 Years ago, that wasn't as true. I remember equal priced Jacksons ($600ish) in early 90s didn't have OFRs or even FRS. To get the good stuff on Jackson you had to spend. The situation is reversed today.

https://youtu.be/zM1to3_3KyA

 

[Top-L]

Top-L, Schecter Banshee passive come without the dreaded pickup rings and with Pegasus Sentient installed. And it costs less than EIi or Prestige.


The real value for penny is Schecter. Prestige is overrated, it's popular thanks to Vai.

But you have to actually own both or otherwise all I get is dissing responses..lol.

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Last year I picked up a Korean Ltd m1000 with emgs for less than 1 k new. Floyd 1000. Made in same factory as schecter. They raised the price 200 since then.

To me the Ltd deluxe guitars are equal value to Schaeffer, but I like most of them better. Focking spell check. Schaffer have weird inlays and generally dark look to them. Kinda goth.

I would buy this before any Ibanez or Schaffer.
https://cdn.connectsites.net/user_files/esp/product_images/000/032/162/original.png?1642176620

 

[dystrust]

I didn’t realize pickup rings were the worst thing since being boiled in oil? It looks like they have some nice choices that don’t use them.

Is direct-mounted the alternative? I can't stand direct-mounted pickups; height adjustments are a gigantic PITA, and swapping pickups is a nightmare if the new ones aren't the same height. Don't get me started on reaming pickup mounting holes out to direct-mount a pickup. Every time I buy a used pickup and the mounting holes are wrecked, it makes me want to reach out and touch the previous owner... with a brick. oed:

 

[Top-L]

I used to not care until I got two guitars with direct mount. Its completely aesthetic. Pickup rings corrode, collect dust, and standard rings are black plastic which doesn't match chrome, gold, etc hardware. I think pickup rings should be metal and match other hardware, but chrome color rings are overwhelming. Its like a no win situation from an aesthetic standpoint, unless the hardware is black.

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Pickup rings make no sense cause the springs make it harder to mount new pickups on. You can even break the rings fighting the spring tension.

It's the worst invention since the pills.

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[Mincer]

I like direct mount pickups that are easy to adjust. I don't particularly like pickguard or pickup ring mounted ones (don't get me started on slot head screws). I get that it is tradition, but all these years later, there has to be a better way. Getting that new way accepted by a guitar playing public that doesn't like change is another thing altogether.

 

[Top-L]

One thing companies could do is offer clips that go over the holes to provide threads if installed to a ring.