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Phil_Guitar
Published on 12/12/09 at 13:43
These guitars are made in China.
Ibanez link :
http://www.ibanez.com/HollowBodyGuitars/model-AF75D
Set-in <span>Mahogany Neck with <span>Bound Rosewood</span> <span>Fingerboard, 22</span></span> frets, the neck joins the guitar body at the 14th fret.
<span>Maple plywood on the top, back and sides </span>(most hollow-body archtop guitars have bodies made of plywood, even really expensive models from well known brands).
2 Humbuckers and a "standard" configuration for the electronic (2 Volume pots, 2 Tone pots, 1 Switch 3positions).
Fully adjustable archtop type bridge.
UTILIZATION
This guitar is really a great well built quality instrument, no doubt about it.
It requires a bit heavier string gauges to start sounding perfectly (10 - 52, or heavier).
The neck is a "REAL BEAUTY" by itself, a bit like an excellent version of a Speed-Taper neck ... really nice and easy to play.
The access to the bottom of the neck isn't too easy mainly because of this type of "Gretsch 6120" single cut-away and a body which is rather deep, but it is in favour of the general acoustic sound of the guitar which by the way is quite good for such a hollow-body type electric guitar.
The guitar doesn't weigh much, just fine for the shoulders.
The pickups are 2 good humbuckers, not too powerful. They have a nice, precise and cool jazz sound, with a pinch of acoustic sound (surely because of the metallic pickup covers which vibrates with the body and work a little bit like microphones).
This guitar has a GREAT JAZZ SOUND.
---------------------------------------------
Now, if you like to customize your guitars like I do, you can have a real Gretsch like sounding guitar for very little money by replacing the pickups with 2 TV-Jones.
<span style="color: #336699;">http://www.tvjones.com/pickups/tvclassic.html</span> ( http://www.tvjones.com/pickups/tvclassic.html )
<span style="color: #336699;">https://tvjones.com/cgi-bin/commerce.cgi?preadd=action&key=02-001</span> ( https://tvjones.com/cgi-bin/commerce.cgi?preadd=action&key=02-001 )
By adding these following features you'll soon have a "MUST" to play with :
Bigsby B6
<span style="color: #336699;">http://www.bigsbyguitars.com/vibe/?page_id=145</span> ( http://www.bigsbyguitars.com/vibe/?page_id=145 )
Schaller Locking Tuners
<span style="color: #336699;">http://guitar-machine-heads.com/hp14323/M6-I-Locking.htm</span> ( http://guitar-machine-heads.com/hp14323/M6-I-Locking.htm )
ABM TUNAMATIC Roller Bridge
<span style="color: #336699;">http://www.abmmueller.de/index2.html</span> ( http://www.abmmueller.de/index2.html )
GRAPHITE Compensated Nut
I also added big golden volume and tone knobs, cut a gold painted translucid pickguard and finally repainted the headstock for the "decoration". OOOOooooh !!!
SOUNDS
To play Jazz, Blues, Rock'n'Roll and Rock'a'Billy, it is really a great guitar.
With transistor amps you'll get beautiful clean Jazz sounds, with tube amps you'll have great Blues and Rock'n'Roll tones.
Now, if you add the TV-Jones pickups you'll get into heaven.
This guitar will "naturally" feedback with crunchy tones, which can lead to wonderful sustains if you know how to control a feedback.
OVERALL OPINION
This guitar is a "MUST" !!!
I had (from a famous brand of guitars) a cheap version of a well know Rock'a'Billy guitar that I had equipped with 2 TV-Jones.
But, the guitar didn't sound, the neck had the shape of a baseball bat and was hard to play ... the only cool thing about this one was the name of the brand on the headstock (not enough for me, sorry !!!).
So, as soon as I discovered the IBANEZ AF-75D TOR, I sold the (recent) old damn peace of wood and I bought the IBANEZ AF-75D TOR on which I installed the TV-Jones.
For that little money it is barely impossible to get anything of that great quality (Thanks to the Chinese luthiers !!! These friendly guys RULE !!!).
Here is the Web-Page where I roughly documented the "FABULOUS" transformations that I did on my beatiful IBANEZ AF75DTOR :
http://earthsuburb.chez-alice.fr/equipment/guitars/ibanez/af75dtor/en/index.html
Ibanez link :
http://www.ibanez.com/HollowBodyGuitars/model-AF75D
Set-in <span>Mahogany Neck with <span>Bound Rosewood</span> <span>Fingerboard, 22</span></span> frets, the neck joins the guitar body at the 14th fret.
<span>Maple plywood on the top, back and sides </span>(most hollow-body archtop guitars have bodies made of plywood, even really expensive models from well known brands).
2 Humbuckers and a "standard" configuration for the electronic (2 Volume pots, 2 Tone pots, 1 Switch 3positions).
Fully adjustable archtop type bridge.
UTILIZATION
This guitar is really a great well built quality instrument, no doubt about it.
It requires a bit heavier string gauges to start sounding perfectly (10 - 52, or heavier).
The neck is a "REAL BEAUTY" by itself, a bit like an excellent version of a Speed-Taper neck ... really nice and easy to play.
The access to the bottom of the neck isn't too easy mainly because of this type of "Gretsch 6120" single cut-away and a body which is rather deep, but it is in favour of the general acoustic sound of the guitar which by the way is quite good for such a hollow-body type electric guitar.
The guitar doesn't weigh much, just fine for the shoulders.
The pickups are 2 good humbuckers, not too powerful. They have a nice, precise and cool jazz sound, with a pinch of acoustic sound (surely because of the metallic pickup covers which vibrates with the body and work a little bit like microphones).
This guitar has a GREAT JAZZ SOUND.
---------------------------------------------
Now, if you like to customize your guitars like I do, you can have a real Gretsch like sounding guitar for very little money by replacing the pickups with 2 TV-Jones.
<span style="color: #336699;">http://www.tvjones.com/pickups/tvclassic.html</span> ( http://www.tvjones.com/pickups/tvclassic.html )
<span style="color: #336699;">https://tvjones.com/cgi-bin/commerce.cgi?preadd=action&key=02-001</span> ( https://tvjones.com/cgi-bin/commerce.cgi?preadd=action&key=02-001 )
By adding these following features you'll soon have a "MUST" to play with :
Bigsby B6
<span style="color: #336699;">http://www.bigsbyguitars.com/vibe/?page_id=145</span> ( http://www.bigsbyguitars.com/vibe/?page_id=145 )
Schaller Locking Tuners
<span style="color: #336699;">http://guitar-machine-heads.com/hp14323/M6-I-Locking.htm</span> ( http://guitar-machine-heads.com/hp14323/M6-I-Locking.htm )
ABM TUNAMATIC Roller Bridge
<span style="color: #336699;">http://www.abmmueller.de/index2.html</span> ( http://www.abmmueller.de/index2.html )
GRAPHITE Compensated Nut
I also added big golden volume and tone knobs, cut a gold painted translucid pickguard and finally repainted the headstock for the "decoration". OOOOooooh !!!
SOUNDS
To play Jazz, Blues, Rock'n'Roll and Rock'a'Billy, it is really a great guitar.
With transistor amps you'll get beautiful clean Jazz sounds, with tube amps you'll have great Blues and Rock'n'Roll tones.
Now, if you add the TV-Jones pickups you'll get into heaven.
This guitar will "naturally" feedback with crunchy tones, which can lead to wonderful sustains if you know how to control a feedback.
OVERALL OPINION
This guitar is a "MUST" !!!
I had (from a famous brand of guitars) a cheap version of a well know Rock'a'Billy guitar that I had equipped with 2 TV-Jones.
But, the guitar didn't sound, the neck had the shape of a baseball bat and was hard to play ... the only cool thing about this one was the name of the brand on the headstock (not enough for me, sorry !!!).
So, as soon as I discovered the IBANEZ AF-75D TOR, I sold the (recent) old damn peace of wood and I bought the IBANEZ AF-75D TOR on which I installed the TV-Jones.
For that little money it is barely impossible to get anything of that great quality (Thanks to the Chinese luthiers !!! These friendly guys RULE !!!).
Here is the Web-Page where I roughly documented the "FABULOUS" transformations that I did on my beatiful IBANEZ AF75DTOR :
http://earthsuburb.chez-alice.fr/equipment/guitars/ibanez/af75dtor/en/index.html