SeriesIbanez Artwood

This is Ibanez's newest bare bones dreadnought acoustic. It reminds me and would not one bit surprise me if it was modeled after the classic D-15 by Martin. I tried this out at my local music shop and it quickly won my heart over as my new favorite 'couch guitar' The guitar that just never seems to make it back in its case. Just under $300, a quick search of Google says it's $279.99. A great bang for your buck ax. I tip my hat to Ibanez for realizing what is important in a budget acoustic...the sound! The top is made from cedar. Cedar gives a nice warm, already broken in tone. The rest of the instrument is mahogany. The neck is the popular dove tail neck joint. The nut and saddle are made of bone, finally not cheap plastic! The only negative thing is your friends are going to either want your guitar or not even give it a shot because it's an Ibanez and not some other fancy pants brand. Well made and with quality parts. Nothing you don't need. I hate these cheap guitars that come with a junky preamp and built in tuner. Just make the guitar sound good! That's what Ibanez did. Need a strummer? This is it. This guitar inspires me everytime I pick it up. If you're looking for a great sounding guitar to practice or write songs on, this is it. This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I purchased this guitar while looking at much more expensive instuments at Bud's in Peterborough Ontario. It was about $400 CDN including case. I later added a Lace soundhole pickup. This guitar has a very clean sound. In short it rings like a bell. It is well made and lightly braced and demands light strings. I have played many other heavier instruments and found them to be finger breakers. I have made up for it's shallowness by adding a soundhole pickup. I can give the instrument a bass boost using the EQ on the mixer I play it through. The light fingering is something I'd forgotten since my "Strat" Days. A joy to play!! As above it can be a little shallow in tone. This is more than made up by overall versatility and cleanliness/purity of sound. For whamming away on 3 chord stuff I would have picked a more robust guitar. The instrument is flawless. Inside the bracing is impeccably glued and no rough edges. This is not an expensive guitar and I am more than pleased with overall quality. The neck is slim but no buzzing on even the high frets. The fret material is however soft and requires dressing more than usual. I will replace frets soon with harder material. Wow..Good bang for the buck!!! I have really played this guitar to death and it really belies it's delicate nature. Much more robust than first impressions would indicate. Neck stays straight, no tuning/humidity problems. This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

Guitar Center $409.99 I purchased this guitar after careful consideration from several models by other manufacturers. The sustain is incredible. The look and feel of this guitar is comparable to guitars costing upwards of $750. This guitar is beautiful. Abalone rosette, grover tuning machines, "Vintage Violin" color. I love pure, rich and clean music. THis provides just that. No buzz or hum. The only thing I would change on the guitar is an aesthtic change. I would change the golden tuning machines to chrome. No glue marks, very well constructed. Excellent, excellent value. Wonderful guitar!! This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

The IBanez Artwood Series12 string guitar is an overall great 12 string guitar. Seagull prides themselves on making high quality hand made guitars, and this one of my favorites that they make. It is not an acoustic-electric, so it does not have any pick ups or setting controls. The neck is made out of silver leaf maple and has a great feel to it. UTILIZATION The neck of the IBanez Artwood Series 12 string guitar is easy to play and overall has a great feel to it. It is easy to play all around the neck, but I usually don't play too many high notes when I am playing a 12 string guitar. It is a light guitar in terms of weight and has a pretty basic shape. The inherent sound of this 12 string is great and I consider it one of the best 12 string guitars for your buck. SOUNDS The IBanez Artwood Series string guitar is great for all types of music that you would want to use an acoustic 12 string guitar, but I have used it mostly in rock and pop music with good results. I have only used this guitar in the studio for recording overdubs, and whenever I use it I come away with a good sound. Since it is easy to play, it makes it easy to get a tone that I am happy with. Theres nothing like a great 12 string guitar part and this guitar definitely has the capabilities to make some great 12 string parts. OVERALL OPINION I've been using the IBanez Artwood Series string guitar for recording for about a year and have been thoroughly impressed with this guitar, especially considering how inexpensive and well made they are. This isn't as great as a classic Martin 12 string, but for the price it is a great option that won't break the bank. I love the overall sound and feel of this 12 string and I'm a really big fan of 12 strings in general due to their full and unique tone. If you are interested in getting a reasonable priced 12 string guitar that is much cheaper than you would think, this is absolutely worth a look.

The Ibanez AW15ECE was made in America. It's a rosewood guitar with a spruce top, a mahogany neck and an ebony fretboard. It has 20 frets, and features the awesome Taylor Expression Pickup system. It has a regular ebony bridge. There are three knobs, for volume, bass, and treble. UTILIZATION The high frets are pretty easy to reach; I have no problem skipping from lower frets and hitting the notes with ease. The guitar sounds great right off the bat, but even if plugged in it's got enough control that you can get a good sound within a minute or two. The guitar isn't too big or awkward, and it's not so heavy that you can't carry it. Everything is stable, the guitar stays in tune really well unless you manage to move the knobs. SOUNDS I use this mostly through a PA, but when I do amp it, my Crate sounds the best. I really like some of the brighter sounds that are possible one this guitar. With the volume, bass, and treble control, there's a whole lot of room to experiment with tone. I tend to go for the one that makes it sounds most like it does acoustically. It can sound good with some natural gain on it, which I like doing. It gets a very rock-oriented sound out of it that way, and acoustic blues tends to sound great with it when it's amped. It suits everything I play, which goes from Jazz to Blues and predominantly rock. OVERALL OPINION I can't think of much that I don't like about this guitar! I love the way it sounds acoustically, the Taylor Expression System is the best acoustic-electric pickup operation that I've ever heard. The sound is great when it goes direct or when amplified. I tried several other acoustics, mostly other Taylors and Martins, and I chose this one over all of them. I still stand by that decision. It's really expensive, so try and get one used or clearance, like I did. It has a pretty big scratch in it, but I really don't care at all about that, it's all about the sound. For that, it's totally worth the price. Highly recommended.

This is a Japan-made, no electronics full acoustic 12-string dreadnought. Standard plastic bridge with string pins, 20 frets, fully bounded body, patterned pickguard, and a subtle soundhole rosette. Unsure of what type of wood the body was made of, but the label states its "hardwoods crafted in Japan". Fretboard is rosewood with pearloid dot inlays. Tuning heads are chrome plated steel, which can be removed from the gearbox via a threaded collar. UTILIZATION My father bought this guitar used in 1982 for $200. Aside from a couple forums there isnt much online info for this forgotten gem. The playability is comparable to a Martin, as the wider fretboard allows more spacious finger movement, and the body produces a full bodied tone. SOUNDS Sounds clear with crisp highs and ringing lows, all in all a very sonically balanced 12-string. OVERALL OPINION I grew up listening my father play this guitar, always brought fun to the house. He's received offers by professional guitar repairmen, so that gives you an idea on the appeal of this guitar. This is a forgotten model that showed how Ibanez was in the early 80s. For being a pacific-made guitar, it sounds better than some acoustics that go for $1,000-3,000.