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Published on 08/29/11 at 18:29The Ibanez RG870QMZ marks the latest venture for the venerable Ibanez company. Their new Premium line of guitars offers an instrument that is a step below their Prestige line and is priced for younger players or just the general working musician who wants the quality and feel of a good Ibanez RG but doesn't wish to pay a fortune. They're made at Ibanez's Premium factory in Korea and this particular model is basically an RG model with a figured top. It features a basswood body with a figured quilt maple top, a maple/walnut neck with a rosewood fretboard, Edge Zero tremolo and H-S-H pickups with a 5 way switch. Here's some more specs from Ibanez:
SPECS
Neck Material: 5pc Maple/ Walnut
Neck Type: Wizard Premium
Body: American Basswood body
Frets: Jumbo frets
Fingerboard: Bound Rosewood
Inlay: Off-set dot inlay
Bridge: Edge Zero II bridge w/ZPS3Fe
NeckPU: CAP VM1
MiddlePU: CAP VM1S
BridgePU: CAP VM2
HW Color: CK
UTILIZATION
The design of this guitar is just as ergonomic as any Ibanez RG that I've played. The body is extremely sculpted and ergonomic in its design, perfect for players who crave great access all around. The cutways allow full reach to all 24 frets and the ample body contouring provides a great guitar that sits very well on the body and feels comfortable to play for a long period of time. It's very light weight (like many RGs) and the upper fret access is impeccable.
Getting a good sound out of this guitar is fairly easy, and I was actually quite surprised at how easy it was to get a whole variety of tones out of this guitar. Because it has the middle single coil and a 5 way switch in addition to the dual humbuckers, there is so much extra versatility that many superstrats don't offer. Pristine clean tones? Got 'em! Bone crunching metal rhythms? Done. Soaring sailing lead sounds? Oh yeah! It's a great guitar for the working musician who wants a superstrat that does many different sounds for sure.
SOUNDS
I've tried this guitar through a Hughes and Kettner Switchblade 100 which is a great amplifier for hearing sounds from very clean to very high gain. The clean sounds from this guitar were definitely a highlight. It has a decidedly Stratty texture that is especially apparent in positions 2 and 4 on the selector switch. That wonderful glassy, quacky sound that makes a Strat so wonderful is here in this guitar and is something I definitely appreciated when playing clean tones. The humbuckers provided a thicker and darker tone that worked well for jazzier or bluesier textures where more low end would help. It's not the most gutsy sounding guitar ever, but it sounds decent for some facsimile blues.
Switching over to the distorted tones brought me to where I expected the guitar to excel. The stock pickups were surprisingly articulate and clear even at higher gain settings, and they offered some great overtones and harmonics that really sang with definition. The neck pickup is great for smooth Yngwie esque lead passages, and the bridge pickup is excellent for everything from riff rock to Paul Gilbert esque lead figures to some heavier metal items. Surprisingly, the coil split modes sounded very cool with distortion - much like a Strat on steroids.
OVERALL OPINION
All in all I think the Ibanez Premium line of guitars is a great choice for the musician who wants a high performance and versatile guitar with the classic Ibanez feel and tone, but doesn't want to spend a whole lot of cash. At about $850 new, these guitars are a fantastic deal, and are really not far behind a Prestige in terms of quality and tone. Definitely worth looking into!
SPECS
Neck Material: 5pc Maple/ Walnut
Neck Type: Wizard Premium
Body: American Basswood body
Frets: Jumbo frets
Fingerboard: Bound Rosewood
Inlay: Off-set dot inlay
Bridge: Edge Zero II bridge w/ZPS3Fe
NeckPU: CAP VM1
MiddlePU: CAP VM1S
BridgePU: CAP VM2
HW Color: CK
UTILIZATION
The design of this guitar is just as ergonomic as any Ibanez RG that I've played. The body is extremely sculpted and ergonomic in its design, perfect for players who crave great access all around. The cutways allow full reach to all 24 frets and the ample body contouring provides a great guitar that sits very well on the body and feels comfortable to play for a long period of time. It's very light weight (like many RGs) and the upper fret access is impeccable.
Getting a good sound out of this guitar is fairly easy, and I was actually quite surprised at how easy it was to get a whole variety of tones out of this guitar. Because it has the middle single coil and a 5 way switch in addition to the dual humbuckers, there is so much extra versatility that many superstrats don't offer. Pristine clean tones? Got 'em! Bone crunching metal rhythms? Done. Soaring sailing lead sounds? Oh yeah! It's a great guitar for the working musician who wants a superstrat that does many different sounds for sure.
SOUNDS
I've tried this guitar through a Hughes and Kettner Switchblade 100 which is a great amplifier for hearing sounds from very clean to very high gain. The clean sounds from this guitar were definitely a highlight. It has a decidedly Stratty texture that is especially apparent in positions 2 and 4 on the selector switch. That wonderful glassy, quacky sound that makes a Strat so wonderful is here in this guitar and is something I definitely appreciated when playing clean tones. The humbuckers provided a thicker and darker tone that worked well for jazzier or bluesier textures where more low end would help. It's not the most gutsy sounding guitar ever, but it sounds decent for some facsimile blues.
Switching over to the distorted tones brought me to where I expected the guitar to excel. The stock pickups were surprisingly articulate and clear even at higher gain settings, and they offered some great overtones and harmonics that really sang with definition. The neck pickup is great for smooth Yngwie esque lead passages, and the bridge pickup is excellent for everything from riff rock to Paul Gilbert esque lead figures to some heavier metal items. Surprisingly, the coil split modes sounded very cool with distortion - much like a Strat on steroids.
OVERALL OPINION
All in all I think the Ibanez Premium line of guitars is a great choice for the musician who wants a high performance and versatile guitar with the classic Ibanez feel and tone, but doesn't want to spend a whole lot of cash. At about $850 new, these guitars are a fantastic deal, and are really not far behind a Prestige in terms of quality and tone. Definitely worth looking into!