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Hatsubai « Very thick sounding »
Published on 10/02/11 at 15:39For anybody out there who has been complaining that the neck-thru Jackson are a bit too bright, this is the guitar for you. Instead of the standard maple design, they decided to utilize mahogany instead, and it makes a really big difference in terms of how the overall guitar sounds. The guitar features a mahogany body with a flame maple top, a mahogany neck-thru design, an ebony fretboard with 24 extra jumbo frets, sharkfin inlays, an original floyd rose, two humbucker configuration, one volume, one tone and a three way switch.
UTILIZATION
The flame on this was very tight and bookmatched nicely. It looked like most standard flames tend to. The transparent finish wasn't exactly my favorite on this as it seems to be a bit too plain looking, but it did a nice job at showing off how the flame truly looks. The fretwork on this was very good, as most USA Jacksons tend to be. The ends were rounded off nicely, and the frets had a very nice crown to them. The guitar had an original floyd rose installed in it, and this happens to be one of my favorite bridges in the entire world. It's super stable, sounds great, flutters nicely and just feels perfect to me. I know a lot of people hate these, but it just seems to really fit on this thing.
SOUNDS
The guitar sounds very thick when compared to the other Jacksons out there. The guitar came equipped with a Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge and a Seymour Duncan 59 in the neck. The JB in the bridge is one of the most versatile pickups out there. It's tight enough to do metal but loose and old-school enough to do blues with the twist of the volume knob. Sometimes the JB can be a bit bright, but it really worked nicely in this guitar. The 59 in the neck was great for those super smooth lead tones. However, it had just enough bite to where it remains clear under super fast picking. I was able to get a great clean tone with this, as well. A twist of the tone knob nets a VERY fat sound that can make any legato lover fall in love.
OVERALL OPINION
This is probably my favorite configuration for Jackson Soloists. These guitars are very thick sounding, and the maple top helps balance everything out. The guitar felt nice, although I tend to prefer the Dinky's neck to this one. I like to have unfinished necks, and this can be a bit sticky at times when you start to really sweat on stage. Overall, very solid guitar, and I'm sure anybody would be happy with this thing.
UTILIZATION
The flame on this was very tight and bookmatched nicely. It looked like most standard flames tend to. The transparent finish wasn't exactly my favorite on this as it seems to be a bit too plain looking, but it did a nice job at showing off how the flame truly looks. The fretwork on this was very good, as most USA Jacksons tend to be. The ends were rounded off nicely, and the frets had a very nice crown to them. The guitar had an original floyd rose installed in it, and this happens to be one of my favorite bridges in the entire world. It's super stable, sounds great, flutters nicely and just feels perfect to me. I know a lot of people hate these, but it just seems to really fit on this thing.
SOUNDS
The guitar sounds very thick when compared to the other Jacksons out there. The guitar came equipped with a Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge and a Seymour Duncan 59 in the neck. The JB in the bridge is one of the most versatile pickups out there. It's tight enough to do metal but loose and old-school enough to do blues with the twist of the volume knob. Sometimes the JB can be a bit bright, but it really worked nicely in this guitar. The 59 in the neck was great for those super smooth lead tones. However, it had just enough bite to where it remains clear under super fast picking. I was able to get a great clean tone with this, as well. A twist of the tone knob nets a VERY fat sound that can make any legato lover fall in love.
OVERALL OPINION
This is probably my favorite configuration for Jackson Soloists. These guitars are very thick sounding, and the maple top helps balance everything out. The guitar felt nice, although I tend to prefer the Dinky's neck to this one. I like to have unfinished necks, and this can be a bit sticky at times when you start to really sweat on stage. Overall, very solid guitar, and I'm sure anybody would be happy with this thing.