Jackson DKXT Dinky

Model Name: Dinky™ DKXT
Series: X Series
Color / MSRP* / Part # :
Black
$599.99
291-6100-503
Snow White
$599.99
291-6100-576
Transparent Red
$666.65
291-6100-590
products specs body
Body: (503, 590) Basswood
(576) Basswood (with Quilt Maple Veneer on Transparent Color only)
Body Shape: Dinky™
Body Finish:
(2916100503, 2916100590)
Polyester
2916100576
Polyurethane
products specs neck
Neck Shape: Bolt-On Maple Speed Neck with Tilt-Back Scarf Joint Headstock
Number of Frets: 24
Fret Size: Jumbo
Position Inlays: Pearloid Sharkfin
Fretboard Radius: 12” to 16” Compound Radius (304.8 mm to 406.4 mm)
Fretboard: Rosewood
Neck Material: Maple
Nut Width: 1.6875" (43 mm)
Scale Length: 25.5" (64.8 cm)
Headstock: Jackson® Pointed 6 In-Line
products specs electronics
Pickup Configuration: H/H
Bridge Pickup: EMG® HZ H4-B Pickup (Bridge)
Neck Pickup: EMG® HZ H4-AN Pickup (Neck)
Pickup Switching: 3-Position Blade: Position 1: Neck Pickup, Position 2: Neck and Bridge Pickup, Position 3: Bridge Pickup
products specs hardware
Bridge: TonePros® Fully Adjustable Bridge with Through-Body Strings
Tuning Machines: Sealed Die-Cast Tuners
products specs miscellaneous
Strings: NPS, Gauges: .009, .011, .016, .024, .032, .042
Unique Features: Arched Top, Tone Pros® Bridge, EMG® HZ Pickups
products specs accessories
Control Knobs: Metal Dome, Black Knurl

UTILIZATION

It's a Jackson, so it plays like a Ferrari drives - FAST. The string action is impeccable, and the fretwork is really nice for this price area. The sharkfin inlays are mega-cool, as is the pointy Jackson headstock. The tuners are very stable - I didn't have to re-tune once in an hour and a half of extreme shredding and bends! The fact that this axe has a TonePros bridge and a through-the-body stringing increases the sustain a lot, so it's a big, powerful-feeling guitar to play. And the quilted veneer with the transparent red finish is just breath-taking!

SOUNDS

It sounds good, but it doesn't sound as good as it plays or looks. The EMG HZ pickups are a bit weak to my ears. I adjusted the height upward, to try and get more power from the strings, but it didn't do a whole lot for the tone. It's not that the pickups sound bad - they still sound better than most in this price range - I just thought that since the guitar plays sooooo well and has gorgeous cosmetics, this is just a tad lacking. The sounds are great for metal and rock, even jazz fusion, but I'd still think about replacing these pickups with some good Seymour Duncans.

OVERALL OPINION

Overall, this is a very good instrument. Any shredders wanting to get serious with a step-up instrument ought to consider this Jackson very seriously. With 24 frets, great natural resonance and acoustic sustain, and some decent pickups, this is a nice instrument to develop the finer points of advanced guitar techniques. With just a bit more money put into this, namely in the area of some better pickups, this guitar could be absolutely scary good. 8 out of 10.

This is another version of the new X series that Jackson has been working on reviving. They're working on bringing back budget minded guitars that are a bit higher quality than the previous models that they used to release. I don't think they have the magic that the old 90s ones did, but they're not too bad. The guitar features a basswood body with a maple veneer top, a maple neck with a rosewood fretboard, 24 extra jumbo frets with sharkfin inlays, a hard tail bridge, two humbuckers, one volume, one tone and a three way switch.

UTILIZATION

The quality on these guitars is pretty good. Despite the top being a veneer, it looks pretty nice. That's pretty much the only thing that matters to a lot of people. The fretwork on this is surprisingly good for the price. I was able to get some pretty good action on this, and while the frets weren't perfect, they were still pretty good. The ends were nicely beveled so they didn't slice my hand all the time, too. The nut was cut decently, but it could have been done a bit better, in my opinion. The guitar has a hard tail bridge, and while I'm not a big fan of them, I prefer them to the lower quality licensed floyds that Jackson tends to use on these guitars.

SOUNDS

This is where the guitar is a bit lacking, and unfortunately, this is where it matters more than anything else. The guitar has EMG HZ pickups. These are passive pickups that are meant to be somewhat in the vein of the active counterparts. In reality, they don't sound good as a passive, and they don't come close to sounding like the active brothers. Instead, you have this real anemic kind of sound that just doesn't seem to work in anything. With better pickups, this guitar would probably have sounded a lot better. You could tell it resonated nicely, so it's not that the issue was part of the guitar itself. It's just that the pickups that came in this were a bit lacking.

OVERALL OPINION

I'm not sure why Jackson decided to put the HZ series in this guitar when they have real EMGs in some of the other X series that they have. Maybe it was a budget issue. Either way, the guitar is pretty good. Just realize that it could probably use a good setup once you get it, and I would recommend swapping the pickups for something a bit better.

This is the Dinky model from Jacksons new X series line of guitars. The X series is a new midlevel line of Jackson guitars. I think they are taking the place of the PRO series. They are above the JS series and have a lot of the same features as the USA Select guitars. All the models are neck through apart from this guitar because it is the Dinky model and that is always bolt on. This guitar is very similar to the old Pro Series DK2T. This guitar comes with a basswood body. The bolt on neck is maple with a rosewood fretboard. The fretboard is the Jackson compound radius design with 24 jumbo frets. There are non locking tuners up top but a tonepros tune-o-matic bridge and string through tailpiece which is nice. The pickups are a set of passive EMG HZ pickups. Controls are simple with a volume and tone with a 3 way blade.

UTILIZATION

This guitar doesnt have the fit and finish of a USA made Jackson but it is better than a lot of the foreign made lower end Jacksons. Because the guitar is bolt on construction it will have a heel at the neck joint unlike the higher end Jacksons that are neck through. Jackson has done their best to make sure the heel does not get in the way. They have recessed the heel and the back of the guitar. The jumbo frets let you get a nice action and the compound radius fretboard means that you can comfortably play on both ends of the neck. Unlike on the neck through Jacksons this guitars bolt on neck means you get a bare neck. Many people prefer the feel of bare wood to a finished neck. A finished neck can sometimes get sticky as you play the guitar and sweat. Because of the hardtail bridge you get rock solid tuning stability and reliability. Them putting a Tonepros bridge on this guitar shows they want to go the extra mile.

SOUNDS

The main problem I have with this guitar is the pickups. EMG HZ pickups are not good at all and they are nothing like the fully active EMG's you find in most guitars. That is a problem with this new Jackson X series line. Some guitars come with active EMG's and some come with passive EMG's. You really have to pay attention when you are picking out one from the series. The HZ pickups are not good. They have a ton of fuzz but no body. Its like half of an active EMG. You get all the top end grind but none of the beef so they just come across sounding harsh and thin.

OVERALL OPINION

If this guitar came with real EMG's it would be a great hardtail shred guitar. With the passive EMG pickups the sound is insufficient. I dont know why they have passives on this guitar but other guitars in the same series come with active EMG's. IF they can put actives on some why not all. Other than this it is a good guitar. Its just begging for a pickup swap. The X series is a good idea. With all the other models being neck through they say its the cheapest neck though guitars they have ever produced. With the USA made Jacksons being so expensive these new midlevel X series guitars are a good option to people who want a good Jackson but cant rationalize spending a couple thousand dollars on a guitar.