Broken RGA8... but with a happy ending.

[enForce1]

So I was adjusting the bridge one day and the unthinkable (or fairly obvious) happened:

Sadly the warranty period had ended and the bridge incident happened due to improper adjusting and lack of common sense at the moment. Also, when I was adjusting intonation for the lower E string and fastening the bridge saddle's bolt some of the thread got chewed out of the hole. It's been 2 months since these things happened but I've still played it.

I'm not really the DIY guy when it comes to musical instruments so just yesterday I took the guitar to this music shop nearby and asked if it could still be saved. They were real quick because today I went and picked up the guitar. I'm so stoked about this.

The bridge is now supported by a wooden plate (I think) so it stays flat with all the string tension. The action is also perfect now that it's properly set up. I had problems getting the action right by myself but as it was discovered, the neck is a bit warped (there's some hump on the treble side and arc on the bass side). No wonder I couldn't get good action and my G string kept buzzing no matter what I tried. So the guitar tech ended up sanding the frets as they were a bit rough on the edges to begin with.

So now I have my RGA8 with the bridge repaired, almost as low action as on my RG550 (which is very comfortable to play) and intonation adjusted to perfection. And all this with a reasonable price. Couldn't ask for more.

Oh, wait... the pickups. I'll have to postpone those for an undefined amount of time.
But thanks for reading if you made it this far

 

[Barney]

What gauge strings do you use and what's the tuning? - thx.

 

[enForce1]

What gauge strings do you use and what's the tuning? - thx.

from low to high: 074-059-046-036-026-016-011-009
it's actually a set of D'Addario EXL125's plus 2 singles.

And it's the standard tuning: F#BEADGBe

 

[Steve-Om]

its great you were able to get it fixed!!

this is probably the only reason Im not even considering getting an RGA8

hopefully ibanez fixes this

 

[simonXsludge]

hopefully ibanez fixes this

as far as i'm concerned it has been fixed in the meantime. the 2011 RGA8 run comes with a facelift, too...would be pointless for ibanez not to take the chance and fix the known issue in that regard.

 

[Steve-Om]

well if they did resolve that issue I might consider getting one....do you think they will update the info on their site soon ?

 

[astm]

great to read that they fixed it!

Now you must wait to buy some DiMarzio 8 pickups when they come out!!!

 

[aleXander]

Glad there was a happy ending!!
Loved mine to death
Seymour Duncan Blackouts is what I would shoot for with pickups

 

[enForce1]

great to read that they fixed it!

Now you must wait to buy some DiMarzio 8 pickups when they come out!!!

I really like the DiMarzios on my strat so it would be only a logical choice. Just googled that some stores have a 8-string D-Activator available to preorder. I wonder how's that going to sound.

Glad there was a happy ending!!
Loved mine to death
Seymour Duncan Blackouts is what I would shoot for with pickups

I haven't used actives before RGA8 as my other guitars have passives so I'm not really sure which pu's should I have for replacement. I was thinking BKP's but now that DiMarzio is going to make 8 string pups, I still need some time to think. BTW do you have experience of Blackouts in a mahogany body?

 

[Kali Yuga]

So, how does this happen exactly? I just got an RGA8 and I'm kind of scared to adjust the bridge after seeing all the complaints about this problem. Is it from bringing the bridge too high from the body?

 

[Dayn]

From what I've read around here, I think the screw hole wasn't drilled deep enough on the first runs of the RGA8? So when you do the stupid thing by not loosening that bolt when you raise the bridge, it would, quite predictably, not be good for it (which I've done once on my RG2228 before realising what horror I was inflicting on it). And of course, doing it on the first runs of RGA8s meant you'd most likely rip the screw out.

 

[enForce1]

So, how does this happen exactly? I just got an RGA8 and I'm kind of scared to adjust the bridge after seeing all the complaints about this problem. Is it from bringing the bridge too high from the body?

It won't happen if you do it correctly. I raised the bridge too high from the 2 large bolts on the sides and didn't remember to raise the rear bolt accordingly (sorry for my bad grammar, hope you understand). Best way to do it is to adjust in small increments, like a quarter or half a turn at a time on all three bolts. And when raising the bridge I recommend turning the rear bolt first, then the 2 big ones.

The thing about the EDGE-III FX bridge design seems to be that the bridge is 'floating' but is being 'fixed' by the fine balance of string tension and that rear bolt. So the little rear bolt has to withstand quite a lot of force (much like the springs on a normal floating system) if you think about it and that's why it's so important not to stress it too much.

 

[heilarkyguitar]

I have the blackout in my brj 7 . Sound amazing...

 

[Kali Yuga]

It won't happen if you do it correctly. I raised the bridge too high from the 2 large bolts on the sides and didn't remember to raise the rear bolt accordingly (sorry for my bad grammar, hope you understand). Best way to do it is to adjust in small increments, like a quarter or half a turn at a time on all three bolts. And when raising the bridge I recommend turning the rear bolt first, then the 2 big ones.

The thing about the EDGE-III FX bridge design seems to be that the bridge is 'floating' but is being 'fixed' by the fine balance of string tension and that rear bolt. So the little rear bolt has to withstand quite a lot of force (much like the springs on a normal floating system) if you think about it and that's why it's so important not to stress it too much.

That all makes sense. Thanks a million.

 

[CONTEMPT]

Seymour Duncan Blackouts is what I would shoot for with pickups

 

[enForce1]

Glad there was a happy ending!!
Loved mine to death
Seymour Duncan Blackouts is what I would shoot for with pickups

There seems to be a lot of positive thoughts on RGA8+Blackouts combination. And a set of those would end up like 80+€ cheaper than BKP's.

I'm used to playing passives so does a Blackout offer a good dynamic range as well as tight low end even on 8th string? Oh, and how's playing maj7/add9 chords with a dirty sound (Periphery style)? The stock pu's sound kinda compressed, especially when I'm doing solo stuff.

Btw I like the direction this discussion is heading

 

[saovi]

Glad there was a happy ending to this. Wow what a mind hack having to deal with that beforehand!

 

[AscendingMatt]

This just happened to me as well. Im pissed.