Ibanez Prestige or Iron Label

[Bouvre]

So I'm stuck between getting an Ibanez Prestige RG652FX or a SIX70FDBG


regardless of the model i end up getting i plan on putting some SD JB/59 pups in.
I play death metal so the mahogany body and bubinga top on the Iron Label may be a little bit more beneficial for the sake of tone, but the playability and consistency in quality from the Prestige comes into play as well. So that's where im stuck, sacrifice playability for slightly better tone woods or the opposite.
Would be cool to hear some feedback from you guys!
Thanks!

 

[feraledge]

Prestige. No question about it.

 

[SoItGoesRVA]

Prestige a million times over

 

[Bouvre]

Prestige. No question about it.

Tone woods wouldnt make that big a difference you guys think?

 

[feraledge]

Tone woods wouldnt make that big a difference you guys think?

Cheap mahogany versus good basswood. The RG will be a bit brighter, but there are a multitude of examples of folks getting Ibanez guitars to sound heavy if that's what you're worried about.

 

[AliceLG]

Prestige. No question about it.

Hard not to agree with that. If you can afford the Prestige, there's really no question about this.

 

[AkiraSpectrum]

prestige.

 

[Bouvre]

Cheap mahogany versus good basswood. The RG will be a bit brighter, but there are a multitude of examples of folks getting Ibanez guitars to sound heavy if that's what you're worried about.

Awesome, thanks man!

 

[pushpull7]

I think you deserve a prestige. It's important to have at least one JMM in your lifetime, don't you think?

 

[Dan]

I've got an iron label that sounds better than most of the prestiges that i've owned

Best thing you can do is play the instruments you are looking at and find out which one works best for you.

 

[Andromalia]

Specs>Model.

Do you want an S with a middle pickup or a RG ? The iron label is supposed to be lower quality but you can have it polished by a tech with the leftover money and it will play well.

 

[SaturdayMorningSnuff]

Prestige...my wife broke mine. Divorce followed shortly after.

 

[XeoFLCL]

I'm sorry to jump on the bandwagon but the prestige definitely. I can attest that the iron label sabre models are amazing in themselves, I have a SIR27FD myself.. but yeah, they just can't top the Prestige line.

 

[Jake]

This isn't even a tough one, prestige all day.

For reference check my sig

 

[IbbyN8]

Do I even need to say it? Obviously Prestige!!!

By-the-way I'm in L.A. too. Where are you buying from?

 

[big_aug]

Probably can't really go wrong no matter what you pick when it comes to Ibanez. I've always had good experiences even with their non-prestige models and even some of the really low end cheaper models.

 

[ibanice]

The Premium's is also something you could look at. Very close to the prestige guitars if you ask me.

 

[Erockomania]

Prestige. Better fret work, woods and much better attention to detail.

A touch off topic but you mentioned it ... Why the SD Jb/59 combo for death metal? Just curious. I find it far too loose and muddy for articulate metal, but that's just my experience.

 

[astralsearcher]

ive had a jb/59 in my rg2020 for 14 years and it has always sounded tits. i used to use a dual rec with a few effects or an intellifex and that shit is seriously heavy but still articulate.

 

[pushpull7]

The Premium's is also something you could look at. Very close to the prestige guitars if you ask me.

I don't agree. Though I'm not a world-class guitarist, I think I've become a reasonably good eye for guitar quality (though It's taken some trial and error)

The "premium" guitars I've had, regardless of pup change, didn't sound right. The fretwork was not terrible, but they all needed the ends redone.

On the other hand, the 1520 I have right next to me is a solid build. It breaths, has fantastic fretwork, and is a tribute to Japan craftsmanship.

It's not the the premiums I once had (I still have my 1405 bass) were not any good, I just think that they were quite noticeably below my team j-craft.