JC8STRINGMADNESS
New Member
IBANEZ RG2228
I bought this guitar over a year ago and as I have just signed up to Sevenstring.org I thought I would review it.
I am not the most technical guy so if you are expecting an in depth review about the scale and pick up wiring I am afraid you wont find it here. I just play because I love it & can only tell you my preference and how it feels to play this guitar
Ok so I decided to buy an 8 String guitar after listening to After the Burials Album Rareform and having a love of Ibanez I knew the RG2228 was the way to go, trouble was no guitar shops in my area stocked them. So I had to buy it online without even playing it first a worrying thing to do when spending that sort of money on a guitar what if I dont like it?
Arrival: It arrived and I was greeted by a sturdy Ibanez Hard Case. It looks great! I know its only a case but it gives a professional look. Opening the case you are hit with the smell of new guitar and laying in the middle is my new messiah
The inside of the case is a black velvet fur well cushioned and it holds the guitar firmly in place so no away of it getting damaged in the case.
Guitar
1st Impressions: Wow this was one sexy beast of a guitar
1st thing you say is my what a big neck you have the 2nd Thank fuck its not as heavy as a Gibson
It feels great. It is well weighted and hangs around your neck comfortably. The Volume and Tone Controls are in the standard place for an RG so is the Pick-up selector Switch easy access to all. The bridge is one meaty chunk of metal but feels comfortable when you palm mute and although you have 8 strings running through it, it doesnt feel that bad.
The Finish: The RG2228 Comes in one colour (well it did when I bought it) Galaxy Black and to be honest it is amazing. I have never been a fan of black guitars but this is something else. Through the black is a stardust type glitter effect and when the light catches it makes the guitar almost change colour and stand out more. The EMG 808 are standard blacked out Pick-ups and flow with the guitars style. The Neck has standard dot inlays. The Headstock is a standard Ibanez Headstock just adapted for 8 machine heads. At first I wasnt keen on the look of it but it soon grew on me. The Ibanez Prestige is inlayed in a white marble effect.
Playability: Before I played the 8 String I was told to play 7 Strings for a while to get used to the width of the neck and the scale. I never played 7 strings, I jumped straight from 6 to 8 and had no problems at all and I have stubby fingers. Being an Ibanez it has the Wizard neck so it is thinner, when you get to the 12th fret you can easily go from string 8 to 1 without over stretching yourself. This makes it great for Shred.
When you get to the low end of the guitar it feels like any other guitar you really dont have to stretch far, the height of the strings is just right as you would expect and they are well spaced out.
Sound: The RG2228 is equipped with EMG 808 pick-ups and they do one hell of a job. If you select the bride pick up you can shred some dirty sounding pentatonic in the Neck you get a silky full bodied sound that you can use for arpeggios and sweep picking.
My new Messiah is really starting to live up to expectation.
Now comes the only problem with this guitar and it is probably the biggest problem we could have had. When shredding through low end fast furious riffs the notes just seemed to blending together into an inaudible mush! I was gutted all I could think was how do these guys in ATB get such a clear sound?
Now as I said I am not the most technical guy, to be honest I am a bit off a metal head meat bag! My philosophy has always been Turn up the overdrive and let rip!!!!!!!!!!
On the 8 String you dont need to do this and if you do you get the same problem I had, just dial down the gain or get a noise suppressor and you will soon be able to rip through any riff at the low end and it will flow through your amp clear as day.
My Messiah hadnt forsaken me! I was being a dumbass
Overall: This guitar is amazing! I really cant praise it enough. The playability is awesome, the sound is great! The power of the EMG 808 is perfect for this guitar. The only thing I would add to this guitar is a kill switch but that is just my preference.
Even though you have 2 extra strings it really does play similar to a normal 6 string thanks to the wizard neck. I have recently played an ESP 8 String but to be honest it had nothing on the Ibanez. I have owned ESP in the past and like them but the 8 string just didnt feel as comfortable or sound as good as the Ibanez.
If you are getting an 8 string or thinking about it then you should seriously consider the RG2228. I know it is a bit more expensive but it is worth every penny.
I bought this guitar over a year ago and as I have just signed up to Sevenstring.org I thought I would review it.
I am not the most technical guy so if you are expecting an in depth review about the scale and pick up wiring I am afraid you wont find it here. I just play because I love it & can only tell you my preference and how it feels to play this guitar
Ok so I decided to buy an 8 String guitar after listening to After the Burials Album Rareform and having a love of Ibanez I knew the RG2228 was the way to go, trouble was no guitar shops in my area stocked them. So I had to buy it online without even playing it first a worrying thing to do when spending that sort of money on a guitar what if I dont like it?
Arrival: It arrived and I was greeted by a sturdy Ibanez Hard Case. It looks great! I know its only a case but it gives a professional look. Opening the case you are hit with the smell of new guitar and laying in the middle is my new messiah
The inside of the case is a black velvet fur well cushioned and it holds the guitar firmly in place so no away of it getting damaged in the case.
Guitar
1st Impressions: Wow this was one sexy beast of a guitar
1st thing you say is my what a big neck you have the 2nd Thank fuck its not as heavy as a Gibson
It feels great. It is well weighted and hangs around your neck comfortably. The Volume and Tone Controls are in the standard place for an RG so is the Pick-up selector Switch easy access to all. The bridge is one meaty chunk of metal but feels comfortable when you palm mute and although you have 8 strings running through it, it doesnt feel that bad.
The Finish: The RG2228 Comes in one colour (well it did when I bought it) Galaxy Black and to be honest it is amazing. I have never been a fan of black guitars but this is something else. Through the black is a stardust type glitter effect and when the light catches it makes the guitar almost change colour and stand out more. The EMG 808 are standard blacked out Pick-ups and flow with the guitars style. The Neck has standard dot inlays. The Headstock is a standard Ibanez Headstock just adapted for 8 machine heads. At first I wasnt keen on the look of it but it soon grew on me. The Ibanez Prestige is inlayed in a white marble effect.
Playability: Before I played the 8 String I was told to play 7 Strings for a while to get used to the width of the neck and the scale. I never played 7 strings, I jumped straight from 6 to 8 and had no problems at all and I have stubby fingers. Being an Ibanez it has the Wizard neck so it is thinner, when you get to the 12th fret you can easily go from string 8 to 1 without over stretching yourself. This makes it great for Shred.
When you get to the low end of the guitar it feels like any other guitar you really dont have to stretch far, the height of the strings is just right as you would expect and they are well spaced out.
Sound: The RG2228 is equipped with EMG 808 pick-ups and they do one hell of a job. If you select the bride pick up you can shred some dirty sounding pentatonic in the Neck you get a silky full bodied sound that you can use for arpeggios and sweep picking.
My new Messiah
is really starting to live up to expectation.Now comes the only problem with this guitar and it is probably the biggest problem we could have had. When shredding through low end fast furious riffs the notes just seemed to blending together into an inaudible mush! I was gutted all I could think was how do these guys in ATB get such a clear sound?
Now as I said I am not the most technical guy, to be honest I am a bit off a metal head meat bag! My philosophy has always been Turn up the overdrive and let rip!!!!!!!!!!
On the 8 String you dont need to do this and if you do you get the same problem I had, just dial down the gain or get a noise suppressor and you will soon be able to rip through any riff at the low end and it will flow through your amp clear as day.
My Messiah
hadnt forsaken me! I was being a dumbassOverall: This guitar is amazing! I really cant praise it enough. The playability is awesome, the sound is great! The power of the EMG 808 is perfect for this guitar. The only thing I would add to this guitar is a kill switch but that is just my preference.
Even though you have 2 extra strings it really does play similar to a normal 6 string thanks to the wizard neck. I have recently played an ESP 8 String but to be honest it had nothing on the Ibanez. I have owned ESP in the past and like them but the 8 string just didnt feel as comfortable or sound as good as the Ibanez.
If you are getting an 8 string or thinking about it then you should seriously consider the RG2228. I know it is a bit more expensive but it is worth every penny.
