Jackson Pro DKA7 Don't Buy it. Heres Why...

[Weapon Sett Seven]

Hey guys,

Got my hands on the DKA7, from Namm 2013. I know a lot of people have been very interested in this. So I thought I would post about it for all you guys who are considering it. I wouldn't buy it...Here is why....

Manufacturing:

This guitar was not built or designed by anyone who really knows 7 strings. They used Alder, which is fine...but Jackson scooped so much out of the body in shaping it, that they killed a lot of tonal resonance. My bridge had two saddle set fasteners that were stripped out. The nut was cut off center, so the string spacing was inconsistent and the low 7th would roll off the neck, while the high end had plenty of room. Also, the tone/volume knobs were wired incorrectly, and there was no volume at all. Just two tone knobs essentially. The one I saw at NAMM was supposed to have volume and tone.

Set up:

The action was silly low, playing that thing through my Axe-fx was noisy and full of fret buzz and string feedback. Clearly no one set this up to be played, like most 7 strings are played. The intonation was terribly off and the "feel" of the guitar was slow and flimsy.

Tone:

This is the worst part, we all play 7's for that tone...even if the guitar sucks, the tone can save it. But alas....this was not true. The tone was concentrated in the upper mids. There was no low end at all, and even playing this thing through my old Pod XT with the Line 6 BBE I could not get any decent low end. In my experience, you can add mids and high end to a guitar, but if there is no low end....you really can't make it sound...proper. (IMHO). The high end and middle were ok, average sounding, still too bright for my taste but decent. I attribute the loss of low end to Alder, and far too much material removed from the body.

All in all, I'm just writing this for everyone to know. I called and spoke with the nice people at Jackson and they were very upset to hear my review, and apologized and said they would look into it, so they may be getting better. I was very excited for this guitar and I think I got the 4th one ever made, so it could be early in the process and they need to "tweak" the design. Once again this is just my opinion, I just thought you guys would want to hear a review.

Stick with Basswood. I find my favorite sevens are Basswood, bolt on neck and careful pickup selection (pickups vary from guitar to guitar, as each one is different and needs different "tweaks" to bring out my favorite attributes)

Regards,

-Weapon Sett Seven

 

[Allealex]

Well it might be a bad lemon, have you tried any other DKA 7?

 

[Weapon Sett Seven]

I played the one at NAMM, noted some similar issues and was told that it still wasn't finished. I have heard that many orders have been cancelled and returned....

I think if it was changed and altered it would play a littler better and be set up correctly, but the tone will likely not change. Also, for a limited run model with close to 1000$ price tag....It should sound pretty damn good out of the box. (IMHO)


-Weapon Sett Seven

 

[jephjacques]

Sounds like you got a lemon to me. Also alder sounds fine in a properly built seven, I seriously doubt the wood is to blame or people like Suhr, Anderson, etc wouldn't use it.

 

[Dan]

Just a thought, did you ever think about setting up the guitar? I mean, as soon as i get an instrument i make sure everything is wired correctly, fix the intonation address any fret dressing i need to do etc. If it was just an off the shelf NAMM purchase then odds are it wasn't set up, it was just there for eye candy.

I've played several Jacksons from entry level through to custom shop and i know from first hand experience they can produce amazing work. Like the guy said previously you might not have a great item, as odds are it was a prototype guitar for the run and some of the issues you are having might have been addressed after the final run began. There's a million possibilities.

 

[Dan]

Also, for a limited run model with close to 1000$ price tag....It should sound pretty damn good out of the box. (IMHO)


-Weapon Sett Seven

If you can find some packaging that can keep a guitar perfectly in tune and intonated through shipping then you sir, can take all my money . In the real world that doesn't happen dude. Thats why guitar shops usually have a guy in house who sets up the instruments before they go on the shelf.

 

[LolloBlaskhyrt]

I agree with Allealex. But now I want to try a DKA7

 

[Rotatous]

Stick with Basswood. I find my favorite sevens are Basswood, bolt on neck and careful pickup selection (pickups vary from guitar to guitar, as each one is different and needs different "tweaks" to bring out my favorite attributes)

It really does just sound like it hadn't been set up properly/you got a lemon.

Alder is a perfectly good tonewood to use on a seven string, just because you like basswood doesn't mean every seven should be made of it. Personally I would much rather have alder over basswood. You probably should've just gone with what you know and bought something made of basswood with a bolt on neck

 

[sakeido]

I have a DKA8 and it is great. This is just your guitar, a lemon. Mine wasn't perfectly setup when I got it either but only a few small tweaks was all it needed... and I would never buy another basswood bodied guitar unless I wanted a really weak tone

 

[Valennic]

Yeah, I got a DKA8 and out of the box it was set up like ass. Felt weird, string spacing was off, and the neck was too low at the neck joint. The saddles were all at the same level, and the action wasn't set on any of the strings. I set it up, and now it's flawless. It only took about 30 minutes. That's it.

You have to understand, these come straight from the factory floor. They're NOT going to be set up right. That's not a thing they do there. As far as the tone goes, thats entirely subjective. How much wood they remove isn't going to affect the tone, and you obviously just don't like Alder as a tone wood. You can't really judge a guitar until you've got it set up man. I think you jumped the gun pretty hard on this review.

 

[Weapon Sett Seven]

Like I said, this is my opinion.

And I have ordered/owned and played many guitars that come from the custom shops, or factory floor, or even guitar center. And I have to say...This was the worst, by far. Of course I set it up and spent time with it. In all I'd say I spent most of a day playing with the guitar, when compared to other guitars it's a clear difference.

I've owned Jackson guitars and they make great stuff. No complaints about the company, this was just a review as I haven't heard anyone who has actually played one yet, and many people were discussing what the guitar is like.

Alder is a great wood, I just don't prefer it. Like I said before, I think there was too much material removed from the body. In order to have a good solid tone, there needs to be sufficient material in the body...I just think they removed too much. I have played plenty of alder guitars and they generally sound good, this was an exception.

Not everyone has $$ to spend on 7's. I wrote this so that people who wanted to know what they were like had an idea. I was probably more bummed out than anyone, as I have been waiting to try this thing for 7 months.

-Weapon Sett Seven

 

[Weapon Sett Seven]

How much wood they remove isn't going to affect the tone, and you obviously just don't like Alder as a tone wood.

Pickups are not the only source of tone from a guitar. The amount of wood, quality, density, shape, chambering (if any) can change the sound of an electric guitar in many ways. This is why so many guitars made from similar materials can sound so different. I would suggest researching resonance.

-Weapon Sett Seven

 

[McBonez]

I think the issue is that you wrote a lot of this in a factual sense, as opposed to it simply being your opinion.

I mean no offense in saying this, just keep that in mind for future reviews

 

[Black Mamba]

A lot of what you're complaining about seems like personal preference: body wood, pickups/overall tone of the instrument, action (FWIW; I don't know if I've ever played a guitar out of the box that didn't need some sort of setup).

As for the bridge, off center nut, and the incorrect wiring of the volume/tone knobs, I'm sorry to hear that.

 

[Rev2010]

The amount of wood, quality, density, shape, chambering (if any) can change the sound of an electric guitar in many ways.

So then by your reasoning a Jackson Rhoads V with a standard recessed Floyd and active EMG's should sound poor because it has less body wood with the offset V shape and routes.

Not.


Rev.

 

[feraledge]

I played the one at NAMM, noted some similar issues and was told that it still wasn't finished.

That's a pretty good out...
I wouldn't want someone telling me my album sucked because the tone on the demo version wasn't good enough.

 

[mcd]

meh, pretty sure you have a lemon. Are they replacing it?

 

[Tysonimmortal]

Dude, if I got a $1000 guitar in from shipping - with a ....ed up nut, volume knob wiring, and ANY screw on the thing stripped out - I'd be major pissed too. Can you get a refund?

 

[ElasticPancakes]

I have one on order, will make sure to give it a thorough inspection as soon as I get it. I ordered mine quite late so perhaps if there are issues, they will be fixed by the time it gets to me.

We will see. If anything, thanks for the heads up.

 

[Jonathan20022]

First off, Basswood and Alder don't sound bad. I don't know how that kind of info spreads but it's total and utter bullshit, people seem to be obsessed with the fact that certain tonewoods are total and utter shit.

Basswood is great, I currently own two guitars that have them and they sound impeccable. Granted the JP12 has multiple tonewoods going on in the body, but even the RG927 sounds absolutely immense. Same with Alder, in fact most Fender Strats use Alder as their main body wood, and Strats are known for their shimmering tones. Not exactly the guitar to go too if you want massive low end and less mid response.

You got a lemon, that's what it clearly sounds like and I think you should return it for a new one and set it up when you get it in. There's clear defects and no you shouldn't be happy about it, but most of your complaints are preference based. The DKA7 might just not be for you, but then again there's guitars that don't mesh with countless people but work for others.

I'm sure these are great guitars, but you should base your judgement on more than one before making a statement like "Don't buy Jackson DKA7's". Sucks you had a bad experience, hope it all gets worked out!