Church2224
Guitar Whore
Jackson and I have had a very turbulent relationship. I remember picking up USA Select and Custom shop guitars in my late teens and early twenties and was blown away by their playability and craftsmanship, dreaming of when I could afford one. I especially fell in love with the neck shapes and playability above all else as it seemed closest thing to the perfect neck for me. I even named my Border Collie mix Jackson after the company and Grover Jackson lol. However, when I started collecting between 2011 and 2014, I remember ordering a few USA Selects and the QC was lacking to say the least - chips out of the ebony fretboard, finish flaws, glue residue, cracks in the fretboards, ect. Stuff I didn't see even in Korean and Mexican guitars I own. The crazy thing was I would play and own USA Charvels and did not see the nowhere near the amount of QC issues. After a while I just gave up and looked elsewhere, Schecter USA, ESP, Ibanez, Vola, EBMM, Charvel, PRS, Gibson, ect.
Last year, however I acquired an MJ Series Dinky and was very impressed. I had heard good things about Jackson's new American Series and decided to eventually check them out. I was talking to our good old boy Nick at the Axe Palace about some Music Man guitars and noticed he had a Virtuoso in stock in specific ocean and told him I was interested. Well, one bad day happened, and I pulled the trigger to cope. This bad boy arrived on Thursday, and oh man, I am blown away.
Overall QC is on point, exceptional QC and I cannot find a flaw on it. The tone and playability is what you would expect from a good Jackson, and definitely fits its price range. I paid a little less than the street price for mine, but IMO it's worth the full price. Fretwork is amazing, and the playability and neck have me as giddy as I was when I first put my hands on a Jackson well over 15 years ago. The Floyd 1500 seems really solid, I have some guitars with them and they are solid, however I do agree they should have a OFR on them. They do have Gotoh Tuning Machines and those are rock solid. Guitar came tuned in standard, and I have not had to tune it even after I opened the case. Came in tune from the Shop, Nick, Matt and the rest of the guys at AP are damn good at what they do. The caramelized Maple Neck is amazing, extreme smooth and stable and one of the smoothest playing necks I have played. The finish is a nice shade of teal and looks great in person. Pics cannot do it justice.
I am so blown away I have a green SL3 Coming in soon, Plus blue and white SL3s, and a Lambo Orange SL2MG. More I know will be on the way.
What market these guitars are designed for are people who want a high-end work horse American Made production guitar. It is on point with the ESP E-II, PRS S2 and Ibanez Prestiges. It's really a no thrills guitar that touring/ lvie/ sessions musicians who want a shred style guitar will use as a reliable, quality, tool in their arsenal. I know this will be a main live guitar for me in my stable.
The reason why I am so excited for the American Series are two main reasons. The first is we finally have a consistently well build USA Made Jackson line. The USA Selects, from my experience, can be very hit and miss. The custom shops are the same, remember the 23 fret Kelly? Yeah...
They may have gotten better recently but I remember a time when it was a crapshoot weather or not you were going to get a quality guitar. Second, is this is a line that Jackson should have done a long time ago. I remember talking to my buddies about Jackson, and we all speculated that Jackson should so a more "stripped down" and workhorse style production line and this is it. I know some people are put off by the prices, but the quality is definitely there.
What I think they should do for the Series -
- Update to an Original Floyd, Nothing wrong with the 1500 but still
- To save money maybe and work with the work horse production model they have, go for Blank Fretboards instead of the dots and new sharkfins that people are arguing about. Always a classy look.
- Stainless Frets on the whole line, not just the SL2MGs
- Maple fretboard options on current models
- More body styles. Super Strats were introduced as a safe option but Rhoades, Kelly, King V and Warrior Shapes would be awesome
However, definitely keep the quality and playability.
Overall, I highly recommend checking out these guys. I am going to be putting Jackson on my short list once again for gear, and hope to see this line continue to expand and develop.
My pics aren't the best. I tried my best with my house and living room.
Last year, however I acquired an MJ Series Dinky and was very impressed. I had heard good things about Jackson's new American Series and decided to eventually check them out. I was talking to our good old boy Nick at the Axe Palace about some Music Man guitars and noticed he had a Virtuoso in stock in specific ocean and told him I was interested. Well, one bad day happened, and I pulled the trigger to cope. This bad boy arrived on Thursday, and oh man, I am blown away.
Overall QC is on point, exceptional QC and I cannot find a flaw on it. The tone and playability is what you would expect from a good Jackson, and definitely fits its price range. I paid a little less than the street price for mine, but IMO it's worth the full price. Fretwork is amazing, and the playability and neck have me as giddy as I was when I first put my hands on a Jackson well over 15 years ago. The Floyd 1500 seems really solid, I have some guitars with them and they are solid, however I do agree they should have a OFR on them. They do have Gotoh Tuning Machines and those are rock solid. Guitar came tuned in standard, and I have not had to tune it even after I opened the case. Came in tune from the Shop, Nick, Matt and the rest of the guys at AP are damn good at what they do. The caramelized Maple Neck is amazing, extreme smooth and stable and one of the smoothest playing necks I have played. The finish is a nice shade of teal and looks great in person. Pics cannot do it justice.
I am so blown away I have a green SL3 Coming in soon, Plus blue and white SL3s, and a Lambo Orange SL2MG. More I know will be on the way.
What market these guitars are designed for are people who want a high-end work horse American Made production guitar. It is on point with the ESP E-II, PRS S2 and Ibanez Prestiges. It's really a no thrills guitar that touring/ lvie/ sessions musicians who want a shred style guitar will use as a reliable, quality, tool in their arsenal. I know this will be a main live guitar for me in my stable.
The reason why I am so excited for the American Series are two main reasons. The first is we finally have a consistently well build USA Made Jackson line. The USA Selects, from my experience, can be very hit and miss. The custom shops are the same, remember the 23 fret Kelly? Yeah...
They may have gotten better recently but I remember a time when it was a crapshoot weather or not you were going to get a quality guitar. Second, is this is a line that Jackson should have done a long time ago. I remember talking to my buddies about Jackson, and we all speculated that Jackson should so a more "stripped down" and workhorse style production line and this is it. I know some people are put off by the prices, but the quality is definitely there.
What I think they should do for the Series -
- Update to an Original Floyd, Nothing wrong with the 1500 but still
- To save money maybe and work with the work horse production model they have, go for Blank Fretboards instead of the dots and new sharkfins that people are arguing about. Always a classy look.
- Stainless Frets on the whole line, not just the SL2MGs
- Maple fretboard options on current models
- More body styles. Super Strats were introduced as a safe option but Rhoades, Kelly, King V and Warrior Shapes would be awesome
However, definitely keep the quality and playability.
Overall, I highly recommend checking out these guys. I am going to be putting Jackson on my short list once again for gear, and hope to see this line continue to expand and develop.
My pics aren't the best. I tried my best with my house and living room.
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