Torn between RGA8, RG2228, and Agile

[vampiregenocide]

By all accounts the RGA8 isn't very good, and seeing as you'll be spending more on pickups anyway you might as well just get an Agile. I can get an interpid 828 with a hardcase + shipping costs to the UK for less than an RGA8 is new. The stock pickups and general quality will be better.

 

[TJV]

Is there anybody who has experience of both RGA8 and RG2228?
Can you compare those necks? I suppose RG2228 neck is tough but what do you say about neck of that cheaper one? Does it bend like all other cheap ibanez necks?

 

[demigod]

Ok the reason that agile is out of the question is because after shipping, yax, etc... the RGA8 is cheaper.

 

[vampiregenocide]

Is there anybody who has experience of both RGA8 and RG2228?
Can you compare those necks? I suppose RG2228 neck is tough but what do you say about neck of that cheaper one? Does it bend like all other cheap ibanez necks?

Bend? I've got an rg7321 and the neck feels just as solid as that of my 2228.

Ok the reason that agile is out of the question is because after shipping, yax, etc... the RGA8 is cheaper.

Really? It was about even for me, and thats including a hardcase with the Agile.

 

[MannyMoonjava]

Welcome to tha club man
I've just ordered an Agile Interceptor Pro 828.
I'll tell u about it when I get it!! cant wait btw! : D

 

[Rook]

Is there anybody who has experience of both RGA8 and RG2228?
Can you compare those necks? I suppose RG2228 neck is tough but what do you say about neck of that cheaper one? Does it bend like all other cheap ibanez necks?

The RG2228 has a wider neck than the RGA, which is pretty important because the strings end up too close together otherwise. The RG2228 also has a soft curve and feels very smooth and rounded. The RGA8 has an ever so slightly narrower neck which isn't anywhere as comfortable a shape. It doesn't quite have the shoulders of a 7321 but it's that sort of idea. I know what you mean about the necks bending, and the crucial thing about the RGA8 for me is that it just doesn't set up anywhere near as well as the 2228. I'm not a super low action person but once the 2228's set up it's just the slightly narrower string spacing and wider neck to get used to, which you will in about a day or two, the RGA seems to either develop humps or choking spots, we've had high frets from the factory and small warps on guitars less than a year old. It's fine for a budget but the 2228 is rock solid. I also find the mahogany of the RGA quite muddy in comparison, don't let people tell you basswood is some cheap bargain wood...

 

[TJV]

Bend? I've got an rg7321 and the neck feels just as solid as that of my 2228.

I had one too. Mine rg7321 was like bubble gum, just like S7320 I played couple of times.

 

[Variant]

Is there anybody who has experience of both RGA8 and RG2228?

Yup, owned an RG2228 when it first came out for about a year, and have had an RGA8 (w/ an EMG 808 swap + killswitch in lieu of the mid-scoop switch... put the vol. in the tone position, actually, so I don't bump it and so the killswitch is right at hand) for about three months now. The verdict?

RGA8 > RG2228




While the overall quality isn't quite on par (fret dressing, routing, wiring, general fit & finish), I've been able to set it up to play just as good, if not better, than my RG2228 and there's some distinct advantages:

One: The neck is way stiffer. I don't know what the technical difference is, but the RG2228's neck would flex with way too much ease, just with normal fretting, bowing (the seventh string, in particular) slightly out of tune. Additionally, it simply wasn't as stable (surely to do with the neck stiffness issues) going from place to place. My RGA8's is rock solid, I can't even do neck bends with it.

Two: Mahogany > basswood. This, of course, is highly subjective... to my ears (and many others), basswood yields nice round, mid-rangey lead tones, and in that respect the 2228 is better... however, the RGA8's single note high stuff (ONCE you eject the shite stock pups) is quite good, 85-90% of the way there, AND the low stuff sounds miles better. I tune down to D1 and I never could get that to sound solid on the 2228, everything was just a bit round and mushy down there.

Three: I think it looks and feels better. The archtop is really comfortable, the upper fret access is a tad better, and the normal gloss black is sooooooo much nicer than that boat show "galaxy black" sparkle nonsense.

That said, I DID have the bridge bolt pull out of the body like many others (I guess this is resolved), but with Dendropis' suggestion it's been fixed with no further issues whatsoever.

Can you compare those necks? I suppose RG2228 neck is tough but what do you say about neck of that cheaper one? Does it bend like all other cheap ibanez necks?

Not at all. Like I said, my RGA8 is way stiffer and more stable. So far as the profile goes, it feels essentially the same as the 2228... maybe a tad more D-shaped (I'm working off memory here), and less thin-to-thick (like Dino's necks) as you go up... but all in all, it feels fuckin' great to me.

 

[demigod]

Ok so its settled then. With out a doubt the RGA8 and PU swap for 808/808x and screw the mid switch. BTW did you switch the positions of the switch with the scoop switch and replaced the mid switch with a kill switch and the vol. knob with a tone?

 

[Variant]

Ok so its settled then. With out a doubt the RGA8 and PU swap for 808/808x and screw the mid switch. BTW did you switch the positions of the switch with the scoop switch and replaced the mid switch with a kill switch and the vol. knob with a tone?

Tone knobs are worthless (for me anyway... ), I just put the volume in the position closest to the jack so I wouldn't bump down it like I always do, and dropped the killswitch in the position just adjacent to the bridge pup. BTW, Killswitch + Ebow = fun, fun, fun.

 

[vampiregenocide]

Quality control is going to be more consistent with prestige guitars. Generally if they're good, they're good. Buying low end guitars you run the risk of getting a dud. My 7321 is brilliant but I know people who have got bad ones.

 

[MistaSnowman]

I was lucky enough to noodle around with the Ibanez RG2228 today at one of the GC's here in Chicago, and if I had $2000, it'd be mine...but I didn't and it's still there for some lucky schmoe to score it. The sound from that guitar was raw, tight, and delicious. The pick attack was very sharp, and the neck is very fast. This guitar gets the !

 

[Rook]

@Variat I can say with absolute confidence there isn't a stiffness issue, and in the few years they've been out we've had a couple of warp issues with the RGA and no such thing with the 2228. I don't know if you had a dud, it wasn't setup properly or even your bridge wasn't tightened down so bendin put everything else out of tune, but I really don't want the OP to think the RGA8's have an amazingly perfectly stiff neck and the 2228's neck is flexible or something.

As a seller, we encountered regular warps with RGA8s, we even had them comin from the factory with them, and never a single neck issue with a 2228. We had one of the finest techs in the south of England working in our store, so I'm not just counting those we wold, but we had a surprising amount in for setup work.

Warping isn't the end of the world, a lot of necks warp slightly while settling in, a lot of UV's from the early 90's developed a hump around the 5th fret which hundreds of players will never have noticed, all I'm saying is one person's experience with one or other guitar doesn't match another's, so you shouldn't take one guy's bad experience as rule.

I'm not trying to put you off the RGA either, it's less than half what the 2228 costs.


Have you even played them? I just realised I haven't asked this...

 

[demigod]

FYI im not ordering online so i can actually hold the guitar before i decide to buy one
So...the chances for me to get a dud is minimal. And if as you say it is that variant had a dud, wouldn't that defeat the whole purpose of getting a prestige??

 

[Rook]

^Without having it in my hands, I can't say it was a dud or not, it sounds like the truss rod was too loose which is a setup thing, not the guitar.

All brands have their 'duds' though, it might leave the factory perfect and by the time it's travelled thousands have miles have developed an issue, which is why these things have a warranty. Ask anyone, Ibanez Prestige have on of the best track records, Ibanez Indonesia do not (it's good, sure, but every time they release something new, there's stack loads of issues - the Edge III, the new RGD7320, the EdgeIII 8 stripping out of the RGA8, they always need fret jobs).

I think going and holding both Ibanez guitars would be wise, particularly as money's not an issue apparently.

 

[Variant]

^
Dude... mine flexed, noticeably. You could avoid it with a really light touch, but it's no way to play a guitar... and yes it was setup right, I've owned Ibanezes with thin necks for years and never had the issue with any but the RG2228, even the razor-thin RG550 neck.

Now, I'm not saying the RGA8 is the be-all-end all guitar, it has its flaws: The bridge tail bolt ripped out of the body, the frets could be a lot nicer, and the stock pickups are cold and muddy sounding... not to mention that if they were gonna cheap out on them, they coulda at least used a 9 volt battery and quick disconnect system in preparation for the many inevitable 808 / Blackout swaps. I'm just happier with it for the aforementioned reasons, mainly sound wise.

 

[vampiregenocide]

I've never heard of anyone else having that issue or any others with their 2228, but I've heard of lots of people having problems with the RGA8. That speaks for itself.

Besides, and I'm going to work in pounds here, but I got my RG2228 fair cheap as I bought used. Now an RGA8 costs about £550-600 new. Add a couple hundred pounds for new pickups and whatnot and you end up not that far off the price for a used 2228. Now what is the point buying a lower quality guitar only to add in new pickups if you can buy a higher quality guitar for around the same price and not have to change the pickups so soon.

 

[Rook]

^
Dude... mine flexed, noticeably. You could avoid it with a really light touch, but it's no way to play a guitar... and yes it was setup right, I've owned Ibanezes with thin necks for years and never had the issue with any but the RG2228, even the razor-thin RG550 neck.

Like I said, I can't make any assumptions without having it in my hands.

Have you since played another with a bendy neck? I'm not trying to argue, this is a serious thing, if you could go into detail I'd like to try and replicate what you're referring to on my own 2228 see if it's an actual design flaw, an isolated incident, or something else.

 

[mot666]

flexing 222228? what r ya doing grabing by the neck with both hands and throttling the poor thing to death?

 

[Buckett]

I got an indonesian RGA8 and that's one of the best guitars i ever played. The neck is very comfortable to play and it keeps in tuning for a very long time. If you don't like the black color, you can check out the white one in Europe, or the Gray one in the US.
I also tried the RG2228, and it feels good to play too, but the price is too high for a stock-model. I've never played a Agile, but if you live in Europe, like i do, it's too expensive (i think) to get one shipped to you.

So if i was you, i would buy the RGA8 and change the pick-ups to Duncans or EMG 808X's (The stock-pickups is very low quality)

Also welcome to the forum