crackheads dem, own a '91 grover dinky, wonderful instrument. no problems in the finish like this or any factory issues, just some wear with years of use. Was looking into getting some v-shaped guitars from jackson, thanks fuck seen this video. Will go for older used versions or pther guitar brands, cheers for the video Jed🤙
There's no way I could justify buying a new guitar these days. The prices are insanely high and keep climbing, but quality control is declining. I really wanted the Brandon Ellis Kelly, but I'm not gambling with Jackson's shitty quality control then you have the hassle of sending it back and hoping they exchange it for a good one. The whole process in theory could take months.
I hear ya, I wanted one too, the green crackle Kelly looks sick. There's already been complaints of the paint coming off, and other quality issues. For $1500 dollars that guitar should come with a hardshell and top notch electronics/ quality pots and switches, but the truth is they do not.
The Soloist that I bought back in 1990 when I was 14 is still one of my best guitars. I have other Jackson's from the last 10 years or so (all USA) top notch shit but I still favor my old one from 32 years ago.
Dude....I’ve been playing Jacksons for 30 years, own several USA models and a custom shop Kelly and I LOVE them but......$3600 for a Rhodes MJ series? Are you Fukin crazy!! You’re spot on man.....Disgusting what Jackson has become!
Jackson went even more insane than gibson. Charging gibson prices for Chinese garbage, and ive seen their custom shop quality leaves a lot to be desired. And for those prices, there's zero excuse for ANY flaws or workmanship issues. Im sticking with Ibanez. Have been since the late 80s
I started playing as a teenager in the mid-80's, during peak Hair Metal/Thrash/Shredder days. Owning a Jackson was a dream and a goal. It was the guitar every player wanted. Today it's just sort of a "me too" company. Fender did a great job revitalizing the Charvel brand but they seem content with letting Jackson wallow in the past and sit in the middle of the heard.
Love Jackson. I found A Jackson Dinky with Seymour duncans and a floyd trem for $100 at a pawnshop 4 years ago. Then found an 80s charvel/jackson case at another pawn later for $20. Still one of my favorite finds all these years later. It is a shame what is happening to the guitar industry with rising prices and lack of quality.
The problem with guitar companies is they want made in USA prices for copies made in China. Lower quality control and lower quality materials. A name on the headstock doesnt mean much anymore.
I’ve owned a couple of Jacksons over the years, including a custom shop RR, and was never impressed with the quality. Ibanez, Schecter, and ESPs are far superior in my experience.
I thought I was gonna get pissed cause I to have always been a Jackson guy, I just got back into playing guitar after 25 years heroin addiction and now on 8 yrs sobriety, I just bought me a Jackson Dinky from China. Cause yup! I been hearing an watching bad things about Jackson, as if your paying $1,200.00 for a bootleg, so I bought me this Dinky brand new for $178.00 guitar center and it's freakin phenomenal. Wow! Blown away. But thanks for speaking truth and informing us. Jackson should be ashamed
Dude...you 100% correct...people have the power and they can use that power how they spend their money...for example, if people stopped buying $10 beers at a football game, next sunday those same beers would be $2...but sadly, people don’t realize this so the scam just keeps on rolling....good stuff my brother!!!!!
jackson used to make my favorite guitars. Now I can't ever justify buying one. There's so much better value and quality out there now. It's sad, I hope they can make it out. I really wish Dave Mustaine was able to buy them back in the day.
Only 3 years ago, I ordered a Dinky USA Custom Select to my exact specs, great guitar, $2700 shipped. 3 years later, that same amount of money apparently gets me a MIJ guitar with issues. I love Jackson, have 4 custom shops, but I might be done with them for a while if this keeps up.
I wish I could give a double like to this video. you're not a high profile page, you gave an honest review, showcased your concerns and basically raised the same points i would make, we cant speak for everyone. but these are definitely key points to bring up on a company that was built on a name known for quality and performance.
Man, I wish they'd listen. I had an incident with a Jackson Soloist I purchased a few years ago. Brett @ customer service took care of me and I still have the replacement to this day. However, I've come to expect that anything Jackson is 50/50 to either be garbage or be usable. But 80% of the time you won't get something worthy of any kind of real pride. And that includes their American stuff. It's such a tragedy 😢
I've owned Jacksons my whole life, mostly MIJ from Chushin Gakki factory, but never bought brand new. Last fall I took a chance and bought the Brandon Ellis Kelly made in China. I couldn't send it back fast enough. What a horribly made axe. I was soooo devastated. I could go on about that POS for days. I'm still pissed about it. Your vid is spot on!!
Over the decade I had 3 Jackson guitars and sold them all. I loved when Megadeth played them and always wanted to get the axes. But all of them had issues popping up over time. Poor wiring, frets not leveled, crappy licensed floyd which was breaking strings at the bridge when palm muted successfully made me despise FR locking trems. Nowadays the pricing is ridiculous for what they put into their guitars. What a shame. I would love to have a nice jackson especially with sharkfin inlays.
I have been playing USA Selects and Custom Shops for over 30 years and love them to death. Went to my local music store to help one of my students pickup some gear and checked out the new Jackson stuff. Sad to say it is crap. I am with you man, Jackson has gone downhill.
No it's not, I'd put my SLX up against any US or Japanese Jackson. I know, I have/had a few. The US Jacksons have an edge in sound, in terms of better pups.. but fretwork, neck feel.. playability, they are NOT superior, certainly not at almost 4 times the price.
Dude… I had an 80s Charvel (in the 80s) then got a 90s Jackson. Loved them. I excitedly picked up a Jackson 4 or 5 years ago and was appalled. I mean, it was like a $400 guitar, but it felt awful. I then went and felt a higher end one. They’re just not made for me anymore.
Now check this out ! I bought 3 Jackson warrior wr7 ( David Davison 7 strings ) made in Indonesia. I replaced all the Dimarzios imperium, on all 3 of them, to replace with bareknuckles. Guess what I found ? All 3 guitars had the dimarzios imperium ( NECK PICKUP ) in the neck and IN THE BRIDGE CAVITY TOO, reson why when I had the toggle switch on bridge position that guitar sounded pale and funny. Fender, who bought jackson and are DIRECTLY responsible for jackson, NEW IT, but decided to be silent, knowing that just a few people would upgrade the pickups. I called Fender, and they promised me to do the right thing and send the bridge pickup as it was supposed to be installed In the guitar from the factory. Fender NEVER SEND ME the pickups and stop answering my calls and emails. I hope, one of these days, Fender will be dragged to a court and forced to pay thousands of people who were cheated by them
I've heard quite a lot of negative things about Fender USA customer service, even to the point where they refuse to deal with serious issues found by the buyer upon first inspection. Here in Europe we have strong consumer protections with the right to refund or replacement of any defective goods within so many days of purchase. If the seller doesn't act then you complain to your local trading standards, which can then lead to small courts claim if the seller's response isn't satisfactory.
Ive been playing since I was a kid and always wanted a nice Jackson, but every single one I've picked up left a lot to be desired. You would think with Schecter stepping up and going above and beyond with reasonable prices in recent years, these other brands would follow suit but I guess not.
Gibson is working at bringing back Kramer. I live in Nashville an go to the Gibson Garage every now an then. They have pure shred machines. The Floyd, one Duncan an a fast neck. Basically the EVH first generation. They have an HSS thats for low end cost. Its getting bad reviews though. Kramer has the same history as Jackson. They both should come back
@@raytorvalds3699 maybe they don't own them completely but they have the exclusive rights to develop, produce, market and distribute Gretsch guitars worldwide. Which is pretty much the same thing.
If you like Jackson Quality and enjoyed 90s MIJ Jacksons, try Caparison guitars. I believe it their owner was one of the luthiers that undertook the whole Pre-Fender Jacksons to be made in Japan. They knew it had to be good import quality for the 90s Jacksons. I love my Tat-ii model, like a Soloist, similar neck carve and great wood and paint. Glossy black mirror ebony fretboard.
Both the Japanes and USA jacksons cost so much because of price of labor. I recently got the chinese made jackson sl3m and other than the tuners (put gotoh on them fender) the guitar was perfect. The backplates are plastic but it's all CNC cut and nice sharp edges all around. The plates were so tight that I had harder time taking them off. There is a real switch and full size pots in the cavity. The attention to detail was amazing. You know how some floyd nuts protrude little bit past the edge of the fretboard? This one was perfectly centered and the edges blended into the neck. It has real duncan pickups and korean made floyd rose which is better made than the special floyd rose. I have the rainbow crackle finish and they only make these in china and it's beautiful in person. Can't stop looking at it. I simply don't see how USA made jackson would be better made. I don't like the USA jackson heel cut, the indo and china made jackson have the proper cut. The Japanese jackson is overpriced. Now, few years ago I bought brand new jackson bolt on soloist for $110 from guitar center. It too was flawless and it even had full size trem block which is practically unheard of in this price range. I was going to convert that guitar into a floyd rose soloist but it was so pretty that I simply abandoned the idea and bought the sl3m instead. I think the best value is ibanez rg350. Mine had only two small flaws. The nut protruded from the edge about 0.5mm, which is nothing but can be felt and one small section of the edge of the backplate, the wood was slighty crunched. Other than that, the guitar was perfect. I paid full price of $1300 for the jackson sl3m and I would definitey pay that price again because the workmanship is simply outstanding. The rg350 I paid new $300 and like I've said, the best value back then and maybe even today. Ibanez made some neck through rg's like 3020 but I heard they are on the heavy side. Btw, if you can't physically examine a new guitar then just buy it from sweetwater as you can examine the pics and get a good idea about craftmanship and weight from the pics if you know what to look for. That's how I bought my sl3m and I knew it was going to be good after I looked at the pics.
I'm a lefty and it took half of my life to realize that I jacked neck was exactly what I was looking for, I purchased a cheap chinese-made js32 left-handed dinky two years ago and personally I could not complain for the prize... the only real issue cosmetically I seen on that guitar was on the headstock but everything else seemed to be okay... But what they are producing now has went downhill even in the last year or so. I just seen a guy on a Facebook group who had planned to repaint his x-series Jackson Kelly only to sand it down and find that the Maple veneer on top had a layer of particle board underneath followed by a back layer of Poplar, needless to say he was very upset and disappointed. Sing another guy in the same group who waited a year-and-a-half for a USA custom-made Jackson only to have some similar cosmetic and physical issues as well...
My ‘86 Jackson soloist is the best guitar I ever played. Sad to say that no other Jackson especially the recent ones have come within miles of touching the guitar. For the money the Ibanez genesis series are the best shred guitars for the money right now imo
I have a 2012 RR, and it's my first actual Jackson guitar. Seeing Vinnie Vincent's back from when he was with KISS in the early 80s made me want it more. You've hit it on the nail, and wish they'd pull their heads outta their asses, and make good quality guitars again.
I've been playing guitar for almost forty years, and while I've always felt Jackson produced some very fine instruments, the reason I never bought one is because when I went to a music shop in L.A. in '87 to buy a Soloist they had an ESP Horizon on the same wall. I compared them and there was NO way the soloist could compete. The Horizon was sleeker, more advanced, with a better neck, and sounded a lot better too. It was also about half the price of the Soloist at $700. Easy decision. I find Jackson's quality has taken a real dive in recent years. Besides that, I'd much rather get a Yamaha or a G & L or Fender and just pop in some Duncans as I always do.
@@jed_shred_guitars Yes. But I don't own it anymore. I sold it to a friend back in 1990 because by then I'd stopped using locking trems, just had it with them. But it was a great ax. My friend replaced the very crunchy but noisy DiMarzio X2N knockoff that came with it and replaced it with a Duncan JB which sounded better. But he didn't get a JB because of my advice, but because he wanted whatever Dave and Marty were using on Rust in Peace and I told him it was all JBs, which it was. Anyhow, what had happened by this time, late 80s, early 90s, is ESP had given Jackson a real wallop. ESP has smart enough to open a custom shop in Hollywood around '85 and George Lynch was one of their first big name clients. Jackson/Charvel got lazy and took for granted the large roster of players. So what happened is Lynch peeled away to ESP, and a lot of former Jackson, Kramer and Hamer players followed along. When Kirk Hammett started playing ESP it caused a wave of players in the thrash world to follow. It's just the way it was. I'll put it this way. Let's say you had the choice of a Lamborghini that does zero to sixty in 4 seconds with a top speed of 180, or a McLaren Speedtail that does zero to sixty in 3 seconds and has a top speed of 250. Let's say the Mclaren is cheaper. Prospective buyers will ask themselves, "Do I want the Lambo, which is more well known, or do I want the McLaren, which is not as well-known but nicknamed The Ferrari Killer, because that's what they were designed to do? ESPs, and the Horizon was their penultimate model in '87, were designed to take on the big boy, Jackson/Charvel. I'd say they conquered them a long time ago. They offered a much better guitar for the money and still do. My Horizon was made in Japan, which in truth had better quality control than the US. But it still made the guitar half the price of a Jackson Soloist. The craftsmanship and the design put it over the top. The Horizon had 24 frets, which also gave it an edge at the time. Yes, so did the current Soloist, but in '87 you would still find some with 22. The extra full octave of 24 frets is priceless in a shred world where every fret counts. And the design of the ESP neck joint was far superior to the Soloist. It was just easier to get access. The licensed Floyd on the Horizon was better than the standard Floyd that came on the Soloist as well. Right about this time Ibanez became huge when Vai and other shredders started playing them. They came with the knew Ibanez Edge trem which knocked the pants off a Floyd. They were simply more I gigged with between '86 and '92, my L.A. club days when I was a teenager, was my trusty candy apple red Holdsworth Charvel I bought used for $100. It was simple. Standard trem, albeit double fulcrum, mounted flush, and a single, hand would JB that sounded outrageously awesome. It was 22 frets, rosewood fretboard, black pickguard, black tuners, graphite nut. The thing NEVER went out of tune. It was amazing. I had other guitars I would take with me to gigs as backup like my Kramer Baretta or a Strat with a Hot Rail in the bridge. For amps I went from lugging my Marshall stack to getting smart and getting a Boogie 50 Cal combo which was easier and had more than enough volume. To this day I recommend combos over stacks. It just makes sense and they are easier to mic up. Also, if you face them away from you it's easier for the soundman to get you a good stage volume through the PA. Even on 2 that Boogie was very loud. But soundman were grateful for me not having a stack, or five, and believe me, some players on the scene had five stacks back then. It was crazy. Also, having on combo made it easier to set up and break down fast after a gig. I would not only move my little rig, the amp, a guitar or two and a couple pedals, but help the drummer. If you could pack the house with your friends and set up and break down fast the clubs loved you. It was all about $$$ and time for them, and in this world you must understand the nexus of time and $$$, especially in music. I learned a lot in those days. Wonderful memories. And yes, ESP crushes Jackson.
Unfortunately I just got an LTD Arrow Black Metal with some pretty serious QC issues. The binding on the neck isn't great, there's some dust specks trapped underneath the finish and lots of cuts marking the frets. The trem cavity is poorly painted, and the area right above the trem is just bare wood which is really ugly when looking at the guitar head-on. More importantly, the Floyd Rose isn't installed well and won't return to pitch as well as it could. The bass side post is leaning away from the neck and it wiggles back and forth when I remove the bridge. The posts and knife edges have already had the paint scraped off at the contact points after a day of use, they might even be damaged for all I know. And the claw screws in the back are basically stuck so I can't even get the bridge perfectly level. Probably going to send it back.
ESP has impressed me since I started playing back in 2004. 99% of the ones I’ve played, save for the super budget ones, have been amazing. Jackson has been the exact opposite. I used to love them, but the QC and the extreme markup on MIJ pricing is insane. I have a DK2M that I got for Christmas in 2006 for $600 msrp, and that thing still sounds and plays great. Jackson has truly given up and gone for the greed.
@@nathancheung358 Agreed completely. I find the LTD logo to be rather tacky and my LTDs are excellent instruments (both are 1000 Series Arrows). Even their standards made in Japan get just the E-II logo. The ESP logo can only be found on their Original Series and Customs today.
I had a few Jacksons in the 90s, after having a couple of budget guitars (a Harmony acoustic and a Peavey strat copy), and was generally pleased with them. I was convinced that would be my lifelong brand loyalty. Right around Y2K I "settled for" an ESP because I wanted a 7-string and couldn't find a price in my budget on a Jackson 7 at the time. This is when I learned brand loyalty isn't very important. Haven't bought a Jackson in decades, but just a little bit of research makes it obvious they've gone downhill.
Dude you said it brother and we need to vote with our wallets you are right . Jackson's for me pre fender were it - it had the looks the sound and the neck. I had a RR1, KV2 with gold hardware and a WRR1 all immaculate. If I knew the QC would be a problem today I would never have sold those guitars ...
just got my first Jackson about 6 months ago... it's a beast (!).. I truly love the guitar (7 string).. I play metal and that guitar is allot of fun.. before the Jackson I was exclusive to Ibanez - also a great guitar.. happy with the Jackson at a very reasonable price.. picking it right off the shelf at guitar center in Long Island New York.. that being said, if I played the kind of music that would require me to have a very clean sound then in that case I'm not sure if the Jackson would work for that.. the right tools for the right job..
Fender is not killing it. The charvels seem to be the best out of any of the fender brands for quality control right now for some reason. Lots of brand New Mexican fenders coming in with issues, especially fret issues. I’m sure every fender dealer has a stack of fenders in the back waiting for warranty authorization to fix them like the shop I work at.
I've always had a fond affection for Jacksons but they aren't the same company they used to be, that's a fact. I love a quality built Jackson guitar, some of my favorite guitars I've ever laid my hands on had Jackson on the headstock. None of them had Made in the USA on the headstock though. They were all Chushin Gakki built japanese guitars. The professional series from like '90 to '95 specifically. Just as good as any USA made guitars in my experience in terms of build quality. These MIJ guitars of this era definitely earned their reputation. I have a Dinky RV-S natural mahogany finish from '95 that I'll never sell and has the fastest and thinnest neck of any guitar I've ever held in my hands. It's paper thin. I've used it a lot but it's still in great shape and I've rarely ever seen another one up for sale on reverb or ebay. I've seen them on a couple of occasions and usually commanding a way higher price than what I bought mine for.
I will never play ugly les Paul or fender crapocasters period. ONLY USA Jackson guitars. Remember 1995 back are the best import guitars from Jackson guitars. I like P C -1,soloist,PC archtop and any San daims made Jackson.
Fender moved production of PRO Soloists from Japan to Indonesia around 2012. The first ones were made in the PT Wildwood factory, who also supply ESP and Schecter, with an 'IWJ' serial number prefix and the spec was classic Jackson recipe. Three-piece Maple thru neck with quarter-sawn centre section, Alder body sections and the backplates were black anodized aluminium. After a couple of years or so the Fender bean-counters switched to Samick factory, with an 'ISJ' serial number prefix, who deviated from the Jackson Soloist recipe with a two-piece scarf-jointed Maple thru neck, Mahogany body sections and plastic backplates. I do like the Jackson JS series made in China and think they are excellent value for money especially ones with compound necks. I just think some of the current Jackson PRO models aren't up to the mark and are probably overpriced .
Also stay away from the the Jackson v shaped cases they will destroy your guitar neck they have two opposing latches at mid neck that have a pinch point. I brought this up to quality control and was told to pound sand....So much for quality control !!!!!
I play Ibanez's. Recently bought my first Jackson, the Indonesian made Soloist SL2 MAH Magenta. Pretty disappointed with the standard of craftsmanship for a $1150 guitar. Really wanted to give Jackson a chance but I guess I won't be buying more Jackson's or recommending this brand to anyone else.
I was so disappointed with my Ibanez RG350DLX, that it sat in my basement for years.. sold it for $200 and bought another Jackson.. best decision I ever made.
@@mr.spongylikeaboss4987 RG350 is a 300 dollar guitar from 1990. Being disappointed is understandable. A Jackson SL2 is over $1200 and should be much less disappointing. Shouldn't we get a bit more for spending more? I think that's only reasonable.
Spot on brother. It’s such a shame when you’ve seen what they were like before. The only one I found to be up to scratch quality wise is the Jeff Loomis signature.
100% agree. 5 Years ago I picked up an $800 soloist in GC. The hardware was so cheap I put it right back, and, like you I was disappointed in what they have become. I HIGHLY suggest getting a Solar. While they are not ESP level, for the $ they are hard to beat. I got mine from the Outlet and am 100% satisfied.
I have not played any of the newer generation of Jackson guitars but I will say that my 1985 San Dimas Gun Metal Blue Soloist is the best playing guitar I've ever played to this day. They will probably never be that good again. I feel very fortunate (38 years later) to have one of the EARLY ones as my main lifetime guitar. They are easily the best and there is no substitute in my book. GET ONE IF YOU CAN!!!
Super genuine video dude. Not just bashing Jackson, you obviously love them along with probably everyone watching, but you pointed out some really critical issues. As of now, I don’t think I’ll ever buy a new Jackson. After a knock off strat, a js30 rr was my first “real” guitar when I was 12. Haven’t gotten another Jackson until I’ve acquired 3 off the used market in the last year. My kvxmg is okay, just that. Got a killer deal on an older rrx24 7 t. For the price I paid, can’t complain but it’s just solid enough. The one I’m most proud of is a parts guitar I made. Js30 warrior gloss black body paired with a mij dxmg neck along with all new hardware, pickups, etc. But that took a lot of time, and a lot of money. It plays great, the best neck out of my Jackson’s for sure, but is that what is takes to get a really badass Jackson these days? I guess so.
Problem right now is the supply chain issues and factorys having to double up production to meet the shortcomings of the last 2 years so that the company can make that money back, both those issues also result in the price being higher but the quility being hit hard too. Jackson are not the only brand to be hit by this, it's a lot of brands. It's sad, but things will balance out again in a couple of years. Think thats why pretty much everyone had a very limited NAMM season release this year. Normally it's like a whole new roster of instruments from all the manufacturers but this year they mostly stayed the same as last years models and brought out like only 10 models overall. Sucks. Always love the neck on a Jackson. It's like the sweetspot between ESP's Thin-U and the paper thin Ibanez wizard necks.
Jackson has been going downhill for a long time. The pandemic surely added to it, but esp and other brands are putting out mostly fantastic guitars. And innovating, and selling for competitive prices, and coming out all kinds of new models. Another commenter called Jackson a “novelty brand” and they were right. Jackson needs to hit rock bottom and have popular opinion be that they suck now to improve.
@@jed_shred_guitars can’t say I share the same opinion. Played one of those newer 7 string soloists with the fishmans and it was impeccable. Had a wee go on the MIJ Misha strat too and loved it. Fit and finish was damn near perfect. Shame though that they’re going though this period.
Totally agree I recently bought a Kramer nightswan and even though it looks stellar the amount of manufacturing issues are ridiculous like off centerfield floyd, creaking lock nut which is also off center and cheap tuners misaligned humbuckers the high E to close to the edge of the fretboard and rolls off but as long as we keep putting up with it the more they do it
My next guitar is going to be an ESP E-II MII that costs $2k and if it feels as good as my Jackson Concept RR24 Rhoads (also $2k) then I’ll be happy. I just feel like you are mad and I understand that. I got 3 Charvel/Jackson Pro guitars in a row from the Mexico factory and I had to return them all. However that Concept Rhoads (6-String) feels as good as a $4k PRS Custom 24 to me. So I agree they need much better Quality Control but they definitely aren’t dead. I just hope that E-II is as good as I hope it will be. I also wish it didn’t come with EMG pickups. That’s my biggest problem with ESP, I do love them but they need to move away from having so many guitars with EMGs as if that’s what most people want. Anyway I subscribed to your channel, going to checkout some more of your videos.
I too am scratching my head about Jackson and it's antics. When a friend of mine said he bought a Jackson and asked if I wanted to check it out ,I was so excited you would have thought it was me that just bought it .. ha. Sounded great walking into the house looked ok but when he handed it to me I thought for sure he got ripped off.. body felt hollow hardware not grover and the nut was a soft plastic . Frets were jagged and Floyd Rose wasn't holding the whammy bar .. the back plate didn't even say Jackson.. I'm a drummer and he was happy so I didn't pop his bubble .. Wtf Jackson!!!!!!!
Buy from a reputable retailer or direct from manufacturer. There are so many knock offs out their its ridiculous. Not saying this is a knock off, but I would definitely authenticate it. Also does Fender still own Jackson?
Totally agree with you, about allowing this crap. I love Jackson and with the months and years passing it's hard to defend them when they're crap guitar. So fsr i just look for older models on reverd, and they are killer!! Compared to the newer 2000-3000 Jackson guitars that are coming out now. I rather spend the 800 - 1300 on an older model and gice it some upgrades and still be superior to the new ones
I'm exactly like you. Loved jackson, loved the necks, the look...but man I have seen some absolutely unacceptable shit out of them online lately. Got a japanese rr24, and it is just the most perfect instrument. I don't understand what happened. Seems like alot of guitar company's too. Not just jackson.
So what’s you’re saying is Jackson racks disciprine? Haven’t though of that phrase in years but like 9 minutes in when you were talking about honor and stuff my brain just pulled that out from a long forgotten memory lol
I'm the same, loved and drooled over Jackson's back in the 90's. This year I jumped back into them, brought two dinky's one with Floyd and quilted maple top, cost me $700 Australian dollars, sold it within two weeks, just brought a cheaper dinky with a roasted maple neck at $500 AU, and it plays and feels great? WTF? Seems very inconsistent!
Just got an Adrian Smith SDX a few weeks ago. There's one blemish on the body that took me a day to notice. It plays great and the fretwork is awesome. I don't have any complaints about it, especially for the price. I've never had a strat type that I could fall in love with until now, including my old American standard.
I used to love Jackson. Owned many over the years. My top 3 were the Marty Friedman Musicians friend 1 of 100, the Jenna Jameson V, and the Professional series Dinky made in Japan. I bought all 3 for a total of just under $1000. Yes all were pre-owned but the Jenna and Friedman were unplayed. Great guitars. Today's Jackson's don't compare and the prices are laughable.
I have three Jackson guitars. 2003 DKMG (Made in Japan) Late 2000s DXMGT (Made In Japan) and a 2019 Jackson Soloist SL2P MAH (Made In Indonesia) I love everyone of them.
I bought my RR1 USA select in 2016 for $2,700.. It's amazing. Best guitar Ive ever owned. They are going for almost 5 grand now.. crazy they have almost doubled in 7 years..
I used to be a Jackson dude when I was growing up but I always wanted an ESP ever since I seen Metallica play them. You barely ever see any metal guys endorsing with Jackson anymore either. You're right man, it is a shame.
Very true! I remember in the early 2000’s esp was sponsoring everybody. They have some killer signature models. I was looking through their website the other night. The sd-2 looks insane.
@@jed_shred_guitars I know I want an actual ESP but they're so ridiculously priced now and the LTD 1000 series is plenty good for me. I have two. One from Korea and one from Indonesia and they are both great. I really don't know how the playability could get any better or be worth the extra $4-5,000 bucks....lol. Maybe one day 🤔.
@@manicmurph Yeah i thought the same, but i bought an actual ESP custom shop few months ago. ( Alexi Laiho Blacky ) Yeah, i can assure you, the difference between a 1000€ LTD and 4000€ ESP is night and day, it's like comparing your 1000€ LTD to a 150€ entry level guitar, it's unbelielable There is a reason why professional plays on on high end model and not mid range level, the difference is just breath taking, you really have to try it to understand it.
I made an ESP/Jackson Frankenstrat and I love it. ESP body , Jackson 2008 neck , Floyd Rose trem , EMG 91/85 and a custom active harness because the ESP wasn't clean enough for my liking. It is now my favorite guitar.
Fender killed Jackson!! since Fender bought Jackson it will never be the same again, great video friend! I hope Jackson returns to be the great legend that he was 💪🎸⚡
When I first got my Jackson I was super excited. But now that in playing in a band and constantly learning new songs, the more unimpressed I'm becoming with it.
I was all aboit Jackson since Randy first came out onstage with his Jackson. Ive had many Jackson guitars over the years and loved them. Shit happened, i dont have any of my ild guitars. Started playing again about 20 years ago and ive been trying everything except ESP/LTD. I bought a KH 602 used crom a buddy of mine. Im in heaven. One of the best guitars i have ever owned and played.
I personally own 8 Jackson guitars...i own a Jackson guitar rr3 Indonesian made version.....1 Jackson 1986 usa concert bass...and 6 Jackson cmg Japanese made concert basses....the worst quality built guitar is the 2018 Indonesian Jackson rr3 guitar...after fender purchased Jackson guitars in 2001'the company nose dived'from a excellent well organized 'quality producing company 'to a poor production for profit running company...fender corporation destroyed Jackson guitars...they are now building cheap 'poorly made 'Jackson guitars in China 'yet asking 1500 dollars for these monstrosities..
i have owned two usa jacksons (a soloist and a rr1). my guitar tech had to slide my locking nut over because the high e was sliding off the fretboard. even with that issue, it sounds like the 90s jacksons were far superior to the jacksons of today. i owned a number of 90s jacksons and they were almost always great guitars. you are dead on about esp and ibanez as well! youtube finally did something right by bringing me here! subbed!
Couldn't agree more bro. Stopped buying Jackson gear altogether. Jackson USED to be the shit. The best. Everything you said is right on point brother. Great video 🤘
I just planned on buying the jackson soloist slx-m. After this video i looked at guitars from esp and i just cannot afford them. The cheapest one i could find is 3'825 whilst the jackson is 611. Also i love the look of the soloist snow white and the esp ones dont really appeal to me tbh. Any advice on what to do? (It will be my first guitar in 10 years since i want to start playing again)
I don't blame Jackson at all for this, it's more to do with COVID19 which has impacted the quality control of new Jackson guitars being made since 2020 and beyond regardless of what country it's made in and unfortunately the MJ series is no exception as much as I'd hate to admit it.
5 years ago, I bought one of those Jackson Dinky Archtops in satin black (looked so badass). I know they're way cheaper, but you still expect everything to work right out of the box, but it had pickup switching issues right away. Every time I was in the bridge position, if I played any volume above soft, the neck pickup would engage like I'm in the middle position. I took it apart and cleaned it, but I couldn't find out what was causing it, and I didn't want to replace any parts on a $400 guitar, so I just sold it for almost all my money back and got an LTD M403 ht, since I already had a guitar with a floyd anyways. The LTD was soooo much better quality. It was a bit more expensive at the time, but the reason it was better wasn't only because of fit and finish and stuff, it's mainly just because it worked like it was supposed to, unlike the Jackson. I recently bought a Fender Player Plus Strat (I'm not only into metal, I play jazz and rock too) and it's FANTASTIC for the price. The neck is amazing. Thinner than most strats, but with amazing rolled edges. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but fender and Jackson are the same company now, so I cannot understand why build quality, materials, attention to detail, and all of that are so different. Doesn't make sense. Edit: forgot to say - there's a reason Dave Mustaine changed from Jackson to Gibson. It's sad to see him not play a Jackson anymore, honestly. But Gibsons are dope...just a bit pricey.
There is an LTD for $700 at the pawn shop near my house. It is great! It’s almost exactly the same guitar as my Schecter. Same pickups , same look, same feel. Are they made by the same People? I would love to have that guitar.
@@Imokyourok440 I'm pretty sure they are not related companies. I could be wrong, but I've never heard that either schectere or ltd were the same company. Esp owns LTD though. It's sort of like Fender and Squier, but LTD's are generally way better quality than a squier would be. The ESP guitars are pretty expensive. And the LTD's are a lot more affordable, but still super good. If you're into metal style guitars, schectere and ltd are both great choices.
@@Casey3-P-O I’m gonna look into that. Same pickups, paint job, almost exactly alike. Damn good guitars. My Dad bought my Schecter for me at a pawn shop for $200 and it came with a fender practice amp. Dad knew nothing about guitars. The pawn shop owner was a good man. He knew I was struggling and Dad wanted to help me. If it was a hunk of junk, I would still love it. It’s great though. Dad passed away a few years ago, so it means even more now.❤️😢
Totally agree with the guy. These days companies expect us to be fully incompetent and dumb to buy their products without asking any questions. The prices go higher and higher whereas the quality of the products goes in the opposite direction.
I spent $850 Anna LTDEC 1000 weather Evertune bridge. Lemon Sunburst quilted top. JB hum bucker‘s. The thing is an amazing and incredibly solid instrument. I can’t see why a company needs to charge that much and do some thing other than exceptional with her instruments at this point in time.
I picked up a 2013 DK2 m pro in silverburst. It's a made in Mexico model. Absolutely night and day difference from what I see today. It's a quality instrument
I bought a brand new USA Jackson soloist back in about 2005. It was my 3rd Jackson. The 2 I had prior were from the mid 80s. They were awesome. The 2005’s high E was so close to the edge of the board you would fret a note and it would slide off the edge and get caught between the binding and the fret because there was a gap
very true. $1,500+ for bad quality paint work and parts. quality control on jackson has completely tanked. but i also grew up playing jackson’s. made in japan are amazing guitars in the 90s though. you have a great youtube channel too , keep it up!
I have a Jackson COW 7 and a RR24. Both made in Japan. They both look, feel and sound amazing but I wouldn't dare to buy anything from Jackson nowadays. It's agree that is a shame what they are doing to the brand.
I don't have any sinking problems with the backplates on my Jackson guitars, including my RR24-7 Concept Series. I suspect those tuners are not Gotoh tuners. They look and feel the same as those on all my Jacksons. Definitely agree with the case issue though. Amazed the guitar isn't fucked from every speed bump the bus went over!
I still stand with my opinion that is Jackson as an authentic brand was long gone since the Fender acquisition. Never satisfied enough with a pro-2002 USA Jackson as I do with my 1986 and 1996 USA soloists. Same goes for the imports, had the chance to play a 1989 MIJ Charvel 650xl and a 1994 MIJ Jackson Professional Soloist (both are neck-thru with glass clean ebony fretboards) which are even better than current USA runs. Quantity is all that matters to Fender Musical Instrumets Corp.
I bought a Jackson with a Les Paul body last year and I’ve played it for about 3 weeks and traded it for an Ibanez then sold the Ibanez for a Godin radiator model and now I’m satisfied lol
Jackson does put their own name on some legit hardware, like Floyd Rose trems and Gotoh tuners. But you're absolutely not wrong about general quality issues, and it's such a shame. This company is not the Jackson that earned them the name in the 80s. I'd wonder if it happened when Jackson was acquired by Fender in 2002, but I'm not seeing Fender having the same quality issues.
That was why mustaine left jackson I heard. He knew they would ruin the brand. I have a 1990 mij fusion pro in desert crackle with no fret wear, and chainsaw case, I am always torn on selling it, but I never play the thing.
I mean the sister companies are pretty good like EVH and Charvel. The EVH Wolfgang standard is a monster for the price. Charvels are putting out solid offerings. I can understand why people like Jackson's, they have something to them and crazy loyal fans but every one I pick up is a little off in some way.
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The Pro Rhoads models are now $1500+ and made in China. Somebody is smokin' some reeaaaalllly good stuff over at Jackson!
Yeah dude they are out of their minds
crackheads dem,
own a '91 grover dinky, wonderful instrument. no problems in the finish like this or any factory issues, just some wear with years of use. Was looking into getting some v-shaped guitars from jackson, thanks fuck seen this video. Will go for older used versions or pther guitar brands, cheers for the video Jed🤙
I just bought a pro Rhoads and it was made in Indonesia. Not China.
@@Noah-wj4rd Only the ones with crackle finishes are made in China.
@@Mezziah777 I actually have an orange crackle and it is made in China.
I've played $7000 guitars from the Gibson Custom Shop that were hilariously bad. Price does not equate to quality. Quality equates to quality.
There's no way I could justify buying a new guitar these days. The prices are insanely high and keep climbing, but quality control is declining. I really wanted the Brandon Ellis Kelly, but I'm not gambling with Jackson's shitty quality control then you have the hassle of sending it back and hoping they exchange it for a good one. The whole process in theory could take months.
Yeah it’s getting wild. It’s driving used prices up really high too
Damn, everything going up. You can say the same for cars/trucks.
I hear ya, I wanted one too, the green crackle Kelly looks sick. There's already been complaints of the paint coming off, and other quality issues. For $1500 dollars that guitar should come with a hardshell and top notch electronics/ quality pots and switches, but the truth is they do not.
It was never any cheeper to buy a good guitar.
And what's funny is the budget guitar quality has gone up.
The Soloist that I bought back in 1990 when I was 14 is still one of my best guitars. I have other Jackson's from the last 10 years or so (all USA) top notch shit but I still favor my old one from 32 years ago.
Yes those are desired. Especially early to mid 90s models. Mmm mmm good.
Thank you for being NORMAL on camera, and for telling the TRUTH, you rock dude 🤘
Dude....I’ve been playing Jacksons for 30 years, own several USA models and a custom shop Kelly and I LOVE them but......$3600 for a Rhodes MJ series? Are you Fukin crazy!!
You’re spot on man.....Disgusting what Jackson has become!
Jackson went even more insane than gibson. Charging gibson prices for Chinese garbage, and ive seen their custom shop quality leaves a lot to be desired. And for those prices, there's zero excuse for ANY flaws or workmanship issues. Im sticking with Ibanez. Have been since the late 80s
I started playing as a teenager in the mid-80's, during peak Hair Metal/Thrash/Shredder days. Owning a Jackson was a dream and a goal. It was the guitar every player wanted. Today it's just sort of a "me too" company. Fender did a great job revitalizing the Charvel brand but they seem content with letting Jackson wallow in the past and sit in the middle of the heard.
Very true. They have some great looking models, but they ads mostly throwbacks to try golden days. They aren’t innovating like esp.
True as can be. Fender leaves Jackson in the dark and doesn’t care at all about improving them.
Love Jackson. I found A Jackson Dinky with Seymour duncans and a floyd trem for $100 at a pawnshop 4 years ago. Then found an 80s charvel/jackson case at another pawn later for $20. Still one of my favorite finds all these years later.
It is a shame what is happening to the guitar industry with rising prices and lack of quality.
Damn! Great scores!
The problem with guitar companies is they want made in USA prices for copies made in China. Lower quality control and lower quality materials. A name on the headstock doesnt mean much anymore.
I’ve owned a couple of Jacksons over the years, including a custom shop RR, and was never impressed with the quality. Ibanez, Schecter, and ESPs are far superior in my experience.
I thought I was gonna get pissed cause I to have always been a Jackson guy, I just got back into playing guitar after 25 years heroin addiction and now on 8 yrs sobriety, I just bought me a Jackson Dinky from China. Cause yup! I been hearing an watching bad things about Jackson, as if your paying $1,200.00 for a bootleg, so I bought me this Dinky brand new for $178.00 guitar center and it's freakin phenomenal. Wow! Blown away. But thanks for speaking truth and informing us. Jackson should be ashamed
Dude...you 100% correct...people have the power and they can use that power how they spend their money...for example, if people stopped buying $10 beers at a football game, next sunday those same beers would be $2...but sadly, people don’t realize this so the scam just keeps on rolling....good stuff my brother!!!!!
jackson used to make my favorite guitars. Now I can't ever justify buying one. There's so much better value and quality out there now. It's sad, I hope they can make it out. I really wish Dave Mustaine was able to buy them back in the day.
Only 3 years ago, I ordered a Dinky USA Custom Select to my exact specs, great guitar, $2700 shipped. 3 years later, that same amount of money apparently gets me a MIJ guitar with issues. I love Jackson, have 4 custom shops, but I might be done with them for a while if this keeps up.
I wish I could give a double like to this video. you're not a high profile page, you gave an honest review, showcased your concerns and basically raised the same points i would make, we cant speak for everyone. but these are definitely key points to bring up on a company that was built on a name known for quality and performance.
Man, I wish they'd listen. I had an incident with a Jackson Soloist I purchased a few years ago. Brett @ customer service took care of me and I still have the replacement to this day. However, I've come to expect that anything Jackson is 50/50 to either be garbage or be usable. But 80% of the time you won't get something worthy of any kind of real pride. And that includes their American stuff. It's such a tragedy 😢
Yep. ESP is killing it and them. Big time
Jackson is owned by Fender now so I wouldn't be surprised if they're cutting corners with Jackson to preserve their own namesake
I've owned Jacksons my whole life, mostly MIJ from Chushin Gakki factory, but never bought brand new. Last fall I took a chance and bought the Brandon Ellis Kelly made in China. I couldn't send it back fast enough. What a horribly made axe. I was soooo devastated. I could go on about that POS for days. I'm still pissed about it. Your vid is spot on!!
Over the decade I had 3 Jackson guitars and sold them all. I loved when Megadeth played them and always wanted to get the axes. But all of them had issues popping up over time. Poor wiring, frets not leveled, crappy licensed floyd which was breaking strings at the bridge when palm muted successfully made me despise FR locking trems. Nowadays the pricing is ridiculous for what they put into their guitars. What a shame. I would love to have a nice jackson especially with sharkfin inlays.
I have been playing USA Selects and Custom Shops for over 30 years and love them to death. Went to my local music store to help one of my students pickup some gear and checked out the new Jackson stuff. Sad to say it is crap. I am with you man, Jackson has gone downhill.
No it's not, I'd put my SLX up against any US or Japanese Jackson. I know, I have/had a few. The US Jacksons have an edge in sound, in terms of better pups.. but fretwork, neck feel.. playability, they are NOT superior, certainly not at almost 4 times the price.
Dude… I had an 80s Charvel (in the 80s) then got a 90s Jackson. Loved them. I excitedly picked up a Jackson 4 or 5 years ago and was appalled. I mean, it was like a $400 guitar, but it felt awful. I then went and felt a higher end one. They’re just not made for me anymore.
Now check this out ! I bought 3 Jackson warrior wr7 ( David Davison 7 strings ) made in Indonesia. I replaced all the Dimarzios imperium, on all 3 of them, to replace with bareknuckles. Guess what I found ? All 3 guitars had the dimarzios imperium ( NECK PICKUP ) in the neck and IN THE BRIDGE CAVITY TOO, reson why when I had the toggle switch on bridge position that guitar sounded pale and funny. Fender, who bought jackson and are DIRECTLY responsible for jackson, NEW IT, but decided to be silent, knowing that just a few people would upgrade the pickups. I called Fender, and they promised me to do the right thing and send the bridge pickup as it was supposed to be installed In the guitar from the factory. Fender NEVER SEND ME the pickups and stop answering my calls and emails. I hope, one of these days, Fender will be dragged to a court and forced to pay thousands of people who were cheated by them
I've heard quite a lot of negative things about Fender USA customer service, even to the point where they refuse to deal with serious issues found by the buyer upon first inspection.
Here in Europe we have strong consumer protections with the right to refund or replacement of any defective goods within so many days of purchase.
If the seller doesn't act then you complain to your local trading standards, which can then lead to small courts claim if the seller's response isn't satisfactory.
@@pauln6803 yep, in Europe things works in a professional manner. In US, everything is going down at the speed of light
Ive been playing since I was a kid and always wanted a nice Jackson, but every single one I've picked up left a lot to be desired. You would think with Schecter stepping up and going above and beyond with reasonable prices in recent years, these other brands would follow suit but I guess not.
Gibson is working at bringing back Kramer. I live in Nashville an go to the Gibson Garage every now an then. They have pure shred machines. The Floyd, one Duncan an a fast neck. Basically the EVH first generation. They have an HSS thats for low end cost. Its getting bad reviews though. Kramer has the same history as Jackson. They both should come back
Fender buys the companies we grew up with and expects us to buy them because of nostalgia. Gretsch is also owned by Fender.
Gretsch isn't owned by Fender. They distribute them.
@@raytorvalds3699 maybe they don't own them completely but they have the exclusive rights to develop, produce, market and distribute Gretsch guitars worldwide. Which is pretty much the same thing.
@@wheresridgeville1 Yeah, you are right. Pretty much so. Have a good one, mate.
If you like Jackson Quality and enjoyed 90s MIJ Jacksons, try Caparison guitars. I believe it their owner was one of the luthiers that undertook the whole Pre-Fender Jacksons to be made in Japan. They knew it had to be good import quality for the 90s Jacksons. I love my Tat-ii model, like a Soloist, similar neck carve and great wood and paint. Glossy black mirror ebony fretboard.
Both the Japanes and USA jacksons cost so much because of price of labor. I recently got the chinese made jackson sl3m and other than the tuners (put gotoh on them fender) the guitar was perfect. The backplates are plastic but it's all CNC cut and nice sharp edges all around. The plates were so tight that I had harder time taking them off. There is a real switch and full size pots in the cavity. The attention to detail was amazing. You know how some floyd nuts protrude little bit past the edge of the fretboard? This one was perfectly centered and the edges blended into the neck. It has real duncan pickups and korean made floyd rose which is better made than the special floyd rose. I have the rainbow crackle finish and they only make these in china and it's beautiful in person. Can't stop looking at it. I simply don't see how USA made jackson would be better made. I don't like the USA jackson heel cut, the indo and china made jackson have the proper cut. The Japanese jackson is overpriced.
Now, few years ago I bought brand new jackson bolt on soloist for $110 from guitar center. It too was flawless and it even had full size trem block which is practically unheard of in this price range. I was going to convert that guitar into a floyd rose soloist but it was so pretty that I simply abandoned the idea and bought the sl3m instead.
I think the best value is ibanez rg350. Mine had only two small flaws. The nut protruded from the edge about 0.5mm, which is nothing but can be felt and one small section of the edge of the backplate, the wood was slighty crunched. Other than that, the guitar was perfect. I paid full price of $1300 for the jackson sl3m and I would definitey pay that price again because the workmanship is simply outstanding. The rg350 I paid new $300 and like I've said, the best value back then and maybe even today. Ibanez made some neck through rg's like 3020 but I heard they are on the heavy side. Btw, if you can't physically examine a new guitar then just buy it from sweetwater as you can examine the pics and get a good idea about craftmanship and weight from the pics if you know what to look for. That's how I bought my sl3m and I knew it was going to be good after I looked at the pics.
I'm a lefty and it took half of my life to realize that I jacked neck was exactly what I was looking for, I purchased a cheap chinese-made js32 left-handed dinky two years ago and personally I could not complain for the prize... the only real issue cosmetically I seen on that guitar was on the headstock but everything else seemed to be okay... But what they are producing now has went downhill even in the last year or so. I just seen a guy on a Facebook group who had planned to repaint his x-series Jackson Kelly only to sand it down and find that the Maple veneer on top had a layer of particle board underneath followed by a back layer of Poplar, needless to say he was very upset and disappointed. Sing another guy in the same group who waited a year-and-a-half for a USA custom-made Jackson only to have some similar cosmetic and physical issues as well...
My ‘86 Jackson soloist is the best guitar I ever played. Sad to say that no other Jackson especially the recent ones have come within miles of touching the guitar. For the money the Ibanez genesis series are the best shred guitars for the money right now imo
What genuine reviews do is bring out genuine and valuable comments. Thanks!
I have a 2012 RR, and it's my first actual Jackson guitar. Seeing Vinnie Vincent's back from when he was with KISS in the early 80s made me want it more. You've hit it on the nail, and wish they'd pull their heads outta their asses, and make good quality guitars again.
saved me a trip to L and M's and frankly our community NEEDS more dudes like dis guy
I've been playing guitar for almost forty years, and while I've always felt Jackson produced some very fine instruments, the reason I never bought one is because when I went to a music shop in L.A. in '87 to buy a Soloist they had an ESP Horizon on the same wall. I compared them and there was NO way the soloist could compete. The Horizon was sleeker, more advanced, with a better neck, and sounded a lot better too. It was also about half the price of the Soloist at $700. Easy decision. I find Jackson's quality has taken a real dive in recent years. Besides that, I'd much rather get a Yamaha or a G & L or Fender and just pop in some Duncans as I always do.
Did you buy that horizon?
@@jed_shred_guitars Yes. But I don't own it anymore. I sold it to a friend back in 1990 because by then I'd stopped using locking trems, just had it with them. But it was a great ax. My friend replaced the very crunchy but noisy DiMarzio X2N knockoff that came with it and replaced it with a Duncan JB which sounded better. But he didn't get a JB because of my advice, but because he wanted whatever Dave and Marty were using on Rust in Peace and I told him it was all JBs, which it was. Anyhow, what had happened by this time, late 80s, early 90s, is ESP had given Jackson a real wallop. ESP has smart enough to open a custom shop in Hollywood around '85 and George Lynch was one of their first big name clients. Jackson/Charvel got lazy and took for granted the large roster of players. So what happened is Lynch peeled away to ESP, and a lot of former Jackson, Kramer and Hamer players followed along. When Kirk Hammett started playing ESP it caused a wave of players in the thrash world to follow. It's just the way it was. I'll put it this way. Let's say you had the choice of a Lamborghini that does zero to sixty in 4 seconds with a top speed of 180, or a McLaren Speedtail that does zero to sixty in 3 seconds and has a top speed of 250. Let's say the Mclaren is cheaper. Prospective buyers will ask themselves, "Do I want the Lambo, which is more well known, or do I want the McLaren, which is not as well-known but nicknamed The Ferrari Killer, because that's what they were designed to do? ESPs, and the Horizon was their penultimate model in '87, were designed to take on the big boy, Jackson/Charvel. I'd say they conquered them a long time ago. They offered a much better guitar for the money and still do. My Horizon was made in Japan, which in truth had better quality control than the US. But it still made the guitar half the price of a Jackson Soloist. The craftsmanship and the design put it over the top. The Horizon had 24 frets, which also gave it an edge at the time. Yes, so did the current Soloist, but in '87 you would still find some with 22. The extra full octave of 24 frets is priceless in a shred world where every fret counts. And the design of the ESP neck joint was far superior to the Soloist. It was just easier to get access. The licensed Floyd on the Horizon was better than the standard Floyd that came on the Soloist as well. Right about this time Ibanez became huge when Vai and other shredders started playing them. They came with the knew Ibanez Edge trem which knocked the pants off a Floyd. They were simply more I gigged with between '86 and '92, my L.A. club days when I was a teenager, was my trusty candy apple red Holdsworth Charvel I bought used for $100. It was simple. Standard trem, albeit double fulcrum, mounted flush, and a single, hand would JB that sounded outrageously awesome. It was 22 frets, rosewood fretboard, black pickguard, black tuners, graphite nut. The thing NEVER went out of tune. It was amazing. I had other guitars I would take with me to gigs as backup like my Kramer Baretta or a Strat with a Hot Rail in the bridge. For amps I went from lugging my Marshall stack to getting smart and getting a Boogie 50 Cal combo which was easier and had more than enough volume. To this day I recommend combos over stacks. It just makes sense and they are easier to mic up. Also, if you face them away from you it's easier for the soundman to get you a good stage volume through the PA. Even on 2 that Boogie was very loud. But soundman were grateful for me not having a stack, or five, and believe me, some players on the scene had five stacks back then. It was crazy. Also, having on combo made it easier to set up and break down fast after a gig. I would not only move my little rig, the amp, a guitar or two and a couple pedals, but help the drummer. If you could pack the house with your friends and set up and break down fast the clubs loved you. It was all about $$$ and time for them, and in this world you must understand the nexus of time and $$$, especially in music. I learned a lot in those days. Wonderful memories. And yes, ESP crushes Jackson.
Unfortunately I just got an LTD Arrow Black Metal with some pretty serious QC issues. The binding on the neck isn't great, there's some dust specks trapped underneath the finish and lots of cuts marking the frets. The trem cavity is poorly painted, and the area right above the trem is just bare wood which is really ugly when looking at the guitar head-on. More importantly, the Floyd Rose isn't installed well and won't return to pitch as well as it could. The bass side post is leaning away from the neck and it wiggles back and forth when I remove the bridge. The posts and knife edges have already had the paint scraped off at the contact points after a day of use, they might even be damaged for all I know. And the claw screws in the back are basically stuck so I can't even get the bridge perfectly level. Probably going to send it back.
ESP has impressed me since I started playing back in 2004. 99% of the ones I’ve played, save for the super budget ones, have been amazing. Jackson has been the exact opposite. I used to love them, but the QC and the extreme markup on MIJ pricing is insane. I have a DK2M that I got for Christmas in 2006 for $600 msrp, and that thing still sounds and plays great.
Jackson has truly given up and gone for the greed.
The only thing I hate about ESP/LTD is their logo. Its cartoonish and looks cheapo af. I went ibanez for a long time just because of that
@@nathancheung358 Agreed completely. I find the LTD logo to be rather tacky and my LTDs are excellent instruments (both are 1000 Series Arrows). Even their standards made in Japan get just the E-II logo. The ESP logo can only be found on their Original Series and Customs today.
I had a few Jacksons in the 90s, after having a couple of budget guitars (a Harmony acoustic and a Peavey strat copy), and was generally pleased with them. I was convinced that would be my lifelong brand loyalty.
Right around Y2K I "settled for" an ESP because I wanted a 7-string and couldn't find a price in my budget on a Jackson 7 at the time. This is when I learned brand loyalty isn't very important.
Haven't bought a Jackson in decades, but just a little bit of research makes it obvious they've gone downhill.
Dude you said it brother and we need to vote with our wallets you are right . Jackson's for me pre fender were it - it had the looks the sound and the neck. I had a RR1, KV2 with gold hardware and a WRR1 all immaculate. If I knew the QC would be a problem today I would never have sold those guitars ...
just got my first Jackson about 6 months ago... it's a beast (!).. I truly love the guitar (7 string).. I play metal and that guitar is allot of fun.. before the Jackson I was exclusive to Ibanez - also a great guitar.. happy with the Jackson at a very reasonable price.. picking it right off the shelf at guitar center in Long Island New York.. that being said, if I played the kind of music that would require me to have a very clean sound then in that case I'm not sure if the Jackson would work for that.. the right tools for the right job..
Thank you for the in-depth review, showing all the little quality issues. It helps. Most people just talk about how it plays.
I don't understand how Jackson is shitting the bed so bad but charvel and fender are killing it.
Fender is not killing it. The charvels seem to be the best out of any of the fender brands for quality control right now for some reason. Lots of brand New Mexican fenders coming in with issues, especially fret issues.
I’m sure every fender dealer has a stack of fenders in the back waiting for warranty authorization to fix them like the shop I work at.
Then I stand corrected, my friend and I both got new squires around the same price point and both were straight killers
I've always had a fond affection for Jacksons but they aren't the same company they used to be, that's a fact. I love a quality built Jackson guitar, some of my favorite guitars I've ever laid my hands on had Jackson on the headstock. None of them had Made in the USA on the headstock though.
They were all Chushin Gakki built japanese guitars. The professional series from like '90 to '95 specifically. Just as good as any USA made guitars in my experience in terms of build quality. These MIJ guitars of this era definitely earned their reputation. I have a Dinky RV-S natural mahogany finish from '95 that I'll never sell and has the fastest and thinnest neck of any guitar I've ever held in my hands. It's paper thin. I've used it a lot but it's still in great shape and I've rarely ever seen another one up for sale on reverb or ebay. I've seen them on a couple of occasions and usually commanding a way higher price than what I bought mine for.
I will never play ugly les Paul or fender crapocasters period. ONLY USA Jackson guitars. Remember 1995 back are the best import guitars from Jackson guitars. I like P C -1,soloist,PC archtop and any San daims made Jackson.
Fender moved production of PRO Soloists from Japan to Indonesia around 2012. The first ones were made in the PT Wildwood factory, who also supply ESP and Schecter, with an 'IWJ' serial number prefix and the spec was classic Jackson recipe. Three-piece Maple thru neck with quarter-sawn centre section, Alder body sections and the backplates were black anodized aluminium. After a couple of years or so the Fender bean-counters switched to Samick factory, with an 'ISJ' serial number prefix, who deviated from the Jackson Soloist recipe with a two-piece scarf-jointed Maple thru neck, Mahogany body sections and plastic backplates.
I do like the Jackson JS series made in China and think they are excellent value for money especially ones with compound necks. I just think some of the current Jackson PRO models aren't up to the mark and are probably overpriced .
Also stay away from the the Jackson v shaped cases they will destroy your guitar neck they have two opposing latches at mid neck that have a pinch point. I brought this up to quality control and was told to pound sand....So much for quality control !!!!!
I play Ibanez's. Recently bought my first Jackson, the Indonesian made Soloist SL2 MAH Magenta. Pretty disappointed with the standard of craftsmanship for a $1150 guitar. Really wanted to give Jackson a chance but I guess I won't be buying more Jackson's or recommending this brand to anyone else.
I was so disappointed with my Ibanez RG350DLX, that it sat in my basement for years.. sold it for $200 and bought another Jackson.. best decision I ever made.
@@mr.spongylikeaboss4987 RG350 is a 300 dollar guitar from 1990. Being disappointed is understandable. A Jackson SL2 is over $1200 and should be much less disappointing.
Shouldn't we get a bit more for spending more? I think that's only reasonable.
It’s all Fender’s fault, PERIOD.
Spot on brother. It’s such a shame when you’ve seen what they were like before. The only one I found to be up to scratch quality wise is the Jeff Loomis signature.
100% agree. 5 Years ago I picked up an $800 soloist in GC. The hardware was so cheap I put it right back, and, like you I was disappointed in what they have become. I HIGHLY suggest getting a Solar. While they are not ESP level, for the $ they are hard to beat. I got mine from the Outlet and am 100% satisfied.
I have not played any of the newer generation of Jackson guitars but I will say that my 1985 San Dimas Gun Metal Blue Soloist is the best playing guitar I've ever played to this day. They will probably never be that good again. I feel very fortunate (38 years later) to have one of the EARLY ones as my main lifetime guitar. They are easily the best and there is no substitute in my book. GET ONE IF YOU CAN!!!
Super genuine video dude. Not just bashing Jackson, you obviously love them along with probably everyone watching, but you pointed out some really critical issues. As of now, I don’t think I’ll ever buy a new Jackson. After a knock off strat, a js30 rr was my first “real” guitar when I was 12. Haven’t gotten another Jackson until I’ve acquired 3 off the used market in the last year. My kvxmg is okay, just that. Got a killer deal on an older rrx24 7 t. For the price I paid, can’t complain but it’s just solid enough. The one I’m most proud of is a parts guitar I made. Js30 warrior gloss black body paired with a mij dxmg neck along with all new hardware, pickups, etc. But that took a lot of time, and a lot of money. It plays great, the best neck out of my Jackson’s for sure, but is that what is takes to get a really badass Jackson these days? I guess so.
Problem right now is the supply chain issues and factorys having to double up production to meet the shortcomings of the last 2 years so that the company can make that money back, both those issues also result in the price being higher but the quility being hit hard too.
Jackson are not the only brand to be hit by this, it's a lot of brands. It's sad, but things will balance out again in a couple of years. Think thats why pretty much everyone had a very limited NAMM season release this year. Normally it's like a whole new roster of instruments from all the manufacturers but this year they mostly stayed the same as last years models and brought out like only 10 models overall. Sucks.
Always love the neck on a Jackson. It's like the sweetspot between ESP's Thin-U and the paper thin Ibanez wizard necks.
Jackson has been going downhill for a long time. The pandemic surely added to it, but esp and other brands are putting out mostly fantastic guitars. And innovating, and selling for competitive prices, and coming out all kinds of new models. Another commenter called Jackson a “novelty brand” and they were right. Jackson needs to hit rock bottom and have popular opinion be that they suck now to improve.
@@jed_shred_guitars can’t say I share the same opinion. Played one of those newer 7 string soloists with the fishmans and it was impeccable.
Had a wee go on the MIJ Misha strat too and loved it. Fit and finish was damn near perfect.
Shame though that they’re going though this period.
Totally agree I recently bought a Kramer nightswan and even though it looks stellar the amount of manufacturing issues are ridiculous like off centerfield floyd, creaking lock nut which is also off center and cheap tuners misaligned humbuckers the high E to close to the edge of the fretboard and rolls off but as long as we keep putting up with it the more they do it
My next guitar is going to be an ESP E-II MII that costs $2k and if it feels as good as my Jackson Concept RR24 Rhoads (also $2k) then I’ll be happy. I just feel like you are mad and I understand that. I got 3 Charvel/Jackson Pro guitars in a row from the Mexico factory and I had to return them all. However that Concept Rhoads (6-String) feels as good as a $4k PRS Custom 24 to me. So I agree they need much better Quality Control but they definitely aren’t dead. I just hope that E-II is as good as I hope it will be. I also wish it didn’t come with EMG pickups. That’s my biggest problem with ESP, I do love them but they need to move away from having so many guitars with EMGs as if that’s what most people want.
Anyway I subscribed to your channel, going to checkout some more of your videos.
I've been really having good luck with Ibby's. Have a few of them ,all from the last few years and they are all perfect!
I too am scratching my head about Jackson and it's antics. When a friend of mine said he bought a Jackson and asked if I wanted to check it out ,I was so excited you would have thought it was me that just bought it .. ha. Sounded great walking into the house looked ok but when he handed it to me I thought for sure he got ripped off.. body felt hollow hardware not grover and the nut was a soft plastic . Frets were jagged and Floyd Rose wasn't holding the whammy bar .. the back plate didn't even say Jackson.. I'm a drummer and he was happy so I didn't pop his bubble .. Wtf Jackson!!!!!!!
Buy from a reputable retailer or direct from manufacturer. There are so many knock offs out their its ridiculous. Not saying this is a knock off, but I would definitely authenticate it. Also does Fender still own Jackson?
Totally agree with you, about allowing this crap. I love Jackson and with the months and years passing it's hard to defend them when they're crap guitar. So fsr i just look for older models on reverd, and they are killer!! Compared to the newer 2000-3000 Jackson guitars that are coming out now. I rather spend the 800 - 1300 on an older model and gice it some upgrades and still be superior to the new ones
When the video ended, I got an ad for Fender. That should sum up this story perfectly.
Hahahah pretty much
I'm exactly like you. Loved jackson, loved the necks, the look...but man I have seen some absolutely unacceptable shit out of them online lately. Got a japanese rr24, and it is just the most perfect instrument. I don't understand what happened. Seems like alot of guitar company's too. Not just jackson.
This...It's pretty much all companies doing it. If the consumer keeps paying they will keep pumping out garbage....really it's the consumers fault.
So what’s you’re saying is Jackson racks disciprine?
Haven’t though of that phrase in years but like 9 minutes in when you were talking about honor and stuff my brain just pulled that out from a long forgotten memory lol
Hahahaha
Totally agree. I’m 71 and love my ESP Horizon.👍🏿🕺🏿😊
Go Reggie!
All hail ESP LTD!
Supreme leaders of the metal axe world 🙌
The newer Gus G model , made in Mexico is simply badass ! $399 .
Try one and prepare to be blown away . The price makes it hard to believe .
I'm the same, loved and drooled over Jackson's back in the 90's. This year I jumped back into them, brought two dinky's one with Floyd and quilted maple top, cost me $700 Australian dollars, sold it within two weeks, just brought a cheaper dinky with a roasted maple neck at $500 AU, and it plays and feels great? WTF? Seems very inconsistent!
Indo's are back & forth on quality. The late 80s early 90s Japanese ones are great.
@@scottdurflinger8527 yea I had a dinky in 1994 back as a teen, and she was fantastic, same with a warlock, and everything just got bad in the 2000's
Just got an Adrian Smith SDX a few weeks ago. There's one blemish on the body that took me a day to notice. It plays great and the fretwork is awesome. I don't have any complaints about it, especially for the price. I've never had a strat type that I could fall in love with until now, including my old American standard.
That’s awesome!
I used to love Jackson. Owned many over the years. My top 3 were the Marty Friedman Musicians friend 1 of 100, the Jenna Jameson V, and the Professional series Dinky made in Japan. I bought all 3 for a total of just under $1000. Yes all were pre-owned but the Jenna and Friedman were unplayed. Great guitars. Today's Jackson's don't compare and the prices are laughable.
I have three Jackson guitars. 2003 DKMG (Made in Japan) Late 2000s DXMGT (Made In Japan) and a 2019 Jackson Soloist SL2P MAH (Made In Indonesia) I love everyone of them.
I bought my RR1 USA select in 2016 for $2,700.. It's amazing. Best guitar Ive ever owned. They are going for almost 5 grand now.. crazy they have almost doubled in 7 years..
I used to be a Jackson dude when I was growing up but I always wanted an ESP ever since I seen Metallica play them. You barely ever see any metal guys endorsing with Jackson anymore either. You're right man, it is a shame.
Very true! I remember in the early 2000’s esp was sponsoring everybody. They have some killer signature models. I was looking through their website the other night. The sd-2 looks insane.
@@jed_shred_guitars I know I want an actual ESP but they're so ridiculously priced now and the LTD 1000 series is plenty good for me. I have two. One from Korea and one from Indonesia and they are both great. I really don't know how the playability could get any better or be worth the extra $4-5,000 bucks....lol. Maybe one day 🤔.
@@manicmurph Yeah i thought the same, but i bought an actual ESP custom shop few months ago. ( Alexi Laiho Blacky )
Yeah, i can assure you, the difference between a 1000€ LTD and 4000€ ESP is night and day, it's like comparing your 1000€ LTD to a 150€ entry level guitar, it's unbelielable
There is a reason why professional plays on on high end model and not mid range level, the difference is just breath taking, you really have to try it to understand it.
You’re 100% correct. I regret buying both the King V and the Kelly guitars I got. What a shame. Terrible fret work.
I made an ESP/Jackson Frankenstrat and I love it. ESP body , Jackson 2008 neck , Floyd Rose trem , EMG 91/85 and a custom active harness because the ESP wasn't clean enough for my liking. It is now my favorite guitar.
Fender killed Jackson!! since Fender bought Jackson it will never be the same again, great video friend!
I hope Jackson returns to be the great legend that he was 💪🎸⚡
When I first got my Jackson I was super excited. But now that in playing in a band and constantly learning new songs, the more unimpressed I'm becoming with it.
I was all aboit Jackson since Randy first came out onstage with his Jackson. Ive had many Jackson guitars over the years and loved them. Shit happened, i dont have any of my ild guitars. Started playing again about 20 years ago and ive been trying everything except ESP/LTD. I bought a KH 602 used crom a buddy of mine. Im in heaven. One of the best guitars i have ever owned and played.
I personally own 8 Jackson guitars...i own a Jackson guitar rr3 Indonesian made version.....1 Jackson 1986 usa concert bass...and 6 Jackson cmg Japanese made concert basses....the worst quality built guitar is the 2018 Indonesian Jackson rr3 guitar...after fender purchased Jackson guitars in 2001'the company nose dived'from a excellent well organized 'quality producing company 'to a poor production for profit running company...fender corporation destroyed Jackson guitars...they are now building cheap 'poorly made 'Jackson guitars in China 'yet asking 1500 dollars for these monstrosities..
i have owned two usa jacksons (a soloist and a rr1). my guitar tech had to slide my locking nut over because the high e was sliding off the fretboard. even with that issue, it sounds like the 90s jacksons were far superior to the jacksons of today. i owned a number of 90s jacksons and they were almost always great guitars. you are dead on about esp and ibanez as well! youtube finally did something right by bringing me here! subbed!
So glad I held onto my 1990 rhoads. Still a beast.
Couldn't agree more bro. Stopped buying Jackson gear altogether. Jackson USED to be the shit. The best. Everything you said is right on point brother. Great video 🤘
I just planned on buying the jackson soloist slx-m. After this video i looked at guitars from esp and i just cannot afford them. The cheapest one i could find is 3'825 whilst the jackson is 611. Also i love the look of the soloist snow white and the esp ones dont really appeal to me tbh. Any advice on what to do? (It will be my first guitar in 10 years since i want to start playing again)
Look at Ltd guitars made by esp. it’s they’re more budget brand, and more in the price range you are looking at. Try to buy in person if you can.
Lots of good LTD's out there, or a used Charvel pro mod? Schecter has some great offerings too.
I don't blame Jackson at all for this, it's more to do with COVID19 which has impacted the quality control of new Jackson guitars being made since 2020 and beyond regardless of what country it's made in and unfortunately the MJ series is no exception as much as I'd hate to admit it.
I agree 100 percent. I'll never buy another Jackson
5 years ago, I bought one of those Jackson Dinky Archtops in satin black (looked so badass). I know they're way cheaper, but you still expect everything to work right out of the box, but it had pickup switching issues right away. Every time I was in the bridge position, if I played any volume above soft, the neck pickup would engage like I'm in the middle position. I took it apart and cleaned it, but I couldn't find out what was causing it, and I didn't want to replace any parts on a $400 guitar, so I just sold it for almost all my money back and got an LTD M403 ht, since I already had a guitar with a floyd anyways. The LTD was soooo much better quality. It was a bit more expensive at the time, but the reason it was better wasn't only because of fit and finish and stuff, it's mainly just because it worked like it was supposed to, unlike the Jackson.
I recently bought a Fender Player Plus Strat (I'm not only into metal, I play jazz and rock too) and it's FANTASTIC for the price. The neck is amazing. Thinner than most strats, but with amazing rolled edges. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but fender and Jackson are the same company now, so I cannot understand why build quality, materials, attention to detail, and all of that are so different. Doesn't make sense.
Edit: forgot to say - there's a reason Dave Mustaine changed from Jackson to Gibson. It's sad to see him not play a Jackson anymore, honestly. But Gibsons are dope...just a bit pricey.
There is an LTD for $700 at the pawn shop near my house. It is great! It’s almost exactly the same guitar as my Schecter. Same pickups , same look, same feel.
Are they made by the same
People? I would love to have that guitar.
@@Imokyourok440 I'm pretty sure they are not related companies. I could be wrong, but I've never heard that either schectere or ltd were the same company. Esp owns LTD though. It's sort of like Fender and Squier, but LTD's are generally way better quality than a squier would be. The ESP guitars are pretty expensive. And the LTD's are a lot more affordable, but still super good. If you're into metal style guitars, schectere and ltd are both great choices.
@@Casey3-P-O I’m gonna look into that. Same pickups, paint job, almost exactly alike.
Damn good guitars. My Dad bought my Schecter for me at a pawn shop for $200 and it came with a fender practice amp. Dad knew nothing about guitars. The pawn shop owner was a good man. He knew I was struggling and Dad wanted to help me. If it was a hunk of junk, I would still love it. It’s great though. Dad passed away a few years ago, so it means even more now.❤️😢
@@Imokyourok440 sorry to hear about your dad. That was very cool of him to get you that though. Schecters are super cool looking.
That American flag in the corner would look so cool headbanging outside in the wind, let those colors jam outside!
Totally agree with the guy. These days companies expect us to be fully incompetent and dumb to buy their products without asking any questions. The prices go higher and higher whereas the quality of the products goes in the opposite direction.
I spent $850 Anna LTDEC 1000 weather Evertune bridge. Lemon Sunburst quilted top. JB hum bucker‘s. The thing is an amazing and incredibly solid instrument. I can’t see why a company needs to charge that much and do some thing other than exceptional with her instruments at this point in time.
Agreed! ESP really has stepped up and were already way ahead of their counterparts.
I picked up a 2013 DK2 m pro in silverburst. It's a made in Mexico model. Absolutely night and day difference from what I see today. It's a quality instrument
As someone that owns both an esp standard and a Jackson American….. they’re different guitars for different things.
*Camera moves to Jackson crushing up redbull cans* "hehe they'll never know"
I bought a brand new USA Jackson soloist back in about 2005. It was my 3rd Jackson. The 2 I had prior were from the mid 80s. They were awesome. The 2005’s high E was so close to the edge of the board you would fret a note and it would slide off the edge and get caught between the binding and the fret because there was a gap
i have a 1989 usa dinky with 24 frets...nothing jackson makes today feels anything like that one...it's a great old usa jackson and i'm glad i own it
very true. $1,500+ for bad quality paint work and parts. quality control on jackson has completely tanked. but i also grew up playing jackson’s. made in japan are amazing guitars in the 90s though. you have a great youtube channel too , keep it up!
Charvel/ Jackson was best collaboration in the 80s.
I have a Jackson COW 7 and a RR24. Both made in Japan. They both look, feel and sound amazing but I wouldn't dare to buy anything from Jackson nowadays. It's agree that is a shame what they are doing to the brand.
Wide string spacing, yes but they fall off the side of the neck on both E strings.
I don't have any sinking problems with the backplates on my Jackson guitars, including my RR24-7 Concept Series. I suspect those tuners are not Gotoh tuners. They look and feel the same as those on all my Jacksons. Definitely agree with the case issue though. Amazed the guitar isn't fucked from every speed bump the bus went over!
I still stand with my opinion that is Jackson as an authentic brand was long gone since the Fender acquisition. Never satisfied enough with a pro-2002 USA Jackson as I do with my 1986 and 1996 USA soloists. Same goes for the imports, had the chance to play a 1989 MIJ Charvel 650xl and a 1994 MIJ Jackson Professional Soloist (both are neck-thru with glass clean ebony fretboards) which are even better than current USA runs. Quantity is all that matters to Fender Musical Instrumets Corp.
My 2008 Mij rr24m is pretty mint. There are still some good modern one, but you have to go through 50 bad ones to find them.
I bought a Jackson with a Les Paul body last year and I’ve played it for about 3 weeks and traded it for an Ibanez then sold the Ibanez for a Godin radiator model and now I’m satisfied lol
A muppet in the garage smoking pot.
Jackson does put their own name on some legit hardware, like Floyd Rose trems and Gotoh tuners. But you're absolutely not wrong about general quality issues, and it's such a shame. This company is not the Jackson that earned them the name in the 80s. I'd wonder if it happened when Jackson was acquired by Fender in 2002, but I'm not seeing Fender having the same quality issues.
That was why mustaine left jackson I heard. He knew they would ruin the brand. I have a 1990 mij fusion pro in desert crackle with no fret wear, and chainsaw case, I am always torn on selling it, but I never play the thing.
I mean the sister companies are pretty good like EVH and Charvel. The EVH Wolfgang standard is a monster for the price. Charvels are putting out solid offerings. I can understand why people like Jackson's, they have something to them and crazy loyal fans but every one I pick up is a little off in some way.