Have you seen the Archtop Tribute ATC175? They are made in Japan at a pretty reasonable price, around 1000 USD. They make a number of different archtops, including an artist tribute to Pat Metheny. I really like the sound of your Gibson with the P90 and when I get the money together have AT on the short list for an affordable quality jazz box.
There are these neck thru guitars made by a company called IYV. A student of mine owns one. The fretwork and build quality is outstanding. The pickups sound a bit muddy (maybe I could adjust them to sound better). But for a grand total of 200 dollars I’d go for one!
Its not CNC machining. Its just repeatable controlled manufacturing process and quality control. In manufacturing the work "quality" refers to "conformance to requirements". The Quality department researches every defect and eliminates it. When you know what it takes to make the guitar you want, there is no excuse to make anything less. "Friday guitars" and "craftsmanship" have both been replaced by repeatability. Fender and Epiphone are kings of that principal.
@@EbonyPope I cannot remember the actual model number. However if you look up IYV Guitars, neck thru, natural gloss with a sycamore body you should find it. Really nice instrument. If I didn’t already own a lot of guitars I would get one for myself!
It is. Good equipment helps beginners more than experts in any sport. In 1500, Lute players emphasised finding a great instrument to beginners. Eric Clapton gave up at first because his guitar was so bad.
Resonance issues happen frequently with archtops, even those with higher quality. There are several possible causes. I had this with my guitar too, and I checked most of them. The problem remained. I started using the instrument anyway and it went away after a few months. The reason is that the wood needed to adapt itself to a different climate than where it was built or stocked.
. Hello Sur mon ibanez asf 75t .c est le pickguard qui reposse sur les socles micros qui vibrait ...j ai mis deux petits bout de mousse 1 millimétre sur 1 cm entre les deux avec scocht double face . On ne vois rien et plus de bruit parasite .. 😉🎸🎶bye
Soldering a .047mF capacitor in series from the pickup output wire to the selector switch is a very inexpensive way to clean up muddy sounding pickups.
By the way, great info on how to evaluate a jazz guitar. Thanks! I recently bought a Grote semi hollow jazz guitar on Amazon and I have had similar results as the one reviewed here. Not bad and good for a novice like me!
I bought the Cherrystone on amazon in 2019. Almost the same guitar, but had a different headstock. After a good setup it was a real nice player and: sounded great. I paid 140 €, means 150 USD all inclusive. It came after 3 days already. The frets were catastrophically set and the neck needed adjustment. After having made the setup, it worked great and was a comfortable player. I regret to have sold it for another one that is different, but not better. These chinese guitars have their only difference in "labels" and headstocks. They are no "Stradivaris", but good enough for homerecording or stage use. Nothing really wrong with it as long as you don´t look too close on their finish. But a player does not need any perfect finish. All in all these guitars are ok for the buck. Even today I still use cheap guitars under 300 $ (€) on stage.
Enormous difference in the unamplified sound. But when you think about it, it's obvious why. The Gibson is essentially an acoustic jazz archtop, which would have had relatively heavy flatwound strings. It was given a single-coil pickup - the P90 - in the neck position because the assumption at the time was that electric jazz guitar would be essentially acoustic jazz guitar, but louder - the guitar's basic tone had to be good, because all the amplifier did was amplify. The Gear4Music guitar is designed for electric playing from the start: hence the lighter, roundwound strings. Insofar as it looks like a traditional jazz guitar, that's largely cosmetic. It hardly matters what the acoustic tone is like, because you're only ever going to hear it amplified, and modern amps have powerful EQ. The pickups are humbuckers, which tend to be duller and bassier than the Gibson's P90: but they are also low output, which accounts for the volume difference. For the price, the cheap guitar is fine. New, heavier strings would change the sound for the better. Even better: replace the neck humbucker with a P90 in a humbucker mount.
string gauge makes a big difference with acoustic volume so not really a fair comparison there. i suspect that with a $20 string change and some volume normalization there would be less difference in the amplified sounds.
Hi Jens, i highly appreciate your posts! I don’t play jazz guitar yet but I have plans to start. I also bought a cheap jazz guitar. To me the playability of the neck is the most important, like on my stratocasters (which can produce a decent jazz sound). Keep up the good work
Even if you change the pickups and sounds great it still a fraction gold the price for a higher end guitar. Great for starting and working up to a better quality guitar
I found a used 2007 Hagstrom Viking semihollow at my local Guitar Center and immediately fell in love with the sound. It has a wonderful warm jazzy tone that I had been searching for with other guitars and pickup swaps. Even acoustically, you can hear that tone. I found I also liked the fairly flat 15" radius fretboard. The neck profile is kind of a thin D-shape, though. That took some getting used to. The tendons in my fretting hand prefer a chunkier neck.
Many cheaper guitars have bad pickups and I actually had to change the pickups in my Squire Telecaster because they were distorting on the clean channel. Ibanez is one of the few companies that offer great pickups in their cheaper guitars.
A lot of the inexpensive guitars use ceramic magnet pickups - I swapped the pickups in my Squier Bullet Tele, and what a difference! I'm about to swap the pickups in my Squier Cabronita Tele Baritone, and I can't wait!
Great video Jens! If you do another unboxing video - look into a Harley Benton HB-35Plus as a very inexpensive option for new Jazz players. I love mine so much! I got the HB, had a set up done and eventually put in some Seth Lover Seymour Duncans (though the factory pickups were actually quite good). Thanks for all you do my friend!
One thing to try that you didn't mention - readjust the pickup heights. It sounded like my old Epi Riviera - as soon as I lowered the Neck pickup, the mids smoothed out dramatically. That rattle is probably either the cheap TOM bridge or the parts of the lyre tailpiece.
Jens, there are lots off good guitars that can be used for jazz IMHO, including solid bodies. It's best then to work from the other end, what is not a good jazz guitar. That's anything with a non bigsby tremolo arm. If you must use a strat, put all five springs on it or get a hardtail, but they are truly the worst type for tone. A fixed bridge guitar of good quality with heavy wood, no poplar or basswood. A full non cutaway upper bout helps your bass response, like a Les Paul or a Telecaster.
Side note I have the lefty version of the RG42 (the black ibanez) had It since I was like 15 as an upgrade from an awful like £40 guitar and it still doing great today! (I'm 24 now) Couldn't recommend that guitar enough! Always loved Ibanez for that, from my experience most of their low-mid range guitars are just great for the price
Bass player here, trying to learn guitar - I have a thing for really great sounding and feeling inexpensive instruments 😆Sure, they're like finding a needle in a haystack. I bought a used Grote (another Amazon guitar, about $185 USD new, either humbucker or P90 equipped!) 335-copy off of Marketplace for $100 USD, and I adore it. If you "need" to do more unboxing of inexpensive guitars, Grote, Firefly and Harley Bentons are all quite popular! Awesome video, Jens! I'm glad you took the approach of what an absolute beginner buying their first (hollowbody or otherwise) guitar would go through!
The neck doesn't look too narrow as far as string spacing. Was that your impression? Upgraded pickups make all the difference as well as the height. Does the floating bridge need some adjustment? This is the golden age of affordable guitars. I have a few that I'm happy with.
You are so right! Technology on manufacturing has lead us to an age where what separates a special custom guitar of a series industrial guitar is not that much but costs literally a fraction. Squires, Epiphones, Corts are a living proof of it.
I had an irritating buzz on my Ibanez until i saw the plastic frame of the pickup vibrating against the top. I put cardboard washers under the corners of the frame to lift it off the top 😊
I play low-priced guitars (Harley Benton), mainly because they're all I can afford. Now, if I were an amazing musician, perhaps the quality would prevent me from doing great music. As it is right now, I have neither the the motivation nor the opportunity to invest in a high-class instrument. I can remember times when today's entry level was a matter of selling your soul to obtain.
Fun video. I've found a lot of Tune-O-Matic brdges on "more affordable" guitars do that - the wire holding the adjumstment screws likes to vibrate. That might not be it, but I've had it happen on several budget guitars I've tried. As for the sound< I took Ibanze's cheapest hollowbody, had it pained glossy black by a friend who does a lot of refinishing, dropped gibson pickup in the neck (replaced the bridge pickup with a playing card) and put a better bridge on it. Also leveled and crowned the frets. Plays and sounds perfect enough for me.
I had a similar resonance in my Eastman when it arrived from the store. A luthier discovered that it came from inside a loose potmeter which was badly repaired in the store. Maybe that is also the case with this one
Pickup covers act as capacitors and bleed some treble. Would be interesting to hear the sound with the cover removed. Cosmetically that may look odd on an archtop. Works well with an LP.
I agree with everything you said about the tone differences. My first impression was that there is a, hard to describe, roundness or low end girth around the higher end instruments. I wouldn't call it low frequency, but I seem to hear the wood better as the models increase in quality. Yeah I think girth is the subjective, non technical term I'd use.
I've got two both were $60. They play crazy well and look so nice. I've got and had guitars up to $5k. Mad what comes out of China now. I need to give them a good setup and new strings, they still have the ones on from the factory.
It looks like a good project guitar. I would tell you to replace the crap pots on the guitar. For arch tops I would recommend an Alnico ll pickups. If it were mine I would use Bournes mini pots, Orange Drop capacitors, and GFS Surf 90 pickups (think if a DeArmond and a P-90 had a baby) and in the middle it's a humbucking set up. Being honest, it's one of my favorite pickups. I would suggest 12 round wounds or a set of flatwound strings. It sounds ok, but I really see a project guitar.😉👍✨ Edit: my guess is that the rattle is a spring on the pickups.
Looks, plays and sounds like a very decent guitar for 300 bucks. It's entirely foolish to upgrade a beginner guitar. Total waste of money. Always simply buy a better, more expensive, name brand guitar and sell the starter guitar for 1/2 what you paid for it. You won't lose a dime making silly upgrades. You'll be happier with your new guitar and buyer of your first guitar will be happy. Everyone wins!
Only upgrades you should do (if you are comfortable) are simply fixing bad solders, leveling/crowning frets, and maybe changing the nut since that’s super cheap. Also setting it up and intonating it make such a big difference. Good way to get into the jazz guitar for experienced musicians who literally can’t afford anything else
Sometimes an inexpensive guitar can sound better than an expensive one. Price and brand name doesn’t always dictate quality. This particular guitar sounds quite nice!
I would say cheap guitars are great for starting out! Once you're excited about guitar and/or want to dive in a different genre then its definetly a good time to upgrade. Recently picked up my korean Ibanez JMS20 and couldnt be more happier with it. There is something about a good guitar thats just inspiring when it's in your hands... 😁
It sounded great. I have an Epiphone Les Paul 59 and a Gibson LP standard 60s. I know exactly the clarity difference. It’s like the Epiphone’s health bar is at 60% and the Gibson is 100%. They sound really close buts it’s lacking in fullness, depth and overall quality. But it gets the job done at the end of the day.
Husband (to Wife): You look lovely today darling. While you were out I vacuumed the house, did the dishes and cooked us a delicious roast dinner. Wife: You've bought a new guitar, haven't you ? 🙄
Did you spend any time dialing in the Pickup heights and individual Pole Piece heights? Both can make a huge difference to overall tone and string clarity. The guitar sounds pretty good, and definitely usable. The cheapest Jazz guitar on Amazon is probably a Tele.😉 Regarding the rattling/vibrating noise, I had something similar on my vintage ES-175. I traced it to the Pickup rattling in the plastic Pickup ring, and solved it with a small piece of foam tape as a spacer.
my guess, the price of a guitar does not say anything about the quality. the main reason for a gibson es 175 costs of $5000 (in 2024), is that a lot of people have done a good job over the years since the guitar existed. when it came out in 1952 the price of the gibson was roughly $300 (1952 dollars). if the cheap guitar will be maintained the same way (new strings, new pickups, etc), and makes some golden records, it can be worth even more.
Honestly it's a great deal. Personally I don't care if the upgrades cost more than the guitar itself: if the neck/frets feel good and the moving parts are easily adjustable (i.e. the truss rod/bridge move and it intonates) then you've got something to work from. Better pickups, nut, bridge, etc. will likely make it a better experience for everyone and put it on par with an instrument that costs a good bit more than all of the parts + initial guitar combined. But I say that as someone who's only concerned with playing: if you care about resale value then ignore everything I just said.
Looks decent for the price. If it stays in tune well and doesn't move too much over time - not bad. Cheaper than my Epi Joe Pass and likely almost the same. To check out - D'Angelico solids like the Brighton and any Peerless. No one reviews them and i love my monarch.
Eastman hollowbodies have really been tempting me. When I'm ready to go over 1,000 for an axe. I've never been able to try one, though I've only seen them online. Even ebay .
I got my Eastman (AR580CE-HB) for $900.00 used. I saw it in my teacher's store and wanted to try it because another person whose playing I admire used an Eastman. I can't say why, but it just "fit" me better than my Gibson ES-175 (2006 vintage). I would (and do) swear that I played better on it than on the 175, and it's been my main axe ever since.
A couple of years ago I got a Loar ES-175 knockoff that left me cold. Then I ended up with an Epiphone Joe Pass that feels and sounds a lot more refined...but there's still a big difference between that Epiphone and a premium level Gibson or Heritage.
The Gear 4 Music Semi Acoustic Hollow Bodied Jazz guitar could have a better name for a start. But for 270 Euros, it sounds remarkably good. If the neck and action are good then it's also a question of how you play, strings, amp etc. It looks good too.
When you first started playing it I thought it sounded pretty good but the longer you played it the worse it seemed to get. I'm exactly the kind of person who would buy something like that (cuz I'm cheap, lol) but now that I've heard it, I'd sooner get a better used guitar that I can fix up.
Jens, I payed for my first Epiphone Sheraton II 329 USD (1994 Samick at Guitar Center on Sunset Blvd). So, not expensive either. Ok, changed to 57 PAFs some years later. But not a bad instrument, at all (as you mention yourself).
So many good budget guitars on the market only a fool pays for a brand name. A few minor and cheap upgrades and my IYV plays just as well as the PRS it copies
For the first time ever, I own a guitar featured in a TH-cam video! Lol. I brought it brand new from an online trader for (approx) $300NZD inc postage. Branded as a Mannix. In a bizarre display of stupidity, the guitar arrived loose in the box, but the box itself was covered in bubble wrap. 🤦♂ I was apprehensive about getting it for a couple of reasons. Firstly and most obviously, because it's a cheap piece of crap; not necessarily a deal breaker, but that's always a gamble. Secondly, because I wasn't entirely convinced it was a proper hollow body. Having the bridge fixed to the body indicated to me that it was more likely a semi-hollow guitar. I emailed the seller for clarification, he assured me it was a full hollow body, so I went through with the purchase. Sure enough, I received a full hollow body guitar. That alone makes it an extremely appealing purchase. In NZ, you'd typically pay at least a grand for even a budget model hollow body. $300NZD (inc postage) is a bit of a steal. After I got it playing (which I'll get to), a bandmate liked it so much he got one too. The stupid thing was - same trader, same online ad, same brand name, but a lot of the hardware was completely different. 😕 Mine has chrome coloured hardware, his has gold coloured hardware (the ad featured chrome); the strap buttons were different styles; the pickguards are different shapes/positions. Very weird. So is it a good buy? Well . . . . yes and no. I fully intended to upgrade and mod it from the outset. Nothing too major, I just know how I like my guitars. I wanted to install a roller bridge, install a metal nut, install a treble bleed, install strap lock buttons, rewire a master volume and master tone, reuse the second tone pot as a blender, and swap out the second volume for a rotary phase switch. While waiting for the replacement hardware, the guitar pretty much just sat in the box. I only plugged it in to make sure it was working. What I can say is that straight out of the box it was thoroughly unplayable. New guitars obviously need to be set up, but I'd honestly never encountered one before where everything was just so out of whack. It was legitimately unplayable. That's leading into why for some this would be a very bad purchase. I know enough that I can sort out my guitars. But when you consider that budget guitars are typically targeting beginners, no beginner would have had a clue what to do with this guitar out of the box. And for the amount of work needed, a guitar tech would have likely charged half again the purchase price to get it working. Needless to say - out of the box, quite unimpressive. But. Where it counts, the guitar was surprising tidy. The overall construction seems solid; everything's straight; most surprisingly, the neckboard and frets were nicely dressed and didn't need any work. Which is why this could also be considered an excellent buy. Just looking at the guitar itself - the neck and body without any of the hardware - even if one were to strip everything and use the guitar as a base for a project, I reckon you'd be hard pressed to find anything cheaper to start with. Getting the guitar playable was fairly straight forward for the most part. But saw a few things that convinced me "quality control" must've been asleep when this one was rolled out, lol: - Pulling everything off/out for the rewiring, I discovered that the grounding wire (usually connected to the bridge) was sitting loose, not connected to anything. And while starting to work on it, 2-3 factory solders fell off with no prompting. So the simple rewire became a complete strip and resolder of everything. - The strap button near the neck was screwed into the side wall of the body. Not even into any framing or bracing. Just into the thin side wall. Not surprisingly, it was sitting in there very loosely. The new button got screwed into the heel of the neck. - The nut . . . . holy crap, that nut! Lol. It was beyond a joke. Just so, so bad. Unfortunately the metal nut I wanted to replace it with was fractionally too wide (overall slot spacing). Not by much, maybe 0.5mm. Tried it for about a month or two. Sounded good and great tuning stability. But I'm too heavy handed, and found it to too easy to accidentally slide the E stings off the frets. So for now, I've regretfully had to salvage the original nut and refile it. It does the job, but I'll replace it with something better when I get around to it. The tuners are a bit rubbish. But they do the job. I'll replace those when I get around to it as well, but it's not an urgent job. Once I'd fitted all the replacement parts and made my mods, I did a complete set up. Yes, it was a heck of a lot of mucking around for a new guitar. But I have to say, the end result . . . . totally worth it. It plays and sounds like a dream. And like I said, it's so good that a bandmate got the same thing. (I did the set up for his one as well.) And for the current band it's now my #1 main guitar. For the price, it was a really good buy for me and is just what I wanted. But anyone interested in getting one of these needs to be aware that it'll likely take a fair bit of work to bring it up to par.
The problem u cant fix on it: NO FLOATING BRIDGE. So u cant have a real(er) archtop sound because there s a piece of wood between the top and the back. Reducing the volume and the sound quality drastically:(
That's what I was assuming. But I bought one and checked. Nope, no block between the top and the back. I don't know why they made this guitar without a floating bridge. I would have imagined that would be cheaper and easier. Nevertheless, I can confirm that it's a proper hollow body arch top, and it sounds pretty damned good once it's set up properly.
@@mikee6666 tks for correcting me. Yes, weird, I prefer floating bridges on a hollow body. But.. u may have a better resinance with this drilled-in bridge??
@@ymelfilm I really couldn't say whether the resonance is better or worse, I don't have anything to compare it too. Seems fine to me, especially for the price. And I may have misspoken. My guitar definitely doesn't have a block in it. But it seems that some of these guitars do. Which is . . . . weird. :/ I don't know what the story is there.
@@mikee6666 violins have a piece of wood or post , some guitar may have inherited it from it. Other explanation is the weight, it helps the arch against crack
@@ymelfilm True. I just don't know why some of these guitars have it and some don't. I had assumed they were all coming out of the same factory, just with different brandings. But maybe there's a couple of different factories producing them?
a lot of people have way too many insecurities about playing gigs with epiphone or squier on their headstock, and they’re definitely overthinking it, but i think it’d be justified if i had that gear4music logo at that price point it’d be worth playing with a clip on tuner the whole time though
Jens, i bet it will sound so mucj better with proper, and fresh, strings. You might want to put good strings and publish an update. Personally, I don'f even a new (or new to me) guitar until I put new strings. It's the simplest way to inprove the tone. Thanks for fhe video!
I have an L5, a 175 and a 335 and I really don’t hear a difference from those to this one. No neck is like those 3 plus i have flatwounds on the L5 and the 175. George Benson once told me that he would always sit in and play cheap guitars and when he went back to his it made it easier. He played my Strat and still sounded like George Benson. It’s all in the player
I had a kit guitar which was an archtop but it wasn't a true hollow body because it had a support block under the bridge. There was a fair bit of fiddling to get it right because the holes for the bridge support weren't in the right place but once corrected it could be set up well and was very playable. The pickups weren't great which was to be expected and I replaced them with budget surplus epiphone pickups. It wasn't well balanced but then neither is the Epiphone emperor II. There are a lot of budget guitars out there now and they look like they can be made to work well enough. Obviously they are fitted with budget components and they lack finesse but for testing the water I think they are fine.
I did the DIY Hollywood too. Awesome project for anybody. Yep I found the 'soundpost' block as a major set back in possibility! The guitar turned out okay, my own finish and pickups where a plus, but when I imagined jamming with Jens or anybody I cringed at the lack of pedigree. In the dream I wished I had thrown it in the trash rather than be embarrassed. Then I threw it in the trash. It really was a good project though.👍
Would it be possible to adjust the pickups just a little bit higher, so that they're closer to the strings? This could help with the volume, at least in theory.
Jens I luv your vids but come on man, since I took my first cheap Yamaha bass to a setup, and was wowed how it simply felt like a different instrument I learned my lesson : setup is priority (also what my luthier told me, but had I not felt it I would have thought this guy was only securing his job) , and most if not all times a proper factory setup in these range of prices is something that simply is not included in the price, also: considering a setup includes a fresh new set of strings... I'm completely baffled as to why you should judge an instrument for all these - at least in my little experience - absolutely expected qualms.
I did think about that, but my conclusion is that if you are getting a guitar like this then you are most likely not so experienced or don't immediately have the means to take it for a $60 or more setup. You might do that after a few months, but you won't do that in the beginning, so doing that would make this entire video irrelevant for 90% of the people getting a guitar like this.
I have something similar, Chinese built (?) Aria F65, with a very decent neck and a great sound, with 'Duncan designed" pickups, quite good actually. Unamplified it sounds pretty lame, but other than that it works fine for me, as i'm more of a rock/pop guitarist. Bought it used for about €200 so well worth the money. But what can beat a $5000 Gibson? That is just a world apart. Nice Yamaha SG(2000?) by the way.
I have cheap guitars and very expensive Fenders - Gibsons very old ones .... The cheap from guitar lacks definition in the sound .... But all in all I don't think it's so bad .... For a beginner guitar it's quite good....
I'm curious about what would happen to the guitar in the video if you put your standard gauge of string on it. I think you'd need a lot of truss rod adjustment and certainly some work on the nut. I wonder if there would be enough truss rod adjustment available to make it playable, or if the truss rod would just break before you could get enough tension on it to counteract the greater tension of the heavier strings. I'll bet the heavier strings would improve the acoustic tone quite a bit if the instrument survived them. I paid $275 for my 2010s Ibanez AF85TDG-VLS a few years ago. It was in immaculate shape and came in the original hard shell case. I spent a some more money at the guitar shop getting a new nut, and having it set up with Stringjoy 12-52 Broadways. I've never had to fuss much with the setup and it plays and sounds great every time I pick it up. I can't imagine why anyone would want to buy the guitar in the video, I saw an Ibanez AF55 for $261.59 on amazon when I was poking around looking for the one in the video. I think a beginner would also do just fine with a properly set up inexpensive solid body.
I bought a $350 "jazz guitar'' from China and put 12's on it. Definitely had to adjust truss rod, and I need to file the nut or get another nut, the lower strings are to big for the slots. Trust rod adjustment worked ok, had to crank it quite a bit but it held up. Only other problem is tone and volume controls are very hard to turn, for some reason. On the plus side I was very surprised by the fret work its better than on some much more expensive guitars, no sharp edges. These cheap guitars usually need some work but if you are willing to learn how to determine what needs to be done and how to do it, they are a good value, IMHO. I agree re the lower end Ibanez hollow bodies, they are available usaed for not very much and are of good quality.
Even for the price the lose poti and the internal rattling are a no go. Otherwise it might be interesting to invest into a pair of cheaper P94 clones (P90 in Humbucker format). I id that with an Epiphone Les Paul, and it was a huge step upward (i was using Tonerider PUs, but there maybe of course others).
Absolutely awesome video Jens. Thank you for this. I'm a new to jazz player (in other words I'm not very good). All I have at the moment is an old nylon string guitar that was handed down to me. If you were someone like me (beginner) would you get one of these relatively inexpensive archtops, or would you get a Squier stratocaster, or would you save up a little more and get something second hand? Thanks Jens
Improving the sound of the pickups can be done very inexpensively (provided they are not microphonic, but even then..). Just removing the metal cap could help. The electric sound is probably not the problem. Electronics is always cheap and quite simple. I would be more concerned with the build quality (neck straightness over time, laquer finish, body robustness, fret material, tuner quality,,...). My biggest argument against all incredibly cheap products is that somebody always pays the difference to the true value (environmental pollution due to low standards, low salaries, inhuman working conditions...the list is endless)
I bought something like this for 90 euros. Nut, bridge, pickups, frets and pick guard had to be replaced/improved. Altogether, it's landed at 200 euros of improvements, not counting the work hours. Still not $2000 price, yet it still sucks sound-wise. Buy some real stuff, it's chaeper to upgrade to the level.
I might have missed it, but did you (have to) do a lot of work on the set up? Beginners generally have no luthier skills. Is it playable out of the box, and if not, how advanced are the skills one needs to use to get it so? Can you fix it with a screwdriver or needs the nut adjusting?
Probably there is some fancy way to secure a potmeter. I'm not even interested in it. Because it will involve purchasing some specialty tool and I already have like 1K of money into those. The bare minimum is what I try to buy.
You know, I did a test over a year ago switching around audio and video and NOBODY could tell. In fact, I only made that video because I was comparing them and realized that they sounded so similar that I wasn't sure I would be able to do a blindfold test and get it right (with my own guitars), I decided to play the exact same thing on 3 of my guitars and switch it around. We often listen with our eyes.
Okay, if Jens is intermediate to advanced for jazz guitar enthusiasts, who on the TH-cams is beginner to intermediate? (Writing this here b/c it’s his most recent video)
It is difficult to give too specific advice because everybody is different and at different levels, but maybe check out this post: jenslarsen.nl/how-to-learn-jazz-guitar-suggestions-to-begin-studying/
this guitar can not be acousticly similar to ES175, as it has block of wood under the bridge for support...I have 2 of these,(natural and sunburst) both had resonance problem with pickup springs. Other than that just great guitars. Nut is 42mm, so again difference to Gibson. I polished the laminated poplar fretboard with black shoes wax,as the color wasnt great, changed strings to 11th flatwounds, set-up neck tension and both plays great now. I also changed one neck pickup with cheap Epiphone humbucker, and it is even better now...still cheap and great value for living room guitarists..😉 thx for showing this guitar...Tom
@@mikee6666 it is strange, both of mine has it....I thnk they use this under the brige block so the top will not collapse...as it is not real archtop...dont you have any issues with the top ?
@@tomblaza No, the top's been fine on it. To be honest I was quite surprised it didn't have a block given the way the bridge is attached. But the seller assured me it was a full hollow body, and I confirmed as much for myself when it arrived. It sure had plenty of other issues when I got it, which I totally expected even though it was brand new (cheap and nasty). But once I fixed it up and set it up, it's been a fairly solid work horse. Hits some really sweet tones with the volume and tone down low. And without a block, it has that particular hollow body sound.
@@mikee6666 nice…hope it will hold as it is. But be carefull with heavy strings I think…Wood block can reduce feedback if you play amplified as well. I have tried floating ebony bridge instead of the fixed stock one, but with wood-block it did not make sense, was even worst, so I switched back to tune-o-matic. I had cheap small Epiphone Les Paul Express guitar (for fun when traveling) and I took its 650H neck pickup and put it into one of this jazzbox. Still ceramic pickup, but significant change, and with Dunlop 207 2mm round jazz pick and few tweeks with tone knob I got tone I think is OK..Of course tuning machines replacement will be next step, just need to find some good ones but cheap…as it does note make sens to spend much money on this guitar…..But still these are nice guitars for the money…Cheers
@@tomblaza No concerns there, I don't like the sound of heavy strings, I've set it up for my usual D'Addario 10's (EXL110). Oddly enough, while fully expecting I may have to deal with potential feedback issues, I honestly haven't had a problem yet. But then again our band is a pretty low volume affair, golden oldie stuff for geriatric audiences, lol, haven't yet cranked it in front of the half stack or anything. Agree re tuning heads. Currently in the same position of trying to find something decent but justifiably cheap.
Are you curious about new guitars & what should I check out?
The $400 Guitar I used for 5 Albums
th-cam.com/video/bIQiWfeWLA4/w-d-xo.html
Sire Larry Carlton L7
Have you seen the Archtop Tribute ATC175? They are made in Japan at a pretty reasonable price, around 1000 USD. They make a number of different archtops, including an artist tribute to Pat Metheny. I really like the sound of your Gibson with the P90 and when I get the money together have AT on the short list for an affordable quality jazz box.
It's amazin what CNC machining has made possible. A playable instrument at that price would have been pure fantasy more than 20 years ago.
"The lick" as you door bell tone. Superb 😀
🙏🙂
It's amazin what CNC machining has made possible. A playable instrument at that price would have been pure fantasy more than 20 years ago.
even fender found out to make the easiest guitar to made even easier but only dry the would proberly in the custom shop
There are these neck thru guitars made by a company called IYV. A student of mine owns one. The fretwork and build quality is outstanding. The pickups sound a bit muddy (maybe I could adjust them to sound better). But for a grand total of 200 dollars I’d go for one!
@@jwguitar Which model from Ivy? I would like to look them up. Yeah it is truly impressive what you can get nowadays for that money.
Its not CNC machining. Its just repeatable controlled manufacturing process and quality control. In manufacturing the work "quality" refers to "conformance to requirements". The Quality department researches every defect and eliminates it. When you know what it takes to make the guitar you want, there is no excuse to make anything less. "Friday guitars" and "craftsmanship" have both been replaced by repeatability. Fender and Epiphone are kings of that principal.
@@EbonyPope I cannot remember the actual model number. However if you look up IYV Guitars, neck thru, natural gloss with a sycamore body you should find it. Really nice instrument. If I didn’t already own a lot of guitars I would get one for myself!
Must be amazing to be a beginner nowadays with all this affordable and good gear around!
True, but I learned to play on a beat up acoustic and it was fine. Slap a stick on pickup on that bad boy and you got yourself a jazz guitar baby!
It is. Good equipment helps beginners more than experts in any sport. In 1500, Lute players emphasised finding a great instrument to beginners. Eric Clapton gave up at first because his guitar was so bad.
Resonance issues happen frequently with archtops, even those with higher quality. There are several possible causes. I had this with my guitar too, and I checked most of them. The problem remained. I started using the instrument anyway and it went away after a few months. The reason is that the wood needed to adapt itself to a different climate than where it was built or stocked.
. Hello Sur mon ibanez asf 75t .c est le pickguard qui reposse sur les socles micros qui vibrait ...j ai mis deux petits bout de mousse 1 millimétre sur 1 cm entre les deux avec scocht double face . On ne vois rien et plus de bruit parasite .. 😉🎸🎶bye
Soldering a .047mF capacitor in series from the pickup output wire to the selector switch is a very inexpensive way to clean up muddy sounding pickups.
Oh wow, I want your Ibanez. 1977 was the year I was born.
Love the funny inserts you put into your videos! They're great!
Glad you like them!
By the way, great info on how to evaluate a jazz guitar. Thanks! I recently bought a Grote semi hollow jazz guitar on Amazon and I have had similar results as the one reviewed here. Not bad and good for a novice like me!
Pickup height springs are rattling. Replace with surgical tubing. Also that tailpiece is shifted WAY toward the treble side!
True, I didn't even notice 😁
I ve it ,years ago : it plays gut ,for the price,absolutely yes 🤟
I bought the Cherrystone on amazon in 2019. Almost the same guitar, but had a different headstock. After a good setup it was a real nice player and: sounded great. I paid 140 €, means 150 USD all inclusive. It came after 3 days already. The frets were catastrophically set and the neck needed adjustment. After having made the setup, it worked great and was a comfortable player. I regret to have sold it for another one that is different, but not better. These chinese guitars have their only difference in "labels" and headstocks. They are no "Stradivaris", but good enough for homerecording or stage use. Nothing really wrong with it as long as you don´t look too close on their finish. But a player does not need any perfect finish. All in all these guitars are ok for the buck. Even today I still use cheap guitars under 300 $ (€) on stage.
Enormous difference in the unamplified sound. But when you think about it, it's obvious why.
The Gibson is essentially an acoustic jazz archtop, which would have had relatively heavy flatwound strings. It was given a single-coil pickup - the P90 - in the neck position because the assumption at the time was that electric jazz guitar would be essentially acoustic jazz guitar, but louder - the guitar's basic tone had to be good, because all the amplifier did was amplify.
The Gear4Music guitar is designed for electric playing from the start: hence the lighter, roundwound strings. Insofar as it looks like a traditional jazz guitar, that's largely cosmetic. It hardly matters what the acoustic tone is like, because you're only ever going to hear it amplified, and modern amps have powerful EQ. The pickups are humbuckers, which tend to be duller and bassier than the Gibson's P90: but they are also low output, which accounts for the volume difference.
For the price, the cheap guitar is fine. New, heavier strings would change the sound for the better. Even better: replace the neck humbucker with a P90 in a humbucker mount.
string gauge makes a big difference with acoustic volume so not really a fair comparison there. i suspect that with a $20 string change and some volume normalization there would be less difference in the amplified sounds.
Hi Jens, i highly appreciate your posts! I don’t play jazz guitar yet but I have plans to start. I also bought a cheap jazz guitar. To me the playability of the neck is the most important, like on my stratocasters (which can produce a decent jazz sound). Keep up the good work
Even if you change the pickups and sounds great it still a fraction gold the price for a higher end guitar. Great for starting and working up to a better quality guitar
I found a used 2007 Hagstrom Viking semihollow at my local Guitar Center and immediately fell in love with the sound. It has a wonderful warm jazzy tone that I had been searching for with other guitars and pickup swaps. Even acoustically, you can hear that tone. I found I also liked the fairly flat 15" radius fretboard. The neck profile is kind of a thin D-shape, though. That took some getting used to. The tendons in my fretting hand prefer a chunkier neck.
Sounds great! Congrats 🙂
Many cheaper guitars have bad pickups and I actually had to change the pickups in my Squire Telecaster because they were distorting on the clean channel. Ibanez is one of the few companies that offer great pickups in their cheaper guitars.
A lot of the inexpensive guitars use ceramic magnet pickups - I swapped the pickups in my Squier Bullet Tele, and what a difference! I'm about to swap the pickups in my Squier Cabronita Tele Baritone, and I can't wait!
Great video Jens! If you do another unboxing video - look into a Harley Benton HB-35Plus as a very inexpensive option for new Jazz players. I love mine so much! I got the HB, had a set up done and eventually put in some Seth Lover Seymour Duncans (though the factory pickups were actually quite good). Thanks for all you do my friend!
I still have my eye on that D’Angelico New Yorker. One of these days I won’t be able to talk myself out of it. :-)
I know the feeling 😁
Get one. Better than a 335.
On my phone they sound pretty similar. I’m sure on good speakers or live the differences are more noticeable
One thing to try that you didn't mention - readjust the pickup heights. It sounded like my old Epi Riviera - as soon as I lowered the Neck pickup, the mids smoothed out dramatically. That rattle is probably either the cheap TOM bridge or the parts of the lyre tailpiece.
Jens, there are lots off good guitars that can be used for jazz IMHO, including solid bodies. It's best then to work from the other end, what is not a good jazz guitar. That's anything with a non bigsby tremolo arm. If you must use a strat, put all five springs on it or get a hardtail, but they are truly the worst type for tone. A fixed bridge guitar of good quality with heavy wood, no poplar or basswood. A full non cutaway upper bout helps your bass response, like a Les Paul or a Telecaster.
Side note I have the lefty version of the RG42 (the black ibanez) had It since I was like 15 as an upgrade from an awful like £40 guitar and it still doing great today! (I'm 24 now) Couldn't recommend that guitar enough! Always loved Ibanez for that, from my experience most of their low-mid range guitars are just great for the price
Bass player here, trying to learn guitar - I have a thing for really great sounding and feeling inexpensive instruments 😆Sure, they're like finding a needle in a haystack. I bought a used Grote (another Amazon guitar, about $185 USD new, either humbucker or P90 equipped!) 335-copy off of Marketplace for $100 USD, and I adore it.
If you "need" to do more unboxing of inexpensive guitars, Grote, Firefly and Harley Bentons are all quite popular!
Awesome video, Jens! I'm glad you took the approach of what an absolute beginner buying their first (hollowbody or otherwise) guitar would go through!
The neck doesn't look too narrow as far as string spacing. Was that your impression? Upgraded pickups make all the difference as well as the height. Does the floating bridge need some adjustment? This is the golden age of affordable guitars. I have a few that I'm happy with.
You are so right! Technology on manufacturing has lead us to an age where what separates a special custom guitar of a series industrial guitar is not that much but costs literally a fraction. Squires, Epiphones, Corts are a living proof of it.
I had an irritating buzz on my Ibanez until i saw the plastic frame of the pickup vibrating against the top. I put cardboard washers under the corners of the frame to lift it off the top 😊
I play low-priced guitars (Harley Benton), mainly because they're all I can afford. Now, if I were an amazing musician, perhaps the quality would prevent me from doing great music. As it is right now, I have neither the the motivation nor the opportunity to invest in a high-class instrument. I can remember times when today's entry level was a matter of selling your soul to obtain.
Harley Benton for £220 are very good, I have a Hollowbody and semi hollow. Both excellent guitars for the money.
Good to know! Maybe I should test those 🙂
HB makes unbelievable guitars for very little money!
0:18 you did not just quote that doorbell 'the lick' video haha, well done! 😅
🙏😁
Rofl when you picked up the knife and the creepy horror movie sounds began
😁👍
Fun video. I've found a lot of Tune-O-Matic brdges on "more affordable" guitars do that - the wire holding the adjumstment screws likes to vibrate. That might not be it, but I've had it happen on several budget guitars I've tried.
As for the sound< I took Ibanze's cheapest hollowbody, had it pained glossy black by a friend who does a lot of refinishing, dropped gibson pickup in the neck (replaced the bridge pickup with a playing card) and put a better bridge on it. Also leveled and crowned the frets. Plays and sounds perfect enough for me.
MacGyver! 😍
Your son plays an Ibanez RG? Priceless!
I bet he plays Jazz-influenced metal too 😄
🙏🙂 He's not really that into metal, but the guitar sounds good for a lot of stuff
In a mix, adjusted? Way worth it.
It really does sound OK, but - I'm most interested in the way it plays after it's set up.
I had a similar resonance in my Eastman when it arrived from the store. A luthier discovered that it came from inside a loose potmeter which was badly repaired in the store. Maybe that is also the case with this one
Pickup covers act as capacitors and bleed some treble. Would be interesting to hear the sound with the cover removed.
Cosmetically that may look odd on an archtop. Works well with an LP.
Seems like a reasonably solid guitar, I'd be curious to hear if there are any differences after a good setup and a quality set of strings put on it.
I agree with everything you said about the tone differences. My first impression was that there is a, hard to describe, roundness or low end girth around the higher end instruments. I wouldn't call it low frequency, but I seem to hear the wood better as the models increase in quality. Yeah I think girth is the subjective, non technical term I'd use.
I've got two both were $60. They play crazy well and look so nice. I've got and had guitars up to $5k. Mad what comes out of China now. I need to give them a good setup and new strings, they still have the ones on from the factory.
Sorry I just looked at the price they were 100 euros each. (I was converting it badly from Chinese rmb)
It looks like a good project guitar. I would tell you to replace the crap pots on the guitar. For arch tops I would recommend an Alnico ll pickups. If it were mine I would use Bournes mini pots, Orange Drop capacitors, and GFS Surf 90 pickups (think if a DeArmond and a P-90 had a baby) and in the middle it's a humbucking set up. Being honest, it's one of my favorite pickups. I would suggest 12 round wounds or a set of flatwound strings.
It sounds ok, but I really see a project guitar.😉👍✨
Edit: my guess is that the rattle is a spring on the pickups.
Looks, plays and sounds like a very decent guitar for 300 bucks. It's entirely foolish to upgrade a beginner guitar. Total waste of money. Always simply buy a better, more expensive, name brand guitar and sell the starter guitar for 1/2 what you paid for it. You won't lose a dime making silly upgrades. You'll be happier with your new guitar and buyer of your first guitar will be happy. Everyone wins!
Only upgrades you should do (if you are comfortable) are simply fixing bad solders, leveling/crowning frets, and maybe changing the nut since that’s super cheap.
Also setting it up and intonating it make such a big difference.
Good way to get into the jazz guitar for experienced musicians who literally can’t afford anything else
@@nicksalvatore5717 Very valid points, Nick!
Sometimes an inexpensive guitar can sound better than an expensive one. Price and brand name doesn’t always dictate quality. This particular guitar sounds quite nice!
like a precision straight edge, or nut files. stuff like that, it all quickly adds up
I would say cheap guitars are great for starting out! Once you're excited about guitar and/or want to dive in a different genre then its definetly a good time to upgrade. Recently picked up my korean Ibanez JMS20 and couldnt be more happier with it. There is something about a good guitar thats just inspiring when it's in your hands... 😁
Nice version of Duke Ellington's Prelude to a Kiss.
Thank you!
It sounded great. I have an Epiphone Les Paul 59 and a Gibson LP standard 60s. I know exactly the clarity difference. It’s like the Epiphone’s health bar is at 60% and the Gibson is 100%. They sound really close buts it’s lacking in fullness, depth and overall quality. But it gets the job done at the end of the day.
Jens, you are extremely cute while unboxing! lol It was fun! Thanks
Thank you! 😁🙏
Husband (to Wife): You look lovely today darling. While you were out I vacuumed the house, did the dishes and cooked us a delicious roast dinner.
Wife: You've bought a new guitar, haven't you ? 🙄
😂
I just got a Dean Palomino 175 copy. I'm going to try a Gibson or Duncan P 90 in the neck slot. Plays very well, kind of sounds like a Gretsch.
Did you spend any time dialing in the Pickup heights and individual Pole Piece heights? Both can make a huge difference to overall tone and string clarity. The guitar sounds pretty good, and definitely usable.
The cheapest Jazz guitar on Amazon is probably a Tele.😉 Regarding the rattling/vibrating noise, I had something similar on my vintage ES-175. I traced it to the Pickup rattling in the plastic Pickup ring, and solved it with a small piece of foam tape as a spacer.
I did a bit of messing with the pickups but it did not really yield any real improvement
@@JensLarsen 👍
my guess, the price of a guitar does not say anything about the quality.
the main reason for a gibson es 175 costs of $5000 (in 2024), is that a lot of people have done a good job over the years since the guitar existed. when it came out in 1952 the price of the gibson was roughly $300 (1952 dollars).
if the cheap guitar will be maintained the same way (new strings, new pickups, etc), and makes some golden records, it can be worth even more.
Honestly it's a great deal.
Personally I don't care if the upgrades cost more than the guitar itself: if the neck/frets feel good and the moving parts are easily adjustable (i.e. the truss rod/bridge move and it intonates) then you've got something to work from. Better pickups, nut, bridge, etc. will likely make it a better experience for everyone and put it on par with an instrument that costs a good bit more than all of the parts + initial guitar combined.
But I say that as someone who's only concerned with playing: if you care about resale value then ignore everything I just said.
Looks decent for the price. If it stays in tune well and doesn't move too much over time - not bad. Cheaper than my Epi Joe Pass and likely almost the same. To check out - D'Angelico solids like the Brighton and any Peerless. No one reviews them and i love my monarch.
The rattle is probably a saddle. I had a bridge with a rattling saddle and replaced the bridge. Problem solved
No, it isn't the saddle 🙂
Eastman hollowbodies have really been tempting me. When I'm ready to go over 1,000 for an axe. I've never been able to try one, though I've only seen them online. Even ebay .
Maybe I should have a look at a few of those? 🙂
They are certainly worth a look. I have one and I think it is outstanding.
I got my Eastman (AR580CE-HB) for $900.00 used. I saw it in my teacher's store and wanted to try it because another person whose playing I admire used an Eastman. I can't say why, but it just "fit" me better than my Gibson ES-175 (2006 vintage). I would (and do) swear that I played better on it than on the 175, and it's been my main axe ever since.
A couple of years ago I got a Loar ES-175 knockoff that left me cold. Then I ended up with an Epiphone Joe Pass that feels and sounds a lot more refined...but there's still a big difference between that Epiphone and a premium level Gibson or Heritage.
The Gear 4 Music Semi Acoustic Hollow Bodied Jazz guitar could have a better name for a start. But for 270 Euros, it sounds remarkably good. If the neck and action are good then it's also a question of how you play, strings, amp etc. It looks good too.
When you first started playing it I thought it sounded pretty good but the longer you played it the worse it seemed to get. I'm exactly the kind of person who would buy something like that (cuz I'm cheap, lol) but now that I've heard it, I'd sooner get a better used guitar that I can fix up.
2nd hand is 99% of the time a better deal 🙂
Jens, I payed for my first Epiphone Sheraton II 329 USD (1994 Samick at Guitar Center on Sunset Blvd). So, not expensive either. Ok, changed to 57 PAFs some years later.
But not a bad instrument, at all (as you mention yourself).
So many good budget guitars on the market only a fool pays for a brand name. A few minor and cheap upgrades and my IYV plays just as well as the PRS it copies
There are also two semi hollow body models, on Amazon, by a company called IYV, for less money
Thanks!
Thank you for your support, Tom 🙂
For the first time ever, I own a guitar featured in a TH-cam video!
Lol.
I brought it brand new from an online trader for (approx) $300NZD inc postage. Branded as a Mannix.
In a bizarre display of stupidity, the guitar arrived loose in the box, but the box itself was covered in bubble wrap. 🤦♂
I was apprehensive about getting it for a couple of reasons. Firstly and most obviously, because it's a cheap piece of crap; not necessarily a deal breaker, but that's always a gamble. Secondly, because I wasn't entirely convinced it was a proper hollow body. Having the bridge fixed to the body indicated to me that it was more likely a semi-hollow guitar. I emailed the seller for clarification, he assured me it was a full hollow body, so I went through with the purchase. Sure enough, I received a full hollow body guitar.
That alone makes it an extremely appealing purchase. In NZ, you'd typically pay at least a grand for even a budget model hollow body. $300NZD (inc postage) is a bit of a steal.
After I got it playing (which I'll get to), a bandmate liked it so much he got one too. The stupid thing was - same trader, same online ad, same brand name, but a lot of the hardware was completely different. 😕 Mine has chrome coloured hardware, his has gold coloured hardware (the ad featured chrome); the strap buttons were different styles; the pickguards are different shapes/positions. Very weird.
So is it a good buy?
Well . . . . yes and no.
I fully intended to upgrade and mod it from the outset. Nothing too major, I just know how I like my guitars. I wanted to install a roller bridge, install a metal nut, install a treble bleed, install strap lock buttons, rewire a master volume and master tone, reuse the second tone pot as a blender, and swap out the second volume for a rotary phase switch.
While waiting for the replacement hardware, the guitar pretty much just sat in the box. I only plugged it in to make sure it was working. What I can say is that straight out of the box it was thoroughly unplayable. New guitars obviously need to be set up, but I'd honestly never encountered one before where everything was just so out of whack. It was legitimately unplayable.
That's leading into why for some this would be a very bad purchase. I know enough that I can sort out my guitars. But when you consider that budget guitars are typically targeting beginners, no beginner would have had a clue what to do with this guitar out of the box. And for the amount of work needed, a guitar tech would have likely charged half again the purchase price to get it working.
Needless to say - out of the box, quite unimpressive.
But.
Where it counts, the guitar was surprising tidy. The overall construction seems solid; everything's straight; most surprisingly, the neckboard and frets were nicely dressed and didn't need any work.
Which is why this could also be considered an excellent buy. Just looking at the guitar itself - the neck and body without any of the hardware - even if one were to strip everything and use the guitar as a base for a project, I reckon you'd be hard pressed to find anything cheaper to start with.
Getting the guitar playable was fairly straight forward for the most part. But saw a few things that convinced me "quality control" must've been asleep when this one was rolled out, lol:
- Pulling everything off/out for the rewiring, I discovered that the grounding wire (usually connected to the bridge) was sitting loose, not connected to anything. And while starting to work on it, 2-3 factory solders fell off with no prompting. So the simple rewire became a complete strip and resolder of everything.
- The strap button near the neck was screwed into the side wall of the body. Not even into any framing or bracing. Just into the thin side wall. Not surprisingly, it was sitting in there very loosely. The new button got screwed into the heel of the neck.
- The nut . . . . holy crap, that nut! Lol. It was beyond a joke. Just so, so bad. Unfortunately the metal nut I wanted to replace it with was fractionally too wide (overall slot spacing). Not by much, maybe 0.5mm. Tried it for about a month or two. Sounded good and great tuning stability. But I'm too heavy handed, and found it to too easy to accidentally slide the E stings off the frets. So for now, I've regretfully had to salvage the original nut and refile it. It does the job, but I'll replace it with something better when I get around to it.
The tuners are a bit rubbish. But they do the job. I'll replace those when I get around to it as well, but it's not an urgent job.
Once I'd fitted all the replacement parts and made my mods, I did a complete set up.
Yes, it was a heck of a lot of mucking around for a new guitar. But I have to say, the end result . . . . totally worth it.
It plays and sounds like a dream. And like I said, it's so good that a bandmate got the same thing. (I did the set up for his one as well.) And for the current band it's now my #1 main guitar.
For the price, it was a really good buy for me and is just what I wanted. But anyone interested in getting one of these needs to be aware that it'll likely take a fair bit of work to bring it up to par.
The problem u cant fix on it: NO FLOATING BRIDGE. So u cant have a real(er) archtop sound because there s a piece of wood between the top and the back. Reducing the volume and the sound quality drastically:(
That's what I was assuming.
But I bought one and checked. Nope, no block between the top and the back.
I don't know why they made this guitar without a floating bridge. I would have imagined that would be cheaper and easier. Nevertheless, I can confirm that it's a proper hollow body arch top, and it sounds pretty damned good once it's set up properly.
@@mikee6666 tks for correcting me. Yes, weird, I prefer floating bridges on a hollow body. But.. u may have a better resinance with this drilled-in bridge??
@@ymelfilm
I really couldn't say whether the resonance is better or worse, I don't have anything to compare it too. Seems fine to me, especially for the price.
And I may have misspoken. My guitar definitely doesn't have a block in it. But it seems that some of these guitars do.
Which is . . . . weird. :/
I don't know what the story is there.
@@mikee6666 violins have a piece of wood or post , some guitar may have inherited it from it. Other explanation is the weight, it helps the arch against crack
@@ymelfilm
True. I just don't know why some of these guitars have it and some don't. I had assumed they were all coming out of the same factory, just with different brandings.
But maybe there's a couple of different factories producing them?
a lot of people have way too many insecurities about playing gigs with epiphone or squier on their headstock, and they’re definitely overthinking it, but i think it’d be justified if i had that gear4music logo
at that price point it’d be worth playing with a clip on tuner the whole time though
Jens, i bet it will sound so mucj better with proper, and fresh, strings. You might want to put good strings and publish an update.
Personally, I don'f even a new (or new to me) guitar until I put new strings. It's the simplest way to inprove the tone.
Thanks for fhe video!
Jens, congrats: you just became my unboxing-hero. (not my tech, I'm afraid)
Haha! Thanks!
I have an L5, a 175 and a 335 and I really don’t hear a difference from those to this one. No neck is like those 3 plus i have flatwounds on the L5 and the 175. George Benson once told me that he would always sit in and play cheap guitars and when he went back to his it made it easier. He played my Strat and still sounded like George Benson. It’s all in the player
Great video. But i think , its not the pickup, but the strings. Put on a new set of 10 or 11 flats and you go off .
In the meantime I tried that, it's not much of a change 🙂
I had a kit guitar which was an archtop but it wasn't a true hollow body because it had a support block under the bridge. There was a fair bit of fiddling to get it right because the holes for the bridge support weren't in the right place but once corrected it could be set up well and was very playable. The pickups weren't great which was to be expected and I replaced them with budget surplus epiphone pickups. It wasn't well balanced but then neither is the Epiphone emperor II. There are a lot of budget guitars out there now and they look like they can be made to work well enough. Obviously they are fitted with budget components and they lack finesse but for testing the water I think they are fine.
I did the DIY Hollywood too. Awesome project for anybody. Yep I found the 'soundpost' block as a major set back in possibility! The guitar turned out okay, my own finish and pickups where a plus, but when I imagined jamming with Jens or anybody I cringed at the lack of pedigree. In the dream I wished I had thrown it in the trash rather than be embarrassed. Then I threw it in the trash. It really was a good project though.👍
DIY hollow body!
Would it be possible to adjust the pickups just a little bit higher, so that they're closer to the strings? This could help with the volume, at least in theory.
I've got one of them and I love it
Jens I luv your vids but come on man, since I took my first cheap Yamaha bass to a setup, and was wowed how it simply felt like a different instrument I learned my lesson : setup is priority (also what my luthier told me, but had I not felt it I would have thought this guy was only securing his job) , and most if not all times a proper factory setup in these range of prices is something that simply is not included in the price, also: considering a setup includes a fresh new set of strings... I'm completely baffled as to why you should judge an instrument for all these - at least in my little experience - absolutely expected qualms.
I did think about that, but my conclusion is that if you are getting a guitar like this then you are most likely not so experienced or don't immediately have the means to take it for a $60 or more setup. You might do that after a few months, but you won't do that in the beginning, so doing that would make this entire video irrelevant for 90% of the people getting a guitar like this.
For the moment, I am pretty happy with my ibanez AF75BS, I buy it used for 270 euros, I know is a very cheap instrument..
I have students that played Ibanez AF75 which were pretty solid!
If you change the strings you might also upgrade the sound. Then these comparisons are going to be different too.
I have something similar, Chinese built (?) Aria F65, with a very decent neck and a great sound, with 'Duncan designed" pickups, quite good actually. Unamplified it sounds pretty lame, but other than that it works fine for me, as i'm more of a rock/pop guitarist. Bought it used for about €200 so well worth the money. But what can beat a $5000 Gibson? That is just a world apart. Nice Yamaha SG(2000?) by the way.
I have cheap guitars and very expensive Fenders - Gibsons very old ones .... The cheap from guitar lacks definition in the sound .... But all in all I don't think it's so bad .... For a beginner guitar it's quite good....
Changing strings can be a challenge. I wish you make a video just Changing the strings on that... you will be surprised
a pair of aftermarket pickups and some decent tuners (they always skimp there) and you'd have a properly decent guitar.
Man, your stairs ... They scare me a little!
Why?
@@JensLarsen they flex ... I am probably overreacting 😅
I'm curious about what would happen to the guitar in the video if you put your standard gauge of string on it. I think you'd need a lot of truss rod adjustment and certainly some work on the nut. I wonder if there would be enough truss rod adjustment available to make it playable, or if the truss rod would just break before you could get enough tension on it to counteract the greater tension of the heavier strings. I'll bet the heavier strings would improve the acoustic tone quite a bit if the instrument survived them. I paid $275 for my 2010s Ibanez AF85TDG-VLS a few years ago. It was in immaculate shape and came in the original hard shell case. I spent a some more money at the guitar shop getting a new nut, and having it set up with Stringjoy 12-52 Broadways. I've never had to fuss much with the setup and it plays and sounds great every time I pick it up. I can't imagine why anyone would want to buy the guitar in the video, I saw an Ibanez AF55 for $261.59 on amazon when I was poking around looking for the one in the video. I think a beginner would also do just fine with a properly set up inexpensive solid body.
I bought a $350 "jazz guitar'' from China and put 12's on it. Definitely had to adjust truss rod, and I need to file the nut or get another nut, the lower strings are to big for the slots. Trust rod adjustment worked ok, had to crank it quite a bit but it held up. Only other problem is tone and volume controls are very hard to turn, for some reason. On the plus side I was very surprised by the fret work its better than on some much more expensive guitars, no sharp edges. These cheap guitars usually need some work but if you are willing to learn how to determine what needs to be done and how to do it, they are a good value, IMHO. I agree re the lower end Ibanez hollow bodies, they are available usaed for not very much and are of good quality.
Even for the price the lose poti and the internal rattling are a no go. Otherwise it might be interesting to invest into a pair of cheaper P94 clones (P90 in Humbucker format). I id that with an Epiphone Les Paul, and it was a huge step upward (i was using Tonerider PUs, but there maybe of course others).
Jens, I LOVE your music choice at 1:02 - it proves you are DANISH !! Tak for gode videoer 🙂
Tusind tak 🙏🙂
Absolutely awesome video Jens. Thank you for this. I'm a new to jazz player (in other words I'm not very good). All I have at the moment is an old nylon string guitar that was handed down to me. If you were someone like me (beginner) would you get one of these relatively inexpensive archtops, or would you get a Squier stratocaster, or would you save up a little more and get something second hand? Thanks Jens
Loved the McGyver 😄 What do you think about Epiphone?
Thank you! Here's my opinion on Epiphone 🙂 : th-cam.com/video/bIQiWfeWLA4/w-d-xo.html
Improving the sound of the pickups can be done very inexpensively (provided they are not microphonic, but even then..). Just removing the metal cap could help. The electric sound is probably not the problem. Electronics is always cheap and quite simple. I would be more concerned with the build quality (neck straightness over time, laquer finish, body robustness, fret material, tuner quality,,...). My biggest argument against all incredibly cheap products is that somebody always pays the difference to the true value (environmental pollution due to low standards, low salaries, inhuman working conditions...the list is endless)
The real problem is: Gibson doesn't make these nice Archtops any more...
But Ibanez makes some fantastic ones. I have a LGB 30 George Benson and its amazing. And they come with a hardcase.
I agree it could be used on a gig. Although it is a cheap guitar, it still sounds like you.
I bought something like this for 90 euros. Nut, bridge, pickups, frets and pick guard had to be replaced/improved. Altogether, it's landed at 200 euros of improvements, not counting the work hours. Still not $2000 price, yet it still sucks sound-wise. Buy some real stuff, it's chaeper to upgrade to the level.
A lot of guitar for practicaly no money. A good beginers' choice.
I might have missed it, but did you (have to) do a lot of work on the set up? Beginners generally have no luthier skills. Is it playable out of the box, and if not, how advanced are the skills one needs to use to get it so? Can you fix it with a screwdriver or needs the nut adjusting?
I didn't do anything except the tone pot, for that very reason
@@JensLarsen So playable for a pro like you right out of the box? I'm amazed. In that price range guitars generally are not set up.
@@fritsvanzanten3573 They are always set up, just not very well and travel usually messes with that.
@@JensLarsen I know two large stores that told me below 500 euro they don't do set ups, but I guess that depends on the definition of set up.😉
@@fritsvanzanten3573 I am not saying the store does it, I am saying the factory does
Wow, Axl Rose is a postman in Europe now.
Just checked the price. $230?!?! Some decent single coil pickups and you're away...
The delivery guy looks familiar 🤔
😁🙏
Probably there is some fancy way to secure a potmeter. I'm not even interested in it. Because it will involve purchasing some specialty tool and I already have like 1K of money into those. The bare minimum is what I try to buy.
The Ibanez is a semi-hollow guitar. You can hear it.
You know, I did a test over a year ago switching around audio and video and NOBODY could tell. In fact, I only made that video because I was comparing them and realized that they sounded so similar that I wasn't sure I would be able to do a blindfold test and get it right (with my own guitars), I decided to play the exact same thing on 3 of my guitars and switch it around. We often listen with our eyes.
Okay, if Jens is intermediate to advanced for jazz guitar enthusiasts, who on the TH-cams is beginner to intermediate? (Writing this here b/c it’s his most recent video)
It is difficult to give too specific advice because everybody is different and at different levels, but maybe check out this post: jenslarsen.nl/how-to-learn-jazz-guitar-suggestions-to-begin-studying/
Didn’t hear much of a difference. Would love to hear more about the feel of the guitar
this guitar can not be acousticly similar to ES175, as it has block of wood under the bridge for support...I have 2 of these,(natural and sunburst) both had resonance problem with pickup springs. Other than that just great guitars. Nut is 42mm, so again difference to Gibson. I polished the laminated poplar fretboard with black shoes wax,as the color wasnt great, changed strings to 11th flatwounds, set-up neck tension and both plays great now. I also changed one neck pickup with cheap Epiphone humbucker, and it is even better now...still cheap and great value for living room guitarists..😉 thx for showing this guitar...Tom
Huh.
I got one of these guitars too - no block under the bridge.
@@mikee6666 it is strange, both of mine has it....I thnk they use this under the brige block so the top will not collapse...as it is not real archtop...dont you have any issues with the top ?
@@tomblaza
No, the top's been fine on it.
To be honest I was quite surprised it didn't have a block given the way the bridge is attached. But the seller assured me it was a full hollow body, and I confirmed as much for myself when it arrived.
It sure had plenty of other issues when I got it, which I totally expected even though it was brand new (cheap and nasty). But once I fixed it up and set it up, it's been a fairly solid work horse. Hits some really sweet tones with the volume and tone down low. And without a block, it has that particular hollow body sound.
@@mikee6666 nice…hope it will hold as it is. But be carefull with heavy strings I think…Wood block can reduce feedback if you play amplified as well. I have tried floating ebony bridge instead of the fixed stock one, but with wood-block it did not make sense, was even worst, so I switched back to tune-o-matic. I had cheap small Epiphone Les Paul Express guitar (for fun when traveling) and I took its 650H neck pickup and put it into one of this jazzbox. Still ceramic pickup, but significant change, and with Dunlop 207 2mm round jazz pick and few tweeks with tone knob I got tone I think is OK..Of course tuning machines replacement will be next step, just need to find some good ones but cheap…as it does note make sens to spend much money on this guitar…..But still these are nice guitars for the money…Cheers
@@tomblaza
No concerns there, I don't like the sound of heavy strings, I've set it up for my usual D'Addario 10's (EXL110).
Oddly enough, while fully expecting I may have to deal with potential feedback issues, I honestly haven't had a problem yet. But then again our band is a pretty low volume affair, golden oldie stuff for geriatric audiences, lol, haven't yet cranked it in front of the half stack or anything.
Agree re tuning heads. Currently in the same position of trying to find something decent but justifiably cheap.
Did you change string gauges on the new one before the comparison, or are they factory strings?
Great video as always, Jens. What pickups do you have in the Ibanez? Are they stock?
The neck pickup is a Seymour Duncan Seth Lover, the bridge is stock 🙂 Glad you like the video!
@@JensLarsen Thank you Jens. They sounds great, but it's the guitar player that really counts. Keep rocking.