Views on Ibanez jazz guitars and pricing?

ionian

I'm gassing for a jazz box as I try to improve my range and I've got my eye on buying used, either a afj91 or afj95. The smaller body (16"x4") will suit me and it seems like a lot of guitar for the price plus the pickups are decent, better than the current crop of entry level ibanez boxes.

Any issues I should consider? What would be a decent price? Any other models that offer better value? 

stimpsonslostson

I had an Artcore ASF75T it was a really good guitar, but the pickups were pretty bland.
The higher models have better hardware. 

I doubt you could do better for the money. 

richh

I have an AFJ95 and would strongly recommend it, especially as far as value for money and playability.

If you want to try it, you're welcome if you are anywhere near me (Oxford)

Megii

I recently tried an AFC95, and imo it's an absolute belter, and well worth considering if you can stretch to the £500-ish price.

ionian

Thanks @Megii ;;;- the AFC95 is certainly a good looking guitar but if i can get one of the afj9x models for somewhere south of £300 I wonder if it would be worth saving the extra £200. Have you played anything with the ibanez super 58 pickups to compare against the AFC?

@richh - that's really generous, thanks. I'm the wrong side of London, over in Kent, but good to know I can pick your brains on that model! 

susbemol

Generally speaking, the guitar itself should be a good starting point and you can always get any half decent PAF type of pickup (for around £50) and pop it in, if you feel it really needs it.

dazzajl

Personally I seem to get on very well with Ibby stuff and found the stock pickups in my AF75 anything but bland. They’re not deep and gruff like a lot of people expect and their strengths, being crisp and articulate, might not lend them to being very jazzy. 

If you want that thick, velvety sound then one of the deeper body boxes with a pickup to suit would definitely be a better bet. 

I had a PM35 a long while back and it was a stunning guitar 

Megii

ionian said:

Thanks @Megii ;;;- the AFC95 is certainly a good looking guitar but if i can get one of the afj9x models for somewhere south of £300 I wonder if it would be worth saving the extra £200. Have you played anything with the ibanez super 58 pickups to compare against the AFC?

@richh - that's really generous, thanks. I'm the wrong side of London, over in Kent, but good to know I can pick your brains on that model! 

No worries, it was just something I thought I'd throw into the mix to consider. I do have a 1980 JP20 that had an original Super 58, and that was indeed a very good-sounding PAF-ish pickup. Haven't tried an AFJ9x I admit.

I did really like the tone from the mini floating humbucker in the AFC95, at least using the neck pickup (I found the bridge pup a bit weedy I admit, and for my taste they could have left that out). But in general it was just a really lively-sounding, responsive guitar to play, and nicely put together as well - I just had that feeling you get when you know you're playing a really excellent guitar. I'm not sure if an AFJ9X would match it in terms of getting that lively acoustic kind of tone, which imo does have an impact on the amplified sound also. No substitute for being able to try and directly compare of course.

richh

When I first plugged in my AFJ95 I was disappointed with the amplified sound.  However 2 minutes adjusting the pickup height - in my case closer to the strings, and I had it sorted.  Obviously this will depend on your personal preferences, gain structure and so on.  But don't assume the pickups on a less expensive Ibanez are not right for you until you've experimented a bit.

ionian

Thanks everyone, that's really useful stuff. I guess if truth be told it's a familiar thing: primarily GAS, with a little bit of a skinflint approach to have a play around with, with very little actual "need" - it's not like I'm starting a jazz band next week (or likely to graduate from I vi II v anytime soon in my own learning). But ebay is right there in my pocket!

I think I need to give it some thought. 

ionian

Well I won the AFJ95 by accident - I logged in to eBay, saw there was 15 seconds left and bid PURELY on gassy instinct. £220 seems a decent price and I'm sure I can, if necessary, move it on for a similar amount should it not be what I want.

Now I have five days to work out how to explain it at home. The best I've come up with so far is "at least it's not another new camera lens". 

Megii

That's a great price, can't blame you at all and hope it works out for you.

pintspiller

You'll probably find most guitars are made in the same factories. The only difference between, say, an Epiphone jazz box and an Ibanez jazz box will be choice of hardware, head stock shape and logo.

The pickups you have in your spares box are probably fine. For my Peavey Rockingham is got a bridge pup pulled from an Eggle Berlin for £20, which was less ice-pick than the stock one.

ionian

New guitar day was yesterday - its a beautiful guitar in fantastic condition, a real looker. I'll do some photos at the weekend if I can. It does need a set up though, the pickups are set far too high, the frets buzz up around 14, but for the price I paid I can find the cash for a pro to do the job properly.