I used to be a Schecter guy, mainly because they weren’t too expensive second hand and I was broke, but I was doomscrolling marketplace and saw a really cool Ibanez, which was way out of my price range. I first asked my parents if they could but it for me, but they refused, saying “this is your 5th guitar this year yet I keep hearing you play the same shit you did 5 years ago.” So I had to get some extra money by tutoring my juniors some math and using that money and betting it on the World Cup, thankfully I didn’t lose the parlay and I finally found some time to get the guitar, and without hesitation, bought it on the spot. This will certainly not be the last ibanez I get. The flame on this thing is insane, no photos do it justice, I honestly should’ve went for a worse finish so I actually practice my guitar instead of admiring it.

I’ve wanted one of these for a good while now, but they’re pretty tricky to find. One came up for sale a few weeks ago and I couldn’t help myself 😁

Have an RG550 in desert yellow too and a pickguard would make them match. Love how this looks but it came out a little more crayola crayon box than neon shred monster. I think the black would help soften the colors a bit

Going to restart playing after a hiatus of 4.5 years

Some of you of you may remember my post asking about this exact guitar this time last week. The response was unanimous positivity about this model, so now, thanks to Sweetwater being within a day's drive, I am the proud owner of one! I haven't really had much of a chance to put it through its paces as I'm on the clock today but I can already tell it's everything I wanted.

One question though. Is the Edge trem supposed to be leaning slightly forwards instead of flush with the body? I've never set one up before so I have no idea what's normal.

UPDATE:

So there has been a lot of discussion about what I paid for this guitar. The overwhelming consensus is that I massively overpaid.

I did a ton of research on my own, and even went back to the shop. I came out.....still not quite sure.

At surface level, it seems like these go for $800-$1700 depending on the condition. So with that as a baseline, it's definitely a massive overpay.

The problem is, I did a deeper dive, and those listings, even the ones for $1700, show guitars with lots of cosmetic damage. As in, multiple chips, dings, worn necks, cracks etc. And most of those listings aren't 100% original. We're talking replacement pickups, tone knobs, pickguards, case etc.

Despite everyone here being adamant that $1500-$1700 is the ceiling price, there's just no evidence of that. My particular specimen is in excellent condition and the neck and fingerboard are in PERFECT condition. Everything is all original, like going back in time to the late 1980s.

Going back to the shop, they were pretty cool and said I could exchange it for a different guitar if I wanted. But they were pretty adamant that they thought $2900 was a fair price given the condition, and they couldn't find any other listing of comparable condition and with the original case, accessories, and components.

Given the reputation of the store and my gut instinct, I don't think they were trying to fuck me over. They were happy to take back for an exchange. The guitar is what I consider to be excellent condition, with just pick scratches and two areas in the back preventing me from calling it mint. The question, is that condition worth about $1000-$1200 premium? I don't think so, but I also have no basis for that besides people here in this thread scoffing at me. I've looked for the listings.

The owner (who was a store worker) was also pretty adamant it was an 1987, despite the black headstock. I didn't want to argue that too much, because regardless who is right, arguing this point with the original owner who bought is just awkward. Let's just call it a late 1980s, early batch model.

So all in all, I'm still conflicted. But one thing is very clear, that these are not $800-$1000 for great condition anymore. For ones in the condition of mine, they are getting a lot harder to find, especially in the US. What anyone does with that information is up to them.

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So I stopped by my local high end guitar shop, looking to buy a new acoustic. Shot the shit, played some guitars. Ended up playing some electrics. The sales associate gets to know my musical taste, preferences in guitars etc.

He gives me a look and says, he might have something that would interest me. A "1987" RG550 in pristine condition.

Comes out with it. Wow, this thing looks new at first glance. After giving it a harder look, it does have some minor wear and tear. But for a 39 year old guitar, it looks amazing. The neck joint looks perfect, no cracks or anything. The paint looks YELLOW. Like it just left the factory. The hardware looks great. The bridge says "Licenced Under Floyd Rose Patents" like it should. The headstock has the most wear and tear, which I read is common. It even has the original manual and locking bridge warnings.

I was genuinely in awe. If someone told me this was a used great condition Genesis, at first glance I would've believed them.

Naturally I had to take it home. Bought it for $2900. I didn't even do much research on the price, I knew that for myself, I was okay paying that, for this condition.

Took it home, did more research. It has a black gloss headstock. So I don't think it's a 1987 like the guy said. Google says black glossy headstocks were 1989. But the volume knob is close to the bridge pickup. And the serial number begins with F7. But I heard F7 serial numbers often overflowed into 1988 and maybe 1989. So perhaps the sales associated misremembered and actually bought in 1989? Let me know what you guys think. There's a tiny part of me afraid I got swindled, but this shop is extremely reputable and I wouldn't think they would knowingly lie to my face.

As far as how it plays, amazing. To think this was an "everyman's" guitar back in the day.

A player grade keeper. I think I finally found the one... 😭

Thinking of a name , i'm between Tybalt or Mercutio

This guitar plays like a dream The pickups are hot. It sounds great. I don't even know what to say. Besides, this is my dream guitar.

It rules! My 4th genesis and the last color I needed to complete my rg rainbow 😅 (look at post history)

Cheers everyone

Finally got my first RG550. I got it at a local music store that also had an RG450LTD and RG1550M in poisoned pumpkin. However, the 450 had a high fret and the 1550M had a good amount of cosmetic damage. The 550 was in the back and in basically perfect condition. The only thing I need to fix on it is the bridge being a little high, which shouldn’t be too hard.

Started my guitar journey more than 10 years ago but had a huge gap where I stopped playing. I've been playing consistently for some time now and decided to buy some candy.

Just picked up this mint Frank Gambale signature for an incredible price. Honestly not a ding or scratch on it, just some light fading on the front from hanging on a wall for 30+ years. One of the first 1000 made so it has the signed back plate and everything. Gave it a setup and this thing is incredible, super low action and sounds great. Will swap the weird beehive knobs with a low gotoh one but really stoked about this thing. Almost scared of playing it since I will probably ding it in a week.

My first ever Headless guitar.

I got it in a trade for a 60s or 70s Fender Bassman cabinet that I bought from a pawnshop for $20 due to it "not working". It turned out that it worked really well. So I listed it for trade and here I am now!

The only thing I need is a strap button, strings, and the selector switch tip.

Finally pulled the trigger on my first J.custom. Also my first RGA. This one is in Rhodonite pink which is amazing. Kind of a rare color. I own a few prestiges so this was the next step up logically (financially illogically). This one was in customs jail for two and a half weeks but it was worth it. Love the horn cuts on the front and back, makes me want them on regular RG’s too. The AANJ was always my favorite on any Ibanez bolt on, but this one feels even better than the neck joints on my prestiges. After being shipped from Italy, having it sit in customs for weeks, it arrived in perfect tuning when I played it. Thing plays amazing, lives up to the reputation. Wanted to share with fellow Ibanez nerds.

For the last year these RGR5227MFX have been going for wonky prices online, $2800-3000 which I just refused to pay. So recently when this one came up for $2000 on reverb, I sent an offer right away. After a couple hours, they accepted, I finally got one! I sent over the money and... nothing.. no response. So I reached out a couple times and nothing, completely ghosted. Two days later the seller messages me, "I'm really sorry man I found a great trade on a PRS and I had to take it."

Damn. The guitar I've been trying to get for nearly 2 years slipped through my fingers.

Later that night I'm on the couch with my wife scrolling through my usual cycle of reverb, gear exchange, guitar center, etc., and BOOM another RGR5227 pops up at Guitar center. Wow, these don't usually show up this often. I click on the link and recognize it immediately.

It's the exact same guitar, not just the same model but the literal guitar from the reverb ghost. Apparently the trade he couldn't turn down was to guitar center lmao. GC priced it for $1799 and I immediately bought it. So in the end I got the exact same guitar I thought I had lost for roughly the same price but with the GC 45 day return policy if it's bad. Just insane!

Why the dude traded to guitar center for probably half as much as I'd have paid him, I'll never understand but thanks man! Even with reverb fees he'd end up with way more money that he could have used to buy the PRS.

The guitar arrived in absolutely immaculate condition and I love it. It was the last Prestige I wanted for my collection so it's finally complete*. This whole process felt like fate or something lol.

(Bonus vid so I can show off my fret dressing/polish 😅

https://imgur.com/a/V2wtH0z)

I sold hundreds of my old Pokémon cards to finally buy this beauty 🤩🤩 Started to play it already, can't wait to test it with the band next week 🤘🤘

Not lying, the little black Gio did the job (carried by a DS-1 lol), but I wont miss it one second.

Traded a guitar to acquire this mint J Custom 8570z Black Onyx.

I've owned Ibanez Prestige guitars in the past, still own a '91 Jem bfp which mostly sits retired in its case, this thing is a step up again.

Absolutely flawless fretwork, the tree of life is heaps nicer than my Jem (understandably), there is a decent weight to it which doesn't feel too heavy but is a nice amount of heft.

Kinda hard to put into words, but it just feels high quality. Super happy.

That's 3 now... I guess that's the retirement fund sorted/blown...

Picked up this S470DX 2nd hand and got someone to clean and set it up. £200 for the guitar and £60 for the setup. Really happy with this, so hope he likes it.

Just picked up this beaut from the goat Tim Howley, just 2 more special ibbys and my dream collection will be complete. Unfortunately the next 2 are used car prices lmao