for a starter 7 string that doesnt break the budget, this is a winner. i got this one at a discounted price, so i dont know if id pay the full 500 or whatever for it. im new to 7 strings, so i just wanted a starter 7. if i get better at 7s, and really want to continue, ill save my nickels and dimes and get a prestige version. but again, for a low cost, relatively good sounding/quality, starter 7 string, this is a steal.

Sound
well, the ibanez active stock pickups are rather cheap, so the sound is not as crisp as it would be with some emgs or blackouts. to compensate for the lack of clarity, ibanez wisely chose to put on on-board eq switch that takes the rather poor initial quality of sound and modifies it so that the mids and highs are juiced a little. This gives the tone much more clarity, and makes the sound closer to an emg or blackout. however, even with this mid switch, you will have some muddy notes. But this is not a 1100 dollar guitar, so you should never expect it to sound like one. for this price range, the sound is just fine. cant give it over an eight though.

Features
simple design = good design in my opinion. one eq switch, pickup switch, and one volume knob. thin neck, fixed bridge, light woods (makes it easy to play standing up).

Ease of Use
tune it, play it. simple stuff. this guitar does have batteries, but if you buy it online, they should be new.… read more i think it takes 2 AAs, but i cant be sure.

Quality
I love ibanez guitars. been playin em for 4 years, and i havent switched yet. they are just solid guitars, i havent had an issue yet.

Value
great value for a decent 7 string. cant go wrong with this one.

Manufacturer Support
best support is support you never need. though if i had a problem, im rather confident that ibanez would be very helpful.

The Wow Factor
ibanez always makes cool guitars. this one is kind of simple, but it still looks very cool.

Musical Background:
hobbyist, musician

Musical Style:
metal, technical metal, read less