Mit der Ibanez Prestige RG652AHM-AWD Antique White Blonde präsentiert das japanische Traditionsunternehmen eine E-Gitarre, die mit hervorragender Bespielbarkeit und heißen Pickups zum Shredden einlädt. So bietet der Esche-Korpus im typischen RG-Design nicht nur komfortable Konturen, sondern auch weit geschnittene Cutaways, die einen ungehinderten Zugang zu hohen Lagen des aus Ahorn und Walnuss gefertigten Halses gestatten. Dieser liegt mit dem flachen „Super Wizard HP“-Profil äußerst in der Hand, sodass sich zwischen den 24 Bünden des Vogelaugenahorn-Griffbretts fast jedes Riff von alleine spielt. Am Verstärker sorgt die Kombination aus einem DiMarzio Air Norton am Hals und dem DiMarzio The Tone Zone am Steg für heiße Rock- und Metal-Sounds, die zum schreiben fetter Riffs und virtuoser Soli animieren. Darüber hinaus ist die Ibanez RG652AHM mit dem bekannt zuverlässigen Edge Tremolo und hochwertigen Gotoh Mechaniken ausgestattet.
Ibanez Prestige RG652AHM-AWD Antique White BlondeSehr schöne und makellose Gitarre. Toller Sound ! Habe nichts anderes erwartet. 👍
The only issue I found out of the box was that the action was a bit high, around 6/64 on the low side, and the frets could have used a bit more polishing. Other than that, the negatives stop there.
The positives are many. The Super Wizard HP neck is amazing and makes playing feel effortless. It is one of the fastest and most comfortable necks I have played. The birdseye maple fretboard is beautiful as well. The figuring is not extremely dense, but it still gives the guitar a premium and classy appearance. The finish quality is flawless, with no visible imperfections anywhere on the guitar.
Compared to the Ibanez RG652LWFX that I owned in the past, the wood combination clearly affects the sound. I used the same equipment, same strings, same Drop C tuning, and of course the same pickups, so the comparison was very fair.
On the RG652LWFX, with its basswood body and rosewood fretboard, the Tone Zone had a huge bottom end that did not behave as well in Drop C tuning. On the RG652AHM-RPB, with its ash body and maple fretboard, the guitar almost feels made for Drop C. The Tone Zone still has its signature aggression, but it is much more controlled and cuts through the mix far better.
The same thing applies to the Air Norton. On the previous guitar, it sounded very nice and liquid in standard tuning, but it could get muddy in Drop C. On this guitar, it is a joy to play mellow lines and leads in lower tunings without losing clarity.
Overall, this is a very high-quality instrument made in Japan. It also comes with a very nice hard-shell case and even includes a multitool inside. At this price point, many other brands are selling Korean or Indonesian-made models, while this still feels like a true premium instrument in every way.