Ibanez: RC320M

Every now & then, Ibanez would surprise us with some singular models which drew much from its history as well as contemporary ideas. The Roadcore series, a member of which is featured here- RC320M- has semblances of the Blazer & Talman models but it remains refined & different in its final incarnation.

The instrument features a mahogany body & maple neck with a traditional boxy heel at the joint so all you all-access neck fans, be warned. The model featured here is the latest variation featuring a maple fretboard so everything looks flushed from headstock to the 22nd fret. Also, be informed that the neck is a finished, glossy affair, quite removed from the satin feel of the RGs.

The RC feels retro from the start, there's something heavily borrowed from yesterday's design but the overall weight is much lighter than one would expect from a mahogany bodied instrument. Together with the all maple neck, this guitar gives off a warm tone but nothing too dark & bottom end inclined. Neck-wise, the much rounded C-profile is -dare I say it- Strat in nature but manifesting a slightly wider (not to mention slimmer) feel as one goes up the upper fret register. It's rather clear that Ibanez didn't intend to give us an all-out rock machine with the inclusion of these Core Tone humbuckers; some Alnico type crunchy performance, nothing to appease the high gain fans, mind you- think ACDC.

The instrument was well set up right out of the box but the fact that it was strung up with a set of .010s but without the nut slots properly cut out for them is indeed worrying. I nearly gave up based on tuning stability alone when trying it at the store, the wound strings were choked at the nut & the steep break angle from the nut to the string retainers/ machine heads compounded the difficulty to keep this instrument in tune. However, a set of .009s cured everything.

The Roadcore model is a 'different' offering by Ibanez, there's no immediate shred appeal if you approach this from an RG mindset but it's a good one for those who are in no hurry to move across the fretboard.

Overall rating: 78%

Availability: Swee Lee Co.

List: $540