Price watch (9)

This 2017 Ibanez Premium RG6PC is now available here if you are interested in one.

This Prestige RG2550Z is also available and lists for $50 less than the RG6PC.

What am I driving at? I would classify both guitars as very high quality but we know the Premium model is not Japan-made & sits lower in terms of hierarchy, compared to the Prestige. Granted, the RG2550Z in the stores here might be a NOS unit & it accounts for that price difference but I'm reiterating the fact that as we hesitate to get the instruments we prefer, prices keep climbing. Very soon, the Prestige will necessitate a higher list price because it's a Prestige; it's of higher standing than the Premium & the prices should reflect the circumstances. 

On another note, we see the psychology of brand-price relationship. Nobody would want to pay too much for a non-Japanese Ibanez model but the fact that it's a Premium model, something that arguably commands a little more respect in terms of QC, the manufacturer wouldn't hesitate to place it in the higher price range. Consumers would subconsciously agree to this classification as well due to that crucial label there: Premium. Remove this from the instrument, it's just another Far Eastern manufactured instrument regardless of whatever soaring levels of QC it's manifesting.