Selling: Ibanez Halberd (XH300)

I'm re-listing this for sale, the Ibanez Halberd XH300 (bag included). There were issues with the former Seymour Duncan Distortion in there, together with the neck humbucker (Duncan Jazz), they were replaced by the high output blade type pickups you see above. 

Please note the above; the wood joint has expanded causing the line you see there so it's priced to clear. Thanks for understanding my price is final - chemo funding continues.

• Selling: Ibanez XH300 (bag included)
• Mod: High output blade type pickups
• No reservations / trades
• Self-collect: CCK / Yew Tee mrt station
• Queries / confirmation: subversion.sg@gmail.com
• Price: $350 (final)

Glaive- deactivated

One of the reasons why I seldom play this one is because it sports a pair of in-house Ibanez CAP active humbuckers. My ears are a little fatigued listening to such responses not that those CAP pickups were under-performing (certainly not!) but because I don't fancy such manifestations.

Made a quick trip to Beez's yesterday to have these replace the CAPs: PATB Distortion (b)/ Jazz (n). A rather peculiar pairing of a menacing bridge model with a reserved neck counterpart. Not really. Seymour Duncan's Jazz (SH-2) humbucker should not be overlooked to deliver outstanding lead tones just because it's labelled to project a reserved demeanour. It's one of those versatile pickups equally adept in clean as well as driven tones. And then some in semi-hollow guitars.

The X-series weapons model are extinct now. They can be identified easily at the headstock less the early Xiphos models which were cataloged without that specific label. 

A quick cuppa before heading home.

FYI, the rest of the family members seen here. These were definitely interesting additions to the Ibanez fold but there were very few takers & it's all about the outlines. Ibanez fans are still hardcore when it comes to the RG. It remains to be the manufacturer's formidable model in terms of sales & no frills offering when it comes to design pleasantries. 

Shoutout to brother Joshua- good to have met you at Beez's! 

Friedman Monarch

Finally, the return-to-Jackson Marty Friedman model based on the Monarkh series. Fans won't get to see this in stores till May 2017. I'm wondering why a model with a strong endorser backing gets relegated to the X-series but this isn't the first time it happened to a Marty Friedman guitar. Remember the PRS MF model? That was in the SE camp. 😑

Charvel vs Jackson- you have spoken...

This is the recent conclusion to a poll here about mid-priced Jackson/ Charvel- it seems that players prefer Charvel's Desolation series over Jackson's X-series guitars. These offerings are within comparable price brackets & playability but despite being on par, we still don't know if payability/ tone factors or the 'Made in _____' factor swaying the votes.

Ibanez X-series (Brief take 1): Falchion

Ibanez X-series (2011 offerings)- they are finally here & thanks to the good people of Swee Lee, I've managed to try all 3 models. This is the first installment featuring the Falchion. Simply put, it's the most well-balanced model despite looking like a mutant star, in fact, place it upright & it looks like a dancing person with a very long neck... 

Anyway, the message here is, we should not dismiss any instruments just because they don't look appealing to us. The Falchion excels in its balancing act both sitting down & strapped on. Shredders would love the generous upper fret access but a blank fretboard would prove a little challenging for some of us. As for me, I love blank fretboards- it makes you look lethal when you play fast, adding a touch of mystery along the way. Tone wise, the CAP-LZ humbuckers in there might have limited fans by virtue of its singular offering- I hear awesome distortion but once you clean up your tone, it sounds lacking in warmth & character. Not really a dud pair but it's not as dynamic as we'd love them to be. Remind yourselves that there is no tone control to offer some consolation in times of need. But I have to say that the Falchion's non-heavy nature makes it sing more than croak, it's a rather light instrument even with the Edge III bridge in there, it doesn't stray too much from the weight of its other siblings, the Halberd & Glaive. Hope the manufacturer would include a non-whammy Falchion for us, I'd REALLY appreciate that.

Jack X

Something 'new' by Jackson- the X-Series (not to be compared to Ibanez's X-series). Judging by the prices, these instruments are sitting slightly above the JS models in the tier but nothing too extravagant in terms of features.