Ibanez s470 vs Sterling jp60??

[habba1]

I cant make up my mine between these two guitars:

s470

Specifications
Wizard II neck

Maple Neck Material

Mahogany Body

22/Jumbo frets

Rosewood Finger Board

ZR bridge

PSND1 (H) Neck PU

PSNDS (S) Mid PU

PSND2 (H) Bridge PU



JP60
Basswood body with maple top
Black metallic finish
Matching headstock with John's signature
Maple neck with rosewood fingerboard
JP shield Inlays
24 medium-jumbo frets
Dual Stderling Hi-output humbuckers
Master volume and tone controls
Petrucci dome-style knobs
3-way metal pickup switch
Sterling Modern Tremolo bridge
Locking tuners

Genre of music:
Melodic Metal, Thrash metal, punk rock, heavy rock, instrumental

Few concerns,

1. Will basswood be inferior to mahogany?
2. Which tremelo bridge is better?
3. Will the tuning in the jp60 be stable since there is no locking nut?

FYI: Prices wise, the JP costs about USD700(inclusive of a gig bag) whereas the s470 costs about USD1000 (without a bag)

Please do share your experiences as well if you have used either of the guitars.

Thanks

 

[lemonade93]

Nobody said Basswood is inferior to Mahogany or the other way around, they are both very good in their own ways, which is the same aswell with your question on the bridge, there is no 'better' trem, they both have their uses, and again, for your 3rd question, nobody said that a locking nut was better than a composite nut, i for one prefer Graphite nuts compared to locking nuts, and also prefer the normal trems like on my PRS, and wood is extremely personal sound wise, so it all boils down to what you want.

To be more specific, the concerns you have aren't concerns at all, cause if there was a superior wood or better bridge or best nut, every guitar in the world would be using it no? Thats why the diversity, cause it's all good and all diff.

 

[habba1]

Ok cool. Cause I heard from some local music stores that mahogany is a better wood to invest in as compared to basswood. Anyways, putting aside those 3 question, given those genres of music, which guitar will you get?

Thanks

 

[AaronSoFat]

i'll get the one with 24 frets. always useful.

 

[relinquish69]

one has a floating bridge while the other has a standard trem. both are entirely different guitars. make sure you do ample research on floating bridges before committing.

in any case, both of them are good guitars.

 

[shioks76]

investment? Ill answer the questions directly instead.

1)basswood vs mahogany has no difference in terms of better . Just which tone prefer, you have to compare each guitar on its own merits. People will tell you anything to sell something. Sheesh

2)S470 has the better tremolo provided you maintain it properly. Screw the string clamps (bridge) in too much (overtightening) and they can wear out prematurely and very soon you'll need to replace the tremolo parts. Good luck finding replacements. So be especially careful buying this guitar 2nd hand or buying from people who say they can't get used to the floyd rose. (zr trem in this case)That said if used properly the bridge should be able to last you years without issues. However due to my own bad experience id rather just buy a esp/charvel/jackson that comes with original floyd rose or licensed floyd rose. Much easier to get replacement parts and cheaper too.

3) yes it should be stable, but don't expect to do tremolo tricks on this guitar compared to the s470s. Definitely the s470s wins in this aspect. Certain tricks can be done only if you have a floyd especially for those requiring you to pull up on the trem bar.

 

[J.custom]

I've tried both guitars and overall, the JP60 feels and sounds better. Even though it's only SGD880, it plays AND sounds like a sub 1k guitar. Construction/workmanship is really excellent, even the stock pickups for this guitar sound pretty good. I've tried the JP6 before and this really does come close in terms of playability and tone. The trem used in this guitar is almost the same as what you'd find in the JP6, and if you listen to enough of JP/DT you know he does the occasional dive bombs, whammy tricks etc. yet the guitar still stays in tune.

As for Mahogany vs Basswood, they are 2 very different woods. IMO Basswood has a more neutral tone, so it allows the characteristics of your pickups to shine. Whereas Mahogany is more mid focused, bassy and gives a warmer/darker tone overall, that's why it's usually paired with a maple top because maple sounds bright and this balances out the tone in the end. Like what everyone has been saying, both guitars will sound different, so best if you try it.

Another reason for buying the JP60 is that Brendon has the BEST service in Singapore, plus you get lifetime setups as well as nice Christmas cards from him Great guy to deal with and is extremely patient.

 

[xfigox]

Used to own the s470dxqm (quilted maple top version) with EMGs inside, playability wise, the s470 is really awesome. Super thin body, wicked fast ibanez neck and its totally weightless (not exactly but super-light!).

It's really very comfy axe to play on, but that being said, it only has 22 frets and that one of the downsides of the guitar. The trem is very stable, sounds great with the EMGs (mine had the stock pickups swapped for 81 85s) on it, loved that guitar but sold it on impulse at a ridiculous price (even got lowballed on the spot when dealing).

Great guitar nonetheless!

 

[habba1]

Ok. Actually there is a 24 fret version of the s470 which is the s570 and its sold around SGD960. Do you think I should go for that instead? I do not plan to change pickups as of now but maybe in the near future.

By the way, I will be connecting this guitar to a POD HD500.

Most of the songs that i cover requires little whammy action however, I just love playing around with it haha. Currently I'm using an Ibanez rg350ex which is quite good but I really dislike the edge III bridge and its already 5 years so I want a change.

So please keep those comments coming in

 

[J.custom]

Noo! Go for the jp60! Have you tried it yet? I'm sure Brendon will be willing to give you a nice disc too! It comes with a super high quality bag, very comfy. Same bags used for musicman guitars! Almost as good as mono

 

[ShredAddict]

different pickups react differently to different woods. example a Dimarzio Evolution would totally scream in a Mahogany body where a Dimarzio Air Norton would sound buttery smooth on a Basswood body. swap the 2 combinations around and you won't get the same results. That's how I see it. It really boils down to personal preference.

try both guitars. feel of the guitar > tone at this current moment. you can worry about pickup swaps later.

 

[habba1]

Nope, haven't had the time to go down and try it yet. So now I'm just looking at various forums as well as your comments to roughly gauge the guitars. Yeah. Thats one factor thats making me lean towards the jp60. My only worry is that the tremelo will not stay in tune for long as it does not have locking nuts since the Ibanez I have comes with locking nuts so its like a mental barrier for me. Haha.

However, I have heard JP's songs and he does some dives and stuff, though not as intense as vai and satch, and the guitar still stays in tune.

As for comfort wise, I'm quite comfortable with the Ibanez neck but I favour fender necks as well so I'm not too sure.

All in all, I will still have to go down and try it but that will not be happening soon due to my exams. Sorry

So please keep the comments coming in. I appreciate all of them

 

[faekildare]

Instead of buying a new guitar, how bout buying a new Gotoh Bridge from Davis and change the bridge for your RG350? It cost way less and it's a major upgrade. Gotoh IMHO is one of the best licensed Floyd Rose Tremolo Vibrato bridge out there and is well worth the money. The other good point is, it should be a direct drop into your guitar without the need to route the cavity.

 

[faekildare]

Nope, haven't had the time to go down and try it yet. So now I'm just looking at various forums as well as your comments to roughly gauge the guitars. Yeah. Thats one factor thats making me lean towards the jp60. My only worry is that the tremelo will not stay in tune for long as it does not have locking nuts since the Ibanez I have comes with locking nuts so its like a mental barrier for me. Haha.

In a new guitar, the only reason the guitar doesn't stay in tune, is because the strings are not well stretched. Never had a problem even with my squier's MIC bridge which I set it to floating position.

Either that or the user is too noob and worn out the bridge prematurely..

 

[habba1]

Haha. I acknowledge the fact that I'm a noob at guitars

Changing bridges has been an option in my mind, however, my neck is not in a good condition as the strings touch the first and second fret causing some buzz. So instead of doing a extreme makeover, I was thinking of getting a new one. Plus the body is getting a little dirty. haha

What do you think?

Thanks

 

[J.custom]

Hmm, sounds like you need a setup, why don't you try that first then decide?

 

[habba1]

I already did a setup so the buzz was removed, but the luthier did was that he place just a view pieces of paper around the nut area to elevate it such that the strings will not touch the frets. However, he mentioned that this is not a long term solution as the problem was pretty bad. Thats why he suggested I get a new one.

 

[J.custom]

Then just swap out the nut and make sure it's cut properly? seems like it has been cut too deep, that's why it's causing the fret buzz

 

[habba1]

Hmmmm.... thats a option. However, if I were to get a new guitar, which will you recommend?By the way, how much is the gotoh bridge and how much will the installation cost?

 

[J.custom]

JP60! But best for you to try out both, and decide which one you prefer