EugeneSmasher
New member
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REVIEW 1
Behold, the new Sage Traditional (SGT) series by Ibanez. Boutique fellows would shun the Sage series because they do not use solid wood, but for those who decide by ear (and by the other factors), this would be very appealing to those who like the spruce + mahogany combination, and also the fine grain and vintage appearance this baby has. I bought this at the Swee Lee sale today. It is ironic that I was initially intending to get a Cort Earth 70e or the solid-top Earth 100.
The neck is mahogany with a rosewood fretboard. The fretboard features (alas) plastic fret makers, translucent yellowish-white binding (not sure of the material) and if you inspect it, the finish actually alternates from black at the sides to the natural wood grain at the middle. The headstock is rather bland, being black with a gold-coloured Ibanez logo. The tuners are silver diecast, and very responsive. Re-stringing and re-tuning was actually a breeze. The back of the headstock, though, follows the same finishing pattern as the neck. The neck is a C neck and very playable, and not too thin that it deters big-handed players. But small-handed players like me had no problem either.
The body comprises a spruce top and mahogany back and sides. The top is black with a reddish sunburst, and the sides follow the same finishing pattern as the neck. The back is black at the sides but the centre is pure, natural mahogany grain though tinted reddish. The body is a standard dreadnought body, and the whole guitar has a nice, shiny finish. There are two metal strap buttons, one at the neck-body joint and the other at the usual place at the base. The body also possesses the same yellowish-white, translucent binding. The pickguard is tortoiseshell, and possesses a rather 'Gibson' like shape. The bridge is rosewood, and is more of a vintage design with the Ivorex saddle and bridge pins. So yeah, appearance wise, this guitar screams vintage styling.
Now for the tone. The tone did not surprise me, as it had a more vintage voicing to its tone to match its vintage aappearance. So if you're looking for the contemporary Taylor kinda tone, this guitar won't quite do it. However, I personally thought it sounded awesome, combined with the playability that made me like this beauty very much. The built-in tuner is also an asset, being powered by 2 cheap and easy-to-find AAA batteries. Re-stringing and tuning was a breeze.
The brand new price for this guitar at Swee Lee was around $375 if I remember correctly. Hard to believe such beauty at such a price. The distinctive vintage tone and appearance made me choose it over the similar-priced Ibanez PF60s (personally, the PF60s was a disappointment), the Cort Earth 70e and Earth 100. With the sale, I managed to get big discount off the guitar as well as a heavily-padded Ritter gigbag.
Another fine addition to the list of Ibanez acoustics!
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REVIEW 2 - Done after owning the guitar for quite a long time.
Decided to do a review 2 for this guitar, since I've had this guitar for quite a while already and understand it a lot better. The specs are still the same, of course. Spruce top, mahogany back and sides, digital tuner, mahogany neck with rosewood fretboard, and visual cosmetics such as yellowish white vintage bindings and the reddish sunburst that my particular piece has. Other options include natural and blue sunburst. All have a pearloid rosette.
Construction-wise, this guitar still impresses me a lot because it is very well-made, considering that it isn't a high-end guitar. It looks great, too, and the finishing is flawless so far. However, it is not totally excellent as the nut had plenty of dents, though this does not affect the guitar very much. But considering the guitar was brand new, I really wonder what happened to the nut...
Playability, it is still excellent. Stays in tune very well, and does not give much trouble. However, the digital tuner is not very accurate, so I'd recommend getting a clip-on tuner. Or do what I do - use a tuning fork.
Tonewise, it has a fat, bright tone, which I find pleasing. However, the bass response isn't very good on this particular guitar. A review was done on another SGT120 that sounded flat, but although mine doesn't sound flat, it lacks a bit of bass response. For the price, though, it sounds great. It is still a joy to play, particularly with a pick.
Good points:
- Very well-made,
- Looks very nice with that vintage look to it,
- Very reliable and stays in tune very well,
- Good tone for its price and specs (it is all laminate wood).
Bad points:
- A little lacking with bass response,
- Digital tuner isn't very accurate.
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