It’s one of those not-secret-secrets that Ibanez make some of the best hollow body guitars in the business. Their general reputation over the years has been built with pointy-shaped shred guitars, but as we all know, there’s a lot more to Ibanez than that!
Today, I’ll break down the main ranges and styles of hollow body guitar that the company offers, and check out some of their impressive artist signature guitars, too.
Whether you are a trad jazzer, a rockabilly maniac or a blues traveller, you’ll find plenty to enjoy here…
Contents
The Sub Ranges
In addition to the actual guitar designs themselves, Ibanez also divide their guitar output into a range of quality (and price) points. With their solid body lines, you’ll find terminology such as ‘Prestige’ and ‘Iron Label’, but those terms don’t apply to the hollow body guitars. Instead, these instruments will be one of these three sub ranges:
- Artstar: the highest spec hollow body guitars that Ibanez produce, these are built to a very high standard, and contain features like bone nuts and ebony fingerboards in addition to the brand’s famous Super 58 humbuckers.
- Artcore Expressionist: A higher spec version of the Artcore guitars, these models have upgraded Super 58 pickups and more decorative detailing & finishing.
- Artcore: the standard range, from 2002. Artcore guitars combine high quality with affordability, making them an attractive proposition for every player looking for a semi or fully hollow guitar.
The Styles
So those are how each style is arranged, but what of those styles themselves? Ibanez group their hollow body guitars into four main groups, and they look a bit like this:
- AF: The Ibanez AF models are perhaps the most traditional ‘jazzers’ here. Fully hollow (no centre block like you’d find on an ES335-type guitar), these deliver a depth and authentic jazz tone with warmth and size. All models are single cutaway in shape, in keeping with tradition.
- AG: The Ibanez AG guitars have slightly smaller widths than traditional jazzers such as the models in the AF range. They do, however, have the same body depth for a large, rich sound. They are still also fully hollow too, so it’s a true hollow body sound on offer, as opposed to that of a centre-block style.
- AS: The Ibanez AS line are thinline semis with a solid centre block for sustain and feedback control. These are the ones that are like Gibson 335’s in general concept, but they have their own aesthetic, feel and tone.
- AM: The Ibanez AM is based on a design from the early 80s, with a double cutaway and a smaller body than, for example, an AS model.
Artist Models
As with their solidbody guitars, Ibanez have attracted some incredible talent to their hollow body roster. These players are either household names or massively respected artists within their own worlds. Here are the top Ibanez Artists...
George Benson
George Benson is possibly as important as Satch ‘n’ Vai for popularising the Ibanez brand. A loyal endorser since the early 80s, Benson loves a good ‘jazzbox’ and has enjoyed an uninterrupted stream of signature guitars ever since. His smooth vocals and slick playing have seen him play to millions across the world, and his style is a planet away from the metal and shred associated with the brand.
Pat Metheny
A singular talent and a restless spirit, Pat Metheny’s immense talent and mercurial path through music have proven inspiring to players and music fans far outside the world of jazz. Even Sonic Youth have sung the praises of this most unorthodox of musicians!
Pat has played on Ibanez guitars for decades now, with a range of designs that are a wonderful blend of the traditional and the cutting edge.
John Scofield
When John Scofield finished up playing guitar for Miles Davis, he went on to blend jazz fusion with funk to create an entire palette of sounds that were his own.
Another long term Ibanez user, his signature guitars are played by other top artists, and have even shown up on stage with bands like Nine Inch Nails, proof if any were needed that these are extremely versatile guitars!
A True Alternative
It’s one of those things, isn’t it? When Pat Metheny, George Benson and John Scofield are playing these guitars, there really isn’t much more that requires saying. World class musicians who can literally play any instruments they want, and they choose to play Ibanez: it’s compelling stuff!
And whether you go for the top end models, the affordable versions or something that’s somewhere in between, you’ll know that the quality is there, and that the experience will be great.
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