The Ibanez RGA42EX is a lightweight guitar that is easy to play if you have small hands or fingers. The action has been lowered as much as possible using 8/38 Ultra-light strings to avoid buzzing. The guitar’s purple color almost calls out for some racer stripes.
This Ibanez solid-body guitar is perfectly made for rock or metal tunes. It has 2 Quantum humbucking pickups and 5-way switching for a wide tonal range. It produces a rich sound you’ll enjoy hearing, whether playing a gig or recording in a studio or home studio.
I found this Ibanez at a Guitar Center near Milwaukee — I had read about this guitar and probably spent 90 minutes playing it to get a feel for it. It felt great, and I had already decided to purchase the guitar. Upon closer inspection, I noticed a crack that ran from the screw on the bridge down to the edge. Something that wasn’t caught during quality control. But no worries, they had another one at a distribution warehouse that they could ship to me. It was quick, and the turnaround time was a couple of days.
Adding Up All the Costs
The Ibanez RGA42EX costs about $450, and a hardshell case (highly recommended) adds another $150. I chose to have this one professionally set up. Signature Setup at GC is a 22-point setup that includes personalizing the instrument’s parameters to sound and play its best for the player, cleaning and polishing the instrument, and restringing it. A pack of select strings is included with the setup. At this branch, the Luthier who works on guitars is quite good. But his fee is $60. The cost is roughly the same as a locally owned guitar store four miles away changes.
Some Basic Specs
Top Material Type: Maple Wood
Body Material: Meranti
Back Material Type: meranti
Neck Material Type: Maple
Fretboard Material Type: Rosewood
Guitar Pickup Configuration: H-H
String Material Type: Nickel
Neck Type: Wizard III Maple neck
Body: Flamed Maple top/Mahogany body
Fretboard: Rosewood fretboard w/Off-set white dot inlay
Fret: Jumbo Frets
Neck and Bridge Pickup: Quantum (H) (Passive/Ceramic)
Ibanez RGA42EX Solidbody Electric Guitar Features
Classic Ibanez RG playability and looks at a reasonable price
Well-balanced Meranti body with a contemporary matte finish
Fast 3-piece maple Wizard III neck
2 Quantum humbucking pickups and 5-way switching for a wide tonal range
Fixed bridge gives you top-notch tuning stability