Ibanez
| File:Ibanezlogo1.png | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Musical instruments |
| Founded | Nagoya, Japan (1978) |
| Headquarters | Bensalem, Pennsylvania, USA |
Key people | Hoshino Gakki, founder |
| Products | Guitars, Basses, Amps, etc |
| Website | www.ibanez.com |
Ibanez (アイバニーズ, Aibanīzu) (pronounced [aɪˈbænɛz] in English) is a well known guitar manufacturer based in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan. The company was started by Hoshino Gakki in 1978.
History
The Hoshino Gakki company began in 1900 as a musical instrument sales division of the Hoshino Shoten bookstore company. In 1935 they began manufacturing their own stringed instruments. The company had little presence in the Western world until the mid-1960s.
They started on importing Spanish guitars from the famous Spanish luthier Salvador Ibáñez (1854 - 1920), but when the Spanish workshop was destroyed during the Spanish Civil War (1936 - 1939) and the original guitars became unavailable (and very much sought after because of their excellent quality), they bought the rights of the trademark Ibanez and started making Spanish and acoustic guitars on their own, first as "Ibanez Salvador", and later as "Ibanez".
Harry's Rosenbloom, of Medley Music, based in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, was manufacturing handmade guitars under the name "Elger." By 1965 Rosenbloom had decided to stop manufacturing guitars and chose to become the exclusive North American distributor for Ibanez guitars. At the time, the phrase "made in Japan" was considered to have negative connotations of low quality, so Hoshino Gakki and Rosenbloom wanted to distribute the instruments under a "non-Japanese" name, so it was decided to market all the instruments (and not only the acoustics) under the Ibanez brand name. In 1981 Hoshino purchased Elger Guitars, renaming the company "Hoshino U.S.A." and retaining the company headquarters in Bensalem, Pennsylvania as a distribution and quality-control center.
In the early 1970s Ibanez began making guitars that were almost exact copies of popular models by Gibson, Fender and Rickenbacker. Using somewhat cheaper materials and greater automation in manufacturing, they were able to sell these guitars for a significantly lower price than the originals. The low price combined with the relatively high quality of the guitars made these models very popular. Many guitar aficionados feel that the early- and mid-70s mark a low point in the quality of guitars from the major manufacturers, which helped contribute to the popularity of the Ibanez copies. These guitars have become known as "lawsuit" guitars and have become highly collectible.
The actual lawsuit referred to was brought by the Norlin Corporation, the parent company of Gibson guitars, in 1977, and was based on an Ibanez headstock design that had been discontinued by 1976. Ibanez settled out of court, and by 1978 had begun making guitars from their own designs.
Abandoning the strategy of copying "classic" electric guitar designs, the newer models began incorporating more modern elements into their design, such as radical body shapes, slimmer necks and flatter fingerboards (which allowed for faster playing), higher-output electronics and colourful finishes. This led to an increasing popularity with heavy metal musicians. The company also began an extensive program of consulting with well-known guitar players, such as Kevin 'Noodles' Wasserman, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Paul Gilbert, Munky, Andy Timmons, George Benson, John Petrucci, Herman Li and Sam Totman, creating signature models made to the players' specifications.
The company manufactures also electro-accoustic and accoustic guitars, both nylon and steel-stringed, under Ibanez trademark. The logo used on the headstocks of the accoustic guitars is the original Spanish Ibanez logo.
As of recent Ibanez has been getting major flack for quality control issues, and simply not making the guitars they used to. A lot of the Japan guitars are now made in Korea, which seems to have issues with quality control, and making the guitars consistent with the originals. The flagship neck that put Ibanez on the map "The Wizard" can barely even be found on a guitar shipping by them anymore. The only really true wizard shape is the 550 Reissues. After 2004 what they call "Wizard Prestige" isn't the same wizard neck we all knew and loved.
If Ibanez wants to get back some of it's glory it held in the 80s, and 90s, it needs to go back and stop "fixing" things that aren't broke.
Fender learned this lesson not too many decades ago. Hopefully Ibanez will stop with the quality control issues, and offer more options like it's competitors do.
Guitars
Electric guitars
GIO series
The budget range have this name assigned to their headstock above the Ibanez logo. The GIO range consists of:
- GRG - Budget range of the RG series.
- GRX - Budget range of the RX series.
- GSA - Budget range of the SA series.
- GSZ - Budget range of the SZ series.
- GAX - Budget range of the AX series.
RG Series
- RG Prestige - High-end range which are made in Japan/Korea. Contains the Hi-Spec RG, RGT and RGA designs. Also all earlier models of RG above the RG410. A Notable model in the series is the RG550, used by Paul Gilbert while in Mr. Big, later redesigned as the RG570.
- RG Tremolo - Basic superstrat design with Floyd Rose-like tremolo. Contains The Standard Spec RG and RGT models with Edge III tremolo systems. Most RG models have two humbucker pickups in the bridge and neck positions.Some may have one single coil pickup in the middle position.
- RG Fixed - Just like RG Tremolo, but with a fixed bridge (no tremolo system).
- GRG - Budget range of the RG series.
S Series
SA series
- SA Prestige - High-end range which are made in Japan/Korea.
- SAS - Basic SA models with Set-in neck design.
- GSA - Budget range of the SA series.
SZ series
- SZ Prestige - High-end range which are made in Japan/Korea.
- GSZ - Budget range of the SZ series.
RX/RT series
- GRX - Budget range of the RX/RT series.
AX series
- GAX - Budget range of the AX series.
AxStar (aka AxStar by Ibanez)
EDR/EXR - Ergodyne series
Artist Series
- ARC-100/300 (Retro Series)
- ARX-100/300 (Retro Series)
- AR-100/200 (black vintage top)
Artcore series
- AF (Full hollow)
- AK (Full Hollow)
- AFS-75t (Full hollow vintage vibrato)
- AG (Full hollow)
- AS (Semi hollow)
- AM (Semi hollow)
- AXD (Semi and Full hollow)
- AWD (Semi and Full hollow)
- FWD (Semi and Full hollow)
MEN!
JTK - Jet King
JTK2 - Jet King 2
Radius series
A modified version is now taken over by the JS signature series
RS - Roadstar
Roadstar Pro
Consists of the Talman, Radius and Saber series)
EX series
BL - Blazer
TC - Talman
X series
Consists of the RR and DT series)
PL - Pro Line series
High-end range in the 1980s.
RR - Rocket Roll
DT - Destroyer
CN - Concert Series
This was a short live series produced in 1978 and 1978 then discontinued. It features an asymmetric double cutaway with two humbuckers, hard tail and bolt on bridge. The top end model (the CN250) was one of the earliest guitars to feature the half vine inlay on the finger board
Maxxas
j.custom
Previously Japan exclusive custom range. Now available worldwide.
U.S.A.custom
USA custom range.
Signature models
- Stanley Jordan Signature series.
- JS — Joe Satriani Signature
- Universe and JEM — Steve Vai designed guitar
- PGM — Paul Gilbert Signature
- JPM — John Petrucci Signature
- AT — Andy Timmons Signature
- MMM — Mike Mushok Signature
- MFM — Marty Friedman Signature
- MTM — Mick Thomson Signature
- NDM — Noodles Signature
- GB — George Benson Signature
- PM — Pat Metheny Signature
- VV — Vinnie Vincent V Signature (only one made appearing in the Vinnie Vincent Invasion 'Love Kills' video, Vinnie fell on hard times and Ibanez decided not to go into production).
- JSM — John Scofield Signature
- FGM — Frank Gambale Signature
- K7 — Korn Signature
- MBM1 — Matt Bachand Signature
-Brian 'Head' Welch and James 'Munky' Shaffer of Korn uses the Ibanez K7; his own custom made electric, 7-stringed guitar. Reginald 'Fieldy' Arvizu uses a K5 Bass guitar when with Korn.
Jumpstart
- IJS20
- IJX121
- IJX40
- GRX40 Latin America (in Gio series)
New Guitars for 2007
- Xiphos - XPT700 (X-Series)
- V-Blade - VBT700 (X-Series)
- RG 8-String - RG2228 (RG Series)
Bass guitars
- ARTCORE Series
- Blazer
- BTB Series
- BTB Prestige - High-end range which are made in Korea.
- DWB Series
- EDA Series
- EDB Series
- EDC Series
- EWB Series
- GAXB Series
- GSR Series
- GSR 205 - Nominated for Ibanez's "Best of Model" award
- GWB Series
- ICB Series
- JUMPSTART Series
- K5 Series
- Musician Series
- ROADGEAR Series
- SR Series
- SR Prestige - High-end range which are made in Korea.
- SRX Series
- SDGR Series
- ATK Series
- Ex series
- Roadstar Series
- S series
- TR Series
Acoustic guitars
- AE Series
- AES Series
- AW Series
- DT Series
- EP9 Series
- EW Series
- GA Series
- JAMPACK Series
- MANDOLIN Series
- MASA Series
- PF Series
- TALMAN Series
- V Series
- Concord
- SAGE Series
Ibanez endorsers, past and present
Effect pedals
In the 1970s, the Maxon company developed and began selling a series of effect pedals in Japan. Ibanez licensed these for sale under their name outside of Japan. These two companies eventually began doing less and less business together until Maxon ceased manufacting the TS-9 reissue for Ibanez in 2002.
Tube Screamers
Based on the earlier Overdrive I and II pedals, Ibanez began releasing the first Tube Screamer, the TS-808 in the late 1970s. These contained the famed JRC4558D integrated circuit (IC). Many players consider this one of the best solid state pedals to emulate the sound produced by an overdriven vacuum tube guitar amplifier.
Over the years, Ibanez released many different kinds of pedals bearing the Tube Screamer name. The first was the TS-9 Tube Screamer, which included only a few component changes and often, but not always, different ICs. In 1985 the Master or L series were introduced and sold only for a year. Many claim that in this series, there's no Tubescreamer. Looking closer circuitwise shows that there is one but in the disguise of the Metal Screamer with slightly changed component values. The name change was most likely for marketing reasons.
Based on the Master series but with slight changes in housing in 1986, the Power Series were introduced, which included the TS-10. Like many of the Master and Power Series pedals, there were not many differences in the circuitry between these and their 9-series counterparts. To make production cheaper, these pedals used circuit board-mounted potentiometers (pots) and jacks. In 1992, Ibanez began re-issuing the TS-9. Then in 1996, Ibanez added a CE mark to the back of the pedal, which is required for it to be sold in Europe.
In the early 1990s, Ibanez released the Soundtank series, which, except for the first run which was metal, had cheap plastic enclosures and like the Power Series before it, used less expensive parts. Around 2000 came the Tone Lok series, and the TS-7, which included a switch for added gain. In 1998, the new TS-9DX was introduced, which included a 4-way switch for capacitor changes and changes in the clipping section. Then in 2002, Maxon stopped production of the TS-9 for Ibanez. Post-2002 circuit boards say Ibanez instead of Maxon.
Due to popular demand, Ibanez reissued the TS-808 in 2004, complete with the JRC4558D chip. Original TS-808's, and to a lesser extent, TS-9s, have become highly collectible. Many overdrive pedals in production, especially those by "boutique" manufacturers, are a modified version of the Tube Screamer circuit.
References/External links
- Official site
- Ibanez guitars and bass museum - Ibanez instruments database, resources, user reviews, pictures
- History of Hoshino Gakki Co., Ltd.
- Origins of Ibanez and the Lawsuit Models
- Ibanez Register - Gallery of past and present Ibanez guitars and basses.
- IbanezRules - Buy/Sell used Ibanez guitars, technical guides, catalogue scans, manuals, wiring diagrams, etc.
- Ibanez History - Ibanez History
- Ibanez Guitar Reviews - Reviews of Ibanez Guitars
- The Ibanez JS site