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Ibanez RGA42BK review

Ibanez RGA 42 BK is a simple guitar for those who like heavy tones and fast necks. It's equipped with two active Ibanez humbuckers, unique tone booster and a volume knob. It has a Wizard II neck typical for mid price Ibanez RG series guitars and a fixed bridge with strings through body construction.

Tuning stability 8/10

This RGA stays in tune sufficently. You get the impression of a mid price instrument, but it does work well and doesn't give you a headache.

Acoustic sound 7/10

RGA 42 acoustically is an average medium priced instrument. It's loud and its sound is suprisingly rich in harmonics, but it's not very appealing to me. Sustain is okay and there are no dead notes.

Electric sound 7/10

Plugged in RGA 42 at first sounds cool overdriven. Integrated booster helps to overdrive your amp and cut through. It sounds sharp and clear and what's more it's so quiet and free of hum and hiss that you'd never expect. With the booster circuit offline the tone is neutral and a little dull. What I don't like about the pickups is that they sound sterile.

Finish 9/10

High quality finish, there's not much to complain about. Nut height was too big for me, one fret was not exactly even but it was possible to set low strings action and shred straight away. Battery compartment is unconvenient as it is closed by two screws.

Neck 7/10

The neck profile is a D, it's comfortable however I wish it was more round, RG tremolo Ibanez that I own has a more round neck. You can get used to it in no time anyway.

Table 1 Ibanez RGA 42 BK neck dimensions

Balance 10/10

RGA 42 is a very well balanced and comfortable instrument.

Weight 9/10

Medium weight guitar, lighter than RG tremolo series but not too light IMHO.

Price 9/10

Around 350 euros new, I think it's a fair price.

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Specification

• 24 jumbo frets
• 25.5" scale
• Wizard III 3-pc maple neck, bolt-on construction
• Mahogany body
• Ibanez LZ3 active pikcups (HH)
• Booster EQ
• Volume pot