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Every new guitar player tries to find a guitar that suits their style the best. Most go for the classic Strat style, some go for the Les Paul. However, most of those who like a harder sound choose something like Ibanez GXR20. And why wouldn't they? It's among the best and cheapest entry level guitars, period. Not to mention the fact that it's comfortable to learn on. Due to the instrument's obvious value, we had to include it in our list of top affordable guitars you can get at the moment.
The body shape you're looking at here is the modified Super Strat which can be seen in a wide variety of Ibanez models. Tonewood used for this occasion is basswood. Sure, it's not the best thing out there, but it's more than enough to offer a solid foundation for a setup such as this one. The neck is a standard maple piece with an equally standard rosewood fretboard. The body, as well as other parts of this guitar, are all no-thrills designs. The goal was to cut down the cost and preserve as much of performance potential possible.
In terms of hardware, you get the usual. The bridge is a FAT 6 Trem unit, which may or may not be a good choice for the entry level. Those who are doubting the decision to even include a tremolo bridge are well within their right. However, as long as you know the limits of this bridge, you should be fine. On the other end of the business, you will find a set of standard, average quality die-cast tuners. They are decent at tuning retention, but definitely need to be checked during and after use.
If you think about it, guitars such as this one are not sought after because of their refined tone but rather their raw power. Bang for the buck formula simply requires it. Ibanez GRX20 comes equipped with a set of two passive humbuckers which are wired to a single volume and a single tone knob. There's also a pickup select switch that allows you to combine the two pickups as well. For a cheap set, these humbuckers have a rather decent output, that is for sure.
The sound Ibanez GRX20 offers is one of its strongest suits. Ibanez packed as much heat as they could in order to make the guitar different from its immediate competition, and allow the user to feel the effects of a decent distortion in the best way possible. From a beginner's point of view, tone and performance won't be an issue even after you build up your skill a little.
There's a reason why Ibanez is one of the favorite brands in this price range. They pack their entry level guitars with a very attractive amount of power. These are bound to bring in all of those who want a blunt weapon to slay the overwhelming number of Dist boxes out there.
For more info about the Ibanez GRX20, click here.
For more best electric guitars under $200, click here.
bob says
one of the points I wish was mentioned more was the trem action
I can not stand the one way action of the standard feder trem however it seems to be the cheapie even more costly guitars go with. I love floyd rose trems they really are not hard to setup or change strings with But the cost is outa line however I know some inexpensive guitars come with trems that bend up and down. It would be worth discusing this even just to say it bends one or both ways
Thanks for the page it rocks and helps a great deal when choosing a guitar within a reasonble price range