Ibanez RG5121 Review – An Underrated Beast

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The Japanese brand Ibanez is known for producing extremely capable guitars that can are very versatile, look good, and sound great. Its special edition Ibanez RG5121 Prestige, is a perfect electric guitar, with beautiful looks, a great design that is very playable, exceptional build quality, a really premium guitar. It has also earned itself a spot in our electric guitar buying guide.

Heavy metal players will like its aggressive look and it influences you to play faster and more aggressively. This guitar is fully made in Japan and I can already see it becoming a hit in guitar circles.

The Ibanez RG5121 as expected employs the classic RG series shape, that is very comfortable to hold due to its smooth edges and its excellently deep double-cutaway that allows loads of operation and playability at the higher notes, something that solo lovers would appreciate most. The RG-series has been the epitome of the heavy metal player, this time around the Ibanez RG5121 has a more serious look and design, it looks like it means business. It has a refined satin finish with a paint job that is named Dark Tide Blue on top of it.

On its sides and the back part, you will spot the unpainted body of the gorgeous African mahogany that gives it a premium and streamlined look. Due to this, this Ibanez guitar is a very stylish instrument that even jazz players will appreciate.

The neck adopts a rather different approach, as it is built with a combination or a mix of maple and wenge, that is bolted into the body. I would like to state that the neck is a five-piece one that highlights an Ibanez special super slim Super Wizard HD profile also with a satin finish as the body. Which is excellent for lightning-quick players that want the smoothest transitions possible.

On top of the neck, you will spot the Macassar ebony fretboard that is extremely sleek and sports 24 jumbo stainless steel frets, for the best playing experience on the market. Moreover, on the fretboard, it features offset mother-of-pearl dot inlays that go hand to hand with the Luminlay side dots. Overall I can comfortably say that this guitar is built to last and to look good at all times, a truly flawless build quality.

Looks aside, the Ibanez RG5121 has the performance that is ready for the stage to back that pretty face.

It is armed with two Fishman Fluence modern active ceramic humbuckers, both at the bridge and the neck. They are a very serious brand in the music electronics industry, and are well known for their electrics on acoustic guitars, that has carried them over to the electric guitars.

It has a three-way pickup selector, a master volume knob, a master tone knob, and a mini switch. This all allows for very easy switching on the voicing and tonality of the guitar.
This guitar is comfortable in every genre you throw, it delivers powerful metal drives, and is also accurate and crisp for blues and jazz players. Doesn’t get better than this.

Ibanez RG5121

8.7

Quality

9.0/10

Value

8.0/10

Sound

9.0/10

Pros

  • Versatile
  • Well-Built
  • Great Sound

Cons

  • Expensive

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