probably the coolest hollowbody ever

[mike-o]

Very trey-ish... and only $500 bucks, after a pickup swap (which I'm assuming is necessary) it's ~$620.  I'm not getting a hollowbody any time soon, but if I did, this would be it.

http://www.ibanez.com/HOLLOW/guitar.aspx?m=AJD91

[Poster]

they are half plastic. and made overseas but bang for the buck I bet some decent pickups, a decent setup, and tuners would make it wail.

[mike-o]

Half plastic?  The body is all maple and the neck is maple/mahogany/rosewood... the only things i guess would be plastic are the inlays...  Most non-japan ibanez's suck, but mostly due to the cheap Floyd Rose knockoffs and horrible pickups.  Pickups are an easy fix and there's no trem on this one.  I love the stoptails with fine tuners, lets you tune while playing.

[Poster]

the binding is all plastic. imo thats a big deal with a hollowbody.

[cactuskeeb]

I'm with Robert on this one.  I think they grind up the wood in a giant vat and then pour a mixer of hot glue and sawdust into it, mix it up, and pour the mold for the bodies of these guitars.  If you were to get one, I guarentee you it would sound dead as a doornail.  I would go with an actual, handmade instrument, built by an experienced craftsman who knows what he's doing and doesn't make a living soley off selling his instruments.  There are a lot of them out there (darrellcook.com), in addition to a lot of hopelessly idiotic imposters trying make a quick buck (flinstones guitar...sorry Robert  ).  I also don't think plastic binding is a big deal--rather, the deal-breakers, in my own not-at-all humble judgment, would include the following:

non-carved top, back
non-arched top/back plates
lack of precise measurements (proper balance for stable tuning characteristics) in construction of guitar
semi-hollow construction (might as well get a solid body--closer to an actual full hollow in sound)

[Poster]

you can shit on my guitar all you want, but its idiotic to bash a guitar you have never played. and if i remember mine was cheaper than your darrell cook. lol I could also add or change details as my guitar was being made at every step of the process. not saying its the end all tell all but no need to trash my instrument

[cactuskeeb]

Not trashing your instrument--haven't you switched to the alembic copy, anyway?--just the abilities of the builder who makes those guitars at equator instruments.  He's a novice, in every sense of the word.  And for the record I paid 1800.00 for this:

Top is handcarved from Alaska Sitka Spruce
Back is handcarved from Myrtle wood.

Neck is 1 piece curly maple.
Fingerboard is pau ferro with a radius of 12" with 24 frets. Measures 1 3/4" at the nut and 2 1/4" at 24th fret.
Headplates are koa.

Abalone shell dot inlays, white side dots, bone nut, medium width frets and Schaller chrome tuners.
Scale is 25 1/2".

2 Seymour-Duncan '59 model humbuckers,
volume-tone controls, pickup selector and 2 mini switches which are wired as a coil tap and phase switch.

The knobs are chrome metal.

The bridge and tailpiece are koa. The body is bound with black/white plastic
binding. The tailpiece is attached to guitar with a metal bracket instead of a sacconi strap.

For the finish, the top is sprayed with flat white paint. then the whole guitar is sprayed with 12 coats of water base lacquer, sanding between each coat.

Comes with a hard case.

Signed and dated on inside: Serial #10008.

Depth of body at bridge: 3 1/4".
Depth at rim: 2".
Overall length: 39 1/2".
Endpin to neck joint: 15 1/2".
Width lower bout: 14".
Width upper bout: 10 1/2".
Width at waist: 9".

[mike-o]

the binding is all plastic. imo thats a big deal with a hollowbody.

What makes you say that?  It's all real maple.  I think they'd just tape it off before finishing.

you can shit on my guitar all you want, but its idiotic to bash a guitar you have never played.

Didn't you just do that...

the deal-breakers, in my own not-at-all humble judgment, would include the following:

non-carved top, back
non-arched top/back plates
lack of precise measurements (proper balance for stable tuning characteristics) in construction of guitar
semi-hollow construction (might as well get a solid body--closer to an actual full hollow in sound)

I know it's not carved / arched, i wouldn't expect that from a $500 guitar.  I didn't post this guitar thinking it was a languedoc clone.  I just thought it looked rad.

Also, the precise measurements thing... all Ibanez's stuff is CNC cut

[cactuskeeb]

"Also, the precise measurements thing... all Ibanez's stuff is CNC cut"

--Yes, you're right about that, so at least you know it's not going to fall apart like some custom guitars do, i.e., when they start cracking and the neck warps horribly..it's happened to a lot of people I know.

[Poster]

actually no. ive played many ibanez semi hollow guitars at the shop that fixes all of my stuff. I actually used to have an artcore and it got returned to musicians friend for a refund i also had a single cut mahogany through neck ibanez that was very prs clonish, it was ok, but neck was too wide for me, and the factory hardware was goofy, i sold that one back too. all the ibanez dealers have several version of this guitar hanging in stores right now.  as for my rig, i usually play a different guitar every day to keep things lively. i get bored easily. my alembic copy still doesnt have a real case so she isnt really road tested more than the one recording session. in a year or two Ill probably buy one of darrell cooks guitars because cactus loves his so much and I dig the small hollow body jazz guitars. one day though id like to commission a luthier like darrell to build me a full sized jazz guitar, and a banjo  My cook guitar will probably have something extra secret though, just to make it somehow superior to cactuskeeb's 

[Stiles12]

I have been playing my McInturff and love it. took out the p-ups and put in some duncans sounds great and it is really versatile.. I have been playing through my Groove tubes trio and the array of sounds you can get with the guitar and the trio is awesome. a lot of fun to mess around with. mine is a different finish and gold hardware with a 5A top but you get the point.

http://www.mcinturffguitars.com

[cactuskeeb]

Yeah, I hear what you're saying -- but ever since I heard phish for the first few times I've thought trey's tone was better, from 1996 on, than everyone else's tone.  I mean, I really think phish is the most underrated band ever, despite their already hugely inflated acclaim from their phans.  Anyway, I also think paul languedoc is an artist and  philosopher of music quite unparalleled in his time.   

[cactuskeeb]

And I should say that I'm forever going to be partial to the small archtop electric guitars paul makes, and I have to say that I hate his new design andaIhavehhave

[cactuskeeb]

Sorry about the giberish at the end there - I'm on my blackberry.