Petrucci Vs. JEM

[PBGas]

I had a white UV777 Jem. I loved the pickups in the guitar. The Evolutions are great! I loved the inlays in the neck. They are very sweet. The neck is nice.

What I didn't like was the overall finish and quality of how the guitar was put together. For a guitar in that price range, you want to see a nice smooth finish. What I saw were clearly visible joint bumps and uneven finish in the clearcoat. That shouldn't be. It should be smoothed out properly.

ON the JP6s that I have had, they are all perfect. It's attention to detail that makes the difference.

As well.....I love the quality chunk of brass they use on the JP 6 tremolo block and a nice chrome finish on it. This is far better than a piece of die cast metal with a powdercoat.

 

[Steinar29]

Hi.
Just a lurker here. I had a japanese JEM 7vwh for several years (not the cheap version), and I would just like to say that it had bad build quality (mother of pearl inlays - crappy quality etc..), and was rather thin sounding and the neck is very thin. It looks quite nice with the golden hardware and the flowery neck pattern, but for the price you pay you get way less quality than you should. Go for JP6, although I have only played a JP7 - that should be a better guitar. I myself use a Framus custom diablo now, which costs a lot less than the jem7vwh - and is still a much better instrument. Go figure...

 

[Multiversal]

Vai's resides more in the midrange and has a delicate sound. (

As Frank Zappa put it.. his tone is like a "stale ham sandwich."

 

[unclerico]

Well...

I played a Jem before, in a Line 6 at Guitar center. I thought it would be an amazing guitar, but it wasn't special. To me, it was like those other mid to low end Ibanez guitars.

I played a Petrucci through a Line 6 way before I played a Jem, and I was sold to it. Of course I dont have a Petrucci yet, I knew that I would never find a guitar like that one ever again. I can here that distinct sound that Petrucci has with his guitar, and it is definately a guitar that I would buy, considering JP's music are things that I listen to, and I play similar styles as to his.

Steve Vai Is a great guitar player, but when I played the JEM, I wasn't feeling it, if you know what I mean.

Your best bet is to Purchase a Petrucci. In my opinion

 

[wagnerite]

Wwjd?

 

[wagnerite]

er.... W W J(ohn petrucci) D?

 

[greenwizard]

^^ Clever....

 

[peat]

two of my friends have jems

they are ok
of course an amazing guitar
wasnt to fond of the trem (im not a floyd rose fan at all)
intonation and action and all that stuff was nice on the jem
i found the jem to squeal a bit more, slightly longer sustain, probably cos of the hotter output EVO pickups i think

but hands down without a doubt in hell i much prefer the JP6
it has the best trem in the world, and its just such an honour to play this instrument

 

[emkey]

I had that opportunity to play JEM and then EBMM JP. When I played JEM I thought that was great, but then JP just blown me down to my knees! JEM is cool, but it was actually said - older ones, not present ones. All I'm sure about is that JP is just better manufactured, better sounding and more comfortable guitar to me! It's amazing in finish and precision! I can't say the same about JEM, but I respect others could like JEM more then JP

 

[robelinda2]

In a previous life I too played a JEM, I used to be a 100% Ibanez man for years and years. I had a few JS models, but my fav one was the 90th Ibanez Ann JEM, with the ebony board and mirror guard, and funky finish. Great axe, but drove me nuts eventually. I actually tried a JP at the time and thought it was going to replace my JEM, but then i played a Luke which i thought killed both! Then AL came along.

 

[emkey]

In a previous life I too played a JEM, I used to be a 100% Ibanez man for years and years. I had a few JS models, but my fav one was the 90th Ibanez Ann JEM, with the ebony board and mirror guard, and funky finish. Great axe, but drove me nuts eventually. I actually tried a JP at the time and thought it was going to replace my JEM, but then i played a Luke which i thought killed both! Then AL came along.

Sorry for the OT, but I actually found myself more interested in Silo these days I'm into JP's but definitely I think about getting Silo one day

 

[matragon]

I respect all JEM players, but - how many of You have fingers like Steve Vai ? I mean SO LONG ... When I first time saw Steve in action - i said : "oh my god, what a monster's hands" ...

I was play Ibanez RG, RX and JEM and I was not satisfied in 100%
Now I play MM JP6 - and I'm absolutely satisfied

But my second guitar is Ibanez but this one is build in 1979 and this is "Ibanez Studio St-105" - completely different instrument ...

 

[Charles]

That might actually work to my advantage, I have really big hands (Everybody who sees me play says I have "tarantula hands" whatever that means) so that might affect my buying choice to a degree.

The thing is, I love my Luke to death, but I want something with a much wider whammy bar range, hotter pickups and 24 frets.

 

[Astrofreq]

The older JEM necks weren't as wide as they are now. I LOVE the old necks. After Steve used 7 strings on the Whitesnake and P&W era, the smaller JEM neck was too tight. Ibanez started making them wider, which is tooooo wide for me.

 

[roburado]

The older JEM necks weren't as wide as they are now. I LOVE the old necks. After Steve used 7 strings on the Whitesnake and P&W era, the smaller JEM neck was too tight. Ibanez started making them wider, which is tooooo wide for me.

That explains my subjective impression. I remember trying one of those yellow JEMs way back in 1991 or so, and the neck didn't feel as wide as the new white one I tried at GC just a few months ago.

 

[ToppersPoppers]

well, which one did John pick?

Well, which one did Steve pick? As an owner of both... the JEM is fantastic, but the petrucci wins my vote...