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  • NGD, but it may be going back...

    Picked up a new SLATXMG3-7-but I reckon it's going back.

    Total out the door price was £600. I put the fact that it wasn't Japanese-made out of my mind totally, but now it's right back in. I figured that as it was Jackson's top-of-the-range import and they'd taken the trouble to fit it up with EMG 7 string pickups, they must have done some good with this one. Plus, I've had plenty Japanese Jacksons and seen them for what they were - cheap but reliable and well-made workhorses. I'm still rocking my Jackson Stealth XL since 1993!

    Now onto this one. The good: The EMGs sound awesome. IMO, EMG pickups and downtuned guitars or 7s go hand in hand. It also plays pretty nice; it's a lot flatter than my old Ibanez RG7321 which I sold on ages ago. The only reason for upgrading was my new band is using 7 strings so I needed something decent; a downtuned 6-string wasn't cutting it.

    The bad: The hardware is just a total let-down. As a matter of course, the first thing I do on all new instruments is replace the strap buttons with Schaller straplocks. Well, I managed to strip the heads of BOTH of the strap button screws that came on it, despite taking great care the second time to select a proper screwdriver head assuming I'd dumbass'd up the first time. In fact, the screws I took out, I could physically bend with just my fingers. Ulgh. Not to mention I thought the hole they came out of was actually too tight for the screw in the first place!

    OK, straplocks finally on, time for a fresh set of strings. I noticed that the black paint on the lock nut was just the easiest thing to rub away; I managed to catch it with the end of a string and bam, scratch in the hardware already! OK I can live with that... I wasn't expecting German-made quality for this money, but still, I thought this was a bit low-grade.

    However, the tremolo has finally nipped any confidence I have in the guitar right in the bud. I couldn't keep the G or B strings in tune... Assuming I hadn't stretched the strings enough, I started investigating. And I've discovered the problem is that the locking nut isn't... well... any good at locking! The locknuts are all tight, but I can still alter the pitch of the string with the machine head. Putting a steel ruler over the locknut, I can actually see there's a small curve in the base of the locknut, right where the G and B strings sit. So all the tightness in the world won't lock home those strings.

    Such a shame; the guitar feels nice in itself; the EMGs sound good; but the hardware is just a total let-down! The store has a 7-day returns policy and I reckon I'll be using it, despite it only being in the house 12 hours! ABORT ABORT! Kinda really knocks my confidence in anything not Japanese or USA made.

    It still leaves me shopping for a 7-string.

  • #2
    Made in China = Junk

    Take it back.
    sigpic
    Action Jackson

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    • #3
      I think that's the mantra I will stick with forever more!

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      • #4
        Technically Indonesia.

        It's possible you got a bad one. Shit happens.
        Build a man a fire and he's warm for a day, set a man on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.

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        • #5
          If you want a quality import 7-string, go for something made in Korea. I have a BC Rich Stealth 7 string, and I paid under $700 shipped without case. It's Jackson USA quality, if not slightly more consistent. Also the LTD Alex Wade(sp?) models seem to get relatively high praise as well. I dunno if there is a PRS SE 7-string, but that would be worth looking at as well.

          Here's my review of the Steath: http://www.jcfonline.com/threads/134...e-in-Korea-NGD

          Toejam did a review of the LTD somewhere.
          The 2nd Amendment: America's Original Homeland Defense.

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          • #6
            Originally posted by xenophobe View Post
            If you want a quality import 7-string, go for something made in Korea. I have a BC Rich Stealth 7 string, and I paid under $700 shipped without case. It's Jackson USA quality, if not slightly more consistent. Also the LTD Alex Wade(sp?) models seem to get relatively high praise as well. I dunno if there is a PRS SE 7-string, but that would be worth looking at as well.

            Here's my review of the Steath: http://www.jcfonline.com/threads/134...e-in-Korea-NGD

            Toejam did a review of the LTD somewhere.

            Just about hitting the stores.
            Build a man a fire and he's warm for a day, set a man on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.

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            • #7
              I thought Jackson's new imports were all made in India. Perhaps you just got a bad one. My SLXQ is extremely lightweight. But it sounds and plays good. No flaws. I dunno about BC Rich. I gave up on them when Rosetti took over distribution. I need to check out one of those Terrence Hobbs signature Warlocks.
              Last edited by wilkinsi; 04-26-2013, 06:02 PM.
              Fuck ebay, fuck paypal

              "Finger on the trigger, back against the wall. Counting rounds and voices, not enough to kill them all" (Ihsahn).

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              • #8
                SLATXMG3-7 - Too many letters and numbers for a guitar name. Take it back.

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                • #9
                  Will they let you return it after you changed the strap pins like that? Most stores I know of wouldn't.

                  If the guitar played and sounded good otherwise, I'd probably just get a new locknut for it and chalk it up to the perils of buying a cheap guitar.

                  Cheap hardware is pretty much a constant on any LTD, Schecter or Asian-made Jackson these days. Most of it is easy to replace.

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                  • #10
                    I'll just swap them back on. The strap pins are fine and I have plenty screws to put them back on with.

                    For £600, I'd expect it to hold tuning at least for 45 minutes or so. Guess I'll just have to look at something slightly pricier.

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                    • #11
                      Check guitar centers used site there are a few Jackson MIJ 7's there or at least last week there was.
                      Really? well screw Mark Twain.

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                      • #12
                        I think I'm just disappointed about how low-quality it is. I would have liked to have thought that the presence of the Jackson logo kinda meant something.

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                        • #13
                          Originally posted by JonSick View Post
                          For £600, I'd expect it to hold tuning at least for 45 minutes or so. Guess I'll just have to look at something slightly pricier.
                          Oh, I hear ya. In fact, it's kind of alarming that there was no quality control check for something like an unstable locknut. That should have been apparent when the guitar was first strung up. The fact that they let stuff like that go makes you wonder what else gets missed.

                          The Japanese-made SLAT3-7 is kind of hard to find now, since they were only made briefly and rarely seem to come up for sale used anymore. It's worth scouting one out, though it has some differences from the current 7-string, namely in terms of scale length. The other problem is that you're in the UK and don't get the selection of Jacksons--new or used--that we do here in the USA.

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                          • #14
                            Well it went back. Sadly, the other 7 they had was the same kind of mess. This was a hardtail version. The nut was cut poorly and it didn't seem to hold tuning all that well. Decided to give up entirely.

                            The UK is crap for guitar-hunting. Most of the guitars we buy have to be bought sight-unseen, unless you're talking about real low end, or Gibson/Fender and even then, it's impossible to go check out a real high-end guitar. I guess I'll just keep on with my downtuned 6-string for now as it seems £600 doesn't buy you anything like a decent fiddle anymore.

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                            • #15
                              Originally posted by JonSick View Post
                              it seems £600 doesn't buy you anything like a decent fiddle anymore.
                              Like I said, look for anything from the Korean World Guitar factory, like the MIK BC Riches, the LTDs or PRS SE's. From almost all reports from all the various brands coming out from that particular factory, the build quality and parts quality are top notch. I can certainly vouch for my Stealth. I know many others vouch for the LTDs and PRS SEs as well.
                              The 2nd Amendment: America's Original Homeland Defense.

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