Check out my new KE2!

[Annah]

It finally arrived via UPS today, woot! Born on 4/10/07, she's less than 3 months old. I added Schaller strap locks, some chrome p/u rings and knobs, and one of Huntin' Doug's badass truss covers. I was blown-away when I pulled it out of the case and it was in perfect tune! Bad-freakin-ass! I looooooooove this guitar so much, it's absolutely perfect, and a great compliment to my RR1. Way to go, Jackson!

[Slashaxl]

Great looking axe. Love Kellys... everytime I see a Kelly I want one more for myself too

[JacksonRR]

Cool axe, congrat!

[hksb_alex]

cool stuff!!!

[The Mitch]

Sexy!

[emperor_black]

Great looking axe. Love Kellys... everytime I see a Kelly I want one more for myself too

+1 but I want a KE2T.

Awesome guitar BTW !! Now, lets see a side-by-side shot of both your US Jacksons.

[Annah]

Thanks! Yes, pic(s) of both will be coming soon!

[Top Jimmy B]

Killer guitar, Annah! I love Kellys, they are ultra comfy if you can hang with the right hand position. Enjoy it!

[ADR]

Nothing short of awesome Axe! Makes me want one too!

[StukaJU87]

Looking good, Annah. Love the Kelly.

[Robert Burns]

Very sharp...and glad you were wearing PANTS !!:ROTF:

[Guitarfreak]

Beautifull axe!
How does it sound? Any problem with the balance of the guitar?

Ah, more pictures please!

[Thwap]

I dig it.

[Annah]

Well, I started writing this nearly an hour ago, lol, and it has basically turned into a full-blown review and comparison! Haha! I can't help myself though because it has been such a long time since I've had a new guitar, and especially one of this caliber. I'll be taking more pics and posting them tomorrow (Saturday). Enjoy!

This is, by far, the best guitar I have EVER played. I'm constantly amazed at how smooth and easy it is to play. The action is super-low, there is only very minor fret b'zz but it's not the kind that affects the sound when cranked through an amp. It's worth putting up with for the action to be as low as it is, in my opinion.

Comfort
This is my first Kelly, and it is only the second one I've ever played. The first time I played one was during the music store scene in the DH show. The Kelly body shape is absolutely fabulous in terms of comfort - especially in nearly any sitting position. The bottom arc, the one that rests on your right thigh, has a large radius which makes it very comfortable on the thigh. The top cut-away is very comfy, too. As far as standing up and playing, it's a little bit different than my Rhoads, the headstock of which is usually closer to my left shoulder. The Kelly headstock floats around further in front of me and a bit to the left. It's not uncomfortable, just something to get used to. I think it's caused by the left-side strap button being affixed by the neck/body area. I put Strap Locks on it, which I find a small price to pay for insurance.

Neck
The neck on my Kelly feels thinner than my Rhoads. I don't know if this is because of standard measurement differences between the two styles, or a difference between years. My RR1 is from 1993, Ontario, Cali. My KE2 is of course from 2007, Ontario, Cali. Also, the binding and side dot inlay work is better on the KE2. The Rhoads looks as though they didn't spend enough time smoothing down the edge where the binding meets the neck and there was some over-sanding of the binding directly around the fret dot markers. This is evident in the rises visible in the clear coat. Still, it doesn't affect playability and it's almost impossible to see unless you look for it.

Floyd Rose
The KE2 came with an original Floyd Rose trem, which has been in tune since I took the guitar out of the case for the very first time. The KE2 comes with .9 guage strings and the Floyd is balanced to handle them perfectly. Ignitor tunes down one-half step to D#, and upon doing so the Floyd dropped at the rear, ever-so-slightly, but it remains in perfect tune. I will either loosen the springs to compensate, or see how it does with .10's on it (which are what I've been using for the past year), though I really am enjoying the smooth silkiness, and easy-to-bendness, of the .9's, so I am leaning toward them. The intonation is set right-on out of the box, too. And the strings go back into near-perfect pitch after heavy-duty thrashing on the trem bar. For the past six years I've used a blocked trem on my RR1, so I could only drop the pitch down, not put up. I didn't realize until I got the KE2 just how limiting that is! I'm going to unblock it and set it back up the way it should be set.

The Floyd on the KE2 is also recessed, and the Rhoads is not. That's something I find very interesting. It took a little while to get used to the recessed one, but now I find that I like it much more because my hand rests more on the guitar body than the bridge, and it seems to be easier and faster to play.

Tone
Almost since I started playing, I have been using Bill Lawrence XL500 pickups, even before Dime did. I got them because they were cheap as hell and super high output and nothing else sounded like them at the time. It was a pleasant surprise to see that they came stock in my '93 Rhoads. While I like the super-high-output, they do have some tonal limitation.

The KE2 has a Duncan JB TB4 at the bridge and a Duncan Jazz SH2N at the neck. Both are tonally sweet as can be and while the JB isn't as hot as I'm used to, I find that it has a much wider range of tonal dynamics than the XL500s do. There's more crunch and color through my Marshall (which is now a full stack, by the way!). So when it comes to pickups, I've a new love for those, too! Though I'm interested in trying out others that might be a blend of the tonal qualities of the JB and the high-output of the XL500.

Quality
My KE2 is certainly the best-crafted guitar I've had the pleasure of playing. Period. Bar none. Beats all the Gibsons I've played, all the Strats, ESPs, Ibanezes, all of them. To say I'm blown away is definitely an understatement. I have to admit, I am still surprised it's as flawless as it is because after reading/hearing all the hoopla about Jackson lately I was getting worried, but no more!

Delivery
Some may be pissed at me for doing this, but I bought my KE2 from Musician's Friend. Yeah, yeah, I know, I should have bought it through one of our guys, but I did try them before I went there. No one had what I wanted in stock, except for M.F. And I did not want to wait "three months" for it to get ordered when I didn't have to. Also, I was tired of waiting for a response from Brian about a CS special, or getting a deal on a USA production model. My final decision was, "Fuck it. I need a new guitar NOW."

M.F. did a good job getting my shippment out in a timely fashion. They shipped via UPS and when I asked, they said that it would ship via "UPS or FedEx, whichever delivers in your area". They both do, of course. It came UPS and to my astonishment the delivery guy had the gall to leave it laying flat on the doorstep of my third-floor apartment. A $2000 guitar!!! It was HOT. And humid. We've been in the middle of major rains. And my complex is in a busy area. Thankfully though I'm on the third floor, so perhaps the guy assumed no one would see it. I'm just glad to have access to track my packages because that's how I knew it was left on the door. It probably wasn't there for more than a half hour. I sure would have been pissed if it wasn't there though!

I'm definitely a brand new Kelly fan, and admittedly, I like the KE2 better than the RR1. Maybe that's because I've been playing a Rhoads (and V's in general) for so many years, but the KE2 is totally comfortable and like butter to play. I mean really, just like butter. In fact, the fretboard, frets, and strings are dry, but they feel like they're lubricated. Five stars, definitely. This guitar rules them all!!!! BIG, HUGE, MONSTEROUS thanks to Jackson!!!

Here's video of me playing it for the first time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTL7oqoRcVw

[Mario8672]

Enjoy it, ya lucky fuck . I'm saving up for a KE2 at the moment as well. (In ferrari red w/ black bevels). I want it even more after reading the review.