• Was hoping for a pleasant surprise, but i got what I paid for.

  
  As reviewed by bv on 8/5/2011

  This is a very affordable 12 string and it's pretty good looking. Sounds okay unplugged and the on-board tuner is a great feature. The craftsmanship is not that great: fit and finish are a bit lacking and the varnish is lumpy. Once plugged into an amp (I'm using a pretty nice one) is when you'll notice this guitar needs to go back. It's either super tinny or super bassey - no matter how much you shape the sound using the on-board EQ, you'll never get it to sound like it does when unplugged. It sounds very exaggerated plugged in and I couldn't find a nice all-around clean, natural tone. I want to give it 2 stars because it's cheaply built and sounds like it too, but it was so affordable that I added another star to make 3. This is definitely an entry level guitar. Since I am not looking for a super high end 12 string, I decided to save up another 50-100 bucks to get something one step up. If you can spend a little bit more, I suggest you do so. This guitar is cheap.

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• Great Value

  
  As reviewed by Brian on 7/17/2011

  I'm really happy with this purchase. It's an excellent value. I wanted a 12 string, but having never played one for any length of time (beyond 15 minutes), I wanted something that wouldn't be too much of an investment but give me the chance to see how I liked playing a 12 string. This is a beautiful instrument, the finish is great. I can see only one flaw (a dimple) where the neck joins the body, but it's not worth exchanging over. The sound hole decoration is a nice touch, gives you a couple colors to play your strap off. I like the silver tuners (way more than Ibanez's other model with gold) so am happy these are silver. The neck is wide, but what 12 string isn't? The electronics work fine (was worried about this being low-end, but no issue with this at all). Having the tuner is a great feature. The battery tray is down by the plug, it comes out easy and takes 2 AA batteries. The mic input is nice so you can get the preamp boost mic jacks have on amps. The guitar sounds great, my 6 string acoustic is Mahogany/Cedar, so wanted to avoid Spruce or Maple combinations if possible (while remaining on a budget), and am very happy with the sound I get from this body (Mahogany/Spruce is not a bad combination). Nothing beats chords on a 12 string, and this body can ring out with the best of them. The action is really good out of the box. It's a fairly easy 12 string to play. My wrist isn't killing me from pressing down on the strings. These are made in Indonesia. This is my second Indonesian guitar (have an electric Washburn, WI-45), and both have been a surprise value. Korean is more consistent in production quality (from what I read), but I'm 2 for 2 on these so have nothing to complain about. Anyone looking to get in on an entry level 12 string, I'd recommend this Ibanez 12 string. It's a really good value, you get a lot for your money.

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