Jem 7VWH: To Buy or Not to Buy?

[Willin]

Hey all, I was half-way through writing this post and got a power surge throughout the neighborhood, ugh. Anyhow, i've been playing guitars for about 5 years now and have been playing electric for 1-2 years or so. I am playing a 1960's Hagstrom Condor. It sounds really bad, I know, haha, but it's actually not terrible. Here is a picture I found on google, if you're interested:
http://www.vintage-guitars.se/1965_H...ondor_sunb.jpg
I have been working and saving up money for a new guitar for the past few months and I am at about 1.3k right now. I originally was looking into buying a USA standard Strat. I didn't like the baseball bat type neck on them and just couldn't get used to it after learning on this ultra-thin hagstrom neck(thinnest neck i've ever seen). I then played one of my guitar instructor's two 1996 Yngwie Malmsteen signature scallop-necked Strats. It was nice, but I am concerned about the scalloped neck since I have a somewhat heavier touch from learning on an acoustic(and still playing a lot of acoustic to this day). Now, about a month ago my instructor brought in his 1987 Lochness Green #7 of 777 JEM. Besides being ecstatic that I actually played #7 of the series, I found it to be a really nice guitar. The thickness of the neck was the closest to my thin hagstrom that i've seen yet, which I like. It also seemed to be able to reach a huge range of tonal possibilities - which is also a huge plus. I then went to my local Guitar Center and played a new 7VWH and it was nice as well. Although I do like the it a lot, I have a few question before I blow 1.8k on a new guitar. Although this man is a renowned jerk, Ed Roman talks about the poor intonation of the Jems here:
http://www.*******.com/guitar/ibavai.htm
I by no means have perfect pitch, but is the difference in pitch noticeable? I have heard of tweaks to correct this problem, but i'd rather not have to buy a guitar and go through with those things. Also, is this a typical problem with most guitars? Or is this problem unique to Jems? I have also read an article in the past about the poor quality of earlier Jems(Paper fret-inlays, etc) and that honestly turned me off of Ibanez guitars for a long time until I actually played a nice Jem. I didn't think that Ibanez made quality guitars until I played a Jem, saw this huge fansite for the guitars, and realized Vai is playing them(so they must be good :P). I can play some Vai licks, but can't shred like Vai (yet). I am fully dedicated to playing guitar and have been for quite some time. This is by no means a "fad-thing", I am not just getting this because it costs a lot/Vai plays it. Please just give me some honest opinions on Jems and their quality. I would appreciate it very much!

Thanks for reading

P.S. - Great site, keep it up! My only question is why no images will show up for me on the home page? (They are all "X's")

[Two hands31]

The reason Ibanez's have minor intonation trouble is because they are guitars. All guitars have this problem. The Buzz Feiten system fixes this. If you don't notice problems with your current guitar, you will not notice it with any other guitars.

[caprile]

the jem 7 vwh is my favorite guitar. sure is a good purchase. but if you're unsure about spending that money, pick a used 777 DY or SK, which are IDENTICAL to your instructor's LNG, except for color, of course and vai sig.

[caprile]

uh i forgot...the inlays in early jems ARE paper. i guess nature ran out of fluorescent genuine abalone when they made them

[Rich]

The best advice anyone would give is don't read a word of what Roman says about Ibanez! The build quality itself has never been better than it is at present. There are some things I would like to see improved such as thinning the knife edges on the trem and jig setting the intonation to something a helluvalot closer than the way Gotoh sets the saddles, but picky details and a little tweaking aside, they've never been better. Do yourself a favor and do not overpay and buy from GC, where they care more about their commision than how the guitar actually plays when you walk out the door.

[Willin]

Thanks for some good responses so far! If (and hopefully when) I buy this guitar, I would probably order it through this small local shop where I take my lessons from an insanely good guitarist because they could use the business. Just one thing though, at GC I know they have notoriously high prices and the 7VWH was about 1800 there from what I remember. What is a typical price of this guitar, from somewhere that doesn't try to rape you of your cash? Also, I think I heard that a case is not included with Jems, or some such. Is this true? If this is really the case, what is a good case for the guitar? Can someone direct me to a seller?

Thank ya!

[musicdr]

Click on the Ibanez Rules banner on top of the page,the guitar will be properly setup and cased.The jem7vwh is an excellent guitar,all the jems I have owned have been of excellent build quality,in fact out of the 50 or so Ibanez guitars I have owned,I have no complaints(except they haven't given me a free one for being a loyal customer).