Weird Jem Jr. sightings... (JEM333)

marianozz · #1 07-26-2005, 09:13 AM

Hey guys, i was doing some walking around the guitar store area down here, and i noticed in a couple places they had these Ibanez Jem Jr. (said in headstock), but they werent 555.... body was bright white, grip and claw were ok-ish, pickguard was plain w/b/w (no pelaroid) and it had all dot inlays all over the fretboard (no half vine)... only saw it behind the glass, but the pickups looked crap, too... and i thiiiiiink the bridge was something that looked like an edge but wasnt...

Now, what i was wondering is... could the dreaded 333s have reached these shores? anyone has pics of those?

anyway, i just wanted to share my... errr... disgust

stu_hig · #2 07-26-2005, 09:17 AM

That matches a 333's description perfectly if I'm not mistaken.

stu_hig · #3 07-26-2005, 09:19 AM

marianozz · #4 07-26-2005, 10:20 AM

eeek thats the one...

ugh.....

Ibateur · #5 07-26-2005, 10:27 AM

Mr Vai and Hoshino have some explaining to do.

marianozz · #6 07-26-2005, 10:32 AM

Maybe they felt this market was as cheap and f*cked up as Indonesia and the like, and so we got it...

Or, maybe these werent imported officially, saw these at a couple random stores, not at the official dealer's...

JJEMMER777 · #7 07-26-2005, 10:39 AM

Just curious - what was the price on these....er....dreaded...333's??

marianozz · #8 07-26-2005, 10:57 AM

I couldnt say, i was late for work as it was, so i didnt go in to ask, but when i find out, ill let you all know

(bare in mind, prices tend to get pretty steep here...)

JJEMMER777 · #9 07-26-2005, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by marianozz

(bare in mind, prices tend to get pretty steep here...)

So I have heard.....just curious though....not that I would ever even begin to consider buying one

sugizo_esp · #10 07-26-2005, 11:50 AM

they worth about $2100 hk dollars
just to do some quick maths
US$270

timi_h · #11 07-26-2005, 12:03 PM

personally i dont know what theyre playing at with the 555 let alone the 333, a signature model is one that is played by that player, not one that is a low budget version so u can pretend they play the same as you!!!!

JJEMMER777 · #12 07-26-2005, 12:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sugizo_esp

they worth about $2100 hk dollars
just to do some quick maths
US$270

Thanks

That's pretty cheap and justifiably so

JJEMMER777 · #13 07-26-2005, 12:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by timi_h

personally i dont know what theyre playing at with the 555 let alone the 333, a signature model is one that is played by that player, not one that is a low budget version so u can pretend they play the same as you!!!!

I hear ya timi

littlegreenman · #14 07-26-2005, 12:42 PM

Ya know, you can say what you want about the 333, but at $270 it'd be a cheap way to do a custom JEM. New trem and some pickups, where else are you going to get a JEM body for $270 let alone a body and neck that I'm sure with some work could be made to play decently. Lets face it, even the cheapest lowest end Ibanez's can be made pretty decently playable with a little set up work. I do tech work at the local music store who sells Ibanez and I have yet to come across any Ibanez electric that couldn't be made playable with little effort.
The 555's were somewhat expensive for a non edge equipped guitar, but these guitars at $270 mean that realistically, you could buy a used edge and some used dimarzio's and have a pretty decent guitar for less than new Japanese RG prices.
So really, if you're looking at a guitar to customize, the 333 probably isn't all that bad of a way to go, they're certianly cheap enough.

littlegreenman · #15 07-26-2005, 12:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by timi_h

personally i dont know what theyre playing at with the 555 let alone the 333, a signature model is one that is played by that player, not one that is a low budget version so u can pretend they play the same as you!!!!

Well, it's not like Ibanez is the only company doing this. Almost all the guitar manufactures do this, have the real thing, and then the low end models.
They wouldn't even sell signature models if there wasn't a vast market for that players guitar, and then they want to cater to the full market, not just those that can afford a high end guitar. Ibanez does it, ESP does it, Jackson does it, Gibson does it, PRS does it, etc etc.
When I was first learning guitar, I'd have given my eye teeth for a JEM, but I couldn't afford a $2000 guitar, nor would I have noticed any difference between a high end and a low end guitar. Had a 333 been available for a few hundred dollars, I'd have owned one proudly. At that time being 11 or 12 years old, Vai was simply my idol, I didn't even know what guitars I liked the feeling of better, in fact, the only reason I got an ibanez back then was because it's what Vai and Satch were using. Had nothing to do with the feeling. If I could have gotten a JEM333 over the cheapy RG I had I'd have been over the moon. It's really only now that manufactures are seeing this niche and filling it. The only thing I don't understand is how ANY manufacture can build and sell guitars that cheap! I can't even buy my woods for that little! LOL