This is my Yamaha RGX Standard:
http://bohemiq.scali.eu.org/YamahaRGXStandard.jpg
http://bohemiq.scali.eu.org/YamahaRGXTop.jpg
http://bohemiq.scali.eu.org/YamahaRGXBack.jpg
Here's a video of me playing it, so you can see and hear it in action:
http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=wHz0lwzvySM&fmt=18
It's a great guitar in its own right, but for me it's just the umpteenth Superstrat, and I want something different. So if I can make someone happy with it, who'll actually play it (because this baby deserves to be played), and I can get a good price for it, I'd gladly sell it.
To be honest, I don't know too much about this guitar. So I'll just tell you what I know, and some educated guesses on the rest. I bought it from someone a while ago, who had it as a backup guitar for years, and as such it hasn't been played much, if at all. I bought it because it seemed to be a good deal at the time, and I've always been fond of Yamaha in general.
According to the serial number, the guitar was made either in 1989 or 1999, but I have no clue which is right, because even in 2008 it looks brand spanking new. It is made in Taiwan. There's no fretwear, no buckle rash, no nothing. It comes complete with a luxurious case, tools and what seems to be straplocks, never used, I didn't even open the bag to look at them.
The specs:
- Maple neck, round C-profile, not exactly the anorexia neck you'd expect from Japanese brands, probably more like a Strat. It's not all that wide either. I find it very fast and comfortable to play.
- 25.5" scale
- 24 frets, jumbo (I guess, they're wide but flat, not quite as big as Ibanez style frets). The fretwork is immaculate, smooth, low action, no buzz.
- Ebony fretboard (My guess, it looks black and very 'compact' grained and feels smooth, so it's probably not rosewood)
- Carved figured maple top (no idea if it's solid or laminate, looks fantastic anyway, nice '3d' effect under different lighting conditions), in cherry sunburst.
- Mahogany back (My guess, it's a reddish colour with fine grain and the body is quite heavy, the guitar also has a dark tone with big sustain. So it looks and sounds quite similar to my Les Paul)
- EMG
Steve Lukather signature set pickups (I also have the original pickups, which are generic Asian stuff, don't sound particularly great, although interesting detail is that the humbucker has two screws on one side, so it has adjustable tilt).
- Double-
locking tremolo. Interesting details are that it is a 'roller' tremolo instead of knife edges, giving a very smooth feel (and very light, might take some getting used to if you're used to eg Ibanez' stiff feel), and probably won't ever wear out, and there's a thumbscrew that allows you to block the tremolo to one side, making it dive-only. Finally the locknut is also interesting, in that its height can be adjusted on both sides by some screws. Overall it seems to stand up to whammy abuse quite well.
- More or less an all-access neck joint. It's rounded, but not as small as Ibanez.
- Very unusual body shape, looks a bit like a boat, because the sides are angled. Hard to describe it. I'll add a picture of the back. Combine that with the arched top and the cutaways that are rounded out at the top, and you have a very striking guitar shape. Like nothing I've ever seen.
Given the unusual attention to detail in both the design of the hardware and the overall build quality and completeness, I'd say it was quite a high-end Yamaha at the time.
Therefore I think it is worth about 750 euros in its current configuration with the EMGs and all.
