[Fowleri]

To make it sound more like a jem

I have the evolution bridge pickup coming in but I don’t know if I should bother changing the neck and middle

 

[chris101]

I replaced the bridge and neck pickups with Evo's, didn't bother with the single coil as I dont use that much anyway.

However I cant help think that there are better pickups out there nowdays than the Evos, sound a bit thin on my 550.

 

[Fowleri]

Replacing the neck pickup with evo, what sounds or tones do you get from that? I mean it sounds better for the clean tones steve uses or for what steve tunes?

 

[BigBazz]

If you have the pickups the only difference is the high pass filter on the volume knob that rolls off some of the bass to clean up the sound when you roll back the volume knob. Otherwise an RG550 is pretty much a Jem without the decorations. Regarding the clean sounds, the Jem/Evo middle single is actually worthwhile if you want clean sounds like Vai, it's a pretty unique sounding single coil (which many people don't like) and it pairs well with the Evos.

Still, priorities, the RG550 single is fine, worry about your amp/rig situation.

 

[Fowleri]

If you have the pickups the only difference is the high pass filter on the volume knob that rolls off some of the bass to clean up the sound when you roll back the volume knob. Otherwise an RG550 is pretty much a Jem without the decorations. Regarding the clean sounds, the Jem/Evo middle single is actually worthwhile if you want clean sounds like Vai, it's a pretty unique sounding single coil (which many people don't like) and it pairs well with the Evos.

Still, priorities, the RG550 single is fine, worry about your amp/rig situation.

why does it cost $3000, that's some crazy pricing, they kept raising the price over the years too, I remember many years it was only $2500 even though not much if at all changed in the guitar

 

[BigBazz]

why does it cost $3000, that's some crazy pricing, they kept raising the price over the years too, I remember many years it was only $2500 even though not much if at all changed in the guitar

It has better pickups, probably made from slightly nicer wood (the quartersawn maple on Jem necks looks sweet), and it has all the unique aesthetic features (Monkey grips, lion claws, vines, pyramids). Based on the spare parts prices the gold hardware on the 7WH also costs a little more. The Jems are also setup better from the factory than the RG's, more hands on time increases the manufacturing cost.

Then you have the fact that it's a high end Prestige flagship model, in addition to being a signature model. So Ibanez wants a little extra for the privilege of you owning one of the flagship models and Steve also wants his cut, which is why it's a $3000 guitar. Yep the price on new Jems has gone up over the years, though the price on used Jems hasn't gone up much, accounting for inflation the used price has actually gone down on the 7V, not up.

The new PIA model is a $3500 guitar, so don't expect new prices to go down.

 

[mike570]

I put a set of Evos in my RG20th - pretty much the same as a Genesis.
Since changing the pickups I named it Deevo - a tip of the hat to a former Jemsite member who had the same guitar.
Aside from the grip, lions claw, and scalloped upper frets it's pretty close to a Jem. I actually prefer RG's because you can make them your own.