Ibanez Artstar AM153QA - Dark Brown Sunburst Reviews
The Ibanez Artstar AM153QA semi-hollowbody electric guitar serves up a wide range of tone, making it an excellent choice for just about any musical genre you want to play. Its pair of Super 58 Custom humbucking pickups delivers growling lows and focused highs. Use the Tri-sound switch to select three different coil configurations for the neck pickup for even more sonic flexibility. A slim neck with a bound ebony fingerboard makes the Artstar AM153QA a pleasure to play. Whether you're recording or performing, the Ibanez Artstar AM153QA exceeds expectations.
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Highest Rated Reviews
Great jazz guitar!
I am a jazz performance student and since I bought this guitar I am at ease. I bought exactly what I need at the moment. Plays great, sounds jazzy and is very comfortable to play since the body is a little smaller. plus, it is semi hollow for the warmer sound. Delivery was fast. No complains whatsoever! Thank you, Sweetwater and Ibanez!
I love it!
I can only say: thank so very much for selling me this guitar!
Sounds as beautiful as it looks!
Took this beauty right out of the box the day it was received and played a gig with it that night. It passed with flying colors! It came perfectly set up and intonated as expected from Sweetwater, and speaking of Sweetwater, I have to greatly commend my sales engineer Aaron Cieslikowski for swiftly reaching out to me when a small batch of these came in to confirm if I was still wanting one after being put on the waitlist not too long ago. They had it in my hands almost immediately and as always the customer service I received from Aaron and his team was stellar. If I had anything to gripe about the only thing would be the thicker gauge lower strings that are shipped with the guitar, but I assume that's standard for most semi-hollows like this, and it actually helped with some songs I played on it the first night being in lower tunings. Again, amazing instrument but even more amazing service from the best musical gear distributor in the world!
Sweet!
Obviously it could be told by the picture that this is a beautiful guitar and no comparison to it in person. Really versatile guitar. I wasn't sure how useful the tri-tone switch would be and it turns out it is. I've had the guitar for a month now and I haven't touched my PRS or Paul. It is my first semi-hollow. I had the guitar set up with 11's before delivery and I'm glad I did. Ready to play out of the box. The only thing I may upgrade are the tuners but overall I am extremely happy. I never bought a guitar online before and my engineer Loui is fantastic. He answered all my questions via email quickly and was patient with all my questions. I'm a happy man.
Beautiful!
Everything about this guitar screams BEAUTIFUL! The looks, the sound, the features, and it even comes with a very nice hardshell case. A big plus at this great price. The only changes I'll be making will be some locking tuners and lighter strings. Of course another fantastic job by Sweetwater's setup team and my favorite sales person Clint B was on top of everything like always! THANKS!
Superb piece of craftsmanship
Firstly, the process. I bought a demo. Colton Kreuzer was my sales engineer and he did a fantastic job helping me with pricing, setup, delivery options and miscellaneous details. He was thoroughly professional, congenial and kept me informed via follow-up emails about the status of my order. (Even sent me photos of my guitar so I could "show off" to my friends.) If he is a typical Sweetwater sales engineer then this company knows how to hire and train. You will be in good hands.
Secondly, the guitar. I've got a 1981 Ibanez Musician PW-150. It has stood the test of time and the quality is top-notch. So, I quickly zeroed in on this guitar as my choice for semi-hollow. Although a demo, the few cosmetic flaws that Sweetwater thoroughly and accurately documented were almost invisible. The guitar is a beaut! The tone is well balanced and the electronics work flawlessly. The neck was thicker than I was used to but now I don't even notice it. The fret-board is nice and wide so my fat fingers have no problem cleanly fingering notes, bending is a breeze and the upper 20-22 frets are easily accessible.
I can't pretend to compare with hallmarks such as a Gibson ES-335 - never played one and probably never will. But, it does have that distinctive semi-hollow sound and sustain so, if that's what you want, you will be happy with this axe.
Worthy step up from the AM53
Had a AM53 for several years which was a stable setup with only a spotty tone pot and a lack of a bag/case as my only actual concerns around it. Decided that a trade up would be worth the cost when knocking out both issues and was definitely right.
The electronics have been a clear step up, the case fantastic, and the tone woods (ash vs sapele body / ebony vs laurel fingerboard) a much more enjoyable playing/listening experience.
I do wish that the bridge pickup also sported the tri-switching of the neck but that's more of a desire for complete control as opposed to a function that I miss when playing.
Beautiful guitar, great tone woods, solid electronics, sturdy case, just south of $. I'd recommend this to anybody looking for a semi-hollow with this in their price range. I've had mine for years, don't miss my old AM53, and haven't felt the need to buy another 335-type semi-hollow while building out my collection.
