Ibanez Genesis Collection RG550 - Purple Neon Reviews

I've only had this guitar for a month now, but I've played it a ton and it feels like it's right on par with my AZ prestige for half the price. I was worried about the neck being too thin but these super wizard necks are amazing. The only setup it needed out of the box is tightening the nut that keeps the trem arm from getting wobbly. Besides that it plays amazing, you can really lay into the trem and it'll still stay in tune even with the stock strings on. My only real problem with these guitars is there's not more color variants because I wouldn't mind 1-2 more. If you want a Floyd rose equipped guitar that feels, plays, and looks twice its value this is the one. The color shift on the neon purple in particular is beautiful.

I bought this guitar and I can tell you that Ibanez should be more than $.
Insane quality.
Looks fantastic and sounds fantastic.

i currently have 57 guitars and this one always stays in tune no matter how much i use the tremolo.

After a string of returned guitars to Sweetwater, these finally came in stock and I jumped on the last one available. Boy am I glad I did. This is the best Ibanez I've ever had. Looks amazing, plays like a dream, and because I got it from Sweetwater, didn't have the typical complaint of fret problems these models are known to have. Shoutout to my engineer Brook Floyd for being patient and dealing with all my returns until I found The One.

Amazing guitar buying experience! Jeff was fantastic, from start to finish everything was beyond expectation. Thanks to him I got the guitar that I was looking for almost four months (Ibanez RG 550).
I had a little issue with the delivery (FedEx), but that's not Sweetwater fault.

This guitar is absolutely fantastic. And at this price range. It's equal to a $2000 guitar. My only gripe is the color selection. The neck is what makes the guitar. Sleek and fast. Very smooth frets. Very low action. It stays in tune all day long. The pickups are hotter than I imagined. I was going to replace the pickups. But they sound great. If you're on the fence. Pull the trigger. And get on the waitlist. It's way worth your hard earned money.

Fantastic! Made in Japan quality, craftsmanship, QC, what more do you need to know! It's stands right up with my Prestige 652 AHFMX and my Prestige 5320. I wouldn't trade either of them for it, but that doesn't take anything away from this awesome axe! At $ it was less expensive than many indonesian models, although the indo models may have had some bells and whistles this doesn't, you can't beat MiJ quality imo.

I'm kinda on an Ibanez tear..and before I bought the Prestige series 652 and 5320 I was trying to get a Genesis model which is incredibly priced for a MiJ (Japan) axe. I get the "notify me when back in stock" email, Ruthie says "Get it if you want it, On me!" Sooo here it is, and it's fantastic, stacks up to my other two substantially more expensive RGs (although keeping in mind price not being known I wouldn't trade either of them for this, it doesn't take away the fact it stacks up!)The best axe in this price range period. I wanted this guitar but it wasn't in stock anywhere, sooo I bought a Prestige 652 AHFMX which happened to be in stock...loved it sooo much I bought a 5320 (Genesis still not in stock)Now here it is! Sweet and Sweetwater!

Okay I gotta leave a review here but not so much for the guitar. If you're looking at this guitar then you know what you're looking at and probably know the history of the RG550.

The guitar itself is poetry. The Japanese really do take Western things and make them BETTER. The design and craftsmanship of this instrument are stellar. As Dante and Shakespeare divide the literary world between them so do Gibson and Ibanez divide the world of guitar (or at least once upon a time Gibson did).

My review is more for the way I received the guitar. It was already in tune and perfectly intonated (I tuned it down to E flat but still). But more than that it was set up PERFECTLY. Ibanez specs state that the neck relief should be between .012 - .02 (in freedom units), which is an enormous amount of relief on the high end. When I received the guitar I could not slip a .004 feeler gauge in between the eighth fret and a level, so I'm assuming someone at Sweetwater adjusted the relief. Specs for action, at the lowest, call for .079 on the low E and .059 on the high E at the 14th fret but mine appear to be around .047 on both ends. BUT there is practically NO fret buzz on the low E. In short, someone at Sweetwater set this guitar up as a shred machine because I doubt it came from Ibanez this way.

Kyle had it shipped to me in the case and helped me by adding some items to my order that I had forgotten in my excitement (thank you Kyle!). Sweetwater is hands down the best business that I've ever interacted with, let alone the best music gear store. THANK YOU Sweetwater for such a pleasurable experience and providing me with such an exquisite instrument.

Picked up a demo model for a great price about a month ago and I gotta say, this might be one of my favorite guitars that I own now. It played perfect straight out of the box. No setup was necessary. Fret work is excellent, nicely filed, no sharp edges. I love the pickups, very versatile, from cleans all the way to modern metal. The sustain of this guitar is really what caught me off guard. None of my other Floyd rose / double locking trem guitars come close. Id dare say it's almost close to Les Paul territory sustain. The fit and finish is flawless from top to bottom. I truly cannot tell that mine is a demo model, it's mint. Overall I don't have a single complaint with this guitar so far, and can't see how I will in the future. I don't think there's competition that comes close in this price range

I waited months to finally catch one in stock, and was able to snag one 13 minutes after it hit the site. They were immediately out of stock again, so they're apparently only receiving one at a time right now. I was giddy like a school girl when it arrived. My wife took some pictures of me pulling it out of the boxes, and you can see the excitement on my face.

I was a little worried that I wouldn't like the super thin neck, being that I've been playing on a MIM Strat for 10 years now.....but that was NOT the case. I have really large hands and long fingers, and I think the width of the fingerboard makes up for the thinness of the neck. I taught myself to play with my thumb on the back of the neck, but I switch to thumb-over pretty often now, after getting into Blues playing and watching people like John Mayer & SRV.

I was also a little worried that this thing would be.....wait for it....."too metal." *GASP* I know, I know....that's like too much money, or too many women....it's impossible. I'm getting old, though. Well.....I'll be 40 in a month or so, and my hears tend toward the sweeter sounding stuff nowadays. I still like to bang my head from time to time (metaphorically of course), as I wouldn't be able to move my head and neck for two weeks, if I actually tried to headbang like I were still in my 20's. This guitar sounds great, though. I play through a Roland Cube 30x, and I've gotten this thing to sound just like my upgraded Strat with the clean tones, simply by lowering the stock pups. Kick up the gain, and she still shreds.

I'm a HUGE Steve Vai fan, so for me.....this is pretty much the pinnacle. I wanted a white JEM, but for nearly half the price......I could not NOT buy this guitar. It's made in Japan by the same hands that churn out the 'real' JEMs of today, and the super great J. Customs and Prestige models. I just couldn't justify paying $800+ dollars more for a guitar that is made in Indonesia, even with a case. I picked up a top-notch Ibanez case for 150 bucks.

The paint is effin gorgeous. It changes from blue to candy red, and everything in between, depending on the light. The finish is perfect, even inside the route cavities. The route cavities are painted with liquid RF sealant to create faraday cages around the electronics. The flame of the maple in the neck.....is just absolutely stunning. The pattern may be guitar specific, but mine is a gorgeous tiger-stripe almost. I'll post some pics of everything.

In summary.....I love this thing. I've wanted an RG for nearly 30 years now, and I have not been disappointed. If you even THINK you want this guitar, buy it!!! You will not be displeased!!

Shhh don't tell anyone ,killer guitar.

I wanted one of these guitars badly as a young man in the late 80s, unfortunately I didn't get one until a couple years ago (Genesis RG570). I figured I might as well get the maple necked version too in this RG550. It more than lives up to the original RG guitars. Hard to beat getting a MIJ Ibanez for 999. Be thankful they didn't include the softshell hardcase too like on a lot of Premium guitars, I replaced all of them with the M300C Ibanez hardshell case anyway.

If you want a thin neck guitar with wonderful playability and ease of access to all 24 frets this is hard to beat. The pickups are just as good as the DiMarzio's included in my other Premium and Prestige Ibanez guitars too. I've got a 1990 S540 to compare against and these more than live up to the history. Thanks to Ibanez for this Genesis line especially at a more than reasonable price.

Jim Watson is the man.
Even through the quarantine, I was able to get this incredible guitar with a perfect Sweetwater setup.
It has renewed my joy for practicing and taking on fresh challenges.
Great action, tones, and nostalgia. This is a shred machine!

Wayne Wildman and Sweetwater are the best! I purchased a blue Genesis RG570 with a rosewood fretboard from Wayne and Sweetwater last August and absolutely love the guitar. I needed another guitar set up in a different tuning and picked a purple neon Genesis RG550 with maple fretboard. Wayne arranged my special setup request with Sweetwater's in-house Guitar Repair Shop and the luthiers did a excellent job. The setup is perfect and my new guitar plays like a dream.

Ibanez really knocked it out of the park with the Genesis Collection. Even though I never got one, this is the first nice electric guitar that I really wanted when I began playing in the late 80's. I wanted a RG bad. Thirty years later I finally have one! These guitars are so comfortable and versatile. Very easy to play anything, any style. Any Gibson or Fender sounds are easily achievable.

Thank you Wayne Wildman and Sweetwater!

Just perfect fast action beautiful color purple neon great price buy the hard case for it love it

Awesome! I bought it not being totally sure Id want to keep it, but after a few hours of playing it was pretty obvious I wouldnt be able to return this one. Love the finish, nice shift of color in different lighting. Also the bridge is amazing, definitely better than a genuine floyd, keeps in tune and it feels effortless to use. The best part of this guitar is the neck though, Ive always preferred slightly thicker strat-like necks but this just feels like butter to play on. I thought this guitar would need an instant pickup swap but the v8 and v7 actually sound pretty decent for stock ibanez pickups (probably still going to upgrade though). A case or even a bag would have been nice to have, but for this price I really cant complain. Feels like a much more expensive instrument, you dont need the label on the headstock to know this is a prestige ibanez.

Definitely blown away by the quality and playability of this guitar. It plays and feels like something far more expensive than it is; I would highly recommend this guitar.

Everything about it seems to have been thought out well. The 5-way switch seems solid; the volume and tone pots are smooth; the guitar stays in tune without issue; it has a nice weight to it; the neck is amazing; the humbuckers and single coil give you great versatility; the Edge tremolo is really nice; the finish is amazing - YouTube and photos online do not give it justice.

I haven"t put it down since buying it; huge thanks to Sweetwater for being so awesome.

This guitar is the guitar that dreams are made of. I don"t typically write reviews, especialy on guitars, because it"s so subjective but I seriously recommend buying this one. I bought a "dent and scratch" model because it was cheaper but I can"t find any blemishes on it it anywhere. Sweetwater is such a reputable company that really a "dent and scratch" or "demo" model from them just eqauls extra money in your pocket. Not my first, or last, time buying a model like this from them.

I had the guys plek the fingerboard and set it up for me and it was well worth the money. The action and intonation are spot on! The strings are just high enough that you have to dig in a little but low enough that you don"t have to work too hard. The neck is very thin and perfect for my small hands. It is a bit wide and flat but in my imo it forces me to play better, so not really a downside. Took a little getting used to and I was off to the races.

I"ve seen mixed reviews on the Ibanez pickups but I think they"re just fine (especially for the fit and finish you get on this guitar for the price). I"ve thrown multiple styles at it and they all sound good through my little Roland blues cube. I especially like the neck pickup. Great for clean rhythms/leads and sounds good with some gain too. The bridge pickup isn"t my favorite but with the five way selector it gets better. I like to pair it with the single coil and throw a lot of dirt at it. Great for some crunchy rhythm playing. I"ve hardly used the single coil by itself but I can see where it would have its uses. Overall I think the pickups could be better but by no means are they "bad." I"ve definitely heard worse.

The purple on here is amazing. Pictures don"t really do it justice at all. It changes different shades of purple depending on the lighting, would probably look incredible under some stage lights!

The only reason I gave it 4.5 stars is because this thing is HEAVY. I don"t know that it"s in genuine Les Paul territory, or even close, but it definitely has some weight to it. However, I"m a small dude, 5"4" and about 145 lbs, so this may not be a negative for everyone. And I do feel the weight gives it a lot of good tone/sustain even though it has a floyd style bridge.

Above all, another great experience buying with Sweetwater. I buy all of my gear from these guys and gals and have no regrets ever. My salesman, Justin Sunday, is the cat"s pajamas and he made sure the guitar was setup exactly how I wanted it. They turned it around quickly and I still received my guitar within 4 days of ordering it, which is saying a lot as I"m sure it"s no easy task to plek and setup guitars this wonderfully.

Hope this review helps anyone considering this guitar!

Huh ? How could I own a guitar that just came out for 30 years ? Well it's easy. I own the original from the 80's. She's a well used, well worn road warrior, and still one of the first guitars I reach for. This has got to be the fastest neck in the business, and it has the tonal versatility to handle any and all styles of music you can throw at it. I had the chance to play the new Genesis to compare it to the original, and it's a keeper. I deducted a half star for the pickups. I feel the V7 and V8 pickups are certainly better than the Infinity's or Powersounds that Ibanez puts in other guitars, but they are a bit short of Dimarzios or Duncan's. They are very good, in my opinion, and swapping them out is not a necessity. Bottom line, get this guitar. It's good enough to keep for 30 years and still be happy with it.

First I didn't get a long with the neck. I feel like the neck is so fat to be Ibanez. But I fell in love with the neck after two years. The other thing I hate is the neck joint.