Well, after spending some time searching around, I've finally come down to these two guitars, the Ibanez RG370DXL and the LTD M-50 left-hand. (Yes, I'm doomed to the limited models of left-handed electric guitars, but so be it. )

I tried the M-50 (lefty) at Guitar Collection, Mid Valley, whereas my friend has the right-handed Ibanez model. Both are fine with me (heck, I dont know anything about electric guitars), but I'm kinda skeptical with the three way switch on the M-50 and the H-H pickup of the M-50. The LTD M-50 has some cool distortions, but I'm not so sure about its clean tone.

Now, my questions are :

1. Would the H-S-H pickup tear a gap in terms of sound compared to the H-H one? I intend to play a wide range of songs from funky to noisy, metal ones.

2. Overall, which guitar would be in your favour? In terms of durability, sound, and maybe looks? This will be my first electric guitar ( currently learning acoustic ) and will be for quite some time. (The price gap isn't too big I guess, the Ibanez is around RM1,4xx (Bentley's, ordered from Indonesia) while the M-50 is RM1,298.)

3. Can someone explain what is a Wizard II Neck and Edge III (L) bridge. And why does it say 3 piece Maple Neck Material?
Referred from Ibanez RG370DXL

4. Is 24 frets needed?

5. The thing which you control with the whammy bar (not sure what its called, is it a tremolo bridge?), the person at Guitar Collection said the M-50 Is one-way, while the Ibanez has a two-way whatever-you-call-it. A friend mentioned that a 2-way would be better, but is it necessary?

6. Is there anywhere else where I can get an Ibanez? Preferbly around the Golden Triangle or PJ or Shah Alam area. An order placed at Bentley's would take 3 months, if I'm not mistaken.

7. Do I have to get a pricey amp?

That's all I have in mind, for now. Thanks for leaving a simple reply, or even reading through, it looks messy to me, and there'll prolly be errors in it as im kinda sleepy right now.

This post has been edited by Clavicus: Aug 31 2006, 10:25 PM

IMO go for Ibanez. Apperently both are in the same category of guitar, suitable for hard rock kind of stuff. The main reason why because model that you mention M-50 is made from agathist and ibanez are from basswood. Basswood IMO relatively better than agathist. And M-50 is a low end LTD. For the same price you can find a decent Ibanez. If I'm not mistaken M-50 is retail around RM 1098 before discount.

If is not that urgent, save some more and go for LTD MH-50. I've tried it once and it's good. Finding left hand guitar for this model is another story.

For the pickup, apperently H-S-H more versatile compare to H-H setup.
But in the end of the day, it's about what kind of music and tone you prefer.

for me, i'll always pick ibanez over LTD, reason due to LTD is abit over priced here in malaysia...

the LTD's whammy only allows u to press it down while the ibanez's trem is a modified version of a floyd rose trem, basically allows u to supress it 2 ways...both front and back...

fret wise, it's up to u whether are u going to play all the way up to 24th...if yes, then go for it...

for a 2 way tremelo, the servicing is more complicated compared to a normal trem...and it requires more knowledge to actually set up the whole thing properly...and the best place to get ibanez is from bentley...

amp wise, u can try the roland microcube, retailing at rm380 if i'm not mistaken...it's small, loud and got enough effects to get u started...u can also try line6's spider 2...i got the 15 watt one and it's loud and does pack a punch for a practice amp, and got enough cool effects to get started also...it's rm580 at ck music...

hope that helps...btw, if anything wrong in this post, do correct me...

check if both guitars are available here..... try both out...... choose
personally i would go for the ibanez... a lot of improvements on the edge3 compared to the last one
go to jemsite for more details... most of your technical questions can be answered there
and u'll learn heaps more...

Is tremolo a must? If not, I wouldn't really suggest a FR equipped guitar. Instead, I will steer you to the SZ series. Mahogany neck and body, maple top, H-H, three way switch, 22 frets, it is basically a much better playing version of an LP. Around RM1500++.

Might be slightly more than your budget but with guitars, always think long term.

But if you must have a superstrat style guitar, the RG series is one of the best out there but do not expect the same performance from the RG370 when compared to an MIJ RG.

The RG3xx are the mid level Ibanez and the hardware is just so so. The INF pickups are pretty decent but the bridge is not as solid as the Ibanez top of the line bridge. It will work for now but no telling how long it will last. As with most FR found on mid-level guitars, they will usually start giving you trouble in less than a year. A top of the line FR on the other hand will probably last you forever. (My RG has the top of the line bridge, as solid as ever even after 4 years of abuse)

I would also suggest you test both. But I would also lean towards the Ibanez personally, coz it offers better value.

However, as some above suggested, you might want a hardtail instead of a floyd type trem since you are just starting out on electric unless you specifically want a trem. Bear in mind that a floating trem will be harder for you to setup and restring so be prepared for the extra amount of hassle for the pleasure of playing with the trem. (a floating tremolo is defined as it is literally floating between the string tension and the counteracting spring tension of the tremolo)

The M50 has a non-locking dive only tremolo, hence why it was called one way by your friend. The RG was called two way by your friend because it can dive and also pull up. Your friend may have said it is better but really it's down to whether you need it. But since the M50 has a non-locking tremolo, IF you intend to do any huge dives and heavy trem abuse, this is not for you. A double locking tremolo on the RG will have much better tuning stability. What double locking means is that the strings are locked into position at the locking nut at the neck and also at the end of the bridge (not just by the string's ball joint). The Edge 3 is much improved over the older bridges (ie. ILT1, Lo-TRS) and should serve you well for a start provided you have it well setup. Since it is one of Ibanez's lower-mid end bridges it may not last as long as the higher end ones.

As for your question on the neck, the Wizard II neck is a specification for their neck. In the page you posted the specs of the neck are specified at the bottom. As for the 3 piece thing, as far as I know the MIJ Prestige series have 2 pieces of quarter sawn maple on the two outer sides and a piece of flat sawn maple in the centre, laminated together. This provides a much stronger neck and have less tendency to warp because the different forces of the neck woods counteract each other. How detailed they go into this on the lower end necks I don't know.

depends what u play...
depends how u like your neck profile also...
ibanez wizard necks are a bit flat to me....
i rather save money for a mh-50... my friend has one.. very nice...

and for me, i dun fancy the H-S-H layout of ibanez..
cause the middle pup always tend to be so high...
i like to dig into the strings.... i always hit that pup...
and ibanez edge pro not so good also compared to licenced floyd rose although it may require some careful maintanence

Thanks for the replies everyone, but I dont think there is a left-handed model for the SZ series or the MH-50. Bentley's said they will contact Ibanez's Japan headquarters to confirm if that model is still in production. If there is stock, they'll try to rush it for Bentley's September/October shipments. If they cant make it, i gotta wait till next year. IF that happens, are there any other places where i can place Ibanez orders?

This post has been edited by Clavicus: Sep 1 2006, 02:21 PM

i believe you got the name of the bridge wrong here. the RG370DXL has an Edge III.
the Edge Pro is the top of the line bridge Ibanez has to offer now in their newer guitars, which is made in Japan by Gotoh, and it IS a licensed floyd. Whether the Original Floyd Rose, or Gotoh licensed Floyd Rose, or original Edge, or the LoPro Edge or the Edge Pro is better, it's all down to different personal preferences.

Take the ibanez. LTD's not worth the money.

yup..ibanez's a better choice..ltd overpriced in m'sia

Wow..... a guy with an ESP pic recommending an Ibanez over the ESP......
I would recommend the Ibanez too..... although the Middle Single coil might not get much use, the built quality is much much better compared to the crap LTD puts out now adays.

the ibanez has to be ordered from indonesia?
where is it made?
the ltd is made in indonesia right?

as for HH or HSH pickup, the middle S pickup always gets in the way for metal.
A LOT of players actually drop the middle pickup height to the lowest possible so it doesnt interfere.
even ritchie blackmore's strat has a dummy middle coil for that reason.

as for 3 piece vs 1 piece necks.
well, there are cases of 3 piece necks warping over time, as the individual pieces somehow shrink or expand differently.
and i've seen quite a few high end ibanez rg's from the late 80s with warped necks.

anyway, the RG370 is the only lefty at your budget?
else i would take the RG320 instead with HH, then you can split them to get single coil sounds.

Acctually, the RG370 kinda off budget, I was originally intending to buy a Yamaha RGX121ZL. Its a kinda long story, but anyways, Bentley's responded. Sadly, their supplier demands for a minimum quality, so the deal was canceled. Most prolly my mom will try to get a friend from SG to get it from a shop over there (it's on display) and bring it back. And yeah, both are manufactured in Indonesia. BTW, a review i read on the Net says that the single coil gives more versatality. Any comments on this please?

This post has been edited by Clavicus: Sep 1 2006, 06:19 PM

that yamaha seems more decent.
cept it doesnt have a double locking trem, but it does have an alder body and 3 a side headstock.

A demonstrator perfomed on the right handed model there, and to tell the truth, i wasnt really impressed with its sound. He had it plugged into a rather big amp with digital controls and stuff. But he rocks tho. What's the diffrence between the Yamaha and Ibanez? Most of the specs looks the same to me. Enlighten me?

This post has been edited by Clavicus: Sep 1 2006, 06:23 PM

main point is the ibanez has double locking trem.
for a beginner, you're gonna get very irritated at it.

but double trem more fun...
and i think alot of us hate the middle pup arrangement of ibanez..
i dman hate it...

I wouldn't say hate it..... but just don't find a use..... yet.
Heck.... I'm installing a complete set of Seymore's in my Strat..... middle pick-up included.

ffs... go try them out and then decide... NV buy a guitar without trying it... unless you're not buying it entirely for playing purposes

careful not to let the amps full you... try it the gats out on an amp similar to the one u gonna get

seriously.... TRY THEM OUT.. there aint many left handed guitars for sale most of the time anyway (knows from personal experience )