First electric guitar: Ibanez Gio GRG140 or rather Yamaha Pacifica 212?

[Master Mi]

A little question for the guitarists and electric guitar experts here...

I would like to buy my first electric guitar in the foreseeable future (around spring 2024) and had already found my real favorite with the Japanese Yamaha Pacifica 212...

... until I stumbled upon the Ibanez electric guitars (also a well known Japanese electric guitar series with a really cool, stylish design), which really appeal to me from the design and have a really heavy sound, rather so fender-typical sound profile for racy leads and loose, funky chords - while the Yamaha-Pacifica models rather have a warmer, full sound suitable for strong, massive leads without large accompanying instruments or for powerful, soulful chords.

With the guitar's internal controls as well as the downstream amp settings and EQ settings, you can of course make pretty much anything your heart desires in terms of sound - so for me it's more important that the basic sound, which is generated primarily via the pickups and guitar materials, doesn't sound somehow fuzzy, washed out, dissonant or off, as is often the case with some entry-level electric guitars in the far lower price ranges.

That is also one of the many reasons why I absolutely favor a Japanese electric guitar model.
There you usually have solid top technology, durability and a decent amount of kaizen-like perfection.
And in contrast to many Western models, you get the most for your hard-earned money.

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Here are the two models with the associated data and listening samples at various settings, which could come with me in the shortlist:

1) Ibanez Gio GRG140 with the ultra-stylish design in white
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https://www.thomann.de/gb/ibanez_grg140_wh.htm

or

2) Yamaha Pacifica 212 in translucent black (a bit more expensive, but very pleasing sound)
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https://www.thomann.de/gb/yamaha_pacifica_212v_fm_tbl.htm

...
 

I don't want to rule out the possibility of buying the other model at some point in the future in order to use both sound characteristics for specific music projects or combine them with each other.
But basically I want to first learn to play on a rock solid, flawless and yet affordable electric guitar.

...

My general idea was to feed the electric guitar signal directly into my DAW Samplitude Pro X4 Suite via the audio interface (in my case the Steinberg UR44 from Yamaha) for later recordings and then shape the exact guitar sound individually with the guitar and bass amp plugin Vandal as I need it for the particular recording - just like the person did in this case here:
 

...

But since this will be my first guitar, I will have to learn how to play it properly.

And that's guaranteed to take a few years, even though I'm already somewhat familiar with how guitars are played through basic theoretical music and instrument knowledge or using guitar VSTis for composing my soundtracks and remixes.

I've also played a bit on an electric guitar and bass in the music store - and that was really fun.

I think that the fluent coordination of the fingering techniques will be the biggest sack of work.

...

It's possible that the whole thing could drag on for a while, since it could be possible that I'm going to crush a couple of sneaky superiors of my company in some real fights - and that could be accompanied by my own dismissal and smaller financial dry spell maybe.
But somehow I don't really feel like tolerating such kind of superiors any longer, who obviously had a big share in the fact that a few of the more sympathetic colleagues were spontaneously dismissed or already left of their own accord, and who, apart from racist statements, Nazi-speak, gossip, insults, humiliation, gloating over dismissal of several colleages, bullying and psychological mobbing of especially friendly, sympathetic employees (they even picked on a really nice apprentice who breaked out in tears after she had been informed of her sudden dismissal - until I stopped their nasty bitch 'n' snitch talk into some very long hours of deadly silence after incidentally bringing up a story from my past, where I threatened a superior with force), shone above all through standing around, gossiping and having their little parties during working time - stuff like that.

I would kinda break my heart and irritate my sense of justice seeing these little suckers getting away with all this or even grinning towards me with their smug but still overrated and not-always-so-safe-as-they-think "as-superiors-we-can-do-as-we-please" attitude.
According to my very own full contact fighting experiences on the street, smug people like these don't even smile anymore after a hard knee strike hits their face and they literally kiss 'n' bleed the streets.

But that's a completely different story and with a little luck it might even be a juicy inspiration for another soundtrack.

...

Nevertheless, I still wanted to get some feedback from guitarists and connoisseurs about the electric guitars in advance, so I can make a solid decision about buying my first electric guitar in due time. ))

Edited September 16 by Master Mi

[Nase]

hey mi, not reading all that right now, but fyi pacifica was my first guitar in 2001ish. my dad had bought it for himself in midlife crisis, didn't end up playing it, so i got it set up for lefty a year later.

i loved it. i'm not a guitar pro at all but it served me very well. my second guitar was an epiphone les paul, because they were supposedly epic for hard rock, metal and stuff...

well, the sustain clearly was better than the pacifica, but i never fell in love with it the same way.

i painted a lot of stuff on the pacifica's pick guard and made it sorta grimey (my guitar teach hated it, haha.)

painted a lot of cell structures on it and dubbed it "cellular guitar".

i think it's the only guitar i had i ever really loved. but well, most of my learning on guitar happened in the first two years, i got decent very fast through obsession, and when i got to know sequencers in 2004 that quickly faded.

can't really vouch for its quality objectively. just a well priced guitar that's perfect for beginners, if it's anything like what they sold 20 years ago. it's probably a bit better now, right??

yamaha is kinda no name generic but decent quality, and you can make it your own. i did it with eddings and such

ibanez is a name that rings a little more. like, satriani or steve vai. haha. but what is that worth for entry models.

idk i'd guess they're both good.

the sustain on the pacifica 2000ish model definitely was pretty poor, that's one objective thing i can say. idk if it's better today. but i didn't care about perfect lead sound so much. in all honesty the pacifica would've served me well for anything i ever did.

i sold it on the street for like 30 bucks in 2016, while giving up my apartment to travel. that was stupid. i shoulda kept that guitar.

Edited November 26, 2023 by Nase

[Master Mi]

@Nase

Thanks for sharing your information and experiences. ))

I guess I've already made a decision.
If I take all the essentials into consideration - especially the assumed quality, the sound and sound stability in different playing styles and articulations, the pickups and possibilities of internal sound control and then the really stylish design - my choice will most likely be the Ibanez GRG140.

I really fell in love with sound signature of this Japanese masterpiece:
 

But I will still wait a few months for saving some money without scratching my minimum reserve.
I just have spend further 300 bucks (pretty annoying, I know) for a huge set of robust, durable, water-repellent workwear for winter service 'cause I don't want to freeze my ass and have at least some fun in the snowy nights.

But with the hefty winter service surcharges of just under 20% to around 50% (depending on whether night work or work on Sundays or public holidays is involved in addition to the simple winter service surcharge) on top of the already decent hourly wage, the money for the electric guitar should be recouped quite quickly.

...

Besides, no superiors were harmed or used as punching bags in this company.

Maybe I just pissed them off so much, or those nutty gossips were just scared that they'd catch a good knockout punch if they don't behave, that they just sent me back to the building sites.
Luckily, it was actually totally in my interest, because the workers and supervisors there aren't quite so bitchy 'n' scratchy - and I can snore the night away for a good hour longer.

Guess the magical trio of nasty supervisors consisting of the cold witch, the prickly besom and the way too warm gossip gay lord won't be bothering me for a while. ))

[Master Mi]

Ibanez Gio GRG140-WH - finest Japanese electric guitar technology with flawless sound, solid build quality, nice features and a really stylish design
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I kept putting it off, but in August 2024 I finally got down to business, ordered the long-awaited electric guitar from a well-known music store in my hometown - and in the last days of August this year, the extremely hot Japanese baby finally arrived at my home.

Of course, my eyes lit up like those of a child who gets to celebrate his birthday, Christmas and New Year's Eve in one go.



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The Ibanez Gio GRG140 offers the following core features:
- volume pot (to control the volume or to create volume-based effects such as tremolos or swells)
- tone pot (for controlling the tone color from icy cutting to comfortably warm, full sounds or for creating wah-wah effects based on them)
- T102 tremolo system with tremolo lever (should actually be called a vibrato or pitch system or lever, as this allows you to influence the pitch of a played string by changing the string tension and to create really cool electric guitar effects)
- 2 Infinity single-coil pickups (for cutting, treble-heavy sounds)
- 1 Infinity humbucker pickup (for powerful, warm and voluminous sounds)
- 5-way pickup switch for controlling individual and combined pickups according to the following switching behavior from neck to bridge pickup:
1st stage >>> 1st single coil
2nd stage >>> 1st + 2nd single coil
3rd stage >>> 2nd single coil
4th stage >>> 2nd single coil + upper coil of the humbucker pickup
5th stage >>> both coils of the humbucker pickup

Further features of this electric guitar can be found here under this link:
https://www.thomann.co.uk/ibanez_grg140_wh.htm

...

If you're interested in the background and history of Ibanez guitars, or if you're wondering why a Japanese company chose this rather Spanish-sounding name for its world-famous acoustic and electric guitars, you can take a look at this Wikipedia link here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibanez

…

As this is my first electric guitar, I naturally read through the instructions and notes on operation, care etc. first.

And since I had already practiced using my Rode NT1 studio microphone via my audio interface and my DAW, connecting the electric guitar (which can be connected to the audio interface via the Hi-Z input with the higher electrical resistance) was no big deal.

I made a few settings in the DAW and added my guitar amp plug-in Vandal to the corresponding track and after a few more settings I was able to get some nice 'n' smooth clean electric guitar sounds as well as heavier leads out of it, depending on the settings in the amp plug-in.

Tuning the guitar using the integrated tuner in my DAW Samplitude Pro X4 Suite was also completely uncomplicated, quick and precise.

Nevertheless, I still have to learn how to play and master such a stringed instrument properly over the years.

However, as I already had some previous knowledge of electric guitars and had also written the one or other remix composition with electric guitar VSTis over many years, after a few hours I was already able to play my first small melody with various playing techniques such as legato, hammer-ons, pull-offs and slides, alternating between the index and ring fingers on the fretboard and using my right hand to strum the strings.

However, I was still unable to play a beautifully shaped vibrato in the first few hours of playing with my raw beginner skills.

But maybe I'll let you hear something from my first beginner lessons in a while.

…

The most difficult task so far in dealing with my first electric guitar was - no kidding - removing the protective adhesive foil from the pickguard without leaving pieces of foil sticking under the pots, which then make such annoying rustling and crackling noises when turned.

I hadn't expected such obstacles - it's probably like the idiot test for electric guitar beginners.

I watched a few tutorials on how to remove the foil as completely as possible, with the useful advice that you can sometimes unscrew the pots or, in the case of my guitar model, remove them straight away.

Fortunately, I had bought some electric guitar accessories some time beforehand (see utensils in the small box on the right), including various picks of different shapes and degrees of hardness, guitar sliders made of different materials with different sound characteristics and some fingerpicks, which all can be used to implement additional playing techniques and create versatile sounds.

I then used the finger picks to carefully lever up and remove the pots all the way around, remove the last remnants of the foil and replace the pots in a uniform position.

…

However, I haven't yet built the planned guitar holder construction for the door in front of my home studio at my new home, which in retrospect I'm actually quite happy about, as I can now take proper measurements with the electric guitar on site.

That will certainly take a few more weeks before I even get around to it.
But when it does, it should be good.

I had an extremely suitable electric guitar holder with movable brackets and integrated stoppers at the ends (see right-hand side of the picture) to prevent the electric guitar from accidentally slipping out, which I would like to install in the planned wooden construction for the door, delivered directly to my home together with the electric guitar.
The local music store Musikhaus Korn in Dresden's Neustadt district also made the delivery of the goods very easy, quick and relaxed.

In addition to the original manufacturer's product packaging, the delivery also arrived in additional, very robust packaging made of fairly thick cardboard.

…

Now I basically just have to learn to play the electric guitar professionally.

And somehow I'm really looking forward to it, especially as the next short vacation is just around the corner.

But first comes the work and then the pleasure (or maybe a healthy mix of both).

...

If everything goes well and I practise diligently, there could be another little rock star here in 5 years' time. ))

Edited September 16 by Master Mi

[Master Mi]

Over-door construction with electric guitar mount
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This is the electric guitar holder construction for a door that I designed and built during my recent vacation.
It's basically the side view of the raw construction, which is lying on the floor here and which will be painted a nice matt white by a master painter in the next few days.



...

The main reason for building such a construction was that I had slightly different spatial conditions regarding my home studio after moving into my new apartment a few years ago - conditions that were actually quite advantageous after a lot of space planning.

And in the new apartment of my cooperative housing association, I wanted the home studio to be in the largest room, the living room, again - especially to ensure the best possible sound propagation in terms of optimal music enjoyment and the best possible mixing potential.

The living rooms in both apartments were even similar in size (about 3.5 to 4 meters wide and about 6 meters long).
But whereas in my old living room there was a pure wall in front of my home studio, in my new living room I have a door leading to the bedroom at this point.

I therefore had to move the studio a little way into the room to ensure an unobstructed passageway.
However, as there was still a small table with a printer, radio and an ocarina to the right of the studio (and I wanted to keep it that way), I simply blocked the door behind the small table as a permanent solution and effectively turned the two rooms into a continuous walk-through room.

The advantages of this are that the room now looks noticeably larger and more spacious, natural sunlight can shine into the room from both sides, you can also let your gaze wander into the distance from time to time and ventilation is better and quicker.
A larger room with additional sound-absorbing elements such as carpet, wallpaper and furniture is also guaranteed to absorb unwanted sound reflections.

And as the door to the right of my studio is now virtually permanently blocked, I thought to myself that there could hardly be anything more funky than having your very first electric guitar always visible and within easy reach just to the side of your studio so that you are always reminded to practise regularly.

On the other hand, this way you have avoided drilling holes in the wall and entrusted the functionally deprived door with an almost sacred, spiritual task.

...

Well, actually I would have preferred to buy a ready-made solution like the guitar holders from DoorJamz Guitar Hangers here:
https://www.guitarhang.com/

But as these are probably designed more for American doors with different shapes and dimensions, apparently can't be ordered completely in white and there have already been isolated reports from buyers where the mounting elements have discolored the guitar, there seemed to be no more obvious way for me than to get down to business myself, armed with a small arsenal of tools.

...

The planning and design of the construction, all the shopping and the building itself took me a good 2 days in total.

The construction turned out really well for the fact that I mostly finished it outside in the dark evening hours with a flashlight, as it would have rained heavily again in the following days.

I used whole, unglued wooden slats made from cheap, very light and easy-to-work spruce wood from the DIY store.

For the guitar mount, I opted for a white wall mount from K&M because not only do they look nice (they go really well with the white body of my electric guitar and my white door), they are also very sturdy and the flexible brackets, which fit almost all electric guitar models, have stoppers at the end to prevent the electric guitar from slipping out unintentionally:
https://www.thomann.co.uk/km_16280_white.htm

A good friend gave me the really helpful tip of using sleeve nuts for a good and secure screw connection of the guitar mount to the wooden construction.
These are available with flat heads, look pretty inconspicuous in terms of design, fit snugly and securely in a drilled hole in the wood and can be tightened very well from both sides in connection with an appropriate screw.

On the back of the wood (the opposite side to the K&M guitar holder, so to speak), I drilled a small recess in the wood with a Forstner bit so that the screw head and washer disappear into the wood and don't leave any unsightly marks on the door.

The rest of the construction consists largely of glued wooden elements screwed together with ordinary wood screws.

In terms of length, the construction (approx. 70 cm long) is designed so that the top part of the headstock of the electric guitar (which is almost 100 cm long) resting in the holder is almost flush with the upper edge of the door, while the lower part of the electric guitar on the body is once again really well supported and stabilized by the extended piece of wood and protected from excessive swinging or hitting against the door.

When the paintwork is finished, I will also attach a few furniture glides in the appropriate places to cushion the loads and forces exerted by the wooden construction on the door and the electric guitar.

...

I was actually thinking of doing the paintwork myself (for cost reasons alone, especially as painting the small wooden structure will cost another 150 euros).

But as I don't have much experience in painting (especially not in a way that would make it look really professional), I don't have a suitable space for painting (especially for this really unpredictable time of year), I didn't want to stock up on new equipment and tools for this one-off project that I would probably hardly ever use, and above all I didn't want to mess up my construction for a daring attempt at painting, I decided in the end that it would be better to shell out the cash.

As a result, I was able to do some final housework at the end of my vacation, such as cleaning the windows and my bike, which means I'll have a bit more free time again in the near future and, above all, a clear head to finally devote myself to the things I'm actually passionate about - namely composition, mixing and sound design. ))

[Master Mi]

The painting of the over-door construction for the electric guitar mount in a matt white is now finally finished.

And I'm really satisfied with the result. ))



...

The master painter who carried out the work and who had quoted me a price of 100 to 150 euros for the paintwork after my previous inquiry, subsequently even lowered the price to 90 euros.
But out of sheer joy at the good craftsmanship and as a small token of appreciation for a job that wasn't easy and that I might have ruined on my first attempt, I added another 20 euros and paid 110 euros.

I always do this with such commissioned works when I notice that people make a real effort with their work and obviously don't just see the quick buck, but have passionate dedication and high quality in their focus or even go about their work with a really blatant spirit of perfection.

Because it is precisely in superficial and lifeless societies, where the focus is increasingly shifting to quick money, profit maximization and other forms of selfishness, that quality, longevity, a genuine spirit of innovation and valuable content (both in products and services as well as in people themselves) often fall by the wayside.

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As you can see in this picture, I have already attached furniture glides in matching colors to the wooden construction, which should protect both the door and the electric guitar from scratches and other forms of accidental damage.