Ibanez XPT700 Guitar Review

One of the more definite trends in recent years, since the dawn of now legendary bands like Metallica and Pantera, the metal genre has grown immensely in popularity. With that, those looking to imitate and make their own music within the genre has grown as well. Knowing this full well, Ibanez has come out with the XPT700. Let's take a closer look at it to see exactly what it has to offer.

Features: The body of the Ibanez XPT700 is made of mahogany, which is relatively uncommon among most instruments of this brand. The body style is different from most other Ibanez's as well, in that it is a four finned design very similar to Dimebag Darrell's Dean guitars. This is a strong deviation, but they pulled it off well. There are three finishes available with the XPT700, including Red Chameleon, Blue Chameleon, and Black. All three have a very rich and metallic look. They almost remind me of a old cherry wood: especially the Chameleon Red version. The neck is set into the guitar, and is made of five ply wood with alternating maple and walnut layers. The neck also has Ibanez's well known Wizard II design, which made its name with sleekness and playability. The fretboard is made of rosewood, and is bound. There are twenty four jumbo frets, and reverse sharktooth inlays pointed up instead of down. The bridge is of the name brand Edge III tremolo design, and the tuning heads are on the underside of the headstock, in the style of Jackson guitars. Electronically, the Ibanez XPT700 has two DiMarzio D Activator humbucking pickups and one volume and two tone control knobs.

Playability: The mahogany body of the Ibanez XPT700 is a little top heavy. This doesn't necessarily mean it is heavy itself, but it does tend to lean a bit, especially when you're playing sitting down. This, however, is the only real issue. The Wizard II neck is extremely playable and a real shredder's dream, and the deep double cutaways on the body allow for excellent high fret access.

Sound: These American made DiMarzio pickups do an excellent job with what they were designed for. Though they are passive, they scream much like active pickups. There are few guitars in this price range that sound better for metal.

Overall: If you're an experienced metal player looking to find a high quality guitar that caters well to your needs, the Ibanez XPT700 is a great choice. It sounds heavy as they come and plays as nice as they come. You can find the Ibanez XPT700 in music stores for about $700.