Jackson JS32 Dinky AH Neon Orange

I was recently sent a piece of music to write some guitar parts for and decided for fun to use a real 80s sounding metal sound (on my steinberger I bought from Thomann many years ago) then decided if I have to perform this live, I need a guitar that looks the part as well as sounds right.

Back in the 80s I owned a Charvel series 4 which I wish I’d kept so decided to buy a cheap pointy-headed super-strat that was as close ti my old charvel as I could find. The YouTube reviews on this model were very positive and I spent months trying to find a Pavo purple one but had no luck so finally pulled the trigger on neon orange.

I have to say I’m glad I did, it’s a very eye catching colour and when I do play this live I’ll be easy to see!

If you’ve never owned this type of guitar it’s worth noting there are practical issues to consider with a double-locking floyd rose trem system. I’ve just remembered how long it can take to get it in tune and I’m dreading my first full string change but I knew what I was getting into.

The trem system is very smooth the pups are high enough gain to easily pull off screaming harmonic dive-bombs. The factory set up was ok but I think I can get the action lower. I’ve dropped it a few turns and no fret buzz yet.

The other thing I loved about my old charvel was the slim unvarnished neck. This model has that and it feels so much nicer.

For me I’d say the quality is almost as good but we’ll see how it is over time. This is a cheap Chinese made guitar not a US custom shop model but it’s still great value and I can see why I’ve had so much trouble finding one.

Not too sure about the amaranth fretboard. Never had one before but so far no complaints. I can feel a ridge on some of the shark fin inlays but again this isn’t a top end guitar.

Conclusion.. if you’re looking for a good entry level shredder either because you’re a new guitarist or like me, have a nice collection of guitars and just want something fun and cool looking that reminds you of the 80s, this has it all. Pointy headstock, shark fin inlays, double licking floyd rose, twin humbuckers, slim unvarnished neck, compound fret radius, blindingly bright paint job.

Can’t wait to see how the audience react when I get it on stage in a couple of weeks…

Une Jackson avec "floyd rose" à 300 Euros, il ne faut pas s'attendre à un miracle, et Il n'y en a pas. Les finitions sont approximatives et surtout le floyd sous licence est de très très mauvaise qualité (pour ma part changé de suite). Le son des micros est correct pour le prix (pour jouer du métal), mais il serait souhaitable de les changer à terme. Sinon la guitare est honnête une fois les frettes adoucies sur les bords et le manche réglé. C'est au final une guitare de complément à ne surtout pas acheter pour un débutant qui serait perdu et ne serait pas régler la guitare. En conclusion, Il vaut mieux se tourner vers la série X (voire Pro) si on veut avoir une guitare relativement bon marché, car entre changer le floyd et changer les micros, le différence de prix est dépassée.

The Good
- it sounds really, really great
- handles great, feels small and nimble, really comfortable to hold
- plays great, the frets are super buttery, it takes no effort to bend and vibrato, the neck satin finish is real smooth
- the humbuckers do a fantastic job, both on clean and distortion, and offer quite a broad range
- very versatile sound, you can play almost anything on this, from blues to doom metal (and that's even without taking pedals into account)
- looks fantastic, the orange is really hi-vis, and fairly unique a colour choice

The Bad & The Ugly
- I'm having issues placing the whammy bar in its lodging, no big deal as I don't really whammy much: it just won't slide in
- some manufacturing details are quite symptomatic of the low-budget: small paint smudges, plates fitting is meh, nut width is slightly shorter than neck width
- the nut has some really sharp edges/angles towards the neck, makes it uncomfortable at times to hold certain positions

All in all, it's a real good guitar at a really good price. It's a great instrument for both beginners and experienced players. I'm personally having a lot of fun of it (coming from a Strat), especially playing some fat dirty riffs.