Ibanez JEM
The Ibanez JEM , short form JEM , is an electric guitar model from the Japanese musical instrument manufacturer Ibanez . The JEM is the signature model of the US guitar virtuoso Steve Vai . Due to its design, the Ibanez JEM belongs to the electric guitar class of the Superstrats .
Construction and equipment
Since its first appearance in the Ibanez catalog in 1987, JEM has undergone many changes due to Steve Vai's sometimes eccentric demands on the design and equipment of his signature instrument. A characteristic external feature of the JEM is the carrying handle - an ergonomically shaped hole in the body of the guitar ( English "Monkey Grip"; German: "Affengriff") by which the instrument can be transported. Other distinguishing marks are the striking inlaid (inlays) in the fingerboard . The fingerboards of the first JEMs were provided with the so-called "Disappearing Pyramid Inlay" (inlay "disappearing pyramid"), while the current models are decorated with the so-called "Vine" . The "V" in the abbreviation of the name (e.g. JEM 7 V ) indicates the type of inlay. The JEM is manufactured exclusively at the Fujigen plant in Japan.
The woods used for the body are either alder or linden , both of which are particularly light yet excellent tonewoods . The neck is made of maple and the fingerboard was made of ebony in the early years and now rosewood .
As pickups (English: "Pickups") "PAF Pro" and later the Steve Vai signature pickups "Evolution" and "The Breed" by " DiMarzio " were installed.
variants
The JEM is since their introduction for a number of innovations and highest sonic accuracy and excellent workmanship, also since 1987 almost every year will see a further development, or at least a different graphical design, including the "Swirl" -Lackierungen, the "Floral Pattern" ( "Flower pattern") with the pattern of Vais bedroom curtains or a completely mirrored version. While the original JEMs were initially not available without neon elements (lacquer or pickups in yellow, orange, pink or green), they are now also available in simple white or black. On the occasion of the millennium in 2000, Steve Vai mixed a small amount of his blood into a few paint pots. This color was used to give some copies of the JEM DNA special model, which is limited to 300 pieces, with a swirl finish.
The innovations included the HSH pickup configuration ( humbucker / single coil / humbucker), which enabled a new variety of sounds. Both the HSH configuration and a cutout under the tremolo were adopted by many guitar manufacturers and are now standard.
Other special models were the "JEM 10th Anniversary" from 1997 for the 10th anniversary of the JEM series, the "JEM 90HAM" (Hoshino Anniversary Model) from 1998 for the 90th anniversary of the Ibanez company and the "JEM 20th " from 2007 for the 20th anniversary of the JEM series. The body of the JEM 20th was made of transparent acrylic glass .
Type numbers
The type numbers of the JEM guitars are 777, 77 or 7. When this numbering system was introduced, higher numerical values initially stood for higher quality equipment of the models. In the meantime, these numbers are only used for identification, as all JEM from Japan production are at the same high level. The difference to this are the cheaper versions of the JEMs available since 1994 - the 555 and 505 series. The instruments in this series are manufactured in either South Korea or Indonesia and are available in white or black finishes. The differences lie in a cheaper tremolo ( Edge II and Edge III instead of Edge, Lo Pro Edge and Edge Pro ), a shortened "Vine" inlay from the 3rd to the 12th fret and in that the gaps between the frets in the higher layers from 21 to 24 frets are not “scalloped” . In 2009 a JEM without a tremolo system , the JEM 7 EAFX, was built for the first time . There is also a left-handed version of the JEM 7V , the JEM 7VL. In 1990 a seven-string version of the JEM came on the market, the Universe . The Universe did not have a monkey grip and the only inlays were the Disappearing Pyramid or Dot inlays. The Universe was replaced in 2014 by a real seven-string version, the JEM 7V7 . This corresponds in all details to a JEM 7V and only differs in the additional low B string. The high-quality JEM 7V7 from Japan is currently only available in white. The name Universe will continue to be used from 2014, but only as a cheaper version, the UV 70P (P for Premium) from Malaysia, which is only available in black with green applications.
literature
- Tony Bacon, Dave Hunter: Totally Guitar - the Definitive Guide.
Guitar encyclopedia, English. Backbeat Books, London 2004. ISBN 1-871547-81-4 - Guitar & Bass Special Ibanez, MM-Musik-Media-Verlag Cologne 2009.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Specification of the Ibanez JEM-DNA ( Memento from July 25, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) on the website jemsite.com (English)