Ibanez is a company that we can always count on to cater to the metal community. Whether it was the first ever production 7-string, or incredibly affordable exotic woods, they always seem to have some of the most intriguing offerings from year-to-year. Today, we’ll be looking at one of the latest entries to the Uppercut line, the RGAIX7U Iron Label!

Let’s see if this thing plays as good as it looks!

Features:

  • Ash Body w/ White Binding
  • Bound Ebony Fretboard
  • Nitro Wizard-7 3Pc Maple/Bubinga Neck
  • 24  Jumbo Frets 
  • Gibraltar Standard II Bridge
  • Bare Knuckle Aftermath Pickups
  • Cosmo Black Hardware
  • Gotoh MG-T Locking Machine Heads
  • 1x Vol/Coil Tap Switch/3-Way Pickup Selector
  • 15.7” Fretboard Radius
  • 25.5” Scale Length
  • Antique Brown Stained Finish

Just like the new RG6UCS Prestige, the RGAIX7U Iron Label is one of the 2017 additions to the Uppercut line of instruments from Ibanez. The uppercut line generally features aggressive looks, Ebony boards, and Bare Knuckle Pickups.

The RGAIX7U has some of the most aggressive looking aesthetic appointments we’ve seen from Ibanez and we are loving it. The Antique Brown Stain on Ash adds an aesthetic that you don’t usually get outside of custom shop instruments. Couple that with the Battleworn pickup covers and black hardware, and you end up with a very sweet looking axe.

The Gotoh MG-T Tuners were a really nice addition to get out of this guitar as you don’t get them too often on production models. They hold tuning very well and make string changing a breeze!

My only complaint about the specs of this guitar is the scale length. 25.5″ is generally fine, but I would have loved to see a 26-27″ scale option. It has an Ash body and BKP Aftermaths, so this guitar was clearly built for low tuning.

RGAIX7U

Tone:

Speaking of Ash….

This guitar has a solid Ash body which adds some really great tonal qualities to 7-string instruments for metal. Ash has a lot of open and porous grains that allow it to give off an almost “popping” sound when played (which is then accentuated by the Aftermath pickups). This intense attack and clarity make it extremely well suited for down-tuning and extended range guitars. The highs are almost airy, which makes it appeal to shredders as well.

Check out our Guide to Tonewoods to read more about ash!

The BKP Aftermath pickups are very hot and create some of the angriest tones out there. They offer a really percussive tone with a fast pick attack and can be used to create super tight chuggy parts or lead sounds that cut through extremely well. The clean sounds are really bright and metallic.

Overall, this guitar suits the metal genre extremely well and offers some unbelievable low-tuned clarity. The Aftermaths aren’t for every guitarist as they can be a bit harsh, but they certainly suit this guitar extremely well.

Build Quality:

Here we go again…Ibanez has once again seemingly upped the quality of the Iron Label line by releasing guitars that completely surprised us again.

The fretwork was super clean and smooth, as was the neck joint. The bridge is super comfy and holds tuning very well with the help of the tuners. The electronics were really clean as well!

There was a bit of scraped binding on the headstock that caught my eye, but nothing I would be too upset about.

Final Verdict:

The Ibanez RGAIX7U  brought some custom-shop elements to the table at a very attractive price point. Bare Knuckle Pickups, Antique Stained Ash, Ebony fretboard, and amazing tonal qualities all stand out as reasons you should buy this guitar.

It’s not for the faint of heart, but if you are looking for aggression in the looks and tone, you found it here!

8-8-9

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This article was written by Zac Buras, our editor located in Louisiana

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