If you’re looking for an Ibanez AF75 review, then you’ve found the right place.
When I started riffing on this beauty a few years ago, I almost couldn’t believe my ears. It sounded really nice. It’s no secret that I’m a guitar nut, and that I’ve been playing for years, but for some reason I’ve never owned a hollow body guitar. However, last weekend I had the pleasure of spending some quality time with this instrument again. And honestly, the Ibanez AF75 is still one of my favorite hollow body guitars.
Like some of you, I have a lot of opinions when it comes to hollow-body guitars. Sure, the sound is excellent, but does that really make up for the fact that your guitar can snap in the wind? Unlike other hollow electric guitars, the Ibanez AF75 is as durable as it is smooth, making it one of my recent top picks for electric guitars, period.
Once I started jamming with this piece, my sound dramatically improved – especially when I played blues and more jazzy stuff. No matter what type of music you play (ok, metal and hard rock excluded), you’ll be rocking out on the Ibanez AF75 in no time due to its excellent features and versatility in sound.
Keep reading this Ibanez AF75 review to see if this guitar is right for you.
About The Ibanez AF75
With a rich amber color and deep sound, the Ibanez AF75 is a premier hollow-bodied electric guitar. If you’re new to hollow-bodied guitars, they’re great because you don’t need an amp to create bold sounds; instead, the reverberation within the guitar body takes care of that to give you smooth, big sounds all on its own.
However, unlike other hollow-bodied electric guitars, the Ibanez AF75 boasts a sturdy body, so you won’t feel like you’ll snap or break it during intense rock-out sessions.
The Ibanez AF75 also has a shorter neck, which makes it easy for your hand during longer sessions, ensuring that it won’t cramp or become uncomfortable.
And due to its adjustable nature, you can use this guitar to play a wide variety of styles, like Blues, Jazz, and that classic rock that gained prominence in the 1950s through the 1970s.
As a result, the AF75 is an excellent choice for those who often switch up musical genres and like to play more than one vibe with one instrument. And, because of the sheer versatility you gain with this one instrument, the AF75 is an excellent bargain since it comes at such a reasonable price.
A Closer Look: What Makes The Ibanez AF75 So Good
The Ibanez AF75 is a remarkable instrument that produces an incredible sound for a cost-effective price. But what features enable it to have such a crisp, clean sound? Check out these features to learn more about why the Ibanez AF75 is such a standout guitar.
Classic Elite Pickups
Like other Ibanez guitar models, the AF75 also has Ibanez’s pickups to produce a rich sound.
Certainly, the most prominent aspect that gives the AF75 its versatility in sound is its classic elite pickups. The AF75’s pickups are made of ceramic magnets, which creates a sweet, crisp tone often found in many hollow-body guitars.
While some don’t like Ibanez’s pickups because they can sometimes lean a little too much into distortion, I think they produce a warm, intoxicating sound. And their adjustable nature lets you play anywhere from cleaner sounds to dirtier so that you can experiment with the whole range of Blues and Jazz.
All in all, the classic elite pickups are one of the factors that make the AF75 such a unique, versatile instrument and plays a large role in the instrument receiving such strong praise in this Ibanez AF75 review.
Rosewood Fretboard
Another significant factor in making the Ibanez AF75 such a standout instrument is its fretboard. Since the guitar is crafted with premium rosewood, the fingerboard is both smooth and durable. This makes it easy to riff and play for hours at a time without having your fingers slip, drag, or burn.
The fretboard has another element that sets it apart from its competitors: the board has 20 large-size frets. Most electric guitars have about 22, which means that the AF75’s frets are significantly larger, allowing you to play more quickly and easily.
This is especially helpful for beginner players who are still trying to find their footing, especially with more challenging riffs higher up on the fretboard.
Between the quality rosewood and the larger frets, the Ibanez AF75 enables you to rip out screaming solos with ease and grace.
Adjustable Floating Bridge
One of the ways the Ibanez AF75 can play a range of sounds is through its adjustable floating bridge. For those who don’t know, a floating bridge is the end piece where your strings run through.
By having this piece adjust, you can pull and push the strings mid-play to distort the tone. An adjustable floating bridge is excellent for riffing and soloing, especially while playing Blues. As a result, an adjustable floating bridge gives players much more customizability and freedom with their music.
The AF75s floating bridge and trapeze combination provides a light sound while also giving you great sustain and stability.
However, some players view an adjustable bridge as a drawback rather than a benefit. Some believe that an adjustable bridge can damage your guitar.
In my personal experience, I haven’t found that an adjustable bridge hurts the guitar; it seems as though the worst thing that can happen is you might end up breaking a string. The payoff is much better – it allows you to play around with different tones and styles during your song.
Short Neck
What sets the Ibanez AF75 apart from other electric guitars is that its neck is slightly shorter, allowing you to play for longer periods over many frets without having your hand cramp up.
Its smooth nyatoh Artcore AF set neck is extremely comfortable, and the tapering to the guitar’s neck allows a more manageable time sliding your hand up and down the guitar’s neck.
Additionally, the neck is both comfortable and speedy, which doesn’t have a lot of resistance, so you can move around the fret with ease.
Not only that, but it looks great, too. The fret and neck are crafted with a bound laurel fingerboard and pearl block inlays so that the neck looks as great as it plays.
Premium Body
It’s no secret that the hollow body creates a deeper sound. The Ibanez AF75 employs a traditional hollow body design to create prominent, bold tones.
But, the body looks as good as it sounds. With a linden top, back, and sides, the body offers classic hollow body sounds with tremendous aesthetic and visual appeal.
However, it is important to note some inherent flaws that come with this body. Some people don’t like the hollow body because it creates a lot of reverb while playing on stage, which means that you might get a lot of distortion playing back.
This is a common problem with hollow-body guitars, and as a result, this may not be the best choice for playing a set on stage with a lot of other instruments.
Final Thoughts
In short, the Ibanez AF75 is an incredible instrument. It’s great to purchase if you want to experiment with many different sounds and genres and is excellent for beginner players due to the large fret and easy neck.
If you like to play Jazz, Blues, or any music from the 50s to 70s, then you should absolutely consider the Ibanez AF75.
