While the history of Ibanez guitars goes all the way back to the early twentieth century, it was in the late 1950s that the company became the Ibanez we know today. Years of adding guitars to their catalog have given Ibanez one of the largest selections around, including a great range of semi-hollow and hollow body electric guitars. For classic rock and jazz, any musician can tell you that there is no substitute for the rich sounds of these instruments. Some of the newer additions to the Ibanez lineup are the Artcore series, first introduced in 2002. These guitars make great workmanship accessible to any guitarist, which has quickly made them the instrument of choice for blues, country, rock and jazz lovers everywhere. When you're looking for pure vintage-style look and sound, an Artcore guitar will deliver with impressive tone, sustain and reliably consistent tuning.
If you're looking for the ultimate Artcore guitar, look to the Expressionist series. Any jazz fan will likely recognize the custom Super 58 pickups on the Ibanez Artcore Expressionist guitars - they're the same pickups that George Benson, Pat Metheny and John Scofield chose for their own signature guitars. Their warm and balanced precision works for other genres as well, and it's the combination of those responsive pickups with the outstanding Artcore guitar body that makes the Expressionist series such great instruments.
The same Super 58 custom pickups are also found on the Artstar line, which are the flagship Ibanez hollow-body electric guitars. Heavily influenced by jazz, these instruments are distinguished by their bone nuts and ebony fretboards. Artstar guitars are premium jazz-boxes that set a high standard in hollow-body craftsmanship.
For the guitarist who wants the perfect cross between a jazzy hollow-body and a rocking solid-body electric, Ibanez also offers the Roadcore style guitar. Using a classic retro semi-hollow body design, a Roadcore gives you modern playability together with an authentic vintage sound that's perfect for classic rock. The round-profiled neck of the Roadcore is easy to handle, and its "Core-Tone" pickups are well-balanced, with good warmth and clarity together in one.
Although their heritage is in jazz and classic rock, Ibanez semi-hollow and hollow body electric guitars are ready to take on any style of music that you'd like to enrich with their distinctive vintage sound. Like all Ibanez guitars, they're well-crafted instruments that you can count on to perform well from the stage to the studio.
