Show Full Spec Comparison
Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror | X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS | |
---|---|---|
General | ||
Brand: | Jackson | Jackson |
Year: | 2024 | 2018 |
Configuration: | HH | HH |
Strings: | 6 | 7 |
Made in: | China | Indonesia |
Series: | Pro Plus | X |
Colors: | White | Blue Burst |
Left-Handed Version: | No | No |
Body | ||
Type: | Solid Body | Solid Body |
Body Material: | Okoume | Poplar |
Bridge: | Floyd Rose 1000 Series Double-Locking Tremolo (Recessed) | Staggered Individual Saddles |
Neck | ||
Neck Joint: | Neck-Through | Neck-Through |
Tuners: | Jackson Sealed Die-Cast | Jackson Sealed Die-Cast |
Fretboard: | Ebony | Laurel |
Neck Material: | 3-Piece Maple/Walnut/Maple | Maple |
Decoration: | Pearloid Sharkfin | Offset Pearloid Dot |
Scale Size: | 25.5" | 27" to 25.5" |
Shape: | Jackson Standard | Jackson Standard |
Thickness: | 1st Fret: 0.79'' (20.1mm) - 12th Fret: 0.85'' (21.6mm) | 1st Fret: 0.79'' (20.1mm) - 12th Fret: 0.85'' (21.6mm) |
Frets: | 24 Jumbo Stainless Steel | 24 Jumbo Nickel Silver |
Fretboard Radius: | 12" to 16" | 12" to 16" |
Nut: | Locking | Plastic |
Nut Width: | 42.9mm (1.688'') | 44.5mm (1.75'') |
Electronics | ||
Bridge Pickups: | Seymour Duncan Distortion TB-6 (Humbucker / Passive) | Jackson Uncovered 7-String Blade Humbucking (Humbucker / Passive) |
Middle Pickup: | ||
Neck Pickup: | Seymour Duncan Distortion SH-6N (Humbucker / Passive) | Jackson Uncovered 7-String Blade Humbucking (Humbucker / Passive) |
Switch: | 5 Way | 3 Way |
Knobs: | Speed | Dome |
Pickup Mods: | None | None |
Volume Controls: | 1 | 1 |
Tone Controls: | 1 | 1 |
Hardware | ||
Strap Lock: | Yes | No |
Hardware Color: | Black & Chrome | Black |
Show Diagrams Comparison
Reasons to Get
Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror over X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS
Reasons to Get
Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS over Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror
Other Key Differences
Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror vs X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS
Shared Features
Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror vs X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS
Common Strengths
- Neck-Through Build
- Compound Radius Fretboard
Common Weaknesses
- Pickup Alter Switch/Knob
- Weight Relief
- Stays in Tune (Evertune)
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Price History Comparison
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Hand Size Comfortability
And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror favors large hands more than the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS. But it's still more comfortable for people with small hands, as you can see in the score meter below.
Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror:
Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS:
Beginner Friendliness
The Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS meets 6 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror meets only 4. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players.
New Player Friendliness
Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror- Comfortable shape
- Comfortable fretboard
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Locking tuners
- Easy-to-use bridge
New Player Friendliness
Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Comfortable fretboard
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Comfortable neck
- Short scale
- Locking tuners
Sound Quality Comparison
The wood used in an electric guitar or bass is not as important to determine the final tone. However, some people prefer specific wood types, so we'll take a look at those first. Then, we'll take a look at the electronics to determine the versatility and sound quality of each instrument.
Woods Used in Both
Maple is one of the most popular necks for good reasons. It is a strong wood that is relatively cheap to make and looks beautiful. The highest quality maple is the hardest that comes from North America. Find out more about Maple.
Woods Used in the Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror
Ebony is a high-end wood, so it is not cheap. It's only used for fretboards because it's also very heavy. It does an excellent job as a durable material while looking elegant. Find out more about Ebony.
Okoume is an affordable wood and one of the first to replace Mahogany when the prohibitions started. It's generally softer than Mahogany and the tone has warmer lows.
Woods Used in the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS
There are many types of Laurel, but East Indian is the most common for guitar building. Its color can vary from dark to light brown with black lines. Many people find its tonality similar to Rosewood, which favors the warmer frequencies. Find out more about Laurel.
Poplar is a cheaper and heavier alternative to Alder wood. It terms of tone, it emphasizes the low-end and has cutting mids. It's relatively soft compared to most body woods. Find out more about Poplar.
Winner: Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror.
Pickup Configuration
Both pickup configurations are HH. Double Humbucker (HH) is the choice for people who want a fuller, more round sound with tons of mids and lows. Humbuckers also get rid of the hum noise that plague single-coil pickups. They can work out for almost any genre going from Djent to even Jazz.
Pickups Quality
The Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror has pickups from a more specialized brand than the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS. Its pickups should simply give you a better, fuller sound, although it all depends on what type of music you're going to play. We recommend these pickups for Heavy Metal and similar genres.
You can purchase similar pickups to the Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror's and use them on any guitar:
Both use Passive pickups. This is what's used for most music genres. They have a regular output and will serve you for both high-gain and clean tones. The alternative (Active pickups) offer a higher output that is mostly used for heavy music.
Winner: Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror.
Versatility Comparison
Some instruments offer you more ways to explore your creativity than others. Below you'll find how both compare when it comes to versatility.
Switch Options
The Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror gives you 5 switch options while the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS gives you 3. This means that the Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve
Neither of them come with some kind of coil split or pickup mod option. This makes both lacking in terms of versatility.
When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.
Winner: Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror.
Final Sound Quality Scores
Build Quality Comparison
When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror compares to the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror is built in China while the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS is made in Indonesia.
China has a bad reputation when it comes to building quality. However, times have changed and now respectable brands use China's cheap labor to build good instruments for a lower price. Don't discount a guitar only because it was built in China, but also expect more quality from countries like Korea.
Indonesia is becoming the most popular country for guitar building because they can make good instruments for a low price. Some people think that they're 'the new China' when it comes to build quality. But the truth is that Indonesian guitars are more consistent, although Chinese quality has improved a lot in the last few years.
Winner: Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS
Nut Material
If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.
The Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror has a Locking nut. Instead of a regular nut, this guitar has a locking system that will lock down the strings at the nut, preventing it from getting out of tune. It removes one of the disadvantages of tremolo bridges, tune stability.
On the other hand, the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS comes with a Plastic nut. This is a low-quality nut that you might want to consider upgrading soon. Bone and TUSQ nuts are the best for guitars with a fixed or simple tremolo bridge.
Winner: Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror.
Fret Material
Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.
In this comparison, the Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror is the only one that has stainless steel frets. These frets will basically last for the entire life of the guitar. They will never need polishing nor replacement. And not only that, but some people also notice that bending and vibratos are much easier to perform when they upgrade to stainless steel.
Winner: Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror.
Bridge
The perfect bridge for you will depend on your playstyle because they all have advantages and disadvantages. However, some bridges are more expensive—like Floyd Roses and Evertunes—and thus add more value to a guitar.
The Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror's brige is a Floyd Rose. This is a double-locking bridge system that allows you to perform techniques like dive bombs and pinch harmonics. The locking nut allows your guitar to stay in tune even after the most intense tremolo usage. The disadvantage is that it takes more work to change the strings and set up everything correctly.
On the other hand, the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS's is a Fixed. It's a simple bridge that is very beginner-friendly since it doesn't require any set-up. You can swap strings easily. It might also give more sustain since it doesn't have complex moving parts that make the strings lose vibration. However, it doesn't have the same versatility as a tremolo bridge.
Since we need to be objective, the most expensive type of bridge will be the winner of this section. In the end, this doesn't matter if you're not going to use the bridge for its original purpose, so choose the bridge that fits your playing style better.
Winner: Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror.
Tuners
Both come with regular tuners. Both come with Jackson Sealed Die-Cast.
Winner: Tie.
Neck Joint
Contrary to popular belief, the difference in sustain and tone that some neck joints give to a guitar is simply unperceivable—if they're all well built. However, some of them do have advantages over the others.
Both have a Neck-Through neck joint. This neck is a lot more resistant and lets builders give the neck joint a more comfortable shape for soloing at the upper frets. The disadvantage is that they're more expensive and that if you damage your neck, you can't simply replace it like with bolt-on necks.
Winner: Tie.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror
- Stainless Steel Frets
- Expensive Wood
- Locking Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Neck-Through Build
- Luminescent Inlay
- Tremolo
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Strap Lock
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Weight Relief
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Retainer Bar
Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS
- Neck-Through Build
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in Indonesia
- No Expensive Woods
- No High-Quality Nut
- No Top Brand Pickups
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Final Build Quality Scores
Playability Comparison
Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.
Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.
Nut Width
The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS has the wider nut with 44.5mm (1.75'') vs 42.9mm (1.688''). This is a 1.6mm (0.062'') difference
This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.
Scale Length
The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.
In this case, the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS features a multi-scale of 27" to 25.5" while the Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror has a regular scale of 25.5".
A multi-scale fingerboard incorporates two scale lengths at the same time. This is present in some instruments with long scale to give a different tension to the lower strings than the higher strings. The thickest strings need more tension to avoid fret buzz (especially when tuned low), so the scale is longer for these strings, while the thinnest strings will need less tension (because they have a lower gauge), so they have a shorter scale to reduce stiffness for bends.
It can feel awkward if you've never played a multi-scale because the frets will have more separation for the higher strings, but a lot of people love their versatility.
On the other hand, the Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror's 25.5" regular scale means it has a fixed scale for all the strings.This is the scale used in most Stratocasters. It's slightly longer than the typical 24.75'' size found in Les Pauls, and it's one of the main reasons why Stratocasters have such a bright sound in general. A longer scale also means that the strings will have higher tension. This will help you get lower action without suffering fret buzz, which will also be helpful when playing in lower tunings without having to increase your string gauge.
However, this also means that there will be more separation between frets, which can make it more difficult to play. Also, bending the strings will require more strengths due to the increased tension, but remember that a tremolo guitar will offset this difficulty.
Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.
Neck Profile
No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.
Both the Jackson Pro Plus Series Soloist SL2 Shattered Mirror and the Jackson X Series Soloist Arch Top SLATX7Q MS have a D-shaped neck. This is a thin and flat neck that is made for playing fast. If you prefer a neck that doesn't get in your way when soloing, this is the shape you should use. Guitarists that prefer to have a bit more grip won't like this type of neck.
Fretboard Radius
Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.
Both have a compound radius. This means both offer you the best craftsmanship when it comes to fretboard design. You'll have an arc to help you play chords close to the nut, while also having a flat design at the higher frets for faster soloing and easier bends.
Fret Size
Both have a Jumbo fret size. This is one of the tallest frets you can get. You won't feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings. It will give you the best sustain and all types of chords will be easier to play. However, you can end up changing the pitch of your notes if you press too hard, which is something people used to feeling the fretboard do when trying Jumbo frets for the first time.