Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET vs Ibanez JS1CR
Reasons to Get
Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET over Ibanez JS1CR
Reasons to Get
Ibanez JS1CR over Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET
Other Key Differences
Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET vs Ibanez JS1CR
Shared Features
Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET vs Ibanez JS1CR
Common Strengths
- Top Pickup Brand
- Expensive Wood
Common Weaknesses
- Weight Relief
- High-Quality Frets
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Strap Lock
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Table of Contents
Price History Comparison
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Which One is Better Overall?
After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that the Ibanez JS1CR is probably the better product overall with its final score of 76 compared to the Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET's 75 score, although not by a lot.
The Ibanez JS1CR wins when it comes to sound, build quality. On the other hand, the Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET has the upper hand when it comes to playability, value for the money.
If you got small hands, none of these instruments will make a big difference when it comes to comfortability.
Which One is Better for Beginners?
If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET is the better choice.
The Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET meets 5 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Ibanez JS1CR meets only 3. 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 Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET- Comfortable shape
- Locking tuners
- Comfortable fretboard
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Easy-to-use bridge
New Player Friendliness
Ibanez JS1CR- Comfortable shape
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Locking tuners
- Easy-to-use bridge
Nevertheless, when it comes to choosing an instrument, you should pick the one more compatible with your personal style. Still, below we'll try you to give you our results as objectively as it's possible to help you decide.
Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET Overview
- From Jackson's 2022 Artist Signature series
- Josh Smith Signature
- Made in South Korea
- 7 strings
- 27"'' scale
- 12" to 16" Fretboard Radius
- Alder body
- Caramelized Maple neck
- Ebony fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Bare Knuckle Impulse Humbucker (Humbucker/Passive)
- Neck pickup: Bare Knuckle Impulse Single-Coil (Single Coil/Passive)
- 2 volume and 0 tone Bell knobs
- 3-way Switch
- Evertune F7 Model bridge
- Jackson Standard Neck-Through neck
- 24 Jumbo frets
- Jackson Die-Cast Locking tuners
- Compare Specs >
Ibanez JS1CR Overview
- From Ibanez's 2019 JS series
- Joe Satriani Signature
- Made in Japan
- 6 strings
- 25.5"'' scale
- 10" Fretboard Radius
- Alder body
- 3pc Maple/Bubinga neck
- Rosewood fretboard
- Bridge pickup: DiMarzio Satchur8 (Humbucker/Passive)
- Neck pickup: Sustainiac (Humbucker/Passive)
- 1 volume and 1 tone Dome knobs
- 3-way Switch
- Edge tremolo bridge
- JS Bolt-On neck
- 24 Medium frets
- Gotoh machine heads tuners
- Compare Specs >
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.
Alder is the most popular wood that Fender uses in most of their guitars nowadays. Even though they say it's because of its balanced tone with an emphasis in the upper midrange, it probably is because it isn't too expensive, and it's also pretty lightweight—more than Mahogany. Find out more about Alder.
Woods Used in the Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET
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.
Woods Used in the Ibanez JS1CR
Rosewood is an almost purple-looking wood that is used mainly for fretboards since it's heavy, rare, and expensive. It's sometimes used on acoustic guitar bodies to create stronger warm tones. Find out more about Rosewood.
Winner: Tie.
Pickup Configuration
Both pickup configurations are HS. An HS configuration gives you a bridge pickup with a lot of output for playing distortion parts, but you'll also have the bright sound of a Tele or Strat neck pickup for your clean tones.
Pickups Quality
Both come with very good pickups from at least one of the specialized brands in the market. With pickups like these, you probably won't need an upgrade anytime soon.
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: Tie.
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
Both are equal when it comes to the pickup switching option.
Only the Ibanez JS1CR comes with some kind of pickup modification: Sustainer.
The pickups with Sustainer are able to recreate the 'feedback' you get when you hold your guitar near a speaker without muting the strings. This allows them to produce infinite sustain that you can use for as long as you want to create interest sounds and harmonics.
When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.
Winner: Ibanez JS1CR.
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 Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET compares to the Ibanez JS1CR.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET is built in South Korea while the Ibanez JS1CR is made in Japan.
South Korea was for many years the number one choice for mass-producing semi-premium guitars. They can build excellent guitars for a cheap price. Now, it's less common to find Korean guitars because Indonesia has proved capable of building guitars just as well, but likely for cheaper.
Japan has a long history of high-quality guitar building. Little has changed in terms of their manufacturing and quality control over the years. Many guitars made in this country can be compared—and even beat—others made in the US.
Winner: Ibanez JS1CR
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 Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET has 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.
On the other hand, the Ibanez JS1CR comes with 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.
Winner: Ibanez JS1CR.
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.
Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.
Winner: Tie.
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 Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET's brige is a Evertune. It will keep your guitar in tune and intonated until the next string swap. If you really like extremely subtle vibratos, this might not be the bridge for you because you won't be able to perform them as well. However, the fact that you won't need to tune your guitar is a huge advantage that many people will gladly pay the extra price for.
On the other hand, the Ibanez JS1CR's is a Edge. This is a double-locking tremolo system designed by Ibanez. It's a tremolo inspired by Floyd Roses but with its own design improvements, like a push-in arm, better-positioned fine-tuners for more right-hand comfortability, replaceable knife edges, and more mass for more sustain. These bridges offer tons of versatility, but they also require more work than simpler tremolos to set up.
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: Tie.
Tuners
The Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET has the best tuners of the two because they are locking tuners. They'll help to keep your guitar in tune because they allow you to tune it without wrapping the strings around the posts. This avoids variations in the tuning due to the strings changing position at the post after a bend. They come at the disadvantage of being slightly heavier than regular tuners. Also, it makes it a lot easier to restring.
Nevertheless, the Ibanez JS1CR has a locking nut, so it should have even better tune stability and doesn't need locking tuners.
Winner: Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET.
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.
The Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET has 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.
On the other hand, the Ibanez JS1CR comes with Bolt-On neck joint. This neck is joined to the body by 4 bolts that you can simply unscrew. This allows you to replace the neck or take it off for travel. It's the most common and cheapest way to build a guitar.
Winner: Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET
- Locking Tuners
- Expensive Wood
- Top Brand Pickups
- Neck-Through Build
- Stays in Tune (Evertune)
- Luminescent Inlay
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- Made in South Korea
- No High-Quality Nut
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Weight Relief
- No Tremolo
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Ibanez JS1CR
- Made in Japan
- Expensive Wood
- Locking Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Sustainer Pickups
- Tremolo
- Retainer Bar
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- 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 Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET has the wider nut with 47.6mm (1.875'') vs 43mm (1.693''). This is a 4.6mm (0.182'') difference
This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET, 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.
The Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET has the longest scale: 27". The Ibanez JS1CR is only 25.5" long. This is a 1.5'' (38.1mm) scale length difference.
This longer scale means that the strings need more tension to get in tune. This is good if you want to avoid fret buzz, which can happen when the strings are too loose and touch the frets while vibrating. This is especially important when playing in lower tunings. This will also let you reduce the gap between fretboard and strings (low action) to make them easier to press down. However, this higher tension will also make it harder to perform bends and vibratos as the strings will feel stiffer.
This also means that the frets have a longer separation between each other, so this will make it harder for people with smaller hands when playing some chord positions.
Another characteristic of a longer scale is that it makes the guitar sound 'snappier' or brighter. This is due to the extra separation between harmonics and overtones produced by the tension. This influences tone more than any other factor (except the pickups).
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.
In this case, both have different neck shapes:
The Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET has a D type of 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.
The Ibanez JS1CR, on the other hand, has a C neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.
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.
In this case, the Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET is the only one with a compound radius. This is a huge win because it will give you the best of both worlds: a more curved radius in the first few frets for chords, and flatter as you come closer to the body for soloing.
Hand Size Comfortability
Everyone has a different hand size, and that's why it's recommended to try a guitar before buying, even if others tell you that it's comfortable to play. However, we can know whether a guitar favors small or large hands just by knowing its exact measurements.
After taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that both in this comparison favor small hands .
Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET:
Ibanez JS1CR:
Fret Size
The Jackson Pro Series Signature Josh Smith Soloist SL7 ET has Jumbo frets, which should be taller than the Ibanez JS1CR's Medium frets.
Some people prefer taller frets because they result in more sustain since the strings get pressed cleanly without interference from the fretboard. However, if they're too tall—like Jumbo frets—, you might change the pitch of the strings accidentally if you press too hard because you won't be touching the fretboard with your fingers. This is also why some guitarists with a heavy grip prefer smaller frets. They like to feel the fingerboard to avoid pressing down too hard and getting out of pitch.
