Ibanez 2355 sounds weak and "weird"

[pecktime]

Hi all,

I’ve been playing guitar for a year (jazz double bassist normally), and my Ibanez 2355 (ES-175 clone) sounds quite weak through an amp compared to my Epiphone 165 copy and ES-125.

I use a Princeton Reverb.

It’s a heavier guitar than the Epi and Gibson and not loud acoustically.

It’s half the volume of the Epiphone, and just sounds a bit naff.

Is this normal?

I thought the pickups in the 2355s were super strong and compressed sounding.

could the wiring be on the blink and is it something I can check at home?

i love the feel of it and it looks cool, but through an amp, it sounds pants.

cheers.

[Jimmy blue note]

You've got fresh strings on it?
Have you played with the heights of the pickups?
Are the strings that you're comparing them with, the ones on other guitars, the same?
Do you have a good clear string height (action)? Sometimes a very low action is easy to play but the tension and breakover at the bridge can stifle an attach and result in a different signal on the instrument.
Is is consistent across all strings? Individual pole piece adjustment can help you get a more even signal, pickup height will help with your overall signal.
All of the above can be played around with and do experiment with playing around with these.
Honestly, I've never found the Ibanez lawsuit clones (pre early 80's) to be particularly lively instruments. They looked great and they were very affordable but they were built on the heavy side and IMHO they weren't to the point of materials mastery that they achieved with early 80's Fujigen. I've always found their sound to be a bit "closed", lacking in the definition that set the high bar for them in the 80's.

It's not easy to know what's going on from your initial reaction but try these things at least. It's a place to start.
Good luck.

[Sigmund451]

+1

And check your neck relief as well. Chances of it being an electronic issue is probably slim. It sounds like setup. I bet its just off. Do some looking at sites for archtop setups. Its easy to get a guitar with a setup that is not optimal. Dont be afraid to mess with your sring height via the bridge. Those thumb screws are there for you. Raise it some retune and see what happens. And as stated above check your pickup height. My guess is that if it sounds "Weird" you are getting all sorts of dampening from frets. When you dont really know about setups keep in mind that high pitch fret buzz is easy to hear. Low string often just sound muted and unclear. If you are not getting clear pitch from the low notes and a muffling effect your truss rod and/or action is just not right. Low note fret issues arent clear rattles, they are muffling and a lack of pitch clarity. Before work on my guitar the low string notes didnt clearly make a defined pitch. I thought it was my old and bad ears but it was fret height and crowning issues.

I do my own work due to my location and it took a lot of time to learn whats going on. You arent going to break it. If you mess with the truss rod just dont do huge adjustments at once and dont crank down on it like its an engine block. Nuts can be a source of problems as well but save that until you do the obvious. Id start by raising the bridge and checking pickup height. Dont be afraid to raise it above where its comfortable. You need to diagnose the problem before being concerned with fine tuning. If those things dont help it may be time for a trip to a guitar doctor.

[icr]

One of the original pots in my Ibanez 2355 measured over 1meg.

I replaced everything with new 500k CTS pots and 0.022uf caps and there was an improvement in the sound.

[jim777]

One of the original pots in my Ibanez 2355 measured over 1meg.

I replaced everything with new 500k CTS pots and 0.022uf caps and there was an improvement in the sound.

Same. I replaced all the pots in my '78 FA-100 (same guitar, different name) and it fixed a lot of amplified issues.

[entresz]

"weak" and "weird" sound like it could even be wired out of phase.