Jackson RR24 FR H - Review and Comparison to LTD Alexi-600 

Thank you so much, I appreciate it immensely! 🙏

Thanks for the kind words man! :) Excited to see what model you ultimately chose!

I will! Thank you so much for subscribing and welcome :)

It’s definitely a valid reason, I can totally understand why this would be a no-go (it was for me for some years). Especially at almost 2k a guitar should be exactly how you want it to be. So are you looking at other models or brands, like the Edwards Alexis?

@@ChrisWeinhardt actually ive owned a few Edwards alexi models over the past couple years they were great guitars some of the highest quality guitars i have ever owned but never got on with them playing wise unfortunately but would like to try one again now that there back in production! but i was mainly interested in this rr24 model as i prefer the smaller and lighter body of the rhoads over alexi esp/Edwards shape having tried both models.

You’re very welcome, thanks for watching! :)

Same, I still love their stuff so much

Good to see you man, thanks for checking out the review!

🫰🏽

I agree, it’s a weird switch in terms of feeling for sure

I have to say that I really enjoy the Blackout in my Alexi-600 as well - and usually I’m a EMG dude. What RR24 did you get, a Pro Plus model?

@@ChrisWeinhardt I ended up getting the X model. I wish I had the money for the $4,000 version. I got the yellow beveled one just as an homage to Alexi.

It’s an amazing instrument yeah 🖤

Moin Paddy, danke für's Einschalten und die lieben Worte! Für mich besteht das Problem mit Boostern tatsächlich am ehesten, wenn ich direkt ins Interface aufnehme (in meinem Fall das Scarlett 18i20 2. Gen), da ich, wenn ich nicht aufpasse, viel zu schnell den Input durch variierende Anschlagsstärke überlade und das Signal zu schon auf dem Weg in die DAW clippe. Von daher lasse ich oftmals eine Menge Headroom beim aufnehmen und booste nachträglich den Input im Plugin, dass der "Amp" dann trotzdem wieder genug Signal bekommt und vernünftig arbeiten kann. Ich habe leider nur sehr wenig Erfahrung mit Kemper und Quad Cortex, bei meinem Helix Stomp XL halte ich es allerdings so, dass ich wirklich zuerst einen cleanen Signalpfad baue, dann den Boost an der Gitarre aktiviere und schaue, ob ich durch heftiges Anschlagen der Saiten schon den Sound zum Verzerren bringen kann. Falls ja, passe ich den Boost an der Klampfe entsprechend an, sodass ich weniger Output habe, der generelle Charakter von Pickup + Boost aber erhalten bleibt. Wenn das dann alles passt, bastel ich entsprechend am Signalpfad mit Pedals, Amps und IRs weiter. Ganz generell würde ich also sagen, dass das wichtigste ist immer darauf zu achten, ob mein ausgehendes Signal von der Gitarre nicht den Input von Modeler/Interface überlädt, um digitales Clipping zu vermeiden und ein möglichst sauberes Signal ankommt. Headroom ist bei digitalen Anwendungen echt immer das A und O, habe ich irgendwann schmerzlich festgestellt, nachdem irgendwann meinen Aufnahmen alle nur noch fürchterlich klingen, weil ich konstant mit zu lauten und geclippten Signalen gearbeitet habe. Ich hoffe, dass ich irgendwie helfen konnte! Gib gern Bescheid, ob du eine Verbesserung erreichen konntest! :)

Unfortunately I did not have the opportunity yet, but I’ll see what I can do!

How does the fingerboard on yours look, any cool streaking patterns as well? :)

@@ChrisWeinhardt it is totally black, which I love! Like an old ebony board off an made in USA Jackson. The nut is not really center, that‘s the only flaw

This was the limited Concept model, they might have already been discontinued already as I couldn’t find them on the Jackson website any longer

I understand where you’re coming from, the thin neck was something I needed to get used to as well. Did you get another guitar in the end?

@@ChrisWeinhardt I have an ESP SV, if I'm not mistaken, since 2016. That guitar is one of the ones that made me dream and learn the most. I love Bodom and Alexi's style. What I like the most about that guitar is the thick, sturdy neck, which gives me the feeling of having something that suits my hand better. I can keep my thumb further back, and the balance of strength between the fretboard and my fingers works better for me. However, the ESP Alexi, whether LTD or Edwards, all have the same problem from my point of view (just my personal opinion). Every single one l've tried had a 42mm nut with a 9" radius, which is totally wrong for any of those guitars. The ESP Alexi and the SV have a 12" radius and are not compound radius, while the LTD Alexi has a 14" radius. Those nuts are wrong in any case. Over the years, I've tried many Jacksons, and what I've always liked about them, besides the neck being too thin for me, is that thanks to the R3 nut, the strings are more spaced out. Both the ESP and LTD Alexi always gave me the feeling that the strings were too close together. It may sound strange, but the difference for me is huge. With an R3 nut at 43mm, you get a 12" radius at the nut, which is why Jacksons are better from this point of view. But that thin neck just doesn't work for me, so I decided to take my ESP SV, do a refret with stainless steel frets, and change the fretboard radius to 14", adding a 43mm Gotoh nut with a 14" radius. It's like having an ESP, but with a fretboard that has more spacious strings, like a Jackson, and a flatter radius. To this day, it's the guitar I play the most, and a few months ago, I returned the Jackson because, given my journey, it wasn't the right choice. Also, I'm developing my own custom guitar project with my own specs, and I preferred to invest the money into that project instead.

@@ChrisWeinhardt But I want to be honest … When I got the ESP before making all those modifications, I wasn’t that happy. The best thing about it was the thicker neck, but that 12” radius never really convinced me. Both the ESP Alexi and the ESP SV have a 12” radius, whereas the LTD Alexi I tried was often better since it had a 14” radius. In short, until I made some changes, that guitar was a struggle, especially for bending and accessing the higher frets. Honestly, I think the Jackson neck is better for the reasons I’ve explained-it’s designed better, with easier access to higher notes, a flatter radius that allows for easier bends, and wider string spacing. Maybe if I could go back and had found this Jackson RR FR H along with the ESP SV, I would have chosen the Jackson, and maybe I would have gotten used to the neck. But either way, I would have still looked for a guitar with a thicker neck after a while. I think if Jackson added 1mm, it would be perfect. I was really sad to let it go because it was so well made.

@cris_viga_loca Thanks for the in depth replies, very interesting read! I will need to do some research about the different kinds of nuts, it’s honestly something I’ve never really thought about as I rarely modify my guitars (aside from pickups). And an SV is absolutely on my list of must own guitars in the future, they look wonderful.

@@ChrisWeinhardt "The topic of guitar nuts has never been very clear to me... Years ago, there was very little information available. On the Floyd Rose website, there were charts for all the possible measurements, but in practice, buying nuts from shops felt a bit like playing the slot machine-you could end up with an R1 or an R3. Moreover, the R3 came in both 9" and 12" options, so in my opinion, 10 years ago they were manufacturing and assembling with whatever they had on hand. However, Jackson seemed to do a better job from my point of view. That's also why I have my own theory about the compound radius. I don't believe it was meant to make playing chords easier in the lower part of the fretboard, as that concept seems silly to me. In my opinion, it was because the nuts were often either 9" or 12", and it's as if they thought: 'Okay, let's start at 12 and move to 14 or 16! This is because with Floyd Rose bridges, you could add shims under the saddles to change the radius from 12 to 14 or even 16 (but this is just my personal observation). Still, to me, it's clear that Jackson made sure the nut radius, fretboard radius, and bridge radius all matched perfectly, and that's something I really like about Jackson. It wasn't until last year that Schaller (essentially Floyd Rose for us in Europe) introduced on their website a system to match the radius of the nut and the Floyd Rose bridge. Only since last year has it been possible to design a guitar where the radius of all the components align precisely. You can check on Schaller's website, where you can select any nut radius you prefer, and the same goes for the bridge saddles." thank you for your attention.

Yes you can, no issue. Even with lower action there’s always a bit of space between the body and Floyd, so flutters are definitely possible. If you go to the Last Breath solo at 07:32 you can hear some smaller flutters going on

It’s a valid criticism, I understand why people prefer recessed Floyds. Hope you find the right axe for you!

Top mounted Floyd Rose is not really made to flutter it could cause a little damage to the body of the guitar. Top mounted is meant to only drop in pitch and when not in use is like a hard tail. It’s just like EVH had his Floyd’s only top mounted.

Thanks for the feedback! :)