Ibanez S521-MOL

Guitar arrived perfectly packed. The unboxing was with great anticipation! Amazingly lightweight, just 2370 grams! Ok it is neck heavy but not like the EssssGeeeees, you easily play both sitting and standing.
The guitar has a sustained sound played unlugged, you will be surprised to stick your ear to the back and play a barre chord, sustains like a keyboard! So much for the heavy-body-long-sustain myth we 'buy' for so long!!! Neck is good, thin, and the frets well taken care of. The pots were stiff, I used some contact spray. Wiring was ok but I did some extra grounding of the 5way switch. The natural color looks elegant and I think nothing beats a natural guitar! The sound of the pups is balanced and 'correct' although I would like hotter pickups. The 5way switch gives nice combinations (apart from the classic 3 options, you get neck pup parallel and both pups split). Tuners work correctly. The bridge saddle screws bothered me and I used lower ones from Start set, I think.
Once again Mr Robin Nunn ,head in guitar dept was extremely helpful and pro, I give him a 20 in the scale from 1 to 10 !!!! Same goes to the Greek person in charge of Greek orders, Mr Stamatis Koutouzis! Always helpful and professional!
The guitar is a great choice for all. The big 'C' that makes them ( c-o-r... factory) makes good instruments for less money and this is good! Please note I owned USA Gibsons, USA Fender Strat, 2 Mexicans etc., I also made 3 handmade superstrats to a good luthier here in Greece, I also own USA Washburn Les Paul type, among others. I think I have a wide sample and my judgement of this S521 is not so biased, the guitar is really a pleasant surprise!
Totally pleased with this S521 !

I'm not very experienced guitarist by any means but I do have certain expectations and demands in this price range. S521 is technically my second guitar, I swapped to it soon after buying my first one on Thomann, and guess what I think I'll hold on to it. What I was looking for is a) playing comfort, b) flexible tones, c) balanced build quality, and oh boy does this Gerät deliver in all departments!

Pros:
+ It's seriously light: this thing is second to none in terms of weight yet somehow sustains.
+ Thin contoured body & famously fast neck for ultimate playing comfort.
+ 5-way switch for quite a variety of tones (including pickups performing as singles). Now of course you don't expect strat tones from 2H layout (I didn't) but you're absolutely not doomed to metal tones only neither. There is certain flexibility to leverage from for sure.
+ Build: metal pickup frames, branded bridge, unfortunately non-locking yet pretty decent tuners (and it all matches!)
+ Looks, for those who appreciate natural satin finish, just like I do.

Cons:
- Little neck dive: I don't actually experience it because of the way I hold it in seating position but someone might. Just saying.
- QC: bridge pickup is slightly misaligned with strings, and there doesn't seem to be a way to fix this ever. The hole is just drilled 1-2 mm off. I don't care much since this doesn't affect tone in any comprehensive way yet might drive someone with OCD some big nuts.
- Looks: Ibanez could do a better job matching the headstock with the deck.

I bought this guitar approximately 1 year ago, before writing a review I wanted firstly to get know the instrument. So this is what I can say about this S521:

firs of all, the guitar is really light waited, bit neck heavy, but that does not make a big difference to me, haha. the neck is thin which makes it easier to play (in my opinion), in comparison to other guitars I tried before buying this one. The total feel of the guitar in the arms are really pleasant, it is like holding a baby, Haha!
The actual sound of the guitar unplugged is pretty decent, and when plugged even better, then I expected. The tuning holds really well, even in low tuning (I mostly play in D-standard or Drop-C).
The only issues I manage to find are that the backside of the guitar body is quite soft and because of that it received some use marks from clothing and that the neck picks up (or how it is called, the one near the neck) get loose overtime when played and gives buzzing sound, but also it is quite easy to tighten it up so that's ain't a problem (i do it even with a pic).

I mainly play heavier music on this instrument, such as Black metal, Metal in general, Stoner rock, etc., and do not have any complaints about usability.

Furthermore, when other guitarists checked this guitar (the ones who play guitars for quite a long time), they were pleasantly surprised, as they expressed themselves. also, some of them hated thin neck or lightweight but is it personal preference.

Overall, this guitar is a real bargain in accordance with the price and quality ratio! Realy good as a first guitar, easy playability out of the box, strived me to learn how to play the guitar quite quickly (at least basics, writing riffs, low-level solos, recording). So, personally, I really recommend to spare some more money and buy this guitar.

And for those still doubting about learning guitar or another instrument: If I did it, You can do it Too!

I received this guitar with a terrible problem/defect that I can't possibly fix by myself, and I think it should be sent back to the Ibanez factory for an inspection, so I'm returning it.
The third fret from the nut is way higher than the others, it's not level, and when I press the the B note on the 5th string (but also all the other notes and strings at the second fret) I hear a terrible buzz, caused by that third fret being too high and stuck in the way, and meddling with the vibration of the string, ruining the clean sound. (The same is not happening with any of the other frets, as when I press the notes on the first one I hear nothing of the kind.)
I tried adjusting the truss rod, but it won't fix the problem unless you lose the tension of the neck so much, to the point where it gets too concave, and it starts creating other intonation and fretting problems. The main issue here isn't the truss rod, but that 3rd fret which has most likely not been inserted or hammered into the wood properly. I won't mess with hammers to fix this, as I can easily damage the guitar; I won't mess with sand paper either, so it is a big: "There's NO WAY I can fix this".
This way this guitar is unusable to me, and I've decided to send it back, asking for a substitution or a refund if it's the case. What a shame, as I liked the design of its thin neck, and I think it's fun to play. I will wait what Thomman says and does, and I will update this review soon with more news, hoping I'll get a better S521 and that not all of them have this awful problem.


------- update, 27 - March - 2023:

I sent it back, and Thomman sent me a new one: this one is pristine, it has no protruding frets, it looks fine, seems new - with no signs of usage, unlike the previous one which had somehow a few tiny signs.
So, I'm quite happy now. I have to advice you that this guitar has no finish, its wood is kind of soft, so if you strum with passion you may dent or create scratches on it with your plectrum, so be careful.
You may need to adjust the truss rod a bit, to make the action the way you want it, and the intonation. I use it for live shows because of its weight: very light. It is nice to have a longer fret-board with up to 24 frets. I've no complaints.

First off, let me just say that when this guitar was first delivered to me, it was not set up at all, in fact it was very hard to play. I actually ended up paying an additional 50 EUR to a local guitar service to have the guitar properly set up. The neck was bent, to a point that even I, a newbie on this matter, could see the curve that shouldn't be there, and as a result the action around the 12th fret was obscenely high. The intonation was also off and needed fixing.

Having solved all those issues, however, I must say I am now starting to really appreciate this guitar. The strings (I have 10s on) feel kinda thicker than what same-gauge strings feel on my other guitar (an Ashton), but that is something that I can easily get used to. Now that it is properly set up, the guitar sounds really good, except for some minor fret buzzing (yes, even now!) which, for me at least, doesn't really get in the way.

In terms of building quality and aesthetics, this guitar is B-E-A-utiful. It is a work of art. I always have it at a prominent place in my living room, and I just stare at it while passing by. It is truly gorgeous in its simplicity. However, it is neck-heavy, not because it has a particularly heavy neck but rather because it has a VERY lightweight body, lol. Nevertheless, it is something that should be taken into consideration.

All in all, despite going through an phase of "oh God was this purchase a mistake?" because of the initial bad-setup shock, now that everything has been taken into consideration rationally, this guitar is really starting to repay me, and I'm optimistic that things will look up from now on.

TL;DR Version:
Pros:
1. Affordable
2. Slim body, beautiful mahogany finish
3. Lightweight
4. Decent stock pickups
5. 5-way selector switch for tone variety

Con:
1. Plastic pick-up selector switch cover

Non-TL;DR version:
To be honest, I was not expecting much from a ~300 EUR guitar. However, the S521-MOL is an exception. Granted, I have no experience with high-tier/expensive guitars, and therefore this might come off as biased, as I have only had the Samick AV1 Avion series for a long time.

I was doubtful at the beginning because the physical features from the pictures made it look like an expensive guitar, especially with the beautiful mahogany finish. Upon unboxing it last weekend, it was the real deal, true to the pictures. It was incredibly lightweight; lighter than expected. The body was smooth, and I had no issues with the neck at all. Love the dotted inlays. Thin neck, no sharp edges from the frets encountered during my plays, and my fingers just glide effortlessly and comfortably.

Maybe it's also because of the audio interface and DAW/amp sim, the warm, punchy tones are one thing, but the sustain is I think underrated; it goes on for a long time. I don't have any gripe with the stock pickups. They sound nice for the price. However, people may find them underwhelming or lacking in character.

My main gripe would probably be the plastic pickup selector cover, as it feels kind of misplaced against the otherwise expensive-looking guitar. In my opinion, it would probably have been better without it.

Overall, I absolutely love the guitar. You get a lot of incredible features for the price, which makes it all the more desirable especially for budget players like me. Thankful to Thomann's quick ability to deliver this beautiful instrument to me without any compromise in condition.

I own several guitars including Fenders, Gibsons etc and I bought this mainly as a guitar to have laying around the house so that I could just pick it up without the aggravation of going upstairs to get something else, also, because it was realtivley cheap it didn't matter if it got abused a bit in the process.

However, It's probably, value for money wise one of the best guitars I've ever bought. Superb set up with a really low action. Lovely plain wood finish which is what really attracted me to it in the first place.

The less than smooth finish on the body took me by suprise, it feels like real wood but that for me is a part of the attraction. Also very light but a lovely sound when played through an amp.

The finish is not perfect with some very slightly protruding frets as you make your way along the neck but by no means uncomfortable.

If you're looking for a good guitar with a nice tone and which is slightly different to the usual Strats and Les Pauls then I can recommend this to you. I never regret buying it.

This is my absolute favourite guitar. As soon as I picked it up, I knew it would become my trustworthy companion. The finish (MOL) is beautiful. I looks clean and natural, like carved straight out of a tree. The sound is very versatile, with an impressive width and depth. The guitar is also extremely light-weight and nicely balanced, which only adds to the wow-factor. I fell in love instantly, and my heart wept a bit when I had to send it back. The manufacturers had misaligned one of the bridge-holes which compromised the sound on the lower E-string. I am anxiously waiting for the identical replacement guitar!