[QUESTION] Ibanez recommendations?

Well, can you still buy used from sites like eBay? In my opinion the best Ibanez guitars you'll find in that range are from 2001 and earlier. Specifically in the window if 1998-2001. After that Ibanez started to patent dodge Floyd Rose, and it's commonly agreed their trems weren't quit as good. Also, in 1998-2002 (possibly slightly before) they offered a version of their Wizard which was reinforced making it a bit more sturdy. So if you can find a used one in that time window is really recommend it.

That being said, if you really can't get a used one, I'd recommend an RG450 or RG470. Mainly because the 400 series is probably the best new RG you'll find in your price range, and a Humbucker-Singlecoil-Humbucker provides more versatility than most their other pickup configurations.

/r/Guitar Thread