IYV ISMR-200 6 String Solid Body Electric Guitar, Black

Hello everyone. First of all, let us get this out of the way. When someone purchases a guitar (whether it is used, refurbished, displayed model, with minor imperfection, or a new one) at some point you are going to set the action, set the intonation, treat the fret board, file the fret ends, replace/modify the knobs/switches/bridge/strings/pickups/neck/etc. to your preference. It is no difference when you buy your vehicle. Eventually, you are going to change/add/replace/modify items on your vehicle to your liking. And that is fine. With that said, please do not count these components as a negative criticism towards these guitars. Let us just focus on the guitar itself. With minor tuning and neck adjustments, these guitars are ready to play right out of the box. As you know, minor tuning and neck adjustments are common with any guitar you purchase. The finish, quality, and construction of these guitars are awesome. The headstock is eye-catching. The neck is straight. The frets do not have dents/divots and are smooth (no sharp edges). The fret board is fine. The body is beautiful. The joints/seems are connected to satisfactory. The hardware (pickup selector or switch/output or input jack/volume & tone knobs or controls/bridge/pickups/pick guard/tuners/electronics/screws/nuts/strap buttons/fret or inlay markers/fret nut) are nice, functional, and tight. There may be some small blemishes or cloudy finishes here and there, fret board might have some kind of dye on it, but nothing really significant that would cause you NOT to play the guitar immediately. I’ve made NO modifications or changed any components on this guitar and had no major issue with feedback noise, guitar getting out of tune from hours of play, components getting loose or not working, breaking strings, electrical issues, etc. Again, everyone has their option on what they consider feedback, guitar out of tune, components getting loose or not working, breaking strings, electrical issues, etc. And that is okay. It also varies on the equipment (amps/stacks/pedals/cables/etc.) you use and how you play these guitars. In conclusion, these guitars are attractive, feel great, look fabulous, sound terrific, entice you to play them and definitely fun to play. I am sold, and I am a HUGE fan of the IYV Guitars! I wished I could have purchased the earlier models when they first came out. If I had the money, I would buy all the IYV models. For an electric guitar under $200.00 and with no shipping fees, these guitars are an excellent investment! I will say it again. Not only are these guitars gorgeous, but they are also a pleasure to play. I hope IYV will continue to produce new models or have older models available because I am excited in purchasing them in the future. Thank you IYV Guitar company/staff for producing this magnificent product!

What a great guitar for the price! Great pickups, neck, and body. After adding new locking tuners, a squishy Reverend spring have a great guitar now. The biggsfix will also improve any Gretch with a B5 trem tremendously. Stays in tune even when I thrash it. A few adjustments and it plays great! Playing it more than my old Strat now.

This "moserite-ish" member of the IVY stable is a great value for the price. Actually the value far exceeds the cost. This is the 6th IVY guitar I've purchased and at some point, I expected to get a dud but no way so far. The attention to detail in assembly, fit and finish is remarkable, likely due to CNC production techniques eliminating much chance for variation. Some minor set up and fret end filing but I've had to do that on $2500 guitars. Nice neck on this Mose-like. Very playable right out of the box. Biggest variation I've found is the variance in weight among the differnt models. This one is heavy (think genuine early Les Paul) while others are featherweights. (Different woods used). Until they disappoint me, I'm a IYV fan and promoter. Why limit yourself to one when you can afford 6 of these?

Excellent mosrite copy guitar, Nice fit and finish, Change strings and good to go . Satin unfinished fast maple neck , Good P90 pickups ,Bigsby type trem is tight and works well. Looks and plays great!! A+++++

Anyone who has owned and enjoyed playing an original 'The Ventures' model Mosrite built in the 1960s, will enjoy playing this IYV model, though you'll immediately spot the differences. the upper/lower horns on the IVY are reversed compared to the Mos, the prominent horn is on the upper side. The vibrato is OK, and will get you by until you can install a better version. The black finish is nice but It would be great if IVY could offered this one in pearl white (expensive) or plain gloss white, with clear coat. My original '65 Mos is actual pearl white with mulitple base coats, and six coats of clear laquor; some of the Mos models received 12 laquor coats, making it rather expensive starting at $600 in 1965. Present prices for a verified genuine mid-60's Ventures Model Mos with case are eye-watering, which makes this IYV 'tribute' easy to own if you can grab one. There were no finish scuffs/dings on the copy I received, and though tthe neck isn't as thin and fast as the legacy Mos the IYV is very playable. I have only two gripes with this one: I will swap the stock vibrato for a 'moslike' or 'mosby' model (a bit hard to locate but in the past Amz or performance music had them) and at the same time, will install a graphite nute and zero fret; the zero fret on the Mos was one of the first and it's never had a tuning issue. I considerred a fender style roller nut such as Eric Johnson used, as when it's installed corectly, eliminates any tuning problems. Zero fret installs should be performed by experienced owners or a tech who has installed them. When this IYV arrived the carton was enclosed in a huge outer box with 12 times the necessary volume needed to protect it. On opening, IYV had done a great job of packing, with well-placed styrofoam inserts, with the guiar inside a smooth styrofoam baggie. I immediately saw that the stock vibrato bar and spring had been dislodged, but it was easily put back into place. The vibrato is a bit floppy, and though it works, he spring must be cut down or replaced. The stock strings were rust and corrosion-free thanks to IYVs anti=rust paper string wrap and will play fine for a a day or two. The frets are well polished, level with no buzz or sprout. The volume and tone controls work smoothly, the output jack, toggle switch and pickups are all noise free and sound good. The stock tuning keys are OK, only slightly loose so will be fine until I decide on vintage or locking. The weight difference between the heavier mahogany IYV and the original Mosrite is immediately apparent, however the IYV handles and plays beautifully. Whether you intend to perform upgrades or are happy playing this guitar in stock form, you will enjoy owning it; buy one now or prre-order while you can.

Just got this puppy, the IYV ISMR-200, for about $300 CAD. The seller themselves were great, for fast delivery etc. As for the guitar itself, I'm going to be super critical here so people don't get false hope. I mean, yes, you GET what you PAY for, you can't expect too much at the price. I honestly wouldn't go any higher than $300 for this but it's your choice. It's loosely based on a Mosrite Mk I I believe, but this is mostly in looks, all the details are very different from the original. Looks wise, it's 7/10, very beautiful guitar and a friend who didn't know too much about guitars thought it could be worth $1000. Would be 10/10 except look of neck. Fingerboard looks fine at front, but back of neck is unvarnished and almost looks like someone's high school woodshop project lol. What do you expect for the price though. Playability is ok, isn't like butter, needs a bit of set up or adjustment for the serious player. Frets a tad sharp at edges. Body weight, a bit lighter than expected but still not light as a feather, about mid. Faux Bigsby works ok but I find it does make strings go out of tune a tiny bit, not drastically bad but I'd highly recommend fresh, stretched in strings and a proper set up on whole guitar, and upgrade the tuners. Pickups, tone is generally warm with hints of crisp, this ain't your spanky punchy Fender tone they are P 90 s though. I didn't hate the tone but didn't love it. I do know the right ways to adjust sound via amp, guitar and effects to make even a cheap guitar sound awesome but if I didn't have that knowhow, it would just be meh cheap guitar whatever tone. I own one other ITV, the semi hollow Tele style ITF 400 TRD for relatively same price {years ago at $200ish but I'm accounting for inflation}. That one is gorgeous looking, 10/10 {even with similar not super awesome looking neck} nice tone {big part because the semi hollow part} also P90s, but no vibrato bridge or anything like that. Quality was a bit better for the action and frets and all that. In conclusion, if you can't afford a better guitar at like $500+, you'd probably get this ISMR mostly for the styling and looks, and the Bigsby ish bridge which is rare for cheap guitars, but it will NEED a bit of tweaking and set up for it to truly shine. If you swap pickups or improve tuners or things that cost you an additional few hundred, it would still be worth it and would make it a sufficiently more awesome guitar.