# Ibanez RG Volume Knob Issue



## MontaraMike (Dec 24, 2012)

I love Ibanez RG's but I have issues with the volume control location. When I pick fast my hand lightly hits the volume knob and I end up slowly turning the volume down. Anyone else have this issue? I will be jamming along and realize something is wrong with my sound just before it fades away LOL.

I recently swapped the volume and tone controls and disabled the tone since I never use it.


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## K3V1N SHR3DZ (Dec 24, 2012)

Are your pick hand fingers IN or OUT?
I used to have the same problem until I trained myself to pull my finders in. Not only did it sogmificantly increase the ease, accuracy, and speed of my picking hand, I almost never hit the knob anymore.


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## leechmasterargentina (Dec 24, 2012)

I think the problem is your picking technique. Else, RG's wouldn't be that popular.


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## MontaraMike (Dec 24, 2012)

K3V1N SHR3DZ said:


> Are your pick hand fingers IN or OUT?
> I used to have the same problem until I trained myself to pull my finders in. Not only did it sogmificantly increase the ease, accuracy, and speed of my picking hand, I almost never hit the knob anymore.




AH my fingers are out! Oh great another thing to re-learn LOL Thanks for the response this helped a lot.


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## MontaraMike (Dec 24, 2012)

leechmasterargentina said:


> I think the problem is your picking technique. Else, RG's wouldn't be that popular.



Yes I agree


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## Floppystrings (Dec 24, 2012)

This is pretty common, you could simply have a dummy knob there, or add a kill switch.



leechmasterargentina said:


> I think the problem is your picking technique. Else, RG's wouldn't be that popular.



Petrucci didn't like the knob there either.


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## ChrisRushing (Dec 24, 2012)

I have this issue with my RG. Only ibanez I've ever owned but it results in me constantly "checking" the volume knob in between phrases. Didn't really notice it until I was watching a live video of myself playing.


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## TheOddGoat (Dec 24, 2012)

I gorilla-smash that shit right off of RGs

Slickgrip vs. Jazztone Plectrum Showdown! - YouTube

Note that this includes the plastic nobette on the pup selector.


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## wakjob (Dec 24, 2012)

Strats are worse yet. 

But yeah, I remove the tone control and put the volume down there with my Ibanez too.


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## Miek (Dec 24, 2012)

I also have that problem with most super strats, and I won't argue it's my own fault, but it is frustrating.


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## Webmaestro (Dec 24, 2012)

Yes. This is my only complaint about RG's (or any guitar where the vol knob is right there. Other guitars are even worse).


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## mr_rainmaker (Dec 25, 2012)

its not just Rg`s a lot of Mfg have the vol pot in the same location,people been complaining since the 80`s,ya gotta move it yourself.


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## nostealbucket (Dec 25, 2012)

leechmasterargentina said:


> Else, RG's wouldn't be that popular.


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## MontaraMike (Dec 25, 2012)

leechmasterargentina said:


> I think the problem is your picking technique. Else, RG's wouldn't be that popular.



After this reply I thought it was mainly me, now I see a bunch of others have the same issue! 

Thanks for all the helpful responses


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## TheOddGoat (Dec 25, 2012)

MontaraMike said:


> After this reply I thought it was mainly me, now I see a bunch of others have the same issue!
> 
> Thanks for all the helpful responses




Yeah, for me and many others, the technique that would change it would be cutting off fingers hehe... (thanks for the youtube comment btw)


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## nickgray (Dec 25, 2012)

Yeah, it makes palm muting the first two strings a pain in the ass. I also hate the switch location, when the switch is in the neck position it gets in the way.


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## leechmasterargentina (Dec 25, 2012)

ChrisRushing said:


> I have this issue with my RG. Only ibanez I've ever owned but it results in me constantly "checking" the volume knob in between phrases. Didn't really notice it until I was watching a live video of myself playing.



I'm also a bit psycho about having 100% volume since I play Metal and I need to have full gain all the time, but I never had real issues with the volume knob.

Many of you say they should be in other place, but that wouldn't look "aesthetical".

Another thing...who palm-mutes in the first or second string?...well, you might do that once in a while, but not all the time...

Just my two cents, you guys need to refine your picking technique, maybe strike softer the strings. You don't need that much strenght like in a classical guitar.


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## TheOddGoat (Dec 25, 2012)

Artist's rendering of why I switch to LPish shapes and layouts:


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## Floppystrings (Dec 25, 2012)

Just when you thought RG knobs were in the way, a challenger appears.


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## MontaraMike (Dec 25, 2012)

Floppystrings said:


> Just when you thought RG knobs were in the way, a challenger appears.



lol knob overload!


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## nickgray (Dec 25, 2012)

leechmasterargentina said:


> Another thing...who palm-mutes in the first or second string?



Um... I do? And I'm sure that tons of other people do as well 



> you guys need to refine your picking technique, maybe strike softer the strings



Yeah, if you play with high gain. But I like my tone to be responsive and dynamic.


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## TheOddGoat (Dec 25, 2012)

Floppystrings said:


> Just when you thought RG knobs were in the way, a challenger appears.



Just replace them with razor blades - this guitar is a fate worse than death and that is one way to escape.


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## thedonal (Dec 26, 2012)

Miek said:


> I also have that problem with most super strats, and I won't argue it's my own fault, but it is frustrating.



I wonder if Jeff Beck would be able to do his thing if the Strat volume knob were anywhere else.

It's personal, though.

I don't think I have really had such an issue with volume knob position.

I've smacked the selector switch on Strat/RG guitars though where I'm really going for it...


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## Andromalia (Dec 26, 2012)

Play all notes with upstrokes. Problem solved.


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## karjim (Dec 26, 2012)

3 pics +





Problem solved....
If you have guitar issues, BIG Paul has always a solution.


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## Floppystrings (Dec 26, 2012)

The fingers must go!


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## Mprinsje (Dec 26, 2012)

yea i also have that, what makes the problem worse is that on all my other guitars i've put the volume knob in place of the tone knob and ripped the tone out, so when i wan't to roll down volume on my rg i'm always rolling down the tone... too laze to change em around


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## Austin175 (Dec 26, 2012)

Not sure how it's a problem lol. I have to agree with everyone else cause on my RG7321, when I shred I rarley every hit the volume knob. Maybe it's cause I have small hand's though lol.

So maybe learn a new picking technique or get a dummy knob an put it in there.


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## K3V1N SHR3DZ (Dec 27, 2012)

Floppystrings said:


> Petrucci didn't like the knob there either.



Yeah, but back in the day his picking hand fingers weren't really pulled in.


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## karjim (Dec 27, 2012)

You don't have to pull in your fingers but they mustn't move, the hand has to be fixed.
The only reason is your right hand...You must use your wrist and not your arm for fast picking...it's really hard to relearn but it's the only way to achieve a super clean fast alternative picking...Keep your arm for Hetfield's down stroke death attack riffs.
I have really long fingers and my old 1987 RG560 has the volume knob 5mm (metric system) away from the humbucker...really really close. On the 7620, it is farer.
If you have long fingers, fingers pulled in ala BucketHead Paul Gilbert or put them on the table to control the picking position ala Steve Vai Yngwie Malmsteen.
These guys are giants and they don't have issues. The commun point is this universal wrist picking technique, very static, very calm, very precise...you can't avoid this sorry.


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## MontaraMike (Dec 27, 2012)

karjim said:


> You don't have to pull in your fingers but they mustn't move, the hand has to be fixed.
> The only reason is your right hand...You must use your wrist and not your arm for fast picking...it's really hard to relearn but it's the only way to achieve a super clean fast alternative picking...Keep your arm for Hetfield's down stroke death attack riffs.
> I have really long fingers and my old 1987 RG560 has the volume knob 5mm (metric system) away from the humbucker...really really close. On the 7620, it is farer.
> If you have long fingers, fingers pulled in ala BucketHead Paul Gilbert or put them on the table to control the picking position ala Steve Vai Yngwie Malmsteen.
> These guys are giants and they don't have issues. The commun point is this universal wrist picking technique, very static, very calm, very precise...you can't avoid this sorry.



Thank you!! I am going to give this a shot. I will admit my fast picking is not clean, so there is another reason to re-learn.


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## rockstarazuri (Dec 27, 2012)

I actually like the volume knob there. Makes cleaning up with the volume control, and volume swells easier


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## karjim (Dec 28, 2012)

You're welcome dude, I was in the same position 3 years ago, it was hard but I don't regret it.
I still practice this more than anything else...You will rediscover your songs,your feeling, you'll be calmer on your instrument and this is the key. Calm and breathing


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## Bloody_Inferno (Dec 28, 2012)

karjim said:


> If you have guitar issues, BIG Paul has always a solution.



Funny you mention big Paul, because Paul Gilbert actually has the same problem as the OP. 






That's why he has all his PGM volume controls well out of the way. Plus he also states that he does the whole wave your arm in the air thing...






...and the first thing he wants to hit when his hand goes down, is the volume knob.


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## phugoid (Dec 28, 2012)

I had a similar problem with my Strat - to fix it I took a small think elastic band, and stretched it around the volume knob. It was still possible to turn the knob, but there was enough resistance that my fingers didn't turn it from casual nudging only.

Then again, the strat's volume knob flares into a really large-diameter base and there's space between the knob and the guitar top, so the elastic band held in there and you couldn't even see it. It might be harder to do this with the RG...


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## Dickicker (Dec 28, 2012)

on all of my RGs I move the volume to the tone and insert a 3/8's nylon hole plug in the volume hole spot and paint it to match the guitar, or just leave it black. haha I ordered 100 of them off the bay for $5 sense I have so many people who ask for them at my shop.


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## TheOddGoat (Dec 31, 2012)

Paul Gilbert || Guitarspot.gr - Interview, Live Setup - YouTube

THERE WILL BE BLOOD


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## Skrapmetal (Jan 1, 2013)

When I was first getting started I had a guitar that had grounding issues and I kept my pinky lightly touching the bottom of the bridge pickup's cover as much as possible to fight the buzzing. It became habit, and a pleasant side effect is that this isn't much of an issue for me.


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