# Is the Jackson DK2M Dinky Pro any good?



## Dionysian (May 21, 2012)

I'm currently looking for a guitar to play brutal/technical/oldschool death metal in B (and A# and C) standard, and this guitar has come up on the local used market:





Seems pretty decent. Love the maple fretboard with black binding and inlays. Alder body, JB/Jazz pups. MIJ according to seller. Discontinued series.

I haven't got much experience with Jackson (Ibanez guy), and I can't try this guitar before buying it. So I just wanted to hear with you guys - are these guitars worth their price tag?


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## drgordonfreeman (May 21, 2012)

Eskil Rask said:


> I'm currently looking for a guitar to play brutal/technical/oldschool death metal in B (and A# and C) standard, and this guitar has come up on the local used market:
> 
> Seems pretty decent. Love the maple fretboard with black binding and inlays. Alder body, JB/Jazz pups. MIJ according to seller. Discontinued series.
> 
> I haven't got much experience with Jackson (Ibanez guy), and I can't try this guitar before buying it. So I just wanted to hear with you guys - are these guitars worth their price tag?




I own two MIJ Jacksons, one of which is a DK2T.

Awesome guitar.

Before I bought the DK2T in 2010, I had never owned a Jackson before. Since then, I have turned into a total Jackson fan boy, so much so, that I've already placed two CS orders this year.

Jackson's MIJ guitars are really great quality. The only modification I made to mine was switching out the Jackson tuners for Schaller locking tuners. It was really easy to do, and took all of 30 seconds with a screw driver.

The weight, size, feel of the fretboard, and the general feel of the guitar won't be too dissimilar from an Ibanez. Ibanez guitars tend to have really flat fretboards (straight 14" down the board up to a straight 16" down the board, depending on the model), but Jackson's neck is a compound radius ranging from 12" in the lower registers to 16" at the upper registers. You should adjust easily to it.

The MIJ Jacksons feel good, they look good, and they sound good. They're just fun guitars for the price.

What price is he asking?


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## Gren (May 21, 2012)

I had a white DK2M for years and loved it. Jackson necks have a very comfortable profile, also the Jackson trem it comes with is a very stable unit which I abused regularly and never had an issue. They're a very visually striking well made instrument, guess it comes down to how much you're paying but I think you'd love it coming from an Ibanez.


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## damico529 (May 21, 2012)

its a great guitar, ive got it tuned in drop A and its been my main for almost 4 years now. but id recommend grabbing a brass block and spring claw from floydupgrades.com makes a night n day difference in my opinion.


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## MaxOfMetal (May 21, 2012)

Good? Not at all. They're pretty awesome!


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## JP Universe (May 22, 2012)

Buy it man... BUY IT NOW! That Jackson is sick


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## ittoa666 (May 22, 2012)

I've had a DK2M for 3 or 4 years, and it's a great guitar. The maple neck has a nice bright tone. My only issue is with the bridge though. Not too fond of the jackson locking trems, so I blocked it.


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## myampslouder (May 22, 2012)

Go for it. MIJ jacksons are killer guitars.


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## broj15 (May 22, 2012)

Played one in a local music store and I was pretty impressed. I dig the asthetics as well.


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## devolutionary (May 22, 2012)

Which Jackson's are MIJ anyway? It's a hell of a trip to my music store which stocks them. I assume the Dinky DKs are?


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## Pav (May 22, 2012)

^ Yes, the entire MG series is MIJ.



ittoa666 said:


> Not too fond of the jackson locking trems, so I blocked it.



Jackson's licensed Floyd's are...not awesome. The guitar as a whole is going to be totally killer though. The DK2M is sort of the maple version of the DKMG I've been using for close to ten years and the thing is an absolute tank.


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## Don Vito (May 22, 2012)

I had that guitar.

The bridge defo sucked. I don't get all the praise Jackson got for their LFR's...

The ax itself was solid though. Block the trem and you've got a good guitar IMO.


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## BucketheadRules (May 22, 2012)

Have played numerous Pro-series MIJ Jacksons.

They all fucking slayed.

They'd be good for £8-900. At the price they usually sell for though, you'd be mad not to.


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## eaeolian (May 22, 2012)

kennedyblake said:


> The bridge defo sucked. I don't get all the praise Jackson got for their LFR's...



It's a pretty standard Takeguchi LoPro piece, but they ALL suck after a while. Drop something like a Gotoh in it and you're fine.


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## ArrowHead (May 22, 2012)

I love my dinky. The fretboard is great, but people aren't mentioning my favorite feature - the small body. I'm a little dude, and it fits me perfect, whereas RG and Soloist bodies always seemed a tad bit large and awkward when I play them. The Dinky, however, along with the Ibanez S, are the most comfortably proportioned guitars I've ever owned.

Anything bigger is playable, but makes me look like a midget. (See: ATREYU)


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## Dionysian (May 22, 2012)

Whoa, thanks for the massive response. Seems like I have no choice now. Going to see if he is willing to do any trades with some of the gear I don't use any more. Seller is asking £272 incl hardcase.

As for the trem I'm a hardtail guy all the way. I hate TOMs though, but a Floyd Rose can be blocked and then all should be good.


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## Estilo (May 23, 2012)

Don't know what's so bad about the LFR? I own one and it hasn't been giving me problems. That said it might just be a matter of time..


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## elrrek (May 23, 2012)

Eskil Rask said:


> Whoa, thanks for the massive response. Seems like I have no choice now. Going to see if he is willing to do any trades with some of the gear I don't use any more. Seller is asking £272 incl hardcase.
> 
> As for the trem I'm a hardtail guy all the way. I hate TOMs though, but a Floyd Rose can be blocked and then all should be good.



At that price you should buy it, you should buy it now and you should not even be thinking about not buying it, seriously.

I have had many Jacksons, currently own 2 and 1 Charvel and if I don't snag the PC3 I am looking at on ebay right now or a Charvel Pro-Mod in the next few weeks I will probably start looking for a DK2M.


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## ryugkun (May 29, 2012)

I owned that guitar and played live with it for a good half year, It's damn good and built like a tank. The only issue with mine was the trem block was cracked but i knew that upon buying the thing, after I replaced the block it had shit tons of sustain


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## Force (May 29, 2012)

Being a Jackson is reason enough to buy it. I have 2 DK's & they are phenomenal. Most of my axes have that bridge, never had a single issue with them. I trust these bridges with my life.


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## Advv (May 30, 2012)

I've had a number of guitars with the JT580LP (the one on the DK2M) and they've all been perfect.


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## eaeolian (May 30, 2012)

Estilo said:


> Don't know what's so bad about the LFR? I own one and it hasn't been giving me problems. That said it might just be a matter of time..



Some are better than others - QC isn't exactly awesome - and those aren't bad. They're just not going to last 10+ years like OFRs do.


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## Orange Jackson (Sep 23, 2013)

Bringing back an old thread here, but I can't help myself. I owned one of the 2008 Dk2m guitars. It was a terrific guitar until the neck warped. It happens, and it was a big bummer considering how much I enjoyed the guitar.

Fast forward to 2013. I'd been playing a 1987 RG550 almost exclusively when I started reading about the newer Jackson DK2m Pros, these are made in Baja California at a Fender/Jackson factory there, not Japan.

There were some updates to the newer gutiars. The heal cut away, a new neck pickup (Duncan '59), a new switching system, and pickups are directly mounted to the body. (The neck profile seems a bit different to me as well, it is very slightly thicker towards the nut, not the really flat D shape of the older neck.) Also, there is some graphite reinforcement built into the neck. There might be a few other updates that I'm missing, the floyd for instance maybe an update (I think for sure the block is, it look looks like plated brass, the 2008 model had a skinny zink block).

So, remembering how much I enjoyed my old DK2m I couldn't help but pull the trigger when I saw a reduced price blem satin black one at Zzounds. It shows up a few days later perfectly set up. In tune, prefect intonation, floyd is set exact, no blem to be found. That was nice. 

My impression is that the guitar has a higher level of fit and finish then the old one. There is not a sharp spot to be found on the fret ends, and more abstractly, the guitar just feels great, the whole thing resonates when played. The neck profile suites me well, not too thin, not too thick. Position four on the pickup switch has been nice, it is a single coil from the neck '59. Rolling the tone down just a little gets into a really useable single coil tone. It is not pure vintage Strat by any means, but more modern sounding, and it is a nice option from the humbucker.

I'll spare you the full wave of my gushing, but wow! I think they have done a tremendous job at Jackson putting these guitars together, in concept, materials, and in build, and I could not be more happy with the guitar, and I'm not so easy to please.


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## protest (Sep 23, 2013)

eaeolian said:


> Some are better than others - QC isn't exactly awesome - and those aren't bad. They're just not going to last 10+ years like OFRs do.



I have a BC Rich Warlock I got in 2003, and the bridge and guitar are still fine. I'm pretty sure I got lucky with the one I got though, and I don't abuse my guitars as much as other guys so that probably has something to do with it.

EDIT: Just realized this was old lol


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