Despite a fleeting career in music, Randy Rhoads had a huge impact on the guitar as we know it today. His technical prowess, influenced by his early days in classical guitar made him a defining figure of shred guitar, helping to massively influence the genre alongside contemporaries like EVH.
The original Jackson Rhoads was actually the first guitar sold under the Jackson name but was still in the prototype stage when Rhoads died, so he never got to give his feedback on it. His idea for the elongated, ‘shark fin’ top horn of the V-shape remains and the overall design is his, but the regular humbuckers have been changed and there's now a locking tremolo where Randy had a vintage-style tremolo, or just a plain hardtail.
The Jackson X Series Rhoads RRX24, which retains those features initially proposed by Randy himself, but is very much geared for the modern metal player. It looks like a Rhoads guitar but has a swathe of futuristic appointments that would've been on the fringe of guitar design when the idea for the Rhoads first came about.
Jackson X Series Rhoads RRX24 review: Features
The RRX24 has a lightweight Poplar body with colored bevels. Our review model combines a satin battleship grey finish with black accents, although at first glance there’s an almost purplish hue to it. This particular color softens the guitar's sharp edges, giving it a rather distinguished look that belies its all-out metal nature.
The maple neck joins through the body with a scarf joint at the headstock end and graphite reinforcement running the length of the neck. Not that you can see any of this as it’s all covered by the satin grey finish.
The Laurel fretboard features a compound radius for extra shred credibility, running from 12 to 16 inches as it moves closer to the body. 24 jumbo frets are marked by grey ‘sharkfin’ markers and white side dots to guide your way. A black neck binding adds another touch of distinction to its rather brash aesthetic.
Moving onto the hardware we’ve got a Floyd Rose Special double-locking tremolo that’s recessed into the body, with a Floyd Rose Special locking nut at the opposite end. The whammy bar is the screw-in type so you can set it to stay in one position or have it dangling loose if you prefer. Jackson sealed die-cast tuners complete the set, with everything finished in black, of course.
The electronics feature two Seymour Duncan Blackouts, which are active humbuckers so you’ve got a 9V battery compartment on the reverse of the guitar to accommodate them. Three knobs control volume for each pickup, as well as a master tone knob for tone tweaking. A three-way selector gives you your pickup selection with bridge, both, or neck available to be chosen.
Jackson X Series Rhoads RRX24 review: Playability
With sitting down to play with this guitar being quite awkward, I opted to begin testing with a strap attached and standing. Its unique shape definitely takes some getting used to, as does the weight balance of it. It’s not quite neck diving but it definitely feels like it leans a little bit that way.
There are no comfort contours on the body either, so you’ve got a relatively harsh edge poking into your ribcage, which can be remedied by having the guitar strapped a little lower. If you prefer your guitar higher up you might find that it takes a little getting used to.
Those who are aficionados of this type of guitar like to say it’s possible to play it sitting down, but it really isn’t. Even with a strap on it just doesn’t sit right on your knee due to the shape, with the guitar feeling like it wants to tilt in the headstock direction due to the angle of the body.
If you put your knee in between the two horns and hold it up in a more classical style then it is possible to play it sitting, but you're then having to support the neck whilst you play, which always felt a little awkward to me. It kind of works with a guitar strap, but you have to set it really high, and then adjust it again for when you want to stand up again. It's honestly one of the most awkward guitars I've ever played.
That said, once you’ve gotten over the initially weird feel of the body, the neck is a decidedly more normal experience for a metal guitar. It’s sleek and slick, with fantastic upper fret access. Jackson doesn't specify the profile on its website, but it feels like a slim 'C' or 'D' to my hand. The jumbo frets are lovely to bend against and it’s not long before I was shredding some three-note-per-string legato licks and huge bends.
The Floyd Rose puts up with abuse admirably too. I tried all my usual tricks like diving til the strings are slack, hitting a pinch harmonic and raising the bar back up again, my personal favorite the trem flutter, and using the bar to bend solo notes too. It held its tuning without fail, occasionally pitching everything slightly flat or sharp under heavy load, but keeping everything in relative pitch string to string.
Jackson X Series Rhoads RRX24 review: Sounds
The sound of the Seymour Duncan Blackouts is exactly as you’d expect too. The sustain on them is absolutely ridiculous, ringing out forever with the slightest touch of your guitar pick. It’s that high-output metal sound to a tee, with plenty of heft for chugging low-tuned riffs and leads that cut through the mix with ease.
I tried it through various modeled amps including classics like the 5150 and my favorite Orange Rocker and the RRX24 delivered on all fronts. It’s got nice clean tones too if you fancy taking a break from the metal mayhem to play something a little more nuanced. They’re not the most dynamic due to their design, but can certainly cover more ground than just heavy music.
The separate volumes for each pickup is really handy too, it means you can have a less intense setting on your neck pickup for switching your sounds or vice versa. Some might bemoan the lack of a dedicated tone knob for each pickup, but to be completely honest I can’t imagine most players of this ilk finding much use for the one that’s already there. I left it on max the entire time I tested it and found no need to adjust it from that point.
Jackson X Series Rhoads RRX24 review: Final verdict
If you want a metal guitar for pure performance, the Jackson X Series Rhoads RRX24 makes a great case. Coming in at under $1,000 its excellent value with its Seymour Duncan pickups and Floyd Rose tremolo. It delivers on all fronts heavy and looks phenomenal whilst doing so.
Ergonomically this guitar isn’t great. It’s nigh on impossible to get a comfortable position sitting down, and even when stood up on a strap it can feel a little awkward at first. If you can get over these points then you’re going to catch a lot of attention with one of these at a gig, and the rapid-fire playability, excellent upper fret access, and fantastic pickups will make it a dream for shred-lovers.
Jackson X Series Rhoads RRX24 review: Specs
- Body: Poplar
- Neck: Maple
- Scale length: 25.5”
- Nut width: 1.6875" (42.86 mm)
- Fingerboard material: Laurel
- Fingerboard radius: 12"-16" Compound radius (304.8 mm to 406.4 mm)
- Fingerboard inlays: Gray sharkfins
- Frets: 24, Jumbo
- Bridge: Floyd Rose Special double-locking tremolo
- Tuning machines: Jackson sealed die-cast
- Pickups: Seymour Duncan Blackouts AHB-1B, Seymour Duncan Blackouts AHB-1N
- Controls: Volume 1. (Neck Pickup), Volume 2. (Bridge Pickup), Tone
- Finish: Battleship Gray with Black Bevels (as reviewed), Black, Matte Army Drab with Black Bevels, Purple Metallic with Black Bevels, Black with Yellow Bevels, Red with Black Bevels
- Contact: Jackson
