R-458MN WH Progressive Series : Incredible value - very nice neck wood used

I bought this 8 string as in the past I had used a 7 string (Ibanez RG7620) and wanted to try an 8 as it seemed like fun. Obviously just on a whim you're not going to drop several hundreds of pounds like you'd have to to get the entry level Ibanez or Schecter models. However, for this price I thought it was worth trying out!

The bridge is very nice hipshot style, tuners seem reliable, fretwork was decent as there was no buzz or choking straight out of the box.

The neck is comfortable feeling, quite a flat radius but also the wood has a kind of raw unfinished feel which I vastly prefer to gloss.

Pickups have plenty of clarity which is kind of crucial for this type of guitar.

Only con is the middle pickup setting is slightly odd, would have preferred some other arrangement, but I'm sure a tech would be able to sort this..

Overall great value for money, and to be honest unless you're going to spend loads more, I don't think it's worth looking at any other 8 strings under the price of £5-700!