Nita Strauss Signature Ibanez Guitar

Nita Strauss Signature Ibanez Guitar

Ibanez is a Japanese musical instrument company owned by Hoshino Gakki.

The modern era of Ibanez guitars began in 1957 and is one of the first non-American companies to gain a significant foothold on guitar sales in the United States and European marketplaces.

The Company also manufactures accessories, effects, and amps and is considered the 3rd largest guitar brand after Fender and Gibson manufacturing in China, Indonesia and the US.

Whenever you think of Signature guitar models that have lasted the test of time, you think of Steve Vai.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the joint venture with Hoshino Gakki and guitarist Steve Vai created the Ibanez JEM, following the earlier successes of the Roadstar and Iceman models in the late 70s.

The JEM has been in production since 1987 and has seen continued success since its conception and is one of the pioneers of the Evolution of the Superstrats.

New Brand Champion

The brand champions of this guitar company are ever-increasing, and for a good reason, the instruments provide loads of value for your dollar.

On January 26, 2019, Steve Vai presented the “Inspire Award” at the “7th Annual She Rocks Show” to an upcoming new brand champion…

Nita Strauss

Nita Strauss (born December 7, 1986) is an American Musician, Composer and Performer living in Los Angeles.

Coming from a father who is a descendant of Austrian composer Johann Strauss, her parents introduced music to her at a young age.

Starting her career playing with the popular Tribute band The Iron Maidens and various other projects on the LA Rock Scene in June 2014, Strauss was asked to replace Orianthi as a touring guitarist for Alice Cooper and has remained with him since that time; Orianthi had left the Alice Cooper band to tour with RSO. (Richie Sambora’s project from the Bon Jovi original lineup)

In 2014, she was also the official in-house guitarist for the LA KISS (Arena Football Team owned by Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons), playing with the in-house band providing music and performing the national anthem.

Early Influences

Knowing where she wanted to excel, she would take self-study instructional DVD/Book courses like…

• Marty Friedmans; Exotic Metal Guitar
• John Petrucci’s; Rock Discipline
• Yngwie Malmsteen’s; Play Loud  
• Frank Gambale’s Modes; No More Mystery

This knowledge became influential in her playing style.

Strauss In Print

Nita is the author of the Guitar World magazine monthly column “Like a Hurricane.”

(See Image)

Soundtracks & Clinics

She has played on several gaming soundtracks, including…

• Grammy-nominated Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (Konami/ Platinum Games)
• Heroes Of The Storm (Blizzard)

And when she is not touring, Nita is sought after, providing guitar clinics, teaching and mentoring, a skillset that has taken her across multiple continents from the US, Canada, the UK, Europe, South America and Asia.

Accolades

Guitar Player magazine has ranked her No.1 of the “10 Female Guitar Players You Should Know.”

World Wide Exposure

In 2018 Strauss started performing live at WWE, playing in front of a pay-per-view audience that reached almost 80,000 fans and millions watching the events.

Building On Her Brand

The same year, she became the FIRST female artist to have the renowned Guitar company Ibanez endorse a new signature instrument.

(More on this later)

Successful Solo Debut

The artist launched a kickstart campaign to help fund her solo debut.

Looking to generate 20K for recording, CD Pressing, and some initial kickoff touring expenses, Strauss would successfully generate 6 times her initial goal planned for 30 days in two hours, followed by signing with Sumerian Records, where she would do most of the engineering work along with playing bass guitar.

Released in September of 2018, the first single, “Our Most Desperate Hour,” would sell out pre-orders before release, and Controlled Chaos would debut on the Billboard charts at No 1 -20, respectively, on different platforms making a successful solo debut.

The album’s second single, “Mariana Trench,” was chosen by WWE as the official theme for NXT TakeOver: WarGames. (2018)

You can also find Strauss playing Guitar at the Los Angeles Rams halftime segments and working as a celebrity judge at the UK talent show “2019 Young Guitarist of the Year.” 

On January 9, 2022, Strauss made history as the first female rock solo artist to hit number one on the rock chart with her song “Dead Inside.”

Guitar Collaborations

With the release of her second solo album titled The Call Of The Void (Sumerian Records) in July 2023, Strauss managed to work with one of her earlier influences, Marty Friedman, who is known for his Melodic playing and would go on to help the artist with her approach to soloing, saying…

“Marty Friedman taught me to pick phrases that help tell the story and resist the temptation to use your songs to show off your fastest licks.”

“He would tell me how I could make melodies better and what notes I should use instead of the ones I’d initially chosen.”

“I came out the other side a better player.”

The Ibanez Nita Strauss JIVA10 Signature Electric Guitar

This Guitar sports a Maple/Purpleheart 3-piece Nitro Wizard Neck w/smooth Ebony fingerboard and Prestige Fret-edge Treatment, along with an Edge-Zero 11 tremolo and the “JIVA” theme EKG style “Beaten Path” Fingerboard inlay and more, running from 2018-to 2021. (Read on)

What’s In The Name?

Inspired by Nita’s father’s band project and based on Asian/ Hinduism religions or philosophies, Strauss named her instrument the JIVA, which translates as “life force or soul” or “what lives on after your body passes” and is a metaphor for wanting the instrument and its music to live on no matter who plays it.

The signature SuperStrat is based on the S Series line, featuring personal touches and excellent standard specs, including a combination of African Mahogany topped with Quilted Maple and a DiMarzio-inspired Deep Space Blonde finish.

SuperStrat is a name for a guitar resembling the famed Fender Stratocaster but with apparent differences and characteristics that separate the 2 types of instruments.

DiMarzio-Inspired Finish

Strauss was thinking of keeping the finish all black on her new Guitar. Still, while sitting and talking with Larry DiMarzio concerning her new pickup designs, he suggested matching her appreciation for the shade of black over her long blond locks and tying that together.

Inspired by the idea, Nita and Ibanez would go on to create her new personally named “Deep Space Blonde/DSB” finish.

Tech Specs

Body

The body material for the JIVA10 has changed over the years, from a combination of a Quilted Maple Top with either Mahogany (2018), Nyatoh (2019) or African Mahogany in 2020-2021. (See Image)

• Model Number – JIVA10DSB
• Body Type – Electric Solidbody w/Double cut body style
• Body Shape – A thin S Series, w/a weight ratio balanced perfectly between the body and the neck.
• Weight – 7lbs
• Top Wood Material – Maple
• Top Wood Style – Quilted
• Body Finish – Gloss Polyurethane
• Finish/Color – Deep Space Blonde Sunburst

The DSB finish is a gray burst with a subtle green hue and a slightly translucent application to let the grain show through the body and on the headstock.

Neck

3-Piece Nitro Wizard

Cut from a 3-piece Maple/Purpleheart Material; The neck has a smooth-to-touch, non-sticky finish for high-speed playing.

• Number of Frets – 24 Jumbo Stainless Steel Frets w/Ibanez’s Prestige fret-edge treatment.

This combination offers the rounding of the edges of each fret, ensuring effortless playability, quick response and articulation.

• String Space–10.8mm
• Scale Length – 648mm/25.5“
• Neck Width Dimensions – 43mm at the nut and 58mm wide at the 24th fret
• Fretboard Material – Bound Ebony
• Fretboard Radius – 400mm (15.75 inches)
• Nut Width –1.692″
• Nut Material –Locking
• Neck Shape Profile – Nitro Wizard (19mm at 1F/21mm at 12F)
• Neck Joint –Contoured Bolt-on neck construction (See Image)

Hardware

The Ibanez Edge Zero II double-locking tremolo bridge is the same on the JEM77P w/pop-in arm and thumbscrew locking collar for easy arm placement fixed or swinging freely.

The lower profile is designed for comfort, and the stud lock function is for superior tuning stability. 

(See image)

• Tuners – Ibanez machine heads
• Hardware Colour – Cosmo black

HSH Power Station

Wanting a cross between a D-Activator and Evolution Humbuckers along with a Single-coil pickup combo, Strauss approached DiMarzio to see if it could be possible; she shared…

“After some silence on the other end of the phone, Larry simply said, OK, we can do that.”

“I couldn’t be happier with the results.”

The HSH configuration Powerstation offers custom DiMarzio Pandemonium humbuckers in the Bridge and Neck positions (Passive w/Ceramic magnets) and a True Velvet single-coil (Passive w/Alnico magnets) in the Middle slot with no Coil Tapping.

(See Image)

This Guitar’s versatile sonic tone setup provides a thick, aggressive low-end, open and punchy mid-range and crisp, bright high-end with loads of sustain.

Video With Pickup Demos

Controls

• Controls- 1 x Master Volume, 1 x Master Tone and Knurled metal dome knobs.

The 5-way blade pickup selector and HSH setup give you an incredibly diverse array of tones from the instrument. (See below.)

Special Features

Multi Binding

 A multi-binding finish around the top edges and neck of the Guitar finishes off the look. (See Image)

EKG-Style Fingerboard Inlay w/Luminescent Markers

Each EKG Beaten Path/Spike marks the critical positions on the fretboard. GITD luminescent side dot markers along the top edge are great for performing on dark stages and never losing fingerboard locations. (See Image)

 

Video

Final Thoughts

I have been a champion of Ibanez for many years and have owned several signature models throughout my career, so this Guitar is a no-brainer.

Does This Design Look Familiar?

You would be correct if you see many correlations to Steve Vai’s JEM or PIA; like the previous instruments, this is a no-fuss well-balanced Guitar with sleek lines, solid hardware appointments and unique features, and the HSH gives a ton of tonal sonic variations you would typically not get on the wood it’s made from, along with it being distinctive enough to be its own entity.

It is also nice that this signature instrument is not custom-shopped. It is her Go-To Right Off Rack Guitar, so you get the real deal.

I do not play with a locking system, but Ibanez is famous for creating Floating Bridges with tuning stability and comfort.

Expensive

This signature Made-in-Indonesian instrument has a hefty price tag.

The Ibanez JIVA10 Nita Strauss signature guitar (MSRP USD 1,999) sells for approximately $1,500.

It’s hard to justify buying something made at the Indonesian factory when you could easily buy a Japanese-made Prestige model for the same amount or another high-end brand guitar. Still, in 2020, Ibanez introduced the  JIVAJR, a more affordable version.

Should You Add This To Your Collection?

Overall, this Ibanez is quality; the finish looks great, has no flaws in the craftsmanship, and is solid in your hands.

If you are a fan of a versatile, well-made Ibanez, then YES.

Did You Like This Article?

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Also…

Leave your comments below if you want me to review a favourite guitar.

As always, stay the course, keep playing, and see you in a few weeks.

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Main Guitar image courtesy of musicplayers.com

Back image courtesy of zzsounds.com

Image of Controlled Chaos courtesy of Amazon

Image of the Pandemonium “Neck” and “Bridge” Pickups courtesy of Amazon

Nita Strauss & Guitar CTA Image courtesy of Amazon

Nita Strauss image courtesy of Wikimedia, Author Frank Schwichtenberg, This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International.