As the story continues:
Hoshino Gakki held its annual meeting, which brought together key individuals from their distributors for a week of discussions about the company's direction. These meetings were usually held in Japan, and it was during this year's meeting that Hoshino Gakki became increasingly concerned about the weakening Yen. This led them to explore offshore production. Hoshino had not engaged in offshore production since the 1930s when they imported Ibanez guitars from Spain.
They sent personnel to Korea to search for factories and have some production models made. The acoustic guitar business had declined for Ibanez in the USA since around 1985, and the product line mainly consisted of PF10 models. This marked the birth of the EX series, which appeared in the 1988 catalog. The EX series featured lower-priced locking tremolo models like the EX350 with a pickguard and the EX360 without one. Two basses, the EXB404 and EXB405 (4-string) with two P pickups, were also added. These models marked the beginning of offshore production, which continues to this day.
Korea had over 50 factories at the time, primarily in areas around Seoul, Inchon, Padjue, and Pusan. Larger factories could produce 7,000 to 20,000 guitars, while smaller ones aimed for 1,500 to 3,000 pieces per month.
Hoshino preferred building relationships with factories and providing steady orders rather than jumping between factories for price competitiveness. Unfortunately, many Korean factories went out of business in the early 1990s due to price wars caused by companies switching factories.
During this time, Rich and Bill visited Japan and were impressed by the cultural differences. They were particularly amused by instructional stickers found on western-style toilets in hotels, known as "S&P stickers." Rich wanted to use these stickers on a guitar and even discussed it with George Lynch from Dokken. They created a black and white RG with a large crackle finish and the S&P sticker, but it was never delivered because George Lynch began playing ESP guitars.
Mike Shamada was called back to Japan, and Tom Tanaka returned as President. Pedro Cruz, a graphic artist from Texas, was also brought in to work on graphics. Pedro later moved to New Jersey, making it convenient for graphic design work.
H&S was eager to create their own designs. Hiro, an employee from Hoshino Gakki, drew designs on paper in an attempt to come up with original concepts. Japan also designed some exclusive models for H&S, including the 580 series, consisting of the 580T (Tolbot) and 580B (Bowl Back). These models were a sort of Telecaster shape, with the 580T having a contoured top and back like the S guitar, and the 580B featuring a rounded back. However, these models did not perform well and were only around for a few months.
In the production process, fluorescent models were common. In one instance, the sunlight coming in through the warehouse windows caused lines from the carts to appear on the guitar bodies. When the factory was informed that they couldn't make the Radius models due to these lines, the factory suggested leaving the guitars in direct sunlight for a few minutes to fix the issue, and it worked almost instantly, allowing the guitars to be assembled the same day.
With Steve Vai playing Ibanez guitars, many other guitarists approached the company seeking endorsements. The Repair room at Ibanez began to serve as a quasi-custom shop where artists could come for guitars or to have work done. Two of the artists mentioned are Blues Saraceno and Richie Kotzen, both known for their technical playing styles. Richie Kotzen, being somewhat local, often visited the Ibanez office. His father owned a vending company, and their house had a room filled with pinball machines, which was used in the Ritchie Kotzen Full Tilt advertisement. Blues Saraceno, on the other hand, came from Connecticut and was recommended by one of the outside sales representatives, Bill McKenny. Blues was a highly energetic individual who couldn't stay still; even when he came to have work done or a guitar built, he would pace around while the Ibanez team worked on his gear. He soon released an album titled "Don't Look Back."
The demand from artists was high, and Ibanez was often taking orders in the morning and delivering finished guitars the same night. Many artists would use these guitars for their performances the same night they received them. This created quite a bit of pressure for the Ibanez team, as they'd be in the audience, anxiously waiting to see if anything would go wrong during the performance.
One of Steve Vai's requests was for a triple-neck heart-shaped guitar featuring six-string, 12-string, and baritone necks. Mace and his team brainstormed to create the heart-shaped body. They were concerned about the size and weight of such a guitar, so they made it in two halves that could be bolted together with wing nuts. A plug connected the electronics, and a plate was attached to the back (later replaced with Velcro). To reduce the weight, Mace hollowed out the body with chambers in the back. Steve Vai used this guitar in the "Just Like Paradise" video and during the David Lee Roth Skyscraper tour.
In addition to the heart-shaped guitar, Ibanez was working on another request from Steve Vai – a seven-string guitar. Steve wanted a low B string for extended range but didn't want the strings to be too wide apart. To address this, Mace ingeniously combined two six-string bridges and top locks to create a prototype of the Universe, which Steve initially wanted to call the "Axis" but couldn’t be due to a prior usage by Music Man. Hence, the guitar was named the Universe.
Steve had also been working with the GEM Guitar Company in New York, which used a special process called "multi-color" to create unique swirled guitar finishes, where each guitar had a different pattern. Darren Johansen, who had some previous involvement with Joe Dispagni at GEM Guitars, began collaborating with Ibanez. Bodies were initially painted white and then sent to About Time Design to be swirled. The result was the Multi-Color UV77MC, which was to be released in the winter NAMM of 1990.
Hoshino Gakki was working on an updated version of the Edge tremolo system due to the release of the FloydRose Three, which featured a lower profile, allowing the player's palm to rest on the bridge with less chance of the tremolo going out of tune. Fritz Katoh met with Floyd Rose and started designing a new bridge called the Lo-Pro Edge tremolo. This new bridge also featured a die-cast base plate and hardened steel knife edge inserts. The Lo-Pro Edge's stud material was made slightly softer than the bridge pivot inserts, ensuring that the studs would wear out before the tremolo knife edges. On the Edge and Lo-Pro Edge tremolos, the knife edges are pressed into the side and are not easily replaceable.
The cost of the Lo-Pro Edge was higher, so initially, it was reserved for signature models. Later, it was incorporated into the RG700 series. These guitars were still being sent from Japan to Hoshino USA without pickups, where pickups were installed. At this time, Hoshino had recently acquired the California Territory from Chesbro Music and set up an office in Hollywood for artist relations and support with current or potential endorsers. Chuck Fugigawa was the artist relations representative.
All the custom work on the West Coast was carried out by Mike Lipe, owner of the Guitar Doctor. However, it was decided that the custom shop and artist relations needed to be closer to the action in Hollywood. This led to the opening of a custom shop and artist relations office in North Hollywood. Mace and Chris Kelly moved to Hollywood, and Mike Lipe also decided to work for Hoshino in North Hollywood.
Hoshino USA hired another guitar builder, Scott Swestka, from Texas and purchased additional equipment for producing prototypes. The plan was to have all Artist Models for endorsers made in California, while new model prototype production would be done in Bensalem.
H&S was also relocated to Hollywood to have a Hollywood address on the USA-made guitars instead of the Bensalem address. However, painting in Hollywood was subject to strict air quality standards, and H&S had to invest significantly to meet the requirements.
In North Hollywood, they were searching for an office and a location to ship some drums from. Drum delivery from the East Coast took about a week, so there was a hope that having a West Coast location would reduce shipping times to the region. However, all guitars, as they required setup and checks, continued to be handled at the East Coast operation. H&S began working with outside companies like Wildwood and Hosono to get extra bodies and necks made for their guitars. Wildwood produced the American Master through-neck guitars and basses, and Hosono manufactured bodies and necks for the USA Custom Wood Series.
The relocation and expansion of Hoshino's operations to the West Coast was a significant development, aligning the company more closely with the music and entertainment industry centered in Los Angeles and reflecting the changing landscape of the guitar market.
By 1990, Ibanez sales were strong, and the Fuji Factory was producing a wide range of guitar models with various features. Ibanez guitars were known for having more innovative features than many other brands, such as matching headstocks, colored inlays, reversed headstocks, and other unique characteristics. While making a Stratocaster was relatively simple with its bolt-on neck and pickguard-mounted electronics, Ibanez offered a wide variety of body configurations and neck options, making it more challenging for Fuji to keep up. However, this flexibility and adaptability were always Ibanez's strengths.
In 1990, the JS model was introduced as the JS1. This model was a modified Radius body designed in collaboration with Joe Satriani. Joe's preferences were taken into account, including his dislike for a tilt-back headstock and his preference for a Kramer Pacer-style neck. The first few necks for Joe were actually modified Korean guitar necks from one of Ibanez's factories in Korea, Peerless, which mainly produced their acoustic guitars. Joe had a habit of drawing on his guitars with glow-in-the-dark markers, and when the drawings wore off, he would redraw them.
The 12th-anniversary model, GB12, was also introduced in 1990. It had a body that was 1.2 inches thicker than the standard GB body, a flame maple top, back, sides, and pickguard, and a special 12th-anniversary inlay on the fretboard.
During this period, Hoshino USA worked on creating a chrome-plated guitar for Joe Satriani. Chroming a guitar was a challenging process due to the amount of heat required for chroming. The metal would remain straight, but if the wood moved, the chrome would buckle or peel off. Hoshino USA collaborated with Peter Rich Associates, the company responsible for their NAMM displays, to perfect the process. The JS2 model, plated in chrome, appeared with Joe on MTV, and it was featured in the 1990 catalog with a "TBA" (To Be Announced) list price. Unfortunately, the guitar never shipped because they couldn't guarantee its quality. However, a few pre-production samples are still in existence.
The development of the JS models took place between 1988 and 1990. It was based on an R body shape and involved numerous meetings and discussions with Joe Satriani to address the guitar's design specifics. They extended the cutaways, set the neck deeper, and made various other adjustments based on Joe's feedback. There were discussions about improving the tremolo's flutter performance, such as the discovery that a tighter fit of the tremolo arm in the bridge would prolong the flutter.
In 1991, the JS3 model was introduced, and each one was hand-painted by Joe's friend, Donny Hunt. Joe's sister Joan, painted the JS4 Electric Rainbow, and Joe's sister, Carol, painted the JS5 Rainforest. These were highly limited production models, with fewer than 50 produced in total. This period marked the continued collaboration between Ibanez and Joe Satriani, which led to the creation of the iconic JS series guitars that became closely associated with him.
In 1991, Ibanez continued to expand its lineup with various new models and collaborations with artists. The Universe line featured four models: UV7BK, UV7PWH, UV777GR, and the Multi-Color UV77MC. The standard Jem line introduced the JEM77BFP, known as the Blue Floral Pattern model.
Reb Beach, known for his work with the band Winger, collaborated with Ibanez to create a guitar that would suit his two-handed tapping technique. After several years of development, the RBM model was introduced in 1991. Reb initially wanted to call it the Voyager, but the name was already copyrighted in Japan. Nevertheless, a few models with the Voyager truss rod cover made it into the market. The RBM models featured various specifications, including mahogany backs, Koa tops, Bolivian rosewood necks, and different pickup configurations. The first RBM models included the RBM2 with EMG SA/SA 89 pickups and the RBM1 with Ibanez-designed single-blade pickups and an HB blade/pole bridge pickup. The bodies of these early RBM models were solid mahogany.
H&S Guitars was in full production mode in 1991, offering the American Master Series neck-through models in both guitar and bass variations. These models were high-end, all-American-made instruments with figured woods and laminated body construction. The USA Custom series included models with figured maple tops and mahogany backs, as well as the Exotic Wood series. They also continued producing the USA Custom Graphic Design Series, which featured custom finishes applied by artists like Dan Lawrence, Pamalini, and Pedro Cruz.
Additionally, the USA Custom lineup included Metal Design models with laminated fabrics over basswood bodies, such as the Grey Snake, Serpent, and Silver Peacock finishes. The idea for these finishes came from Joe Hoshino in Japan, who wanted to explore an animal-themed series for guitar graphics.
Ibanez Japan introduced the RG770DX models with maple fretboards and matching inlays, although working with maple presented unique production challenges. The RG565 model was also introduced with a reverse headstock, matching dots, and HB/SB series pickups. Initially, these models featured a standard three-way switch, later upgraded to the VLX91 switch, a 4-pole 5-way switch developed by Ibanez, which allowed for more wiring combinations.
In the electronics department, Ibanez released the Chubby Tanks (later renamed Sound Tanks) in 1991. These effects pedals were built with a "one mold, one cast" concept, allowing for flexibility in design as long as they had only three knobs.
Ibanez also introduced the FGM model, an updated version of the S body designed for Frank Gambale. It featured a deeper neck set and a lower string profile to accommodate sweep picking.
Hoshino USA President Tom Tanaka expressed concerns about the Yen-Dollar exchange rate, and the company began considering moving more production to Korea if the Yen continued to drop. Collaboration with Korean factories and developing strong relationships with them became a key focus.