Zero! - Jackson JS Series Dinky JS12, Snow White

Meet Zero! 

What’s this? What’s this? There’s something very white… Okay, we’ll stop. Zero came to us because his previous owner loved him very much, but his neighbours couldn’t stand the noise.

Named after the little ghost dog from The Nightmare Before Christmas, Zero is pale, pointy, remarkably well behaved and considerably louder than his namesake. He even has the black nose, but admittedly, his is a headstock.

Don’t let the ghostly Snow White finish fool you. Underneath is a proper little shred machine, built around the formula Jackson have spent decades perfecting: skinny neck, 24 frets, two humbuckers and considerably more noise than something this innocent-looking has any right to make.

The flat-top Dinky body is light, comfortable and nicely sculpted, paired with Jackson’s slim bolt-on maple speed neck and dark amaranth fingerboard. With 24 jumbo frets, simple dot markers and excellent upper-fret access, Zero is incredibly easy to get around, whether you’re learning your first riffs or venturing towards the dusty end of the fretboard.

A pair of Jackson high-output ceramic humbuckers provide the bark (sorry, we couldn’t resist.)

The bridge pickup is tight, aggressive and perfectly happy under plenty of gain, while the neck provides a fuller, smoother voice for leads and cleans. A three-way blade selector, master volume and master tone keep everything refreshingly uncomplicated.

Down at the other end is Jackson’s 2-point fulcrum tremolo, giving you plenty of room for vibrato and dives without the additional faff of a double-locking system. Perfect if you want to start experimenting with a trem without requiring an engineering degree every time you change your strings.

And despite apparently being deceased, Zero has barely been touched. He arrived in remarkably good condition, so much so that the original protective film is still fitted to the rear cavity covers. If they look slightly hazy in the photographs, that’s the film doing its job, not damaged plastic underneath.

Looking pretty doesn’t get a Stray through rehabilitation, though. Zero’s frets have been levelled, crowned and polished, with the fret ends attended to for a smooth playing surface. His amaranth fingerboard has been thoroughly cleaned and conditioned, his hardware and electronics inspected and cleaned, before receiving a complete setup with action, intonation and tremolo dialled in and a fresh set of strings fitted.

The result is exactly what we think an affordable guitar should be: comfortable, slick, properly set up and ready to play from the moment it reaches its new home.

So whether you’re looking for your first proper electric, an affordable metal machine, or simply need a little white ghost following you around, Zero is waiting. No glowing pumpkin nose included, unfortunately, we checked.