I have a Jackson Kelly that's a real shredder. 24 frets, rosewood fretboard. Floyd Rose double locking trem. I paid $340.00 for it used w/the hard case. The frets could've been trimmed a little better - kinda sharp on the edges, and the neck is unfinished. Easy enough to fix myself. May be a bit overpriced, but I like the body style. Most Jacksons are made overseas now - mine was made in Indonesia. I also own an old Charvel - Charvel/Jackson was the same company previously, then Wayne Charvel spun off and started making "very high priced" Wayne guitars. Kinda like what happend to Fender when Leo Fender sold the name to some foreign company and started C&L guitars. Charvel is producing guitars again...don't know if Wayne is back, or the Jackson folks are just using a marketing scheme. Anyway, refering to quality - check out a Charvel/Jackson San Dimas if you get a chance (USA made) - then check out the price...
Carvin also makes a good guitar for the money. I've heard of alot of neck/truss rod problems with the newer Ibanez models...
And of course, my money is on my Washburn N4 - best guitar I've ever owned.