Hello there, back again with another great guitar review for you! This time we will be looking at a killer yet affordable Jackson JS32T Kelly electric guitar. If you are a fan of thrash metal, you have probably seen a “Kelly” body guitar in the hands of thrash metal masters such as Megadeth. Did you know that the Kelly model is a heavily modified version of the Gibson Explorer series? Kelly’s design has been around since the early ’80s and was popularised by Megadeth’s Marty Friedman.
Table of Contents
It was designed and named after Bradford Kelly, the guitarist of the band “Heaven” in the early ’80s. Jackson Kelly models have a classic pointy Jackson headstock, and it looks edgy and pointy in all terms. In this review, I’ll be talking about the JS series Kelly models, which definitely promise to give you the classic Jackson tone without busting your bank.
Please consider supporting this blog by buying your gear from Thomann using my links at no extra cost to you, many thanks!
During my service in the musical instruments industry, I have played dozens of Jackson models as well as a lot of Kelly models with different configurations. Let’s hear about my first encounter with Kelly. It was back in 2014 when I just started working in the industry. This was a Jackson JS32T Kelly model with a Satin Black colour option. Of course, I was playing Megadeth riffs! 😉 Recorded with a Rode VideoMic Pro and a Marshall AVT50 amp + an old Boss SD-2. 
Test Room Video (no talking)
In another review that I did for the Jackson JS11 Dinky model, I mentioned that Jackson Guitars changed the body wood on the Dinky models from basswood to poplar. When I checked their website for Kelly models, I see the same change for the Kelly series too. But the ones you are hearing on this page all have a basswood body. Even though this body type is not for everyone, I remember having sold dozens of them in a month, which was really surprising. 
Sound Demo (no talking)
So when we had more time, I decided to record the full video of another Kelly that we just sold. Let’s hear it in more detail, but this time recorded with a Marshall JVM205C valve amp + Shure SM57 microphone.
As you can hear, even on the clean channel of a valve amp, it tends to break up a bit because of Jackson’s high-output pickups, which make this guitar a natural-born metal axe! Back in the day, I remember having had 3 colour options: Snow White, Satin Black and Viola Burst. However, I wasn’t able to find the Satin White version on the official Jackson website, probably discontinued. 
Tech Specs
| Jackson JS32T Kelly | Tech Specs |
|---|---|
| Construction | Bolt-on |
| Body | Poplar or Basswood* |
| Fretboard | Rosewood |
| Nut Width | 42.86mm |
| Neck | Maple Neck |
| Radius | 304.8mm to 406.4mm Compound Radius |
| Frets | 24 Jumbo Frets |
| Pickups | 2 Jackson High Output Humbucker |
| Bridge | Jackson TOM Style Bridge with String-Thru Body |
| Tuners | Jackson Sealed Die-Cast |
| Finishes | Snow White? Satin Black, Viola Burst |
As I mentioned in my Jackson JS11 Dinky review, the build quality, details, and even packaging at this price range are impossible to have with many other competitors. I literally played dozens of Jackson Kelly models in a month and never bumped into a problematic one. You will have a compound neck profile which gives you much better playability across the neck and a great resonant and aggressive-sounding guitar.
Only fools keep their cash in a bank account! Let your money work for you with the most trustworthy broker ever!
As you have heard or seen in my review videos, I try to play lots of bits of music from different styles, and I should warn you that Jacksons come with quite high-output pickups. I suggest you have a look for different options if you only want to play with cleanish, a bit overdriven tones. But if you are after aggressive sounds, especially for the thrash metal genre, grab yourself a Jackson Kelly 32T today!
I used to be allergic to Floyd Rose and similar locking bridge systems. To be honest, after having had a lot of personal experience with them, my opinions got flipped on this topic. Locking tremolo systems are one of the most stable when it comes to tuning. It just takes some time to get used to it and learn how to properly adjust everything. Then tuning becomes a past thing! 🙂
Check out my Jackson JS32 with Floyd Rose review here
However, I must say the JS32T version impressed me a lot more than the FR version. It was so stable and resonant, and I couldn’t enjoy these fixed-bridge Kelly models more. I was always happy to see these in the shop and play them as much as I could.
Pricing & Availability
As mentioned in the article, not all colour options are available anymore. But Jackson still manufactures Ferrari Red and Snow White finishes with Floyd Rose tremolo bridges. You may easily supply these via Thomann, possibly for the best competitive price in the whole EU region.
Check out the Jackson JS32T Kelly on Thomann here
Although options are almost non-existent on the used market, you may also check out Reverb. Especially if you want to grab one of these from a specific era, Reverb is the best place. But don’t expect to find dozens of used JS32s, as people tend to keep these for themselves. 🙂
Check out the Jackson JS32T Kelly on Reverb here
Last but not least, you may also want to check out Amazon. Surprisingly, Amazon lists tons of Jackson guitars! 🙂
Check out the Jackson JS32T Kelly on Amazon here
I hope you have enjoyed this brief article. Thanks for visiting my blog and supporting me so far! I will hopefully see you in the next review here!
