Sterling By Music Man Rabea Artist Series Sabre – a solid rock and metal workhorse
$999/£1,199, sterlingbymusicman.com
When Ernie Ball Music Man blessed YouTuber and metal guitarist Rabea Massaad with his first signature models back in 2024, it was only a matter of time before more budget-friendly Sterling versions came along to serve the slightly more cash-constrained.
READ MORE: Sterling By Music Man Kaizen 6 review: one of the most ergonomic and comfortable guitars I’ve ever played
After a two-year wait, Rabea’s Sterling Sabre finally arrived in October 2025, retaining many of the original’s fan-favourite specs – including a recessed heel and characteristic lower-horn spoon carve for comfortable high-register shredding – while slashing its $4,000 price tag to just shy of $1,000.
That considerable cost-saving is owed, in large part, to the fact that Rabea’s SBMM Sabre is made in Indonesia, while its pricier EBMM counterpart is built in the USA.
But as I’ve discovered first-hand on numerous occasions – like when I got my hands on the SBMM Kaizen 6 in December – Sterling’s considerably more affordable instruments do very little, if anything, to diminish build quality and are devilishly fun to play and tremendously difficult to put down.
Image: Adam Gasson
Sterling By Music Man Rabea Artist Series Sabre – what is it?
If you’ve ever watched Rabea Massaad’s YouTube channel or heard his diverse array of crushing riffs in Dorje, Toska and FrogLeap, you’d naturally jump to the conclusion that the SBMM Rabea Artist Sabre is a guitar focused chiefly at the heavier-inclined. In reality, though, it’s an impressively well-rounded instrument, with a silky smooth feel and versatile Alnico V humbuckers catering to a vast range of playing styles and genres, should you wish.
Its spec sheet is similar to its slightly more decked out EBMM sibling, both sharing a 25.5” scale, roasted maple neck and 22-fret ebony fingerboard with white ring inlays, and sculpted lower horn carve which, it must be said, feels like silk when sweeping in the highest registers.
There are a few changes, though, which help bring the Sterling version down to the affordable sub-$1,000 bracket. An alder body is swapped out for nyatoh – while retaining the flame maple veneer – the Music Man vintage tremolo is substituted for a standard modern trem, and perhaps most importantly, Rabea’s signature Bare Knuckle Silo pickups are traded for a pair of custom-voiced Alnico V humbuckers. Controls are kept the same, meanwhile, with singular volume and tone pots – with coil splitting – and a five-way selector switch.
The Sterling By Music Man Rabea Artist Sabre also comes in two new finishes; where the EBMM version came in Vileblood Burst and Frenzied Flame Burst, its affordable counterpart comes in Ashen Burst and Blood Flame Burst, inspired by Rabea-approved video games Dark Souls and Elden Ring, respectively.
Image: Adam Gasson
Sterling By Music Man Rabea Artist Series Sabre – feel and sounds
Put simply, 10 minutes of tinkering with your amp in both clean and high-gain settings reveals the Sterling By Music Man Rabea Artist Series Sabre to be a guitar that can do it all. But parking the versatility argument for just a second, let’s be honest: this is still a guitar that’ll find its core audience among metal players. So straight to high-gain setting I go.
Rabea’s Sterling Sabre owes its one-quarter price tag, in large part, to the addition of standard custom-voiced Alnico V humbuckers in place of Rabea’s signature Bare Knuckle Silos. But these pickups don’t exactly leave you wishing for anything. Flicking through the five pickup settings – on a switch which must be commended for its buttery smooth feel, I might add – it’s a true joy running the metal gamut. Low-register riffs on the bridge setting exude power and bite while retaining tightness, meaning even technically challenging riffs retain their clarity in a mix or band setting.
The neck pickup offers a gloriously warm tone perfect for sweeps, which when coupled with the recessed heel, sculpted lower horn carve and silky satin neck finish, genuinely make me feel about twice as good at sweep picking as I really am. Shredding really shines with this guitar, so if you’re looking to supercharge your lead playing, it might be the perfect option for you. Those Alnico V humbuckers handle crystalline cleans as well as high-gain tones, so you can rest easy knowing your tonal palette of needs is pretty much taken care of. Bear in mind there’s also a push-push tone pot, too, so you can tap into single-coil-type tones.
As with so many guitars that come out of Indonesia these days, build quality is superb, save for a few minor imperfections, like both the “Made in Indonesia” sticker and the way the fretboard connects with the neck at the headstock, seeming a little misaligned or off-center.
Straight out the box the strings are barely wound round the tuning post at all, which may have contributed to the A string breaking the first time I tuned up. Following that little hurdle and after a new set of strings, everything else about this guitar feels wonderfully put together and premium, from its graceful satin finish to a solo-friendly low action across the length of the fretboard. Glow-in-the-dark side dots are a welcome addition, too, and work great in dimly lit environments.
Image: Adam Gasson
Sterling By Music Man Rabea Artist Series Sabre – should I buy one?
There’s no shortage of riff-ready double-humbucker electric guitars on the market, and at times it’s hard to see where the Rabea Artist Series Sabre stands apart from the pack. It’s a tremendously well-built guitar which plays and sounds fantastic, but in terms of feeling like anything groundbreaking, it doesn’t feel like there’s much to see here.
That said, if you’re looking for a metal-first, versatile workhorse to add to your guitar collection – this is a solid option. And if you’re an avid Rabea Massaad fan, you’ll get more out of this guitar than most.
Image: Adam Gasson
Sterling By Music Man Rabea Artist Series Sabre – alternatives
If you’ve got $4,000 to part with, springing for the Ernie Ball Music Man Rabea signature gets you a slightly more kitted out spec sheet, but is it worth the $3k extra? The Sterling By Music Man version more than does the job, so I’m not that convinced it is.
In a similar price range, though, is the Tosin Abasi-approved Sterling By Music Man Kaizen 6, an ergonomic shred machine I named as my favourite guitar of 2025 in Guitar.com’s year-end gear roundups. While the SBMM Rabea Sabre is undeniably a beautiful guitar to play, few guitars have made an impression on me like the Kaizen, and it also has a floating tremolo, so you’ve got a slightly wider array of tools at your disposal.
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Source: www.guitar-bass.net
