Anatomy Of Electric Guitar For Sale (2024 Update)

I went into my local guitar center yesterday and had close to 1k for a new guitar. I'm pulling off fenders and Epiphones off the wall that felt like they needed a lot of work done. I find this thing just chillin in a corner and the very first thing I do to every guitar is run my thumb and pointer finger along the neck to see if there is any sharp frets. It was smooth. Thought buzz would be bad. There was none. Thought tone would suck. Nope. Needless to say I went home with it. It does have a very few flaws. Pickup selector feels weak, tuners are so tight that they cause some sounds when moving them (stays in tune though), and pickups sound weak. What it is for $150 is a step above what Squier and Ibanez throws out in their budget price range. I can't wait to mod this thing. Despite a few flaws I'm giving it 5 stars due to it's price point.Matt

Overall: I wanted a new guitar because I primarily play Les Paul's and wanted something different. I found Kramer guitars and did some research and liked what I found but didn't want to throw a lot of money at a brand I've never played. I have played and owned B.C. Rich, Gibson, Fender, Washburn, Epiphone, and Ibanez guitars in the past and thought I found what I wanted to stick with. My Kramer Focus arrived today in the awesome purple finish. All I did was tune it up and check intonation and it was perfect. Very low action, smooth fast neck, no sharp fret edges even with the maple fretboard and a Michigan winter! The low humidity sometimes makes the frets stick out. The guitar is just awesome, it sounds good in all positions buy the middle and neck pickup are phenomenol, no buzz at all! The bridge pickup is good but I think it could be hotter so I may change that, the tuners aren't perfect but they'll definitely work, after an hour of playing and using the tremolo it holds tune very well. I highly recommend this guitar for any player, and I will definitely be entertaining the idea of purchasing more Kramer guitars from zZounds!Alex

I bought this item for my daughter for her birthday and she loved it, it came to our door on time, it was playable and very attractive, unfortunately a relative with a drug problem stole it within a day and we haven't been able to afford a replacement. It would be wonderful if BCP would be willing to ship another to us, but either way, very good product. I'll buy another one in time when we are able to afford it.Steve H.

I would give it 20 stars if I could. I’m not going to say that I can even play guitar. I am still trying to learn. I have a Stratocaster that I have been learning chords and following the lessons in a book that is instruction for learning scale. But the semi-hollow body has such a wounderful tone that I have to get better. It is so Inspirational that I have been practicing more than I ever did with my strat. LOVE IT! Thank you.Ronald P.

Overall: I was excited to receive this guitar as it was on back order I got the black and yellow bumblebee. After receiving it I made some adjustments to the tremolo and found that the spring cavity was bare wood / looked like it was chisel out with a screwdriver and it was not routed or CNC'd flat. Worse than that the wood under the Floyd rose was cracked and the finish was cracked as well. Basswood is a very light and soft wood so I am guessing the trem was pushed back during shipment or during setup at the factory and not seen by the staff as it is only visible when you remove the Floyd. I am a woodworker and beginning luthier so I corrected these issues myself and reinforced the thin section under the bridge with a custom fitted piece of maple and routed out the trem cavity so it is flat and sprayed the trem pocket with flat black paint looks like it should have when it left the factory now. I know I probably should have sent it back but overall I really like the guitar and I think Eddie would approve of my work.Douglas

This guitar has my favorite neck. The fretwork is amazing and the neck plays itself. This surprised me coming from fat Les Paul necks. Super easy to play, which, in turn, makes you sound better. I was very impressed with the sound and the functionality of the electronics. I’m a big Van Halen fan but don’t play a whole lot of it and this guitar sounds great for all kinds of other stuff, so long as you’re playing hard rock/early metal. Cleans up great with the volume knob but let’s be real – with no neck pickup, cleans aren’t really what you’re going for. Out of the box, was not intimated at all and there were a couple of paint dings and imperfections. Floyd also didn’t hold tune super well but with a solid setup and lubing up the fine tuners, it plays and sounds great. I had one of these a couple of years back and sold it foolishly to fund other purchases but hear I am, back again after purchasing again. It really is an awesome guitar and I am partial to the b/w color scheme with the Strat-style input jack. My Les Paul Custom is better quality but this guitar honestly sounds as good or better for a third of the price. And this guitar makes you a better player and you realize how amazing of a guitarist Eddie was considering how basic and simple this guitar is. Check it out, you won’t be disappointed.Arpeggio5150

Eddie inspired so many folks to pick up the guitar. This is my second EVH model and I am amazed by this guitar every time I play it. This model was on my bucket list of guitars and when it went on sale at Adorama, I had to snap it up. It came perfectly setup from the EVH factory and the only thing needed to be done was to tune it properly. The D-Tuna is great to switch to drop D tunings. The Frankenstrat plays like a dream. The fretboard is like butter and the the action is ideal for playing hard rock and metal. The pickup gives you an excellent approximation of Eddie's brown sound. I am ecstatic with my purchase and this guitar is the perfect homage to the master. RIP Eddie!Tomas

Overall: First the guitar is very nice for the price. The neck is fantastic feels unfinished (sealed) but is actually a satin sealer on neck and unsealed board, which should age nicely. The frets are finished nicely and it's just smooth to play. The size of the neck is somewhere between an Ibanez (wizard II & III) and a Fender Strat. I think it feels better than an LTD EC 1001, probably due to no paint and compound radius.The guitar is heavier than expected but still a light guitar, it's not a thin body as some strat style guitars are. The guard is simple black but fitted nicely. The pickups aren't bad at all, personally the single coils sound mid and bass heavy, while the humbucker is more mid to bright. All in all compared to a Fender, the guitar is darker sounding, it's not bad but something I noticed.The single coils are definitely weaker (quieter) than the humbucker and not as crisp as ones in a strat. The humbucker is hot but not extremely so, I actually like it better than the ones in a comparable strat (MIM or older AM special).There are flaws though or at least in mine. First minor sanding flaw with 17th marker, smeared on board some. There's a chip in the paint on the top side of the pocket, looks like a small line about a 1/4" long. I also have some feathered pieces on the guard, where it was cut from the sheet of plastic it was made from. These are all minor things and you really have to go over the guitar to notice. It is something I expect at this price on an import guitar, just small QC stuff.Now to the major problems. The action was way high at the bridge when I received it, just under a 1/2" from top of body to bottom of the tremelo. Looking to figure out how low I could go, I noticed the neck was sitting at an angle and there was a gap in the neck pock.I removed the neck to find a shim had been placed in it. Now if this guitar wasn't heel adjust I would have just sent it back and never known but since you have to remove the neck for adjustment, figured why not. After removing shim I was able to get the bridge down to 1/8" off the body, you'll never be able to fully deck it. I also had to adjust string tension at the head to keep the lockers from turning strings sharp, not a huge deal, that's what it's there for.The newer models also don't match the picture. there is no longer a bullet plug on the head stock (where rod usually is on a strat). There is also no longer a skunk stripe on the back of the neck either. I am assuming these are cost cutting measures.The QC is an issue on these guitars I imagine, that's the biggest flaw. They are on par with most any $500 guitar, except the neck. The neck is leaps and bounds above others in my opinion. I put the guitar on the same level as a MIM strat.In the end I think it's a keeper and a decent guitar. I'd just suggest really looking over it when buying and be ready to do a little work or pay a good tech to set it up, which is common in this price range. Don't let it having a shim scare you off, it's probably rare anyways. I figure it was done as a fast way to set it up with a low board action to give people the ability to have a push pull trem, I prefer dive only or just enough for flutter. Just remember at $500, they aren't spending hours to set up a guitar, they'd never get enough out the door. I listed manufacturer support at 2 1/2 stars as I haven't used it but even if they are great I shouldn't have to need them (if they did what they should in the first place) so half way seems fair.Waylon

I have been playing guitar for over 50 years and have enjoyed the work of Adrian Smith in Iron Maiden and especially the work he did on the Bruce Dickenson solo albums. I was in the market for a high quality bolt on guitar with a Floyd Rose and ebony fingerboard and this guitar comes with a DiMarzio Super Distortion pickup which I used to have on one of my old Jacksons, I feel this is an great high gain pickup. This guitar has an excellent build quality that you would expect from a USA made Jackson. The guitar has a nice feel but the tone is so satisfying especially for high gain solos, the notes seem to have a fuller sound compared to some of my other high end guitars (Ibanez J. Custom, ESP E-II and Kiesel JB24), it's a very satisfying guitar to play. Please note that there are two similar models here, evidently this is the new model and the only difference in the description is that this is the snow white model and it's a few hundred dollars more than the other Adrian Smith San Dimas USA model. I had bought the other model first because I couldn't see any difference in the description but when I got it I needed to adjust the truss rod and that's when I found out that in order to adjust the truss rod on the cheaper model you have to remove the neck, I mean seriously? After I called Guitar Center and their tech confirmed that information I called Guitar Center and they gladly processed the return and got me the proper model in couple days no problem. Just be sure that you are getting the model that is snow white and look closely at the picture to see it has the spoke wheel adjustment for the truss rod but yeah the Adrian Smith San Dimas USA Snow White guitar sounds awesome!Mark G

This guitar is a very good value for it's cost. I really like the neck, as it's finish is really good for a guitar in this price range. Frets are smooth and the ends were done nicely, no snags on the fingers. The Floyd Rose Special holds tune nicely. I made some minor adjustments in string action and trem height to get really low action. The pick ups sound great coming through my Marshall DSL 20 Head and Cab.I really like the Fender style headstock with the black hardware. Overall it's an amazing guitar for the price. I am a musician of 35+ years and have owned many, many guitars over the years. I purchased this for my 15 year old son as it was an upgrade from his first guitar, a Squire HSS Strat. He loves the instrument. There are reviews where there's mention of the 1st E coming off the fretboard during play, I or my Son have had no issues with this. Maybe it's a technique thing.. Best of wishes to all you shredders!!Old Guy In The Midwest.

PMT service is fantastic, ordered it on a Sunday had it buy the Wednesday that week. Unpacked it gave it a quick tune and of I went started playing. This is my first fender and what can I say it's a lovely looking guitar, well finished and sounds great . There is a lot of variation you can get from switching between the different pickups which I love.John O.

The guitar came in faster than expected. The service at Sam Ash was excellent, and the salesman was very helpful with putting my order together. After unboxing, I looked the guitar over closely before plugging to my amp. The fit and finish was flawless. The neck relief, string action, and pickup height were spot on. Then I plugged in and cranked up. This guitar comes with Player Strat pickups, and Player Strat neck. And it flat out Rocks. Everyone says the Korean guitars are so good for the money. But these Mexican made Fenders are every bit as good. Personally, I'd rather have a guitar made in the American continent than one made in Asia. Good job Fender. And Kudos to Sam Ash.michael

I own many high end guitars ranging from vintage Gibsons to custom shop Gibsons, to modern Gibsons, to custom shop Fenders, to vintage Fenders, to modern Fenders, to Japanese made reproductions, to Guilds, Martin's, Epiphones, Australian made Maton's, to everything in-between. I can say honestly, for the price and quality of these Harley Bentons, that they're the best value for the money of any guitar on the planet right now. If you're a beginner and want a guitar that will last through your intermediate stages, buy this guitar. If you're a professional and want to buy a cheap guitar and upgrade it super cheap to make a guitar that it's equivalent would cost 2000 bucks, you can buy one of these for 200 bucks and buy 300 bucks of pickups and hardware, and you can make this guitar sound and look like a 2000 dollar Gibson or Fender. Seriously. They are high high quality for the price. The only thing that isn't tip top quality is the electronics. The wood, binding, body, finish, and quality of the guitar is top notch. Best bang for the buck for guitar on the planet at the moment.Roger Davis

Was really pleased with this guitar right out of the box. Little to no set up required. Plays great but may be difficult for novices. The hollow body makes it necessary to have skills a novice may not have. The sound and electronics are great. A little heavy but otherwise solid insrument.Dave

Well built short scale bass; very cool that it has a high F on the first string, my '75 Fender Mustang only goes up to D. This bass is more of a thumper axe that plays well with fingers or pick; feels similar to a Precision bass neck. It is not much for slapping and snapping but I'm starting to find the sweet spot to do that in a pinch. I've been using the natural finish model regularly for about three months and get a lot of positive comments and questions about it. The Starcaster is a heavy bass so if weight is an issue you had better look elsewhere; if you like easy to play short scale thumpers this would be an excellent choice.jzbassguitar

The Starcaster is quite good quality although the original set-up from the factory was fair at best. The intonation had to be adjusted and set correctly. Now corrected it is a fun bass to play and has a nice warm vintage tone. I use a vintage Traynor Bassmaster (1966) Tube Amp YB1-A with a Yamaha 12" bass driver cabinet. Sure gets the old 100 year old windows a rattlin'! For the money its not only a good quality instrument but a piece of artwork, especially in the Cherry Sunburst!G the Bassmaster

This guitar is great for any evh collector and for the price its well worth it. Sounds great plays great highly recommend it!!robz25

Never before have I had an axe that had ZERO issues. The nut is Perfect (the E Strings(two outside strings) are perfectly measured from the sides of the fretboard. The floydrose stays in tune when you use it, the D-tuna is great, and if you break a string(at least a high E so far) there is no issue just keep playing because you are still in tune. One pick up is great because of all that space to not bang your pick on anything. The action is super low, and with 009's you are all set. Nice bridge humbucker and cleans up very well. The neck is great with no finish and overtime your own oils condition the wood(great idea EVH). Best of all no floating trem, Yay!surf_ping

Overall: Placed my order for the EVH EVH Frankie Red White and Black striped guitar, Friday 7-30-21 and received it a day earlier than expected Tuesday 8-3-21. This guitar exceeds all expectations for the price. If you know how to properly set a Floyd Rose style temolo, which it tedious in it's own right, it will consistently stay in tune after excessive abuse. The EVH Wolfgang pickup brings out the harmonics like you've never heard from any other pickup. I highly recommend this guitar for all Eddie Van Halen fans. You will not be disappointed!!!!Steve

Very impressed with this guitar. The neck has a great feel and well set-up for playing fast and note bends, especially in the upper register. Sustain is impressive for a sub £1k guitar and there is probably enough grunt from the factory pickups for most players. The low friction volume and high friction tone are a nice thing to have and am considering adapting my other working guitars with this. Using the D-Tuna was a learning curve as you can't use the fine tuner once set at drop D (well, you can tweak the tuning on the D-Tuna itself once set in the standard tuning position). If you don't fancy using it you can always swap it out with the supplied kit. The kill button is fun and I'm sure I'll get good use of it in time but I do keep brushing it when hammering out funk rhythms. Possibly due to my large hands but worth noting that if you splay you strumming hand when playing, you may end up with a scuff bruise or two. All told, I'm very happy with this new addition to my string family.Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Great guitar. Plays like butter. My biggest problem is that the Floyd Rose bridge goes out of tune every time I use the tremolo ( actually comes out of the body). Even with me buying the protection plan I keep getting told that my only option is to pay more money and get the bridge replaced and re-setup. Very disappointed with this whole experience.Kevin

Is now my second string or first string instrument. Haven't decided yet. Main axe now is PRS Johnny Hiland signature. This might be the new first string for one third the MSRP of the PRS. Took about two weeks of tweaking when switched from tens to nines. Every time I tweaked, I got away with more than I thought I could and now it plays like butter. Always stays in tune!Lars

been plkaying for 25 years and this guitar along with the Jetstream 390 are the 2 best guitars I own and I absolutelky love playing them. Thet are nothing short of fantastic and I love them. Best guitars I ever bought or played. They are ib a class all their own. I'v owned about every brand and tgypoe and never found anything that comes close to this and the Jetstream 390. You just can't do any better than those two IMHOSteven

Nice guitar – beautiful color- nice and light- the light weight makes it a good travel guitar. A real fun guitar to play. It would be a good guitar for a young person ..mtegan

The Peavey Raptor Plus guitars, especially the EXP editions, are very undervalued and underappreciated. Quality components, great necks, wonderful playability. That they can be purchased all day long for less than $200.00…sometimes under a $100.00…is like giving a prospective buyer a license to steal! The neck and body are worth that — not to mention some pretty fair sounding pickups. All in all, the best low-priced guitars on the market!brujazz_7

Two words. Love it! But apparently I need to have more than that. I actually tried this guitar out at a music shop in another state. I was going to go back to them and buy it, but I found it online for the same price minus the gas. I have bee very pleased with it though I haven't gotten to play it as much as I want to because my toddler son also wants to play.brotha777

Great deal. Great for what it covers! Entry lever only. Would do business with again. Great transaction. GREAT ENTRY level book. Would not recommend for ADVANCED INFORMATION. Great for putting a KIT together. LGWmorgansupersport

This is a solid build guitar, perfect for beginners. Mine worked well right out of the box (after tuning, of course). The amplifier works well also, for what it is; a low-power practice amp. If you're looking for a way to start learning to play guitar without breaking the bank, this kit should work for you.CrashC

The guitar kit came in fairly quickly, but right away there was a problem. It came with five strings, with what was left of the sixth stuck in the guitar, the tuner was shattered, and the kit was missing the Allen wrenches and the picks. The box was loosely packed with no styrofoam or anything, with the guitar in the gig bag and the rest of the stuff thrown into the pocket besides the amp. Seems like it was either a rushed job, or all come boxed like that. The guitar plays alright once the strings were replaced, but it loses tuning pretty quick. Theres obvious signs of neglect such as body chips near the neck, and scratches on the pick guard. The finish on the guitar is pretty nice, and it feels alright in the hands. I wouldnt recommend if you expect everything to come as described in the picture though.jonaba4165

Great little set for beginners or even intermediates as you get the whole package. The tuner is very nice and works well. Everything to get started and the guitar itself feels very solid and has better than average settings for the sounds you'd want. The extra strings were fine but I'm adding a better quality set which I already had anyway. Either way you can't go wrong on this package. The amp has good settings and sounds nice. Overall a good buy.alsmith029

Not the best on the market, but a good book for any serious guitar guru.. looking to better understand the physics behind electric guitar.jwj71874_3

If you're interested in the history of electric guitars, this has to be on your shelf. Those the focus chronicles the life and accomplishments of Paul Bigsby it covers ALL the players that were involved in the creation and development of elecronic guitar music throughout the early years. I read the book cover to cover and passed it on to a friend from the late 50s , a guitar player/instructor and he loved it as well. Get your hands on it and share it .. you won't be disappointed. And I don't think you'll find it on the shelf of your local library.bobbyjohnj

This book is a must for all guitar enthuiasists.a great American story with tons of great pics.a good education for the guitar builder and artist alike. Vaughn Mitchell stagetech/tour driversovereignman

This book is well worth any amount that it is listed at. For a long time I can remember hearing the name Bigsby and always equating it to that weird looking tailpiece on a Gretch Guitar. Paul Bigsby is probably the True Father of the Modern Solid Body Guitar. Now if you know your history there have been other attempts to create a non-acoustic instruments only amplified by a electromagnetic pickup (and I don't mean Lap-steels) dating as far back as the 1910's (Loyd Loar), but no one else can be better argued as the man that truely ushered in a new era. Paul Bigsby is the man that created that famous headstock that Fender ripped off. Paul Bigsby is the man that designed the original Les Paul body shape. Paul Bigsby is the man that used "Neck-thru" construction well before Rickenbacker. Paul Bigsby is the man that created the Lap Steel guitar as we know it today. Paul Bigsby is the flashpoint in which all the other major standards of the Electric Guitar World have hailed from… But refuse to acknowledge. Fortunately "PA" (as he was better known) never let the chips get him down. One way or another Bigsby made his way thru the world ending his career with a arguably unequaled Vibrato Tailpiece that still carries his name sake. This book is wonderfully put together. Full color pictures with details and acknowledgments to keep any fact hunter happy. Not to say the least about the three page full-body fold out with super sharp photos that make me wish there was a scratch and sniff sticker to gain the full experience. As if this well put together hard cover where not good enough, at the very last cover you'll find a CD. Contained in it is actual recordings (of his voice) made by Paul Bigsby himself to friends and loved ones. I can't say how much I love this book. As a struggling Luthier in tough economic times it gives me strength to see a man like Paul Bigsby with what he had gone thru never gave up and kept moving forward. He not only took the bull by the horns, he grabbed it by the nuts and kicked it out of his workshop. Ever since this book I don't think I've ever been so creative.chavez_2003

There are probably better books on the market for describing how to design and build an electric guitar but what makes this book essential are the sections on marketing guitars. The author offers terrific advice on how to organise your workspace, work efficiently and find a market for your instruments. Sound, practical advice for anyone who wants to try making a living from instruments building. Highly recommended..aubren_7pskc

Just received this book today. So far I have looked at a few photos & read a few pages. This is exactly what I was looking for! Instructions on how to set up your workshop, what types of woods luthier use, marketing, branding, design & build electric guitars, etc.breharr-84

A detailed comprehensive book on every aspect of electric guitar building from setting up your workshop, wood, guitar design (though there is a separate book by the same author on design), building with details on drilling, routing, band sawing, sanding, making the neck, fretboard, the body, bindings, inlaying, making the nut, finishing, all about the electronics and set up all with detailed photos. The book continues with showing your guitar, branding it, pricing it, promoting it with photos and building a website. It's loaded with extra How To details that go above and beyond what you'd expect. This book will make others look amateurish at best – well written and well worth the money. The author is a real modern day genius we are lucky to be living in the same time with.thayercraft