Hard Rock Hollywood Guitar At Night For Sale (2024 Update)

The potential is there! BUT,the stud mounts for the Floyd Rose are way to loose,as if the bolts should be a size bigger,I wound teflon tape several times to tighten the threads.Not sure if they all come this way but mine was a mess,it will no way no how stay in tune the way it was.Another problem with the trem is the plate that holds the springs underneath was installed way to close to one side,I had to redo that as well. The action was terrible intonation way off.So I just started from scratch took the neck off and btw the strap button is screwed in with one of the bolts for the neck a bad idea,I repositioned it so all 4 bolts had the same torcque holding the neck on. I put a very small shim under the neck put it back on, adjusted the truss rod,then set the action and intonation and put an EMG 81 in the bridge position…..After all that I love it! Stays in perfect tune ,has that Gibson mahogany wood sound to it,and plays great! Just be prepared to rebuild it out of the box if you have the same problems I did.Metalmonger

Outstanding. The feel of the instrument is incredible. Gibson did good with these new kramers and once the brand picks up some momentum i can see them coming back into the scene easily. The main reason i really took to this guitar was just looking over all the similar guitars with the same features for the price this one stands out not only with looks but the quality and the feel/tone it provides. I was looking towards all brands ESP Schecter Epiphone Fender and ended up with this axe. It beats the rest. I will confidentally say that. I personally hate how every model of guitar has EMG's and an ebony fretboard/mahogany body combo. Come on people lets get real here people want something different. An extremely comfortable and fast playing guitar. The neck profile feels incredibly smooth and fast. Its very easy to get around and feels increasingly natural. The modified V style body not only feels comfortable playing standing up or sitting down but it also looks great. The satin finish is smooth (though requires a little more cleaning care). The guitars stock pickups sound great and are a staple on alot of the epiphone models. The coil tap adds a little bit more in the tonal dynamic of the instrument and the overall weight of the guitar is balanced and solidly built. The fretboard is very dark (says rosewood but almost looked like ebony) and the inlays add a little flare to the guitar. The guitar was set up almost perfectly right out of the box. Very little fret buzz and the action was near perfect. Tuned it up and the stock strings sounded good. Quality from the first strum. i had figured that it would be compareable with some of the other epiphone models i played and the quality is similar but the playability is a lot better. The only real problem i had was some very minor buzz (barely noticeable) and whoever had set up the guitar had left a string sitting on one of the saddles out of the groove (which with a one finger push popped right in) for what you get the dollar price on this axe is not bad at all. It easily plays better than instruments twice its price and has the added tone to boot. Eventually most players will want to swap the P-ups out but for the time being the stock pickups deliver. No complaints with the instrument whatsoever. If your looking for something that plays well and wont break the bank see if you can get your hands on one. In terms of the playability alone this instrument is worth every penny.RennexGreyven

Been waiting for this Kramer NiteV for almost 2 years and finally these are made available, I always loved Kramer from way back in the 80's. Thus Nite V has awesome sustain and the neck feels smooth, great balance with this guitar, the pickups are great for this guitar, and the look of this thing means Metal!!Metaldave

I ordered on 1st august,2015 but still to receive it. Fed up with it.. Moreover you cannot even give a low star review… They delete it..Pratas H.

If you’re looking for a great travel guitar, this is it. Ingenious design and good looks. We’ll made and seems to be durable. Pickup actually sounds good and the headphone only with built in amp is awesome! The 4 programmed tones are definitely usable for what it is. It even comes with soft case, batteries and a pick. Exactly what I was looking for! Thanks Traveler Guitar!Raymond T.

I love this guitar. So much fun. Full scale yet i can take it on trips. Sounds great through my 3W amp. Great when I don't want to lug my full size case. Really looking forward to having this on trips from now on. Awesome!Patrick M.

There is plenty to like about this guitar, and I got it for the features I was looking for: locking tremelo, 24 frets, fast neck, 5 way pickup selector, and nice looks. My first impressions of the guitar was slight disappointment with how sloppy Ibanez was. The tops and bottoms of the frets needed to be beveled as they were pretty sharp, there was a noticeable nick on the fretboard, and there was a black smudge on the back of the neck. None of those was a huge deal. The main two issues I have with the guitar are that the middle pickup, the single coil, has such low output that the middle three positions are much quieter than the neck or bridge pickups alone. I do like the tone of the single coil in conjunction with the humbuckers, but those positions are somewhat useless considering how quiet they are, and I have ordered a humbucker to replace it. The single coil alone (middle position) has too much noise AND is too quiet. Not a big deal to replace a pickup, but why they are selling it this way, I'm not sure. The second issue is the volume control. Instead of a gradual swell, there is a sharp dropoff in volume at one point in the rotation of the dial, making it pretty much useless other than having it full on or all the way off. I am not sure if that is fixable, but if it is, I'll need to have that done as well. All that said, if the guitar had not arrived in such sloppy condition and the two problems were resolved, I'd give this guitar 5 stars.hickory spork

The Ibanez RG 450 or any of the RG's are with the exception of the factory p/u and electronic. capable of becoming one of the best performance guitars to own. The base Ibanez Floyd Rose system is fiddley but, after learning how to adjust/tune quickly becomes appreciated for holding tune no matter the severity of attacks you use with the tremolo. The Wizard(ll or lll ?) You would need to go to custom built to exceed the easy play and comfortable frets you will find on and RG. This recent RG450 I upgraded to equal the higher priced models by adding the De Marzio Tone Zone (B), Air Norton (N). And instead of going with the True Velvet. Added the Seymour Duncan Vintage Hot Stack for the middle position and added better electrics to even out the upgrades.. End result; This guitar plays and sound equal to guitars costing over $1,000.00!! Good bones! Yes this can be played well and many will find happiness with this as stock., and, will perform well against the competition dollar for dollar!ikeus

I used to own an '89 Ibanez VBK JEM that I regrettably sold to buy a gaming pc. I wanted to get a newer entry level RG so I could have a floyd,HSH superstrat in E standard. I've had this RG for long enough to know it's a keeper. This thing has the same feel and vibe of my old JEM! Minus the monkey grip and other features obviously. The neck feels fantastic and I only had to do very minor setup adjustments to my liking. I would have liked a rosewood or ebony fingerboard but of course this is the lower end model. The Jatoba feels good under the fingers, similar to rosewood but with a slightly lighter shade to it. Like most guitars you buy online mine came desperately needing some good oil and cleaning. The Jatoba fingerboard seems to require a bit more lubrication than rosewood. The neck binding is done well, not perfect but to a good standard. I do wish the trem was an Edge lo-pro… But again, this is the lower priced model. There is nothing wrong with the Edge tremolo, it stays in tune well with whammy bar abuse but it is one of the bulkier Original Floyd Rose style bridges. The stock Quantum pickups are among the best stock Ibanez pickups I've tried. They are hot but versatile. However I did swap them out with the classic Dimarzio Air Norton/Steves Special combo and a True Velvet middle. I do believe a higher end Ibanez will obviously sound better than this but for the price it really is hard to beat! Well done Ibanez and AMS!Nevin

I wish I had purchased this a long time ago. It was a champ right out of the box. This is one of the very few times in 50 years of buying guitars that I actually purchased an instrument and not a project. I’m amazed at how well it was set up to rock from the get-go. AMS must take great care of their stock because this was perfection in a box when i got it. Crisp and clean, aesthetically astounding. The sound encompasses everything I look for but i got it in this one guitar. Rough and rugged tones for grinding out ripping leads, sweet mellow tones for ambient music, unmatchable warm and hot tones for clean country and soothing jazz. You just cannot beat this guitar in quality and sound in this price range! You gotta get one of these!DC Collins

I’ve read almost every single review on this model and the overall take was hit or miss. Well I musta lucked out because this thing plays great! I had no paint blemishes, was smooth around the monkey grip, frets level, neck relatively straight and after a home set up, twice oiling the fretboard, with a fresh set of Super Slinky’s dropped down half a step she was solid. Tremolo unit not as bad as I had read or expected. The bar will get loose after use but I’ve got it holding tune very well. You can’t pull the bar up like the big brother Jems without an almost immediate fret out and the obvious answer is raise the bridge but then the action is too high to enjoy playing. Pickups are really decent. They clean up well. Was probably the main factor over the White or Black. The White Jr just looked and felt plain in comparison. After owning a JEM7v and playing a thousand gigs on it this is a nice little reminder of what fun that was!Ryan

Purchased in Westminster, CA Sam Ash store. Had a hard time locating these in SoCal stores. Their online store said it was in their inventory, but it was not on display. Bryan, my sales rep, located the guitar and setup and tuned as quickly as possible. He located an amp to suit my style and plugged me in. He was very attentative, well spoken and enthusiastic – asking questions that were very helpful. Big shout out to Bryan for all his heolp and personability. This Jem Jr in Pink acheived all the tones I was looking for in one guitar from clean to shred. Pretty sturdy and stayed in tune quite well even after thrashing the trem bar to see if I could get a string to break. No fret edges, though the fretboard was dry (oiled then neck at home). No scratchy pots or finish issues. The weight was pleasant and easy to carry around. Got a great deal from Sam Ash and their service was good and meaningful and I left with a sense of a solid purchase. Will visit this store again and I recommend the Jem Jr if you can't afford the upper end Jem guitars.BaconFire

So there are people out there who think BC Rich sold out with this Stranger Things themed release. Whether that is true or not it doesn't take away from the fact that this is a great quality guitar. The neck is the high point for me. This is the best bolt on neck I've ever played. I would say it's better than a actual 85 Stealth NJ series neck that I own. Frets are silky smooth, not sharp at all. The paint overall is great and I don't see any imperfections. Could the crackle be better? Yes… is it bad? No. If you want a better crackle buy the run of 200. Only complaints are that the pictures were advertised with a run of 200 and now it's 2000. Takes away from the collector value. The electronics are horrible. But that was to be expected, the Floyd rose is cheap. The pros outweigh the bad which isn't a big deal. Great 80s themed guitar. Also the gig bag it came with is really nice.. Worth the buy.Nick

This thing is killer. Fantastic attention to detail. Even if you are not into Stranger Things it is still well worth the money. The Red Crackle finish is awesome and there were only 1000 made with (the other 1000 are the black finish). Also comes with a very nice B.C Rich gig bag which fits it perfectly. Dont bother spending 5K on the Custom Shop version as this will be the one to have.Kevin

Excellent quality! Neck and frets are perfect, pickups sound great clean or high gain, and quality control is on point! No neck dive or anything either! Oh, and can't forget how awesome the crackle finish is!!!! I personally like this better than my old 87' USA BCR gunslinger. My only complaint is it was advertised to come with a FR 1000 and came with a special. They've since fixed this and the bridge works great either way. This guitar is a game changer for this company! Get it while you can!!!!!Josh

I have owned a number of high-end 12 Strings. This Fender can hang with them and some Twice as expensive and more! It was perfectly set-up right out of the box. Great action and play-ability.I am still Impressed with this guitar especially at it's price point. The strings it came strung with were not for me. It is The one thing that I changed and it just made the sound POP, the voice INCREDIBLE and made the guitar even more impressive. The strings I used are the Martin Retro Monel Custom Lights. It opened a whole new sound for this guitar. I have owned this now over 4 months and am still awed. For a twelve string it holds its Tuning even when I am wailing and using my Dunlop Brass slide. You really cannot go wrong with this well built and great sounding Guitar! Don't wait if your looking, pull the trigger and BUY IT NOW! You will have NO regrets, and with AMS's great payment plans what more could you ask for?!?!?Spikeola

Things I like: -Noiseless pickups sound pretty close to regular single coils but without the annoying hum. They may not sound 100% as glassy as my Tele single coils, but if we're honest, very few people will notice the difference and the trade-off for quiet pickups is well worth it. -One volume and one master tone is user friendly like a Telecaster -Comfortable body and neck -Rotary switch adds a nice boost to get closer to Tele or p90 when needed Comments: -First time I tried out the rotary switch I thought it was kinda of dumb, but after setting it up, I think it is most valuable to add some thickness when the thinner Strat sounds needs a bit more. I like it now but still think the lower settings aren't truly necessary. Makes the neck pickup more suitable for jazz and gets the bridge close to a Tele. -After received, we tweaked it but adjusting the truss rod, filing the nut a bit for a couple strings, raising the pickups to the Fender specs (3.2mm), adjusting the rotary switch so when you turned it the knob would stop and not just keep spinning when you got to the end of the options. -Make sure you unplug the guitar from the amp or the battery will run down very quickly -Never owned a Pau Ferro fretboard before but it's very close to Rosewood. If you're on the fence, I wouldn't let it put you off. In the end, we've got a very usable, comfortable, versatile Strat that sounds great! If you are looking for a Stratocaster that can do Strat tones and can get close to Tele or even Les Paul (maybe a bit far on the Les Paul but again, close is the operative word–there is no ONE guitar) when needed, all with noise-free pickups, then this is a great choice.Steve

This is a fantastic guitar – it sounds beautiful and is really easy to play. Amazing value for money. I had an issue with my first order, and PMT were excellent with their customer service and everything got resolved perfectly within a day, and I received the guitar the following day. Thank you for the fantastic service.Melissa R.

A good guitar for beginners, although I have 15 years of experience, but I had to bring it to mind to make it easier to play. For an electro-acoustic guitar, the neck is quite thick and the strings are far from the fret. I came with a chipped varnish, but they did not change it, because my son tore the box.Gennadij

A well made guitar but only really suited to one style of playing. This is the third guitar I have bought from Richards in the last 12 months and have visited the shop twice in that time. I totally get where he is coming from an the service has always been good. This guitar how ever I bought in the summer sale blind as it were. The price was very good for the spec. I just thought it might be more versatile and in my opinion it's not. Plays well for rock/metal stuff.peter m.

Great guitar set up perfectly out of factory. Only one thing that bugs me is where the Veneer connects in the middle is not perfectly in the middle. Which is a bit annoying because other reviews don't have this. Other than that its absolutely perfect guitar. Normally can't get this type of quality for this price. Absolute bargain.Matthew

What a great guitar! Looks, plays and sounds great. Had to do a bit of home setup when it arrived; bad fret buzz on the low e and a strings around the 5th fret, but easily fixed by putting a bit more relief in the neck and half a turn of the saddles. Without trying one straight from the supplier it’s hard to compare the value of a ‘Richards setup’ but seeing as it’s ‘gratis’ it’s not going to be a bad thing. Overall I’m very pleased.Robin D.

Overall: Cool nostalgic guitar , needed to do a set up out of the box didn’t take long until it was playin and I’ll still need to tweak it more . Mine showed up with two very small dings one on the headstock one on the body they are very small so I won’t send it back . Ebony board looks real dry so that’ll need work , frets seem ok but will need polishing. The neck plate was hit by the polishing wheel a bit hard so shows scratches not real impressed on that . Definitely change out the volume pot as it’s either off or on no in between.the pickups seem legit not bad but I think I’ll change to a full shred in the bridge like the original swans . The Floyd 1000 seems to work fine and hold tune but there is a cheapness about it . I’ll be changing it out to a German Floyd original. It’s light and well balanced easy to play . No case or even a gig bag at this price point I think Gibson should have included one or the other . I’m very hesitant to buy overseas made guitars as all of my others are USA made high quality , but at this price point I’d buy it again rather then spend $5k on a old beat swan . Kicking myself for selling my vintage swans back in the day .Kyle

Overall: First off, the guitar is beautiful! Such a great looking instrument… unfortunately that’s where it ended for me. I will say in the 15 years of guitar buying and selling I’ve done, the setup on this guitar was the worst out of the box I’ve ever experienced. Ridiculously high action, way too much neck relief, pickups not adjusted correctly, and sandpaper rough frets. These are things that can be fixed with a full set up and fret finishing… odd that a new guitar has such rough frets though. The things I couldn’t live with that are making ship the guitar back for a refund; they sent me a left handed trem bar with a right handed guitar, and the neck has about 8 dents in the back that you feel as you play… like someone took a butter knife and just whacked the neck a handful of times. Unacceptable for a new guitar. Sad it ended this way, always liked Kramer 🙁Cody

I received my guitar today. Blue Metal Chameleon. I love it. It sounds great. No flaws, great packaging. Just a great guitar at a great price.John

I had been waiting all of 2014 for the Trans Red model to come back for sale, and was happy when it did. When I received it, it had a fisheye in the clearcoat on the headstock. I called MF right away and sent a replacement. The replacement had even more fish eyes in the body clear coat than the first one, so I will just keep the original Mockingbird, send the replacement back. The first guitar would not stay in tune at all until the locking nut was used. The tuners appear to have a bit of slip in them. Part of this might be the guitar was delivered when it was -2 F outside and was probably that cold for 2 days at least. Once you lock the nut, it stays in tune well. Comes with D'Addario Strings. The pickups sound a bit thin for active pickups, but they are good enough for stock and for now. Was just told that this model is being discontinued. I was able to get the action very low like 1/24" on the 15th fret with no buzz or dead notes just by lowering the two Floyd Rose height nuts. Came with Allen wrenches, but not for the locking nut, but I had spares. The overall weight of the Pro X Custom is a suspiciously light for African Mahogany on this guitar, so I am wondering if Sapele or NATO was used to get the marketable price down. The sustain is very good as expected, regardless. There are quite a bit of cavities on that back that might be helping the weight. Still a great bang for buck great looking guitar despite a few minor issues glad to have it before it's no longer available.GeorgioP

Here is as good as anywhere to write this. Last autumn, I wrote a furious review about BC Rich, having owned some of their mid-range guitars around 2009. I was disgusted that such a storied brand with some of the most iconic guitars released and played by big names–instruments once constructed well–had let themselves go to seed by 2016, represented by cheap junk efforts. I wrote humorously that someone out there was using the brand as a tax write off, and that BC Rich was sitting on potential gems, but had lost all pride. Then this 2017 lineup was released. Extraordinary. The stunning use of color on wood, the incredible showcased variety of quality mixes of wood itself–a lost and abandoned art since 2011–the burls, quilts, and figured tops, the neck-thru construction (not to be dismissed), the inlays sparing no details, the quality floyd tremolos, sonorous pickups (if I remember correctly), and rosewood fretboards….BC Rich has given us back a lineup that outshines its peers this year by leaps and bounds, and restored a brand that delivers gems. I'd buy about any one of these new Warlocks or Mockingbirds. For five bills and up, I'm venturing you can't go wrong as was once true. I'm guessing it's better, for all the aforementioned should yield solid playability and a real keeper. These are NEW new BC Rich efforts. Welcome back , BC Rich. What a turn about! You've brought back a standard I thought largely gone industry-wide, particularly with wood, the alpha and omega. A 33 year player/collector/composer, I'm excited to be a customer again, and soon. Kudos!Chris

A new band, a new guitar…right? Signing on with a fairly high profile cover band found me needing something I've never had, a guitar with a locking tremolo system. After doing some looking around I decided that the Mark 11 Mockingbird was going to give me the best bang for the buck. Plus, I've always loved the Mockingbird shape, and I'm a sucker for a lot of switches on a guitar. When the guitar arrived, unpacked it and took it out of the case. Son of a gun…it was in tune! Much like Schecter, BC Rich does a setup on all of their guitars that come in (at least, in this line they do). However, after a minute or so I realized that the guitar was tuned down 1/2 step. Arrgh!!!! Now I've gotta spend the next hour retuning and setting up the Floyd…something I was really wanting to avoid. The fret work is very well done…no sharp fret ends like you see on a lot of imports. The Grover tuning machines (while I think they are outsourced) are smooth with a very high gear ratio. The pickups…not sure who or what they are but they sound really good….reminding me a bit of the Burstbuckers. There's a nice midrange hump to them in humbucking mode, and they really chime in single coil mode. The Varitone circuit is an interesting bird. Simply, it's a wah pedal in the guitar. The first two positions are pretty cool, and remind me of Michael Schenker's solo tone. But once you get past those positions, they're pretty much just mud. They might be useful in a stoner/doom setting with a fuzz box…not really my style but would be interesting to try. The guitar is neck heavy, but no worse than an SG. Minor complaint…a couple of the pickup mounting ring screws were cammed out. Bummer. Overall, a great value especially considering you get a custom fit case with this guitar.Austin Ken

This is an absolutely stunning instrument! A real workhorse guitar with a versatile set of tones thanks to the pickup switching and coil tap options. As a baritone scale length guitar, it is designed for lower tunings whilst maintaining string tension and it does this very well. The Fusion Edge pickups combined with the Ash body give it a brighter sound than you might expect, but excellent clarity even when driven. Having played the early Iron Label guitars, this model is several steps ahead in terms of quality and playability. LOVE it!Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

My experience with Richards Guitars has been fabulous. From my first enquiry through delivery of my guitar the process went flawlessly and VERY much quicker than I had expected, given that I reside in Canada. It was Richard’s video, testing the Vintage VSA 500 that persuaded me to buy from them and as promised, their attention to detail, even during these pandemic restrictions has made me a great supporter of the company. I love the guitar and case. It is everything that Richard reported it to be and more. Thank you for your dedication and support Gerry Lisk Ottawa CanadaGerald L.

A huge thank you to the team for my wonderful VSA500 Walnut. Particularly to John who I dealt with for the majority of the process who's a credit to RGuitars. There was a delay to my order, at the fault of the supplier, however John was very helpful resolving any queries I had. I played the guitar both before and after setup as I live locally so had the luxury of visiting during the order process. The work Chris does on the guitars is excellent and I walked away with a guitar to fit my budget that I was confident in. It plays a treat. Richard made me feel welcome in the new workshop, took the time to talk to me about my guitar and show me around. Overall my experience was excellent. I would recommend to my friends and will visit again I'm sure.Luke F.

Guitar was well set up on arrival, however it had a lacquer crack on the back of the neck that possibly occurred in transit. Jack socket was loose. Volume pot not tightened and spinning enough to have broken solder on wire. Offered discount or exchange. Accepted refund and fixed pot and socket myself, applying serrated washers that should have been present during assembly. These issues should really have been noticed during inspection and/or set up. Fret ends not very well dressed. I did this myself, but you need to be experienced to do so. I now have a £379 guitar (bought for £290 after the refund) that sounds and plays like a considerably more expensive one and has a very good sunburst finish, but was a bit disappointed by the issues that should have been caught at some point. Also disappointed that I had to chase the refund after 10 days.William D.

This guitar is the epitome of world class craftsmanship. Every single detail is attended to with pristine precision. The playability is unmatched and quality unsurpassed. I own many quality guitars ESP Japan made, Gibson USA made. But there is just something special that makes me only want to play this guitar. Well done Ibanez this will be a lifelong keeper. Better then I could imagined or expected and I expected a LOT at this price point. Did not disappoint. I purchased the stallion white and it is breath taking in person. It has a pearlesque look which I love. If you are on the fence don't hesitate you will not be disappointed. This is top notch quality in every way and don't know how it could get better. A+++++Joe

I dreamed of having a guitar like this after seeing a cased Ibanez Jem about twenty years ago. Words cannot describe the disappointment I experienced after finally having them money to get something like this only to have received a dud. I bought this because the Pia looked so much more dignified than the Jem. I was excited to play this after reading so much about how Ibanez uses the highest levels of craftsmanship and standards for their top of the line guitars. Unfortunately, I'm afraid they've lost credibility with me. Here's why: – The frets were so sharp that I worried if cut myself. – The whammy bars (it came with two) were not tightly fit into its tremolo. They would make a clicking sound as they loosely rocked back and forth using some vibrato. – One area of the guitar was not finished being painted (or so it appeared). – The body was not smoothly sanded down as I could visibly see imperfections in the wood as light shined on the paint. I ended up finding another person on YouTube doing a review who experienced the same problem with the whammy bars along with some other issues. I wish so badly this guitar would have been the last I would have ever purchased.David

It is a great privilege to leave the 1st review for this guitar at Guitar Center. It is my 1st personal review at guitar center as well. First, it is a little surprising to see this review will be the 1st since this guitar has been released for half a year. But whoever reads this, right now is 2020, the pandemic year, and we do not know how soon this is going to end, maybe next spring, maybe even longer. Probably that is the reason. Please let us remember this difficult time that many people lost their lives, many people got laid off, we might get another recession… I am a Steve Vai fan, I made this impulse buy at this difficult time, but not regretting it. The PIA is fantastic, absolutely the best guitar I have ever played so far, although I handed on a few more expensive ones. I compare it with Farreri. It is just smooth on every cover of the guitar. Fingerboard and neck are just gorgeous. Frets are stunning. If I use one word to describe PIA, it is going to be "Harmony". Handsome but beautiful, energetic but soft, Yin and Yang. It is very light, but still holds a decent amount of weight (not as light as the Herman Li's guitar, that one is a little too light from my point of view). The newly designed Dimarzio Utopia pickups, together with the pickups covers are sweet and beautiful. It is interesting they named it Utopia, as the ideal society, but also like U to Pia, maybe it is part of the reason for the name of this guitar.Zens Tone

The neck had a gap between on the body nd the tone knobs are frustrating. The pickups are muddy and low quality. The guitar is more china and not quality. Dean is low quality nowadays.sundrool

I bought this guitar to compliment my other two more expensive Dean's. I have a friend who is an EMG endorser and is sending me a free set of EMG 81/60 pickups, so I wanted something inexpensive to put them in. Having owned inexpensive Dean's in the past and having a good experience at this price point; meaning no overhanging frets, good to great factory pickups, nice action, great playability and a solid build; I decided on this Cadillac X only in Black because I had always wanted a Cadillac. Since I wanted Black I bought it directly from Dean but I'm sure my customer service experience would've been the same superb I always get from Musicians Friend. The guitar came in out of the box set up almost perfect and almost in tune, except for the low E string. All the aforementioned qualities of lower priced Dean guitars certainly apply and then some. Nice jumbo frets, no overhanging frets, no fret buzz, good action, nice comfortable C shaped neck and I really loved the pickups. I know Dean models their DMT Design pickups after their DMT USA Aftermarket resell pickups, I can't tell for sure which these are, but I am guessing their Time Capsule models which I bought one for the bridge of my Dean Custom 350 Floyd. These pickups pack a punch, tons of gain while retaining a huge surprising amount of articulation for stock pickups. Overall I could not be more pleased. I was also pleasantly surprised with the ease of access of the upper frets. Easier than my $1100 DCR #8 ML SWITCHBLADE. Overall great guitar, great looking, great playing, great sounding. Highly recommend!!Michael

Great guitar! especially for the $$ A hidden gem new this year not like all the other Floyd rose equipped brands in this price range.Really feels unique no real complaints on QC.Rob

I purchased this guitar when it was $95 off full price. So that kind of makes it a worthwhile purchase. Definitely not worth full price in my opinion. Poorly packed with insufficient padding in the box allowed two of the strings to be bent during shipping. I assume this happened during shipping. They wouldnt send bent strings right? Thankfully they provided back up strings… The nut is very poorly crafted. You can visibly see burrs and imperfections in the nut that cause the strings to ring out of tune on certain parts of the fret board even after tuning. The pick-up selector nob fell right off first time I adjusted it. I will have to glue it myself. When the notes do play out true the triple pick ups sound better than the Peavy beginner guitar I used to have– Which only had two pickups and came in a similar starter package but was about half the price as this guitar. I think if I research how to fix some of the issues I can make it playable. But this guitar is far from playable out of the box. Fairly poor quality control.Cody

I was looking forward to ordering this as my first guitar after taking some classes a couple years back. The shipping was remarkably fast–however, when the product arrived the amp was completely broken. Upon plugging the guitar into the amp and strumming, it would make a horrendous scratching, broken sound. Plucking strings has the exact same effect, and occasionally the amp will cut off after a second of playing. I've tried adjusting the dials, turning overdrive on and off, I even bought a new cord thinking that was the issue to no avail. To make matters worse I have called the customer support number multiple times asking if I could recieve a partial refund, or ship back the amp for a functioning replacement–every time I'm left on hold before the call disconnects, if I can even get through to begin with. The only reason this isn't a one star review is that the guitar itself works fine and looks beautiful! I wouldn't reccomend buying the full set if they don't bother to make sure one of the most essential parts is functioning before shipping however.James B.

I worked outside for my father for a good many weeks while the guitar was on sale, and when I got it, I had mixed emotions. After a few days, the gig bag started to rip and now theres a big hole in it. Its still usable, but it isnt really well made. Also the bag isnt really protective. Its more decorative. The strings on it and the other ones were both junk, my local guitar shop guy told me that himself, but strings are moderately priced, and most of the time they last a while, so thats not much of a deal. The amp is lower end, and the cable that plugs into the amp and the guitar started to show copper wire around 2 weeks after purchase. It still works, but it should have lasted longer. And the stand on the amp didnt hold up at all, the plastic on it broke and now it wont angle so the sound comes at your face. But other than that its a good purchase, i would just suggest to just buy the guitar alone, and buy the amp separately, instead of the kit, but that may get expensive, so check out those options and compare them to this product and decide for yourself. My local guitar shop guy told me that the guitar itself is great quality though, but there are more expensive guitars out there, its a great guitar to start out with. Another side note, not relating to the quality of the guitar, but for beginners, how to learn how to play it fast. I suggest buying Rocksmith 2014 with this for PC, Xbox 360, PS3, PS4, Xbox One and other game consoles. Although it is expensive, the cable that comes with it counts as $20 dollars of it, and it actually surprisingly works! I started playing the game in late june or early july this year and I learned pretty quickly, to the point where I am now thinking about combining lessons and the game together to speed up the learning process even faster. Now it wont turn you into Guns N Roses overnight, but its pretty effective.TheVanillaMiner

I like the compact size and it's fun to play. At least one of the pickguard screws are stripped but it doesn't affect the playability of the guitar.Jason

Although the style and look of the guitar is amazing, along with all of the accessories, the biggest issue is the making of the guitar. The strings placement above the neck and along the guitar is too high up. It needs to sit parallel to the whole neck. It rises higher near the body and slowly lowers along the neck. Not a big issue if you know how to play the guitar, but for a beginner and for quality sound, the strings need to be hovering directly parallel along the whole guitar.Helaman H.

My granddaughter is 7yrs old. I wanted to do something different for Christmas this year, so I purchased a acoustic guitar. I’m thinking 30inches will be a nice size for her. When I received it the box was small and without taking it out the box I knew it wasn’t the size I thought it was going to be! I made the online purchased but I wanted to return it in store, which I did with the electronic receipt! APPARENTLY SOMETHING WENT WRONG! The GUITAR WAS SENT BACK TO ME! Target sucks at RETURNS only to have them sent back to you! UghSexyAries2

Not sure why there are so many 5 star reviews on this product, because it is not a good guitar. I bought it for my daughter to learn on and it will not stay in tune no matter what you do. I even tried changing the strings on it and it just refuses to stay in tune. I guess if you're just looking to get your kid used to holding a guitar and pressing the strings it is ok for that, but I would recommend spending a little more money on something decent that your kid can learn on. I am a guitar player and I have the full sized guitar from BCP and it is an excellent value for what you get, but this one just falls flat. No pun intended. 🙂Andrew