DeArmond Starfire

This is a 1999 Dearmond Starfire made in Korea semi-hollow bodied guitar with 2 USA made Dearmond humbuckers a harp tailpiece and 22 medium guaged frets. It is similar to a Gibson ES335 in its configuration with a volume and tone control for each pickup and a three way toggle switch.

The hardware appears to be made by Gotoh (Japan), and it is very solid. The tuners work great. My only concern is the potentiometers and the wiring which appear to be of questionable quality.

I believe that the top, sides, back and neck are all laminated maple. The fretboard is rosewood with pearl dot position markers. The headstock has nicely executed mother of pearl inlays.

I ordered this guitar in red. It is fully bound in an attractive cream colored binding (neck included). You can see some photos of it at:

http://home.attbi.com/~drjeffreyb

I played the guitar with the original DeArmond USA Gold Tone humbuckers for about three months. They sounded fine...nothing spectacular, a bit brittle in the high end. I had a pair of Gibson 490's in my parts bin, so I decided to try them out on this Starfire. I like the sound of the 490's better than the Gold Tones. The have more mid range and drive my Vox AC 15 better. My guess is that this guitar could sound even better with a pair of Burst Buckers or a similar Seymour Duncan pup. I'll bet a good pair of P-90s would really make this guitar rock.

I am happy with the 490's for now, though. With these pickups I can go from a clean rhythm sound to a ballsy crunch and everything in between. All of the sounds on my guitar are on the dark side, which I personally prefer on a semi.

I did not like the harp tail piece. I thought that it contributed to some wierd sympathetic overtones that ruined the sound, so I installed a Bigsby Model B-7 with the string tension bar (I think you could get by with a B-6). This made a huge difference in the sound of the guitar because the heavy aluminum Bigsby is attached to the top of the guitar as well at the end. I am impressed with the tuning stability of the Bigsby and I would recommend this modification unless you are thinking about selling this guitar in the future.

I take these user reviews seriously, and I think it is totally ludicrous to give 9's and 10's to imported, budget oriented guitars--no matter how well made they might be. These scores should be reserved for really special instruments that clearly stand out from the pack (listen to Tom Petty and Mike Campbell playing twin Gibson Firebirds on their current live DVD, or Angus Young's SG's). I often see users rating cheap pieces of firewood as having sound ratings of 9 or 10 (check out the reviews of the infamous Essex guitars in HC). Gimme a break. I am very picky about the sound of the guitars and amps in my collection and I will only keep guitars that have exceptional tone.

With the two modifications (pickups and Bigsby) that I made on this Starfire, it has exceptional tone. I give this a very respectable 7.

This guitar is quite refined and a credit to the quality of instruments coming from Korea. The areas that are typically troublesome on imports (frets, bindings, finish, hardware) show a fair amount of attention to detail.

As I mentioned earlier, the only thing that worries me is the qualtiy of the pots. I hate having to replace them on a semi (it requires major sleight of hand), but eventually I will probably do so. Also the wiring is really flimsy...but neatly done.

The finish deserves particular praise. The red is a very nice shade, and it is evenly applied with just enough transparency to see a bit of grain.

The neck has a rather obvious joint behind the third fret, but it looks solid and is consistent with another guitar that I own (Hamer import) that must have been made in the same factory.

Again, the best made guitars that I own in terms of fit and finsh are my three Rickenbackers, and by comparison, this DeArmond is quite respectable; but, again, let's reserve the 9's and 10's for the handmade beauties and give this thing a well deserved 7.

Yes, it will, and I have gigged it a bunch. It's solid, and there are no fatal flaws that cannot be fixed or upgraded with a soldering iron and a few dollars worth of parts.

No idea.

You can see some of my collection at:

http://home.attbi.com/~drjeffreyb

My guitars are mostly US made premium grade instruments featuring solid woods and high quality hardware. In order to meet the standards of my collection, a guitar has to be far above average in both build quality and tone. This DeArmond sits along side two Gibson Les Pauls, two Rickenbacker 360's (6 and 12 string), a US made Fender 52 Tele reissue, an American Standard Strat with Custom Shop pickups, a couple of excellent Martin flat tops, and some other odds and ends. It holds its own, and works great.

It sounds best through my Vox AC 15, but it can also drive my Marshall JCM 2000 valve amp into very smooth overdrive. Bottom line: well made guitar, Korean origin makes it prime candidate for modifications (Bigsby!). Fills a void in my collection. I think I'll keep it.

See the 7/21/01 review where the lousy factory setup is mentioned. That was me. I've now had these guitars for over a year and feel competent to submit a meaningful review (as opposed to, "I jsut bought this two hours ago and it gets all 10 ratings").

Features are covered in the other reviews. Two Alnico V DeArmond Gold Tone humbuckers. Separate volume and tone controls per pickup, as it should be. Features are good. No need to overkill.

I purchased two of these guitars - one in the cherry finish and one in the natural finish. I also purchased two DeArmond S-73s (SG style bodies) right before I bought these Starfires. The S-73s also came equipped with the DeArmond Gold Tone humbuckers. I like to play a lot of Brit pop, power pop (The Jam, Badfinger, The Who, Raspberries) some punk (Clash, Buzzcocks, etc.) and oldies.

The DeArmond Gold Tones are the best humbuckers I have ever heard in a solid body guitar. They give a very musical yet powerful PAF tone that is spectacular. In a semi-hollow, the bridge Gold Tone is just over powering and too bright. And yes, I played with height adjustment, string gauges, etc. You could not resolve the problem without height or pole adjustments that ultimately robbed you of some tone. The neck sounds very good for jazz. I use Ernie Ball .11/.48s or D'Addario .11/.49s on these.

I'm not saying the Gold Tones sounded bad in this guitar. They sounded pretty good, but just a little too bright. The stock set up gets an 8.

My solution:
I stuck a pair of Harmonic Design Z-90s in the natural finish Starfire. Wow! Amazingly clear and full tones with plenty of punch. This is a 10.

On the cherry Starfire, I installed a pair of Seymour Duncan Alnico II humbuckers with coil taps. These also sound exceptional.

8 Stock. 10 modified. 9 for an average.

I decided almost 3 years ago that I was not going to spend the money on an ES-335, so I set out to find a good semi-hollow. The Guild Starfire IV impressed me. But then I checked several of them out side by side with the DeArmond version. I was amazed at how I consistently was seeing better finish work, better detailing, better joint work, etc. on the DeArmonds. It had me thinking that it might be worth it to save a few hundred $ and go with a DeArmond Starfire instead of a Guild Starfire IV. The blowout prices on the DeArmond made my decision easy. BUT REMEMBER, THE BUILD QUALITY OF THE DEARMOND IS WHAT INITIALLY CAUGHT MY ATTENTION.

The factory set up was ...well...there was none. Didn't matter. I have all guitars set up by a tech I like. Once I got the neck tightened (for .11s) and the bridge intonatation tweaked everything else was perfect. The workmanship on these is obviously better than on the Epiphones. I own both an Epiphone Sheraton II and a Dot, so I can easily compare. I have had no problems with the bridge, tuners, etc. They may not be name brand parts, but they work as they should. Everything is properly installed and aligned. No fret buzz. No finish flaws.

See comments in prior section.

Finishes are holding up fine. They still look brand new. Hardware does everything it should. No signs of failures or problems.
Strap buttons stink, but that is a minor point. These are well made, great sounding quality guitars that will probably be handed down to my children and grandchildren.

I do not recommend gigging without a backup...no matter what guitar you play.

No experience. Fender owns DeArmond and Guild, so I would expect them to stand behind the product.

Been playing something like 23 years. Over time, I've owned something like 23 guitars including Rickenbackers, Fenders, Gibsons, Parkers, Epiphones and others.

These would be difficult guitars to replace if lost or stolen because they are now discontinued. They are currently being marketed under Squier, but I don't think they are of the same quality. I understand a different overseas manufacturer is now involved.

Comparisons: Guild Starfire IV; Ibanez AS 80, 120 & 200; Washburn HB 35; Epiphone Sheraton II and Dot; other similar double cut semi-hollow guitars.

Sum of the ratings is synergistic: 10. For $299 a piece, these were an absolute steal! These are great guitars and would have been a steal at twice what I paid for them. Probably two of the best guitar purchases I have ever made.

2 USA Goldtone humbuckers on a double cutaway semi-hollow body. Captures the rockabilly/Gretsch look rather than the Gibson 335. Thick black high-gloss finish. Harp tailpiece. Love-it or hate-it overall vibe. Bound neck and body with no discernable faults. I've owned this guitar for about 6 months now.

This is simply the best sounding guitar I've played. I use it for home recording with a POD and a small recording tube amp. The character of the pickups cut through and add a real tonal vibe to any recordings. Sound is halfway between PAF and P90. As such it it excels at the borderline clean/dirty blues and classic rock genres. Needless to say, selecting the neck PU with a clean sound and reverb nails the rockabilly sound. Might be a little too bright for some but it's a great addition to the sonic arsenal.

The sales material boasted a setup by Fender but I saw no evidence of it. Tweaking the truss rod got rid of a slight bottom end fret buzz and slapping on some Ernie Ball 10-46 seemed to pull the neck into near perfect relief. After lowering the action a touch and resetting the intonation it plays like a dream. Neck profile is shallow but not especially wide. Radius is medium - I'm guessing around 10 inches.

Tuners are great - they seem to have a lower ratio then many orintal imports. The nut is OK. The bridge looks much better made than most imports with a machined rather then cast appearance. I'd give it 8/10 overall but it has to be 10/10 when compared with other guitars in the price range.

All set neck semis are going to be bit vulnerable to knocks and this no exception. If you want a guitar to abuse then buy a Strat. This is a fairly tough item but you need to treat this kind of guitar with some respect.

Never had to deal with them.

Great sounding and plays well - bloody well if you consider the price. Ignore the claims of a pro Fender setup and expect to do it yourself or take it to a tech.

Overall, it is fantastic value for money.

Don't know year of production - bought it in 2002. Guitar was manufacted in Korea which is no stigma for me at all. Description of features see all comments above. This is just the same.

This is what I like most! The Humbuckers are strong, warm and clean. We compared it with a Gibson LP Standard. I don't like to tell you it is better but at least it is more than comparable.

Guitar is well crafted. Nice finish. I like it very much. Factory setup: Couldn't find one. Had to adjust everything (action, pu, bridge).
This could be better.

New guitar - no experience up now

I had some questions concerning the neck. I asked Fender's website but didn`t get an answer till now. So this is worst as it can be.

I started playing guitar again (paused for nearly two decades). Owm a Crafter GAE-30 which is Made in Korea as well (and this is a real great deal). Like my Starfire very much and shurely would buy another one if this one would be stolen or break. I`ve tried some Epis (Dot / Sheraton) but I didn`t really love these. So I bought the Starfire which is much better than the Epis (and has a lower price).

1999? model made in Korea by Guild/Fender. Laminated maple top, sides and back. Very nice natural finish with a little flame and beautiful grain. Two volume, two tone and 3-way selector. Typical 335 style body with harp tailpiece and stepped Guild style black pickguard. Nice dark rosewood fretboard with medium jumbo frets. Other than the cheap looking volume and tone knobs, this is a very attractive guitar.

I've always wanted a 335 style guitar but most of the import models I could afford looked OK but sounded lousy. The US made Goldtone humbuckers on this sound wonderful and blow the doors off any Epi, Washburn, Ibanez or import Hamer that I have ever played. Its not perfect for all style's but does most everything (except real metal) very well. I play mostly blues/rock and and it sounds like heaven IMO.
It's a little on the trebly side but I play it thru a Tech 21 amp and I can really tweak it to my liking. It's not as nice as a Gibson 335 or a Guild Starfire but its very good and it doesn't cost $2000 either.

Action was a little high for me but I did buy it used so I just adjusted it down. The pickups themselves are not height adjustable but there are individual adjustment screws. The body and neck are nicely bound and the fit and finish are as nice as any american made guitar I've played. I do get a little buzzing in the saddle when I bend the G string and I'm not quite sure why. Maybe it's time for a pro setup. The tuners are not as precise as the ones on my G&L but once they are in tune they stay in tune. Not perfect but a solid 8.

I don't gig so I can't say if it will withstand live playing but I can say it's fairly heavy and very well put together. I'm sure that with minimum care it will be remain reliable and durable.

N/A. Bought it used and I'm not sure if Fender still supports this product. By the way, this guitar is MUCH better then the Squire Starfire that Fender is currently selling.

I've been playing for 3 years and I also own a G&L Legacy and a Yamaha APX-10 acoustic/electric. Like I said before, I've always had a yearning for a 335 style guitar but could not afford a Gibson or a genuine Guild and did not care for any of the imports. When I picked this up I knew my search was over. DeArmonds are no longer made so who knows, maybe one day these will be collectable. In the mean time I plan on playing the hell out of this one. If I lost this I would definitely buy another one.

Made in Korea in 2001. Licenced generic copy of a Guild Starfire. Laminated maple, centre blocked, thinline semi-hollow body with a set maple neck. Dot inlayed rosewood fingerboard with 22 medium gauge frets. 2 DeArmond Goldtone USA humbuckers, 2 Volume and 2 Tone controls in the usual place and a 3 way gibson style selector switch on the lower horn. Tune-O-Matic style bridge with a harp tailpiece. Sealed unbranded Grover style (kidney buttoned)tuners. Pretty much what you would expect for this style of guitar.

My band plays original "Indie" style rock and for the cleaner sounds the Starfire works well. This guitar is suprising bright for the style of instrument it is. With the supplied factory strings (which I understand are Guild's) the tone was rather flat. However once I switched to the D'Addario 10-46's which I usually use on all my electrics it really came alive. The bright tonality means that this guitar has a voice of it's own. Through my Marshall JMP1 it sounds great, somewhere between a Gretsch and a P90 equipped guitar. I know from other reviews this doesn't suit everyone but I like it a lot.

On the day I bought my Starfire I tried 3 other Starfires, an Epiphone Sheraton and 2 Epiphone Riveria's. The DeArmonds were all head and shoulders above the Epi's in terms of quality of construction and hardware. The setup from the Box wasn't fantastic, but then I've never bought a guitar where it was. Even my Les Paul (which cost far more that the Starfire) needed some tweeking to get it as I like it. The Volume/Tone knobs are rather cheap and nasty looking (although having said that 8 months on they have given me no trouble) but that is the only blemish on the visual front. My guitar is finished in translucent cherry and it looks superb. The binding on both neck and body is very well executed and the Mother of Pearl inlays on the headstock are very well done. The only problem I have encountered in 8 months of ownership is a rattle from one bridge saddle (which was cured in 5 mins with a little loctite).

I originally bought this instrument as a "House Guitar" with no intention of using it in a band situation, but as it sound appealed to me so much I have used it at a number of rehearsals with no problems. I would quite happily gig with it as it seems pretty tough (it has been knocked off it's stand twice and I managed to drop it onto a wooden floor whilst putting the strap on and all it suffered was a small chip in the finish on the headstock). I would never gig any guitar without a backup, but I would not be worried that it would let me down, it feels every bith as good as my Les Paul my Strat or my Thinline Tele.

I've never had to deal with the UK Distributors of Fender so I can't comment.

I've been playing Guitar, Bass and Keyboards for the last 25 years. I have owned instruments by Musicman, Rickenbacker, Aria and Ibanez and I currently own instruments by Gibson, Fender, Hamer and a couple of custom instruments and with the exception of the customs this guitar is as good as any I own. It has a unique voice, which is something I think can't be praised too highly. In my opinion this lifts it from being merely a copy to a valid instrument in it's own right. If it were stolen or lost I would most certainly buy another, if I could still get hold of one!! It is way better than the Epiphones I tried it against at the time I bought it. Better built, better looking with better quality hardware and better sounding. I don't think there is anything on the market to touch it at the price I paid.

Korean spin-off,see other entries for # of frets etc .Nice maple body and neck,two Dearmond Humbucking pups Same features as other entries(Forgive me Im lazy today)

Running it through a Marshall20 watter practice and a Vox "Bass" t-25 It sounds pretty good and clean for kicking aroundAlso using a Morley Wah at times.Its a shame to adulterate the sound.A bit thin at times,may be my amp so with the bass amp very warm.

Heres where it gets good. I opened the box like it was Christmas Day to see this very gorgeous red guitar without a mark on it.Nothing short of absolute beautiful.I'm still not over it.Go to play away and what happensThe fu------ volume control disintigrates in my hand!So infuriated that they would pike on such a nickle/dime itemI was ready to blow.An extremely well made guitar and 10cent knobs,now I know why they went under.After a day of cooling down I strutted down to the local music store ,spent 10 bucks (retail,their cost would have been 30 cents)on a set of Tele chrome knobs and now it looks complete Well made needs tweeking as far as set up.Good clear sound Good smooth controls(with me all I need is a on off switch)Ussually adjust at amp

This guitar would hold up with the bestIve been through Fender ,Gretsch Gib sgSpec's and this feels every bit as good

I guess out of or going out of business with the line.The only squawk would have been the knobsWhy bug them for it and get four more bad ones

Ive been banging around on and off at least 25 years,went through Gretsch,Gibs,Fender(Strat and Jag) and recently bought a Dearmond M77t and liked it so much I bought this one on close out.This guitar matches anything I had before.It seems very well made,good finish if people just get over the Korean thing.Its not from a 12 year old from China.If it was lost or stolen I would definately get another.It would be a deal at twice the price.Check them out if you see any more laying around the music stores.The first thing you do though is dont frustrate yourself,change the knobs as soon as you get it

Sam Ash "blow out sale" '99 DA Starfire, made somewhere off the USA shoreline. This is a typical Guild Starfire/Gibson ES335 twin cutaway copy. Laminated maple semi-solid body (this one's in natural finish), twin DA Goldtone humbuckers, sealed tuners (Gotoh, w/chrome bow tie buttons), small headstock, r/w board, really small dot marker inlays, harp tailpiece. Just the right features you'd expect from this style of guitar.

Unplugged, it has that nice acoustic tone you'd expect from a large 17" semi-hollow thin body. Plugged into my 50watt Carvin Nomad, the Goldtone pups are quite trebly and (to me) not quite balanced, or what you'd expect from this style of guitar. Somewhat Gretsch-like in tone, very hot and ballsy. To me, they're just okay, but I'm going to replace them (read further). The overall tone is *almost* there and to my complete liking.

This particular guitar totally shines for playability, build and finish. Read my closing rap.

Flawless on all accounts - nothing else to say.

None. They're pretty much out of business, anyhoo. I do all my own repair work anyway.

FWIW (not much, really), I've been playing and building/assembling guitars since the mid 50's. Here's some of my past rap about this DA Starfire .......

Arrived late yesterday via FedEx (huh? I only paid for UPS ground - cool!). I was more than a bit apprehensive when opening up the double box, I've seen more than a fair share of way-less-than-stellar "offshore" gits, particularly the Korean kind. It immediately looked and felt very good, as my eyes flashed her over, looking for blatant flaws ... none so far, so I started a thorough check ... nope, couldn't nit-pick a thing - dang! Damn nice! Wow! This git has a very "quality" feel to it, know what I mean? Real nice neck that's not too thin and definitely not a baseball bat. Good fretwork, nicely cut nut, my fave superb Gotoh sealed SG tuners but with metal Gibson keystone tuning buttons, action was a very playable low/med and the wood grain and finish are quite loverly. Nice 'n' light at 7lbs 9ozs. The Goldtone pickups sound okay - need to spend some more time with them, see what they're capable of in terms of sonics. Bottom line - for $299 delivered, geez I STOLE this guitar - she's a keeper! ........

What I didn't like about the Goldtones - too trebly and not balanced and warm enuf for my humbucking tastes.

Removing them was a SNAP - the internal routing and wiring is as neat as pin and super clean, with no finish polishing compound to be found anywhere. Sharp, smooth pup routs, very clean internal wood, neatly dressed wiring (they even used heat shrink tubes to neatly bundle wires and seal off ends - this is the kinda detail work you'd only find on a real high end git ... impressed the hell outta me!).

There's a LARGE measure of build design difference between a solid body and a semi or full hollow git. Typically, those set or through necks are so much more difficult to build really well and really *cheaply*, that you'll see lots of fudging and these types will have some kinda inferiority compared to the planks. Absolutely NOT so with the DA Starfires I've seen so far! Wow.

Again, the build and workmanship on my Starfire easily rivals that of a Guild or Gibson, no lie. I've literally had hundreds of guitars over the last 4.5 decades, with many semi-hollow and hollow Gibsons, Guilds, Gretsches, Heritages - you just about name it. I've scratch built and assembled hundreds of plank guitars (and a few acoustics, too). This DeArmond Starfire is a total *steal* for $300/delivered. My bud also ordered one and it arrived last week (curiously, both of ours arrived in days via FedEx - but we paid for ground UPS!) - his is another natural Starfire - a 2000 model with large headstock, kidney bean Grover-style Guild tuners and Guild stairstep pickguard (mine is the '99 model with metal bow tie Gibson tuners, small headstock and ES335 pickguard) ... and get this, his headstock truss rod cover sez "Guild Starfire"! Yeah! I'm pretty well convinced that they're (Fender) just dumping inventory and literally assembling DA gits from whatever's on hand. Their loss (well, not really), our gain (yes! really!).

If you can find a DA Starfire left (not all that easy to do!) from Sam Ash or Musician's Friend or Guitar Center, and you wanna know what to do with Uncle George's $300 tax rebate - kids, get a Starfire!

Oh, what did I replace the Goldtones with? Armstrong AlNiCO Vintage humbuckers - a PAF for the neck and a Hotrod for the bridge. Both with chrome cases. Smoooooooth, warm and kick-ass vintage humbucker tone. Woke this Starfire up! I may be neglecting my Strats and Teles for awhile! YIKES! ;=]

As always, this is such subjective stuff - YMMV. -- Rob

I have been keeping an eye on this model and the Guild Starfire IV for about two years. I have been surprised at how many of the DeArmonds that I have played and checked out appeared as well finished as the Guild version - some better.

The humbuckers on the Guild sound O.K., but they did not blow me away. That tipped the scales and helped me decide that I would eventually pick up a less expensive DeArmond Starfire and replace the pickups with some Harmonic Design Z-90s. Now that the DeArmond Starfires are being cleared out, I ordered two of these.

I have to return one because it apparently was damaged in the shipping. It was set up O.K. The other guitar was set up terribly. I'd bet that no one ever set it up. The last review here, where the reviewer noted buzz on all 20 frets, pretty accurately describes my situation. Fender throws in some flyers cogratulating you on your quality purchase and the usual propoganda, but here is the kicker:

"All DeArmond Instruments are set up at our factory with Guild
strings."

If this set up is any indication of the competency of their staff or their commitment to quality, the message Fender, DeArmond and Guild are sending is not a good one.

I'll do a thorough review on the guitar later, but I wanted to point out my experience similar to the prior reviewer's. If you buy one of these and it comes in this condition, don't be too alarmed. Take the time to set it up properly and you ought to be O.K.

A classic ES 335 knockoff, made in Indonesia probably y2k, the DeArmond version of the Guild Starfire;
22 frets, 2 new DeA alnico pickups,1 vol 1 tone for each of 2 pickups, natural finish. Average (not skinny) neck, sculpted pickguard, harp tailpiece, gotoh type tuners, lower front toggle.Looks kind of like an Epiphone Dot, too, now that I think of it.

I own both a Starfire Special and a Gibson es335; this guitar sounds different than both. Sounds more like an acoustic than either of the above, but I noticed, with those pickups, it will SCREAM. If you want something that has a wide range and can shred, go try one

This is where, HI FENDER!!!!, my other reviews of DeArmonds have gone exactly the same. Nice wood, gorgeous finish. My neck pickup tone switch was unusable until I messed around with it. Strings suck - they're Guilds. Surprisingly, I think the bridge saddles are pretty close to perfect. The Action, string height, bridge height SUCKED BIG TIME. Neck is good - can you say BUZZ ON 20 FRETS???? I've said it before, I'll say it again - DeArmond guitar setup is HORRIBLE. Who gets paid to do this?????????

I'm giving a bad score here mostly because the out-of-box setup is so bad, that if this was my first or second guitar, I would never look at a DeArmond again.

It feels like a Guild. Solid, although it ain't no ES335. If I had to pick between a Starfire Special and this, I would get the Special first. ( I have both). Durable? I don't know. At this typing, I haven't installed the neck strap button yet ( it came in case with button to be attached). It would withstand live performance, as long as you don't pummel it.

No knowledge yet. Need to send the warranty registration in; I live near Fender in Scottsdale. I will go there if I need to.

I've played 20+ years, taught 15+ years; I have a bunch of jazz/rock guitars, numerous brands. I play jazz/blues/rock in various venues
whenever I can get out.

This guitar, with a hard case, was a steal. It has Guild quality and finish all over it, but this is not a Gibson es 335 or 340 by any stretch of the imagination. An excellent value in a guitar, if you skip the fact that you will have to likely take it out of the box and make it playable yourself 99% of the time. FENDER - why don't you guys just hire somebody to do setup right??? What a concept.

It's still new, but I can tell you if something happened to it I would consider replacing it.

Nice axe. Negotiate for some setup before you order it.