First Act ME-301 Double Cutaway Electric guitar

Gloss Black, Stratocaster, Tremelo, No-name tuner, Rosewood/Maple Neck, Solid Body, V/T/T 5 way, S/S/S no-name pickups (passive). The guitar was given to me for free, must admit I wasn't sure if I wanted it. My experience with First Act was merely seeing them at Wal-mart. Other than the Tuning machines being poor quality and the Pickups entry level I would say that this is a very solid and well-built guitar for the money. Incidently, I have a Squier Strat that was to be re-built for my son and we've scrapped that plan due to the poor construction compared to this. The Squier is a plywood, thinner cut vs. this heavy, solid bodied FA. Laugh if you want but this body is very similar to the Mex strat, sounds like it too.

We already have the metal, rock covered with a Jackson and Washburn. I am currently refinishing an old Les Paul and figured this would round out the collection. As I mentioned this was given to me for free, didn't think it would be a keeper. Though I like the Strat trademark sound I had to limit myself somewhere. Boy am I glad my friend had no use for this. My son and I had recently tried the Mex Strats vs. the USA Strats as well as the Squier. I will say nothing in regards to the MEX/USA comparison due to both just absolutely blowing away the Squier. I did some checking and found that this ME301 had 500k pots, so I swapped those out and added the .1uf cap on the tone controls to match the 1962 Strat wiring. I then changed out the tuning machines. Threw on a Strat pickguard for a more traditional look. This guitar, yes the ME301, is outstanding for the price (even at the original price). I am now looking for more. Of course with the mods I performed it isn't factory but who doesn't customize any guitar to their tastes? My suggestion, buy it and forget about the Squier if you are looking for an entry level strat.

The body and build were good. I did have to replace the tuning machines, the pots by my choice and shimmed the neck for better action. Otherwise the neck, body and overall build was impressive for a budget guitar.

Physically this thing appears to be rock solid, it weighs a pound+ more than the comparable Squier strat. Everything so far seems very durable. Another comparison I might add, we had a Squier bullet for about a week and the weight and wood used absolutely disgusted me. I temporarily lost some respect for fender for even allowing this poorly constructed guitar to carry their name in any fashion. To each his own I guess.

No warranty, wouldn't need one due to the low cost of repair or replacement.

I have been playing for about 25 years, have owned 17 guitars. I would buy this guitar again, would advise anyone to do the same. I love the solid construction, you pay for the quality here not the name as you would with the big boys knock-off's.

Budget MIC S/S/S Strat style electric, a similar model is available as a hardtail with a 'bucker in the bridge position. Includes a set of wrenches that actually fit the adjustment screws and nuts on the guitar..("high end" makers please take note..)Tuners are covered, but work well. One nice feature is a angled back HS ala Carvin, that eliminates the need for a string tree, The body and pick guard remind me of the the Ernie Ball SUB and is a nice light compact design, the scale length seem to be a bit shorter than standard also, (may be "25)

Interesting sounds, stagered pole PU's are hotter than most budget SC Pu's but this translates into a louder sound, not more gain, this does not sound like a classic Strat, the clean sound, is more garage band jangle., the inbetween sounds are esp. cool. In OD you can get a nice crunch sound, and if you crank your amp gain a resonable metal sound can be achived

Factory action is high but playable, I was able to lower it slightly after adding a business card shim, and tweeking the truss rod, but is is still higher than most of the "name" competition; but most people play with the action on budget guitars too low to get the best from the cheep PU's so this is probaly a good thing; the old Harmonies and Kay's that everyone seeks for their "earthy sounds" had nice stiff actions, you will get use to this in a day or two. The neck is suprsingly fat and is a nice change fron the "pencil neck" that most makers seem to go with at this price point, it is unfinised but can be darkend and polished using KIWI brown shoe polish for a nice slick feel. Tunes up easy and holds well.

Suprisingly sturdy, No worse than most $150 guitars, I was pleased at how well it compared to a friends $250+ Ibanez Jet King.

Never delt.. 2 year warranty, good website, manual could be better..

I'm pleased with this guitar, for what I paid it was a good deal. I have been playing on and off for a few years, on a Dean EVO LP clone and had been looking to trade for a "Fender" style electric in a 1/2 assed way for a while. I had borrowed a few Squiers from friends and was less than impressed. I tried a Yamaha 012 at GC and thought it would make a decent $75.00 guitar.. too bad they are charging twice that. Stumbled across this in a overstock shop for $65.00 and decided to try it on a whim. I was a little concerned, as FA has a somewhat hit or miss reputation for it's low end items, but this is fine, and the little things that are incoporated in to the the design make it a winner. Worth a look as a budget electric , esp if you want someting that's "Not exactly a Strat.."

Finish:gloss black, solid body double cut-away. bought used $125. After a stroke in 1986, I finally got back to "relearning" guitar. This unit is fantastic for my purposes. Action is great and the tremelo bar works just like they're spossed to. Sound is fantastic and I've got an old Squire amp . Teles have nothing on this guitar. At 61 years old, I've tried many guitars. This is the first I have played and loved the first touch. Would buy 2-3 more of them just to have the "spares" Tremelo action is beautiful for blues, old style rock, and relearning. 50 years of used guitars, the last 20 years filled with frustration. It is a pleasure to finally have a decent instrument that gives me what I ask of it.

Fits into blues and old R&R like it was made for that genre.

Guitar was recieved ready to plug-in and play. Everything was just as if it were made for me personally and ready to go out of the box. Didn't even need to tune it.

Best made guitar I've encountered over the past 40 years. I would feel safe in performing without a "back up" guitar. in most any situation.

Have not needed to contact the company as yet.

I currently own the ME-301 as well as a Japanese dual cutawayand a Harmony semi solid body. I use a Squire amp w/8" speaker. realizing these are beginner's tools I believe them to be top of the line for my usage. If the need for replacement aroce I would buy another ME-301. My only complaint is the weight of the body itself. While managable without much problem. Switching to the Jap guitar is a weight differential chore. All in all for the money you can't beat the value of the ME-301.

Standard strat style guitar with normal strat features

For a department store assembly line guitar it's sounds clean and full;and warm when using distortion.

pretty good;but the input jack was very cheap;replaced it with a stock fender strat one

took it on my last European tour;the guitar shined!

n/a

been playing 40 years;a blues/gospel musician with many cd's; played everything from overpriced Gibsons to undervalued Harmony's . This guitar reminds me of the old Harmonys;cheap but a great sound and reliable!

This guitar was made in mexico with 21 frets with a solid top. It has a volume and a tone control. It has 3 pickups. The make of the pickups are firstact. The neck is made of maple with a rosewood fingerboard for a solid feel and warm tones. included is a gig bag, a set of picks, an electronic tuner, a strap, a cable, a practice amp and an extra set of strings.

It suits my style pretty good. it's good for funk or all-out punk, the amp i'm using it with is a practice amp. three single-coil pickups with crisp and clear vintage sounds. smooth-action tremolo bridge for string bends and dive bomb effects.