First Act Strat Copy

The features are basically exactly those of a standard strat, modest by useful. S/S/S pickups, 3-way switching, 2 tone knobs and volume knob.

Thin, unpleasant sound, due to the no-name pickups and no-name wood type. Not unusable though for a beginner; you can get a basic clean or distorted sound with an fx unit and a practice amp.

All but unplayable. I bought it new, except that it was used as a floor demo model and the neck was significantly bent inward. The truss rod was actually at the proper angle but it had actually become buried in the neck material as the neck bent inward and was innaccessable to an Allen wrench for adjustment. Too bad, the neck actually has a nice smooth feel, very Strat-like.

Aside from the neck issue, it actually seems fairly well made, nothing is likely to break off.

I can't recommend it even as a starter guitar do to the neck issues, but if you can find one with a straight neck, it should play just fine. I imagine anyone who gets past even the first month or so of playing the guitar will want to upgrade, but the fun factor is certainly there if you're just starting out and don't know if electric guitar is for you.

First Act Strat Copy
Price: 26.00 (Ebay)
Year: unknown
Made in: Asia somewhere probably
Frets: standard
Top: unknown
Controls: volume, two tone knobs, 5-way switch
Pickup: 3 single coils stock
Electronics: passive
Body Wood: unknown
Neck Wood: maple with rosewood fingerboard
Finish: white paint
Body Style: strat
Bridge: standard trem
Tuners: probably aftermarket (ping?)

Pickups:

This guitar actually surprised me with the sound. I bought it used on ebay for 26 bucks just to see what these guitars were like. I have played pretty much every brand of electric and bass guitar out there, and my current workhorses are in the 1500 to 2500 range. I figured this guitar would be a cheap toy. What i got was a surprisingly well-built guitar.
The pickups are somewhat static in tone variation, but with the selector in the full-bridge and bridge-middle settings you can really crank out some good power cord and solo sounds. Neck pickup positions are muddy and unresponsive, but can generate some pretty good feedback. In positions 2 and 4 the single coil noise disappears and you get a nice noise-free sound.
This thing can go from bright and solo to deep and powerful (with a good amp.) Any cheap amp is going to sound like crap, i dont care what guitar you are playing. I played this guitar through a Fender Hot Rod Deville and an ASI 125GTR solidstate head on a 410 cab. Both amps sounded great (considering).
As far as a stand-out frontline guitar, i wouldn't use this one. But that is just me. Like I said before, it is no PRS, USA Strat or Les Paul like I am used to gigging with. I would say though, that this guitar beats the pants off of any other guitar in the 200 and under price range.

As far as the action goes, I don't know how well this guitar was set up from the factory. All I know is that it can be set up to feel really good. Like I said, I bought the thing used, and I imagine the guy i got it off of had it set up because it actually plays very well. The action is just where I like it, low enough to be fast, but high enough to give me enough room to breathe. I have a set of super slinkys on it and it sounds and feels great. The neck is surprisingly well crafted for a lower-end guitar. Even on Mexican strats I can't stand how the frets are unfinished on the edges and stick out. I figured I would have to get out my file and sandpaper to be able to play it, but i didnt. The frets are well trimmed and filed on the edges and are actually recessed into the fingerboard from the edges. The fretboard is pretty flat, and I like a little bit of a crown, so that is one bad thing, but not uncommon.
The Tremolo is pretty much not even worth using, since any time i touch the trem rod I have to retune the thing. I put the trem rod on a shelf and havent touched it since. But, that is the nature of trems in this price range.
The finish of this thing is pretty much what I expected: a thick layer of some cheap paint over some unknown type of wood. I would guess it is probably ash or alder as the tone of the guitar would suggest, but your guess is as good as mine. One thing I did like is that on most cheaper guitars, the glue line starts to surface through the paint after a few years and the finish starts to wear off of the fingerboard from playing. Neither of these seem to have occurred.
The hardware that is still stock is cheap, there is no disputing that, but for the money it is better than most I have found. Selector is noisy, but crisp and definite. Pots are still clean and dont crackle. I know the guy before me never cleaned the thing, so that says something about the electronics. It has a cheap nut, but once again, what do you expect.

As far as durability goes, I dont know and will never find out. It seems solid, pending a few alterations. The strap buttons would have to go. They are small and feel loose. The trem I can see being a weak point, as well as the nut. It will definitely wear out since it is probably just a chunk of plastic. The finish is a mile thick, so it will withstand some beatings, also, since it isnt a transparent or clear coat, you can clean it without scratching the surface.
As far as dependability goes, I wouldnt play it solo on a gig. If I was starting out again, I definitely would. I imagine this thing could take a light fall, or just general life on the road and not fall apart. BUT not knowing who made the pickups, pots, etc i probably wouldnt trust it now. I will however use it as a backline guitar when I play out.

I dont even know when this thing was made.

Ok, here's the deal. I have been playing a long time. I currently play some of the best equipment out there (Les Paul, USA strat, Carvin, Taylor, etc.) so this isn't exactly my price range of instrument. HOWEVER, this thing surprised the heck out of me. Would I personally make this my one-and-only? No, for obvious reasons. Would I recommend it to anyone starting out? Yes Would I recommend it over low-end Ibanez, Squier, etc? Yes. The playability of this thing is definitely in the $300-500 range. Unfortunately, the hardware is still in its element in the $200 range. If you only have a couple hundred bucks to spend and can't wait to jump up into the higher price bracket, OR if you find one of these on Ebay for under a hundred bucks, you won't regret your purchase. I will take it to my shows and probably throw it in on a few songs just to stir up some conversation and show people you dont HAVE to spend a thousand bucks to get a decent sounding axe (although it is fun).
If First Act decided to make a guitar in a higher bracket, with better hardware, a better finish and a tremolo that doesnt detune each string a different way, and exceeded my expectations for the class, I would definitely buy one.
Overall, surprising quality for the price, especially what i paid for it.

Made in 2003 somewhere in Asia
21 frets
2 tone 1 volume 5 way selector
3 single coil
passive electronics
rosewood fingerboard, jumbo frets, body unknown
white, plastic tunners
came with cable, pics, bag, strap, 10 watt amp, tremolo bar

i can make it suit my needs, blues, jazz, classic rock, not very impressive though.
i run it through digitech rp200a, and a fender fm212r.
pretty noisy on bridge pick up, quite and warm sound on neck and middle pickup, guitar is not really loud especially through the first act amp, must turn gain up really high, but then it overdrives , so the guitar is really quite on clean.
i can make it blues, and jazz on the neck positions but the bridge pickup is more suitable for country or classic rock.
its really not that special its made more for versatility.

factory setup was okay, action wasn't that high or low, but the strings it came with sucked, made the guitar buzz alot, probably 8's or 9's, replaced with D'Addario 11's which made the guitar sound warmer which made it more appropriate for blues. pickup heights i had to adjust for my taste because i lowered the action lowered the neck pretty low and left middle and bridge pretty high. everything came pretty good from the factory nothing really loose, paint was fine, i just tightened the tremolo screws because i don't really use the tremolo and the pickup selector is really noisy, always clicks loud when switching pickups.

the guitar doesn't really seem like it could withstand live playing
but i do take care of my guitars so it would last, i have had it for a year so far and its still in mint condition and i have dropped it a few times and the paint doesn't seem to scratch, and i used to play it a lot and the fingerboard is still pretty good.
i would not really gig with this, i would use it as a third backup

playing for a year,
own carlo robelli acoustic-electric, and oscar schmidt oe30 semi-hollowbody, if it were stolen i would not buy it again, i would get a mexican strat. i love it because its pretty easy to play, but i hate it because i doesn't really have much sustain and feels really cheap which it was. wish i would have just bought a mexican strat.

2004 Player Series First Act strat, black, China, 21 frets, laminated Musicman style pick guard. 1 vol. 1 tone. one bridge humbucker, strat trem, cheap tuners, meaty neck, jumbo frets. Comes with a little amp, takes 2 9volts, or, has an AC socket (but no adapter.) 3 inch speaker, loud, no gain but an overdrive switch, and the o/d comes on gradually with increase in volume. Nice gig bag, strap, 1 medium and 2 heavy pearloid picks, 8 foot cable, extra B and E strings. You're getting $50 bucks worth of accessories, so you're really only paying $50 for the guitar.

I'm not a performing musician, I only play in my room, usually without an amp. Sounds fine to me? Doesn't sound bad?

Set up was nearly perfect. Low action with only a little buzz here and there. I've never bought a perfect guitar out of the box. A minimal bit of saddle height, neck relief, fret fileing (maybe one high fret, and only at one string), it will be fine. Nut only a hair high. Finish was bumpy on top edge and body bevel on the back.

I have a feeling the tuners will get real sloppy. But I paid $170 for a Epiphone SG Special with the same junk- just gotta replace 'em. Body wood is so light, maybe the trem would rip out?

They've got a web site

Barely playing for 40 years. I've got 3 cheap guitars, a $69.99 Kramer srtat internet special, an Epiphone SG Special, and a Johnson 3/4 strat. What sets this guitar apart is it's extreme light weight body!!! I wasn't looking for another guitar, but I picked one of these up, and I wanted it because it was so light (plus, it obviously had quality.) I thought it was a plastic body because it was so light. It has a thick body, and it's not plywood. It is some kind of solid wood. I figured it would have some semi hollow body tone, as Chuck says it has above. A simple lightweight guitar is COOL! Lots of free stuff with it, highly playable. I might take the block and springs out of the trem and make this guitar lighter. This guitar makes me happy because it is solid simple and LIGHT.

Strat copy, made in asia somewhere, features maple neck and rosewood fingerboard. 1 volume, 2 tone, 5 way selecter, 1 cheap vibrato bar. 3 single coil pickups. Sunburst finish.

Nah this guitar isn't that great, when i bought it, it came as a package, so i got a cheap 10watt first act amp. this guitar doesn't have much sustain. its long gone, i have a fender toronado now, i got this guitar cuz i went to radio-shack and i liked it, but if i had to get a different beginner i wouldn't choose this, i would of chosen a squier.

Paint job was acceptable, action was high, as expected. pickups were put in fine, they just sucked. tremolo gets the guitar out of tune fast, as if the guitar was in tune before using the tremolo? tuning pegs were probably made of cheap chrome or plastic.

I wouldn't bring this to a gig, the hardware wore out fast, strap buttons were actually better than my toronado's,(i changed the toronado's strap buttons to dunlops, they're amazing).

bope, i dont use it anymore.

playing for 4 years, i also own a fender toronado, if it were stolen i wouldn't care. came with a guitar strap, picks, extra set of strings, 10watt first act amp, pitch pipe and Learn To Play guitar book.

Most likely made probably in Korea or China. Strat configuration is of unknown wood type. It looks like ash with a poly-urethane sunburst finish. It has a single humbucker in the bridge position. One tone and one volume control. Hardware is inexpensive. The bridge is a fender vibrato clone.

The pickup is surprisingly robust. Plenty of bass and upper mids. I cranked it through a Marshall Valvestate and it has lots of sustaine! The treble is a bit subdued, so no tele-twanging here. For raucous blues or swamp rock, this guitar really fits the bill.

Its been used and played. It has dings, but the frets are in good shape; well seated with no wear with very litle edge sharpness. The nut was a mess... some alien plastic-oid material. The slots were cut too high, particularly in the lower string region. The pick guard is lifting slightly in one spot, but otherwise, the neck is straight and everything else seems solid.

Considering this guitar is cheap and basic, it seems pretty well bolted together. The electronics are extremely quiet; no hum or buzz at all. The poly-finish has been ladled on thickly and barring out and out abuse, would be quite durable, imo. Tuners and bridge are minimal quality, but the guitar set up easily and after heavy play, it stays in tune.

First Act? Samick? The guitar is used and I wouldn't even attempt to get in touch with the manufacturer. However, I made the purchase at Napier's Music in Owosso, MI. Bill Napier is an honest, amiable and helpful gentleman working in a one man shop, so if any problems arise, he'd take care of them.

I bought this guitar strictly as a back up and travel instrument. It is not a PRS or even a Mexican Fender in anyone's wildest imaginings. It sounds great and with some tweaking, it plays fine. Its light as a feather and very resonant, almost like a semi-hollow body. For the occasional weekend bar-fest, it should do the job.