From the manufacturer
Squier by Fender
Squier Bullet Stratocaster HT HSS Highlights
“C”-Shaped Neck Profile
The comfortable “C”-shaped neck profile of this instrument (the shape of the neck in cross section) is sculpted to impart a vintage-style playing feel. The most prevalent neck profile shape, it’s remarkably comfortable and is ideal for all playing styles.
Vintage-Style Hardtail Bridge
This model features a hardtail bridge engineered for enhanced tuning stability and sustain. This design element also hearkens back to the early- to mid-’70s.
Humbucking Bridge Pickup
For fat, warm tone with balanced sound, this instrument features a humbucking pickup in the bridge position.
Get Started with Fender Play
Fender Play offers new and returning guitar, bass, and ukulele players an intimate, easy-to-use online platform to learn the skills necessary to really play. Lessons are song- and riff-based using popular and instantly recognizable songs, and the ever-expanding song library spans a variety of genres with even more being added in the coming months. Don’t just learn. Go Play.
Mini Stratocaster Bullet Stratocaster HT HSS Bullet Telecaster Bullet Mustang HH Body Material Poplar Poplar Poplar Poplar Pickup Configuration Options SSS SSS, HSS SS SS Pickups Standard Single-Coil Standard Single-Coil, Standard Humbucking Standard Single-Coil Standard Humbucking Scale Length 22.75″ 25.5″ 25.5″ 24″ Neck Finish Satin Satin Satin Satin Fingerboard Material Laurel Laurel Laurel Laurel Bridge Options 6-Saddle Hardtail 6-Saddle Hardtail 6-Saddle Hardtail 6-Saddle Hardtail Pickguard 1-Ply White 1-Ply White 1-Ply White 1-Ply White Available in Left-Handed No No No No
Squier Mini Stratocasters Squier Bullet Series Stratocasters Squier Affinity Series Stratocasters Squier Contemporary Series Stratocasters Squier Classic Vibe Stratocasters Body Material Options Poplar Poplar Poplar Poplar Pine, Nato, Poplar, Soft Maple Pickup Configuration Options SSS SSS, HSS SSS, HH, HSS SSS, HH SSS, HSS Pickups Standard Single-Coil Standard Single-Coil, Standard Humbucking Ceramic Single-Coil, Ceramic Humbucker Squier SQR Alnico Single-Coil, Squier SQR Atomic Humbucking Fender-Designed Alnico Single-Coil, Fender-Designed Alnico Humbucking Scale Length 22.75″ 25.5″ 25.5″ 25.5″ 25.5″ Neck Finish Satin Satin Satin with Gloss Urethane Headstock Face Satin with Gloss Urethane Headstock Face Tinted Gloss Urethane Fingerboard Material Options Laurel Laurel Laurel, Maple Laurel, Roasted Maple Laurel, Maple Bridge Options 6-Saddle Hardtail 6-Saddle String-Through-Body Hardtail 2-Point Synchronized Tremolo with Block Saddles 2-Point Synchronized Tremolo with Block Saddles, 6-Saddle String-Through-Body Hardtail With Block Saddles, Floyd Rose by Floyd Rose Double Locking Tremolo 6-Saddle Vintage-Style Synchronized Tremolo Tuning Machines Sealed-Gear Die-Cast Sealed-Gear Die-Cast Sealed Die-Cast with Split Shafts Sealed Die-Cast with Split Shafts Vintage-Style Left-Handed Option(s) Yes No No No Yes
<img alt=”Fender Play” src=”https://m.media-amazon.com/images/S/aplus-media/vc/f3196635-8438-45ad-ba29-e293b9232a27.__CR0,0,600,180_PT0_SX600_V1___.jpg”/>
Robert MellenRobert Mellen –
pick guard damage
Just unpacked this guitar/ Noticed damage between the two sound knobs. Looks like something melted and scratched the surface. Need a replacement pick guard for free! Otherwise looks and sounds as expected tor Fender product/ Also purchased a Fender 20-20 amp and shoulder strap with strap locks. Would appreciate a replacement pick guard.
Dr Despicable –
As Good a Starter Strat As You’ll Find!
This guitar was exactly what I was looking for in a Strat – HSS pickups, hardtail bridge, bargain price, good tone, very comfortable to play, and a sensible headstock that isn’t cartoonishly oversized. What I *wasn’t* expecting was the neck wood! Sure, it’s maple, but… I don’t know if it’s “flamed” maple, or what the term is, but it has these marvelous, slightly darker striations, not just on the back of the neck, but on the headstock, as well, that (to me) give it a little more visual personality. All told, between the basic mechanics, tone, playability, and appearance, I am truly well-satisfied!
Steve-o –
Short scale is easier to play, excellent sustain and loud.
I love this guitar. The short scale is easier for my small hands to play and it has an amazing amount of sustain. The Asian build quality of these low end guitars has really improved. The fit and finish was excellent, the humbucker’s do their job, and the tone switch actually makes a difference. It’s also the loudest guitar I own. what I mean by that is it has a really good sound without even being plugged-in. Not “tinny” at all. For a beginner or someone who needs a decent road or “beater” Guitar, I think this is a great choice. Another thing about these inexpensive electrics is that they are a great way to learn about adjusting electric guitars. They are designed to be assembled quickly and easily and it’s unlikely you’ll break anything. And even if you do, it’s not like you broke a $1500 guitar.
2 people found this helpful
Robert M –
Get ready to upgrade pots and pickups immediately.
I own 2 Squire 51 guitars that stock have the finest tone anyone could hope for. These HSS Strats however have the worst tone ever. There is no excuse for the trash electronics in this thing. Not acceptable. They went with the cheapest Pots and pickups they could find. My kids toy microphone inside of a tin can sounds better. Now, I like the fit and finish, set up , and intonation. Spot on. Why is everybody immediately ordering wired pickguards to replace in this ? They like the lightweight . Me too . 7 lbs. I ordered a Musiclilly Pro to drop in. I should not have to do this. I was told this guitar is not returnable.
One person found this helpful
Chris –
Love it!
I played guitar as a kid with a run of bad teachers so gave up. No, over 20 years later, I bought a used Kona strat at a garage sale on a whim. Had to do a lot of tweaking to get it to sound somewhat near what I wanted. So, based on reviews, purchased this. Wow! No tweaking needed. Got the sound I wanted right out of the box! I am a big Nirvana fan, so paired this with a distortion pedal and was able to play the songs I wanted.
Cliente Amazon –
For beginners
For a beginner it’s perfect. HSS pickups allow you to vary across different styles. The problem is the cheap components, the pickguard for instance has a small gap with the body and the pots don’t satisfy me pretty much. Especially one of the tones’ gives a bad audio feedback. Nothing to complain, instead, on the tuning: it remains stable. The guitar plays well (for its low-end soul) and isn’t too heavy. Perfect guitar for beginners.
Ryan –
Great starter guitar
This is my first guitar, so I don’t have a lot to compare with, but it’s been fantastic so far.I’ve been using the guitar to learn using the tutorials and app over at Justin Guitar (highly recommended beginner guitar resources). I’ve also been using it to play RockSmith and it works great.I’m sure there are better guitars out there, but I have been very happy with this one as my starter.Pros:More affordable than other guitarsEstablished manufacturerSounds greatCons:No whammy bar, so I can’t pretend to be Buckethead yet…
One person found this helpful
musiclover –
Excellent guitar at an unbelievable price !!
The playability and quality of this guitar is excellent at any price – and the fact it is so inexpensive just blows me away! You will have to dress the frets as the ends are sharp, but it is an easy task to do. The neck is more like a Gibson than a Fender in that it is flatter and wider – and that is more to my liking anyway. Very, Very Happy with this guitar. (I am not a beginner – 54 years experience playing guitar) I bought it just to have a ‘kick around’ electric I could take with me to jams and not stress out if it gets banged around – and now find myself playing it all the time – it is my new ‘go to’ guitar! Love it!
Ultra360 –
Excellent Guitar for the Price.
I bought this guitar for $122 as it was an Amazon open box deal. Out of the box its totally worth the price, but, I put about $100 into the guitar; Fender tuners, Alnico pickups and pre-wired pickguard, a bone nut, and an All Parts bridge. So for just over $200 I have a guitar that plays as good as most $1200 guitar and sounds really great as well. The neck is smooth, the frets are even, and the body is nice and lightweight. Once I changed the parts the strings contact, it made a big difference in quality. Eventually, you’ll want to change the pickups, and you can just buy a bridge pickup for $40 to see the difference. There’s plenty of youtube vids on the guitar and how to replace any part on a Strat. This is a great beginners guitar even at retail, and also for the advanced “project” player on a budget.
5 people found this helpful
Randy –
Great Guitar!
The guitar was packed well for shipping. I’ve played guitar for over 25 years and this Strat actually plays better than any classic model Fender Strats I’ve played. Does not feel cheap at all! Smooth frets, good action. Very little setup needed. The Sound is superb as well. Not too bright and not too dull. Great sound for Blues, Country and Rock.I bought the Fender Squier Bullet HSS Hardtail Strat.
One person found this helpful
DangerousDangerous –
This Bullet Brings Bang for the Buck
I’ve been playing guitar for 21 years and though I’ve only had it out of the box for a few hours, I’m pretty amazed… For reference I’ve played in groups doing everything from metal to R&B to pop punk to top 40 to jazz (combo and big band). As far as gear I’ve used, my ‘72 Les Paul Black Beauty reissue set the bar early on & various HH Jacksons, Kramers, LTDs, and Charvels have been about as wide out as I’ve gone. My tone quest has had me pining for the spank of single coils these past few years and was put off at the thought of my minimal experience with S-style axes having narrow necks with high action. I definitely could have spent a lot of time shopping around for used gear or spending more on a nicer Fender, but really just wanted something to wrench on/upgrade while wetting my whistle with single coil sounds.The box showed up dinged & nearly cracked open so I was even more skeptical about how this would feel. Despite minimal packaging the guitar was intact and clean. Immediate feel in hand was very good – .09 gauge strings, action no higher than my Paul, and the frets were dressed better than some signature models of other brands I’ve tried. After tuning it up the neck sighted amazingly well and while there may be a little room to get lower action, I’m not sure this needs it. The other big bonus is the unfinished neck. I’ve played painted necks exclusively and the one thing that always jumped out at me when trying out guitars were the necks where I could feel wood grain. We’ll see if I end up with a coat on Tung oil on it, but am enjoying the break in as is.Sound – definitely the signature warmth of the neck pickup and all the variance to the twang of the bridge. Controls feel solid and the only oddity is that the bridge doesn’t appear to be wired to a tone pot, but that will likely be a little used position anyhow. Chords chocked up nicely for tight stacatto riffs & the dynamics were very wide. My only gripe is how low output these are, but more than acceptable for value priced pickups.For beginners on a budget and even seasoned players like me, this value is unbeatable! I’m looking forward to upgrading this piece by piece too.
22 people found this helpful
RegularJim –
Great guitar, but needs a little work
If you have the desire and know-how to tinker with guitars, I would recommend this guitar. This is where I throw out what a good deal this is for the price. That’s true. Everything works, everything seems solid, but it lacks the finishing touches you expect on a more expensive instrument. Some people have gotten real gems in the Mustangs, right out of the box. Mine was so-so.For those looking for a first electric guitar, it’s very easy to play. It has a shorter scale than most guitars (24″ vs 24.75″ or 25.5″). It’s not a lot shorter, it looks and feels like a full-size adult guitar, because it is. However, that 1″ or so makes a significant difference in string tension, so it’s much easier to play, chord, and bend the strings. The down side to that is that it’s easy to accidentally bend the strings or press too hard on them and make the notes go sharp. Thicker strings will fix that (I recommend a 0.010″ set).For more experienced players, you’ll need to take care of the frets. Mine were a little rough on the edges upon receipt, and the tops had a film or patina on them that made them really scratchy (cue the 0000 steel wool). Also, the tuners were loose so you may have to put some torque on them (10 mm nut driver).Usually the humbuckers on budget guitars are rather dark and muddy, but these are quite bright sounding, which was a pleasant surprise. The neck was pretty smooth, but was kind of “sawdusty”. I used 0000 steel wool and a couple coats of Dunlop 65 cream of carnuba. Feels much nicer now, and has a glossy sheen. The tuners do their job, but are nothing to write home about. The sparkly blue finish is flawless.As far as the electronics go, you can’t coil-tap these humbuckers (only 2 leads). The selector switch is boxed, unlike the open style in Gibsons and Epiphones, and not at all like the blade type switches found in Telecasters and Strats. The pots are Alpha branded minis and work very well. The wiring job was neat and tidy.Sometimes you can find a cheap guitar that blows you away. For me, this wasn’t one of them, but it’s a nice guitar nonetheless.Thanks for reading!
115 people found this helpful
M2sDad71M2sDad71 –
Beginner player, first ever electric. Perfect for me.
I did a good amount of research before pulling the trigger, and this was consistently rated the best guitar in it’s price range. Honestly don’t have anything to compare it to after 6 days, but it’s perfect for me.Still haven’t replaced the strings as I’m waiting for my brother-in-law to come back from vacation. But it sounds really good to me. No whammy bar but I’m not missing it so far, and there are plenty of videos on how to install one so I’ll go that route when I’m ready.I pulled it out of the box, tuned it, and played. It was perfectly shiny and new, and I had no issues peeling the plastic off the pick guard. I really like the HSS pickups. Played it at least a couple hours a day since it got here, and so far it’s stayed in tune until the next day.Very satisfied.
One person found this helpful
Lukas –
My first electric guitar
I love it, it’s amazing my first electric guitar.
One person found this helpful
Phil –
Nice but has some issues staying in tune and string buzz
Great for small hands the shorter scale helps. Now that I have had it some time I have discovered some problems and did some google searches for solutions. The guitar can go out of tune pretty easy and the intonation (how well the guitar stays in tune within itself) causes some problems with open chords and barred chords higher on the neck (not an uncommon thing with guitars). String saddle intonation is set right but guitar just seems off on some chords, cant quite determine the issue. Action can be set low and neck truss rod adjusts easily. However I get quite a bit of string buzz and it seems to be coming from the bridge saddles. String buzz could also be do to short scale length and not enough string tension. If played with a light touch and not a heavy hand it plays quite nice and strings bending is easy. I’m going to shim the angle of the neck and raise the bridge saddles high to see if that helps with buzzing at the bridge. Note: I have quite a few $100 to $200 Squire guitars and no issues with intonation or string buzz. So not being overly critical, just trying to post some some issues one may have with this.
One person found this helpful
Jaysonnn –
First guitar
Nice guitar sunblast is nice . Used a fender app to adjust the strings . Worked pretty good and now slowly but surely learning . Oh and buy a bag for it Cause to place it anywhere is not that easy or a stand if they sell it
Mr. GoodwillMr. Goodwill –
beautiful guitars
I buys these Squier Bullets to rebuild as it is much cheaper than buying parts separately. These are beautiful guitars as they are as well. Whatever you want to do with them you would not go wrong.
2 people found this helpful
Jim Simmons –
Not bad
This is a decent Strat clone for the money. I would have gone five stars, but there are a couple issues that could have been easily avoided by the manufacturer.1. The thing was packaged in such a way that it was allowed slide around inside the box with nothing more than a thin foam sleeve covering the body and a thin cardboard box covering the headstock. This resulted in minor scuffs all over what would have otherwise been a nice finish.2. The stings that came with it serve no legitimate musical purpose and were completely unusable.
James Myers –
Great Guitar for the Price
This is a great guitar for a beginner. It actually sounds pretty good and is easy to handle. It came set up better than some Gibsons I’ve bought. I had to send the first one I got back because it was damaged in shipping, the exchange was completed easily. The quality is on par with other squire instruments, the only issue is that the frets seem a little sharp on the ends, I might try to dress them when I put new strings on it.
One person found this helpful
SlackerjSlackerj –
Great Guitar For All
Been looking for a guitar with humbuckers to supplement my Telecaster. I saw a lot of guitars in the $800 and up price range. Then I saw some reviews of this guitar and figured what have I got to lose for $200. Right out of the box it played fine after a tune up. After some minor tweaking, this guitar stands up to my Tele. If you are not familiar with setting up a guitar, head over to you tube. This guitar is good for all, be you a beginner or advanced player.
One person found this helpful
Mark C. MirandaMark C. Miranda –
Rock steady beginner instrument
Great for beginners, short scale makes the strings easier to play and encourages students to actually stick with it. You don’t build finger strength as fast as learning on acoustic but you also won’t get frustrated and quit after two days. Good value for the money if you want a guitar to rock out on. Humbuckers will give a different tone than single coils so think about that before you buy, this won’t have as much “twang”
One person found this helpful
Amazon Customer –
Dissapointing QC, You Can Find Better
This was a starter guitar, and it was not badly reviewed but there was an issue with the volume knob. It produced nothing but static, and if you can’t hear the thing you can’t really learn to play it.It was bought due to the reputation of the brand, but this was a very disappointing purchase.
Brian Bennett –
Great Fitst-Time Guitar
I purchased this guitar based on previous ratings and the users didn’t disappoint. This Strat is well-built, keeps it’s tuning well, and arrived well-boxed with no concerns for it being damaged in shipment. I haven’t changed the strings yet, but it looks easy enough. This would be great for any beginner, like me. I wanted a guitar that wasn’t expensive being I never played before and wasn’t sure I could due to a disability. It was a great choice. I would go with a more expensive Squire or Fender as I grow with experience, but this is a good model to get started with.
2 people found this helpful
jones –
Great guitar to learn on
Got it for my twelve year old and it has been good. You get what you pay for…and for someone just learning to love playing it was the perfect investment before you get serious and drop a lot more for something of higher quality.
Dylan –
Great for beginners!
I’m only six months in and I’ve gotten very comfortable with this guitar and I have no problems with it. My first thought when looking at this guitar was that maybe its too expensive but that’s NOT TRUE! Getting a cheap guitar with a billion other attachments and addons is not reliable. Trust me, some of my friends started the wrong way with one of those guitars and they only lasted a couple of months before something went wrong. I have already strongly recommended this guitar to multiple friends and in the end, they’re all happy that they bought it.
One person found this helpful
V. J. HanV. J. Han –
Take care of those rough frets
Nice guitar for beginners. I bought it to practice indoor without annoying neighbors by using acoustic guitar. Only issue was that frets were rough, causing scratches on my left palm. Used 220 gauge sanding sponge to smooth it out.
One person found this helpful
Dee dee –
Great
For the money this is a big time score.played perfect out of box but put 10 gauge on tuners are ok, not as bad as everyone says,no fret sprout which I had on a much more expensive fender,so go figure,made in indonesia,better then China. Like the pick ups.i bought this for nirvana stuff,so put a ds1 in front and it’s very cool.squire did a good job. Also have affinity tele,supposed to be better, but pretty much the same. Mustang feels small in my large hands,but it’s great anyway and perfect for small and medium hands. They did a nice job.change strings,no need to waste money modding,but I own over 100 guitars and most very high end,but I dig this little guy
3 people found this helpful
Michele Klein –
My daughter loves her guitar
My Daught is loving her guitar. She is learning pretty on her own and is doing a mazing
Andrew –
Solid Guitar for a reasonable price
I casually play guitar and this is the perfect guitar for me. It’s not too expensive but the quality is great. It sounds great, it feels great, and it’s small enough to store anywhere. I use a headphone amp with this guitar and it works flawlessly. The look and feel of this guitar at this price point will be hard to beat!
One person found this helpful
Jose Lecuna –
Buena guitarra pero con defectos
La guitarra tiene buen sonido y es cómoda para tocar pero trae defectos de fabrica costosos de arreglar. La estoy regresando para comprar una mejor
Malcolm –
Perfect for smaller hands
My daughter is only 8, so I was hoping she’d be able to work with this size fret board. She’s changing chords no problem, and the sound is great. Very happy!
2 people found this helpful
P. Knese –
It has a matt neck,most guitars are glossy. I DONT LIKE MATT.
the description didnt say it has a matt finish on the neck.
Jason S. –
Competent entry level electric guitar.
Squier guitars have come a long way since I started on one as a kid over 20 years ago. Those instruments were pretty much junk at the low end. But not anymore. For under $200 this guitar can last a long time for a beginner, and is pretty easily upgradeable for someone more advanced.Guitars in this price range will be very hit or miss as far as quality goes. The one I received needed serious fret polishing and filing at the ends. A common theme for these instruments. Action and intonation needed only minor adjustments.These models will most certainly need a proper set up, almost all guitars do. At this price range though, I wouldn’t pay for a pro and would rather do it myself. It’s a rewarding experience to learn basic guitar care and maintenance. Youtube can teach you how.
Branden schubert –
Damaged and no help
The guitar came with a huge dent in the body and I’ve tried several times trying to contact fender but no answer or reply. Fender really dropped the ball with customer service.
Justin –
I was very pleased and very surprised at the quality
This was my first guitar. The only other guitars I have played that I can compare it to were both much older guitars and probably needed some nut work and truss rod adjustment. Despite the mixed reviews on this, I was very pleased and very surprised at the quality.One of the complaints I have read on this were the tuners. I haven’t had any issues at all with it staying in tune. I tuned it out of the box and I think twice more since then. I have had it about 2 months, and the last time I tuned it was about 2 weeks after I purchased it. I check it on a regular basis (almost every day). I practice bout 1-2 hours a day with this normally, so it has seen some use.Just for reference the amp I have used is a Vox Mini-5.Out of the box, there were a few spots on it I cleaned off, one on the end of the neck near the fretboard, and one one the bridge pieces. Other than cleaning those (grease?) spots off, it was immaculate.It sounds wonderful to me, again without having much experience with guitars. There is some slight buzzing on the low E string, but nothing that bothers me too much.Overall I believe this was a great purchase for my first guitar, and I am very happy with the finish, performance, and sound quality.
12 people found this helpful
steve norvell –
Value and a trusted name.
Good value, it needed a very minor setup. Nothing out of the ordinary for a new guitar. The fretboard needed conditioned but again not uncommon for a guitar that was stored in a wear house for a period of time. The pickups are not super expensive but surprisingly don’t sound to bad.
michelle michelle –
Second Ones A Charm
This is my second bullet. The first one i ended up selling . I liked it but there were two issues the turner were horrible. The second being the tremolo. The tremolo was really not super usable.A couple of weeks ago I decided to get another strat bullet. I really like having a Squire. They are fun to play light and have very nice necks.So I bought a fiesta red hardtail Strat. This one is million times better then the first bullet I had.First of all the tuners are really really nice on this fiesta red strat. Fretboard is insanely smooth and always love the natural finish on the necks. Not a single sharp fret!Knobs are smooth, not raspy.One or two little imperfections in the paint. A small white spot on front of body and little bit of sloppy paint around the neck pocket.All very minor issues.Gotta love the fiesta red and the hardtail version is so much better.Pickups are loud ,punchy, sparkling and work really well for surf music. I use it through a Fender Deluxe reverb with an Echobrain echo pedal and it sounds outstanding!Yes I will buy another thinking a black strat bullet .
3 people found this helpful
Poly Nomial –
Recommended Bullet Mustang HH
The Bullet Mustang HH is a great value for the money. Here is why:Pros:The fret ends are smooth on mine.The pickups sound very good. Nice high end response and not muddy at all.The nut is finished and rounded at the edges. Usually only see this on high end guitars.Crazy light guitar, <= 7 lbs?Tuners are better that expected and hold tune.This is an easy guitar to play short scale guitar.The sparkle in the blue paint looks cool!Negatives:The frets are crowned but rough and will need to be polished.The pick guard is a little rough around the jack plate and the pickup opening.The wood on the neck feels a little rough.The negatives can be fixed with minimum skill but will require some time and tools, e.g., micro mesh. All minor issues though and this is still a fun guitar for a few hundred bucks! 5 people found this helpful
Valerie –
Worth the price!spend a little more on some easy upgrades.
Is about what i expected.an entry level guitar with minimal setup from the factory.First thing you want to upgrade will be tuning machines and a thicker set of strings. .46-.10’s minimum..the .42-.09’s that come on it are just too slinky for the scale length.maybe for a beginner with weak hands.but then again.more frustrating because it too easy to bend even on bar chords,etc.I upgraded mine with hipshot open gear locking tuners, tusq nut and string trees.i also put a set of DR pure blues nickel strings .46-.10’s.It is alot of fun to play and i would buy again.for the guitar +$90 in upgrades and a a half hours time max.uts entirely worth it.the pickups arent bad for stock cheap ceramics either.and the cavity had full sheilding paint.that was a big surprise.just grab one and enjoy
One person found this helpful
Mike H –
Killer product
This guitar is a beast. I play everything from rock to blues to jazz to straight up unclassified. My previous guitar was a $2500 gretch solid body. The tone was essentially equal in terms of quality and after having it for two years some of the plastic peeled off and it has been in the repair shop for over two months now. I’m not sure if I will ever see it again. But I digress. Let me break this guitar down for the novice (or even profressional player). The tuners are essentially your run of the mill and work which is all I care about. The neck is solid. If you know anything about fenders or squires you know that by paying for a higher priced guitar than this one you get a “smoother” neck with a finish on the back. Let me tell you that I would actually pay more for this neck because the natural wood feels just poppin’ on my hand, I will never go back to finished necks. The body is also solid, great color and it is finished nicely. The pickups were good but I ended up replacing these with higher end pickups and this guitar sounds absolutely phenomenal. If you can’t play balls to the wallz music with this guitar, it’s not the guitar, it’s you. Hope this helps mon freres!!
137 people found this helpful
Mike –
Great inexpensive guitar
I’ve been playing guitar for over 40 years. I have a Les Paul and a Gibson Hummingbird from the 70’s so I already own top end pieces. I wanted something I could play without worrying about dings, plus I wanted to do my own upgrades just for the fun of it.I’ve read several reviews that criticize this guitar for plastic that is over the pick guard and includes a sticker to Fender’s online lessons. This plastic is there to protect the guitar, you just lightly pull it off and underneath you will see a beautiful, shiny new pick guard. It’s easier to get the plastic off with the strings off. You should change the strings on a new guitar anyway so this is a perfect time to take that plastic off.Out of the box, I was amazed at how well it played. All I had to do was tune it. I was expecting to have to adjust intonation but it was darn near spot on so I didn’t need to. But for a 125 dollar guitar the parts are darn good. The bridge is VERY easy to adjust the action and intonation and the changes hold, they don’t slip out of tune when you hammer on it a little. I also changed the strings just because I like Ernie Balls but the strings that came with it were just fine until you need to do the first change. Don’t buy those kits on Amazon that include the amp etc. Everything but the guitar is junk in those packages. The amps are pure garbage, so just buy this guitar for a little over a hundo, I am using it on my own Fender 20 amp and it sounds beautiful!! That amp is around 100 also and well worth it. So for the same price as one of those package deals you will have MUCH better equipment. First thing I did was put Fender locking tuners on it. IMO every guitar should come from the factory with lockers. There are two holes as expected, on the headstock to keep the tuner from spinning and the holes didn’t line up. But Stewmac makes a perfect jig so you can easily drill the new holes. Otherwise the tuners just drop right in once you drill the new holes. Don’t be afraid….it is not hard to do!!!!The pick up’s are very passable. I am going to change the bridge pickup and put in a better humbucker but that’s just me, you don’t have to do this. All the electronics work fine. No buzzes, nothing. I am very happy with this Strat cousin. Eventually I will put in a new bridge but again, this does not need to be done, it is just me wanting to upgrade.But….when I am done upgrading which will include the tuners, a new humbucker, and bridge I will have a tad over 300 dollars in to the upgrade including the purchase price and I will have a guitar that will go up against it’s 2000 dollar Fender Stratocaster cousin with EASE!!!!This guitar plays fantastic and you can’t go wrong at this price point. For someone just beginning, it’s a perfect starter. For someone more experienced, it’s a perfect practice, or knock around guitar and you can really have fun doing a couple upgrades.So don’t be afraid to work on your guitar. I should note that there are locking tuners you can use for this guitar that won’t require any drilling. Hipshot tuners use a universal mounting bracket and it looks great and makes the upgrade much easier.After playing this guitar for several weeks I did bring the action down a little. I didn’t have to adjust the truss rod at all, I just adjusted the strings down from the bridge using the allen wrench that came with the guitar and now I have it right where I like it. This was an adjustment that I made to suit my particular playing style. It’s very easy to do. Any time you are making adjustments to your guitar go slow, take your time.It’s now May 5th and I am back again because I forget that most who are reading this review are new to playing guitar. Experienced players can ignore this part. When looking over your guitar you need to perform regular maintenance. For instance, tighten the screw on the end of your tuners. These get loosened up a tiny bit every time you tune up. A small phillips screwdriver will work fine. I tighten mine once a week. Another step to setting up your guitar is you need to get some 0000 Steel wool to clean and shine up your frets, you should put some lemon oil on the fret board also because the wood gets dried out. If you look on Amazon you can buy inexpensive guitar maintenance kits that will include covers that go over the fret and keep you from scuffing the wood. If you don’t have one of these kits just be careful and stay off the wood as much as you can or you can place a piece of blue painters tape on each side of the frets and that will protect your wood. You really should buy one of these kits though because playing guitar is a lifetime hobby and you need to clean the frets and the fret board every time you change strings. I change strings once a week but I play a lot. For most, once a month, or once every two months will work. You will be surprised how much DNA gets your guitar. Fingering the strings takes quite a bit of skin off your finger tips and it has to go somewhere. You can also get cleaning kits at your local music store. That may the best source for your first time because you can ask the kids in the shop questions. While you are tightening things up every time you change the screens another spot you need to check is the nut on the front of your headstock that holds your tuners in place. These also become loose from constant tuning of the guitar. You will need a 10mm socket or a small adjustable wrench to tighten these nuts. You will be amazed at how much better your guitar stays in tune with all these parts tightened up. It will only take a few minutes to tighten everything and it will really keep your guitar sounding good!!
41 people found this helpful
Nice case. I just got it but looks very well built! Very happy with purchase –
Nice
Very nice guitar for price. Great for starting out
Christopher AaronChristopher Aaron –
Got an awesome deal
It was on sale for $139.99, so I couldn’t refuse that and ordered it. I like it a lot, but it did require a decent amount of work to set up, so I don’t know if it’s the best instrument for beginners. I shimmed the neck to pitch it back slightly and raised the saddles to match the new pitch. That made it much easier to intonate the guitar. I also replaced the tuners with locking tuners. Finally, it will be getting one more mod soon, P90 pickups and a white pearl pickguard with P90 pickups.This guitar is good for casual player or someone like me that uses it as a mod platform.
2 people found this helpful
DotneckDotneck –
I freaking love this guitar!
My wife bought me one for Christmas and after modding I loved it so much and decided I had to have another.The most comfortable guitars in the world bar none. Too bad Fender doesn’t sculpt the bodies of their high-end Mustangs. No worries. Mine has Yosemite pickups, locking tuners and a Schaller bridge. I may get a third…. ❤️
MANUEL A –
Very good begginers guitar
The quality and sound is excelent for begginer guitar
Crumpet_Guy2 –
DUDE
Ever since I got this guitar I could not put it down. Not to mention the great price. Great for a beginner or intermediate student, but if you consider yourself a professional, for sure check out Fender’s 70’s vibe series. I like the look of their 70’s jazz mustang, but just a great brand if guitars in general. Ty fender!!!!
One person found this helpful
Ram9Ram9 –
Great beginner guitar
I bought this guitar with the HSS and rosewood fretboard setup. Ive been playing acoustic for years and finally tried out an electric. I did plenty of research to find out which one to buy, and I was torn between a les paul special 2 and this one. I chose the squier simply due to price. Shipping was pretty fast and very well packaged. It had some sort of adjustable foam packs in the front and rear and pretty lightweight.After close inspection, I was pretty surprised at the quality this guitar packs, I was expecting sharp fret ends or craftsmanship flaws, but I couldnt find any of that.I immediately went to tune it, and I found out the tuning pegs are horrible on this guitar. It was a PITA compared to my acoustic. However, Im well aware that you dont buy a prius and expect it to have lexus performance, so I didnt knock down a star for that. Once they were in tune, it held the tune pretty good. Im sure itll get better once its broken in just like any other new strings. Ill be replacing them for locking tuners once I add new strings.This particular guitar had the action a little too low for my preference, so I adjusted it from the truss rod and the bridge. This is where i give it points over my current acoustic. The action is really easy to set up for your liking. All you need are a 1.5mm and 4mm hex keys. The 4mm adjusts the truss rod, and the 1.5mm adjusts the bridge. I got rid of the excess buzzing in a few minutes without having to file anything down like an acoustic. You can also just have a guitar shop adjust it for you, but theres nothing like learning and doing it yourself. Especially on something so easy.Once plugged in to an amp its kinda hard to review the sound because the amp itself will play a big part, but even with a cheap amp, it sounds pretty decent. The only thing I noticed (and read elsewhere) was that the tone knobs dont really do much when you mess with them. Maybe once you use a good quality amp you can tell the difference, but with mine, I couldnt.Overall, I think this is a great starter guitar if you know what to expect out of it. I have played with my friends expensive electric guitars, and all of them have some sort of flaw or imperfection, so this is no different. Just dont expect perfect tuners or the top of the line pickups, but for something youre just going to mess around the house and learn with, I think this is great. I would highly recommend this to anyone that is starting out or just wanting a cheap guitar to travel with.
42 people found this helpful
Anthony R –
Great guitar that can’t be beat for the price
The overall finish and look is amazing and way beyond it’s price point. The strings are light and the action reasonably low and easy to play even before a full setup. I would stick with lighter strings as these entry level guitars play best with them. The hardware is solid and it will stay in and tune very easily even out of the box, don’t worry if it takes a few tunings that’s normal with breaking in new strings and guitars about the 3rd or 4th fine tuning you’ll be pretty good and it’ll sound great. It is best nice and clean but you can play distorted if you really wanted to and this guitar will gladly play it. Yes you are getting generic everything electronics and otherwise but for the price of about 60$ more than the cheapest on the site you are getting a much better sound and playability in a rather nice funky body with beautiful sparkle paint. I bought this as a 5th guitar just to have some variation and while it’s not as great as a mid range it blows entry levels out of the water for what you get. I can’t stress that enough.
5 people found this helpful
Daisy catDaisy cat –
Effortless workflow with FL Studio & Guitar Rig
Really solid guitar.. for beginners and those who are more seasoned players. I have played the acoustic guitar on and off for the past 10 years or so, and switching to this one was a mostly smooth transition.The strings feel a little bit on the thinner side, so if you’re used to playing the acoustic, you’ll need to not put so much pressure on the strings of you’ll “bend” them and they will sound out of tune. It’s also good practice to re-tune the guitar every time you’re about to record some loops or play it as it does detune pretty easily. Probably the only negative I can think of. Not a huge deal breaker to me, but something some might want to know ahead of time.I bought the guitar with the main goal of using it with FL Studio and Guitar Rig, and so far it has worked flawlessly. It plugged right into my Scarlett Focusrite 2i2 and was immediately recognized in my DAW. I had the guitar out of the box and was recording loops within minutes.. so if you’re looking to make guitar loops for yourself or others, this is a solid choice.The guitar itself is very light but in all honestly it doesn’t feel or look much smaller than any other guitars I’ve played despite it being considered shortscale.A good rule of thumb is to NEVER spend too much money on your first guitar.. so I’m glad that I went with this one as my first electric guitar as I can see myself playing it for a very long time. The sound quality is for sure there.
3 people found this helpful
Phil WagnerPhil Wagner –
MORE than just a beginner guitar, read the review…
This mustang guitar sounds fantastic. The reason for 4 stars is 1. Head stock (1st headstock picture) the mustang logo is different than my surf green bullet mustang and white bullet mustang (2nd headstock picture). 2. I did have to remove strings polish frets and oil fretboard because it was dry however, I planned on doing this as a setup anyways. This is my 3rd bullet mustang and there all great especially to modify them. I bought pickguard from precision guitar off reverb or ebay and bought the stripes to make my own very custom competition bullet mustang. I already ordered the DP100 Super Distortion Pickup for the bridge to get that Kurt Cobain sound out of the mustang and will update the review once it is done. These bullet mustangs are amazing for the price and they come with Humbuckers!!! Buy as many as you can until there no longer available bc once there gone the price will shoot up and you will be sad you missed out. A guitar for under $200 and just a little work and patience to set it up and you got yourself a work horse guitar!!! Squier is getting so much better every year! I don’t think I would by an actual Fender Guitar because your just paying for the name. Get a Squier and modify it to what you want and it less expensive than a Fender and its custom to your liking!!!!
4 people found this helpful
Jacob –
Pretty happy with it
Buy this if you’d like something to fix. It has buzzing frets and constantly goes out of tune. I bought this knowing it was probably going to be a fixer upper so I’m pretty happy with it.
Daniel Salomon –
No wammy bar or wammy hole
There is no wammy bar on the guitar idk why but it plays fine when i got mine it was dirty as hell with finger prints and stuff. i
DDT –
Good value for money, if you replace the tuners with good ones
Nice guitar for the price, but tuning pegs are horrible and the strings kept going out of tune.The white plastic was a bit scratched (only visible up-close). The wood is mediocre but does the job.I updated the rating from 3 to 4 stars after retrofitting Fender lockable tuners, which required some precision woodwork on the headstock (this will definitely void warranty).
Amazon Customer –
I also like this guitar because it’s a stoptail therefore giving you better tuning
It’s simply a great guitar. Great look. Great sound. Great feel. . I was very surprised on the quality. I’m not a beginner. But this guitar surprisingly brought back in me the excitement of when I first started playing. You can lower the action and you get no buzz. I was playing with it for six hours straight
One person found this helpful
Amazon Customer –
Pros cons/ quality
Really good quality for a beginners guitar. Won’t recommend for the professionals but good sound with amp or no amp… needs to be tuned often for the first couple weeks – just until the strings are broken in… highly recommend getting a guitar strap because the guitar is kinda heavy. But for the most part just have fun with it! I sure am!
Jack Perry –
Great deal for a solid guitar.
I love this guitar. It looks great and seems very solid. I’m a beginner, so I’m not aware of all the nuances and can sound only so good, but I think it’s helping me along the journey. It’s a great value for a rookie like me.
shon –
Great guitar for beginner or advanced players.
This is by far the best bang for my buck I have ever gotten in a guitar, just needed to tune it up and it was ready to go right out if the box, the action was even at the height that I like. And it’s just beautiful. Still can’t believe I got it at the price I did, will be a great backup guitar to my Les Paul studio. Delivery was awesome, thanx again Amazon 👍🎸
Debbi –
Absolutely unplayable garbage
Got the guitar, tuned it up first using harmonics, then fine-tuning it with an electronic tuner. So far so good. Played an E major chord — all 3 of the fretted notes were horribly sharp. I double checked the tuning — it was all fine on the open strings. Every open chord I played was completely out of tune. Bar chords higher up the neck were slightly less awful but still out of tune. So I’m not sure if the frets are in slightly the wrong place or maybe the nut is too high, thus stretching the strings too much when they are pressed down, thus sharping them. Either way it’s completely, uselessly unplayable. Ugh. You get what you pay for.
One person found this helpful
K.L –
It is Orange!!!
It is Orange not red, don’t let the pics fool you! They look on my daughters face was heartbreaking…
Alex –
I love it
I’ll start with the bad. I recieved it with a few small scratches on the white part, so I noticed it quite fast, other than that I can’t complain at all. It feels great, the neck is very smooth and beautiful. Also lightweight and absolutely fun to play. It’s exactly what I expected, plus some. I highly recommend it for any beginner looking to play guitar, or any experienced player who wants an extra guitar for a cheap price!
One person found this helpful