All user reviews for the Yamaha Pacifica PAC604W

I got it as a gift.

It has the comfortable strat-esque body with the forearm contour and tummy cut. The bottom of the body is slightly more round than a strat, but it's no big deal. It's got a bucker in the bridge for heavier stuff, and two standard single coil pickups in the neck and middle positions for clean and milder dirty playing. The neck and middle pickups get a good glassy strat sound, and the bridge humbucker is punchy.
The tuning machines are fairly well made, though there is a bit of slop (side to side)in them. The fingerboard is extremely well made for a mass-produced guitar, it feels good, and the frets are well seated. The tone knob is nice and responsive compared to some other guitars that I have played, and I like the simplicity of the standard five position switch.

The humbucker is not very good sounding, but I don't use it much clean, so it's a bit hard to tell when I'm playing it. The volume knob has a sudden dropoff at about 3. The bridge is situated so that when I put the whammy bar on it, it is too low, and it hits the pickguard and the knobs way too soon, so I can't bend very much. I had to resolder a few connections that came loose after a while, and the jack socket is being really annoying right now, because it works itself loose, and it cracks and pops. The bridge only came with three springs which was not even sufficient to balance light guage strings, so I had to get aftermarket springs. The heel is very chunky in my hand when I try to play high notes. The heel problem could have been solved by giving it a contour like on a PRS, but luckily it is still possible to play, but it's a bother. I don't like the shape of the headstock, but at least it's just cosmetic

It's pretty well put together. As I mentioned before, the jack socket keeps coming loose, and I don't know why. The tuners could be a little more heavy duty, but they're not bad. The neck is bolted onto the body like on a strat with the metal plate. This has never been a problem, and I have never had to adjust the neck angle. The body is constructed from from what seems to be five pieces of what they say is a wood called Agathis, which I've never heard of, but then I've never hear of Nato either, which is what my acoustic is made of. The neck is a piece of flatsawn eastern rock maple. I would prefer it to be quartersawn, but you can't have everything. The bridge is a standard no-name six-hole tremolo. The body finished in a sort of reddish orange semi-burst with a thick clear lacquer topcoat.

It's a good guitar to learn on, but if you do get it to learn on, take it to a repair shop to have the action lowered! I certainly wouldn't take it to a gig unless I didn't have anything else, which unfortunately is the case for me right now. I doesn't have a great sound, but for a beginners ear, it ought to be fine. It's easy to get bored with this one, but stick with it and you'll get used to it.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I got this guitar from a pawn shop in almost brand new condition for $159 CDN.

I must admit i'm somewhat partial to Yamaha as i have found they put out good quality instruments at reasonable prices. The pacifica is not only sharp looking, it is extremely playable and the action on the neck is great; defineatly a non-deterrent for beginning guitar players. The factory pick-ups are very responsive with distortion/overdrive.


I must admit that the clean sound from this guitar lacks some brightness and the tone isn't that great (good, but not great).

The stock bridge is a little flakey and you may find yourself struggling to continually keep your guitar in tune. With a small $50-100 investment, the bridge could be replaced with a more precision static one without the tremolo ability (a major flaw with the stock bridge).



Solid stratocaster for the money. Built well, and comes in a melange of finishes and gold/chrome hardware for the fancy kids.

I love the neck on this guitar!! Very comparable to a fender product. Solid body adds a little weight and gusto to the feel of it and puts a little more chunkyness in the guitar sound, especially when overdriven.

Great bang for the buck. A solid stratocaster for the beginner and mid-level guitar player who are money-conscious

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

Bought from Gamlins Music Store, South Wales for £130

I bought this guitar because I hadn't even learned a basic tab at the time! I wanted to play guitar and needed something to start with, and this one seemed to be a good all rounder; plus I wasn't too keen on spending loads, so the price was a main factor for me buying it.

This guitar is the ideal beginners guitar, but that doesnt stop it from being a guitar for experienced players as well. In this past year since I bought it I have been pleased, and it has helped me develop my playing ability. The sounds it can produce are very varied, so you can play soft acoustic riffs or crank it up to play heavy stuff like Metallica. Its well built - I've knocked it many times and theres been no damage; the paint job is of high quality (mine is a deep blue), and it has the same kind of look as a Fender Strat.

I find it a bit too...boring...well basically I bought it because I was not keen on spending loads of cash on something I couldn't play, but now I feel like I want something more interesting, such as a Les Paul or Gothic Explorer. Its got a very standard shape and colour - it doesn't have any personality to it. I can say that about the only thing I don't like about it is its appearance, but then you might like it like that. Hey, a guitar is a guitar...

Very well constructed, excellent quality finish. You can't go wrong with a Yamaha; they are made to the highest standards.

Buy it if you are a first time player and want a low budget instrument. Choose this over the Squier range - you're getting much better value for your money!

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

This guitar was purchased from Belle Air music in London Ontario, Canada. I paid $495 Canadian. This guitar normally retails for around $650 CAN. List is $1000.

This guitar is a strat shaped guitar. Its got an alder body, Wilkinson VS-100 trem, sperzel locking tuners, coil tapped humbucker at the bridge and single coils (all pickups are Alnico) at the neck and middle positions. For asthetics it has a great classy looking pearloid pickguard.

There isn't anything that I dislike with this guitar.

Contstruction of this guitar was is excellent. Tight fitting neck pocket, flawless finish and excellent hardware are what make this guitar great.

Bottom line; I will put this guitar up any American made Strat and it will be hard to beat. The tone of this guitar can easily be compared to any of the higher end Strats. Fit and finish is excellent. This one is a keeper.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I got this guitar for Christmas, was round about £170. Awsome for playing solos and even better for a rhythm guitar. Suited for all levels of guitarists. Even Slash!

I like the shape and versatility of this guitar. It beats the Fender Strat twice over for comfort and sound. It simple two changable dials and three pick-ups make it just right. It is alot lighter than most electrics i've Jammed with.

Nothing.

Lovley electrical tradional shape. Nice and light providing a comfortable playing. Lead input is in a conveinient position too.

Great guitar ll around for any level of guitarist and well worth the price twice over, one of my best presents. My MG30DFX amp was my fav.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I got this guitar because I was advised in several guitar shops that it was the best guitar, for an all round beginner, under £200. After looking around I got it for £190 in Allegro.

I'm very pleased with this guitar. It looks nice, sounds nice, and plays like a dream. Not one of the frets overlaps the fret board by a fraction of a millimetre. The fret board itself if made from a smooth hard-wood which makes string bending a lot easier than on it's main rival, the fender squire. Tuning is precise, and it all feels solid and well made.

The strings are quite close together which can make fast solos a little bit fiddly if your used to a wider neck, but you shouldn’t really notice. Also there is some fret buzz on the low E string when played without an amp.

I love the shape of the body; it seems to just fit perfectly. It's all very well made out of strong woods. The fret board is particularly well made as I mentioned earlier. It's all firmly screwed and glued together and it seems to be pretty strong too.

If you're looking for a great looking, great sounding first-time electric guitar that can handle a range of styles, buy it!

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I brought this guitar from duck son & pinker in swindon. i bought it new for £150 wich is an amazing price for a guitar of this quality.

The yamaha pacifica is the perfect beginers guitar it has brilliant sound and a beautiful neck.It was orignaly a copy of the fender strat and a rival for the strat squire but i think it whips the squire for quality and sound, i think it usally cots around £200 but you can get deals on it like i did.

Nothing

Brilliant build and sound and as ive said before its got a n amazing neck not to thin or wide.

Brillant gutair and if your looking for an brillant first guitar go on and buy this one

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I bought this guitar, when i started playing again. I really liked the way it sounded, and how easy it was to play. it has a good neck and body.

I like the way it sounds. Hooked up to my amp, I get the grundge sound that I just love.

the plug unit seems to always becoming loose, no big deal, a wrench and its tight again.

I like the way this guitar is built. It has been with me for over 2 years now, and is still the guitar I pick up first to play on.

This is a great guitar for someone who is looking to play, but doesn't have alot of experience. It is very easy to handle, and has a fast neck.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I bought this guitar from Musicians Friend for about $140. I was just learning to play guitar and I needed to get a cheap yet reliable and good sounding guitar. I had played other guitars for about the same price, but they just seemed to be TOTALLY crappy sounding and were quite ugly too. I looked around and found this guitar highley recommended by many different sites and people so I decided to order from MF because of the sheer price difference. Most other places listed this guitar for about $250, which I was just not willing to play as a beginner.

This is a very sturdy guitar, it has a simple 2 knob control system (master volume and master tone) and a 5 position pick-up selecter. It also features good sounding pickups, including a hum-bucker, instead of just a cheezey slanted single pickup. The guitar does not even buzz when you are using overdrive and are not touching any strings, which is always a plus. It also comes with a screw in temelo arm, which sounds and works good (for a screw in type). The guitar also holds it's tune very well for not having a string locking system.

I have no real problems with the guitar except for the fact that it has a back feeding string system so you must fish the string through the back and try to get it in the hole of the bridge, unless you want to remove 6 screws to take the plate off.

This is a very high quality guitar, with a GREAT Paintjob. It can take bumps and dings without splitting or cracking at all. The paintjob is also a multi-layer finish so it is very hard to scratch the paint off and is almost impossible to scratch it with your pick.

All in all this is your best bet for a guitar weather you are a beginner or an intermediate guitar player or anywhere in between.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I bought this guitar as my 2nd (after a horrible Westfield Strat copy) from Academy of Sound, for £180

I have the plain, light wood finish all over the guitar and it looks great, it's a lot lighter than my old guitar which was really heavy after playing for a few hours, it's nice to play and the fretboard is built a lot better than on my old guitar, the sound is great and you can go from a high distorted sound to a full blues sort of sound without touching your amp or fx, the other thing is the price, the only other guitar i would have considered that was the same price was the Ibanez GAX70, but apparantly the Pacifica is better quality, and nowhere stocked the Ibanez.

The only 3 things I don't like are that because of the finish I got it dents or scratches fairly easily, but it doesn't show up too badly, the light wood fretboard tends to show up any dirt or anything that's been on your fingers while playing and the nut on the lead socket comes loose every now and then.

It's good quality overall, there's nothing about the manufacture of the guitar that I would complain about and the finish was perfect when I bought it.

A great budget guitar and you can't buy better for the price, if you don't want scratches or dents don't go for the plain light wood finish, or if you have dirty hands go for a dark wood fretboard, but if you have around £180 - £250 to spend on a guitar this is one of the best you can buy.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com