Monoprice Indio Cali Classic Electric Guitar w/ Gig Bag EXPIRED

Indio by Monoprice Cali Classic Electric Guitar with Gig Bag

https://www.monoprice.com/product...bsQAvD_BwE

In 20 years everything will be made by Monoprice.

I've owned this guitar in white. 2 actually. First came with a broken switch (bad solder joint or other mechanical failure, it looked fine from the outside). Monoprice opted to replace the whole guitar so just planon doing a quick check and working with customer support ASAP if there is a problem.

You will need a setup, filed fret ends, and fret polish to get this playable without major frustration. All can be accomplished with a YouTube search and ~$30 in semi-specialty equipment.

Neck is on the thick side with a shape that felt more square on the shoulder than a Modern C, and different from their tele model with a "rosewood" neck instead of maple. That Tele is one of my fave guitars BTW (after setup, fret ends, etc.)

Electronics are fine. What you'd expect on a $100 guitar. Pickups are uninspiring (lacking sparkle/high end clarity and the woody-midrange that is characteristically strat, but get the job done (I'm not a pickup snob. Stock pickups in the $100 tele sound great).

If you want to do the work, this is well worth $80 as long as a thicker-feeling neck is for you and you're wiling to work your amp a bit to offset the dull pickups.

All this is based off the models shipping about 1-2 years ago, and the supplier/design may be slightly different from what I've experienced.

Tele in Blonde for the same price. If this is shipping with the same appointments as the Sunburst I bought in Late 2018, I'd buy the tele instead unless you really want a strat. More comfortable neck shape (for me) and much broader range of tones.

https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=610261

Fantastic deal. If you have or know a kid that you might want to see if they would want to practice on their own fruition, don't wait and get this or any other similar kit. You don't need a $500 guitar to find out if this is for you or them. You never know which kid will pick it up and take off with it. I have given away 3 guitars around this same price. Four years later my son and the brother of one of his friends are actually really good players and practice every day. The "helpers high" that I get from knowing I created two musicians is indescribable.

Quote from eugovector : Tele in Blonde for the same price. If this is shipping with the same appointments as the Sunburst I bought in Late 2018, I'd buy the tele instead unless you really want a strat. More comfortable neck shape (for me) and much broader range of tones. https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=610261

I couldn't make up my mind between the strat or tele style but ended up going with strat. I mostly wanted to use this for working on my weekend warrior luthier skills.

I have the dlx plus tele model (i really love the look and weight of the solid ash body). everyone who picks it up likes it. get some alnico V pickups, upgraded switch/electronics, and korean locking tuners (another $80 or so) and you'll love it.

i wouldn't hesitate to grab this if you're just getting into guitar playing or want to use it as a base for a partscaster. it's cheaper than buying just a neck/body and the gig bag is serviceable. monoprice support may not be amazon-level but sure beats straight-from-china.

I have an indio bass that I like fine. I'm sure this will be a decent (not great) starter guitar or would be a fun project guitar (swap out hardware and electronics).

At this price point you can expect mediocre to non-existent fret work (fret spout, sharp fret ends), and it will likely need a proper set-up. You can tackle these thing yourself but it does require a few cheap tools and some skill... Usually the finishes are actually pretty good so if nothing else you're getting a nice looking, probably fully functional guitar.

It's a lottery at this price point to what you get. My indio bass has no fret spout or sharp ends and was set-up well out of the box... YMMV.

Fantastic deal if you're willing to learn how to do guitar set ups and basic maintenance to the frets and the action and lubricating the nut. Also should still come with the swimming pool rout so the the pickup config can easily changed, but I kept the original electronics.

I recommend also upgrading the tuning keys. I put staggered locking hipshot tuners on mine as hipshot includes a mounting bracket, which eliminates the need for drilling for a new positioning screw location. But there are lots of good tuners out there.

If you lower the action at the bridge, you might want to consider swapping out the saddle height screws to 8mm or 6mm tall screws. I think the screw type that comes with these are are M3 x 10mm.

Advantage of this deal is not so much in the price discount (20% off), but also in free shipping which can be pricey on guitars. You are saving about $40-50 on this guitar.

As far as the instrument itself - it's decent, but don't expect this to be a guitar on par with mid level offerings, such as Fender MIM or similar guitars. Monoprice guitars have large fan base, but take what they say with a grain of salt.

What's the wisdom on the Monoprice Tele vs. a Glarry?

https://www.glarrymusic.com/glarr...KgQAvD_BwE

I own the telecaster version of this and was able to file the fret ends myself never having done any guitar work ever before. A $5 220 grit sanding block is a common DIY guitar trick to smooth fret ends with the neck. If you want to protect the finish of the wood, painters tape works well to cover the wood. Since the telecaster version has an unfinished rosewood fingerboard, you can easily sand the frets down without ever touching the satin finish on the maple.

Quote from tlite : What's the wisdom on the Monoprice Tele vs. a Glarry? https://www.glarrymusic.com/glarr...KgQAvD_BwE

I think both are roughly comparable and you should buy whichever finish you prefer. There are a large number of youtube reviews of both models, although it looks like a lot more recent reviews are of the glarry.

The monoprice bag is padded and nicer. Iirc, the reviews indicate that the glarry bag is basically an unpadded dustcloth.

The monoprice T looks like it strings through the body and the glarry is a top loader. The monoprice also looks like it has a more modern bridge saddle.