SX guitar quality?

[lowdowndad]

My son wants a new guitar for Christmas. I'm wondering about the quality of SX 6-stringers.

Anybody have any experience with their twangsticks?

I know SX basses have a pretty good rep around here.

TIA,lowdowndad

[bassbrock]

Go for it!

I own an SX BG-205 five string bass that I've had for over five years now. I love it!

For more info, search for Essex in the forums; SX is too short a search string.

[NWB]

My brother has an SX strat. He likes it a lot.

The downside is that the tuners aren't very good.

The upside? I've played it several times and the tone is quite good, the neck and frets are really nice, it balances well and is very comfortable. Fit and finish are stellar, far beyond what you'd expect. New tuners on it and I would choose it over most of the Fender strats any day. That's a big claim, I know, but his particular guitar is really that nice.

PS - it's way beyond any Squier strat that I've played.

[allexcosta]

Probably a better idea to ask in a guitar forum...

[SRT80]

you can try agileguitarforum.com It's pretty much a guitar forum that talks all about the rondomusic guitars. There is a seperate SX guitar forum too on that site. Check it out.

The SX SST SE's or SST 57's/62's are well worth the money and for less than $30 you can get a set of Wilkinson EZ-LOK locking Tuners from guitarfetish.com They fit without any modding.

Steve

[dave_p]

i got my daughter a lefty strat last year. the fretork is good, the neck is good, the finish is superb. its a solid electric guitar. i just pulled the trigger on one of these:
http://www.rondomusic.com/product1256.html

ill give a review when it shows up.

[Philbiker]

From the other general musicians forums I've read where SX guitars are mentioned, they are well regarded.

[cdawzrd]

+1, very decent. My friend got one, it was in great shape from the factory, really the only thing that it needed was new tuners (I suggested locking ones) and we also threw in some GFS vintage strat pickups, but the factory pickups are perfectly decent if you like how they sound.

[OldBluesGuy]

Originally Posted by lowdowndad

My son wants a new guitar for Christmas. I'm wondering about the quality of SX 6-stringers.

Anybody have any experience with their twangsticks?

I know SX basses have a pretty good rep around here.

TIA,lowdowndad

I have 2 SX guitars, 1 Agile, 1 SX bass and 1 Douglas bass. My wife also has a Douglas bass. I've bought SX guitars for others and set them up etc before handing them over to their new owners.

Bottom line - they're a great value for the money IMHO.

Please understand, however, that all of the QC is done at the factory, so the occasional lemon will get through. I've only received one so far (Agile), but Kurt has incredible customer service and is a pleasure to deal with so there's no risk. You have 10 days to return a flawed instrument with full refund. Otherwise you have 30 days to return the guitar for any reason, but you foot the bill for the shipping in that instance.

All of these instruments required a complete set up and new strings immediately, but that would apply to most factory-built guitars.

The Agile guitars are a step up from the SX's and Douglas's and have better electronics and fret work. The bodies, necks and fit/finish on all of these brands are all great, especially at this price point. The electronics on the SX's and Douglas's are fine right out of the box especially for the beginning to intermediate guitarist/bassist.

I like to do my own set up, repairs and mods so these brands fit my needs perfectly, but YMMV. I'd be happy to share more details on the models that I've bought, played and worked on if you'd like - just send me a PM.


obg

[artistanbul]

a friend of mine has one of their les paul models and loves it.
I like it too.

[bassbrock]

Originally Posted by artistanbul

a friend of mine has one of their les paul models and loves it.
I like it too.

Dear God I hope it isn't black! Remember what happened when that guy showed up to a rehearsal with a Black Les Paul?

[dabbler]

I have, ahem, a few SXes (see sig). I agree pretty much with what has already been said, they are a good value, but will require new strings and likely a setup (as would many guitars).

A few notes to add:

1. The Ash series SST (strat copy) and STL (tele copy) are VERY good values, and you won't even have to change the tuners! However the bodies are 1/8th inch thinner than a standard body, this only matters if you are planning on replacing the trem in an SST, IMO.

2. The tuners have typically been the weakest part of my SXes quality-wise. They all have done what they are supposed to do, but out of the box many have not turned smoothly. If you turn 'em 20 or so times around, though, the rough spots do tend to work out somewhat.

[Swerve]

I bought a scratch n dent SX Strat for 70$. Once home, I kind of sanded down random places on the body to get that "worn" look and cover up the blemish. This guitar felt and sounded awesome. My guitar playing friend loved it so much he returned his HWY 1 Fender Strat and bought my sx for 150$. Only thing he replaced was the tuners and now it's his main axe! Good Stuff.

[PunkerTrav]

I have SX Jazz bass and Telecaster copies. Both are very good. The neck on the Tele is definitely a strong point. Hardware is good as well but the pickups are a fairly lackluster.

Not a bad guitar at all for the money.

[Eilif]

SX makes good instruments, but the "brice" brand stuff really shines. My brother is playing one of their es335 clones, and it is beautiful. Sounds great too.

[Oric]

I'm planning on getting one of their lap steels eventually, I've heard good things.

[funkboy5]

I have one of their Agile Les Paul copies and I'm lovin it, plays like a dream, $222.00 shipped. Mahogany body w/ flame maple top and what I call "root beer" finish. The humbuckers are sweeeet. Makes an old guy like me feel like a teenager. No sh**.They are a big seller on ebay also. Search SX, Agile, Brice or Douglas guitars. Agile is sorta their upscale model for guitars. That is where I got this one. Or you can go to www.rondomusic.com.

[mkrtu9]

Originally Posted by allexcosta

Probably a better idea to ask in a guitar forum...

Probably not, since I would say a good portion on this forum plays both.

I actually just bought one of these little strats for my son for christmas. It came in today. I have only unboxed it and tuned it. The finish was very good, it had some sparkly flake in the finish that was unexpected. The action is a little high for my tastes, but it played well. I haven't plugged it in yet, I wanted my son to have first dibs. I bought the red package deal w/ the little amp. I am always surprised by the quality of sx.

To the guy that posted the douglas guitar, my nephew bought that one in red I think last year and loves it.

[bassbrock]

Originally Posted by mkrtu9

Probably not, since I would say a good portion on this forum plays both.

BLASPHEMY!!

[artistanbul]

Originally Posted by bassbrock

Dear God I hope it isn't black! Remember what happened when that guy showed up to a rehearsal with a Black Les Paul?