Fender Squier Short Scale 24-Inch Strat Pack - Transparent Blue

No, it's not perfect. But WOW—what an exceptional addition to my string stable!

Playability - It plays nicely right out of the box. There are no buzzes. Action is low, and the intonation is spot on. The strings are a bit rough but still playable; this is common among entry level stringed instruments and is an easy fix with a new set of strings. It has a decent voice. Unless you are a professional or advanced/experienced player, you will have no problem with the tone of this guitar.

Size - I'm 5 ft 6 and I have short little fingers, and this guitar fits me beautifully. I have instruments ranging from tiny soprano ukes up to several full-size guitars (classical, acoustic-electric, and a couple of 25.5 scale Strats), and this 24-inch short scale eases into my arms better than any of them. Children, teens, and many adults will welcome this guitar enthusiastically.

Build - Overall, the guitar has a solid feel to it. It is relatively lightweight in comparison to my other electric guitars and is very comfortable to hold. There are no blemishes on the body or other parts. The neck has an interesting feel to it—not unpleasant, but a little rough as opposed to the extreme smoothness of my other guitars. I actually like the neck; it's just different. The only issue with the build is that there are a number of sharp frets that I will have to file—not a big job if you know what you're doing, but even at this price point, one doesn't want to bleed on the fretboard. I have several other Squiers, including inexpensive ones, and these frets are the worse I've seen on a Squier.

Aesthetics - This is a gorgeous instrument! Aside from the fret issues, I have not found any blemishes. I love the transparent finish.

Bundle - As is often the case, the assortment of accessories are kind of meh to me, but certainly not the bottom of the barrel. I'm a bit of a tuner snob, so I was surprised at how much I like the enclosed tuner. It's cheap and it might not last, but I like it right now. I’m not much for picks, but the medium Fender picks included feel quite good to me. I don't use a strap, but the strap seems perfectly serviceable. I don't need the amp, but it is a solid entry-level amp. I don't need another cable, but I like the feel of the Fender cable that comes with this bundle. Here's the thing though: while I don't need any of the accessories, this bundle is designed for absolute beginners, and for that audience, the accessories are fairly essential and are not abject junk; they are quite serviceable.

I and many others would like to have purchased only the guitar, but this SS is only available bundled, and the after-market world has, as of this writing, virtually none available. I cannot count off for this because it's a marketing decision from the company and I knew this before I laid down my coins.

So there you have it: Not a perfect instrument, but well worth all five stars. What is great about this guitar far outweighs the one thing that isn’t great. I heartily recommend this Squier Short Scale!

I’ve had it for 5 years and it’s perfectly fine

Good looking guitar, light weight body, smooth tuning machines, perfect size for beginner or smaller person. I like the scale length better than the mini-strat, it will take a little longer to out grow & could be a good traveler. Does have some neck dive.

I got this for my 6yr old son. He loves it. Has good sound. The amp puts out pretty good sound and uses a regular guitar audio cable for input, but the headphone output is just a little earbud jack. Works really well and is the quality you would expect from fender.

Hello,I bought one of these out of curiosity. I knew about the more famous Fender Strat short, which is bigger & quite pricey. So I was very pleased that the squire also has a full size neck --although the body is smaller than the Fender, this isnot a travel/kids guitar. Wow its so fine! Plays like a dream, stays in tune. Only 2 downsides, no whammy bar and neck isn't stained or lacquered.(Looks like raw wood).Otherwise, I'll pit this nice lil' instrument against any new squire strat currently on sale listing at two fifty, nowadays.Paints excellent,finish striking,chrome gleaming.I rode this axe hard & put it up wet, thrashmaster.Strong!No hum, electronic feedback, run it at full volume all ya want.I instantly wanted another of these lil' babies,at a value price like got mine for, but this is not to be. Values on these rare squiers have doubled, tripled,overnight. Luckily there is a limited run value pack combo offer on the short scale squier,comes w/amp & accessories. So you can still purchase one although not many left.