ME506 Review

The First Act ME506 Single Cutaway Electric Guitar features a custom solid body with a single cutaway design that delivers rich and warm sound. With a maple neck and rosewood fingerboard, the ME506 is both sturdy and stylish.

Features:	8
Sound:	7
Action:	2.5
Reliability:	3
Impression:	8.5
Overall rating:	5.8
Users rating:	4.2
Comments:	27

overall: 5.2

Featured review by: Nuclearbomb8900, on august 12, 2008

Features: This guitar is junk, but it has fairly good sound, but high-notes could give a hummingbird a heart attack. I'm not sure when it was made, but I got it 9 months ago when I started playing. I never got lessons but it wasn't too hard to start playing. 22 frets, maple fretboard, natural neck, and a high gloss black finish. The volume knob needs tyo be at max or you don't get any good sound out of it. Not many accessories, and I only got a one-knob amp with it (it's a miracle I didn't pay for it). Also, keep in mind that I got it second-hand. Guitar good, amp terrible. // 7

Sound: Right now, I'm using D'Arddio XL gauge strings, and I get a solid crunch. I'm using a bottom-of-the-line Dart 10 Kustom amplifier, and with the limited overdrive settings, I got a nice tone, but it doesn't have a good deep sound. Also, on 1st fret, E string, on all the strings I've tried, I've always had this sound coming from the string vib-ing on the fret metal. For that reason, I just avoid the F5 chord. Overall though, you'll need a good deep bass if you want to play rich sounding metal and/or punk, which is where I want to be. It's as basic as you can get! // 7

Action, Fit & Finish: I got it in a state of crisis: completely out of tune, and I don't even care about setup, but new strings tend to make everything better, and I re-stringed this thing twice so far. I abused this guitar, so the fact of having no stand desimated the finish with dots of natural wood. However, the wires connecting the 9mm jack and the electronics were horrendously welded, and I had to bring out which holds it for all of 5 minutes. Also, I have to constantly be pick-tightening phillips head screws or else the 9mm port will fall out! // 1

Reliability & Durability: This guitar is the kind of guitar you buy only to smash during a Live performance, as two Live shows would wreck this thing. Wires come undone, jack get screwed (lol), and the paint can't take a bump or it will die! However, pick-scrapes won't and will never harm it, it's just blunt trauma, or maybe it's my harmful handling? But this thing will die quicker than you want it to. // 1

Impression: This can only crunch chords, and is perfect for a beginner. It is a $100 guitar, and that's precisely what you're buying for $150. This thing has no value unless you need something to learn on. Chords, open, power, even bar chords are a synch on this. I wish this thing had all-aluminum tuning knobs and half-decent wire sodderings, but it got me playing guitar fairly well for a 12 year old's standards, and I'll be getting a new 'tar tomorrow. What would you reccomend for less than $300? // 10

overall: 6.4

Reviewed by: Hohn042, on january 18, 2008

Price paid: $ 120

Purchased from: Wal-Mart

Features: I'm not sure when and where the guitar were made. It is a Standard 22 fret guitar with a maple neck and rosewood fingerboard. It has a black glossy finish that doesn't scratch easily. It's a single cutaway body style with a Tune-O-Matic bridge style. The only controls on the guitar are volume and tone. The accessories that game with the guitar were: a guitar strap, 10' cable, and some picks. // 9

Sound: The guitar sounds how you think a 100 dollar guitar would sound. It sounds okay for blues, but better with distortion with its high output humbucking pickup. I will usually play this guitar with a Fender SP-10 which only has gain, and different tone controls. There isn't much of a variety of what can be done with this guitar. It sounds worse the higher you get around the 12th fret. As for blues, I would pick a different guitar if that's what you are going to play. There are different guitars to get that sound better for that type of playing. // 7

Action, Fit & Finish: The guitar was not set up well when it was made. Two or three times I had to solder wires back together. Also the nut for the cord to be plugged in comes loose and constantly needs to be reajusted. This will sometimes cause the wire to move around and so it is not easy to play. Also, the strings were a little bit too high off of the neck so I had to adjust it as well (personal preference). // 4

Reliability & Durability: This guitar probably wouldn't last for live playing. As mentioned above, it isn't a very reliable guitar and I would suggest not buying it if you are planning on playing gigs with it. However, the finish is good and I would not expect it to wear off or scratch even with a lot of playing. // 5

Impression: Overall this might be a good guitar for beginners but I wouldn't suggest it for more experienced guitarists. I've been playing for about two years now, and have surpassed the playing level of this guitar. If it were lost or stolen I wouldn't rebuy it, I would probably go buy a different one. What I do like about the guitar is that it is pretty easy to tune and is okay for playing power chords and that type of music. What I don't like is its reliability and that I've constantly been having to fix it. // 7

Comments

[MetalManiacal]

that thing looks ugly, i wouldn't buy it. I've played a few First Acts before and both the sound and action were pretty bad. but i'm sure they're great for beginner guitar.

[Vrstone87]

They really aren't even that great for a beginners guitar. I'd recommend an Ibanez GAX model for a starter..

[keavader]

Aren't these the guitars you get at target or wal mart?

[Hohn042]

actually i made a mistake and I don't know how to edit it. The bridge style is actually "string-through" instead of Tune-O-Matic

[Mr_Rawr_Rawr II]

that guitar is a piece. the pickup fell out like, four months after i got it.

[Mr_Rawr_Rawr II]

oh btw, i would recommend an epiphone sg special. really good guitar!

[1201ZJ]

I Have One and i think it is a great begginer guitar, yes the one in the pic looks ugly, i think we can all agree on it, but my inverted white finnish with black pickgaurd makes it look much better.

[Cannibalhell666]

My friend has this guitar its not really a great guitar in one month like almost everything broke on it thats why you dont get a guitar from Wal-Mart point blank.

[mamason282]

You could get a much better quality guitar for around the same price-- an epiphone special or a squier

[SGRazorback]

The best beginner guitar that will take you in and through the intermediate stages is the Epiphone Sg310. I very highly recommend you spend a little more to get a quality axe instead of this first act junk..

[The_lizard_king]

my friend's neighbor has a first act and it went out tune pretty easy. But my acoustic is a first act and that is a love/hate relationship for me.

[cj10schmelzer]

i bought this guitar when i was like 7. a couple weeks ago i took it all apart just for the hell of it lol then a couple days later i had a garage sale so i had to put it all back together... i sold it for 40 bucks.

[justinb904]

NEVER buy a guitar from wal-mart or any other non-music store because you'll get something like this

[ShadesOfNight]

Vrstone87 wrote:

They really aren't even that great for a beginners guitar. I'd recommend an Ibanez GAX model for a starter..

price?
Ibanez is usually too expensive for a starter. Ive played for 10 years on a yamaha pacifica and am just as good as my mate who started off with a Jackson and an LTD

[rocnroll4evr93]

y is this even considered a real guitar?? i mean cmon, u can find them at WAL-MART! if u wanna get a cheap starter guitar, buy an epiphone special sg or les paul. it's like $70 more for a guitar that is 5 times as good as this wal-mart piece of shit

[meganh37]

I have two First Acts(Overload acoustic and Strat replica) and they aren't that bad. My Electric has a little volume problem which I never got around to fixing and my acoustic has buzzing at the tenth fret which I also need to get fixed. Overall they aren't as bad as that. Check my profile for pics if you're curious on what they look like.

[MetalheadforJC]

I have this guitar and it doesnt seem to bad for a beginer. I got it for x-mas and nothing hapened, pickup hasnt fallen out or anything. But Mine doesnt have the pick gaurd

[fretsonfire74]

Nice looking guitar, but probably doesn't play too well.

[Anonymouslyours]

i think they sell these at toys r us too.
xD

[crazy8rgood]

lol that was my first guitar... i still have it, the imput jacks broken. its mainly just a decorative piece now.

[GuitaroAle]

never buy a guitar from wal-mart. biggest mistake ever. nuclearbomb8900, for under $300, you can get an epiphone g-310 for like $240 at guitar center. i have it. trust me, its a trustworthy guitar

[MorbidVirus]

My first guitar, still in tact lol

btw 300 dollars isn't going to buy anything great either.

[nsibanez]

im gonna let you all know one thing....first act brand for ANYTHING sux...especially guitars

everything i bought from first act is a pice of shit...guitars have no sound quality...the tuners dont work....ya the works basically
honestly...if that guitar was 300 dollars...you got ripped off so bad, they should only be about high double digits, low 100 dollars for theyre quality

i used to have an ibanez icx120....paul stanley iceman...list price is 180....i regret selling it but i have a xiphos right now...

you lookin for good guitar for cheaper prices i reccomend ibanez

[Nuclearbomb8900]

GuitaroAle wrote:

never buy a guitar from wal-mart. biggest mistake ever. nuclearbomb8900, for under $300, you can get an epiphone g-310 for like $240 at guitar center. i have it. trust me, its a trustworthy guitar

i got a new guitar, and i never bought the first act. My neighbor didnt want it and just gave it to me. i got a cort x-2 for about $225.00

[wyattfilms]

keavader wrote:

Aren't these the guitars you get at target or wal mart?

Okay we get the point dude. On every product review firstact has ever had atleast 5 people ask that "isn't this a wallmart/target/toys r us guitar?"

[Nuclearbomb8900]

Mr_Rawr_Rawr II wrote:

oh btw, i would recommend an epiphone sg special. really good guitar!

if i want to buy an SG ill suck it up and go for the $2,000 Gibsons; XD

[Ilovesonnets91]

My kid neighbor has one of these, and i have to say I wasn't that impressed. Compared to my Ibanez GAX, which is only about $100 more, it's nowhere near as good of an axe. What this guitar is good for is if you don't know how to play guitar and don't really want to learn beyond the power chords, you just goof off with the gain all the way up. That's the only thing this guitar's good for.