Price paid: $ 1500
Features: The Kramer Baretta II Pro was manufactured in Japan but uses US pickups, and an Original Floyd Rose tremolo/bridge. It is available in several colors (I own it in FF red). It features 24 thin frets on a rosewood neck and body. The finish is satin and glossy. The body style is a soloist Stratocaster configuration. Controls available include: volume (1-11... 10 just kidding), two-setting tone, and 5-way selector. The tuners are non-locking but the nut locks. The straps are locking and there are two allen wrenches included for adjusting the bridge and nut of the guitar. // 8
Sound: This guitar has enabled my musical style to progress in just about every direction. If I had to pick a style I would go with Rock. When I first purchased this guitar I owned a Peavey Classic 50 212 amp with an Ibanez Tube Screamer. Currently, I use this guitar with a Marshall MG-15CDR with digital delay, MXR Phase 90, Ibanez Tube Screamer, and a DigiTech RP200 effects pedal (not all at once, though). With both gain channels at 5 or higher this guitar and amp can create quite a chunky, brilliant distortion. The distortion is rich and djent (haha) when palm-muted. It's leads are bright. // 8
Action, Fit & Finish: With at least 3 hours a day of use, this guitar's action requires adjustment on a bi-annual schedule. The pickups required little to no adjustment. // 8
Reliability & Durability: Overall, this guitar was well made and has lasted me 10 years! I highly recommend it! After about 5 years of use, the cable hookup came loose every few months. This caused an interruption in signal and excessive feedback. A re-soldering of the components was necessary to continue playing this guitar. At the guitar's initial state, I would not recommend a backup as this guitar lasted me a good five years before any significant maintenance. After 10 years of use, I would suggest a backup guitar for live gigs and locking strap buttons. Mine is covered in band stickers but the finish which is still visible is just like when I bought it ten years ago! // 8
Impression: I generally play rock, blues, pop-punk, hardcore, and metal. This guitar is perfect for any of those styles. I own several other guitars including an acoustic/electric Fender dreadnought, an Ibanez (SG ripoff), and a Fender Stratocaster. I've been playing since I was 17 (14 years). It is important to understand the Floyd Rose can involve complicated adjustments but other than that this guitar was a great learning tool and I'd recommend it to any Kramer fan. I love the fact I can plug in this guitar, tune it, and it sounds like gold - even after 10 years. // 8
