Fender Squier Debut Series Stratocaster Electric Guitar, Beginner Guitar, with 2-Year Warranty, Includes Free Lessons, Black with Matte Finish

Great guitar. It’s about the same size as a Fender Strat, just slightly thinner than a Fender, but to me that doesn’t affect anything. I didn’t know it was a Matte finish but when I saw it I thought it was going to be a stick Black color gloss. But the Matte finish looks great, definitely not sticky. Easy to play, therefore great for beginners, and mine doesn’t have any fret buzz, which is a huge plus. Works like it should. Good tuners as well, nothing fancy but does it job very well. Like I said, great for beginners who want a real Stratocaster without spending too much money. I was very satisfied

I’ve had the Squier Debut Series Stratocaster HT HSS (in the two-color sunburst finish) for a little while now, and I honestly love it. I’m more of an enthusiast than an experienced player, but this guitar makes me want to sit down and play more — which is exactly what I hoped for when I bought it.Looks and FeelIt looks awesome — the sunburst finish is really clean and classic. The guitar feels good in your hands, and it’s not too heavy or awkward. The neck is smooth, and the frets are finished really well — no sharp edges or rough spots, which makes a big difference when you’re still learning.Easy to PlayThis is a very comfortable guitar to learn on. The strings are easy to press, and it doesn’t fight you when you’re trying to play chords or work on your technique. I don’t know much about hardware, but it stays in tune well and doesn’t feel cheap at all.Sounds Great for All Kinds of StuffThe sound is really versatile. I’ve played clean tones, a bit of rock, and some bluesy stuff, and it all sounds surprisingly good. Even though I’m still learning, I can tell it has a nice range of sounds and doesn’t box you into one style.Build QualityEverything feels solid. Nothing’s loose or rattly, and it just feels like a well-made instrument — especially for something that’s beginner-friendly. It’s held up great so far, and I can see it being something I stick with for a long time.Final ThoughtsAs someone who’s still figuring things out, I couldn’t be happier with this guitar. It’s fun to play, looks great, and makes practicing something I actually look forward to. If you’re just getting into guitar or want something simple and reliable, this is a really solid option.

I wanted to be 100% in love with this guitar and have it be playable right out of the box, and write a rave review. But unfortunately, that was not the case. This was not a guitar that had been returned to Amazon. You could tell it was brand new and never had been opened.When I first saw the color in person, I said WHOA. I love Squier Strats, especially red ones. I actually prefer them over the Fender Strats. I have way too many of them as it is, so when these first came out, I told myself I didn't need another one. But I kept seeing the reviews on YouTube. Not a single person did not rave about this guitar for the price. There may have been something here and there that was a little off, but they all couldn't believe the quality for the price point. I was also impressed by the matte finish. Alas, I am a sucker for a red Squier. I also figured maybe in time it would be one of those collector item guitars like some of the older Squiers are. So I said screw it, you only live once, Christmas present for myself, things are going to cost more from China very soon, and every other excuse I could think of, and ordered it. Going by the pictures, I wasn't impressed with that particular shade of red, but hey, it was red.I let it acclimate in the box indoors for 24 hours, like I usually do.When I finally pulled away the foam bag, I stood still and looked at it, and I really think my mouth was hanging open. I was blown away. None of the pictures do the color justice. It's a beautiful, deep matte burgundy red, like a wine red. It is gorgeous. They didn't cheap out on the pickguard like they did with the Sonic series, and just give it a plain white pickguard. This pickguard has the black stripe in it, which gives this guitar just such a beautiful accent. Some people here complained about the frets being sharp. I could see a couple here or there that I could pretty much even take down with a nail file if I wanted to. Nothing that would ever scratch me, or beginner, or a child with this guitar.Here's where things went south quickly. I tuned it up and plugged it in. Every string buzzed. It was not playable at all. Upon further inspection I saw that the truss rod had been left tightened all the way from the factory. A little loosening of the truss rod took care of most of the buzzing. I tuned it up again. The intonation was off on the low E and A and the low E still slightly buzzed. Some more tweaking and finally it was playing the way it was supposed to be.I can tell you that this guitar is light. It's thin. The pickups sound good. The fret ends are fine. The fretboard is really pretty and smooth. The tuners hold tune well. The knobs and switches work just fine.But if I was a beginner and this was my first guitar, and I didn't know anyone who knew anything about guitars, I would not have known what to do. I would have been even more disappointed than I was. Because of the rave reviews of this guitar, I am sure the one that I got was just a fluke. If anyone got it, I'm glad it was me because it was fixed in 5 minutes. But had I gotten this as a gift for a kid, I would have been really upset for the kid.Yes, I could have returned it, but I like working on guitars anyway. If you know your way around guitars and are getting this for a kid, grab one. It's a great guitar. I would definitely get it for someone, but also tell them if there's anything weird about it to let me know. Do I regret buying this? No way. I love the guitar. Just on the day that mine was made, someone in China was having a bad day.

I think I paid $120 or so on a deal and for that, I thought what the heck, never owned a Strat and the reviews say it's a decent little knockoff. I've got 50's era Les Paul, an SG and others so I do know a good guitar though I'm no expert or luthier.Only mild negatives, the dull matte finish is a bit disappointing, I guess I just didn't look closely enough at the photo and it looks, well, cheap. And it is cheap $$$ so I can't complain really.The tuners have some slop in them but again, for the $, it tunes up and stays tuned.And it arrived set up very nicely, no buzz, nothing. I will file down the fret ends a bit, they're little daggers.Plays great, sounds very good. Honestly playing it with my eyes closed I'm not sure I could tell this isn't one of my 'good' guitars.Helluva a deal for twice this price, nice job, Fender!

A legitimate Fender guitar for the price of a cheap clone, that is legitimately amazing! I own a couple cheap guitars that cost as much as this Fender Squire, but the difference in build quality is amazing. This thing feels and plays like butter, and aside from tuning the strings, the setup as near as I can measure it is spot on. The string height, neck adjustment, and intonation were perfect. The attention to detail is evident in everything from the way the strings are wound on the tuners, to the design and manufacture of something like the string tree, which all the cheap guitars get horribly wrong. Plays great, sounds great, looks great, and it's a real Fender for the price of a clone. What's not to love.