Squier Bullet strat vs Ibanez Gio vs Cort G vs Yamaha Pacifica - electric guitars under $250.

A detailed comparison of cheap (under $250) beginner HSS stratocasters: Fender Squier bullet strat, Ibanez Gio, Yamaha pacifica and Cort G-series.
Skip ahead to review: 2:27
Build Quality: 3:17
Play feel: 5:31
Sound samples: 6:51
Summary: 12:07
We explain why a HSS strat is a good option for beginners, explain pickup types, and test the four inexpensive options to determine which are worth the money by comparing the build quality, play feel and sound.
Sound samples for funk, blues, rock, lead and fingerstyle were recorded using a tascam recorder and Line 6 spider amp.
Special thanks for Pasja music store for allowing us to test the guitars.
sklep-muzyczny.com.pl/

[@bubblebreeze1635]

I went and bought some M&M's after this video.

[@davekochanski8756]

Was always a Smarties man myself !! Good video though 👍

[@carlosclaptrix]

From Squier or Ibanez?

[@crraimundo205]

This analysis had help me to decide in buy a Ibanez. Thank you in spend your time to help us.

[@MikeHammer1]

I really liked the way you presented this. Entertaining and educational at the same time.

[@tezhowes533]

Hilarious, and I'm still smiling. Most enjoyable YT demo I've seen, down to earth and informational. Saving in favorites to show to any beginner. And deft, confident playing as well. Cheers from Canada. :)

[@alexbarquin9]

The only guitar review that references from cars, movies, pop culture, geography, science and other genre. Really funny and informative. Keep up the good work.

[@jam62]

This is the most useful detailed review that I've seen. I wonder why there are so few views. Thanks man!

[@pezavitsoharalu2843]

Nice review Sir. Many people usually go for the affordable ones and glad that you made a review of these relevant models.

[@safina006]

Excellent video. Your analysis was clear and easy to understand. Thank you very much.

[@zaferaltun]

Incredible comparing! Thanks for ur effort.

[@rodionsabbath9722]

Nobody explained it like this even after 3 years still the best video I could find.

[@08561686592]

Squier, Ibanez Gio, and Cort are manufactured in the same Cort Factory in Indonesia.

[@dread455]

wah baru tau ane bang

[@digdagdug430]

prs juga di cort Indonesia bikinnya, tambahan wkwk

[@vedanshubansal116]

Just the video i was looking for.. Thanks!

[@pranjalsharma3370]

Thanks for the detailed explanation about those small details that we all miss. I vote for Ibanez in terms of playability and feel

[@bluwng]

I love the Nita Strauss signature, it has one element you didn’t mention, weight and feel. Love em light and thin

[@bayupramana2054]

Really helpful and nice review, keep it up 👍

[@mrvnoble]

I think this is my favorite video on a side by side comparison of entry electric models.

[@keremgurman6926]

Maybe the best and most detailed review.. Thanks big time

[@claudioolivares1937]

Watched many reviews (specially about squire). Avoided this one because at first glance the m&m seemed ridiculous. But actually this was the most helpful review and I actually know what I want now. Thx

[@scottchandler1003]

Thank you! I have a fender bullet and I love it but I did purchase an Ibanez gio gax75. They are two different guitars. Ive just startled playing guitar and im glad I started with these two.

[@scottchandler1003]

@Art By Ranveer if you mean the bridge and the action adjustment? If so not very good. The hex bolts strip out the threads in the saddles very easily. The ibenez is better quality.(in my opinion)

[@cheranguista]

After 15 years i still love my Gio, will upgrade pickups for fun

[@camstanley]

This is brilliant. Great review and hilarious too

[@creativitycell]

I'm only 3 mins in to this video.... but great guitar information for beginners like me. Top notch mate. And your voice/accent is great..... district n it makes u sound clever and funny at the same time! 👍😄

[@Metanoia77777]

You picked me instantly up with your pickup.

[@ESSBANJO]

fantastic review, thank you

[@creativitycell]

Top creativity comparing guitar brands to cars. Brilliant! 😄

[@michaelmorgan9289]

A very interesting & informative video. Thank you.

[@schnauzerears912]

Great advice!!

[@subhamthemusicalguy8851]

Thanks a lot. You solved my dilema

[@garycrouse1918]

great review great humour

[@ravivicaro4150]

Very useful review

[@lobster-music]

Thanks :) let me know if you have any questions :)

[@emanuel9903]

Loved this video, i was very undecided what to choose, the Ibanez or the Squier, i like more the Ibanez, thanks.

[@rcjd7834]

I would go Ibanez. The sound was nicer, and the maple top is FAR more visually appealing than the Squier top (and it has more color options too).

[@mojojojo6525]

I love how he's eating the M&Ms in the middle of the review

[@snakemont]

Thank You!

[@celestelongway7315]

Hey cool vid! thumbs up!

[@devanggiri8482]

Very helpful 💝

[@creativitycell]

I often find myself looking up Nita Strauss too......mainly her NAMM guitar booth demo in the early morning! 😆

[@DrummerGrrrl]

Your sense of humor had me laughing loudly in places. My neighbors certainly didn't appreciate my enjoyment at 8:00 a.m. on a Monday morning! Oh, well!

[@lobster-music]

Come on, the neighbours should be already up at 8 am on a week day, and anyway, they should be happy for you ;) im glad you have enjoyed it, ill try to keep it comming.

[@Turjak_art]

thank you

[@girishghosh8644]

Nice video.... Love from India...

[@clanwaddell5628]

I’m being gifted that Ibanez for my birthday and I am excited. I have a single coil tele and a single coil p90 Les Paul, so I am lacking a humbucker currently. Love Squier, but for heavy distortion, Ibanez seems to mop the floor with the Squier humbuckers.

[@ianbaxter362]

Should have used a Cort G250. More in the price range of the Ibanez but has Wilkinson pups, and a coil tap on the bridge humbucker. Also much heavier than a Squier, so better tone and sustain. Also mine is set up really well with a low action, so none of the playability problems with the Cort on test here. I'd really recommend trying a G250, its probably better than all those tested here and wont break the bank, especially 2nd hand as the brand is less well known, so used values are a bargain although I think people are getting wise as the prices seem to going up.

[@stephentanph]

Nice Review.. I see you weren't able to resist those m&m's..

[@lobster-music]

We all know that the revirw was just a way to get to eat them :)

[@ankitt25]

Excellante!!

[@peekpen]

Great video. Would 'Like' but there are no longer any 'Dislikes'.

[@jeeperscreepersgameplays8069]

I need help, i´m between thepacifica 012 and cort g110, what would you recommend, another fact is that the cort costs ($170 usd) and the pacifica costs ($214 usd) in my country(Colombia), I´m looking the best for the price Thanks

[@kcir3r3av3r]

first time I tried a cort strat(not that good looking one) on a guitar shop and im so impressed I just want to buy it unfortunately I have no money. I owned gio and that cort's playability is way better in my feel. I agree with you it is better to try it first before buying than ordering online because your feel is all that matters

[@lobster-music]

Cort is a really interesting company - they make guitars for most major brands, but their own guitars often have quality issues (I owe two, one is great, one is a troublemaker), and the resell value is not as good as with other brands. Anyway, I hope you'll be able to save up for one, as long as it's fun to play :)

[@ezenglish9376]

I wanted to buy a ibanez GIO you mean its bad? Should i buy it or what?

[@kcir3r3av3r]

@@ezenglish9376 you should try and play it first. then you decide if it plays what you want for a guitar then just buy it

[@chakrank]

Wow ! Simple and logical ( also a lot of slim shaddys)

[@ehf4597]

Got my squier but the m&m is more tasty and crispier till forget bout the guitar for a moment

[@valueofnothing2487]

If you want to play metal, get a 24 fret Ibanez, and have the pickups replaced in a few years if you think you need it. Spend as much as you can afford. It is extremely likely that a $200 Ibanez has low action. There is a slight chance of sharp fret ends, but these can be easily filed down. Anything else start with an 21 fret Squire Affinity (which has a HSH rout), and then mod it over the years. Squiers are less risky because they are so easily modded. The Affinity neck can replaced with a standard Fender. GFS has solder less harnesses so you can experiment with any pickups, and Warmoth has Fender pick gaurds where you can specify either humbuckers, p90, mini or vintage singles. GFS also has short block trems to upgrade the Affinity. In short, with a small investment, you can get virtually any 21/22 fret guitar you like.

[@N7Tigger]

Do you think a similar priced HSS Ibanez would change anything? Like the GSA60 or GRX40?

[@firdauszainudin7118]

Can you make the same video but replace Bullet with Affinity next? 3:45 Love you sense of humor 🤣🤣🤣

[@lobster-music]

I would have to get my hands on an affinity strat, maybe I'll find one somewhere ;)

[@firdauszainudin7118]

@@lobster-music thanks, man. 👍👍👍

[@swordofhonor2]

this is science

[@eziooo2011]

Man, with model is the cort g? I can´t find it.

[@Furusato-jr6xp]

Its g110 sir😁

[@Zaky1977]

have you tried washburn lyon? I wish it was included in the video. I need some reference for the lyon

[@lobster-music]

Unfortunately i have never played it :(

[@mariotamezv]

Thank you, now I want some m&ms too, jaja!

[@gawni1612]

I like how you are audibly eating M&M's through out the entire commentary.

[@daniapita3750]

late comment but what do you think about jackson js 22 compared to these

[@lobster-music]

I have not tried it so I can't talk about quality, but it is the closest to the Ibanez. It has no single pickup so may be less suitable for some clean tones (funk, country, blues), but will sound good with distortion - those are ceramic magnet pickups, so expect a lot of high and med tones in the sound. The frets are big (jumbo), which is also a good sign. I think its a little bit more hardcore version of ibanez :)

[@Gerz970]

This is probably the only beginner guitar comparison that I’ve seen that the Yamaha doesn’t win and strangely enough it got dead last. My mind was made and I just watched one more video to confirm my decision on the Yamaha but now I have more to think about.

[@debasishdutta8352]

Thank you very much for these information. One question sir, If personally you want to go for Cort G250 or Pacifica 112VM, which one would you prefer?

[@lobster-music]

I think i would go for the Cort, and later set it up properly and upgrade the tuners :)

[@debasishdutta8352]

@@lobster-music Thanks a lot sir for the help.

[@truva1768]

Which one is more suitable as a starting guitar : Yamaha Pacifica 012, ibanez GRG170dx and ibanez GRX70QA.

[@lobster-music]

I would go for one of the ibanezes - they are very similar in specs, if you can - try them out in person and buy the one you like more :)

[@truva1768]

@@lobster-music thank you.

[@martynaflorczyk2050]

You know the diffrence between Ibanez grx70qa TBB and Ibanez grx70qa TRB ??? I know it is diffrent with the switch. In TBB there are 3 modes and in TRB 5 modes in switch. That's this only diffrence? So which one is better?

[@lobster-music]

Yes, the switch is the only difference. I would go with 5-way switch - you get 2 more sound options. 3-way switches are great if you have 2 pickups (and preferably 2 volume and tone knobs, gibson-style), but with 3 pickups and no extra knobs they make little sense and actually are not that much cheaper. I'm really surprised Ibanez is still using them in this layout - fender stopped dong this 50 years ago. Please let me know if you have any other questions - I'm eager to know what kind of videos people are waiting for :)

[@martynaflorczyk2050]

Thanks :]

[@bavackyantho5485]

In my country, Ibanez Roadcore 320 costs the same as Squier Affinity Bullet? Which one are you recommended, Sir?

[@lobster-music]

Blues / funk - sqier. Hard rock/ metal - ibanez :)

[@bavackyantho5485]

@@lobster-music I just learnt guitar, maybe Squier is jack of all trade, I reckon.

[@JGamer101]

If you had to pick would you do squier or gio? I’m trying to decide between squier and gio and the draw really didn’t help! Good review tho!

[@lobster-music]

Metal -> Gio, rock -> squire :)

[@JGamer101]

@@lobster-music thanks dude! i opened my new ibanez gio yesterday that comment helped everything!

[@clementquiver5777]

Can you please tell me which one is better Ibanez grx140 or fender squier?

[@lobster-music]

Blues -Squire. Anything else - ibanez :)

[@clementquiver5777]

@@lobster-music thank you👍

[@mikeykedang6178]

Honestly, yamaha is the fastest😁

[@lobster-music]

🏍🏍🏍

[@andydavis9963]

Mikey Kedang your right best action neck other than a Washburn A-20 I’ve ever played

[@shuttzi9878]

@@andydavis9963 he meant motorcycles but u probably already got that

[@leontiefmodell650]

Jesus christ, man, two seconds earlier and you would have had me with the "Bolt(-)on" neck with coffee in my mouth...

[@doomags21]

Which one is better

[@ukuk907]

Idealnie,wlasne nad Yamaha, Ibanezem i tym niby Fenderem sie zastanawiam :) Ogladam juz trzeci dzien tego jutuba i leb mi peka:) Moze doradzisz cos jesli chodzi o wzmacniacz? Dopiero sie ucze grac(taka fanaberia na stare lata) i nie mam za bardzo pojecia o calym temacie. Zastanawialem sie nad Fender champion 20, Orange crush 20 i Vox pathfinder10.Dzieki za filmik i pozrdo!

[@lobster-music]

Co do wzmacniacza - glowne pytanie to co chcesz grac - fender jest swietny jesli idzie o czyste brzmienia, ale dobrego rockowego solo (np. Gary Moore) sie na nim nie zagra - tu lepszy bedzie orange, a vox jest gdzies po srodku. Na poczatek, zwlaszcza jesli nie jestes pewien co chcesz grac (to sie zmienia w trakcie), kupilbym wzmacniacz modelujacy - np. line 6 spider 20 (chyba jest nawet w tym video), a za jakis czas, jesli hobby bedzie sie rozwijac - mozna pomyslec o zmianie. Wiem ze spidery maja zla passe wsrod recenzentow, ale kieds gralem z Radkiem Chwieralskim, i koles uzywal spidera - nie przeszkadzalo :) Na plus jest to ze zagrasz kazdy rodzaj muzyki i poznasz rozne efekty i modele wzmacniaczy - nie beda brzmialy jak prawdziwe, ale masz ich tam chyba z 80, plus milion efektow - wiec mozesz pobawic sie delay'em jak bono/gilmour, dorzucic chorus, kompresor, albo zmienic przester na inny. No i tak samo te mniejsze wzmacniacze fendera czy orange'a nie brzmia jak te wieksze. Wiem co mowie, moj pierwszy wzmacniacz to byl fender champion ;)

[@danceon6927]

Which could be the best in order of versatility

[@lobster-music]

I would go for squire because of the bridge single pickup, which is really great for funk/blues playing.

[@nazmulhasib9669]

Is there any difference QA / DX?

[@lobster-music]

There's very little difference - they were identical, but DX is not produced anymore, so the new QAs are slightly different - they are made in indonesia instead of china, have different pickups and use different wood for fretboards. But they are really similar - the differences between individual guitars will be most probably more significant than differences between those two models, especially when buying a used one. If you can, simply try each of them out. Summary: there are some differences, but very minor, and neither of them can be considered better than other one.

[@samueljosehenao8360]

What do you think about Ibanez Grx 40?

[@lobster-music]

Haven't played it yet, but looks legit. The only part that gets me sceptical are ceramic single coil pickups, they may sound too thin for clean stuff - ceramic magnets kick ass for distortion, but often lack bottom end 'pop' 🤔

[@creativitycell]

I want to know what car you think my fender telecaster is!

[@lobster-music]

Well, telecaster is the first mass-produced electric guitar, so obviously it's a Ford model T ;) But maybe a buff hot-rod version ;)

[@prakhargupta2960]

A complete video

[@megawd2145]

Which guitar should i take? 1. Ibanez grx40 2. Ibanez grg140

[@lobster-music]

Very similar, but i would go for the extra two frets on the grg :)

[@creativitycell]

Cort must be a hot hatchback, and Ibanez a 4x4 massive rock crawling jeep I reckon!

[@creativitycell]

The World would a better place if we measured everything in M & Ms! 😆

[@efemji]

fuuck okay dude im going to save up abit more for squier

[@doomags21]

Is that squier affinity or bullet?

[@lobster-music]

Bullet :)

[@jasonism123]

You should have chosen the Ibanez Grx40 instead of that Grx70qa, to be fair with Ibanez. The Grx40 is an HSS strat.

[@danceon6927]

Which is best according to u personally

[@lobster-music]

For hard rock/ shredding: Ibanez. For blues, funk - squire.

[@armanzakwan1898]

Sorry for correcting but its spelled Squier not Squire

[@lobster-music]

Don't be sorry, I owe you big time - thanks for correcting :)

[@midtown3221]

I wanna eat those M&Ms!!!

[@stelladevania3607]

Uuuughh dear lord why is picking a guitar so hard. I was dead set on a yamaha pacifica 112j and most people say yamaha is better but then you say it's the worst :(((

[@mohitm4244]

@@ShashankSingh-lj4rk what about fender squire bullet strat? That costs around 12 k

[@mohitm4244]

@@ShashankSingh-lj4rk alright. Actually I'm confused b/w squier strat and Yamaha Pacifica 012. Thanks for the reply :)

[@mohitm4244]

@@ShashankSingh-lj4rk I'm a beginner. But def would love to play blues and rock. And one more question. What amp would be the best in the price range of 5-7 k?

[@mohitm4244]

@@kaustubhdupate9223 yeap. Got a squier. Sounds 🤘

[@natashab8110]

that's cute how you use M&M to do the review

[@lobster-music]

Its all just a płot to est more sweets :)

[@Adi_98.]

Ibanez Grg70qa or Cort X250 ? Which one is the better?

[@lobster-music]

Cort X250 has a floyd rose-like tremolo - if you're a fan of steve vai or are interested mostly in heavy metal and the price is similar - I would go with Cort in this case - floyd rose tremolo enables a lot of cool tricks :)

[@Adi_98.]

@@lobster-music Cort KX300 would be better than x250 right? Can you tell me the differences? Please.

[@lobster-music]

That's a hard question - kx300 (www.cortguitars.com/product/item.php?ca_id=101070&it_id=1255&page=1#tab_Features)has better quality components (better pickups, better wood), but has much less features - no single coil pickup, 3 way selector instead of 5-way, hardtail bridge instead of floyd-rose type bridge) x250 (www.cortguitars.com/product/item.php?ca_id=101040&it_id=1260&page=1#tab_Features) has more features, but uses cheaper wood and pickups. It's like asking if a fully loaded Toyota camry (x250) with all the bells and whistles is better than a small Mercedes a-class (kx300) with no features at all. As I said, if you're planning at playing metal or Steve Vai-like stuff, go for x250 - it has flody rose and when it comes to pickups - you can always change those later :)

[@Adi_98.]

@@lobster-music floyd rose is kinda hard to maintain, and to set-up! Might buy another guitar with Floyd rose later!

[@Just_Vryatt]

So if I have a Corolla AND an Ibanez.... 😅

[@lobster-music]

If you have a Toyota and an Ibanez, you're making the right choices ;)

[@GOWTHAMAN466]

I guess yamaha was underrated :(

[@lobster-music]

Maybe it was just the one I tried, but it was much worse than Squire and Ibanez. But, as I said in the video, every single guitar is different :)

[@PabloGranadosVargas]

@@lobster-music On that price range, I would get the yamaha, but that is just me.

[@avisaiko5354]

@@PabloGranadosVargas me too

[@sumitmalakar2017]

Which one is better?

[@lobster-music]

Ibanez for rock / metal, squier for blues / funk :)

[@sumitmalakar2017]

@@lobster-music is Cort g110 is good at it's price point? In my country cort g110 is cheaper than other....so I'm looking for cort

[@lobster-music]

@@sumitmalakar2017 I think you can buy a cort and find a luthier to set it up - that may be a good option, and can still be cheaper than fender.

[@sumitmalakar2017]

@@lobster-music ok sir thank you 🙏

[@billybadfinger597]

Fun Fact: Cort (Cort Tek Indonesia) builds almost all of the Ibanez Gio/GRX's...a fair amount of the Squier Bullets and Affinity's and some of the Yamaha Pacifica line up's... Sooooo...in fact...most of the guitars in this review ARE Cort's LOL :)

[@bluwng]

Not really, most guitarist do not understand business, they make the same mistake with Pickups. Cort is a job shop, a manufacturer, the design and Quality Control process belongs to the customer, eg Fender/Ibanez/…, also materials. Example, I can build a custom guitar for you if you ask or if you ask me to mass manufacture a piece of crap for you based on your specs, budget, quality and materials then I would build you a piece of crap.

[@newtondelmar4416]

@@bluwng Hey there...not really sure what your comment is supposed to mean. Seems you believe all mass produced guitars a "crap"... 100 million other guitarists will likely disagree with that ... this mans video is about beginner guitars under $250...so WTF are you even mentioning custom built instruments for ???

[@insandunia6734]

Sad but True ....😆

[@Azwad]

@@bluwng correct. Cort as the OEM still cannot copy the designs owned by its clients and market them as theirs.

[@Azwad]

@@newtondelmar4416 he was giving an example that everything is still due to the design and specs given to the manufacturer ie Cort to build

[@emgex]

whatever just dont buy a squier ever!!! Buying a squier is a lottery, only 1 of 10 squiers are decently build.

[@mint7966]

Depend on the factory its made

[@louissmith5298]

Does this guy know that guitars can be set up? It sounds like none of these were, he just took them out of the box and judged them without setting them up. High and low action isn't dependent on the brand, any guitar can be set up to have a low or high action.

[@lobster-music]

Guitars were set up by shop personel. They always try to set the action pretty much as low as possible, but not all guitars can be setup up to have low action - in lower quality guitars you are limited by how even the frets are - trying to lower action will just get you more fret buzz. And yes, you can fix it, but within this price range a visit to the Luther will set you back almost as much as the guitar itself.

[@louissmith5298]

@@lobster-music Point taken but I'd be surprised if anyone at the shop put too much work into setting up guitars in that price range. I assumed you got them online in a box from the factory.

[@louissmith5298]

Why the hating on the Pacifica? Worse than a Cort cmon.

[@lobster-music]

Maybe it was just an unlucky Pacifica and a lucky cort... But wait, cort was actually terrible apart from the price and tone, so maybe it was a lucky squire and Ibanez ;) In general, i tried to do my best based on the guitars i had...

[@louissmith5298]

@@lobster-music I've never heard of a bad Pacifica in any price range but maybe the Cort was a lucky one

[@fajaradi1223]

But none of these guitars have the bitter sweet chocolaties taste like the m&m's

[@madeputra8827]

👎👎👎

[@allen3539]

Brother please compare it with LTD MT130 Im looking for the comparison and want to buy a one I want to if it's worth getting a Jackson or ibanez than LTD because LTD is cheaper than that Here in India which it's costs around 160dollars when comparing to the bulletstrat and ibanez , Jackson the price is very different and far low than these models Or should I buy Ltd f10 or MT130 Or should I go for strat or ibanez grg121 or other grg models which is under 230 dollars Are all models specification are same in these segments or which has better pickup ? LTD MT130 comes with 2 humbucker and single coil combination is hsh.... And ibanez in these range comes with hh, ssh and when looking to over 350 dollar model of ibanez 171dx ..... How much this LTD MT130 can hold upto those models of other guitars out there,..... WHICH WILL BE BETTER SHOULD I GO FOR IBANEZ OR CHEAPER LTD bro Only you can help me Please reply 🥲 I have only few money over 200dollars and I have to extend it to buy an good amp And I don't want to regret with poor quality or bad pickups Please reply and only you can clear my doubt and clarify it to me...... Should I get this mt130 ltd or should I go for others Then which one I should choose In here we have no guitar store to play demo 🥹.... Bro I'm begging you only you can help me❤️