Kramer pacer classic

This is a 2013 Kramer Pacer Classic guitar a friend bought. It's a really nice super-strat with great features and even greater playability! Check it out:

Here are its original specifications:
Slim and Wide Profile
2 Volume, 1 Tone Control knob with Miniature Three-way Toggle
Pair of Alinco V Humbuckers
Treble bleed circuit for the Volume control
Floyd Rose™ Tremolo Bridge with Locking Nut
25.5" scale
22 frets
Mahogany Body
Maple neck and fingerboard
Premium Die-cast Tuners

Source: http://www.kramerguitars.com/Products/Pacer/Pacer-Classic.aspx

Price: ~280Euros
http://www.thomann.de/gb/kramer_guitars_pacer_classic_car.htm?partner_id=73786
http://www.music123.com/guitars/kramer-pacer-classic-electric-guitar/423783000254000

Epiphone vs Epiphone...
-Of course, this is a Gibson/Epiphone-made guitar. Nevertheless, the build quality is higher than most Epi guitars of the same price range and its parts are of higher quality. For instance, the mini toggle switch is way more durable than most modern 3-way Epi toggle switches. The tremolo is quite good and the fretwork is excellent. Moreover, the pickups sound hotter and yet more defined, with a wider frequency range than the "HOTch" ones fitted in my Epi LP standard. The electronics wiring is also a bit more sophisticated.

-One thing I noticed though is that the stock humbuckers on this Pacer classic are ceramic ones, not AlNiCo. Being a super-strat guitar made for soloing,  this is a good thing! Epi AlNiCo pickups, having a lower output, tend to sound smoother whereas ceramic ones sound hotter and tend to have a wider frequency range response. Moreover, the treble-bleed circuit of the pacer is something I wouldn't expect. You can lower the volume control without loosing any high frequencies thanks to the treble bleed mod. It's an easy mod but most guitar companies don't really bother connecting a 0,1$  R-C circuit to the volume pot.

Here's more info on the treble bleed mod:
http://www.guitar-mod.com/rg_diag_treble_bleed.html

-The black lic Floyd rose system on this one is excellent! I've seen many low-cost licenced trems that were simply useless but this one is really good and it's easy to set up. It's a non-recessed tremolo, just like the trem systems used on many high end USA-made super-strat guitars.

-Notice the graphite shielding black paint inside these cavities. Tone-wise, this is a really nice touch as shielding reduces hum and noise. There are not many production guitars of this price range with fully shielded cavities...

So, what's the catch?
 Well, as most guitars of this price range, the Pacer came in without being set up right. The action was a bit high, the intonation was a little off, the neck relief had to be readjusted and so on. Also, the output jack was a bit loose. As I removed the jack I saw the "Epiphone" logo at its side. Then, the jack was tightened up and the electronics were checked. Everything works okay! The mini-toggle switch is also pretty durable and more reliable than those Epi 3-way toggle switches...

Setup and go!
The guitar was set up with a fresh set of 0,09" coated strings and the playability is mind-blowing. There are no fret issues, no buzzing or dead spots, the action is very low and the intonation is spot on. The guitar stays in tune much longer now and the tremolo is pretty usable. A high quality instrument overall.
The tone is powerful but well-defined. This is an 80's style guitar made for soloing and shredding and melodic playing. Nevertheless, chords sound clear and each note is present and defined even at high-gain amp settings.

Here are a few more pictures of the guitar:

Cheers,
Thanos
guitardreamer.gr@gmail.com