Yamaha Pacifica 012 Electric Guitar Package

Body - Agathis
Neck - Bolt-on maple
Fingerboard - Sonokeling, 350mm (13.75”) radius
Frets - 22
Scale length - 648mm (25.5”) 
Pickups - Two single-coils, one humbucker
Controls - Five-position pickup selector, master volume, master tone
Bridge: Vintage-type vibrato

This guitar and amplifier package features the world famous Yamaha Pacifica, a stylish and very playable electric guitar complete with a padded bag, Yamaha 15 watt amplifier, a strap, cable and plectrums. There is also a tutorial book and cd. This all in one pack is of a higher standard than other budget kits, and the quality and style of the Pacifica guitar is sure to get any aspiring guitarist off to a flying start.
Yamaha are world famous for their musical instruments, keyboards, pianos, drums, motorbikes, no I didn’t mean that, and the high standards of construction are very apparent in the Pacifica guitar. The Pacifica features the classic combination of a double cutaway body with a bolt on Maple neck. The body ‘horns’ have more angular contours than most strat look-alikes, giving this guitar a mean rock attitude all of its own.
The large white scratchplate complements the body shape and colour, extending round into the lower horn and back to house the pickups and controls. The elongated arrow headstock is of the same natural satin finish as the neck, with a creamy pale wood grain. The chrome tuners run in a line of 6 along the top edge of the headstock and make for easy and accurate tuning adjustment. Below these are the Pacifica logos along with the circular Yamaha emblem. All wooden edges are well polished and the whole neck has a feel superior to cheaper guitars of a similar style.
Accurate positioning of the machine heads and string tree gives an even pressure of the strings over the nut, which lies at the top of the fretboard. This makes for a consistent string action across the neck and whether you are strumming open chords or experimenting with solos you should have no problems here. The tightly grained dark Sonokeling Rosewood fingerboard has a tight and consistent grain and a super soft feel. Large central dot inlays run inbetween the frets to help you remember the fret numbering, with two dots on the 12th fret. The body horns are offset from one another, with the lower curve more indented to help you reach the upper frets, and the curved lower waist helps the guitar sit comfortable over your knee for playing whilst seated.
The Yamaha Pacifica has a bright and exciting tone, perfect for those just starting to learn to play the guitar. It is also very easy to get to grips with its controls, and a good range of tones can be achieved by flicking through the five positions of the pickup selector. The neck and middle single-coil pickups are warm and twangy with a bright bluesy character, great for clean amp settings. The bridge humbucker is what sets the Pacifica apart from other entry level models, as it allows for a more powerful rock sound. This is essential if you are intending on cranking the distortion to the full, as humbucking pickups keep unwanted noise to the minimum. The Pacifica also comes with a vintage style vibrato bridge giving you the extra expression of adding trills and dives to your riffs. This diversity of tones along with the excellent feel of the neck make the Pacifica an ideal beginners guitar.
The Yamaha GA-15 amplifier makes a great introduction into electrified sound. It is not so loud as to annoy the neighbours, but it packs enough punch to let you feel the excitement of the guitar, and there is a headphone socket for late night sessions. Along with the volume control there are dials for bass, middle and treble tones, and on clean settings the amp sounds warm and full of life. There is an overdrive button that cranks up the distortion, this amp setting works nicely with the guitar’s bridge pickup selected for crunchy rock tones, with a gain dial and separate volume controls on the drive channel.
The gig bag supplied with the guitar is padded to help protect it from any dangers during transport, but we reckon this guitar could easily withstand a hearty bash or two! Yamahas ‘Instant Guitar’ DVD is included with the kit to get you started, and it couldn’t be eas