Gretsch Guitars G6659TFM Players Edition Broadkaster Jr. Center Block Bigsby Semi-Hollow Electric Guitar Bourbon Stain

Purchased about 7 weeks ago. As a professional, historically I have been very skeptical of anything less than high-end US-made acoustic and electric guitars (i.e., Martins, US-made Strats and Les Paul's, Rainsong's, etc.) I surrendered my squeamishness about Gretsch's Japanese-manufactured Professional Series guitars after this purchase. These high-end professional series guitars meet my expectations. IMHO, Gretsch has conquered the art of off-shore guitar manufacturing quality. Upon arrival, the strings of my purchase were fresh and sounded crisp. The action was impeccable as-is. The ebony fretboard was fast, comfortable, showed good sustain up and down the neck and I quickly concluded it was "just-right". The neck size seems more comfortable (and a little narrower) to me than most Les Paul's. The neck thickness is about the same. The medium jumbo frets are sized just as I prefer and what I maintain on my other guitars. The intonation is spot-on right out of the box, even with the original strings and set up. Exercising the Bigsby tailpiece does not compromise the intonation. (Praises to the Gotoh locking tuning machines too!) This kind of stability and resilience is exactly as I need with a professional-quality guitar. When I first opened the guitar case it was obvious that someone put considerable effort into matching the flame maple top and back panels. The panels certainly match and look fantastic! The Bourbon stain and finish is flawless. (I only wish it included a pickguard to protect the rich, glossy finish.) The electronics are rock-solid. The amplified sound has all the personality I hoped for. The volume and tone knobs are of superb quality—smooth, even climb without noise. The pick-up switch is well-made just like on my Les Paul's and surpasses the feel of most Tele and Strat pick-up switches. The combination of a semi hollow-body with the FullTron pick-ups produce that wonderful Gretsch chime and distortion presence that solid-body guitars just can't conjure. (I was originally concerned that the pick-ups might be a subsnative compromise to Gretsch's legacy FilterTron pick-ups, but I am no longer concerned. I detect no tone or personality short-comings.) The center-block construction retains enough space for tasteful feedback while keeping feedback controllable. No regrets after purchasing this Gretsch.