Product Description

Dean EVO XM is a perfect blend of vintage design, old world craftsmanship and decades of guitar building technology. This affordable yet stylish member of that family has a lightweight basswood body in a mahogany stain for a "high-end" look, with a maple neck and 22-fret rosewood fingerboard. A set of Dean high-output humbuckers deliver the sonic goods, while the adjustable TOM-style bridge keeps you in tune for the length of the gig. Great for players of any level, but is truly ideal for the beginning guitarist who wants an attractive model as their first guitar. Case not included. EVO XM Trans Black ~Solid Basswood Body ~24 3/4" scale ~Maple Neck ~Rosewood fingerboard ~Sealed Tuners ~Pearl DOT inlay ~Black hardware ~Tune O Matic Bridge ~Dean Pickups

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13586 in Musical Instruments
• Brand: Dean Guitars
• Model: EVOXM TBK
• Released on: 2008-06-10
• Number of items: 1

Features

• Basswood body
• Bolt-on maple neck
• Rosewood fingerboard
• Dual humbuckers
• Sealed tuners

Customer Reviews

Awesome beginner guitar!!
Dean EVO XM (black)

Positive(s): Great look. Great feel. Excellent quality. Sweet sound. Stays in tune a long time. Looks great. Came with 6 foot long cord. Was prestrung (but had to tune it, of course). Totally worth the money!!

Negative(s): When it arrived, the nuts holding the knobs and the switch were a little loose. I tightened them and all was well. It only took me about 2 minutes to tighten them.

Concerns: Does not come with a strap or stand (no big deal, just letting you know).

Delivery Concern: The guitar itself was packed in a "Dean" guitar box with minimal protection around it (no big deal if it were just sitting in a warehouse somewhere waiting to be purchased). When it was delivered to me, Amazon packed it in an additional, larger box but there was only about 2 pieces of packing paper protecting it and keeping the "dean" box from moving around. Luckily my guitar arrived undamaged which was a surprise due to the lack of packaging materials used. Pack your packages better, Amazon!

Ok, but not great
I ordered this a while back from Amazon as the price was good. It's sort of a mixed bag. It's vaguely Les Paul-ish in appearance and setup, but remember that it's very much a budget guitar.

Overall the sound itself isn't bad. The pickups could be a bit better but honestly for a guitar in this price range they sound fine. Most of the build quality looks good - it would be nice if the pickup and control cavities had been shielded, but I can live with their decision not to.

The guitar does fall out of tune a little quickly, so if you're so inclined replacement tuners might be in order.

The main issue I have with the guitar though is fret buzz. The top 2 strings rattle like heck if you pluck them with any intensity. This is an issue that I simply haven't been able to solve and truthfully I think it may take a fret job (which approaches the price of the guitar itself if done professionally) to get rid of.

Also, complete personal preference here, but the matte finish on the neck I don't find as comfortable playing as a gloss neck finish. I've got guitars with both, and it just seems like my hand slides up and down the neck easier on a gloss finish.

Also, almost a completely irrelevant point, but the description of this lists it as "transparent black" - typically any finish described as transparent I expect to see some wood grain beneath. This isn't "transparent" - it's just a flat black painted finish.

Not Bad
Classic look and feel. Change the machine heads to grovers and you've got a great beginner-intermediate guitar that will stay in tune and be a pleasure to learn on.