Item Reviews for: Kramer SM1 Electric Guitar  -  KRM KMVR LIST
Kramer SM1 Electric Guitar
review title:

looks good on paper but.......

By: Guitar guy      Submitted: 4/20/2015

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verified
Product Rating Product Review Mahogany neck thru body EMG pickups and a real Floyd, what could go wrong? Well for starters it needed $100 worth of fret work and due to the neck radius vs the floyd radius the action can only be so low. The finish is decent but the could have filled the body joint a bit better so it isn't so noticeable. No instructions or owners manual of any kind came with my guitar. Not sure if that's standard or if AMS forgot to include it. With all the switching this guitar does that would be nice to have. That's the bad. The good, the guitar sounds awesome. Lots of tonal capabilities. The neck is a bit chunky but nice. Overall had I played it in the music store I would have passed at the current asking price. Now after having the fret work done I'm stuck with it. Should include some sort of case for the money.
review title:

A shred machine, 4/5

By: retstsc59R9      Submitted: 3/9/2015

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Product Review I give this guitar a solid 4/5 on looks, fit/finish, and overall feel. After resetting the Floyd Rose to my string gauge and blocking it (dive only) I am most satisfied with the playability. The EMG set has a variety of sounds, through the mini-switch and the push-pull pot, I find that the best sound is from the bridge EMG 81TW, in humbucker mode.
review title:

Fantastic!

By: a non moose      Submitted: 1/19/2015

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Product Review I am very happy with the guitar. I had been looking for a quality "super-strat" style guitar to play hard rock and fusion. I took a chance with this guitar and was pleasantly surprised. This is one of the best guitars I have ever played! Considering how good it is, it's worth the money! I am also glad that Kramer is back making great guitars!
review title:

Welcome back Kramer - I love this Guitar

By: Ryche from Chicago IL, US      Submitted: 7/29/2014

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1 person found this review helpful.
verified
Product Review Had a Kramer Voyager years ago in the 80's, and regretfully sold it in the 90's. One of the best guitars I ever owned. So, found out "by accident" that Kramer (Gibson) was making guitars again, so I HAD to try one. This guitar (SM-1 EMG's) is one of the best guitars I have owned. Build quality is excellent on the SM-1. Similar to my older Kramer Voyager, this guitar just is always in tune. Only occasionally need to make minute adjustments with the Floyd Fine tuners. I do use the Floyd regularly too. I am always amazed when I fire up the tuner just to check it before a show, and it's in tune. I have owned MANY guitars over the years, and the SM-1 I can tell you is a RARE find. The EMG Pickup's are very versatile. It has become my main guitar now. Gibson would be wise to concentrate more on Higher End Kramers for the future. The SM-1 is at the top of the line up in terms of price/features, so I cannot speak for the quality of the rest of the lineup, but this guitar is Awesome! Build Quality is Excellent. I play a variety of styles, but mostly Rock, POP, and some Metal. the 81TW pickups, as well as the single coil pickups, give me a lot of ways to taylor the sound to what I need. This guitar has the same traditional Kramer Feel. Fast Neck, similar to a Jackson, but all Kramer. EMG pickups can go from Blistering leads and heavy "chunking" to smooth blues. The mahogany body, provides excellent sustain. Finish is excellent. I put on a nice coat of wax, and the paint finish is spectacular. This is an awesome guitar, and worth every penny. Action is excellent. Regardless of where I buy my guitars, I ALWAYS bring in my guitars to have them setup and adjusted. This is just something you do with a new guitar. A previous reviewer posted this as a negative, but the reality is, you should always take a new guitar to a person you trust to make sure it's set up properly, and intonated correctly. Just part of the cost of getting a new instrument. It is well worth it.
review title:

Poor Craftmanship

By: Mel from Lebanon,Tenn      Submitted: 3/18/2013

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0 people found this review helpful.

Great Sound (pickups) and Sustain.Strings action looked like they where a mile away from the frets,neck (truss rod) was not adjusted correctly.Once everything got adjusted buzz,buzz and more buzz frets started coming loose.Kramer dropped the ball on this one. none. Your general opinion of this product. Get ready to spend a few 100 of dollars on neck and fret work. I was a proud owner of a Baretta in the 80's loved the feel of the guitar,thinking that the quality was still the same got me this SM1,what a Disappointment. EMG's pickups sound awesome full and HOT. Paint looks great. Bad string action,bad truss rod adjustment.
review title:

this thing is a versatile tone machine!!!

By: Gerry from Chula Vista, CA      Submitted: 11/5/2012

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2 people found this review helpful.

ver ywell-made, MIK quality that compares favorably to LTDs and Schecters! so far, so good--it is built solid, I don't anticipate anything Your general opinion of this product. great reissue of the classic Stagemaster series, I'm playing this all the time, it reminds me of my USA Jackson Soloist, only with better pick-ups and switchinmg options neck is slightly chunky, yet plays fast this is where this guitar totally shines---all the options at your fingertips, you can literally playanything with it--the Duncan Cool Rails and Alternative 8 does deliver!! finish is strong and solid plus beautiful, a light creamy white color just needed to lower it a bit, but other than that, it played well
review title:

Stagemaster reissue with Gibson influence

By: Gary H from Newport News, VA      Submitted: 5/27/2012

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5 people found this review helpful.

This guitar is very well made, with quality components and workmanship throughout. Original Floyd Rose, Duncan pickups, ebony board, neck through construction, etc. I've had it about 5 months, everything's fine so far. No real concerns over reliability due to the quality of components. Your general opinion of this product. This is obviously a reissue of the late 80s arch top Kramer Stagemaster. It's very well made, but feels more like a Gibson than my original 80s Stagemaster. (Gibson owns Kramer now.) While my original Stagemaster has a medium size neck and a light feel, the SM-1 has a much bigger neck and more heft to it. The neck is essentially Gibson's 60s Slim Taper design, not the 80s Kramer Stagemaster neck. The Duncan version actually has a Duncan Alternative 8 in the bridge and two Cool Rails, not the Duncan JB/Hot Rails combo cited by AMS. The Alt 8 has more output and bass than a Duncan JB. The finish and binding are absolutely flawless. Big thumbs up here. Very low action right out of the box. After a little set up work, even better. Gibson players will feel right at home on this neck. Folks seeking a small, shredder style neck will be in for a surprise.