First let me say I am no stranger to guitars. I own over 20 different ones. I have $150-$2500 versions from all the best brands. I have yet to own a Yamaha Pacifica. I have the "other" brand which includes a Tele, Strat, and a Jazzmaster.The package was packed really, really, well. No damage of any kind from the delivery process. Right out of the box I could see this is a quality product. Fit and finish is a big "WOW." It was almost perfectly in tune. I only needed to tweek each string about a half pitch to be right on. I got the "old violin" finish and it is a real looker.Tone is as good or better than most of my other guitars. Playability and sound is just what I like. I would put this in my top five favorite guitars. I could play this guitar with any other brand and they would like mine a lot.I am going to leave the OEM strings on as they are not bad. In a month or so I will change them out for some upgrades. The rest, I will leave everything OEM. Don't miss out on this one. It is a STEAL for the money.