SC-450Plus LD Vintage Series : its OK, but...

So, I brought this as my first guitar after seeing great reviews on YT from China Guitar Skeptic and EytschPi42.

It arrived in good time and survived its journey halfway around the world with no obvious damage.

I played it for a long time without an amp, so I didn't find some of the electronic issues until it was too late to return it (along with the hassles that come with being half a world away), but here is a list of the defects I found in my unit

Cosmetic:

I ordered a Lemon Drop. What I received was a Honey Burst.

The neck, sides and back were polished to perfection, the front looked like they had skipped the final buff, or some overspray had landed on it.

The veneer book match joint is centered on the strap button, but not the tail piece or bridge - not sure if the veneer is off or if its the hardware

Functional:

Most of the tuners were not installed straight. One is so obviously out I had it fixed.

Pickups are offset - the Rhythm appears centered to the neck and strings, the Treble is offset towards the bass side to the point where the e string is almost off the pole screw.

Tone pots - when I eventually got an amp, there was pretty much no difference through the throw of the pots, apart from scratching noises at 3 & 5 positions.

Coil splits/ volume pots - just underwhelming. The knobs are sitting on the body and are so stiff you have to leaver them up with a pick.

Conclusion:

I've had it set up and it plays pretty well, or at least that's what players I know think. Its been a good introduction instrument and a great platform for doing your own upgrades, I've changed the pots, done the Peter Green mod and will change the switch and jack next. Its a great first instrument and development platform, just don't expect it to be perfect.