Cort KX 500 Menace Black Satin

The X 500 Menace is a monster

So, to be clear, this is the X500 Menace, not a KX series guitar. But it is A LOT of guitar for the price. The fit and finish is great, the guitar was very playable out of the box, although that setup was more aimed at an aggressive rhythm player than a lead guy. A quarter turn to take a little neck relief out and a very slight drop of the action (and fresh strings) and she plays like a dream. The Floyd holds up under alarming abuse and floats back in tune perfectly. The ebony fretboard is... gorgeous and the frets are beautifully levelled and crowned. No fret sprout. I love this guitar. The three way switch and the tone and volume pots are cheaper components, but they still sound great and for these features at this price point I'm willing to replace a potentiometer down the line.

Update: I’m not changing my rating, I am still head over heels with this instrument, but in the interest of full disclosure I discovered there was a screw missing on the guitars input jack (not a big deal for me, I had a good fit in the same colour in my spare screws drawer) and there is a small finish flaw near the jack where a small drop (pin head sized) of paint splashed onto the guitar.