Monoprice 625900 Electric Guitar: Full Review

Monoprice is an American company specializing in affordable consumer electronics. Though primarily known for cables, adapters and home audio equipment, in recent years they have expanded into musical instruments with their own line of guitars, basses, and accessories.

The 625900 is one of Monoprice's electric guitar offerings, featuring a classic offset double cutaway body shape. It's an affordable, beginner-friendly model aimed at new players or those on a budget. Some key specs include an alder body, maple neck, 2 single coil pickups, and chrome hardware. On paper it seems to check a lot of boxes for a versatile entry-level electric guitar.

Body & Neck

The Strat-style Monoprice Electric Guitar is well constructed with a solid poplar body. This helps provide natural resonance and sustain. While not as expensive as alder or ash, poplar is a quality wood used by major electric guitar brands.

The bolt-on maple neck has a comfortable slim C profile that allows for fast playing up and down the fretboard. It's ideal for lead guitarists who need to quickly shred solos. The maple contributes brightness and definition.

The fretboard is rosewood, which some guitarists prefer over maple for its slightly warmer, rounded tone. It has a modern 9.5" radius and 22 medium jumbo frets. Overall the neck feels smooth and fast.

The hardware appears to be decent quality. The vintage-style tremolo bridge works smoothly for vibrato effects and basic tuning stability.

The pickups are Monoprice brand alnico single coils. While not boutique pickups, they seem capable of classic Strat tones from sparkling cleans to distorted rock. The 5-way pickup selector provides a variety of pickup combinations.

Overall the body, neck, and hardware deliver solid performance and playability for a budget-friendly electric guitar. The quality woods and construction allow the pickups to shine.

The Strat-style body shape is iconic and ergonomic, comfortable to play sitting or standing. The contoured edges rest nicely against your body. The smooth finish resists fingerprints and provides a quality feel.

Many guitarists love the versatility of the Stratocaster design. It's well suited to any musical genre from country to metal. The trifecta of single coil pickups offers a wide tonal palette.

Some guitarists prefer the thicker, warmer sound of humbuckers for rock and metal styles. If you want more aggression, check out the Fesley FDET280. It has a similar body shape but with dual humbuckers for a heavier tone.

The contoured Strat body shape shifts easily from clean rhythms to lead solos. The playability lends itself to fast lead playing up the neck. The 5-way selector provides instant access to a variety of tones.

Overall the Strat-style Monoprice delivers great value at this price point. It competes well with major brands costing two or three times as much. While not American-made, the quality is impressive for an import model.

For home practice, jamming, or gigging, this affordable Strat is tough to beat. It provides the iconic style and sound at a budget-friendly price. The quality components and construction will provide years of playing enjoyment.

Hardware

The Monoprice 625900 comes equipped with solid hardware that provides stable tuning and sustain. The guitar features a chrome hardware Tune-o-matic bridge combined with a stop tailpiece.

The Tune-o-matic bridge allows for precise intonation of each individual string. This helps keep the guitar in tune across the entire fretboard, even when playing complex chords up and down the neck. The adjustable saddles give you control over the string height and action as well. This Chrome bridge delivers the tuning stability and sustain that musicians expect from a quality instrument.

Pairing the Tune-o-matic with a stop tailpiece further enhances sustain and tuning stability. The strings pass through the body and anchor to the tailpiece. This creates tension against the bridge to increase resonance. The stop tailpiece also uses an adjustable design, allowing you to fine tune the string tension and action to suit your playing style. Overall, the chrome hardware delivers professional performance for stable tuning, excellent sustain, and great tone.

When it comes to electric guitars, hardware is an important factor that can make a big difference in playability, tuning stability, and tone. While the Monoprice 625900 utilizes quality components, there are other great hardware options to consider as well. For example, the Fender 0370123506 features Fender's patented synchronized tremolo bridge. This bridge allows guitarists to bend notes, add vibrato, and manipulate the pitch for unique effects. The tremolo mechanism is synchronized across all six strings, keeping everything in tune even when using the whammy bar aggressively. This is a signature piece of hardware found on iconic Fender models like the Stratocaster. Quality hardware components are essential for the performance and sound of any electric guitar. The bridge, tailpiece, tuners, and other parts all contribute to the playability. Guitarists should carefully evaluate the hardware configuration when choosing an electric guitar to match their style and needs.

Electronics

The Monoprice Stage Right 625900 features a set of two open coil humbucker pickups that are well-suited for rock and metal styles of playing. The pickups provide a fat, thick tone with plenty of midrange punch and bright treble bite.

The guitar has a 3-way pickup selector switch, allowing you to choose between the bridge humbucker, both humbuckers, or the neck humbucker. This gives you a good variety of tones from searing lead sounds in the bridge position to warm, round rhythm tones in the neck position.

It also has two volume and two tone knobs, one for each pickup, allowing you to blend the output and tone of each pickup individually. The volume knobs have a smooth taper from zero to full output. The tone knobs cut high end effectively, allowing you to tailor the amount of bite and sizzle to your liking.

Overall, the electronics complement the guitar well for hard rock, metal, blues, and classic rock styles. The pickups have enough output and midrange growl to achieve an aggressive driven tone. The controls give you flexibility in crafting your tone.

Sound

The Monoprice 625900 electric guitar provides a fat, warm tone thanks to its dual humbucker pickups. The neck pickup produces a smooth, round sound perfect for jazz and blues. The bridge pickup has more bite for rock and metal styles.

Between the two humbuckers, you can get a versatile range of tones from clean and bright to heavy distortion. The pickups have decent output to drive the front end of an amp into overdrive. Palm muting chugs have a tight response.

This guitar also has good sustain. The quality wood construction allows notes to ring out. You can hold notes and chords for longer durations without the sound dying out too quickly. Feedback potential is reasonable for long, singing sustains.

Overall, the sound quality of this Monoprice model punches above its low price point. The pickups and wood materials give a fat, warm humbucker tone with nice versatility. The sustain is impressive for the price. Intermediate players will be very satisfied with the range of tones.

Playability

The Monoprice 625900 electric guitar features a fast and smooth maple neck that allows for comfortable, speedy playing. The medium jumbo frets are nicely finished, providing a pleasing feel against the fingertips without causing discomfort.

The guitar seems to be set up well out of the box, with good string action and intonation across the fretboard. The intonation in particular is impressive for the price point, staying relatively in tune even when playing up the neck. Bending strings does not knock the 625900 out of tune easily.

The C-shaped neck profile will suit most playing styles, offering a slim and fast feel that lends itself to fast lead playing while still providing enough thickness for chordal rhythm work. The satin finish on the back of the neck allows for smooth sliding motions.

Overall, the playability of the Monoprice 625900 punches above its weight class. The fast maple neck and comfortable medium frets offer a smooth playing experience comparable to more expensive models. The good intonation allows for confident playing across the fretboard.

Pros

The Monoprice 625900 electric guitar offers great value for money with quality components at an entry-level price point. Many reviewers praise the pleasant, thick sound produced by this guitar.

• Great value for money - This guitar packs a surprising amount of quality into a very affordable price range. For an inexpensive starter instrument, the hardware and electronics are quite respectable. You get a lot of guitar for the money.

• Quality components - The guitar features a basswood body and maple neck that feel solid and substantial. The rosewood fingerboard and sealed diecast tuners exceed expectations at this price. The two humbucker pickups and controls deliver versatility.

• Pleasant thick sound - The dual humbucker pickups provide a warm, rich tone that belies the low cost. Many users comment on the guitar's pleasantly thick sound across various musical genres, from rock to blues. The tone is quite impressive for the price.

Cons

• Heavy weight - The Monoprice 625900 is on the heavier side for a solid body electric guitar, weighing in at around 9 lbs. The poplar body and other hardware contribute to the overall heft. This could cause fatigue more quickly compared to a lighter guitar during extended playing sessions, especially when standing up.

• Basic gig bag included - Monoprice only includes a basic gig bag with the purchase of the guitar, not a more protective hard case. The included bag is suitable for basic transportation but does not provide much padding or protection. Users may need to invest in a hardshell case for more secure storage and travel.

• Electronics could be better - The pickups, pots, and other wiring are decent quality but remain a bit basic. While they get the job done, the electronics are where Monoprice seems to have cut some corners to meet the low price point. Upgrading to higher-end pickups and electronics could unlock the 625900's full potential.

Comparable Models

The Monoprice 625900 offers great value in its price range, comparable to other popular budget-friendly electric guitars.

Epiphone Les Paul

The Epiphone Les Paul is likely the 625900's biggest competitor. Like the Monoprice, it has a classic single cutaway design and humbucker pickups for a full, rich sound. The main advantage of the Epiphone is the prestige of the Gibson/Epiphone brand. However, the Monoprice compares very favorably on quality and components for the price.

Ibanez AS73

Ibanez is known for fast, thin neck profiles and the AS73 is no exception. Its slim neck and contoured body make it very playable for shredding. The AS73 features two humbuckers like the Monoprice, but has a brighter, more biting tone. The Monoprice likely has better build quality for the price.

Dean MLX

The Dean MLX has an edgy, metal inspired shape with pointed cutaways. It features a Floyd Rose tremolo for divebombs and other effects. The MLX goes for a high-output, aggressive sound compared to the more classic Monoprice. The Monoprice has the advantage in quality and versatility.

Conclusion

The Monoprice 625900 electric guitar provides thick humbucker tones that are great for beginners and intermediate players looking to get into rock and metal styles on a budget. With its arched maple top, mahogany body and neck, and Wilkinson humbuckers, this guitar produces a warm, rich sound reminiscent of much more expensive Les Paul-style instruments. The quality of the hardware and electronics is excellent considering the low price point, making this a great entry-level guitar for someone who wants real Les Paul tones without breaking the bank.

While it may lack some of the refinements and attention to detail of more expensive Epiphones and Gibsons, the Monoprice 625900 punches well above its weight class. For under $200, this guitar provides exceptional value for the money. The quality is consistent and the materials used are decent. This is the perfect instrument for a beginner looking to learn on a real electric guitar, or for an intermediate player who wants to expand their tonal palette into thicker, darker rock tones. Overall, the Monoprice 625900 electric guitar gives you professional humbucker sounds and playability without costing a fortune.