Description
Review of the Master Play 30 Inch Electric Guitar Beginner Kit with Amp and Accessories
The Master Play 30 Inch Electric Guitar is a short bodied solid electric sold as a complete starter package rather than as a bare instrument. The listing pairs a six string guitar in a red finish with a 20 watt amplifier, a digital tuner, a gig bag, a cable, a shoulder strap, picks, a wash cloth and a spare set of six strings. It is aimed at children and at adults who want a first electric without sourcing the supporting gear separately.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Compact 30 inch instrument that keeps the reach to the low frets short for younger players.
- Everything needed to make a sound is in the box, including the amp and the cable that connects to it.
- Fixed bridge rather than a floating tremolo, which is the more stable choice while a beginner is still learning to tune.
- Maple neck and maple fretboard, a hard and bright combination that resists wear along the fret slots.
Cons
- The pickup layout is listed only as S. The listing does not state how many single coils are fitted or what they are wound to, so the tonal range cannot be predicted from the data.
- The body material is given as wood with a maple top and no species named. Two guitars described that way can behave very differently.
- No scale length is published. The 30 inch figure refers to the size of the instrument overall, not the vibrating string length, so a buyer cannot compare it directly against a guitar advertised by scale.
- Budget starter electrics generally arrive needing a setup before the action and intonation are comfortable, and the cost of that work is not part of the package.
Detailed Product Description
The body is solid wood with a maple top, finished in red. Maple is a dense, tight grained timber, and using it on the top and again for the neck and fretboard pushes the response toward the bright end. On an instrument at this size and weight that is a sensible choice, because small bodies tend to sound thin and a bright, cutting voice reads as clear rather than weak through a small practice amp.
The neck and fretboard are both maple. An unbound maple board is usually sealed with a finish coat, which gives a slightly slicker feel than open pored rosewood and is easier to wipe clean. That is a practical advantage for a child who plays with sticky fingers.
Six alloy steel strings run to a fixed bridge. A fixed bridge anchors the strings at a set point and does not pivot, so bending one string does not pull the others out of pitch. It also makes a string change far simpler, which is the single most useful property in a first guitar.
The pickup configuration is published as S, the standard shorthand for single coil. Single coils are brighter and more articulate than humbuckers and are noisier under fluorescent lighting and near computer monitors. That hum is normal for the type and is not a fault.
What Comes with the Product
- The 30 inch electric guitar in red
- A 20 watt amplifier
- A cable to connect the guitar to the amplifier
- A digital tuner
- Six spare strings
- Picks
- A gig bag
- A shoulder strap
- A wash cloth
Who It Suits
This package suits a child or a younger teenager taking a first electric, and it suits a parent who does not want to work out which amplifier, cable and tuner to buy alongside it. The shorter body helps anyone whose arms do not comfortably wrap a full size instrument, a point covered in more depth in the guide on what size guitar to buy for a child.
It suits less well an adult with large hands who intends to keep the guitar for years, since fret spacing on a short instrument stays cramped no matter how the player improves. Anyone who already owns an amplifier is paying for one they do not need and would do better with a bare full size guitar. Players who want humbucker weight for heavier styles should look at a different pickup layout. For alternatives at a similar size, the LyxPro 30 inch electric guitar kit and the Donner 30 inch kids electric guitar cover similar ground, and the YMC 30 inch guitar and amp combo is another package of the same shape. The full range sits in the kids and junior guitars section alongside the wider full guitar review index.
How to Maintain
Wipe the strings down with the supplied cloth after every session. Sweat is the main reason cheap alloy steel strings go dull and then rusty, and thirty seconds of wiping roughly doubles their useful life.
Keep the guitar out of direct sun and away from radiators. A maple neck moves with humidity, and the usual symptom is fret ends that start to feel sharp along the edge of the board in dry winter air.
Tips and Recommendations
Use the supplied digital tuner every single time before playing. New strings stretch for the first week or two and will drift audibly within a session, and a beginner who practises out of tune trains their ear onto the wrong pitches.
Start with the amplifier volume low and the tone rolled back. Small practice amps sound harsh when pushed, and a single coil through a driven small speaker is where most of the fizz complaints come from.
Budget for a setup at a local shop if the strings feel high and stiff at the fifth fret. Adjusting the action and the neck relief transforms how a low cost guitar plays and costs far less than replacing it.
Product FAQ
How many strings does it have?
Six, in alloy steel, which is the standard configuration for an electric guitar.
Is an amplifier included?
Yes. The listing includes a 20 watt amplifier and the cable needed to connect the guitar to it.
Does it have a tremolo or whammy bar?
No. The bridge is a fixed type, which trades the pitch dive effect for better tuning stability.
