Description
Review of the RockJam Acoustic Guitar Superkit RJW-101-N-PK
The RockJam Superkit pairs a full size basswood dreadnought acoustic in a natural high gloss finish with a folding stand, a clip on tuner, a padded gig bag, a strap, spare strings, plectrums and a plectrum holder, plus lesson access through Simply Guitar. It is aimed at first time players and students who want a single purchase rather than a guitar and a separate accessory hunt. It sits in the beginner starter kits category alongside similar all in one packages.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- A built in truss rod is specified. This is the single most useful feature on a budget acoustic, because it lets the neck relief be corrected rather than leaving the guitar unplayable when the neck moves with the seasons.
- The stand is folding and fits the gig bag pocket. A guitar on a stand gets played, and a guitar in a cupboard does not, so a stand that travels with the instrument earns its place.
- Steel strings with metal gearheads are named. Die cast style tuners hold pitch noticeably better than open press fit tuners, which is where the cheapest acoustics usually fail first.
- The clip on tuner has a backlit display and a contact microphone. A contact tuner reads the string through the headstock rather than through room noise, so it works in a busy household.
- Basswood keeps the weight down at 7.09 pounds. Lighter is easier for a beginner through a long first practice session.
Cons
- The spec table lists a Guitar Pickup Configuration of H on a purely acoustic guitar. Nothing in the manufacturer description, the title or the accessory list mentions a pickup, a preamp or an output jack. There is no reason to expect this guitar to plug into anything.
- The spec table lists a lithium metal battery type. No part of an acoustic guitar takes a battery. This almost certainly refers to the cell in the included clip on tuner, but as written it implies the instrument itself has electronics.
- The fretboard is listed as basswood. Fretboards normally use a hard, dense wood so frets seat securely and the surface resists denting under the strings. Basswood is soft, and a basswood fretboard is a durability compromise rather than a neutral choice.
- The top, back, sides, neck and fretboard are all listed as basswood. A guitar built from one soft wood throughout will not have the tonal separation of a spruce top over a different back and side wood. Whether the top is solid or laminated is never stated, which is the specification that most affects how an acoustic sounds.
- The scale length is given as 25 with no unit. Presumably inches, but the figure is unverified and the fret count is never stated.
- The title reads “6 Pack” and the size field reads Full. The six refers to the number of items in the bundle rather than a quantity of guitars, but the phrasing is confusing on a listing page.
Detailed Product Description
The body is a contoured full size acoustic shape with a high gloss finish. RockJam describes it as an ergonomic slimline body, which in practice means a slightly shallower depth than a traditional dreadnought. That reduces bass response and makes the guitar easier to hold against the chest, a reasonable trade for a beginner.
Basswood is used throughout. It is light, soft and even grained, cheap to work and forgiving to machine. Tonally it is neutral, so the guitar sounds clear but without the depth or overtone complexity a solid spruce top provides. The guide on solid top versus laminate acoustic guitars covers why that distinction matters and why manufacturers at this price rarely state it.
The truss rod is the standout construction detail. It is a steel rod running inside the neck that counteracts string tension, and it is what allows the string height to be brought back down when the neck bows forward. Many guitars in this bracket omit it entirely, which means a neck that shifts is a neck that stays shifted. Steel strings and metal gearheads complete the specification, and steel presses harder into untrained fingertips than nylon, so expect sore fingers for the first fortnight.
What Comes with the Product
The listing names the guitar, a foldable guitar stand, a clip on tuner with a backlit display, a padded gig bag with a front pocket, an adjustable strap, a spare set of strings, plectrums, a plectrum holder, and lesson access through Simply Guitar.
Not included and not mentioned anywhere in the product data: a capo, a string winder, a cleaning cloth, a hard case, and any humidity control. The lesson access has no stated duration, tier or platform requirement, so the buyer cannot tell from the listing how long it runs or what device it needs. There is no amplifier in the bundle, and none is required, since the guitar has no documented electronics.
Who It Suits
This fits an adult or older teenager starting from zero who wants a full size acoustic and does not want to research accessories separately. The stand and tuner in particular are the two items beginners most often skip and most often need.
It does not suit a child under about eleven, for whom a full size dreadnought is too large to hold comfortably. It does not suit anyone who needs to plug in for a performance, given no electronics are documented. Anyone stepping up to a solid top instrument later will hear a clear difference, so treat this as a first year guitar rather than a long term one. Comparable full bundles include the Best Choice Products 41 inch starter set, the Ashthorpe 41 inch cutaway kit and the Donner DAG-1C 41 inch bundle. The guide on what is in a guitar starter bundle is a useful comparison checklist before choosing between them.
How to Maintain
Wipe the strings after each session with a dry cloth. Steel strings dull mostly because of skin oils rather than playing wear, and a short wipe roughly doubles their useful life. Use the folding stand rather than leaning the guitar on furniture, and keep it out of direct sunlight and away from radiators, since basswood is soft enough that a knock leaves a dent and a gloss finish shows every mark.
Check the truss rod only if the string height climbs noticeably or the guitar starts buzzing on open strings. Adjust in small increments of roughly a quarter turn, allowing time for the neck to settle between turns. Replace the tuner battery when the display dims rather than waiting for it to fail mid tuning.
Tips and Recommendations
Expect to retune several times a day for the first week while new strings stretch. Keep the spare set unopened until the originals sound dull rather than fitting them immediately.
Add a capo and a cleaning cloth, both inexpensive and both missing from the bundle. If the strings feel stiff after a few weeks, a lighter gauge set reduces the effort needed to fret a note without changing the guitar. Keep the plectrum holder on the strap rather than in the bag pocket, because losing every pick in the first month is the most common first year problem.
Product FAQ
Can this guitar be plugged into an amplifier?
No electronics are described anywhere in the listing. The pickup entry in the spec table is not supported by the description, the title or the accessory list.
Why does the spec table mention a battery?
The battery entry almost certainly refers to the included clip on tuner. The guitar itself has no documented electronics that would require power.
Is the top solid or laminated?
The listing does not say. It states basswood for the top, back and sides but never distinguishes solid from laminated construction.
Does it include a case?
It includes a padded gig bag with a front pocket, not a hard case. A gig bag protects against scuffs and dust but not against impact.
