# Yamaha Revstar RS502T - opinions? Reviews?



## SuperReverb78 (Apr 19, 2017)

Hi everyone, 

I know what everyone is thinking - Yamaha? Revstar? I dunno, maybe it's different these days but my mind has always been Yamaha is a no go zone. 

But then the Revstar RS502T came out and it's been on my mind ever since. Mind you, I found out about them earlier this year so I'm very late. 

No one seems to have one of these things in stock so I can't really go an try one. 

Reviews all seem pretty good but I suspect Yamaha spent some crazy $$$ marketing these things back when they were introduced. All the Youtube style reviews seem like they were sponsored so I'm not willing to trust those. 

Does anyone have one of these things? Or played one? Are they great? Good? Bad? Mediocre? 

For reference: I'm a Strat guy (currently have 3), a Jazzmaster and an LP.


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## Wardo (Feb 5, 2010)

Check Cosmo they might have some variation of that rig that you could at least try and get an idea about them. 

A couple of years ago they had some kind of industrial looking revstars on sale for around 600.

I thought about it bcs they look cool and had P 90s but I don’t need more guitars.

Could be a good guitar though and be worth following up on.


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## isoneedacoffee (Oct 31, 2014)

I've played one. It was comfortable (although I found the neck quite sticky... but that's maybe my issue) and looked really good, albeit to my eyes it seemed less attractive in person than in the photos on the web. If I remember correctly it had heft, but was not too heavy. I forget the model # but it was a red/yellow sunburst. I cna't comment on the electronics too much, but there was nothing negative that I could detect (like pickups that are excessively hot or unbalanced in their EQ). I played through someone else's amp, and only briefly, so can't really make too many claims here in terms of sound. If you get it a good price, go for it.


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## SuperReverb78 (Apr 19, 2017)

Thanks everyone! 


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## iamthehub (Sep 21, 2016)

I've got the RS 502, which is basically the same as the RS 502T, but mine does not have that fancy trem/bridge thing.

This guitar is great. It has a nice weight to it, but not too heavy. The neck is between a les paul 50's and 60's neck. Kind of chunky but very comfortable. The back of the neck is a bit glossy, but I don't really have much problems with any stickiness as isoneedacoffee mentioned. The frets are nice jumbo sized. 

The finish on it is excellent, flawless  

Most importantly it sounds good. Really good. The P90s have a nice grit to it. I normally like changing pickups (kind of a hobby), but have no intention on changing these as they sound great. It also has a "dry cut" switch that takes out the lower frequencies. Personally I only use it when I feel I'm lost in the mix. By engaging it, I think it cuts through the mix better. 

I've used it several times to "gig" with, and it's never let me down. Stays in tune pretty good.

Mine has that "industrial" finish which I love. The 502T would have the more "refined" finish. 

I have nothing bad to say about it. I bought it at The Guitar World in Oakville about 2 years ago. I think they have a bunch of Revstars there right now, but not sure about the 502T. 

I would highly recommend them to anyone.


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## DrumBob (Aug 17, 2014)

A guitarist I know bought a Revstar on a whim, and he's brought it out maybe three times. I have a feeling it's not his favorite gigging guitar. I tried it and thought it played pretty well, but was I knocked out enough to open my wallet? No way.


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## troyhead (May 23, 2014)

I was really looking forward to trying one of these out after I heard about them, but when I've picked them up to play my opinion was just "meh". I didn't get to plugging them in because the store was really busy, but the ones I picked up were very heavy. Definitely a "try before you buy" guitar, I wouldn't recommend purchasing sight unseen.


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## VHTO (Feb 19, 2016)

I bought a Revstar 820CR about 2 years ago as an impulse buy. 

The craftsmanship was impeccable and the pickups/tone were particularly sweet, though I never really bonded with the guitar. I let it go in a trade this year, though what I got in exchange wasn’t exactly as represented. 

The Revstar line is certainly worth checking out and they seem to have the bases covered on different electronics.


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## Festus McCorkindale (Dec 17, 2017)

After playing it at a local shop I’ve ordered the RS502T. It checks all the boxes as a refined, comfortable and great sounding P90-equipped guitar for the money. I also don’t love a Gibson LP body shape, so this guitar just works for me. I previously owned a Fano Alt De Facto RB6 with Fralin P90s, which was a gorgeous guitar, but I sold it because I’m mainly a telecaster player. As a solid backup P90 guitar, the 502T does the trick. Might consider dropping Fralins into it later.


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## iamthehub (Sep 21, 2016)

Festus McCorkindale said:


> After playing it at a local shop I’ve ordered the RS502T. It checks all the boxes as a refined, comfortable and great sounding P90-equipped guitar for the money.


Congrats on your purchase 

I am still very happy with mine!



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## brokentoes (Jun 29, 2014)

I have a *RS720B*, a different guitar for sure than the P90 offering. I never had a guitar with filtertrons or a bigsby so i said wtf. Bought one barely used for a good price. It's kinda jazzy but can do a few things well.


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## Festus McCorkindale (Dec 17, 2017)

brokentoes said:


> I have a *RS720B*, a different guitar for sure than the P90 offering. I never had a guitar with filtertrons or a bigsby so i said wtf. Bought one barely used for a good price. It's kinda jazzy but can do a few things well.


Nice choice! Also: Matteo Mancuso!!! That guy is impressive


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