Dean EVO XM Solid Body Electric Guitar, Mahogany Finish
- Bolt On Construction
- Basswood Body with Mahogany Finish
- Maple Neck with Rosewood Fingerboard
- Dual Humbuckers
- Sealed Tuners
Product DescriptionDean EVO XM is a perfect blend of vintage design, old world craftsmanship and decades of guitar building technology. This affordable yet stylish member of that family has a lightweight basswood body in a mahogany stain for a “high-end” look, with a maple neck and 22-fret rosewood fingerboard. A set of Dean high-output humbuckers deliver the sonic goods, while the adjustable TOM-style bridge keeps you in tune for the length of the gig. Great for players of any level. . . More >>
Dean EVO XM Solid Body Electric Guitar, Mahogany Finish
I bought this EVO XM because I needed some electric LP scale guitar for home playing, upgradable and inexpensive. Out from the box it needed some set up, it’s normal for any guitar. Action was a little too high, frets on the neck sides needed filing and overall polishing – not a big deal. Then all screws on the guitar, I mean ALL: neck bolts, pickup screws, jack nut itself etc. – all have to be tighten up, of course you have to put a new set of strings, I think light custom 9-46 is fine for this guitar. Tuner keys – I changed them immediately for Sperzel lock tuners, then plastic nut had to go, I put Graph Tech trem nut and the bridge I replaced with roller tunematic. Tailpiece – string holes have to be rimmed a little. Maybe I will change pickups later, but now it is a good sounding guitar and the basswood body has a decent sustain. If you love projects this guitar is a good thing to work with.
Rating: 3 / 5
On the plus side, this guitar is inexpensive. On the minus side, the pickups are very noisy, the tuners are loose and don’t hold tuning, and the body construction is such that if you put any weight on the body while holding the neck, the tuning goes sharp.
If you’re short/small and always play sitting down, this might be an OK value. For anyone else, avoid it.
Rating: 2 / 5
I own an EVO. . as a matter of fact I spent the whole evening playing it in front of the TV. I annoy my wife to no end when I do this.
I had the same problems that I’ve seen in most other reviews on the web. The tuning pegs are really cheap. The guitar will not stay in tune when you get it. After playing it for a while and putting some good strings on it, it’s keeping it tune much better (though I’ve got a good set on back order)
The neck was as straight as an arrow right out of the box. I’d mess it up if I touched the truss rod.
The fret wires were a little rough (tops not polished) but I fixed that by playing the cheap strings for a while. The fret wire edges were cut sharp and not filed too. This was the only real work I put in. I taped off the fret board and filed the edges down with a small diamond file. The neck plays like a dream now. Action is VERY light and low and it’s a nice thin maple neck profile. Very fast though it could be a tad bigger for my medium hands (still a joy to play though).
The finish on every part of the guitar is very nice. It’s very pretty and I’m happy to have it hanging on a wall mount. No defects.
The body is small in general but not out of proportion and for a 5′11″ inch guy like me it’s a little small when playing on my knee. It’s nice to play standing, very light and comefortable, but I find it just a tad awkward when playing it sitting or reclining on the couch. Nothing beats my Strat for lounging comefort. It does have a good balance. . it’s not neck heavy or tail heavy so it just hangs however you want it to from a strap.
Electronics are OK. It’s not noisy but the pickups were a bit weak. The bridge pickup was a bit muddy until I raised the pickup (easy for even a novice) and then it cleaned up a lot. It has a nice rich (almost les paulish) mahogony tone but it’s a little brighter (thiner) because of the maple neck and smaller body.
I did replace the bridge pickup with a $30 Seymore Duncan Performer pickup and the ouput went up. The sound is much more ‘crunchy’ now and it’s easier to pull harmonics but it’s still got a nice tone.
I’ve only had one problem so far, the volume Pot went loose and the compression fit knob is on super tight so i haven’t fixed it yet. The body finish is so nice that I’m afraid to pry it off. I’ll call Dean before ripping the knob off for suggestions.
Overall, I’m freaking thrilled with the guitar. The tuners were the big bummer when I got it but they’ve actually stabalized though I still plan to eventually upgrade them.
It’s not as ‘metal’ as my Ibanez RG450 but after a little TLC (an hour or two of work) I’ve got a beautiful guitar the plays like a dream. Out of the box with a little filing and some new strings and this is a fantastic guitar. I’m refinishing the Ibanez but I’ve got a Fender Strat and an Epiphone ES335 Dot Studio up in my room and, though they are all great for their own reasons, I play the Dean (my least expensive guitar) at least as much as any of my others.
Get one. I’m actually wondering when I’ll buy my next Dean. I’m thinking a natural Vendetta will be next. . or the nicer version of the EVO.
I was torn on how to rate this. Objectively, it’s a 4 star guitar. . compared to a $5000 custom shop job it’s probably at best a 3 star guitar if that. I’m going to give it 5 Stars though because I can’t rate it without considering the price. Factoring in the price, it’s a 10 star guitar. It’s got rough edges (literally) but there’s nothing wrong with this guitar that any novice can’t fix on their own (like my fret job and pickup swap).
ffakr.
Rating: 5 / 5
I bought this Evo because I wanted a cheap non tremelo guitar around to play with alternative tunings, and I really like the looks of it. My other guitars are a Fender Strat and a Fender Lead 1, both equipped with Floyd Rose systems so the Evo was a nice change of pace.
On to the guitar! The first thing I noticed was the weight. At 5. 75 lbs. it’s probably the lightest guitar I’ve ever played. Right out of the box it wasn’t set up, which didn’t really surprise me for a $100 guitar. After setting up the guitar (adjusting the bridge and truss rod) it turned out to be a very nice player. The stock pickups sound great and the solid mahogany body has decent sustain. The good tone surprised me considering how light it is. I have only one complaint. The cheap tuning keys. They’re cheap and it’s obvious when you turn them and feel varying amounts of play from each of them. That being said, they seem to stay in tune pretty well. The bottom line is that the Evo is an EXCELLENT value! The only thing keeping it from getting 5 stars are the tuning keys. I would highly recommend this guitar to beginners as a first electric or experienced guitarists who want something cheap to play around on. The guitar should be set up properly for best results. If you don’t know how to do it, take it to your local guitar shop and pay to have it done.
Enjoy!
Rating: 4 / 5