talk to me about yamaha pacifica 311h guitars?

racefaceec90

just saw these whilst dreaming about getting a new sub £300 guitar (am planning on trading my ibanez S 420 wb in towards a new guitar/not really for me tbh).

am toying with going for a squier jaguar,but saw the aforementioned guitar and am very intrigued by them 

can see them for sale for £238.00 online,but would like to buy from my local guitar shop (to try first e.t.c).

what do you think of them?

they do look rather nice :-)

Phil_aka_Pip

That look rather worthy. h/b in the rear, "p90" at the front, simple controls, Yamaha build quality, yeh I'd have that before any Jaguar, Fender/Squier or otherwise.

dindude

I had one, it was nice and light, reasonably well built, although I do think that the notion of Yamaha being the best built budget guitar is a little outdated now - maybe in 1990, they did move the game on, but I think Squier have a nicer build these days and others have caught up.

My main issue with it was the skinny nut width, make sure you get in with this, for me it always felt like a beginners guitar. It sounded OK, the pups were pretty good for budget units, although the acoustic tone, if that's any indication, was horrible.

In all, I was expecting it to be a notch above the standard Pacifica 112, in reality it is the same base guitar with different (slightly better) hardware and pups.

I have recently bought a Fender Modern Player Jaguar at a blow out price that was less than this guitar. I'm pretty sure it's made in the Squier factory and a Squier in all but name so relevant to this discussion, and IMO it's a far better guitar than the Yamaha. Much more subtle attention to detail in the build, really nice neck, and superb fret job for the money.

ThorpyFX

I have a 511hfm and it looks very similar to that one pictured. Honestly it's a great guitar, plays well, sounds great and is very versatile.

HAL9000

I've got a 311H (in white like the one pictured). It's a great guitar for the money and I'm well pleased. As Dindude points out the neck is on the skinny side which doesn't bother me at all but I can fully understand that others might not get on with it. Sounds are pretty good. From time to time I contemplate upgrading the pickups (and probably will at some point in the future) but then I plug it in and realise that the stock ones really aren't bad.

Fretwired

TBH I'd go second hand Pacifica .. resale values drop like a stone and a Pacifica 812W is bargain of the century. Seymour Duncan pickups, Sperzel locking tuners, Wilkinson trem ... a mint one can be had for under £300 on eBay. It was top of the Pacifica range for a while so the build quality was top notch.

cbilly22

Hi,

I'd definitely toy with holding out for the 611 with the SD pickups and graphtech nut/saddles, just a much better sounding and more pro level guitar...and with that in mind, I happen to be selling mine  

PM me if you are interested.

Ric

Have a 311MS, an early one, the model in this picture, it's probably the best player of all my Yams. https://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/NzY4WDEwMjQ=/z/o5cAAOSwwE5WVNeh/$_86.JPG

Funkfingers

Something unnecessary and unhelpful.

cbilly22

Funkfingers said:

Back on topic (and back in time).

The 311H is the base model of its series. The woodwork and fretting is fine. The corners have been cut in the electronics department. The stock P90 is actually rather nice. The humbucker is a bit weedy in series mode. Consequently, it is exceedingly weedy in coil split mode. 

I picked up my example of this model in a stock clearance sale. The money that I saved helped to finance the American pickups and pots that I installed.

...and funnily enough I'm selling another 611 as we speak!

HAL9000

HAL9000 said:

I've got a 311H (in white like the one pictured). It's a great guitar for the money and I'm well pleased. As Dindude points out the neck is on the skinny side which doesn't bother me at all but I can fully understand that others might not get on with it. Sounds are pretty good. From time to time I contemplate upgrading the pickups (and probably will at some point in the future) but then I plug it in and realise that the stock ones really aren't bad.

Update. I ended up moving it on. After a while I decided that the narrow neck was something that I couldn't live with. Also, the guitar was missing something in the personality department. Since selling it I really haven't missed it one little bit.

manxcat

I suspect there might be a little gear status influence occurring here unfairly criticising the 311.

My take?

Played both H series Pacificas, 611 & 311. Bought the 311. In a similar class, have a current model Pacifica 112V and Squier Affinity Tele for basis of comparison, as well as a Yamaha APX600. 

In the end I chose the 311H over the 611H with intention to mod the PUPs, as aesthetically, I didn't like the 611's thematic and bling, and SD PUPs notwithstanding, just preferred the 311H. Here's why.

Build quality is identical. They both come out of the same Indonesian factory. They're both versatile sweet playing guitars at their respective price points. OOTB the 611 sounds better, and so it should.

Positives of the 311. 311's satin neck not only looks nicer IMV, but feels slicker to play. 311 also has Grover Lockers and Graph Tech nut & string guides identical to 611. Same bridge, but 311's saddles are steel. It's a trade-off. Have you actually listened to what Graph Tech saddles do to tone in a Tele for instance, or the 311/611? The string saver part is undeniably true, but the tone with is noticeably warmer losing vibrancy relative to the steel IMMV. If that's what you are seeking, then 611 is the right choice for you. IMMV. But listen to them and try to separate specification prejudice when you do. Both bodies are both Alder. 611's is laminated with the translucent coated Flamed Maple veneer. Like the 311, can't tell if the body itself is a laminate construct or single block of wood under the paint or veneer. Yamaha ain't sayin'. Either way, resonance seems the same to my ears. I already have an translucent exposed wood sunburst and natural in electric-acoustic in my rack. I preferred and wanted the 311's vintage white opaque painted body aesthetically. 

I don't won't ever play metal, have medium sized hands and proportionate fingers rather than a spider fingered ectomorphic build. For stretches, I prefer the narrow nut, neck and marginally tighter string spacing which is compensated for with a with larger radius fingerboard in comparison with the fingerboard of my Squier' Tele. The 112V, 311H and 611H & V all share the same neck specs, so kinda' like riding the same bike without having to adjust to different handling qualities. Either you like 'em or you don't.

PUPs. 611's bridge is the big one, along with the SD label on the P90. The 311's P90 is actually better than just decent. Splitting hairs over a label to criticise it. The 311's bridge G&B is unquestionably underwhelming, and this is where the stock 611 is a clear winner. However, a Seymour Duncan TB-14 (identical to the 611's) slots right in sorting that. 

Price/bang ro buck wise with the bridge PUP mod leaving the 311's OK G&B P90 in situ, 311H comes out  ahead of 611H by a considerable margin and specs up pretty much a close equivalent of the 611. Pretty straightforward easy PUP mod to perform. 

Really comes down to two things, whether you like the aesthetics of the 611, the feel of its neck and Graph Tech saddle tonal tint and are happy to pay the premium (I was) or prefer the aesthetic and satin neck feel of the 311, and are happy to mod it (I was). Another minor tonal variation along with the Graph Tech saddle one is that buying the 311, you get to choose which bridge PUP you might prefer. e.g. TB-4 JB or .... If sticking with the 611's TB-14 spec, one can choose to go with exposed bobbins instead of the nickel cover, which arguably compliments the steel saddles and versatility of the 311 even further more courtesy of the split coil & 5 way PUP selection. 

Both are versatile guitars in their niche which punch way above price point. Build quality on both is the same in my inspection, albeit there is higher material and labour cost in the 611 e.g. the varnished neck, body veneer cost and process. Electronics inside the body are identical. My sole criticism of the 311H OOTB is that bridge PUP. That can be sorted, as can the Graph Tech saddles if desired.

 

Schnozz

I can't handle the wide/skinny neck sadly, which is strange seeing as the SG has such a comfy profile.

manxcat

Schnozz said:

I can't handle the wide/skinny neck sadly,..

Understand that for sure. Inarguably, it's a personal predilection.

57Deluxe

buy a used PRS SE instead.