Maybe OK as a starter instrument, but I wouldn't recommend it. Badly made and poorly finished, it doesn't live up to reviews. For example, resonator studs incorrectly fitted, so resonator bolts loose and unaligned. Neck/Pot joint machine cut and badly fitted with large gap. And it just feels and sounds 'tinny' - not the quality sound I was expecting from Gold Tone. I doubt whether changing the strings would make much difference, but as I had decided to return it, it still has the factory strings.