Revstar Element RSE20
Swift Blue
A chambered mahogany double-cut with the smartest coil-split circuit at the price
Amazon rating
4.7 (55)Price band
$500 - $1,000
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The short version
The Revstar is Yamaha designing an electric guitar from first principles rather than copying one, and the Element is the accessible tier of it. The body is chambered mahogany with a maple top: chambering removes weight — this lands around 7.3 lb, light for a mahogany guitar with a set neck — and adds a touch of air and resonance without the feedback of a true semi-hollow. Two Alnico V humbuckers and a 24.75-inch scale put it in Les Paul territory tonally, but the detail worth understanding is the Dry Switch. It sits on a push/pull tone pot and it is not a conventional coil split. Splitting a humbucker gives you single-coil brightness and single-coil hum; the Dry Switch instead filters the low end out of one coil, so you get the articulation and cut of a split without losing hum cancellation. It is the sort of thing that normally appears on instruments two or three times the price.
Score profile
Six axes, scored 1-10. These are editorial judgements about what this instrument delivers for the money — not measurements, and not anyone else’s ratings.
- Build
- 9.0
- Tone
- 9.0
- Versatility
- 9.0
- Comfort
- 9.0
- Hardware
- 8.0
- Value
- 9.0
Scores are Fretline editorial ratings on a 1-10 scale. They are our own assessment and are not supplied or endorsed by Amazon or by any manufacturer.
Full specifications
| Brand | Yamaha |
|---|---|
| Model | Revstar Element RSE20Swift Blue |
| Body | |
| Body | Revstar double cutaway, chambered |
| Body wood | Chambered mahogany |
| Top | Maple |
| Neck & fingerboard | |
| Neck joint | Set neck |
| Neck wood | Mahogany |
| Scale length | 24.75" (628 mm) |
| Fingerboard | Rosewood |
| Radius | 12" (305 mm) |
| Frets | 22 |
| Fret size | Jumbo |
| Nut | PPS |
| Nut width | 1.649" (41.9 mm) |
| Hardware | |
| Bridge | Adjustable bridge with stopbar tailpiece |
| Electronics | |
| Neck pickup | Yamaha Alnico V humbucker |
| Bridge pickup | Yamaha Alnico V humbucker |
| Configuration | HH |
| Electronics | Passive, with push/pull Dry Switch high-pass filter |
| Controls | Volume, tone with push/pull Dry Switch |
| Switching | 3-way toggle |
| General | |
| Type | Electric guitar |
| Finish | Swift Blue |
| Weight | Around 7.3 lb (3.3 kg) |
| Orientation | Right-handed |
25 verified fields. Specifications come from the manufacturer first, then the Amazon listing, then authorised dealers — sources are listed at the foot of this page. Fields the manufacturer does not publish are omitted rather than estimated.
The good and the bad
What we like
- Chambered mahogany body keeps it around 7.3 lb, well under a typical single-cut
- Dry Switch gives coil-split articulation while staying hum-cancelling
- Set mahogany neck with a 12-inch radius and 22 jumbo frets — comfortable and fast
- Alnico V humbuckers rather than the ceramic pickups usual at this price
- A genuinely original design rather than a copy of someone else
What we do not
- Fixed bridge only, with no vibrato option
- 22 frets rather than 24, which will matter to some lead players
- Chambering means it is not a true semi-hollow, so do not expect an ES-335 bloom
- Yamaha does not publish a neck profile name for the Element tier
Who it is for
Skill level
Styles it suits
What owners and reviewers report
Patterns we found across published reviews and owner feedback. These are summaries of recurring themes — we do not reproduce or invent individual testimonials.
What comes up most
- Reviewers consistently single out the Dry Switch as the standout feature, describing it as more usable than a conventional coil split
- The light weight of the chambered body draws repeated praise from players moving off a heavy single-cut
- Build quality and finish are reported as above the price bracket
Frequent complaints
- Some reviewers would prefer 24 frets or a vibrato option
- The lower Element tier drops some appointments found further up the Revstar range
Recognised strengths
- Widely described as one of the most versatile electrics available under $1,000
Recognised weaknesses
- Only 55 Amazon ratings so far, so our summary leans on published reviews rather than owner volume
The verdict
This is the guitar to put in front of someone who wants a Les Paul voice without the weight, the price or the shoulder ache. The chambered body and set mahogany neck deliver the thickness and sustain you would expect, the 12-inch radius and jumbo frets make it easier to play than most vintage-styled equivalents, and the Dry Switch genuinely widens what it can do rather than being a marketing bullet. There is very little to criticise at the money. If you specifically want a hard-rock guitar with a locking tremolo and 24 frets, look elsewhere; this is built for tone and comfort rather than for extremes.
Sources
- Yamaha — Revstar range
- Guitar Chalk — Yamaha Revstar RSE20 dimensions and specifications
- Amazon listing (B09NYKBYRP)
Amazon rating captured 2026-08-24. ASIN B09NYKBYRP.
Strings for this guitar
All stringsThe manufacturer does not publish the gauge this instrument ships with, so these are ordered by our editorial score rather than by fit. Measure the set on the guitar before changing to something noticeably lighter or heavier.
- 8.3/10
Elixir · Strings
NANOWEB Nickel Plated Steel Electric
Standard .010s that survive a summer of gigs instead of a fortnight
- 7.8/10
D'Addario · Strings
NYXL1046 Nickel Wound Electric
The same gauge as an EXL110, with the tuning problem actually solved
- 7.7/10
D'Addario · Strings
EXL110 XL Nickel Wound Electric
The electric string most guitars leave the factory wearing
What else you need
All accessoriesThe highest-scoring option in each category that suits this instrument. If you have never owned a guitar before, the starter guide explains what each of these is for and what you can safely skip.
- 6.6/10
New Bee · Cables
The cable an electric guitar needs on day one, at the price of a coffee
- 7.8/10
Fender · Tuners
FCT-2 Professional Clip-On Tuner
The tuner to buy first, before strings, before a strap, before anything
- 8.2/10
Dunlop · Picks
The Delrin pick that replaced tortoiseshell, in the gauge most people settle on
- 7.4/10
GLEAM · Stands
The accessory that decides whether the guitar gets played at all
Compared with
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