ESP LTD ST203FR Maple Electric Guitar with Floyd Rose
The ESP LTD ST-203FR offers an ESP twist on a classic look. With worn aesthetics and an HSS configuration, the ESP LTD ST-203FR rocks.
Overall User Ratings (based on 26 ratings)
Submitted May 1, 2010 by a customer from hotmail.com
"A Workhorse guitar for less than 4 Benjamins..."
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This guitar will be in my stable for a very, very long time. Always had regrets with getting rid of the Fender FR Strat, this rectifies that.
Sound
I just purchased the ESP/LTD ST 203FR today and put it through it paces. I also have a '03 Fender MIM HSS Strat. The sounds from the ST 203 are a bit "beefier" than that of the HSS Strat. The versatility of this guitar is terrific. Single coils sparkled and the humbucker was just hot enough for some tight pinch harmonics and bite. The neck is to die for. Fast would be an understatement. Compared to the Fender HSS Strat, it just begs you to start shredding with the extra jumbo frets. I had owned a Fender Floyd Rose Strat around '95 through '01, and it was my primary "workhorse" guitar. I ended up trading it for a Ibanez RG series shredder as my tastes moved to a more metal sound. Always regretted that decision, but as of today, I can say the ST 203 FR is like an old friend, and then some. Best $400 bucks I've spent in a long time. FYI: ran it through a Marshall Haze 40 (w/Marshall Jackhammer and Ibanez Demon Wah Jr), Peavey Vypyr 30 and Line 6 Spider III 15 watt combo.
Features
Pretty much the same as a Fender FR Strat. Love the worn finish and one piece maple neck. It's not a shred guitar (no EMG's, 24 frets, etc.) but is kicks butt.
Ease of Use
This is my third ESP/LTD guitar (I have an '03 M100-FM and '04 EC200 QM- both matching see-thru black and modded with EMGs). I fell in love with the ESP/LTD neck on my M100-FM, as it was a gift from my wife. These guitars are setup almost perfect from the factory.
Quality
Feels solid and based on my previous experiences with the ESP/LTD line, I don't have any concerns at the moment. I play my guitars daily and gig with them regularly. Never had any issues with them other than tweaks I've done improperly myself. For the money, I'd be hard pressed to find anything else even close.
Value
The best "bang-for-the-buck" guitar I've ever purchased. It will probably soon become my "#1"...
Manufacturer Support
I've only had to contact ESP once, impeccable customer service in response rate and personality.
The Wow Factor
I love the finish and Floyd. Always been partial to Strats and the shape. Curvy and iconic. Good enough for Hendrix, Clapton, Beck, and Malmsteem, then good enough for me.
Musical Background:
Hobbyist, semi-active musician
Musical Style:
Rock, classic rock, metal
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Submitted May 26, 2011 by a customer from yahoo.com
"Awesome guitar, needs setup work!, GREAT PROJECT GUITAR!!!!!"
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I think if ESP came out with a higher quality version of this guitar, without the distressed look but with an aged single piece maple neck then yes I would replace it with that. But I'm not planning on replacing it anytime soon.
This product definitely meets my needs so far, I do still want to do some more work to it, like maybe replace some of the electronics. But for the price and functionality you can't go wrong.
If this guitar were stolen, which I hope never ever happens God willing! I think I'd replace it with another LTD ST203fr, they're really cool instruments.
I wish I knew the setup was going to be crap so I could have planned ahead though!
Sound
The tones that you can get outta this thing are amazing. I love it. You get both the chunky high-gain sounds from the humbucker and you get those awesome bluesy and clean tones from the two single coils. Its definitely working with my playing style. I play for my worship team at church and I really needed a guitar that could pull off great clean bright tones but also pull off high-gain tones for faster more modern worship and I definitely get those from this guitars HSS setup.
Features
I really like the fact that this guitar came with a Floyd Rose. The only thing I don't like about the Floyd Rose setup is that the locking nut is set way too high so the strings are a bit hard to fret at the first fret. I definitely like the extra jumbo frets, I used to own an Ibanez RG that had big fretwire and I'd gotten used to that, and I always wanted a guitar that had that classic Strat look but the playability of an Ibanez (that includes the thin neck). I also really like how the back of the neck pocket is shaped for easier playability, it really makes playing the higher frets a lot easier.
I think for the price you get some great functionality, as far as playability out of the box it lacks, but I went into this planning on having a project guitar, and with that said I definitely feel it was worth it.
Ease of Use
I really like this guitar but to be honest out-of-the-box it was crap! I mean there was no setup! The guitar was completely out of tune and the action was ridiculously high. I know that when you pay this little for a guitar you should expect much as far as a setup but this thing's setup was just awful. Once you've got it set up to your liking it plays great!
Quality
For $400 you get what you pay for. This guitar needed a lot of work set-up wise. Its an awesome guitar but there are a few things I don't like.
Firstly the neck, I love the maple but the fact that the neck and the fingerboard are two seperate pieces of maple as opposed to one definitely dissapointed me.
Secondly I had to get some fret-work done. The frets were totally unlevel after the 12th fret, there was a lot of string buzz and a few dead notes, luckily I have friends who do fretwork and they did the work for me.
Thirdly, the distressed look does look a bit cheap. I mean its kind of cool but from up close it does look a bit cheesey.
And lastly the wiring looks a bit cheap. Like the solder doesn't look like it bonded very well to the guitar's electronic components and hardware i.e. the output jack, spring claw, etc... But I plan on replacing most of the electronics eventually.
For the money its worth it, but if you plan on getting one of these plan on getting some setup work done or if possible do it yourself. This guitar is awesome on its own but it makes a really great project guitar!
Value
This guitar is definitely a better deal than the Fender Floyd-Rose equipped guitars I've seen. And it has an all maple neck so I personally feel that its the better deal. I mean you get the classic Strat look, Ibanez-like playability, and you're able to get some multiple awesome tones outta this thing.
The only thing that bugged me was the setup, but I did all the work with the exception of the fretwork. So it wasn't that bad, it was just time-consuming.
The Wow Factor
As far as funcionality this guitar is awesome! I mean the accessories, the thin neck, the fretwire, maple neck, classic strat look, floyd rose, and the awesome HSS pickup configuration make it awesome! As far as aesthetics I'd give it a 7, the 2 piece maple neck just kind of ruins it for me. But the functionality makes up for it.
Musical Background:
Guitarist, Larrivee Guitars USA
Musical Style:
Rock, Metal, Country, Punk, Worship, Rockabilly, Blues, Ska, Pop, etc...
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Submitted March 31, 2011 by a customer from hotmail.com
ESP LTD ST-203FR Guitar Customer Review
I'm having hard time to pick with this guitar, since I've only had twin humbucking guitars. I keep on plucking that vicious sounding mid-single coil (user error), but hey: I've got the guitar I always wanted to supplement and this does it. This is a keeper and a no-brainer. If this would be lost or broken, I'd have to buy another one. It just feels so warm and friendly, like home.
Sound
My main axe is a thoroughly modified EMG neck-thru Horizon with EMG 81 and 60, this is nowhere near the "clarity". This is actually very versitile and funky. The clarity of single coils is nowhere near a S/SA-EMG or original strat-pups (lace/texas etc.), but they are spunky along with the smooth (yet a slightly sloppy and muddy) bridge humbucker. All in all it's beefy and stratish. VERY multipurpose-sounding axe and it sounds as the pups were made for each other. I actually have hard time deciding, whether to upgrade the pickups or not (I should, but...to what?). In general, a bit muddy, yet spunky and not actually bad at all. Sounds go from bluegrass to metal (a bit on the rock-side though).
Features
An HSS-strat with floyd rose, awesome neck, alder body... only one tone control though, but who needs two anyway? Cool relic finish and matte paint. Controls are worn creme (not white as in the ESP-sites pics). Chrome floyd... man, this thing is just yelling (80's) ROCK!
Ease of Use
This is a very easy guitar. Not for early beginners though, as it has a floyd bridge (needs attending, adjusting and care).
Quality
Some floyd action was lost as I hit the dirt with the bridge adjusting it, all in all VERY good quality and sound for the price. Action was set actually pretty good straight out of the box and the finish actually had some nice surprising details.
Value
The best bang-for-buck guitar You'll ever own, if you seek this sort of a thing.
Manufacturer Support
I actually send ESP an e-mail a few years ago, a picture I made in kisakae-site about a relic-finished strat... but it had sort of a steve lukather EMG-set with mirror pick guard. Was this the result??? If so, awesome!
The Wow Factor
Worn out 80's super strat... that says it all.
Musical Background:
Active musician, recording engineer and a composer
Musical Style:
Rock
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Submitted October 21, 2011 by a customer from gmail.com
"Awesome Ax for the price"
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This guitar will do fine for me for a while until my playing reaches a point were I can justify buying a 1000+ guitar (I am very hard on my self, and I feel I dont deserve a guitar like a jem unless i can play everything Vai can). But if you are looking for a versatile guitar, with pretty sharp looks and a decent Floyd to get into, this guitar is perfect.
Sound
The LTD ST203FR sounds pretty good for a 400$ guitar. It has a lot of versatility with the pickup configuration, I can play some sweet sounding Hendrix on the neck, or blast out some Vai on the bridge. Of course neither of these pickups are the best out there, and will probably warrant some replacing down the road, but they are suitable for the price. The bridge is plenty hot, and the single coils definitely convey that classic strat tone.
Features
I bought this guitar primarily to dabble with my first floyd rose. It has expanded my playing alot seeing as now i can get into the world of the locking tremolo and do things such as dive bombs.
Ease of Use
Its pretty easy to get a good tone out of it for me, but thats because I have pod farm 2.0 (which I swear by), so adding distortion, compression, EQ params and other effects is really simple and makes getting an awesome array of tones out of this thing pretty easy. Playing it straight through an amp leaves a little to be desired.
Quality
This thing is built like a tank, nice and heavy just the way i like them. The neck is really nice and fast, diggin the jumbo frets and all maple look. The Floyd isnt the best one out there, but its good for a first time floyd to learn the ins and outs of playing with one. Pots and jack are all solid too, nothing about this guitar screams "cheap" except for the price.
Value
Absolutely cant beat the value here. It was exactly what I was looking for, at a really great price. It looks cool, and sounds great through my POD.
Manufacturer Support
Haven't had to deal with support so far, rated a 10 because the pay as you go plan is awesome.
The Wow Factor
I really dig the beat up super strat look. I understand that the distressed look isn't for everyone, but i think its pretty awesome looking. Making a non distressed version would probably be in LTD's best interest however.
Musical Background:
Hobbyist/Studio
Musical Style:
From Metal all the way to Blues
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Submitted May 12, 2010 by a customer from gmail.com
ESP LTD ST-203FR Guitar Customer Review
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Sound
The pickups in this guitar are garbage. They're generic and muddy sounding. However, it was $400 so I was expecting as much.
Quality
This guitar came with a couple problems. The humbucker is shoddily installed - crooked and with plastic shavings around the hole. The relicing is actually done pretty well though, much better than on the road worn Fenders I've played.
Value
The saving grace of this guitar and the reason I'm keeping it instead of returning it is the neck. I'd gladly pay $300 for the neck alone. The back is beautifully sanded and relic'd and it feels like a well-loved strat neck. The fret ends are perfectly smooth hot dog style and they just feel great. I have an old Korean made Strat that has a maple neck like this and I've never been able to get anything close to the feel of it until I played this guitar. I'm gonna put some real pickups in it and I should have a pretty decent guitar.
The Wow Factor
Very cool looking, great relic job. For $400 it's a steal.
Musical Background:
active musician
Musical Style:
rock
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Submitted August 21, 2012 by Lee S in Chattanooga, TN
"Very Good Value"
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I ordered this thinking it would be a project guitar that I could guiltlessly trade-out parts, pick-ups, etc, and it may come to that. But right now I am having too much fun playing it to make any changes. This guitar is made in Vietnam. I bought it new through zZounds and the set-up was well I'll call it inadequate. Fortunately there is a very good little guitar shop here and they do excellent set-ups. Overall, this is a great deal. You get a lot of guitar for a very reasonable price.
Sound
Very versatile. The pick-ups are surprisingly well-matched for a budget guitar. I am playing though an Eleven Rack and have found some great combinations that give up very sweet Trower-esque tones.
Features
The switch is a bit loud, but no one hears it except the player. The locking nut creaks when you dive bomb, but again this is only heard by the player. Overall, the selection of components is better than I expected in a budget guitar.
Ease of Use
I am very impressed with the versatility of the factory pick-ups. I am playing through an Eleven Rack, so I can find any number of amp sims that sound great with this guitar. However, I have found that some amp sims definitely work better than others. The pick-up selection seems to favor jazzy/bluesy amps over metal ones.I should note that I have several pedals that also help out a lot, e.g: an Analog Man Chorus, Brunetti Mercury Box, Real McCoy Wah, Empress Vintage Modified Super Delay, etc. I have found that nothing sounds all that great through the Eleven Rack's standard effects.
Quality
The distressed look adds something to the guitar, but it also takes something away. My first impression when picking up the guitar was that it was dirty and needed a good cleaning. The neck had that dried sweat feel to it and the strings felt rusted. And the FR was set pretty high.Also I prefer 10s to 9s and it came set for 9s. This is why I paid a pro to set it up. After the set-up, it is much better, but there is still some "stickiness" to the neck. I suspect this is a result of the distressing, but I don't know. In time I do believe it will smooth out. Or I will have it fixed. These issues aside, the guitar is better than I expected it to be. I am happy with the overall quality of this guitar.
Value
If you are looking for a good, reasonably priced guitar: this is a great choice.
Manufacturer Support
Haven't needed to contact them. And hope to never have the need.
The Wow Factor
The distressed look did appeal to me when I was looking around for a new guitar. I have owned stratocasters in the past and enjoyed playing them (I have been playing PRS guitars recently). I wanted to get back to some Robin Trower/Jimi Hendrix blues-rock and didn't want to spend a lot of money getting there. This guitar does that well.
Musical Background:
More than 30 years of playing guitar & keyboards.
Musical Style:
Rock, blues, jazz, some metal
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Submitted August 3, 2011 by a customer from netzero.com
"LISTEN TO THE BIG ARRJAY!"
i plan to keep this for a long time. it really gives me everything i need in a guitar. If i lost it or it was stolen I would replace it with the very same instrument. I'm considering the standard st203 or maybe the tele version to add to the st203fr. ESP ROCKS!Zzounds RULES!
Sound
I found the single pick ups were very clean and bright sounding. I get the glassy tone in the neck and middle pick up,bluesy in the neck,was expecting a bit more in the bridge side, but still impressed with overall tone for stock p/ups.
Features
missing hex keys for the floyd rose.didn't receive a manual for the guitar or bridge.
Ease of Use
ease of use for me is quite good. get good bluesy, glassy and fat tone from THIS guitar!
Quality
from what I see and have experienced so far with this guitar is a solid well made quality instrument. I would recommend to ANY guitarist who dig strats.
Value
definatly worth every penny. a great strat for less than 400.is worth it's weight in gold.
Manufacturer Support
so far i haven't made any direct contact with the company for any reason.
The Wow Factor
I think this style/series guitar is not only sexy in design and sound but also geniusly competitive with a more popular brand need i say more.
Musical Background:
writer,musician,band member and producer
Musical Style:
Blues,Rock and Roll,Hard Rock/METAL
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Submitted June 2, 2010 by a customer from att.net
"What a great deal! A Floyd Strat Style AX!"
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One thing to note is in the pictures it shows the pickups, volume and tone knobs in "white" when there are actually in "creme". I own 4 different ESP guitars and this one is the cheapest priced ESP in my collection and it is quickly becoming my favorite! I bought this in early May and I cant put it down. Best guitar I've EVER bought considering the price. Love as much as my ESP Eclipse. Thanks ESP for making quality axes at reasonable prices.
Sound
The ESP pickups don't sound that bad at all.. However I did replace mine with Duncans and a JB in the bridge. The stock pickup responded very well through my Marshall tube amp. Plays well with pedals too.
Features
The Floyd Rose does need to be setup correctly as do all Floyds. Don't be afraid to do it yourself. Floyds are very easy to setup if someone explains it correctly to you. Search YouTube and almost everybody is incorrect except the guitar tech from Floyd Upgrades. The FR Special now stays in tune perfectly - not fret buzz - perfect intonation - using Ernie Ball Skinny Top Heavy Bottom.
Ease of Use
Its always easy to use a ESP guitar.
Quality
ESP's quality is second to none. Very happy with all of my ESP's.
Value
Thats where ESP flourishes. Custom shop feel guitars that anyone can afford.
Manufacturer Support
You wont need any.
The Wow Factor
The worn finish is cool. The wood is not exposed to the elements like humidity/moisture like other relic jobs that can be harmful. If you look at it from a angle it looks like the black paint is brushed on. Very cool. I'm very happy with this purchase. I bought mine here a zZounds like I do with all my gear. The Pay-As-You-Play plan keeps me coming back!
Musical Background:
Hobbyist
Musical Style:
Metal, Rock... Music.
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Submitted May 11, 2014 by a customer from live.ca
"ltd 203fr distressed black"
Blues .... yes.... jazz... probably .... Rock and Roll .... hell yes... this is a tone monster in a very surprising package .... for a set neck Les Paul guy like myself. I have oodles of set neck and neck through mahogany / maple guitars... I have 3 Gibson LP's an SG And 2 other LTD Models with set necks. This isn't my first rodeo with bolt ons as I have an American strat and 2 mim versions. BUT .... this is the first bolt on that I would ever recommend to anyone. Pro or not. This thing totally kills my american strat and make the mim stuff look retarded. I am no rookie here.... trust me. I thought I would have to change puck ups and do a major set up and still be dissapointed. I was wrong... this guitar smokes... out of the box. My new SD SH4 that was slated for the bridge on this strat isn't needed.
Musical Background:
40 years
Musical Style:
Heavy rock... Blues
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Submitted September 11, 2012 by Chris P in SLC, UT
"Nice quality, but......"
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I did like the quality of the guitar. The neck was a decent piece of maple. The guitar was generally a solid guitar. However, personal preference, I could not get past the re-bar, what ESP calls frets. The frets are so oversized my finger did not touch the fret board. Not a feel that I like, again personal preference.I sure there are some guitarist that like that feel, of tall frets. But for me it's a world of difference from my other guitars.
Musical Background:
home & friends.
Musical Style:
Rock, metal, selective classic rock/metal.
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Submitted July 26, 2010 by a customer from hotmail.com
"Cant beat it...."
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Definately plan on this being a keeper. I do feel ESP need to change the volume knob placement on future models and maybe give it some better pickups...
Sound
Pickups are so so. Could have been better. Although for the price, ya cant beat them
Features
love the beveled heel. dont feel like I running into a wall when jumping into the hight registers. The Floyd is great. seemed pretty well set up out of the box. I am NOT that big of a fan of the "distressed" look on any type of wood but it seems to suit this instrument well. Has an early 60's strat vibe going on. My only BIG issue with this is the placement of the volume know. It sets where the middle tone knob is on a strat. not easily accessable. The floyd bar seems to be blocking the path....
Ease of Use
I would have given it a 10 if it werent for the volume knob placement
Quality
Seems well made enough. I will put it throught the stage ringers this coming saturday. but I am sure it will hold up....
Value
cant beat the price with a stick!! feel just as good as the real thing and 300 cheaper that the Fender equilivant...
Manufacturer Support
just got it today and, so far, dont see any need in dealing direct with ESP...
The Wow Factor
Like I previously mentioned, it has that worn early 60's strat look and feel. Like a guitar that has stood the test of time which to me is a beautiful thing. Now we will see if it does stand the test of time...
Musical Background:
Active Musician
Musical Style:
"Real" Metal
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Submitted November 26, 2012 by Al V in Wallingford, PA
"ESP LTD ST-203FR Electric Guitar"
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Got the guitar about 2 weeks ago right out of the box it was garbage. (zZounds sold it to me as new but think it was returned, all the tools were in a Glad zip lock bag...) Loved the look and feel so I decided to have a Luthier friend of mine take a look to decide if it was worth trying to fix or I should return The Floyd Rose special had issues understandably its cheap. The nut was cast badly the high E and B strings sat way to high in the nut and to compensate there was a shim under the nut on the low side to even it out ( This appeared to be factory installed). The groove on the Floyd low E saddle was not big enough for the string to seat properly and the neck was bowed badly on purpose to commentate for the nut and bridge issues. Once my buddy gave it a little needed TLC. (Filed the nut and saddle correctly so the strings sat properly, adjusted the truss rod, added a neck shim and leveled some of the frets) this thing now plays like a guitar 3X the cost. Long story short after a little bit of work, just cost me a case of beer but if you brought this to a rebuttable guitar repair shop between $80 - $100 would be about right you could have a great looking guitar that plays like a dream (love the neck). So you got to ask yourself if you wanna buy a great looking guitar with potential on the cheap and use a little extra cash to make it great (pickups will need to be changed as well they're crap) or save up and buy a more expensive guitar. Just remember it only $299.00 for a reason.
Musical Background:
over 25 years Guitar, and Bass
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Submitted November 20, 2011
"Just a solid guitar! Looks good, plays good, sounds good!"
Sound
The ESP was set up and ready to play out of the box. Sound and feel are very nice!
Features
Rock solid guitar!
Ease of Use
Plug and play - ready to play out of the box... a quick tune and I was jamming.
Quality
Hey, it's road worn, so cosmetically - it was perfect!
Value
bang for the buck - great!
Manufacturer Support
na - I have not
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Submitted July 14, 2010
"Great looks/ Bad sound"
Will keep guitar untill I can find a better sounding guitar with simular hardware and looks.
Sound
The pickups are very muddy and have no high frequency or brightness to them. They are also slightly scooped or less mids.Definitely should come with better pickups as this is the whole sound of the guitar. Not everyone wants to change out all the electronics.Also there was a lot of hum on the neck pickup . Shotty pickups and wiring. The vol control turned on at about 2 instead of a gradual increase.
Features
Good floyd rose, Great neck. The reliced body is very cool. Love the large frets to.
Quality
Quality is good except the p/u's and electronics are terrible.
The Wow Factor
Looks of the guitar and the neck are very appealing but the sound is horrible compared to simular guitars
Musical Background:
active musician
Musical Style:
christian metal
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Submitted February 8, 2010
ESP LTD ST-203FR Guitar Customer Review
Sound
it looks AWESOME!
Features
Love the beat up finish. I love the Floyd Rose. I WANT!
The Wow Factor
Looks like a really well loved guitar
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