I just bought this guitar for my son. He's in love. He got the EMG's and the Floyd Rose and the mother of pearl bats. The flat black was ugly to me at first, but it has grown on me. Now I think it's a nice looking guitar. He's been playing on a B.C. Rich and a Krammer and this one sounds so much better! It's richer toned and it did come already set up, ready to play right out of the box! It's a great guitar for the price. He paid less then $450.00 for it shipped and insured. It came with the cord, but we didn't get a case. I would recommend that you get a case for it. It's an investment! When you get ready to upgrade to something else in a few years and you've kept this from getting all scratched and nasty looking, list it in ebay and get some of your money back! It isn't going out of style and you'll enjoy playing it. I give it an A+ because my 16 byear old says it's the best guitar he's ever played outside of a custom made Ibanez that was listed at $2000.00. SCHECTER IS LESS EXPENSIVE AND PLAYS ALMOST A GOOD AS A $2000.00 CUSTOM GUITAR? I'd say that's a better deal ($450.00 shipped)