Yamaha Pacifica 611HFM
72 Guitarist Summer 2011
These three new models are the
result of more than a year’s worth
of planning, refi ning and testing
£579, £479 & £399
ELECTRICS
Yamaha Pacifi ca
611HFM, 510V & 311H
£579, £479 & £399
A
ccording to Yamaha,
total sales of the Pacifica
are in excess of
1,000,000 since its launch in
1989, and it’s arguably the only
brand that can hold its own at
the lower and mid reaches of
the market against the massive
names of Squier, Fender and
Epiphone. These three new
models are the result of more
than a year’s worth of planning,
refining and testing and are
based on two Custom Shop
prototypes, g uitars that we take
a first look at elsewhere in this
issue (see p34).
Driving the concept of
revisiting the range of mid-
priced Pacificas were Yamaha’s
Mark Kirkland and Julian
Ward, and the latter takes up
the story. “We decided to base
what was becoming the
unofficial new Custom Shop
Pacifica series on two models,
ostensibly one each for the
blues-rock player and the
slightly heavier classic rock
player. The two models
eventually became three, so we
could offer a more affordable
version of one of them, but the
concept was based around the
two guitars that would become
the 510V and 611HFM.
“The first thing we did was to
spec some guitars that were
very clearly targeted at specific
players and that also filled a gap
The Rivals
The ultimate in West Coast
Custom vibe, the Charvel
Pro Mod So-Cal (£727), is a
wonderful player with some
great rock tones. Blade’s
Dayton Standard (£629)
mixes P-90 and single-coil
pickups in an attractive retro-
flavoured package, while the
Fender Pawn Shop ’51
(£755) is an eclectic mix
between single-coil tang and
humbucker-driven rock.
A deep belly contour aids comfort
Pac1 F1 Ca? Ahem. The 1980s/1990s-style logo suits the modded ethos
Yamaha has a
Custom Shop?
It sure has, and in 1989
it was this North
Hollywood workshop that
came up with the design
for the original Pacifica.
These three new models
were conceived with help
from the custom facilities
in the Far East, notably
the one at Yamaha’s
Hamamatsu HQ.
How do they stack up
against the current
Pacifica range?
The 112V remains a huge
entry-level seller, but the
idea here was to draw on
a slightly higher build
budget and step outside
the usual ‘safe’, obvious
conventions of many
mid-price guitars.
Can they compare to a
Strat or a Les Paul?
A Pacifica is a serious
choice for anyone, even if
several Fenders and
Gibsons already nestle in
their collection. The
emphasis is on versatility
and playability with a
decent spec thrown in –
Yamaha hopes this trio
continue in that tradition.
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2
3
What we
want to know
GIT345.rev_yamaha.indd 72 7/18/11 12:36:59 PM