I own a Chinese made Brian Moore guitar and it is great. I also own 3 strats and 2 les pauls and play semi-professional. I own pro gear so to speak and rely on it heavily. Don't be fooled that the made in china statement means bad equipment. The stamp on my guitar says, "Hand Made in China". So I called the factory and asked them what that meant. I was told that the guitars are hand crafted in a custom shop in China, which means the same attention to detail that goes into the ones made in the US go into the ones made in China. OK, the guitars in America are slightly better, but only in the bells and whistles that come with them. For 3500 bucks I had better get a guitar that not only plays well but also does my laundry. I can attest that my Chinese Brian Moore guitar feels exceptionally well and sounds awesome. I use it more than my US made guitars. But I love the added feature of the Piezo pick-ups and guitar synth pick-up. (By the way - Ibanez are made in Japan and were originated in Japan.) With my real job we have started having some equipment manufactured in China that is sold in Asia. One of my associates is in charge of getting this organized and has to go to China a couple of times a quarter. He tells me the material we use there is superior to ours in the US and that the attention to detail is superior as well. SO all I can tell you is that the Brian Moore guitars labeled Hand Made in China are exceptional instruments with added features you can't find in the US for that kind of money. Go back to the store and check out where the neck meets the bosy and see what kind of tolerance there is. I doubt you find sloppy work like you do with the Mexican strats. Good Luck. BTW - My Guitar does not have a tremolo, but the ones that do, That I played, stayed in tune exceptionally well.