So I got the guitar and here are my thoughts. I played the guitar for a few min out of the box and thought it was good. Then I decided it needed a good setup so I changed the strings, set the neck relief, and adjusted the bridge/saddles. The intonation was actually pretty much right. On most new guitars all I need to do is set the neck relief but this one needed everything.
The roasted neck is fantastic and probably the best feature of the guitar, the rolled edges are great and the frets are really nice. I also like the body shape/size, weight, and alder is my favorite body wood. The flat paint is a little different but it works. I like the Gotoh 510 bridge, it is the same bridge I order with all my Suhr guitars. It did need some attention when I got the guitar, all of the saddles were as high as they could go. The jack placement on the back of the body is new and I'm getting used to it, and overall I think it is a good placement. The pots and switch work great with no noise.
The bridge pickup sounds ok, but I hate the middle and neck pickups. The single coils are just not smooth. I may drop some kind of Bare Knuckle in the bridge and put some Suhr V60LP's in the middle and neck.
So, is it a $1k guitar, yep all day long.
Now go buy one!
Chuck