Guitars on this fairly cheap level depend on the consistency of production. Even within the same model there is variability. I bought a wine red Aria TA-50 nine months ago. The humbuckers are relatively noisy, but the sound is remarkable for such a cheap guitar. It has a kind of authority and punches way, way above it's weight. The guitar is perfect, finish has not a flaw to be seen. It's a big guitar, way bigger and heavier than my old sunburst Aria Pro II TA-40. The TA-40 was a real star at the price. Beautiful sound, but I must tell the truth, I don't know if I am lucky, but this TA-50 is better. For the Blues I don't think you could find a better guitar at this price tag. The beauty of the TA-50 is that it's sound is tonally full and has a very emotional quality. That's with the stock strings as well. I don't know if the slightly above average humbucker 'noise' is typical, but if that is acceptable this is a fine guitar and if you play the blues, I doubt if it could be bettered in this price range.