Are they comparable, very early on yes. I started with almost that exact guitar, same company but a different model. After about 2 months getting out of simple strumming you can and getting an ear for it you can really tell it's cheap, after a short time he'll be trying to adjust everything and be wondering why it doesn't sound as good as the music he's listening to and trying to play. You'd be better off (hopefully there's a guitar center nearby), GC's BF ad the Epiphone on page 1 is the same one included with the rocksmith bundle (just has the model # renamed for BF sale), it's only $69, or the bundle on top of page 2 of guitar centers ad, comes with a decent amp/bag/dvd/picks/pitch pipe, it's a really good deal. The startup cost will be about $80 more but if you think he'll stick with it for any length of time it will be well worth it. It will be the difference of needing to upgrade the guitar in 3-4 years as opposed to 3-6 months for a cheaper one.