Customer Reviews

Traveler Guitar Speedster Electric Travel Guitar, Red

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I did a lot of research for a travel friendly electric guitar and this one came out on top for me. Price wasn't nearly as big a factor for me as small size, good quality, comfortable feel, and a FULL SIZED fret board.

At 28" the Speedster is small enough to use in a tight space and you don't have to get used to a scaled down fret board like some of the competitors like the PalmGuitar and Lapstick, both of which are also much more expensive.

As much as I like the Steinberger as a travel friendly alternative, the Speedster is 2" shorter, and less expensive. One thing that is nice about the cost is you won't feel bad if it gets knocked around in the overhead bin or in the back of your car.

The removable arm looks cool but I don't find it's necessary when using a strap. I leave it at home and use the extra space in the gig bag for my headphone amp, capo, cable, and extra strings.

It should be noted that you won't be able to install a pair of strap locks so I highly recommend a self-locking guitar strap. I really like the Planet Lock Strap made by Planet Waves. For the headphone amp I bought the iGTR and really like it. Great effects, allows for mp3 player and headphone connection, and I can even connect to my iPod speaker for use as an amplifier!

Planet Waves 1-3/4" Planet Lock Strap, Black

Waves iGTR Personal Guitar Processor

When it first arrived, I was impressed at its small build, but at the same time I was worried that it wouldn't quite cut it for me (looks like a toy at times). After playing for a couple of hours, I fell in love with my Traveler.

Pros:

1) Good for traveling, obviously, due to its VERY small frame.

2) It may not look pleasing to the eye with an armrest attached. But you could play standing up without the armrest. It's light. It's not suffocating (like some guitars are when played standing up). And it trains you to get used to playing standing up.

3) When the guitar arrived I jumped straight into playing it from the box. It worked great, and I was surprised at how comfortable the guitar felt. Almost like my first love (: It sounds great, has great tone and clarity. Wood quality was good, and sliding was surprisingly easy.

Cons:

1) Pickup. It may not cut it for metalheads. But I paired it with my Roland Microcube and it's good to go for me.

2) The armrest creeks at times. It could feel like a full-build guitar really if the armrest attaches better.

3) Restringing. Enough said.

Some notes:

1) The tuning pegs have really limited space around them. It may be inconvenient to most guys, but I have small fingers, hence tuning was made easy for me (I just use my right hand all the way!)

2) I think this guitar really fits my size. Guitars are always made for males; hence us female guitarists always have to accommodate. It's light, so I don't have to feel like I'm carrying bricks on my shoulder when I play standing up. I don't know how to put my next point appropriately, so I'm just gonna say: for females, it fits.

3) If you're the type that rests your 3rd and/or 4th finger on the guitar while you pick, it may feel strange when you first play the Traveler as there is way less solid space to rest on (due to the tuning pegs' position). You WILL get used to it, though; your body will automatically adjust and make use of whatever space there is.

Why 4 stars, not 5? Because I really want to restring to XL strings, but I get tired when I think of assignments AND look at the back of the guitar (:

I've had this guitar for a few years - play it in my car during lunch. I wish they made a 'regular' guitar because the fretboard has the lowest action of any guitar I have seen and I would love to have it on something else.

The pickup in this thing is great as well. This is the easiest guitar I have for playability and I have had LesPauls, Ibanez, Schecter and others. It's so low across the entire scale, but little to no fret buzz.

This thing is well put together and works great. Hook it up to a little practice amp and it'll boogie. Incredibly small unit with a full size neck. A good travel solution.

I travel a lot for work, and wanted to be able to play in my hotel room to pass the time and learn new songs. I tried this at Guitar Center (it was marked at 40-50% off) and liked the size and the quality of it, so I picked it up. The quality and workmanship of the guitar was surprisingly good, but the neck was ultimately too wide for my liking. I play a Strat, but a Les Paul is comfortable for me too. This guitar is not. I actually liked the funky overall-shape, but the rail-type pickup sounded horrible with my headphone amp. I could get this thing to sound better on my Line 6 tube amp, but still unacceptable. Had that been the only problem, I might have considered purchasing a new pickup for it. However, I could not keep this guitar in tune. I spent half my time tuning it, and the other half playing out of tune. This guitar is strung in a very strange manner, and once you finally get it tuned, it will become out-of-tune the very first time you bend a note, especially the G and B strings. At least that way my experience. I think the guitar is overpriced ($200 would be a fair market price for what it is), and I finally became so disgusted with it I traded it in on a Epiphone Les Paul Special II. Even though I took a loss, the Epi was inexpensive enough that I don't care if it gets knocked around in my car trunk or on a plane. At least it stays in tune.

I was not sure what to expect with this guitar but I got much more than I ever expected! I own 10 electrics of all kinds but needed a travel guitar to fly with. This guitar is a top of the line setup. Body and neck are solid, fretboard is fast and the roller bridge is fantastic. Arm rest can take a bit to find a comfortable position but works for me. Tuners are easy to get used to and this guitar stays in tune ! The pickup is not a screamer but is plenty adequate to work with. The gig bag is good and the metallic red I bought is a great finish! I play this guitar in my lounge chair on a regular basis and it is really hard to put down! I could not be more satisfied !

I have had my Speedster for two years now (in China - am English teacher) and whenever I go anywhere for more than a week I pack it in my checked bag. Its tough and would be tough to break. As to playability, it has a great neck, good action and lots of adjustments which I have not yet had to do. Through an amp it doesn't have the sustain of my full size guitars but still sounds good. I use a JamPlug amp and my noise cancelling headphones that I travel the airlines with and it sounds great and is really, really portable. I would never think of bringing my regular sized guitars to places I have taken my Speedster. One of my favorite guitars - great for those lonely hotel nights.

Was traveling and missed playing so happened to walk into guitar center in los angeles and found the traveler speedster.
Picked up and started playing. Sounded good. Neck and fretboard felt very good.
Purchased so I'd have something to take along on trips.
Very happy with product. Had to deal with manufacturer for small part I lost. They are awesome. Shipped part overnight.
Excellent customer support-from initial phone contact to replacement part ship. Speedster is well built, sounds very good, easily transportable-fits in aircraft overhead easily.
Probably would work well in emergency gig situation.

I also researched this guitar when looking for a travel guitar, and am so glad I own it. It is as small as you can go with a full size fretboard.

I have already flown about a dozen times with it. A couple times security had to give it a close look and run it through x-ray a second time, so don't be surprised if it slows you down just a bit.

This guitar travels well. It stays in tune nicely, perhaps in part because the keys are internal. I use a strap even when sitting down in order to stabilize it. I find I don't bother with the removable arm piece.

While I own 4 other guitars, this one gets the most use, just because it is so easy to pack and comfortable to play. The case is also pretty well made and has a pocket big enough to carry a few accessories.

Great guitar. Very comfortable once you get used to the small body. For me the upper armrest is a nice add-on but not needed. Highly recommend!