Traveler Guitar Speedster Electric Guitar (with Gig Bag)

This guitar has more features and high output tone than most standard guitars. Features include a removable upper arm support, chrome hardware, and as blade humbuckers.

Overall User Ratings (based on 40 ratings)
  • Overall:
    4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Sound:
    4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Features:
    4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Ease of Use:
    4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Quality:
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Value:
    3.5 out of 5 stars
  • Manufacturer Support:
    5 out of 5 stars
  • The Wow Factor:
    4.5 out of 5 stars
Overall: 4.5 out of 5 stars
(40) (see rating details)
Submitted October 30, 2013 by Eek K in Brooklyn, NY

"Super fun practice guitar - with 1 major drawback"

Overall: 4 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
Verified Customer zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
I bought the red Speedster for a trip not wanting to be without a guitar in case inspiration struck. What I didn't see coming is how much I would actually play the thing! My main guitars are hollowbody Gretsches that I keep in their cases when I'm not playing which interferes with the ease of just picking up and playing whenever I want to (I live in NYC where space is limited so the cases get shoved under the bed). I can leave this thing next to my desk, on the sofa, bed.. anywhere and it's always within reach, even if I just want to pick it up and noodle for a few seconds. Anytime I can have my hands on a guitar more is a good thing - so in addition to the travel aspect, just having it around and not having to baby it like I have to do with my hollowbodies is awesome. Action was great right out of the box. Surprisingly it didn't take much getting used to having this in my lap vs. the much more bulky hollowbodies - the upper fin that attaches helps that out a lot. Speaking of the fin it does seem to make noise/need to be tightened every so often while playing, I'm wondering if some thread seal tape might help that. Not a deal breaker but there's room for some sort of improvement there. Pickup sounds good enough for me. I don't plan on using it in a band situation nor have I yet - it works great for practice at home thru my practice amp, computer (I use Pod Farm), and Amplitube app on my iPhone. Between the volume and tone knobs there's a lot of range in there for a single pickup guitar, or at least more than you'd think. Now onto the con, and it's a major one: staying in tune. I've read a few other reviews where this is a problem and I was no exception. I don't know if the other users who didn't mention got lucky and got guitars with tuners on them that worked...? Or maybe they don't beat on the strings that much? But I do a lot of unison bends and bends in general and it was almost as if the guitar was drunk - tuning would immediately go out of whack. I tried every string stretching trick in the book, new strings, no dice. The saving grace was a $50 set of Grover 406c locking tuners. I read a few Speedster users switched to those - I did and kaboom - the guitar stays in tune now. Be warned if you do anything outside of light casual strumming that you're likely going to have to invest in new tuners if you prefer to not have a dissonant mess in your lap that needs retuning every 2 minutes. Also - string changing on the Travelers is rather cumbersome and those locking tuners took that from being a nightmare to a very simple, quick task. I'm considering putting them on my other guitars now because of that. Also - the strings coming out of the tuning posts will poke you if you don't clip VERY close to the post, so make sure you've got a good pair of clippers and trim them down after restringing. Tuner issue aside, a great practice guitar. As I mentioned, anything that allows me to have my hands on a guitar MORE is a good thing - I can leave this little guy laying around pretty much anywhere in my apartment and pick it up while my Gretsches remain in the safety of their cases resting up for band practice. Not sure if I agree with the $380 price tag, especially with the tuner issue. Out of the box it feels more like a $250 guitar to me.. why make such an otherwise great travel guitar but put such crappy tuners on it? But after trying out the other options this had the best feel (& look) so I sucked it up, threw on the new tuners, and am very happy with it.

Musical Background:

Been playing for over 25 years, live and studio

Musical Style:

Everything. Surf, chicken pickin', jazz, rockabilly, metal.. you name it.
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Submitted November 30, 2011 by a customer from mac.com

"Great travel Guitar. Great sound and easy to play!"

Overall: 4.5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
Verified Customer zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
Very satisfied with this guitar. I travel often and this fits my schedule perfectly
Features
This is a great compact travel guitar. Light weight and easy to play. The only negative is that it does not have an onboard pre amp. So you wither have to buy a pocket amp or plug it in directly to a real amp.
Quality
Solid guitar. I end up using it a lot
The Wow Factor
It has a funky shape to it but play well.

Musical Background:

2 years, Guitar, piano, jam at home

Musical Style:

rock, acoustic
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Submitted September 8, 2007 by a customer from yahoo.com

"An incredible guitar with terrific feel, sound, and portability: I love it!"

Overall: 5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
I'll use it till it "dies" and then will undoubtedly buy another. Couldn't live without one of these!
Sound
I use this guitar with a Roland MicroCube amp (weighs ~7lb; uses 6 AA batteries that last over 20 hrs of play). Fantastic sound. The guitar fits in my tennis bag and in a standard suitcase. I've taken it around the US and also on some international trips. Everybody is so impressed. To quote Shakespeare, "It's not the size, but the performance!" I highly recommend this to any traveling guitarist.
Features
Doesn't need anything else: it's the "full package".
Ease of Use
Takes a while to get used to the unusual tuning mechanism, but great once you are used to it
Quality
Good enough. I had a few paint chips, but these are cosmetic and don't affect performance.
Manufacturer Support
"10" since I haven't needed any in over a year.
The Wow Factor
Got to give credit for the unusual design, the tiny size (fits in tennis bag!) and great perfoemance.

Musical Background:

play guitar, piano, harmonica, electronic drums, computerized music programming; love to sing

Musical Style:

Rock, Folk, Country, Blues, and whatever tickles my fancy
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Submitted April 3, 2009 by a customer from windstream.net

"Really cool...everyone wants to try it!"

Overall: 5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
This is a neat guitar that you don't get tired of using. I travel a lot and it is really easy to take it on the plane, or even play privately with the stack in a box pocket amplifier and earbuds. You do not have to attach the "arm" to use it, just makes it easier to hang onto if you are playing for a long time.
Features
The stack in a box amplifier is available separately, and the guitar comes with a nice protective gig bag.
Ease of Use
This guitar sounds great plugged into an amplifier. You would never guess it is a travel guitar from the sound. I use it without any amplification with just soft sound of the chords and also use it with a 'stack-in-a-box' shirt-pocket amplifier and pair of ear headphones for traveling. It always draws attention.
Quality
This guitar can be used with or without the arm attached. The hardware is strong, pleasing to the touch and durable. No flimsy parts here. All solid and sturdy, yet smooth and pretty. I have seen professionals using travelers, and it is so easy to take with you.
The Wow Factor
This is a different looking guitar. Everyone who sees it wants to try it themselves. I love the red color and the smooth feel of the body.

Musical Background:

hobbyist

Musical Style:

country
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Submitted August 14, 2007

Traveler Speedster Guitar Customer Review

Overall: 5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
best travel guitar in the world... literaly!@
Sound
plug in your headphones so you dont bother anyone else and it still sounds completyly amazing!
Features
one of the most portable guitars on the market!
Ease of Use
extreamly easy unline the backpacker or the washburn rover
Quality
great quality and if u go to the companies main website you can find more guitars just like this one exept this one is the best sounding and looks the best
Value
great travel guitar
Manufacturer Support
no experiene
The Wow Factor
looks so great!
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