AeroBand Guitar Stringless, Acoustic Electric Travel Guitar, Portable Silent Guitar with Removable Fretboard Smart Guitar for Beginners, Adults, Teenagers, Gift, AG01

When I was looking at these, I saw a lot of standout reviews. Most were 5*, talking about how easy it is to use and how it sounds very good for what it is. Many of the 1* reviews are saying that "it's not a guitar" -- they're absolutely right, and I also believe that they're completely missing the point.This is a guitar shaped synthesizer.I'll start with verifying the features everyone already talks about: It is as easy to play as the other reviews say--the silicon fretboard is very easy on the fingers. I'm a pretty crappy rhythm player and I was able to play bar chords much more effectively than I can on my acoustic guitar. The right hand portion feels very guitar-like, and almost all of my picking/finger-style muscle memory served me well. The speaker is very loud and clear (doesn't have much low end punch, but that would muddy the highs.) The app is decent learning tool for beginners that know how to play but don't know how to learn music--I won't be using it.Now--let me talk about some of the features that aren't clearly stated.- You can use any bluetooth audio source to pipe into the guitar, playing sound/music through the guitar's speaker. This is amazing for practice/accompaniment, or even picking some backing tracks.- You can use this as a bonafide midi controller for any DAW/Midi synth--standalone or VST. In the 6 hours I've had it out of the box, I've used it to play phat synth bass lines and smooth layered strings. You just have to know where to look.This was a 5* purchase from me, but it's not perfect. Things I would change about it are the following:- The palm mute function is too heavily muted--it basically kills more of the sound than a real palm mute technique should.- Hammerons and pulloffs work mostly as you expect them to, but there is no modeling of glissando/legato, so the artificiality of the sound really comes out when you use many hammerons and pulloffs- You cannot pull off to an open string- You can only mute with the right hand, so an open string resonating when you don't want to can't be muted with an adjustment of the left hand.In conclusion--this instrument does exactly what I wanted--It's going to be a beneficial practice aid, fostering creativity in songwriting, and allows ergonomic guitar-based control of unlimited sounds using MIDI. Cannot recommend enough--IF this is what you're looking for. If you're looking for something to upgrade to for a real electric guitar, you will be sorely disappointed. All of the negative reviews on youtube are people talking about things like pinch harmonics and sweeping and other advanced techniques, all done in front of boutique marshall amps... those kinds of guitarists do not need this instrument.

Actually really awesome and much more like a real guitar than I thought it would be. Super loud if you want it to be as well. Love switching between types of guitars and plugs into synthesizer or computers easily. I suspect the ext generation models will find more twang the string solution and be even better.

Even after adjusting string sensitivity, the AeroBand guitar simply does not perform as advertised. Its capacity to pick up false or stray notes is unbounded. When barring chords, a finger pressed against a fret might trigger a higher note, destroying the chord altogether. As some *critical* reviewers have said, it works best when picking out individual notes, but not otherwise.It doesn't help that some promotional videos dub recordings from other guitars.The sound is equally awful, which is surprising given that the guitar is digital. Why couldn't they have found better sounds or installed a better speaker?That said, I did find that the guitar is well built, and I'm hopeful that this company (or some other) will create a functioning digital instrument at some point. This instrument is just not that product.If you search YouTube, you can find some excellent demonstrations that make this point.

I lot of beginners punt with a guitar because the strings hurt their fingers. This is particularly true with steel string guitars, but the problem can be partially alleviated by using thinner strings that are coated with polymer. A classical guitar with nylon strings offers something much more gentle on the finger tips.Nevertheless, the Aeroband has the softest feel on the fingertips; at least on the fretting hand. Note, however, that it is a midi guitar. The vibrations of the strings aren't providing the sound--pressing a string near a fret sends a signal to a computer that produces the sound. Hence, there are things you can do with the strings on real guitar that you can't on the Aeroband. Being a midi player means that the instrument can make all kinds of different sounds-- it can even sound like a banjo instead of a guitar. If this kind of versatility and reduced finger pain are your priorities, then this instrument may well be a good buy for you.On the other hand, for a comparable price ( ok 50$ more) a classical guitar with nylon strings like the Yamaha NCX1 may be a better bet if you want something that performs like a real guitar but provides moderate comfort for the finger tips.