Review: The Lâg Tramontane HyVibe, Worlds First Smart Guitar

The French music company Lâg Guitars which is popular for its Tramontane acoustic series has now launched a brand new ‘smart guitar’. They say it is even the first acoustic smart guitar in the world, how awesome is that. So what does ‘smart guitar’ mean? We’ll tell you all about it in this article!

HyVibe specifications

No more need for an amplifier, a pedalboard, or a loop station, this acoustic guitar is consisting of all of these options plus additional options, all within the size of a regular acoustic guitar.

The HyVibe comes with:

• A built-in FX processor
• Various effects such as reverb, chorus, distortion, phaser, pitch-shifting, echo, and tremolo
• Metronome, looper & recorder
• An application to control all your settings from a distance
• Input + output jack (charged through USB-C)
• The option to use it as a Bluetooth speaker

The slightly cheaper HyVibe 10 is provided with a cedar top, and both the HyVibe 20 and 30 are provided with a spruce top (HyVibe 30 with Bearclaw spruce). This article focuses on the HyVibe 20 which is provided with a solid Engelmann spruce top, back, and sides of Ovangkol (similar to rosewood) which gives the guitar a full mid-range. The guitar also comes with a solid case (the HyVibe 20 and 30) and the guitar is also available in a lefthanded version (the HyVibe 10 and 20).

First experience

What is immediately noticeable is that the amplified sound coming out of the acoustic guitar is incredibly realistic. Because the company has chosen to install the actuators beneath the top the whole soundboard becomes some kind of membrane speaker, which causes the sound to be so realistic. You can almost not differ from the fact that someone is actually playing or someone just recorded a loop, just amazing.

A downside is that we noticed that you can’t use the effects and the looper simultaneously. While jamming, we wanted to play some solo lines with the build-in effects but that’s not possible. Still, the build-in looper is a really cool feature that’s great for practicing the guitar or even to use it on stage. Therefore it’s a wonderful guitar for some extra dynamics and a different way to experience guitar playing. For example, you can use the guitar as a Bluetooth speaker which allows you to play along with backing tracks or music.

HyVibe mobile app

You can use the mobile app to adjust the effects, to shape the sound, to record your playing and much more. We consider the app user-friendly, it is pretty straightforward. Using the app allows you to use different banks, for example, fusion or overdrive to create different sounds

Battery

The HyVibe comes with a 2200mAh, 7.4V Lithium-ion battery. The user manual states that the expected battery life is approximately 10 hours of full and ‘typical’ use on a full charge. Of course, the battery life depends on which features are used.

Conclusion

Saying it’s just an ordinary guitar with smart features diminishes the quality of the guitar. No compromises have been made, the guitar feels very solid and trustworthy. It’s a nice dreadnought build with one of the better types of wood provided with a cutaway so the lower frets are easily accessible. 

The tone of the guitar is warm and the guitar has enough volume while playing it acoustically. The HyVibe guitar is not a cheap guitar, but neither are acoustic amplifiers, Bluetooth speakers, and loop pedals. So if you are looking for an excellent acoustic guitar with additional options and you want to keep improving your soloing, then the HyVibe is the perfect guitar for you!

The Lâg HyVibe is available in three options starting with the HyVibe 10 from approximately €999,-