“When you're away from your main rig, it more than fills a void.”: Donner Hush X Pro review

What is it?

Donner’s next-generation Hush travel guitar series, the Hush X Pro, takes things up a notch. Recent years have seen the travel guitar market boom as players crave compact guitars – be they foldable or just downright pocket-sized – that they can take with them wherever they go.

Chinese budget brand Donner’s Hush guitars, though, do things a little differently. They build on a silhouette that’s less James Bond gadget and more Steinberger, with detachable frame wings and a headless design that keep it ultra-tiny. At an average weight of 5 lbs, it’s about half a Les Paul.

Its mahogany neck-through design delivers a high-grade, roasted maple fingerboard on the White models and HPL on Black versions, each with 22 jumbo stainless steel frets, a bone nut, and a wheel-style dual-action truss rod. With a 25.5” scale length, it’s designed to feel familiar, even if it doesn’t particularly look like it. But it’s what’s under the hood where it gets interesting.

Two Donner-branded Alnico V pickups – a humbucker in the bridge, and a single coil in the neck – are hooked up to what is designed to be a catch-all amp and effects suite for all your travelling needs. Its Tone Sim feature can also emulate seven classic guitar sounds, from Strats and Teles to Les Pauls and OM acoustic guitars, with 19 built-in amp sims, 30 effects, and an effects loop for those wanting to plug into tangible pedalboards.

Connectivity-wise, it offers headphone monitoring, traditional output jack for use with a guitar amp, on-the-go mobile connectivity, Bluetooth input for jamming along to songs, and an audio interface. And it all packs into a thin case that easily fits in the overhead lockers of trains and planes.

As the quality of budget gear grows, Donner is bidding to stay well ahead of the travel-guitar curve by giving players everything they could need for their next jam session in the mountains. But is it all too good to be true, or has it pulled off a blinder for just under £500?

Specs

• Launch price: £475 / $659 / €699
• Made: China
• Type: Six-string electric guitar
• Body: Mahogany
• Neck: Mahogany, Slim C-profile
• Fingerboard: Roasted maple, circle dot inlays, 305mm - 406mm (12” - 16”) compound radius
• Scale length: 648mm (25.5”)
• Nut/width: Bone, 42mm (1.65”)
• Frets: 22, jumbo stainless steel
• Hardware: Donner Headless Tuning System and Headless Bridge
• String spacing at bridge: 52mm
• Electrics: Lab Custom Alnico V humbucker (bridge) and single coil (neck), three-way switch, double-stacked Tone/Volume control, built-in amp modeller with 19 amp sims, 30 effects, and Tone Sim feature
• Weight: 5.31lbs/2.44kg
• Options: Black, Midnight Glow, and White Luxe finishes, all with HPL fretboards
• Left-handed options: No
• Case: Two-tier soft case
• Contact: Donner

Build quality

Build quality rating: ★★★★☆

The case the Hush X Pro fits into is extremely compact. And it’s very thin, looking more like a violin or a pool cue case than one housing an electric guitar, and that solves one big travel conundrum.

The case has two layers: one holds the guitar, which fits snugly and securely, and the top layer holds everything else, including the metal-frame wings, jack and USB-C cables, a strap, picks, headphones, and a string-cleaning cloth. The guitar body itself weighs 5.38lbs (2.44kg), just over the 5lbs it’s billed as. The frames add 1.1 lbs (.5kg) to that. It’s very light.

Assembly was intuitive enough that I didn’t need the instructions, although there is a bit of a knack to locking the frames into the guitar, and sometimes it takes me a few goes. I also noticed some wear and tear around the frame inserts, which will only worsen over time. The white finish is very unforgiving.

On top of that, it feels a little limited in how it sits on my lap, given the short treble-side frame. And it wobbles a little while playing.

Being headless, The strings are, like the now-familiar Strandberg setup, locked in at the bridge with an Allen key, with the ball end at the bridge end. It’s a reliable locking bridge system with decent quality for the price.

Beyond that, there are some notable blemishes. There’s a chip on the fretboard near the truss rod wheel, and the effect block dial is also chipped. It’s unclear whether this happened before it left the factory, but it’s disappointing to have it arrive at my house looking a little worse for wear.

The guitar packs a lot of features, and its design is well thought out. A few minor niggles keep it from full marks.

Playability

Playability rating: ★★★½

While I find the guitar to be a pleasant enough player, it isn’t great for my posture. And its plastic-y neck will divide opinion. It’s got a matte finish that feels pretty thick, and for those who prefer a more natural-feeling neck, this will certainly be a sticking point.

It’s a shame, really, because the neck has a nice speed-friendly profile, meaning even faster passages can feel like a hot knife through butter. Personally, I’m fine with it, but it won’t please everyone.

Posture issues affect me most. I find myself hunched over it because it’s so small, and there’s only one spot on my leg it can rest on, due to the size and shape of the treble-side frame. So it’s quite limited. It’s a standard scale-length, but it feels much more compact. From a transportability standpoint, that is a positive. From a playing point of view, I feel like Quasimodo.

Outside of that, it is a delight to play. Once I get down to it, nothing about it feels too cheap or gimmicky.

Tuning stability is very robust, especially if it’s going to travel through temperature fluctuations regularly. Its lightweight nature is a big plus, and there’s no neck dive because there’s no headstock to cause concern.

The maple fretboard is nice to touch and feels more premium than the HPL (high-pressure laminate) alternatives, especially given the neck. So that feels like a big upgrade over other current and previous models.

Most controls are on the top of the guitar, including the screen, Bluetooth, Tap Tempo/Tuner, effects block, and Value buttons and dials. Occasionally, the frame obscures the screen, so I need to crane my neck a bit, but scanning through the amps and effects and tweaking as I go is intuitive and welcoming.

The biggest downside, is how close its other controls are. The Volume/Tone knob (oddly double-stacked, but I don’t hate it) and the three-way pickup switch (which feels a little cheap) are frustratingly close. Changing pickup position on the fly becomes a game of Russian roulette, considering how many times I roll my volume off in the process. But this isn’t an issue exclusive to this guitar. Of course, Donner is trying to be clever with the limited floor space it has to play with, but this element misses for me.

On the plus side, the preset selector dial, placed alongside those two, is easy to access on the fly. That means, if I’m playing a song with a tone change (as I have done a lot with this guitar), I can even move up or down two presets without missing a beat. The fact that the Tap Tempo button is both tiny and remains on the top, though, feels far less practical.

So we have a mixed bag. Playing the guitar – and operating it for the most part – is a more positive than negative experience. It plays great, even if its diminutive size hunches me up and the neck finish is questionable. Tone tweaking is easy enough, but I wish some of the spacing and button/dial locations were a little more performance-friendly.

Sounds

Sounds rating: ★★★★

Despite packing many bells and whistles under its ice-white hood, the Hush X Pro can still be a guitar in the traditional sense. When I plug it straight into my DAW and run it through a variety of Neural DSP, Mixwave, and Universal Audio guitar plugins, I find it’s not the warmest-sounding guitar. It’s by no means bad, but the combination of its treble-forward humbuckers and the single coil in the neck means it’s more bite than cuddle.

As a guitar unto itself, it’s of a decent quality, but it’s all the gizmos that augment the pickups that really take the guitar into its own sphere.

So next, before getting into the weeds of building my own presets, I spend some time exploring the ones baked in, and the bar is higher than expected. The Fender Twin – a cleaner-than-clean tone – feels pretty faithful. It isn’t brittle, and the pickups actually feel well-rounded and higher quality than I previously thought here.

Preset B1 is another clean tone, but this time shimmering with a little chorus, and it instantly gives me Alex Lifeson vibes.

Its stock metal rhythm uses a Mesa Mark V with everything set to 12 o’clock and no effects, then injects a meatier warmth into my veins. Ironically, I feel a little more treble, and mids are needed here. But what it shows is just how different the guitar can sound from preset to preset.

Elsewhere, the Soldano SLO-100 Lead amp feels a little woolly out of the box, but with a variety of overdrive, EQ, and pickup-tweaking options, nothing that doesn’t sit in that ‘Goldilocks’ space right off the bat means it’s game over.

One exciting concept is the Tone Sim feature, which emulates different guitar sounds. If I want to jam along to different songs, I can easily go a little more Les Paul or Telecaster on the fly. It’s the kind of innovation that could, on paper at least, make this a dark horse in the studio.

What’s even greater is that there’s a Blend feature. So, if I’ve got a fat rock guitar tone and want a little Tele or Strat spank, or I want to make a clean tone sound fuller with some acoustic charm, I can dial them in to taste. Going dreadnought acoustic with a high-gain amp isn’t exactly advisable, but it isn’t the worst thing in the world, to my surprise. Mainly, I use it for subtle touches here and there and find it very effective. It’s a great feature for really getting the most out of every setting.

The effects are good enough for the most part. The fuzz is thick and Velcro-y; there are enough character differences between the overdrives to make a difference. The chorus and analogue delays are pleasing to my ear, too. The Hush X Pro is a travel guitar; it’s not built for headlining stadiums, so to my ear, it meets the bar well beyond what’s needed.

But the lo-fi delay is littered with digital artefacts, and the phaser is a real damp squib. With everything cranked, I still question whether it was even on.

Notably, with held notes, the pickups randomly conk out after around six seconds. There’s no subtle fade-out; they just stop picking up sound with a very sudden drop-off. Parisienne Walkways denied.

Verdict

Looking at the guitar for what it is meant to be, it’s very close to nailing the brief. It’s an easy-to-carry travel guitar with everything I’ll need for a practice session in a forest or a hotel room, or a jam with friends. When you're away from your main rig, the Donner Hush X Pro more than fills a void.

The quality and playability of the guitar – despite those back-aching posture issues, which are unfortunately going to be a real issue for most players – are impressive. Its bank of sounds, from its amps and effects to its nifty guitar-voice emulator, covers the basics for many genres and makes it a versatile, enjoyable experience to tweak. Many people will enjoy this.

But of course, no guitar is perfect, and such lofty ambitions are always going to come with a few niggles. Its neck finish is sure to divide; the Tone/Volume knob being so close to the pickup switch is very impractical, and the strange sustain-killing after around six seconds is a little off-putting. So is the placement of the Tap Tempo, but I understand the surface-area constraints.

MusicRadar verdict: As a purebred travel guitar, it’s certainly king of the mountain, with minor drawbacks not doing enough to take the fun out of it. Nearly every facet is smartly designed, and there are some marked improvements from previous generations. The recipe keeps getting better.

Also try

Donner Hush X Live
$499.99 | £423.99 | €499.99

It’s not flawless, but for a travel guitar with a built-in speaker and a glut of tone options for even less money, it makes for a solid rival to the Hush X Pro.

IK Multimedia Tonex Plug
$149 | £149 | €149

With over 40,000 high-quality amps and 15 effects, it’s a solid option for anyone who wants to take their preferred instrument on the road without extra gear. Just add headphones and save a chunk of change.

Positive Grid Spark Neo
£199 | $249 | €198

Honestly, with the Donner bar set so high, the next-best travel option for a virtual rig on the road is headphone amps. While the Tonex Plug wins on tone, the Spark Neo is close and puts the amp in a pair of headphones for an even smaller setup.

See more.

Hands-on videos

DragonForce

Donner Hush X Pro: The Ultimate Travel Guitar? - YouTube

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Matt Franceschini

This Guitar Does Things I Didn't Think Were Possible - Donner Hush X Pro - YouTube

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