Traveler Guitar Escape EG-1

I just wanted to post an update to my earlier review:

> ..I found that the stock pickup's tone isn't really practical for MY personal needs.
> I could, however, imagine the stock PU being adequate for less intense genre
> applications like Blues and Classic Rock perhaps, but for the edgier/heavier
> stuff I play on a regular basis, the stock PU just doesn't cut it.
> ..[being] the EMG aficionado that I am, my plan is to eventually swap out the
> stock PU for an EMG-89 since the guitar already has a built-in 9V battery compartment.
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I swapped out the stock pickup with an old Bill Lawrence L500 that I had lying around, and it made a night/day difference in tone--both with the Pocket RockIt headphone amp *and* through my live rig. So much so, in fact, that I have even pulled out the EG-1 at a couple performances and it sounded great (everyone got a kick out of its size, too)!

A hotter pickup is exactly what this thing needed to take it to a whole new level, and I would recommend doing this for anyone else who wants to get a little more out of their little investment.

One pickup. Normal scale. A switch for insta-fuzz at a single setting, volume and tone switch. Fat frets. I got a very early alder with foto flame top, but recently just got a mahogany one, as well, which is lighter and sounds just a bit warmer than this one.

I am a Fender single coil guy, so this sucker gets a big fat on me at times, a bit muddy, but it's so much fun and so useful that I forgive it.

Came out of the box pretty good. My one complaint about these guitars is that stringing them is a nightmare due to their design. I called the place and got a really nice guy - incredible customer service there - but all he could tell me on the subject was "it takes practice."

Well, all I had to do was buy some Schaller mini locking tuners and the problem is solved. I would recommend this fix to anybody having trouble stringing these axes. If you don't have a problem, more power to you. If you do, though, this really works well.

Feels solid as hell. Comes with a wicked little case, as well.

Great people on the US end. Guitar is Chinese-made.

I love it and want more of them now. Great little guitars. No replacement for my teles, but I would have no problem gigging with them. The only travel guitar that didnt' feel like a toy to me and held its own with bigger guitars.

SPECS...Made in China (circa 2007 ?); Alder body; Translucent Red Flame finish; Full-size (passive) Humbucker; 25-1/2" scale; 22 jumbo frets; Hard Maple neck w/ Ebonized Rosewood fingerboard; Chrome 14:1 tuning machines; Pearloid inlays; Body length=29-1/4" width=10-1/2" weight=5 lbs; built-in Custom Pocket Rock-It headphone amp w/ clean & distortion modes; also incl. are a deluxe padded High Sierra Travel Case and Traveler Guitar headphones w/ 1/8" plug.

My musical stylings run the gamut between Blues/Rock, Funk, Pop and Metal with sprinklings of Jazz, Classical and a smidge of SoCal Country (a'la The Eagles) to boot.

Tone-wise, tho, I'm a pretty straightforward, non-nonsense kinda guy: Guitar >> Vox Clyde McCoy reissue Wah >> Visual Sound H2O >> Ehx Stereo Memory Man w/ Hazarai >> Boss TU2 tuner >> Rivera Knucklehead Reverb 100 w/ Rivera K312 cab.

I'm not real big on pickup switching and knob-fiddling to grok different tones on-the-fly, as I prefer to alter my attack and approach to change the dynamics and sound of my playing. So with that in mind, the EG-1's single humbucker configuration is just fine with me. However, after plugging the EG-1 into my live rig (listed above), I found that the stock pickup's tone isn't really practical for MY personal needs. IMO it is adequate for soundchecking my rig when I don't want to schlep the Les Paul just for load-in, but at this time I don't see any need to gig with the EG-1 aside from the sheer novelty factor of its small size (e.g., EVH performing "Little Guitars").

I could, however, imagine the stock PU being adequate for less intense genre applications like Blues and Classic Rock perhaps, but for the edgier/heavier stuff I play on a regular basis, the stock PU just doesn't cut it. But in all fairness...I did not purchase this guitar with any sort of live application expectations--just merely a miniature full-scale tool of the trade that I can carry with me anywhere and everywhere.

SIDEBAR: Before purchasing the EG-1 I tried out a SPEEDSTER model at my nearest G.C., and the Speedster's Dual-Rail Humbucker sounded MUCH hotter/edgier than the full-sized stock PU in the EG-1. I was kind of hoping that the EG-1's PU would tout an even chunkier edgy sound once I got it home, but no such luck. That said, bring the EMG aficionado that I am, my plan is to eventually swap out the stock PU for an EMG-89 since the guitar already has a built-in 9V battery compartment.

As far as the Pocket Rock-It amp is concerned--which can be used for both personal practice with the headphones and as a supplement to whatever amplifier you're connected to--its tones are...well, like that of just about any headphone amplification system (i.e., pretty one dimensional and less than stellar). It's kinda nice to have a guitar with essentially a built-in clean boost/dirt box in case you were gigging with a clean amp and no outboard effects, though.

The volume and tone of the amp modes (Clean/Distorted) are directly controlled via the guitar's volume and tone knobs respectively, which might present a bit of a problem for anyone who has volume (dB)/hearing issues.

In other words...to get the best possible (read: usable) tones out of the Pocket Rock-It, I have to turn my volume and tone knobs all the way up, however, it makes it close to unbearable for this fervent earplug wearer. Therefore, when I'm practicing and learning new songs, I put my iPod earbuds in my ears first with the song I'm learning, and then I place the supplied Traveler earphones over them loosely and it seems to help a little. A few tweaks of the iPod's volume, and I can find a great balance between the music and what I'm playing.

The EG-1 was [surprisingly] set up great right out of the box. They set the action a skosh high for my tastes personally, but it was no real biggie as it was easy enough to dial down the string height with the top-slotted bridge posts. It has the body style and gorgeous flame of a mini-Les Paul, and it's neck is a comfortable "C" shape that is somewhat thinner than the SPEEDSTER model's considerably fatter (read: "half-a-bat") neck.

And while I tend to prefer smaller necks and medium-to-large frets, I found that these jumbos are quite comfortable consdiering. For anyone else with Carpal Tunnel issues like me, you'll be wise to use lighter gauge strings and detune down 1/2 step for the sheer ease of playability.

This pint-sized plank is a sturdy little unit for sure. I don't forsee any problems with its reliability and/or durability, as all the appointments are in order and it's clear to me that Traveler's 15+ years of guitar building experitise (along with that of master luthier John Carruthers) have resulted in what I hope to be a lifelong musical companion.

Never had to deal with them, so I can't really say, but judging by the user-submitted pics in the "photo lounge" section on their website, it's pretty evident to me that they have some loyal and satisfied customers. Which I guess I can now include myself in that capacity.

Ever since my early days of traipsing around the Summer NAMM shows in Nashville (and one Winter NAMM in Anaheim back in '97), I have always wanted to have a great travel-sized guitar that I could tote to the shows with me. I never liked the cheesy little Fernandes ones with the funky headstock and built-in speaker, but I felt the (now defunct) "Stump Preacher" travel guitars were right up my alley! I inquired on many occasions about purchasing a Stump, but the company reps were always rather snobbish (which is an immediate turn-off for me), and besides, the guitars were always too damn pricey for what little you were getting IMO [no pun intended].

Then along came Traveler Guitars, which gave me hope, that was...until I saw the silly "Stethophone" headset for private practicing. That was also an immediate turn-off to say the least, as I know how uncomfortable/painful real stethoscopes are. So I watched and waited for many years as the Traveler line evolved, and lo and behold...*finally*, the Escape EG-1 was born, and it was love at first sight.

Not only was the Escape EG-1 a spitting "Mini Me" image of my beloved main plank (a translucent Wine Red Epiphone Les Paul), but its built-in Pocket Rock-It amp and separate 1/8" headphone and standard 1/4" output jacks was the deal-sealer for me.

My ONLY qualms thus far would be the learning curve and slight difficulty of stringing up the tuners, and the lack of attenuation capability for the built-in headphone amp. For those minor reasons alone I am giving the EG-1 a '9', although I still feel that it's a fantastic value for what it is--literally speaking, THE BEST damn travel guitar I've ever laid hands on in my 27 years of guitar playing!

Even after test driving the SPEEDSTER model (which IMO is really only functional/playable when the Star Trek-inspired "teardrop" upper arm support is attached), I have found the EG-1 to be superior in function, form and overall playability.

If this badass little unit were ever stolen or damaged beyond repair, I would definitely buy another in a heartbeat--its simply that cool and handy to have around!

I absolutely love, love, *LOVE* the fact that I can easily and effortlessly take this guitar anywhere with me--work, school, the park, the mountains, etc., and even in the lavatory for when the muse strikes at those (ahem) inopportune times. ;-)

It's literally the first guitar that I can set in my lap and play in the the driver seat of my car without having to roll down the window to make room for the headstock.

Sometimes when I'm groggy after a big lunch and hitting a creative lull at work, I'll whip out the "Mini P" (as in "Les P.") and run through some scales to snap the ol' cerebellum back in shape and help me focus.

The EG-1 is a frickin' Godsend for this "Lifer" who has always wanted full-sized playability in a pint-sized package.