Traveler Guitar Escape MK-II Steel

Steel string acoustic-electric, made in China, spruce top, Baggs active pickup system with volume, bass, treble controls, amp/headphones switch, padded gig bad from High Sierra.

I own a nice steel string acoustic (Breedlove) and needed a guitar to take on gigs that was easy to bring along and sounded good through an acoustic amp or P.A. with almost no feedback. This guitar fits the bill very well and has a surprisingly rich sound for its size and design. It doesn't have all of the richness of a nice, mic'd acoustic; but the tradeoff in convenience and easy live set-up is well worth bringing this guitar to a gig - especially if it is a second instrument along with an electric. If I were doing an acoustic-only gig and had a good stage set-up with appropriate mic placement and feedback control, I might opt for my regular acoustic, but in most cases, I just need the steel string acoustic on a few songs and this is a great solution.

Normally I inspect every guitar I buy first; however, because this guitar is a 'production model' and not too expensive, I took a chance and ordered it online. The guitar's action was slightly high for my taste, but for an acoustic guitar it's about average and definitely playable as shipped from the factory. The action is very even and the intonation is excellent. I like this re-designed model as it is more comfortable to hold either sitting or standing as compared to the older Escape and Speedster models. The Traveler guitar fretboards are typically smooth and nicely finished and this guitar was no exception. The binding is white plastic and the tuning machines are decent, but what do you expect for a $500 guitar?

The real issue I've had with Traveler guitars is their tuning machines. I've owned a Speedster for about 4 years and until recently have been unable to have the guitar hold tune - after many string changes and proper break-in and tuning. I own mostly high-end instruments, as I play professionally, so I've not really needed to worry about my other instruments holding tune. While both the Speedster and Escape Mk II Steel offer decent tuning machines, the gear-ratio is only 14-1, and due to the way they are mounted and for other unknown reasons, they really don't cut it. I recently replaced the tuners on the Speedster with Grover Mini Locking Rotomatics (3x3) which IMHO should be stock hardware for these guitars. They hold tune well, are easier to re-string since they are the "locking" type, and offer better for fine-tuning - as they have an 18-1 ratio. I've just ordered another set for the Escape Mk II Steel, which has held tune better than the Speedster, but not good enough for my ear.

Other than that, the guitar seems well-built - as it is designed for travel; and being a solid-body instrument, I am not as worried as I would be traveling with an expensive acoustic. The pickup system and battery compartment are a bit fragile - as they are made of cheap plastic, but I am the careful type and not too concerned about damage to those parts.

I did contact Traveler about the tuning machines and they were very helpful. I know they care about their customers and their instruments and were even willing to take a look at my Speedster for free, which was out of warranty at the time I contacted them. I believe the warranty is 3 years, which isn't too bad.

I've been playing guitar for over 35 years and professionally for over 25. I play everything from rock to jazz, R&B, folk, latin, blues - you name it. As I said, I play mainly high-quality instruments, however, I would not hesitate to take the Escape Mk II Steel on a gig. I did consider other guitars in this category, but because the sound of this axe is so nice plugged into an acoustic amp in addition to being easy to add to my arsenal for a live gig, the combination of sound, playability and portability made it an easy choice.

You have to understand where the real value of this instrument resides: its small size (30" long) but yet standard scale. It is made in China (probably recent), has 22 frets, a solid maple body, L.R. Baggs Piezo, and a very nice spruce top. The tuners are embedded in the body of the guitar making the design very compact, yet still very pleasing to the eye (was not the case with the previous Escape model).

It is worth mentioning that the guitar comes with a very serious gig bag, that adds a lot of value to this traveling "solution". A tool to adjust the truss rod is also included. And some decent headphones (although I prefer my Koss Porta Pros)

I play a wide range of accoustic music ranging from folk, rock, celtic and some jazz. And the MK-II cover these satisfactorily, but remember this is a small, piezo guitar. The MK-II Steel comes with an integrated headphone amplifier that does a good job with the LR Baggs piezo. I could compare the sound with the Yamaha Silent Guitar: it has a DSP significantly compensating for the lack of natural acoustics. The MK-II has no such DSP, but in counterpart has a much longer battery life. The guitar sounds better plugged in a real acoustic amp. I would not hesitate performing live with the MK-II

Note that I also considered the beautiful Escape EG-1, but I found the lack of a neck pickup limiting in terms of musical opportunities. Maybe someday I'll get a Hohner G3T as a portable electric..

Action is never low enough, but I consider this one just fine. The guitar was "ready to play" right out of the box.

Satin finish is great and pleasing to touch. This is a well designed and well manufactured guitar, with adequate quality control.

It is a not only a pretty guitar, it is a real "serious" instrument.

This guitar looks very solid. It stays in tune for quite some time (maybe due to its headless architecture). Only had the guitar for 3 weeks, but everything indicates it will withstand all the abuse a travel guitar is supposed to go through. I would only question the solidity of the amplifier controls, as these are kind of small, but lots of piezo guitars share this concern.

I sent a question to Traveler before making the purchase, and was answered within 24 hours, by the company president. Not bad.

Been playing for >25 years, mainly on a jumbo Takamine N-20 and an Ibanez Artist AR300. After becoming a father and a traveling engineer, guitar practice became really difficult. Because of its convenient small size, the traveler is opening lots of new practice opportunities. Would definitely buy another one if lost.