LAVA ME 3 Smart Guitar - demo

Watch Paul Riario explore the future of guitar design with the “cutting-edge” LAVA ME 3 smart guitar. Carbon fiber acoustic boasts app-based touchscreen, built-in effects, looper, recorder, practice apps and much more!
#LavaMe3 #LavaGuitars

[Mishanw]

I purchased this after watching this and a few other videos. However what I found was that the guitar has tuning pegs that have a design flaw that essentially makes the guitar something that could break easily. Something users should know about. Additionally, the apps that has the lessons are very unintuitive and doesn’t really do a whole lot, it is nice however to lookup chords. The built in tuner isn’t quite accurate, the FX module doesn’t output quite as much sound as what’s on the YouTube videos. The 36” model was what I got and I found it difficult to play with as the neck is very small(probably great for people used to electric guitars) and the entire guitar doesn’t sit well and slips easily. Ohh one important thing that no one’s mentioned is that it does take time to boot up the guitar. There is a lot of influences and YouTubers who promote this guitar but it’s a highlight reel, and doesn’t quite cover all the ins and outs of the guitar and pain a very honest picture. Just wanted to share my 2 cents and what I found.

[alanwright]

I saw these when they first came out! I was sold then with all the neat features. I never ended up buying one until I saw the Lava Me 3 with the touch Screen. That was a game changer for me with all the added new features. And I’ll be 100% honest… this guitar sounds amazing with no mics on. You can tell the care they put into the sound profile and body shape of this amazing guitar!

[fastelder]

I've had the guitar for about two months. I bought it myself, so I wasn't as biased as some reviewers that were given guitars. If you're interested here's my pros & Cons:

Pros:
Guitar does sound great. it is a decent electric/acoustic, but really shines in being able to get on board effects without amplification

The guitar has nice finish & feel, however I'm used to playing a well set-up Taylor 614 so the action is just a smidge high for my taste. I may shave the bridge a bit eventually.
FX are great. Playing un-amped they add a good flavor. Forget about the distortion setting unless you're running through an amp.

Case is nice and solid and protects the guitar well. More on the case below.

Charger cradles the guitar snuggly and automatically charges the guitar. It's USB-C and doesn't come with a charger, so you may need an adapter for the cable.

Other than that, most reviews give a far better report on the capabilities of the instrument, so check them out like I did.

Cons. These are things no reviewer seems to be addressing:
My lava has a nice blue metallic finish. Looks very cool. While the guitar is made of carbon fiber, I'm not sure how well the finish will hold up. I'm pretty careful with all my guitars and most I've owned for decades and they still look almost showroom. My lava has a couple of minor scratches already that I have no idea where they came from.

ELECTRONICS. The touch screen is very sensitive and at the same time has a bit more of a lag than you would be used to on a smart phone. Most notable is the absence of any home button. You'll have to page back to get there. Additionally, due to the rounded shape, I have a tendency to lean over the body when I'm sitting and playing and my chest triggers the screen. I can tell when that happens, because the most annoying loud click accompanies any changes. If you're playing out, be prepared to settle on a set sound or template for the whole song. Shifting to another one is not as easy as hitting a button on a pedal.

I mentioned my chest activating the touch screen. Usually that would not be a problem. What is a problem is the Lava uses a nice machined strap peg THAT DOESN'T FIT ANY STRAP. If you like any kind of strap lock, forget about using it. Dimensionally the strap pegs are larger than the throat of any standard peg. I would have bought the Lava strap, but they have been out of stock. I use d'Addario straps with locking ends and it would take major modifications. So I broke down and bought a ice leather strap which I now have to ream out the hole to make it fit. I'm not sure if you could even swap out the stap pegs as they have no screw and I'm not ready to twist them off and create another problem.

CASE: It's amazing that you can drop a thousand bucks on a guitar and have to pay extra for a proprietary case, but hey, I'm made of money so I went for it. Case fits very well and is form fitting. It doesn't leave room for a strap (If I finally get one to fit) The case has nice padded shoulder pads, and looks like the type that a Japanese school girl would have. I personally don't care to strap a guitar on my back unless I'm trail hiking. The straps do not come off so love them or live with them. The case has a nice soft handle, but is nowhere near the center of balance and like a Gibson SG, suffers from severe neck dive. Seriously walk with this case for twenty steps and you'll opt for the school girl straps.

MOST DISSAPOINTING FEATURE: Support, period. Guitar came with no instructions other than to turn it on. The web site is absolutely no help. As I mentioned, being intrigued by the novelty of the guitar, I had to rely on reviewers, most of which were given the guitar. I do wonder what will happen when the rechargable battery goes south, or worse the electonic module. As far as I can see there's no parts support on the website.

CONCLUSION:With all this, I bought the guitar for the FX novelty and more importantly for the Carbon Fiber construction. I bought it so that I could have a guitar I could leave out in my studio and grab as I needed to practice or work out asome inspiration. My studio is in my basement and although it's dry, the winter requires me to fill a 5 gallon humidifier to keep optimum moisture levels. So it's a guitar that is not subject to temperature and humidity. That said, I'll keep it for what I intended. I doubt it will ever play out unless it's a barbeque or around a camp fire.

[BaronEurchild]

This is one of the coolest instrument innovations I have ever seen.

[cindyl]

My friend bought one and showed me the other day.
I think it’s a huge bonus to have a screen and all the software stuff on a guitar. You can play it quite well using the screen, and if you don’t want to use it, you can still play it like your regular guitar, as it comes with output jack, pick, and everything else you might need.

[zbh]

Got one nearly a month ago, and i just LOVE it! Everything is so perfect and just exactly what i wanted. Will be loving it more if the Loops app supports recording more tracks in the future.

[mannyliu]

It’s an awesome idea to make guitars this way. I bought one already, Worth trying out!

[Dessly]

I ordered my lava me 3 last week don't think I've ever been so excited on a guitar being delivered, I got the blue 38 inch model, I also ordered the space dock charging stand, and that just arrived yesterday and will be getting the ideal strap sometime next week, and even ordered the feedback suppressor that I had to send to a friend in another state as they won't deliver it to my state for some reason, and he had already recieved it and will be sending it to me soon.

[pearlvenus]

Seen many guitar related apps out there, but first time seeing them apps on guitars. May try it out some times.

[studioedin]

This is so cool man! I own a gibson hummingbird but honestly this would be fun to try

[rwjwith]

Pretty impressive…my concern would be like an iPhone or iPad in 4 years it would be obsolete because the OS could not be updated ! But then again it is a real guitar….

[Psionicon]

Ive read a lot of complaints on Amazon about the failure of the electronics and speaker, with some saying the guitar is just to thin and can easily be broken with even a drop from 6 inches.... I want one, but Im not sure I want to shell out over 1.2k to gamble with quality. Maybe if reviews get better, I may try, but some have said that customer service is little to none.

[bobbaxter]

I went to a guys house to buy an amp, and he started throwing guitars at me to try, he gave me this strange space age looking carbon thing, it was a Lava me 3, i couldn't put the thing down!!i loved it! :-)

[davidliang]

the stand looks cool, just wonder how it works? put the guitar in and? Could’ve explained more there

[wanyinglao]

Like the BLACKHOLE effect Paul plays at 4:51. Does it comes with more sounds like that？

[WysteriaGuitar]

Can I input a mic to this? I mean what do you expect singer guitar players to do?

[ngaiyinluk]

Just checked their site, the black one catches my eyes most.

[kimmaria]

Cool!! Love this innovative guitar and I gonna buy one this week:)

[outcastfpv]

Does it have an SD card or do you have to be connected all the time?

[Keeping-It-Real-]

If I didn't have Martin's and Taylor's. I might give it a shot