I was recently in my local guitar store, doing the usual: shooting the breeze, building up the courage to ask if I could try a Dennis Galuska Masterbuilt Fender Custom Shop masterpiece… when the owner started to play what looked like a retro iMac crossed with an acoustic guitar. That model was a Lava Music acoustic, which he warmly praised as his go-to noodler – and which, by happy circumstance, is currently reduced by up to 25% at Guitar Center.
If you haven’t seen one before, they are colorful, carbon fiber/HPL builds that incorporate some mad features, like multi-touch displays, built-in effects, tuners, and even recording capabilities.
I am not going to sit here and tell you that a phone-friendly, carbon fiber guitar is the only instrument you’ll need in your life, but if you’ve got your basic acoustic and electric guitar bases covered and you’re after something that is fun to noodle about on for practise and writing duties, the Lava is worth a look.
The screen is actually responsive, you’ve got a wealth of effects at your disposal and, if you want to let your freak flag fly, there are some genuinely weird and wonderful tonal presets available at the (literal) touch of a finger.
The proprietor of the guitar store I mentioned deals mostly in pretty high-end electric guitar gear – think Custom Shop tier and vintage stuff – and does not even stock the Lava models, so his enthusiasm caught my attention.
I’ve since seen them pop up all over YouTube, too and, if you want to check one out, they’ve been through the hands of pretty much every six-string influencer in the land now.
Meanwhile, if you’re looking for more affordable acoustic options in the sales, check out our Cyber Monday beginner acoustic deals round-up, or for a wider variety, head to our Cyber Monday guitar deals page.
