Jamstik Guitar Controller – Rock Out On The Go!

Have you ever wanted a way to learn the guitar that was easier than traditional methods? Or have you ever wanted a way to input some of your riffs into Garageband? That’s where Zivix has come up with a nifty gadget called the Jamstik Guitar controller.

The Jamstik is the second product from their startup. The Jamstik was crowd funded after being shown at CES 2013 and is an answer to portable MIDI keyboards to piano players.

Is it worth your time and is it worth the price? Lets dive in!

PRICING AND AVAILABILITY 

The Jamstik is currently available for $299 on Amazon and only comes in one configuration with the controller and included apps.

It can also be used as a MIDI Device on MAC’s and PC’s with the included USB charging cable.

PACKAGING AND SPECIFICATION 

The Jamstik is packaged in a thick double walled cardboard, with a small plastic window to show the Fretboard.

The product is surprisingly small coming in at only 2.5” x 4” x 18” and weighing only 2.4 pounds making it ideal for traveling musicians. On the back we see more of the specifications and details.

The Jamstik comes with 6 actual guitar strings and 5 frets. These strings are connected to trigger points and uses light sensors to detect where your fingers are to interpret the sound it should make, which it does a very good job of.

On the side of the Jamstik is a D-Pad for transposing, and shifting octaves, answering one of the questions we had initially “What are 5 frets going to do as a guitar controller.” The D-Pad works well and is a solid solution to the problem.

Moving on, the device connects through a wired connection via the charging cable (you will need an adapter like this one) or through Ad-Hoc WiFi, this puzzled us as wifi typically has more latency issues than Bluetooth, and is more easily interfered with or disconnected.