The travel-guitar concept is well-established, but Donner is attempting to one-up the field with its new headless Hush X.

Something of a modular axe, the Hush X arrives in a diminutive case; just open and attach the guitar’s two metal “wings” to the body, creating a guitar shape and thigh-rest for easy lap playing. If you want a stronger Steinberger vibe, leave the wings off when you play while standing up. For travel convenience, you can plug into an amp or use headphones with the mini-plug jack; there’s also a tiny “handle” on top of the nut, for picking up the Hush X or hanging it on the wall.

The Hush X has a mahogany body with a neck-through design and smooth, matte-oil finish, so you can feel the wood grain. The neck sports 22 frets, a 403 mm (approximately 15.8″) radius, and a 25.5″ scale. Also look for a zero fret.

For electronics, there’s an Alnico-style single-coil pickup at the neck and a humbucker at the bridge. Interestingly, you can run the Hush X as a normal passive guitar, but switch to active electronics to run the headphones and preamp powered by a 9-volt battery. There’s a 1/4″ output for guitar amps or a mini-plug out for small travel speakers. The headless design and fine-tuner bridge work effortlessly. The battery compartment on the back offers clever access to the underside of the bridge, to assist when changing strings.

In hand, the Hush X balances well and the thigh-rest wing makes the body comfortable. Its neck is the extra-chunky, particularly above the ninth fret, but that presumably provides stability and strength during actual travel. Our tester arrived with very high action, which made fretting a challenge, so a setup was in order.

The Hush X offers solid construction, priced affordably, and sounds like a solidbody should.

This article originally appeared in VG’s June 2024 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.