A startup dipped its toe into crowdfunding waters more than a decade ago, to fund a quirky compact MIDI guitar for tunes while you travel. The idea grew into S-type hybrids a few years back, and now Zivix is back with its "most accessible MIDI guitar yet."
The Jamstik Core reportedly sports the same kind of MIDI technology found in its higher-end S-type instruments, but comes in a stripped back plug-and-play format.
"We've taken everything musicians love about our higher-end MIDI guitars and streamlined it into a sleek, plug-and-play package," said the company's Jonathan Keller. "The Jamstik Core offers a level of tracking precision and software integration that simply hasn't been available in this price range until now."
The Core can be used like a regular 22-fret electric guitar, and features a single humbucker with volume control that outputs through an analog instrument jack. But there's a second interface panel nearby on the body's rear edge that's home to a USB-C port and a 3.5-mm TRS-MIDI jack.
The USB-C port powers the onboard electronics while also providing a gateway to low latency MIDI mayhem. The instrument sports a hexaphonic pickup for tracking individual string action and feeding data to the Core's built-in processors. Zivix reports that its algorithms can register complex playing techniques like polyphonic bends, slides, hammer-ons and pull-offs, tapping and muting.
The setup can serve as a MIDI controller for use with digital audio workstations, plugins, transcription/notation software and virtual instruments. The TRS-MIDI can play nice with analog hardware like samplers and synths too. Analog and MIDI tones can be recorded simultaneously to cater for layering of traditional humbucker tones with digital wizardry.
A switch below the volume knob moves between single-channel, multi-channel or MPE (polyphonic expression) MIDI modes, with fine-tuning available through the included Jamstik Creator software package. A Control app is also available for modifying the instrument's settings and sounds.
The Core features a three-quarter-sized poplar body and roasted maple neck with a 25.5-inch scale length and 14-inch fretboard radius. Chrome hardware includes locking tuners. And the instrument tips the scales at 5.2 lb (2.35 kg), making it a fairly lightweight carry to gigs, rehearsal spaces or a mate's home studio.
Zivix has returned to Kickstarter to fund and promote its latest hybrid instrument. Super early bird pledges are available for US$479, which shaves $200 off the expected retail price.
Crowdfunding campaigns always have an element of risk, but Zivix has good form for delivering on its previous projects and is now a well established online retailer. If all goes to plan with this one, shipping is estimated to start from November.
Source: Zivix
