Is Sensus "the first real smart guitar"?

There's no stopping the relentless wave of technologically advanced guitars - whether they be Bluetooth iOS controllers, acoustic guitar MIDI control pads or guitars with built-in iPhone docks - but Stockholm's Mind Music Labs reckons it's nailed "the first real smart guitar" with the Sensus.

Pairing an acoustic/electric guitar with a 360° music system and the Internet of Things, the Sensus promises to "produce any sound or modulation" without using external amplification.

As opposed to many of its competitors, the Sensus is built with real wood - the same red spruce as Stradivari violins, apparently - but its body can also be used to channel an assortment of internal effects as well as any sound transmitted wirelessly to the guitar, with 360° sound reproduction.

Internet connectivity via an internal digital brain allows music streaming and playback, long-distance jamming and the ability to instantly share performances online - Mind Music Labs also claims you can record music in "studio-level quality" direct from the guitar.

Onboard effects - those demoed include modulation, delays, synth pads and a looper - can be controlled via a motion sensor, touch sensor, distance sensor and pressure sensors located on the guitar's body, as well as a ribbon sensor along the neck.

The Sensus is still at prototype stage, so there's no word on a release date or price yet, but mark our words, we'll be keeping a keen eye on its progression...

Michael Astley-Brown

Mike has been Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com since 2019, and an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict for far longer. He has a master's degree in journalism from Cardiff University, and 15 years' experience writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as 20 years of recording and live experience in original and function bands. During his career, he has interviewed the likes of John Frusciante, Chris Cornell, Tom Morello, Matt Bellamy, Kirk Hammett, Jerry Cantrell, Joe Satriani, Tom DeLonge, Radiohead's Ed O'Brien, Polyphia, Tosin Abasi, Yvette Young and many more. His writing also appears in the The Cambridge Companion to the Electric Guitar. In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock as Maebe.