Loog Pro & Mini Acoustic Guitar Review

In his quest to come up with a smaller and simpler version of a standard adult-size guitar for his 6-year-old niece, a guitarist built the Loog mini guitar as part of an academic project at the New York University.

The concept proved to be successful after launching on Kickstarter not once, but 2 times. Loog guitars have been in full swing ever since.

Let’s have a look at this kid’s guitar and what it has in store for young guitar enthusiasts.

Features and opinion of Loog Mini and Pro acoustic guitars

Loog makes 2 acoustic guitars for children: the Loog Pro, and the Loog Mini.

The unique feature of Loog guitars it that they only have 3 strings. 3 strings are all you really need to hold down a chord, so you (and your child) can make real music on these tiny instruments.

The tuning is G B E, which is the tuning of the higher 3 strings on a normal 6 string guitar.

What is the difference between the Loog Mini and Pro?

They are meant for different age groups.

The tiny Loog Mini is made for children aged as low as 3. But that’s not rational really. A 3-year-old will not play guitar at all. They will fool around with it and smack it around 🙂

The Loog Pro is a bit larger and has steel strings, so it is marketed to kids above 8.

Here is a table comparing the 2 guitars:

	Loog Mini	Loog Pro Acoustic
Body	Basswood	Basswood
Neck and fingerboard	Maple	Maple
Strings	Nylon	Steel
No. of frets	15	18
Neck and fingerboard	Maple	Maple
Scale	15.6″ (1/2 scale)	20.4″ (3/4 scale)
Length	22.2″	29.2″
Width	6.9″	8.8″ lbs
Weight	2.2 lbs	4 lbs
Current price	Check	Check

Here are some pictures of the Loog Mini:

• 

• 

• 

• 

And here are some images of the redesigned Loog Pro acoustic:

• 

• 

• 

• 

Neck & Body

Let’s begin with the most obvious question: is this mini guitar a ukulele?

Despite its tiny body being similar to a concert ukulele’s, it isn’t one. In fact, the Loog’s strings and tuning reminisce the 1st three of a full-sized 6-string guitar. The concept behind its design is that once your child has honed their confidence and skills with the Loog’s strings, they can now graduate to an adult guitar much more easily.

We don’t have a lot to say about the Loog’s body build. For a pocket-friendly kid guitar like this, the construction quality here is decent and robust enough to withstand some level of abuse by an enthusiastic child.

Luckily, no plastic has been used in the body or neck. Both are natural wood-made. What’s more, the body is funky and looks cool, incorporating a 1950s retro-style. The instrument comes in a wide range of color finishes: red, black, yellow, green, white and pink.

With its lightweight 3-string size and low action, the Loog mini guitar is of great playability as a musical tool for tiny hands. This design enables your kid to wrap their tiny hands around the instrument’s fretboard and easily make chords without having to stretch too much.

Hardware

Looking at the Loog, we can term its hardware basic but highly functional for small hands. At the very top of the instrument, there are 3 open-geared tuners bearing chrome buttons on the Pro, and white buttons on the Mini. These are backed up by a miniature wooden bridge that works to maintain the stability of the tuning.

The Mini’s classical nylon-made guitar strings are soft on your child’s fingers, while the steel-stringed Pro version is louder and fuller.

Loog Flashcards and lessons

To get your kid playing even faster and easier, when you purchase a Loog guitar, you also get a number of flashcards with diagrams that elaborate on how to play notes and chords in a fun-simple way.

Furthermore, you can access the Loog Guitar app on your Android or iOS smartphone for tuner functionality, some audiovisual lessons, and a songbook containing tunes from renowned artists like Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift, and the Beatles.

These learning aids are nice to have, especially if you plan on teaching your child yourself.

Sound

Obviously, you didn’t expect complex overtones here, did you?

But for such a tiny and wallet-friendly mini guitar like the Loog, we really loved the sound! However, due to its miniature size, it’s understandably a little bit quiet and tiny. The Mini’s sound actually reminisces that of classical guitars. The Pro is a bit fuller and richer, but far from a full-sized, or even a 3/4 scale guitar.

All in all, both Loog acoustic guitars produce decent volume for child practice. Sound clarity is good and the toning is quite balanced.

Video review of the Loog Pro acoustic guitar

About Loog Guitars

Loog is a New York-based guitar company, founded by music teacher Rafael Atijas. Loog started out as an idea, which received funding from Kickstarter in 2011. The founder wanted to create an easier way for kids to be able to learn the guitar, which is why he came up with the 3-string concept.

For the initial Kickstarter project, there was only 1 Loog acoustic guitar.

They launched a 2nd Kickstarter project in 2017m where they debuted an improved version of the original Loog acoustic (Pro), a new Loog Mini version, and also an electric guitar version (Loog Pro Electric).

Other Loog guitar reviews and recommendations

Loog made quite a bang with their innovative guitars, so they have received lots of reviews. Here are a few worthwhile of mention.

Wired.com

Wired wrote a lengthy review of the original Loog guitar. They noted that the quality of manufacturing was good, and the overall style was one that kids would be attracted to. They feel the Loog guitar is the perfect way to get kids interested in the guitar. Read more…

---

Samash.com

Samash mentions that thanks to the tuning of the little Loog guitars, everything a child learns can be applied on a 6-string guitar as well. The new, 2017 version dramatically improves on the sound and playability of the original 2011 version. Read more…

What customers say about Loog acoustic guitars

If you are wondering what real customers of the guitars say on Amazon, here you go. You can read more customer reviews here.

One customer talked about how she is learning guitar along with her daughter. The strings are great for her daughter’s little hands, and the quality time they spend together is priceless.

---

Another Amazon customer had a problem with the guitar, the nut fell off. The company advised him to glue it back with superglue, but the glue ended up smearing the guitar. He was sent a replacement model though. He also enjoys learning guitar with his son through the Loog app.

---

A customer talks about how his 5-year-old daughter was strumming chords within 1 day of getting the guitar. He thinks this is the perfect beginner guitar on the market.

---

Another Amazon customer complements the build quality of the Loog. His 4 year old son has not damaged the guitar, which is good news considering how kids throw things around.

You can read more reviews here.

Final verdict

Being a mini guitar with only 3 strings, the Loog definitely hits above its weight.

Its pricing range is very affordable for such a basic but fun-filled musical instrument. It’s a great piece for your kids’ first guitar lessons, though they’ll most likely outgrow it within a year or so. But rest assured that they won’t outgrow it before enjoying its full value!