Matthew B.
First off I'd like to commend Donner for the excellent shipping time and customer service. I've never had a order come so fast, ordered Thursday came Saturday morning.
Packaging was great with guitar wrapped in gig bag. Accessories are always a bonus, guitar cable is better than Harley Bentons. Strap as well. Now for the guitar.
The only reason she's not a 5 star is the fact you'll need to make some adjustments. And if you are a beginner, you'd be most likely out more cash for a set up. Or worse, you'll play it as is not knowing it's full potential and having a subpar experience with it.
PROS: Quality vs Price!!!
Pickups.. are surprisingly above par. Especially middle setting(both humbuckers). There's a nice heavy blues quality to the tone.
The finish.. ( matte white) is suburb. Love that they painted the back of neck and headstock.
Looks..sharp AF. Headstock is badass and the pulse logo is more attractive than the music note donner logo. Sleek looks and the body is comfortable to play.
Playability.. Great neck, fast and furious. Thiner than a modern C but not jackson V thin. Nice in between.
Shipping time... as I said before, stellar.
Playability.. easy access to all 24 frets.
CONS: Tuners.. are meh. Not as bad as some but could be better.
Set up.. as I said, this baby needed a slight truss rod adjust, had to lower action as well, and intonation was off.
Fretwork.. I had to file and polish. Very sprouty in spots, again for a beginner, it would be a pain in the ass.
And that's about it.
OVERALL.. I wish I had this as a first guitar back in '91, at this price you couldn't get shit. Seriously, this is the golden Era for affordable quality guitars, and Donner are definitely in the running to be the best in this category.
Graham B.
Awesome little guitar. First guitar I've ever owned that wasn't used. Great price for such a sweet playing guitar.
Dave G.
Donner is a great company to do business with, very polite and helpful in all areas including warranty, they stand behind what they sell!
Steve B.
This is a killer guitar! I've reviewed several Donner guitars on my YouTube channel, and as a metal player I was super excited to get my hands on this one. It did need a neck adjustment and some setup out of the box, but with that tiny bit of work it plays like a champ!
The pickups are indeed high-output, punchy and aggressive. They sing in the leads and snarl in the rhythms. The neck is fast and comfortable, and the whole thing is a thrill to play. Easily holds its own with more expensive models, and will definitely be working its way into my studio and stage rigs.
See the full review here: https://youtu.be/d7BDFc8a_Lo
Cody G.
It's a nice guitar the frets could of been sanded down on the edges a little have this for almost 2 weeks it goes out of tune alot idk if it's me but ..I like it is it my favorite guitar not by a long shot but good for the price
Emver S.
Great guitar for beginners like me.
Eric B. M.
I'm primarily an acoustic guitar player, however when I do plug in i usually go to one of my arch top style electrics. I'm always on the lookout for new sounds and ordered the Donner DMT-100 to see how it might fit into my guitar lineup. While the DMT-100 is marketed as a beginner/youth level guitar, I think it could check a number of boxes especially given its relatively entry level cost. Donner is a newer, to me anyway, manufacturer/retailer of a wide array of lower priced musical instruments and accessories. I already own several Donner Guitar effects pedals and a Donner drum throne. While their pedals are quite a bit less expensive than some of the more established brands, they perform well, and Donner Customer support has been above average in my experience.
The DMT-100 arrived double double boxed, as many guitars do, with string tension removed. This guitar package included the DMT-100 guitar, padded gig bag, instrument cord, guitar strap, allen wrenches for adjusting the truss rod and bridge and a string dampener. A nice guitar package the lets you start playing right away if you have an amplifier.
The guitar has a low maintenance flat black finish, which the manufacturer states is scratch/scuff resistant. The neck is bolted on variety, often found on less expensive, though not necessarily inferior, guitars. High output pickups are used. The DMT-100 features carved out upper rear body for comfort, electronics access cover on rear, Donner tuning heads, three way pickup selector switch, volume and tone knurled rotary knobs for dialing in your desired sound.
The neck is stated to be Canadian Maple, with fretboard made of Indian Laurel. I was surprised to see a knot in the fretboard wood work. Not sure I've ever seen this before, but obviously a sign of a less expensive materials. The bridge is adjustable and has a through the body string termination at one end, with a plastic nut at the head. The size of the guitar may be small, yet all 22 frets seem to be accessible owing to the cutout design of the body. The overall look of the guitar suggests hard rock or a heavy metal approach, but it no doubt would work well as a general purpose electric guitar.
I stretched and tuned up the strings that came on the guitar, and plugged in to my signal chain/amplifier. After settling in, the guitar played surprisingly well. For the attached video clip, I recorded a short backing track using the DMT-100 on my loop station, and then added the melody part. The DMT-100 has a strong, solid sound and quite capable of some crunch. The neck width and string spacing is a bit closer than I usually prefer, but probably standard for an entry level guitar of this type. With the factory installed strings, the guitar stays in tune, has good intonation across the fretboard, and performs satisfactorily. New strings generally improve the sound of any guitar, and a set is included. At this price point, a professional setup is likely equal to the cost of the guitar, and may not justify the expense. The DMT-100 seems quite capable of producing some nice tones and sounds, depending of course on amplifier and/or effects. I think the DMT-100 would be a good choice as a first electric guitar for a beginning/younger person learning to play. A good choice as well, for someone looking for an inexpensive electric guitar. I'm looking forward to exploring the tonal potential further.
Giuse_luz
Thanks for @giuse_luz
Franck M.
Awesome for the price. I love the neck. Very good finish. Really easy to play. Pickups are good. Just put some locking tuners.
Jeff - Dallas, Texas
Got this to teach my grandson guitar. Price is excellent for the quality. I did not want to spend a lot on a guitar until he shows me is will keep up with it. Nice finish and sounds pretty good！
Miller
I would definitely recommend this guitar for a beginner but would have it set up at a guitar store. Great condition but they can adjust heights of strings, & extensive tuning. As well as making sure neck is straight which it looks wonderful now. A great gift for a new guitar player and a great value for the price!
Hondonian Rebel
It’s a good looking guitar. I really love the flat black finish. All the controls do their jobs. It’s a simple set up which is better than a whole bunch of knobs for a young player to fiddle with when he/she should be focused on simply learning to play. Volume, tone and pick selector- that’s it.
Jeff
Got this to teach my grandson guitar. Price is excellent for the quality. I did not want to spend a lot on a guitar until he shows me is will keep up with it. Nice finish and sounds pretty good
Richie Rich
It appears good.
Suxiaoma
Donner Electric Guitar is of great quality. The color and finish look nice. The neck provides a good hold. It is easy to play and the sound is pretty decent.
Steven Ferraro
The material and look are great, I love it!
Jeff Fleming
Well made no plastic fittings like you'll find on other manufacturers. Stayed tuned day after day.
Lawrence
Great product when setup correctly. Hard to put down. Changed the neck and bridge to my preference.
JeffY
Came setup perfect from shipper, great quality. I put on custom pickguard and covers have the guitar of my dreams
J. Hernandez
Very beautiful guitar, for now is a collectors edition until I learn to play it.
Dacoda Clark
I must have got lucky got have received one with a tiger stripe neck I was so happy,
Mine needed a standard set up took less than 5 mins with the tools provided with the guitar.
The pickups wont disappoint you, get it now while you can, I'm not gonna bash names but I'll say this, you're on top Donner.
Spade Simon
This thing is beautiful
Rick Humelsine
This is really a good instrument. Better than some similar products I have also bought. The workmanship, sound, and feel are as good as any guitar I have seen anywhere.
Steve Viau
Its has the quality of guitars that cost a-lot more money! Awesome guitar!
Liz
For what it's worth, I know nothing about guitars, as I'm more of a keyboards, & sax guy. I bought this to learn guitar for myself. That said, my guitarist friend, who's experience spans well over 40 years, played my new guitar with his jaw on the floor! He was impressed right away with the quality of the neck, and said it felt really good in his hands. He praised its ease of playability and the low string action on the neck. He loved that it's equipped with a humbucker and was floored by the power it put out. He DID suggest upgrading the tuning knobs, but was still surprised as to how long the guitar stayed in tune after making it sing like a cat in the rain. Finally, he commented on the beautiful tone it produced. When I told him what I paid for it, he couldn't believe it. He agreed that it's not really necessary to spend what he spent for his Fender Strat, for a nice sounding guitar like my new Donner. He said that he would definitely gig out with it.
Jennie Milburn
I love this guitar and it was a great deal for the money. I am a beginner and this guitar is perfect for me. I highly recommend this guitar for any beginner or someone that's been playing for a long time.
Venus
Great guitar for anyone.
Duane St John
I'm no expert musician but have an entry level Yamaha electric that I play now and then. It was more expensive than this Donner, came with no strap and no case and certainly no cable, and all things considered materials and construction quality wise it is a bit nicer but not by a whole lot. I feel like with other brands beginner instruments, you're paying a premium for the name and honestly if you're shopping for a first guitar for a kid that is curious but nobody is sure will stick with it or not I think this Donner kit is going to be hard to beat. There isn't anything outright cheap about it, the quality is not anything like even a nice intermediate instrument but it doesn't look or feel like a piece of junk toy either. The biggest issue I've noticed with this over the short time I've messed around with it is that the tune drifts more than I'm used to seeing with my other guitar. The guitar sounds more than fine for the low cost and no beginner will know or care about the difference anyway while getting started. For the money, I can't see any issue. For around the same cost you can look at the Les Paul SL line of guitars, I haven't personally held one of those but they look even less premium than the Donner and come with no accessories - again, likely paying for the name.
SeattleKevin
You can’t beat the value of this guitar for the money. Very nicely built. No rough frets. Only downside for me is the pickups could be a little better, but then again, look at the price. Beautiful looking guitar.
WingNut
Sounds very clear and crisp, easy to play and very affordable. Easily compares to higher end branded guitars
Rick Humelsine
This is an amazing guitar out of the box. I don't get the idea of beginner guitar. Like saying there is a beginner car. Lots of options and prices but it's still a car. That's how I'm looking at this guitar as a guitar for the price and you get it all here. Beginners and pros alike will love how easy it plays. The H-H does a great job and sounds sweet Beautiful looking green alder makes your want to pick it up even just to look at it. What more do you want?
Dori
Playing this guitar for the last 3 days and I really love it. Bought 2 other bargain priced guitars and this one is my favorite.The guitar plays great and feels easy and comfortable. Most of the tones I'm getting sound great! I have Fender MIM HSS Player special with a Floyd Rose trem system, Love my Strat!
Being totally honest, after I gave this Donner the tune up detailed below, I think I like the feel of the Donner better than my $900 Strat! Not comparing tone , just ease of how it plays and feels in my hand.
