Ibanez EWP12EWB-OPN Open Pore Natural Gitalele

Ibanez EWP12EWB-OPN — A Steel-String Piccolo Acoustic That Travels Anywhere

The Ibanez EWP12EWB-OPN is a steel-string piccolo acoustic guitar that shrinks the full guitar experience down to a tenor-sized body. The EWP12EWB-OPN pairs a compact Cutaway Tenor Style EW body with a 17-inch (432 mm) scale, giving players a familiar six-string layout in a frame small enough for a couch, a hotel room, or a campsite. Steel strings and a 42 mm nut width make any guitarist feel at home from the first chord. An onboard Ibanez AEQ-2U preamp with built-in tuner turns the same instrument into a stage-ready electro-acoustic the moment a cable is plugged in.

What Makes the EWP12EWB-OPN Stand Out

What separates this piccolo from a typical guitalele is its true steel-string voice and full acoustic-electric electronics. The undersaddle pickup feeds the AEQ-2U preamp with dedicated bass and treble knobs and a built-in digital tuner, so the EWP12EWB-OPN can be played unplugged for quiet practice or amplified for live performance without changing instruments. An abalone soundhole rosette, a Florentine cutaway for upper-fret access, and Chrome Die-cast tuners give the little body a more grown-up feel than its size suggests.

Body, Neck and Electronics — Built for Playability and Plug-and-Play

The combination of acacia tonewoods, an okoume neck and a purpleheart fretboard gives the EWP12EWB-OPN a warm, articulate voice with the snap you expect from steel strings. The compact body dimensions keep the instrument light and comfortable to hold, while the slim neck profile and 400 mmR fingerboard radius keep chord shapes and lead lines easy under the fingers.

• Top: Acacia — paired with acacia back and sides for a warm, woody character in a small body
• Back & Sides: Acacia — keeps the tonal balance consistent from top to bottom
• Neck: Okoume — lightweight wood that adds playing comfort on a short-scale neck
• Fretboard: Purpleheart — dense, durable surface that emphasizes the rich tonal character of the guitar
• Bridge: Purpleheart — transfers string vibration directly to the body for a natural, warm response
• Finish: Open Pore Polyurethane — lets the acacia breathe while keeping the surface fingerprint-resistant
• Pickup & Preamp: Ibanez Undersaddle pickup with AEQ-2U preamp and onboard tuner — accurate acoustic reproduction plus stage-ready EQ
• Scale Length: 432 mm (17") — short enough for travel, long enough to feel like a real guitar
• Nut Width: 42 mm — comfortable for guitarists used to standard spacing
• Factory Tuning: A-E-C-G-D-A (1A, 2E, 3C, 4G, 5D, 6A) — matches a guitalele so the EWP12EWB-OPN plays alongside ukulele repertoire
• Bridge Pins: Ibanez Advantage — easier to grip and replace than standard pins, with a bulb end that prevents over-insertion
• Package Contents: Gig bag included — ready to travel the moment it leaves the shop

Who the Ibanez EWP12EWB-OPN Is For

The Ibanez EWP12EWB-OPN is the right choice for travelling guitarists, songwriting guitarists and stage performers who need a compact, fully featured acoustic that still feels like a real guitar. Its 17-inch scale and 42 mm nut make it a natural second instrument for guitarists who want something smaller for hotel-room practice, while the built-in AEQ-2U preamp and undersaddle pickup mean it can step in for a main acoustic on smaller gigs. Players who already enjoy guitalele repertoire will appreciate that the factory A-E-C-G-D-A tuning lines up directly with a standard ukulele, so the EWP12EWB-OPN sits comfortably in a uke jam as easily as it does in a guitar session.