Hils Next HN5 Met. Deep Purple

Hils Next HN5 Met. Deep Purple review

The Hils Next HN5 Met. Deep Purple is a compact, headless electric guitar with a mahogany body, a roasted maple neck, and a metallic purple matte finish. It weighs 2.6 kg, a clear advantage if you prefer a light instrument. The shape is appealing, and the feature list is substantial for a guitar priced at 518. My experience, however, left a gap between its attractive specification sheet and its practicality as an everyday instrument.

Build, finish, and setup

The body is mahogany, with no separate top. Its bolt-on roasted maple neck has a slim C profile and a rosewood fingerboard with white dot inlays. The 648 mm scale length is close to a standard long-scale electric guitar. Hils fits 24 medium stainless steel frets and a compound fingerboard radius that transitions from 12 to 16 inches. The nut is bone, and measures 42 mm across.

Construction was adequate rather than especially refined on the guitar I tried. I found a paint mark, despite the stated quality-control process. The setup was acceptable, though most players will want to adjust the action to suit their touch. That is ordinary setup work, but the cosmetic flaw did little to support confidence in the final inspection.

The guitar's low weight is its strongest immediate comfort point. At 2.6 kg, it feels easy to handle and makes sense for someone seeking a travel-friendly instrument. Yet the strap-button placement undermines that advantage. The attachment points felt poorly positioned in use, limiting which straps worked comfortably. Hils has designed the guitar so it can stand upright on the floor without a stand, but that feature does not compensate for the awkward strap ergonomics. The result feels more convenient as a room guitar than as an instrument intended for varied playing situations.

Hardware and controls

The HN5 uses an Alchemy headless tremolo, titanium locking tuners, and black hardware. It ships with.010 to.046 strings and includes a gig bag, but no hard case. The locking tuners are an unusual premium touch at this price. Still, I had doubts about the long-term durability of the hardware, especially the tremolo. Its construction looked less reassuring than the material claims might suggest. That is an impression from handling and use, not proof of a failure, but buyers who rely heavily on a tremolo should factor in the concern.

Controls are straightforward: one volume knob, one tone knob with a push-pull coil-split function, and a three-way toggle switch. The two Hils humbuckers provide the HH configuration, while the push-pull control offers a brighter, thinner split-coil option. The control layout is simple to understand, though the single tone control gives less direct adjustment than a setup with separate tone controls for each pickup.

Sound and playing experience

The pickups were the least convincing part of my trial. The sound struck me as flat and lacking character. The original playing impression described them as active, although the supplied specification lists two Hils humbuckers without confirming whether they are active. I would not assume an active design from the specification alone.

With heavy distortion, the pickups can do the basic job. For that kind of playing, their direct response may be enough. Clean tones and more nuanced gain settings are less satisfying in my experience, where the sound did not offer much depth or touch-sensitive variation. Players who move between clean, lightly driven, and distorted sounds may want more expressive pickups. The coil-split function adds a different voice, but it does not resolve the broader concern about tonal character.

Verdict

At 518, the Hils Next HN5 offers a light mahogany body, stainless steel frets, a roasted maple neck, a headless tremolo, and a gig bag. On paper, that is a compelling package. In use, its strap-button placement, the paint flaw on my example, doubts about the tremolo, and underwhelming pickups make it harder to recommend without reservation.

The HN5 may suit a player who values low weight, likes the headless format, and mostly plays with heavy distortion. Anyone shopping for a versatile main guitar should try it with their own strap and amplifier before buying, and pay close attention to the tremolo feel and pickup response. The price makes the specification list appealing, but a good deal and a satisfying guitar are not always the same thing. My own experience did not persuade me to keep it.