GregP

I forgot to mention the springs that you put between the pickup and the bottom of the cavity. ;-)

So nice! Love the natural with the subtle "vintage" burst.

The magnetic fields aren't laser-precise and localized to only the area of the slugs, so you're probably going to be fine. If you can fix it, though, fixing it to ensure optimal placement is a better choice. How difficult would it be to address the issue?

Nice! I like the way the mini-bucker seems to fit in there without too many hassles-- and due to the cover, it blends in more with the pickguard than the single-coils, so it doesn't look all that crowded. How does she sound?

On a soapbar p90, the screws go through the cover, through the core of the pickup, and directly into the wood. You just need to drill a pair of holes of the right size. Be very careful not to drill holes that are too big, or you'll have to fill them in and start over again.

Usually the ones that load from the back have the screws staggered from the centre of the saddles, to let the strings pass through. Like this one: http://store.guitarfetish.com/topmohabrfit.html

I only have 2 things to say: 1. Thank God I'm not an extended range bassist 2. Awesome-looking work!

No, he means: Is it a good bridge, and do you like it? Have you had any problems with it? Does it seem to be made with quality?

Compared to shielding a guitar with single coils, shielding a guitar that has NORMAL humbuckers has minimal returns on investment. Multiply this again by a factor of 5 or so, and you'll discover that painstakingly shielding a guitar that uses EMG pickups is going to be a negligible difference at best. You'd be hard-pressed to record the difference using audio equipment and software, though you might notice "something." With the naked ear? Doubtful. As for versatility, I can't comment with a great deal of honesty. My own EMG-equipped guitar won't be with me for another several months yet. But it's worth noting that the KFK set is marketed for punishing output, etc... not for versatility. My understanding is that any EMG can clean up fairly nicely but that the clean tone has a broadband "hi-fi" kind of sound to it. I know that lots of artists use single-coil EMGs and get nice clean bell-like tones (Knopfler, Gill, Gilmour), so I can't help but imagine that even the humbuckers will clean up fairly nicely by rolling the volume back a bit. But I wouldn't personally guarantee it as I'm not the voice of experience here. I bet you could Google for a variety of terms ("EMG 81 clean" + "EMG 85 clean") and you'll find other people in the world who have asked the question and may have gotten answers. In order to ensure versatility, I would think that you should look into a additional active EQ. I've heard good things about the VMC, which is marketed for bass but which EMG themselves have confirmed for me is also appropriate for guitar. Greg

I agree that those deals were just godawful, and EVH is a questionable character. But I wouldn't say they got "nothing". The original EBMM sold well enough, and became the Axis which sells well. It was the exposure via Ed's endorsement that the shape caught on. The Wolfgang is already a modern classic, though I personally prefer the EBMM guitar. And the 5150, while being IMO a bit of a "one trick pony" sold very widely and was used by a number of other 'name' artists as well. I don't know about Kramer. They're still associated with EVH in many ways, but I can't say that their deal was lucrative or not... I don't know enough about that particular era. Fender will be the only ones losing out *UNLESS* the amp is so good that it stands out -regardless- of his name. The name can help push it into some people's radar, but it'll be the quality of the amp that makes it or breaks it. If it's mediocre for that price, it'll tank badly. But reviewers for most of the major guitar magazines are surprisingly objective-- I think if it's a great amp, it'll get a push and EVH's name won't hurt. Greg

Cool. I said I was skeptical about the nuts, not that I "knew." Now I'm not skeptical. Cheers!

The shape isn't horrible, but something about the armrest-area "bout" has always seemed out of place to me with that design. It's a bit oversized or something... hard to identify.... On the whole, I don't really like the aesthetic of the shape much, but it obviously spoke to you (hence, doing a tribute to it), so that's enough for anyone. But in any event, lookin' good.

I can't imagine it working. Even as a nut, I'm skeptical-- sure, people have done it, but has it worked out well in the longterm? I'm sure people have made gold frets before, too, but I don't see that as a great idea. Lots of softer materials have been used for nuts, but I wouldn't want to use THOSE either... for example, ivory, bone, and whatever Graph-Tec is made from (not exactly 'graphite' I don't think, despite the name). In addition to just being brittle and easy to grind down, I can't imagine how you would crown a pearl fret.

Frankly, looks pretty bad from over here. Hard to say how much of it is due to the poor photo, though. It's rather 'blobby' compared to how most people imagine a swirl. Looks almost like it's been sanded down, with different colours at different levels. But an unfinished sanding job, rather than an intentionally 'interesting' one. Greg

There's no reason to suspect there being problems with EMI, if thousands and thousands of commercial guitars (including some of Ibanez's best) have come with the combination. ;-)

I don't understand the question. Isn't it self-evident that you can use whatever pickup combination you want? But if it's popular approval that you're after, there are thousands of commercially-available guitars with a Hum-Single-Hum configuration, and indeed Ibanez Jem and Universe, not to mention many of the "RG" models, should serve as a starting point. I mean... it's one of the most popular guitar pickup combinations ever, particularly for "shred" superstrat guitars. Surely you have seem this pickup combination thousands and thousands of times...! If the question is, "would it be easy?" then I guess it would depend entirely on your starting point, what you're willing to engage in (eg. stripping a guitar's finish, routing a new cavity, etc...), and what your resources are. But that's not what your question seemed to be.

I used more than a few small dots for my lap steel, because the nut was intentionally tall and I didn't want the pressure over the nut (which doesn't go perfectly straight down) to knock the thing off. It is Krazy strong and ain't going anywhere.

why? <shrug>

Your first conclusion was correct-- in addition to the inimitable (his fingers), his tone comes more from his effects and amp than the pickups. This is evidenced by the wide variety of pickups he has installed on various guitars: Neck: Blaze, PAF Pro, Evo, Breed Bridge: Blaze, Evo, Evo 2, Breed, Evo 7 I think you're pretty safe to get a pair of Evos, or an Evo 2 in the bridge and an an Evolution in the neck. According to the website (all this information is exceedingly easy to find at DiMarzio.com...), the Breed pickups are put onto a special guitar that he uses for a more typical PAF sound. Greg

The pickups, bridge, and tailpiece (plus the 'neck heel area') will help keep everything secure, meaning that you can put fewer magnets. And if the strongest of them (or more likely, highest concentration) are out on the tips of the "V", they're very unlikely to interfere with the electronics. For putting a magnet or two near the pickup or neck area (which is also close to the neck pickup) you'd certainly have to experiment and test, but I still think it could be done.

CMA's generally got it right. And for the Red Sensor, 250k pots should do it. But keep in mind that it's not just a matter of "active" vs. "passive." That's not going to always work as a guideline. The pot value is dependent on inductance and resistance rather than "active vs. passive". Which is why even in the passive world, you can use different pot values for different applications. Only going by memory, because Google isn't helping me at all-- but Duncan LiveWires use 100k pots, and Lace Transensors (incl. Alumitone) use different pots as well (can't remember the value).

Looks great! Long live headless. PTU: one of the features of the ABM headless neckpiece that they don't make extremely clear in their literature is that you can use regular strings. (screws lock down each individual string). So as long as your bridge can also accept ball-ends (eg. Steinberger bridges and copies) then you can mix-and-match with the ABM headpiece and you're set. Steinberger used to make an attachment for their headpieces that would do the same thing... but I haven't seen any ever since MusicYo stopped carrying them.

Teh funnay. In seriousness, though, it would take a bit of work to make a top swappable like that... you'd have to design everything with that possibility in mind, or it'll be impossible to change without also having to change strings, unscrew and rescrew the pickups, pots, etc. To me, the main benefit of it being 'removable' is that you get a seamless-looking top (the whole thing's a giant 'pickguard' for electronics mounting, etc.) but retain the ability to get into the control cavities if need be, for pickup and wiring upgrades/replacements, etc.

Not sure if this is similar to what Tim's saying or not, but: When the top's on, there will be all MANNER of opportunities to hold it in place, even without routing an 'inlay' for the top. Pickup and control cavities... stringthrough bridge or tailpiece... bridge posts (if you go that route). There are dozens of possibilities for holding the top in place, in addition to the magnets. You just have to pick any of them and make it work.

You could find a way to make it work, for sure. For example, having it 'surround' the "heel" as though it's a small neck pocket will prevent movement on one side. A stickie-outie thingy in the neck area would prevent 'shearing' movement on the other end.. and rare earth magnets are apparently hella strong, so a few of those around the top and the problem might become getting it OFF!