My first real guitar was the Ibanez Xiphos. It was a perfect starting point– narrow neck, neck-through and string-through design, and maybe most importantly for my playing, two ceramic dimargio DeActivator pickups– very hot. I have it tuned to Open-C because I like the layering effect and it’s easy to play.

When I first got the new guitar, my first high quality guitar, a Gibson Les Paul Baritone, I really liked the feel. The difference in quality was very apparent, from the weight and balance, string responsiveness and overall resonance, it was superior. I have it tuned to Open-B because of the extended scale length– it lets me keep it low without the strings getting wobbly.

But as much as I like playing the Les Paul,  the tone was just too soft for me. It sounded tamped down, maybe muffled. Aficionados might call it “smooth and buttery” or whatever, but my guitar playing is meant to destroy entire universes, not butter my bread. I could send the signal through a bunch of processing and get it close to the chunk and bite of the Xiphos, but it was tough. I’d often find myself wailing on the strings during jam, sometimes probably a bit too much, in search of the tone I like.

After about two months of playing the Les Paul, two weeks ago I began playing the Xiphos again and found it to be better. The crunch and harmonics were just so satisfying and effortless, and I was cruising on it, psyched, re-motivated and productive. What to do?

The LP is a superior guitar in just about every other way– from the wood used to the rest of the hardware and overall design and balance. It stays in tune amazingly and feels like a tank, which I like. So the only real option was to swap the standard Gibson pickups out for something more powerful. A friend recommended hand-wound pickups by a UK company called Bareknuckle. Great name.

I corresponded with a person there about my style of playing and my guitar and we settled on the Warpig model— their highest power pickup. I grabbed a calibrated set, bridge and neck, and installed a couple days ago.

They’re freakin’ hot. Easily as hot as the D Activators and with a ton more bass response. I’ve played for about 6 hours with them now and I’m relieved and excited. The tone is fantastic and I think overall it’s just a superior match for the baritone. At jam a couple days ago, I was all over the place, loving all the surprises and capabilities that emerged. Especially with high-gain, high-distortion processing, the Warpigs are a whole new experience. I’ll post tracks up soon.

I might now have the perfect axe for my playing and my desired playing and am ready for a summer full of composing and recording.