Super Sub

Re-string Monday, folks. The EBMM SUB1 got some playing time today. I keep this guitar in a hard case & the strings just rusted like I dipped them into sea water or something. Its a serious case of metal against hard case fur. The old strings felt sticky & it could only mean that there's some reaction between the strings & the adhesive that seeped through the fur lining. I wiped those strings before keeping it so the rust could not have been caused by organic hand fluid. 

Whatever the case, GHS to the rescue. I would have preferred D'Addarios but Davis GMC ran out of 9s in the mean time. 

My DiMarzio Super 3 humbucker rests here in the mean time. I features black pole pieces so these blend in nicely with the overall black demeanour of the instrument as seen in the first pic. I did not intend for this one to be an all black, stealth mode type but it happened. I still feel sore that EBMM had chosen to discontinue the SUB series of instruments as they are definitely vale-for-money instruments. The SUB label is now a Sterling affair & if that was an attempt to cascade the vibe into the Sterling range, it sorely missed the point.

The Super 3 is a high output, midrange heavy pickup. Its brand of chugging features some gristle that metal dudes will embrace. The pickup was set lower into the body to prevent wolf tones from manifesting as I always put my distortion on overdose. If there's an equivalent to this in the Seymour Duncan camp then it has to be the Full Shred. 

EQ pic: DiMarzio

Happy failure but the end

I terribly disliked the default pickups in my Ibanez SIX6FDFM (Iron Label Series, discontinued). Since I have the time & a little extra in the piggy to get this right (always grateful for His providence), I bought Duncans. It's partly my fault for not checking first but I have no issues with my other S-Series in my possession so this was a calculated assumption & one that I got wrong.

Could it be the exclusive case of the direct-mount type? Well, the Prestige S5470 way back in 2010 did not manifest this issue. I own one & that's the reason why I'm sure there won't be issues with the current generation of S-models & again I'm proven wrong.

To prevent further disappointment, I just made do with a pair of DiMarzios. I respect the brand & have no particular dissent towards any of the products, it's just that for a direct guitar-to-amp set up, I get better results with Seymour Duncan & it's my go-to brand. Seen here: PAF 36th Anniversary (n) + Super 3 (b). On that note, DiMarzios are going for good discounts at SV Guitars, do check them out.

I bought this guitar because it's the first reverse headstock S-Series in standard production. It's now discontinued & superseded by the S61AL featuring active Fishman Fluence pickups which I tested & disliked. I think I'm the passive aggressive type. 😁

Despite the eye-catching front finish, it's actually a regular S-Series as seen here; the rear finish is as standard as it gets.

Here's the full pic for everyone's reference. It's one of the lightest Ibanez guitars out there but made annoying by the locking tuners (default) which makes it neck heavy. But I still love this guitar.

On that note, I'm staying away from Ibanez in the mean time until they make something enticing in the AZ range (22 frets, no pickguard, not a signature) to my liking. If you've been following my entries, I've not bought any new Ibanez guitars for quite a while & are clearing some of them (RGs mostly) for good prices. They are just not my thing any more. 

Hello, July! 😎

Pic:Ibanezrules

Super Duper

Still in the DiMarzio camp, the Super 3 was clearing for a good price so it was an easy decision. I used to have this in one of my Ibanez S-Series which I sold away. I like it due to its midrange poke, like a Seymour Duncan JB would offer in that bandwidth.