M & P

Had some playing time this morning so it's these two through the same set up.

The Potbelly is LP-ish in looks but not in feel (slimmer, flatter neck profile here but not the shred type). The Duncan 59s in there are ace; awesome cleans & lots of beef for high gain stuff. The Mira has the JB in the bridge for its cutting tone & the P-Rails in the neck to keep things smooth on some days. Both are adept to my quirks, fast enough for shred stuff, smooth enough for legato works & angry enough for days when black metal is the only rewarding genre to play.

If both could satisfy the same needs, is it not logical to keep only one? No.

It's down to playing comfort & feel. I could not sustain good riffing on the Potbelly without lethargy setting in & inducing mistakes. The Mira, due to its bevelled body edges, sustains a comfortable elbow placement for the picking hand & it drives me on for extended playing. I am more comfortable playing legato stuff with the Potbelly due to the narrower neck profile. The wider Mira neck checks on my sloppiness; it encourages precision playing & accuracy. So there you go, having more than one will always keep my playing in perspective. 

Good pot

Had some playing time this morning, sudden urge to hear the 59 in action but the Potbelly needed a little attention to the fretboard.

Rather obvious which side of the neck is showing some re-conditioning.

A set of new strings (Curt Mangan) & it's good to go. What I like about the Duncan 59s in this guitar is that they remain true in terms of performance (not a high output unit) & sound very commanding when it comes to drive. A little intrigued as to how this could be the case but some of the best driven tones don't require an over-the-top output rating. 

Potbelly-ing, still

The humbling continues. How a simple guitar like this Edwards Potbelly is able to deliver some of the more inviting tones despite being an attempt to manifest that singlecut voicing we all respect. How a pair of vintage voiced humbuckers are able to adapt to contemporary applications. This pair of Seymour Duncan '59s adapt to high gain settings very well, I could dial some very heavy tones with various amps & that's a plus because I'm more of a guitar-to-amp person. So my take on the situation- stop trying to be impressed by brand names that are reputed to deliver a touted performance when what could turn your tones around (for the better of course) are some stuff out there you have yet to try.

Guitar-ing my holiday eve, that's right. :-)

Edwards: E-PO-100D

Recently, I acquired this Edwards Potbelly for a steal; 50% of its listed price for an obvious reason- it's losing its appeal as a display piece. It was at the display window for the longest time in the store before being sidelined with that 50% off price tag. There was absolutely nothing wrong with this instrument save for the fact that the metal parts were tarnished over time. I would usually steer clear of guitars trying to manifest a Les Paul vibe because most of the time, the manufacturers tried too hard to re-interpret an established identity with a lacklustre outcome. I've played this one in the store once so it's nothing new to me. The pickups there:

• Neck: Seymour Duncan '59
• Bridge: Seymour Duncan '59

Seymour Duncan's '59 humbucker has a limited appeal for high gain dweebs like me because they incline towards the vintage character more than anything else but the ones here dished out a good serving of aggression with the right amp. I had intentions to swap them out after hearing them at the store but the oversight here is that I was dismissive even before trying it out with my set up. The '59 might be a drab affair in guitars sporting modern, locking bridges but in a traditional take such as this Potbelly, both pickups are able to accentuate the set-neck, sustain laden tones to good effect. As such, I'm keeping them in tact. This E-PO-100 is one of those rare player that sounds great in both clean & driven performances so I guess I've landed myself an incredible deal. By chance.

The pot is in the house

What's that? Half price for this? Why not? :-)