Green day

This was my final re-string for 2018, the Brian Moore i91 guitar (Korea). It's an 8-year old, still going strong & sounding good.

Thanks to this trio of Tesla pickups which will stay put here: Nitro (b)/ VR-1 (m)/ Plasma 3 (b). 

Final Darco pack of 9s went into this one. The Darcos were clearing for less than $5 each during the 2018 year-end sale. If you aren't too fussy with regards to feel & durability, these are very acceptable guitar strings. 

Hope it's been a good 2019 you so far (a little early to say isn't it?). 

TESLA! Jackson JS-20...

I was at Beez's yesterday to have my Jackson JS-20 equipped with a set of TESLA pickups:

• Neck: VR-1
• Middle: Plasma 1
• Bridge: Plasma 7

I'm a fan of the VR-1 (have it in my Brian Moore guitar as well), it has that vintage voicing which sounds splendid with lots of distortion, this way, I don't lose out on both clean & driven tones. Ditto the Plasma 1 but this pickup has a more contemporary single coil tone. If you are a blues fan, chances are, you'd prefer the VR-1 instead. The Plasma 7- it sounds great under lots of signal processing. If you are pedals-inclined & have limited clean moments, you'd like the Plasma 7. In fact, it'll size-up against the average DiMarzio in this aspect but be warned that it's not that appealing in lighter-bodied guitars.

PS: Thanks brother Rico for the can of Red Bull! My treat next time.

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Obiter dictum: It's the final day of November. The twilight of 2011 beckons...

In the shadows... but not the lesser pickups.

I spent the whole of yesterday's playing time listening to how good TESLA pickups are in a straight through plug-in. The pickups you see here are:

• Neck: Plasma 2
• Mid: VR-1
• Bridge: Nitro

In summary, these TESLAs give me great drive response, even the medium output Plasma 2 does just that. This is perhaps one of the reasons why I kept toggling between the 2 humbuckers just to hear them in action.

As for the VR-1, I'm not expecting a Fender-esque twang but something equally drive responsive to keep up with the humbuckers & that's what I get from this single coil pickup. Great performance from a brand name in the shadows of the other more renowned labels but certainly not one to be churning out dud tones.

Brian Moore i91: TESLA!

Alright! This is the best time to get hold of 'em TESLA pickups since they are going for 15% discount (@ SV Guitars) & I've decided to have them in my Brian Moore i91. After the default pickups were removed, I was rather surprised the cavities interior was lacquered; it's one of the most presentable finish I've come across. Thumbs up to this!

It's the usual works for me, tone-wise; off to Beez's for an Orange Drop installation...

... & a push-pull coil split switch to complete the ritual.

The fretboard received a re-conditioning. The upper fret areas were dry but the rest of the piece was OK.

Finally, a fresh set of GHS .009 set for the i91. The TESLA pickups in this guitar are:

• Bridge: Nitro
• Middle: VR-1
• Neck: Plasma III

TESLA trio

Fresh catch from the SV Guitars sale, TESLA pickups:

1. Nitro
2. Opus II
3. VR-1

All TESLA pickups are clearing at 15% off list price.