Fort Wayne, IN (June 4, 2008) -- Two of the most eye-catching guitars in the entire guitar tent at Sweetwater's Gearfest '08 were a pair of double-necked SG-style Epiphones. From a distance, we couldn't figure these things out; they weren't the normal Epiphone doublenecks, with a six-string neck and a 12-string neck. Instead, both necks had six strings, and these things were pretty! Every time we tried to get in close to see them, curious players were clustered around, and who are we to interrupt someone else's gear discovery?
Eventually, we got to talk with Hank Ettel from Gibson, who explained that the guitars weren't the draw here -- they were simply custom-built vehicles for pickup demonstrations. After listening to the demo of the vintage-style pickups, which switched between Gibson's '57 Classic pickups and a Burstbucker Pro and Burstbucker 3, we had even more appreciation for the devices. The quick switching ability gave us opportunity to hear subtle differences that, as Hank pointed out, may have been lost if he had to put down one guitar and pick up another. Here's the first video of the comparison between these three humbuckers:
Hank then picked up the second guitar to take us through Gibson's more "boutique" line of pickups, the P-94s (a P-90 that fits in humbucker routing), Angus Young Signature, and the 490R.
Finally, Hank took us through the workings of Gibson's Robot Guitar, telling us to expect aftermarket units at the end of this month. If you haven't yet given the Robot Guitar the time of day, it's worth it to check out this video:
For more on GearFest, check out
our wrapup. For more on the pickups or the Robot Guitar, visit
Gibson.com.