
From left to right: Guitarists Mark Holcomb, Misha Mansoor, and Jake Bowen have signature PRS, Jackson Guitars, and Ibanez guitar models, respectively.
The prog-metal juggernauts’ latest is the product of blood, sweat, tears, and a persistent, fierce commitment to raising the bar for themselves—and for djent—that’s matched every step in their career.
It’s not clear exactly when it was coined, but “djent,” the somewhat facetious, catch-all onomatopoeia name of one of today’s most vital and popular heavy metal subgenres, is here to stay. And, perhaps because they’re so well-known as pioneers in that movement, prog-metal disruptors Periphery are making a bit of a tongue-in-cheek statement with the title of their latest record: Periphery V: Djent Is Not a Genre. Of course, despite that resistance, it’s yet another example of their djent prowess—and they’re pretty sure it’s a level up in their catalog.
Periphery - Wax Wings (Official Audio)
“It felt like, ‘How the fuck did we get away with this?’ When we finished it, we all felt like it was a very special album.” says bandleader, producer, and one of the band’s three guitarists, Misha Mansoor. “We’ve never unanimously felt this way. Usually, it’s more exasperation and a sense of ‘Let’s just get it out,’ and a list of compromises we made. This is the first record where I wasn’t thinking about next time.”
It’s safe to assume the band has high standards, considering that their past releases, with their “lists of compromises,” have won them heaps of critical praise, a Grammy nod, and a deeply loyal fanbase. And as Mansoor’s comments suggest, Periphery V is a continuation of a body of work that consistently makes that grade.
The album’s opening track, “Wildfire,” is a barnstorming thesis statement that begins with some of it’s heaviest guitars, which blend into an absolute earworm of a chorus before somehow segueing into a Squarepusher-esque, electronic-jazz bridge—complete with a burning bebop sax solo by Norwegian metal and experimental musician Jørgen Munkeby. Next is “Atropos,” a track with absolutely crushing layers of extended-scale guitars and a performance from vocalist Spencer Sotelo that oscillates between ’90s-anime-soundtrack-ready hooks and metallic aggression.
On their new album, the band repurposed some motifs from past songs in their catalog in a way that felt like they were having a secret handshake with long-time fans.
“Wax Wings” features an unexpected open tuning (D–F#–A–E–A–C#) that co-guitarist Mark Holcomb nicked from the Japanese band, Toe, and some of the album’s most impressive guitar moments, including an opening lick that boasts all of Holcomb’s signature dramatic slides and pull-offs. When asked what guitar passages on the record he’s most proud of, Holcomb quickly points to the solo at the end of “Wax Wings,” saying, “[It’s] actually in that fucked-up open tuning. That sucked. There was the question of whether or not to write the solo in standard because I’d have to do a guitar change if we play the song live. I chose the route of writing the solo in that tuning, so I had to teach myself some new moves. I challenged myself to write a handful of riffs in that tuning that sound like something else.”
On Periphery V, the band’s mission was to be heavier, catchier, and riskier than on their last release, 2019’s Periphery IV: Hail Stan, and, arguably, that’s what they’ve accomplished. That’s even more impressive given how far they’ve come since their founding in 2005, and the ambition they’ve always brought to their work.
The band’s eponymous debut was released over a decade ago—long before social media was filled with young shredders relentlessly putting their metal chops on display. It was a time when the first generation of Fractal Audio Axe-Fx units were only four years old, and guitar-specific plugins were still in their ugly adolescence. And while Periphery has always worn its influences on its sleeve—particularly the pummeling death-metal churn of Swedish polyrhythm wizards Meshuggah and the soaring prog sensibilities of Dream Theater and Opeth—their unique approach to interpreting those sounds and filtering them into something new has set them apart from their peers. After garnering their aforementioned accolades and building their fanbase, Periphery IV was lauded as their most adventurous release to date.
“When we finished it, we all felt like it was a very special album.”—Misha Mansoor
With layers of hulking, downtuned rhythm guitars that any respectable djent record needs, Periphery IV also embraced the sprawling arrangements, infectious melodies, and electronic textures that the group had always flirted with, in a very big way. For the band, the release felt like a triumph. However, the album’s tour cycle ended abruptly when the pandemic hit and, like the rest of the music industry, Periphery was suddenly left rudderless.
Misha Mansoor's Gear
Bandleader and guitarist Misha Mansoor founded Periphery in 2005, after having gained a reputation on online forums for his prog-metal compositions.
Photo by Ekaterina Gorbacheva
Guitars
- Two Jackson USA Misha Mansoor Signature Juggernaut HT7s
- Jackson USA Misha Mansoor Signature HT7 Juggernaut with EverTune Bridge
- Jackson Pro Series Signature Misha Mansoor Juggernaut HT6 with EverTune Bridge and Bare Knuckle Ragnarok pickups
- Jackson Pro Series Signature Misha Mansoor Juggernaut HT6
- Jackson Pro Series Signature Misha Mansoor Juggernaut HT6 with flame maple top
- Jackson MJ Series Signature Misha Mansoor So-Cal 2 PT “Strat”
- Jackson Custom Shop Juggernaut HT8
- Jackson Custom Shop Juggernaut HT8 with fanned frets
Strings & Picks
- Horizon Devices Progressive Tension Heavy 6 set (.010–.058)
- Horizon Devices Progressive Tension Heavy 7 set (.010–.065)
- Horizon Devices Progressive Tension Bulb 8 set (.0095–.074)
- Dunlop Misha Mansoor Custom Delrin Flow Picks, .65 mm live and .73 mm in studio
As co-guitarist Jake Bowen explains, “Periphery IV felt like our proudest accomplishment. How the hell do you move on from that and put something out that hits in the same way? You get to the point in a career where we’re at, and you have to ask if you’re repeating yourself or if everyone’s getting bored of your band’s shtick. You have to be really hard on yourself to get past those things because they prevent bands from growing at the stage we were at.”
It would take the band four years and a scrapped concept album (intended as a companion to 2015’s fan-favorite Juggernaut: Omega) before Periphery V would see the light of day. The process, part of which involved rewriting about three fourths of the record, nearly broke the band.
“We hit some very low moments that we had never faced before while writing this,” Holcomb says. “We’ve been through struggles as a band before. But the hurdles that came along with [this experience]—the dejection and questioning—I had never really confronted before.”
In the early stages, the material intended for the aborted concept record failed to spark Sotelo’s inspiration, who was weathering a divorce and something of an identity crisis during the forced time off from the road. “We recognized that Spencer was going through a vulnerable time, and we encouraged him to harness it and try to turn it into something personal, make it his, and use it as fuel to push forward with what he was doing,” says Holcomb. “That’s why a lot of the lyrical themes go a bit deeper and are a little bit more relatable than on our previous records.”
“We’ve been through struggles as a band before. But the hurdles that came along with [this experience]—the dejection and questioning—I had never really confronted before.”—Mark Holcomb
Rather than fracturing under the pressure, Periphery persevered and came out the other side more unified than ever, with an album that delivered on the blood, sweat, tears, and risk-taking that went into it. “Despite all that bullshit, when it did come together, it did so in a way that I can only describe as magical,” Mansoor shares.
An unexpected facet of Periphery V are the repurposed motifs from past Periphery songs. For example, “Zagreus” has a couple of sonic references to “Four Lights,” and the chorus on “Wildfire” recalls “The Event,” an interlude from Juggernaut. Bowen brought the latter one into the mix, explaining, “The motif from ‘The Event’ creates intervals that are really tough to jump around, but when you nail it, it really works and it makes for a very unusual chorus. It’s just one of those things where it doesn’t make much sense, but it works.”
Jake Bowen's Gear
Guitarist Jake Bowen expresses that the source of Periphery’s music goes beyond the guitar; his and the other guitarists’ connection with one another is what is truly behind the music they produce.
Photo by Ekaterina Gorbacheva
Guitars
- Ibanez Jake Bowen Signature JBM9999
- Ibanez LA Custom Shop Jake Bowen Signature JBM9999
Strings & Picks
- Horizon Devices Jake Bowen Signature (.010–.058 for 6-string, .010–.074 for 7-string)
- Dunlop Tortex Flow Picks .60 mm
The sonic Easter eggs peppered throughout the record have resonated with diehard Periphery fans, who, upon its release, quickly caught on and began compiling lists on online forums of the repurposed themes. Despite seeming like a calculated move, the motifs came to the band in a very organic way. Mansoor explains, “I love reharmonizing stuff and hearing things in a different light. My video-gamer brain loves that, because you hear themes get buried, reintroduced, and mangled throughout a lot of RPGs. Nobuo Uematsu [Japanese composer of the soundtracks to the Final Fantasy video game series, and the inspiration for the track ‘Thanks Nobuo,’] is one of my biggest influences, and he does that a lot in really crazy ways.”
He continues, “We thought people might say, ‘Sounds like they ran out of riffs,’ but the fans had an entirely different perspective; it felt like we were winking at those of them that have been with us since the early records. In retrospect, I realize we have such a loyal and dedicated fanbase and they tend to be very well-versed in our material, so they caught these things that we thought we’d done very subtly, and it makes them feel like we’re connecting with them directly. It feels very much like a secret handshake, and they really reacted to that. I’ve seen people say things like ‘I cried when I heard this,’ in reference to hearing the ‘You're shining and it shows’ theme in ‘Thanks Nobuo,’ which is a callback to ‘The Way the News Goes…’ from 2016’s Periphery III: Select Difficulty. That makes me really happy, and I didn’t expect that kind of reaction.”
Mark Holcomb's Gear
On “Wax Wings,” guitarist Mark Holcomb used the tuning D–F#–A–E–A–C#, which he borrowed from the Japanese band, Toe.
Photo by Ekaterina Gorbacheva
Guitars
- Prototype PRS SE Mark Holcomb Signature with Seymour Duncan Scarlet & Scourge pickups (6-string)
- Prototype PRS SE Mark Holcomb Signature with Seymour Duncan Scarlet & Scourge pickups (7-string)
- PRS SE Silver Sky John Mayer Signature
- PRS Mark Holcomb Signature Private Stock (6-string)
- PRS Mark Holcomb Signature Private Stock (7-string)
Strings & Picks
- Horizon Devices Progressive Tension Heavy 6 set (.010–.058)
- Horizon Devices Progressive Tension Heavy 7 set (.010–.065)Dunlop .88 mm custom picks
Periphery Gear
Amps (all)
- Peavey Invective Misha Mansoor Signature
- Omega Granophyre
- Carstens Grace head
- Suhr Reactive Load Box
- Two Notes IR box
- GetGood Drums Studio Cabs: Zilla Edition
Pedals (all)
- Horizon Devices Precision Drive
- DigiTech Whammy
- TC Electronic Sub ’N’ Up Octaver
- Echoplex EP-2T-Rex Replicator
- D’Luxe Analog Tape Delay
- Echo Fix EF-X2
- Echo Fix EF-X3
- TC Electronic 2290
- Dynamic Digital Delay
- Custom Dunwich HM-2-based drive
While the songs on Periphery V may secretly recall themes from past records, the tone production on the album forges all new territory for the band. “This is the first Periphery album where we used a bunch of real amps. Periphery IV was all Axe-Fx, and even Periphery II was technically a 5150, but it was the Axe-Fx through the 5150 power section,” Mansoor says. When doing blind tone tests with plugins and modeling gear, the power of real tube amps mated with IRs had a distinct advantage that the band couldn’t overlook for the album’s particularly aggressive riffs.
As for the tube amps they ended up using, Mansoor says the heavy lifting was handled by a Peavey Invective (his 5150-based signature model) and an Omega Granophyre. A Carstens Grace was also used for some added layers and some pushed clean passages. Mansoor describes the Grace as having “a unique voicing where it’s very hard to compare it to anything. It’s kind of Marshall-ish, but I think that sells it short.”
“Periphery IV felt like our proudest accomplishment. How the hell do you move on from that and put something out that hits in the same way?”—Jake Bowen
All of the reamping was done with a Two Notes unit and a Suhr Reactive Load Box to keep the tube amps happy without real cabs, and the GetGood Drums Studio Cabs: Zilla Edition sim—mostly programmed with the “Swedish Technique” preset with an extra 4x12 cab with a K-100 speaker in it—completed the tone recipe.
Every amp was boosted by the Precision Drive, a pedal made by Mansoor’s company, Horizon Devices. When asked what that pedal brought to the table that makes it so invaluable to Periphery’s sound, Mansoor describes it as “a boost that helps lower-tuned guitars hit the front end of amps in a way that the amps can handle, because they weren’t designed for that and can flub out with palm-muted parts. The Precision Drive lets you control how much low end you cut, so you dial in the ‘attack’ control to really fine-tune that.” Other effects that played a big role in the guitar sounds on Periphery V were a battery of tape delays, which included Mansoor’s beloved vintage Echoplex EP-2, and modern analog tape delays like the T-Rex Replicator D’Luxe, and the Echo Fix EF-X2 and EF-X3 units. An original TC Electronic 2290 rack unit was also used to add some delay to leads. Mansoor loves the way the 2290 makes everything sound “very 3D.”
All three guitarists relied on their signature-model guitars. Holcomb used the Periphery V sessions as an opportunity to test and hone the prototypes of his SE import line PRS signature models, and also used a PRS Silver Sky John Mayer sig for his parts on “Wax Wings.”
Mansoor called on several of his Jackson Juggernaut signature models, including 6-, 7-, and 8-string variants, Custom Shop versions with fanned frets, and even stock import models. He most often found himself reaching for those that were equipped with EverTune bridges because of how much time they save in the studio. According to Mansoor, the real wildcard that unexpectedly saw a lot of use on Periphery V was his signature model MIJ Jackson SoCal Strat, which he describes as “a sleeper dad-rock guitar in daphne blue that looks like a Strat, with a matching headstock, but is such a shredder.” Mansoor continues to gush about the relatively attainable guitar, saying “It’s so aggressive-sounding. As an HSS Strat, it’s great for split-coil stuff or full single-coil stuff. Nothing beats an actual single-coil, so anything where we wanted that sound, that’s what we used.”
For Bowen, his Ibanez JBM27 signature model was the hero on the album, but he also used an Ibanez LA Custom Shop version of that model for writing. He describes the guitar as “aesthetically a little different, but a mojo machine that has a weirdness to it that makes me play differently. The Ibanez LA Custom Shop guitars are always a little funky in some way. They have a handmade feel, and I write differently based on the guitar I’m playing. Something fun and unusual always comes out when I write on them, because of how quirky they are.”
Periphery - Atropos Live in Sacramento HQ Audio Board Mix 2023
Periphery performs “Atropos,” the second track on Periphery V, creating harmonious textures of thrashing djent guitar and both melodic and screaming vocals in an adventurous, experimental arrangement.
While many players in bands with Periphery’s longevity have a tendency to stop growing, it’s extremely apparent that making Periphery V not only pushed the members to grow as songwriters, but also as guitarists. From Holcomb’s perspective, they’ve all started to sound a bit more like each other through the experience: “We basically lived together as if we were in a dorm and played so much guitar. I think it’d be impossible to not learn something from the guy across from you in that scenario. My voice as a player has definitely changed over the years just from adapting qualities from the two other guitar players in my band.”
Bowen says it’s bigger than guitar at this point: “At the risk of sounding incredibly pretentious, it goes beyond music. We get together and write all of this crazy shit mostly because we like hanging out with each other. The way the music takes shape is an extension of that friendship. When you really love people, the creative connection is greater and you produce better stuff as a result. At least, we do.”
As for the band’s influential ringleader, the real success of Periphery’s guitar brotherhood mirrors both sentiments. Mansoor says of his co-guitarists, “We’re each other’s biggest fans. We all love the way each other sounds and they’re always writing stuff that I wish I wrote. That makes me want to step up my game, because if they’re at that level, I need to level up.
“I’m really grateful because this album felt like it was make or break,” he continues. “In a different universe, this album could have killed us, but because it didn’t, it brought us so much closer together.”
- Rig Rundown: Periphery [2023] ›
- Rig Rundown: Periphery [2017] ›
- Jackson Guitars and Misha Mansoor Reveal Signature Models ›
- Haunted Shores’ Misha Mansoor and Mark Holcomb ›
The in-demand New York-based musician and singer shares how she became one of the music industry’s buzziest bass players.
At 26, Blu DeTiger is the youngest musician ever to have a signature Fender bass guitar. The Fender Limited Player Plus x Blu DeTiger Jazz Bass, announced in September, pays tribute to the bassist and singer’s far-reaching impact and cultural sway. She’s played with Caroline Polachek, Bleachers, FLETCHER, Olivia Rodrigo, and more, and released her own LP in March 2024. In 2023, Forbes feature her on their top 30 Under 30 list of musicians. So how did DeTiger work her way to the top?
DeTiger opens up on this episode of Wong Notes about her career so far, which started at a School of Rock camp at age seven. That’s where she started performing and learning to gig with others—she played at CBGB’s before she turned 10. DeTiger took workshops with Victor Wooten at Berklee followed and studied under Steven Wolf, but years of DJing around New York City, which hammered in the hottest basslines in funk and disco, also imprinted on her style. (Larry Graham is DeTiger’s slap-bass hero.)
DeTiger and Wong dish on the ups and downs of touring and session life, collaborating with pop artists to make “timeless” pop songs, and how to get gigs. DeTiger’s advice? “You gotta be a good hang.”
Wong Notes is presented by DistroKid.
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Gibson Band Featuring Slash, Duff McKagan, and Cesar Gueikian Announce Benefit Single
100% of "I Can Breathe" song proceeds to benefit the National Alliance on Mental Illness, NAMI.
On Giving Tuesday, Gibson announces a new release from the Gibson Band--a revolving collective of musicians who join together to make music and raise funds and awareness for worthy causes.. A hard-hitting rock song, the new benefit single “I Can Breathe” features rhythm guitars and piano from Cesar Gueikian, CEO of Gibson, with special guests Duff McKagan on lead vocals and lyrics, and Slash on lead guitar and solos. 100% of the proceeds from the sale of the song “I Can Breathe” will benefit the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), through Gibson Gives. NAMI is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health resource organization that is dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness.
On “I Can Breathe” Duff McKagan crafted the lyrics and is featured on lead vocals, Cesar Gueikian wrote the music and played rhythm guitar and piano, and Slash wrote and played thelead guitar and solos, while Jota Morelli (drums), and Seta Von Gravessen (bass) rounded outthe group in the studio. The music was recorded by Cesar at La Roca Power Studio in BuenosAires, Argentina, vocals were recorded by Duff at the Sound Factory in Los Angeles and leadguitars and solos by Slash in Los Angeles. The track was produced by Cesar Gueikian and JorgeRodriguez with collaboration from Pablo Toubes and Francisco Trillini, and mixed and masteredby Greg Gordon. A special thanks goes to Gonzalo Riviera Villatte, Gina Furia, and guitar techLisardo Alvarez for all his work at La Roca Power Studio.
Gibson Records, Duff McKagan, Slash, and Cesar Gueikian, will donate 100% proceeds from thesale of “I Can Breathe,” in addition to all auction funds raised to the National Alliance on MentalIllness (NAMI), through Gibson Gives. NAMI is the nation’s largest grassroots mental healthresource organization that is dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affectedby mental illness. NAMI’s mission is to create a world where all people affected by mentalillness live healthy, fulfilling lives supported by a community that cares.
“It was such a pleasure to work with Cesar and his whole crew on this tune,” says Duff McKagan.“The musical slant and progressive rock-ness of this huge epic pushed me in a whole new direction. Ilove a challenge and Cesar killed it! Most importantly, to be of service for mental health issues andawareness is super important to me at this time. Let’s rock!”
“Cesar and Duff came to me with a really cool piece of music,” adds Slash. “I loved the riff idea, andDuff's vocal, so I felt right at home on the track.”
“Guns N’ Roses had a profound influence on me and my guitar playing, so having the opportunity towrite and record this song with Slash and Duff is a dream come true, and it’s an honor to call themfriends and partners,” says Cesar Gueikian, CEO of Gibson. “’I Can Breathe’ started as aninstrumental track I recorded at La Roca Power Studio in Buenos Aires. Upon listening to the mix thatGreg Gordon put together, Jenny Marsh (Global Director of Cultural Influence at Gibson) suggestedDuff as lyricist and vocalist. Guns N’ Roses had just come off touring when I shared the song withDuff, he loved it and quickly wrote the lyrics and cut the vocals at the Sound Factory in Los Angeles.Having Duff on vocals made the next step obvious, which was asking Slash if he would collaboratewith lead guitars and solos. Both Duff and Slash transformed the track from a collection of riffs to agreat song! While Greg Gordon’s mixing and creativity tied it all together. I am grateful for thecollaboration from Slash, Duff and Greg, and from my friend Serj Tankian’s participation with coverartwork. I’m thrilled we are donating all proceeds from the song to a great and relevant cause.”
Made in close collaboration and with significant input from Jimmy Page, the Jimmy Page EDS-1275 uses new 3D scanning technology to aid in handcrafting an effective clone of his original EDS-1275.
There are very few guitars that can claim to be as instantly recognizable and iconic as Jimmy Page’s 1969 EDS-1275 Doubleneck. The photos of him playing it on stage with Led Zeppelin are indelible to rock ’n’ roll history. While Gibson has been making doubleneck electric guitars since 1958, Jimmy was the player who defined the EDS-1275 from the day it was delivered to him. Introducing the Jimmy Page EDS-1275 Doubleneck VOS, now part of the Gibson Custom core lineup and built to the exact specifications of Jimmy’s iconic EDS-1275 Doubleneck.
The Jimmy Page EDS-1275 features a double-cutaway one-piece mahogany body that provides exceptional access to the full length of both the12-string and six-string mahogany necks. Both necks have long tenons and are hide glue fit, and the neck profiles are recreated from 3D scans of the necks on the original guitar. The necks are both capped with bound Indian rosewood fretboards. Each fretboard is equipped with 20 authentic medium jumbo frets and adorned with aged cellulose nitrate parallelogram inlays. The fretboards of both necks have a 12” radius, which is perfect for both playing chords as well as for string bending while soloing. The 18 tuners are Kluson double line, double ring style, just like those found on the original guitar, and even the headstocks feature the correct 17-degree angle and specific logo stylization found on Jimmy’s EDS-1275. The electronics are just as authentic and deliver all of the sonic character of Jimmy’s legendary EDS-1275. Two uncovered Jimmy Page EDS-1275 Custombuckers with double black bobbins and Alnico 5 magnets are used for the two six-string pickups, while a covered pair is installed on the 12-string neck. Of course, the two volume and two tone controls use CTS potentiometers and period-correct ceramic disc capacitors, and the pickup select switch, neck select switch, and output jack are all from Switchcraft.
Here is your opportunity to own a clone of Jimmy Page’s famous EDS-1275, identical to how it appeared on the day that Jimmy first received the guitar. A Gibson Custom hardshell case is included, along with a vintage leather strap, and a certificate of authenticity with a photo from famed photographer Barrie Wentzell.
Jimmy Page EDS-1275 Doubleneck VOS '69 Cherry
Recreation of the EDS-1275 used by Jimmy Page made using 3D scans of the original guitar, one piece mahogany body, mahogany six and 12-string necks with custom Jimmy Page profiles, Indian rosewood fretboards, Jimmy Page Custombucker pickups with Alnico 5 magnets and double black bobbins, Gibson Custom hardshell case
Reader: Daniel Switkin
Hometown: Oakland, California
Guitar: Doublecaster
Here’s the doubleneck dream realized, even if it weighs 9 pounds, 5 ounces.
Taking a Squier Affinity Stratocaster and Mini Precision Bass, one reader created a super-versatile instrument for looping that he can pick, pluck, tap, and slap.
I've been using a multitrack looper with a guitar and an octave pedal, which was okay for simple bass parts, but didn’t give me thick strings and I couldn’t slap with it. So I decided to build a double-neck prototype specifically for looping, with a 6-string guitar and a 4-string bass.
Since building the necks would be the hardest part, I looked around for instruments with bolt-on necks I could reuse. Squier makes an Affinity Stratocaster and a Mini Precision Bass which were affordable and had matching fretboards, so I bought those. It was also cheaper to reuse the electronics and hardware that came with them, rather than buying everything separately.
Using two precut instrument bodies saved the burden of having to route cavities for the electronics.
My plan was to design my own body from scratch. As I debated which neck should go on top, how far apart they should be, and whether to line up the nuts or the saddles, I realized there was actually enough wood there to make a double neck body, which saved me the work of recreating the neck pockets, etc. Putting the guitar on top made barre chords much more comfortable, and the 28.6" bass scale meant I could still reach the first fret easily.
After stripping the paint with a heat gun, I ran both bodies through a table saw, glued them together, and thinned them to 1 3/8". Then I created an offset body shape, a new arm bevel, and reshaped the three cutaways. The pickguards are both original, with the guitar side cut down to make a yin and yang shape. The controls are volume and tone for each neck, using the original knobs. I moved the jack to the back and upgraded it to stereo so the guitar and bass signals can run through separate effects chains.
Note the location of the jack on the back of the extended-shape body. It’s unconventional but practical.
My top concerns were weight and ergonomics. Many doublenecks are around 12 to 13 pounds and 18" wide. I knew I would never play something that big, no matter how good it sounded. To that end, I saved weight everywhere and tracked everything to the gram in a spreadsheet. (That’s also the reason I chose a fixed bridge instead of a vibrato.) I ultimately used a wipe-on gel stain to keep the weight down further. Stripping the paint from the factory saved 5 ounces! The final playable weight is 9 pounds, 5 ounces, and 15 1/4" wide at the lower bout. This has been pretty manageable, however, there is some neck dive because of the tuners. I’m taking everything I’ve learned from this prototype and designing a new doubleneck, which will be headless. I believe I can shed another pound and eliminate the neck dive that way. You can watch my entire build on YouTube.