Scarlet features a ceramic magnet, with an output calibrated for note definition while the Alnico 8-loaded Scourge provides modern low-end and focused mid-range.
Seymour Duncan, a leading manufacturer of guitar and bass pickups, effects pedals, and pedal amps, is proud to announce the Mark Holcomb Scarlet & Scourge pickups are now available to order.
Mark Holcomb’s musicality continues to push progressive metal forward. The sound of Scarlet & Scourge was inspired by his use of high-gain amp-modeling technology. With his modeler delivering Periphery’s ideal overdriven amp sound, Mark’s new pickups required enhanced clarity for complex chord voicings, coil splitting, and drop tunings. Through rigorous testing, Mark & the Seymour Duncan engineering team created the Scarlet neck and Scourge bridge pickups. Like Mark’s other signature neck pickup Alpha - which is suited for Mark’s heaviest riffs - Scarlet features a ceramic magnet, but with an output calibrated for note definition in clean & mid-gain applications. The Scourge, with its Alnico 8 magnet, provides the low-end and focused mid-range needed to anchor Mark’s modern sound.
MSRP: $139
For more information, please visit seymourduncan.com.
This well-constructed 4-string takes cues from yesteryear’s sounds, looks, and price tags. The PG Aria Pro II Detroit review.
Recorded direct into Focusrite Scarlet 2i4 into Garageband.
Clip 1: Neck pickup only. Tone at 75 percent.
Clip 2: Neck and bridge pickups blended 50/50 using pick. Tone at 75 percent.
RatingsPros:Comfy neck. Easy fret access. Versatility of P/J configuration. Cons: Non-spectacular bridge pickup. Typical 60-cycle hum with bridge soloed. Street: $499 Aria Pro II ariaguitarsglobal.com | Tones: Playability: Build/Design: Value: |
Shaped similarly to the SB basses that found favor with heavy hitters from Cliff Burton to John Taylor, the Aria Pro II Detroit is the company’s latest offering in their new Hot Rod Collection. The ash body’s sunburst open-pore finish gives off a kind of rustic-glamor vibe. The 6-bolt, roasted-maple neck is quick, and the frets atop the rosewood fretboard were dressed cleanly. At a comfy 40 mm, the nut width falls somewhere between a P and J, and easy access to all frets comes thanks to the Detroit’s deep body cut. I didn’t find a single ding or scratch, and all joinery was spot-on.
Plugged in, the 34"-scale Detroit sounds much like it looks: old-school. I started with the alnico-5 split-coil with the tone flat, and I was greeted with a pretty fat, full, and round sound that thickened and softened to a more mellow Motown-esque flavor as I rolled the tone down. The tone pot has a decent operating range, and diming it got me to a more present and open rock tone while using a pick, without having to touch my amp. I like P/J configurations for versatility’s sake, but I found the Detroit’s bridge pickup to be a little anemic in the bite department when soloed. That said, I like the bit of crispness and high-end clarity it contributes when blended with the neck and the tone dial almost maxed. The vintage flavor, nice build, and approachable price certainly make the Detroit a worthwhile place to visit.
Test Gear: Gallien-Krueger 800RB, Orange OBC212, Focusrite Scarlett 2i4.
A Hendrix fan details the journey of his first real guitar, a 1972 Fender Strat that he modded, returned to spec, and is now enjoying again in quarantine.
Name: Tony Houston
Location: Dayton, Ohio
Guitar: 1972 Fender Stratocaster
After years of reading about other readers’ guitars, I decided to write about my original 1972 black Fender Stratocaster. Attached is a picture of my Strat and original warranty card, and myself.
I was 21 years old back in 1971 when I first started to learn guitar. I was already a fan of Jimi Hendrix, as was a co-worker who played guitar. We were talking about Jimi and I mentioned that I would love to learn guitar, but at that time couldn’t afford it. It turned out that he had an original Sears Silvertone guitar/amp in the case that he gave me. It was almost impossible to play, but I loved it.
By 1972, I was in much better shape financially (well, somewhat) to buy a “real” guitar. For over a year I would stop in Bernie’s Music here in Dayton and look at guitars. I was mesmerized by the white Strat that Jimi played at Woodstock. They had one in the store, but when I went in to buy it, it was gone. They had a black Strat, and I was told that I could trade it back when another white Strat was in stock … they never got another one.
Fast-forward to the late ’70s. I’d read enough about guitars to mod my Strat, so over a few years I installed a brass bridge, replaced the stock bridge pickup with a DiMarzio Fat Strat, and did various re-wirings of the pickup switch. Also the stock pickups weren’t wax-potted properly and would squeal like a pig! I re-potted the pickups by dipping them in melted beeswax.
Here’s Tony Houston playing his black Strat in 1980 with his band BLACKMALE, getting awesome feedback at around 2:38.
I gigged with it until 1988, when it was almost stolen at a show. I decided then to retire it, as I had brought a couple more Strats. In the mid-90s, I decided to restore it to factory specs. I’d kept the original bridge pickup and the original bridge. While testing the bridge pickup with a multimeter, I found it had a short. I sent it to Lindy Fralin and had it wound to original spec.
Since being in quarantine, I have it tuned to Eb now, and, at 70 years old, decided that I was going to properly learn to play Jimi’s “Little Wing.”
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