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tjon901 « Mark Morton signature »
Published on 10/30/11 at 09:03Mark Morton is one of the guitar players from the band Lamb of God. This is his Jackson signature guitar. You can tell the type of guitars he likes to play from the features on this model. This model has a very Les Paul like feel to it. It has a unique shape which is kind of like the mix between a Fender Jaguar and a Gibson Les Paul. The guitar has a chambered mahogany body with a quilted maple top. The neck is mahogany with neck through construction. The neck is reinforced with with graphite rods so it is super stable. The neck is 24.75 inch scale and has 22 jumbo frets on an ebony fretboard. The neck also features Jacksons compound radius design. Up top on the headstock you get Sperzel locking tuners and a locking Schaller bridge. The pickups in this guitar are well known but in a configuration you do not see much. This guitar has dual Seymour Duncan 59s in the neck and bridge positions. Controls are classic with a volume and tone for each pickup with mini toggles for coil splitting and a 3 way switch for pickup selecting.
UTILIZATION
Jackson manages to mix their trademark shred playability with the classic feel of a Les Paul. The 24.75 scale is something you do not see much on a Jackson but this guitar does it well. The compound radius lets you get good comfort up and down the neck. On the high end of the neck the radius is 16 inches so you can get a low easy action for lead playing. Down at the low end the radius is 10 inches so you can play chords comfortably. This combined with the ebony fretboard and jumbo frets means this guitar is a dream to play. With the chambered body the guitar is really light. This combined with the reinforced neck tells me this guitar was made to be played out on the road.
SOUNDS
Dual 59s is not a common set of pickups and even less common on a metal guitar. I expected this guitar to have a JB in the bridge and was very surprised to see two 59's. Mark Morton must run a very clear amp setup because the 59 in the bridge can get muddy quickly. These pickups are more voiced for vintage tones than metal riffs. Maybe he uses them in single coil mode a lot. I found it hard to get a clear heavy sound on the bridge position with the 59. The 59 in the neck however is a classic lead sound that is commonly used. The creamyness of the 59 is an advantage when you are playing leads in the neck position. The slight muddyness of the 59 makes your leads sound better and they never come out sounding harsh. Personally I would swap in a JB in the bridge position on this guitar. The 59 is a good pickup but I dont think it has enough bite for metal music.
OVERALL OPINION
This guitar has some unique features that people may like. If you are just looking for a rocking guitar that feels like a Les Paul you can shred on this guitar is great. Not often do you find a signature guitar that does something different that people might actually find useful. Mark Morton makes it work for him in his metal situation and for me with a minor pickup swap it would work as well. A metal guitar that can do more than metal is always a good thing. Also it doesnt have any stupid logos or anything on it. A proper signature guitar.
UTILIZATION
Jackson manages to mix their trademark shred playability with the classic feel of a Les Paul. The 24.75 scale is something you do not see much on a Jackson but this guitar does it well. The compound radius lets you get good comfort up and down the neck. On the high end of the neck the radius is 16 inches so you can get a low easy action for lead playing. Down at the low end the radius is 10 inches so you can play chords comfortably. This combined with the ebony fretboard and jumbo frets means this guitar is a dream to play. With the chambered body the guitar is really light. This combined with the reinforced neck tells me this guitar was made to be played out on the road.
SOUNDS
Dual 59s is not a common set of pickups and even less common on a metal guitar. I expected this guitar to have a JB in the bridge and was very surprised to see two 59's. Mark Morton must run a very clear amp setup because the 59 in the bridge can get muddy quickly. These pickups are more voiced for vintage tones than metal riffs. Maybe he uses them in single coil mode a lot. I found it hard to get a clear heavy sound on the bridge position with the 59. The 59 in the neck however is a classic lead sound that is commonly used. The creamyness of the 59 is an advantage when you are playing leads in the neck position. The slight muddyness of the 59 makes your leads sound better and they never come out sounding harsh. Personally I would swap in a JB in the bridge position on this guitar. The 59 is a good pickup but I dont think it has enough bite for metal music.
OVERALL OPINION
This guitar has some unique features that people may like. If you are just looking for a rocking guitar that feels like a Les Paul you can shred on this guitar is great. Not often do you find a signature guitar that does something different that people might actually find useful. Mark Morton makes it work for him in his metal situation and for me with a minor pickup swap it would work as well. A metal guitar that can do more than metal is always a good thing. Also it doesnt have any stupid logos or anything on it. A proper signature guitar.