GUITARS
I’VE BEEN USING TOKAI & ESP GUITARS PRETTY MUCH ALWAYS.
WHEN I STARTED TO PLAY BACK IN 1989 I WENT THROUGH MANY BRANDS & MODELS FOR SEVERAL YEARS BUT AS SOON AS I GOT MY HANDS ON THE TWO I KNEW I HAD
FOUND MY GUITARS. I’VE BEEN ALSO ENDORSED BY ESP SINCE EARLY 2000s WHICH IS PRETTY DAMN AWESOME. BIGGEST THANKS FOR MAKING THAT HAPPEN GOES TO MUSAMAAILMA’s KAI SAARIKKO. I ALSO WANT TO THANK ESP’s TONY RAUSER FOR ALL THE SUPPORT THROUGHOUT THE YEARS.
IN THE MID 90s I HAD A CHEAP LES PAUL COPY AND THE PICKUPS WERE JUST NOT HAPPENING. I WANTED SOMETHING MORE BALLSY AND, LACK OF A BETTER WORD, EVEN. JUST SOMETHING THAT WOULD PICKUP MY PICKING & SOUND WITHOUT ANY FLAWS NO MATTER WHAT, AND HOW I WOULD PLAY.
I WENT TO MUSAMAAILMA AND THEY HANDED ME EMG 81 FOR BRIDGE AND 85 FOR NECK AND TOLD ME THAT ZAKK WYLDE USES THESE TOO. I THOUGHT THAT IF
THESE ARE GOOD ENOUGH FOR HIM THEY ARE PROBABLY GOOD ENOUGH FOR ME TOO :-). REMEMBER KIDS THAT THERE WAS NO INTERNET BACK IN THE DAY SO THAT KIND
OF INFORMATION WAS QUITE HARD TO GET.
I ALSO HAVE A FEW DIFFERENT Seymour Duncan PASSIVE PICKUPS ON SOME OF MY GUITARS WHICH I LIKE TOO.
SIMILAR THING HAPPENED WITH STRINGS THAN WITH GUITARS. I TRIED MANY DIFFERENT BRANDS BUT AS SOON AS I TRIED DR STRINGS I KNEW I HAD FOUND THE ONES. IN 2024 I GOT AN ARTISTS ENDORSEMENT DEAL WITH THEM WHICH IS AMAZING: EV DR STRINGS ARTIST PROFILE.
I USE DIFFERENT GAUGES DEPENDING ON THE TUNING AND THE GUITAR BUT USUALLY IT’S LIKE THIS:
09 - 46 TITE FIT & DRAGON SKIN+ FOR E / DROP-D
10 - 52 TITE FIT & DRAGON SKIN+ FOR Eb / DROP-Db
10 - 56 TITE FIT FOR D / DROP-C
11 - 60 CUSTOM TITE FIT SET FOR C / DROP-Bb
12 - 60 DDT FOR B / DROP-A
10 - 52 + 70 TITE FIT WITH 7 STRING TUNED to B / DROP-A and Bb / DROP-Ab
11 - 60 + 80 TITE FIT WITH 7 STRING TUNED to Ab / DROP-Gb
BASS:
45-105 DDT FOR E / DROP-D and Eb / DROP-Db
55-115 DDT FOR C / DROP-Bb and B / DROP-A
65-125 DDT FOR Bb / DROP-Ab and Ab / DROP-Gb
MY GUITARS & BASSES PICTURED BELOW.
