Elements of a Metal guitar
There are guitars, and then there are metal guitars. There is a reason that Slayer doesn't play Telecasters! So what are the elements of a true metal guitar? Here are my thoughts:
Pickups
The right pickups are essential to achieving a great sound. For metal, a double coil humbucker at the bridge is a must. EMG active pickups are the dominant choice of most metal guitarists. My favorite of all time is the Seymour Duncan invader because you can get a thick sound on the lows and sharp harmonics. The Rockfield FatAss pickups which B.C. Rich used on their high end guitars in the mid 2000s had a great sound as well.
That said, don't sleep on a guitar with a "hot rails" pickup at the bridge. Hot rails are humbuckers that are the same size as a single coil pickup. They use rail magnets (hence the name) and can be dropped into the slot of a single coil guitar pickup to turn your twanger into an instrument of auditory aggression!
TopAction
If you want to play aggressive music at blazing speeds, then your axe needs to have the right action. Shredders need a low, smooth action so that they can fly across the fretboard. The higher and tighter your strings are, the harder you have to press to hit a note...and that will slow you down. But at the same time, you don't want the action to be mushy so that your pick attack has no definition. You need to have enough tension on the strings to give your gallups, harmonics and speed picking snaps.
TopLook
Metal is primarily about the music, but image ain't exactly nothing and look still matters. A metal guitar should be pointy enough to impale your fallen foes, and evil enough to inspire younger generations to take up arms and axes. When chosing a guitar for metal, ask yourself this; "Would a viking warrior or gothic horde mistake this for a weapon?" If the answer is no, then keep shopping!
Top