Epiphone has unveiled the latest Les Paul Custom in its signature guitar partnership with Tool’s Adam Jones. The limited edition guitar is the third of seven in the Adam Jones Art Collection and it pairs the handsome Antique Silverburst singlecut with the artwork of Julie Heffernan.
Heffernan’s piece, titled ‘Study For Self-Portrait With Rose Skirt And A Mouse’, is featured on the back of the body, with Korin Faught’s art on the rear of headstock a feature of the series. Build-wise, the Adam Jones x Julie Heffernan spec is identical to that of the Frank Frazetta ‘Berzerker’ and Mark Ryden ‘The Veil Of Bees’ models, which goes to say that this is as high-end as Epiphone gets without decamping to the USA for production.
Here we have a solid mahogany body, a maple cap with seven-ply binding on the top, five-ply on the back of the body and on the headstock. That 12” radius ebony fingerboard is classed up also with some binding along the edge, with the pearloid block inlays in keeping with the Les Paul Custom designation. Accordingly, you have the split-diamond inlay on the headstock.
The guitar hasn’t been aged but that Silverburst finish has been artificially given the vintage treatment, with just a hint of green in that silver – just as the original Gibson Silverburst finishes, popularised by the likes of Jones and of Mastodon’s Brent Hinds and Bill Kelliher, would do over time.
Once more, Jones goes for an open-coil Seymour Duncan Distortion humbucker at the bridge position, offering plenty of output for high-gain styles, while a reverse-mounted Epiphone ProBucker Custom offers a nice contrast at the neck. The control setup comprises a shoulder-mounted three-way pickup selector switch with a chrome tip, with individual volume and tone controls for each pickups.
Epiphone has used CTS pots and Orange Drop capacitors in the wiring loom, which is some guarantor that when you turn the controls there will be an appreciable difference. As with any Les Paul worth its salt, this Adam Jones model will have an abundance of tone-shaping power on board.
It has been fitted with a LockTone Tune-O-Matic bridge and LockTone stop bar tailpiece, and a set of vintage-style Chrome 16:1 ratio tuners. The nickel hardware complements that finish nicely. And to protect that finish, the model ships in a Protector Series hard-shell guitar case.
The Julie Heffernan model is limited to 800 units worldwide and is priced £1,349 / $1,299. For more details, head over to Epiphone.
