I had been looking at the 70's Explorers since they came out a few years ago. The regular one with the natural finish can be hard to buy online since Gibson doesn't always seam up the pieces of wood very well, and all of the Classic White ones I saw had developed cracks in the finish near the fingerboard binding and neck joint. I always wanted a black explorer, and this one is perfect! Not a flaw to be found, and I am extremely picky when it comes to factory blemishes.The white pickguard looks great, the matching neck binding adds something that very few explorers ever left the factory with previously, and the gold hardware is reminiscent of the late 70's models that came from the old factory with all-gold hardware. I like that they didn't spec gold speed knobs, and stayed with the black. The cream switch tip is a little odd, so I swapped it out with a bright white one I had to match the other white plastics.The pickups have gold slugs and pole pieces, which is a nice little tribute to the models from the 70's that had gold pickup covers originally. A lot of folks assume these are going to be harsh and unusable pickups, but that is not my impression at all. They are clear and articulate, not bassy or mushy, and don't seem to overpower the front end of an amp much at all - just great tones all around that can easily be dialed back with the volume controls. Great sustain, too.Couldn't be happier with zZounds - I ordered on a Saturday and the guitar was in my hands the next day… read more - a Sunday!!

Musical Background:
Been playing 30+ years

Musical Style:
Rock/blues read less