Mike Sullivan

Bridge: High Wind Imperial

On his '57 Les Paul, Mike removed the pickups with a set of Dirty Fingers pickups, mainly for the bass and mid-range.

"I'd also try different guitars for different takes – so if I was doing an overdub I'd look for a different tone for it. Most of it was still Les Pauls – an ebony Custom. I'm using Bare Knuckle Miracle Man pickups and for the louder, heavier songs they sounded awesome."

-Mike Sullivan; MusicRadar Interview

Mike’s current main squeeze is a 1985 Gibson Les Paul Custom that he bought in his hometown of Chicago at Rock N Roll Vintage. Since acquiring the guitar, he dropped in new pickups—a high-wound Lollar Imperial in the bridge and a standard Lollar Imperial in the neck. Sullivan goes with D’Addario NYXL .011–.056 strings and tunes this one to a DADGAD variant—C#-G#-D-G-C-A#. When it comes to picks, he’s been loyal to the Dunlop Max-Grip Jazz III since he found some inside a box for an Andy Timmons pedal.

On the neck pickup of the '57 Les Paul is a 498 humbucker, used for brightness as well as mids.

"Sullivan’s new love is a Fano RB6 that he recently received from the boutique guitar maker’s custom shop. “It comes down to the clarity thing,” Sullivan says. “You hit a chord and you hear every note. The Lollar P-90’s in the neck and bridge just sound incredible, and just have a pure organic tone. There’s nothing to hide behind.”"

-Premier Guitar; Rig Rundown with Russian Circles